At 9:05 AM, in an alley diagonally opposite the Hunter's Guild.
Long Yuehong, after confirming that no one was following, cautiously ran in and said to Bai Chen, who was hiding in the corner:
"You can go to the Guild to accept the task now."
Bai Chen removed the beret from her head and the mask from her face, and tugged at her dusty scarf:
"Okay."
She felt it was necessary to cooperate with the investigation to clear her suspicion and have the Guild withdraw the task. Otherwise, waves of Ruins Hunters coming to find her would be really annoying and bring unnecessary danger.
The only thing she couldn't understand was why Long Yuehong insisted on scouting first before going to the hall. It wasn't like it was a dragon's pool or a tiger's den.
But since this newcomer assigned by the company had such a cautious awareness, it was still worth encouraging.
Accompanying Bai Chen out of the alley, under the gazes that swept over them one after another, Long Yuehong instructed:
"When someone asks you questions later, touch your pocket once every minute."
Bai Chen said with amusement:
"Do you really believe that mumbo-jumbo guy?"
The guy who rented the place across from them clearly had a handsome face but acted like a lunatic.
However, now that she thought about it, if she hadn't found nothing when she touched her pocket later, Bai Chen would have really believed that there was a paper-folded star in her pocket.
Even so, thinking about what that guy said about waiting until someone asks you before touching your pocket, and that if you touch it, it means you're dreaming, Bai Chen wasn't so sure that there really wasn't a paper-folded star.
She had encountered and heard about some magical things, especially involving Awakened Ones.
It seems that subconsciously I still believe in this matter... Bai Chen didn't think much about it and entered the Guild hall ahead of several Ruins Hunters who were approaching.
Once inside, she wasn't in such a hurry and looked up at the content rolling on the big screen, broadcast simultaneously:
"Task: Find the suspect in the Eugene disappearance case.
"Description: A man and a woman. The man is about 1.8 meters tall, wearing a navy blue down jacket and a baseball cap; the woman is about 1.7 meters tall, wearing a gray cotton-padded jacket, also wearing a baseball cap...
"Reward: As long as it can pass the review and is confirmed to be valid, each clue is a minimum of 10 Aure, and a maximum of 500 Aure.
"Task Level: C, 100 Credit Points.
"..."
Immediately afterward, Bai Chen saw her photo on the big screen:
"Task: Find Ruins Hunter Bai Chen.
"Description: Female, formerly known as Qian Bai, Bai Feng, involved in the Eugene disappearance case, about 1.6 meters tall, short hair, see photo for details.
"Reward: Providing clues will earn 5 Aure per valid clue, bringing Bai Chen to the Guild or the City Defense Army headquarters will earn 20 Aure.
"Task Level: e, 10 Credit Points."
They really are looking for me... Bai Chen glanced around, noticing a man in a dark black thick wool coat looking at her.
She had seen this Ruins Hunter before and had heard Long Yuehong mention his name earlier, knowing that he was "Advanced Hunter" Odick.
Bai Chen indifferently withdrew her gaze, walked to a window in the round platform area, and calmly said:
"I'm accepting the task."
"Which task?" the female clerk at the window asked instinctively.
According to their work rules, they couldn't directly let the Ruins Hunters who came over operate the machines themselves. They had to complete this service before making a reminder.
"Finding Ruins Hunter Bai Chen." Bai Chen didn't have any awkward feeling about saying her own name.
"Okay, please give me your Hunter badge," the clerk said with a smile.
She took the badge, swiped it, and suddenly froze.
After a few seconds, she slightly raised her head and looked outside through the glass:
"You, are you Bai Chen?"
Bai Chen's registered Hunter name was Qian Bai, but Eugene provided her real name.
"Yes," Bai Chen said quite frankly, "Taking the opportunity to earn some money."
The clerk didn't react for a while:
"Then I'll directly select 'Task Completed' for you?
"Also, please wait here for a while, I'll report it."
Bai Chen said directly:
"It's best to have someone who can make decisions come over. If I'm to cooperate with the investigation, my conditions must be met."
The clerk, of course, couldn't directly agree to her request and picked up the phone on the table to report the matter.
Not long after, a tall, thin man, surrounded by several bodyguards, came to the hall and walked towards Bai Chen.
His hair was relatively sparse but still black. Wrinkles had grown at the corners of his eyes, mouth, and forehead. The most obvious feature was his large nose.
"I'm Cui En, the vice president of the Guild." The tall, thin man nodded and introduced himself.
Then, he said quite politely:
"Ms. Bai Chen, don't be nervous. The City Defense Army is just looking for you to assist in the investigation."
Bai Chen said to herself:
"I have two conditions:
"First, I don't trust them. You know, in many places, they couldn't find the real culprit, so they just pulled a few scapegoats and forcibly identified them as the murderers. Therefore, I will only accept questioning and cooperate with the investigation here at the Guild.
"Second, I still have tasks to complete and need to earn money to survive. Time is of the essence, so please be quick."
The Hunter's Guild's purpose has always been to serve Hunters, facilitate Hunters, and become a home for Hunters in some sense. Regardless of whether this has really been achieved, at least no high-level Guild official would dare to deny it in public. Cui En was no exception.
Plus, the local Hunter's Guild has a special relationship with the City Lord's Mansion. Bai Chen's request was easily met. Cui En pondered slightly and said with a smile:
"Okay.
"Rest assured, if you haven't done anything, the Guild won't stand by and watch you be wronged."
Cui En said the latter sentence very loudly so that the surrounding Ruins Hunters could hear it.
With the promise of the vice president in charge of Hunter affairs, Bai Chen felt relieved and followed them upstairs to a small room.
There was only a rectangular table with a back chair on each side.
Bai Chen sat in the innermost seat and subconsciously reached out to explore her pocket.
She forcibly controlled her impulse and mocked herself silently:
"I'm really influenced by that mumbo-jumbo guy..."
She still believed, even now, that a paper-folded star would suddenly appear in her pocket.
After waiting for a while, Cui En came in with his bodyguards and said with some apology:
"The City Defense Army called back and said they can't send anyone over until the afternoon.
"You can go and take care of your own business first and then come back, how about that?"
"Even if you're not afraid that I'll run away, I have to worry about other Ruins Hunters harassing me. Let's resolve this matter as soon as possible," Bai Chen said quite insistently and candidly.
Cui En thought for a moment:
"Then I'll communicate with them again and try to have our people take charge of it."
In essence, there was no difference. Everyone was serving the City Lord's Mansion.
Bai Chen nodded and waited quietly.
About a quarter of an hour later, Cui En returned to the room and said with a smile:
"It's been coordinated. We've found a professional and trustworthy person to be responsible for the subsequent questioning and investigation."
With that, he introduced the man next to him:
"This is 'Advanced Hunter' Odick. One of his nicknames is 'Lie Detector'. No lie can escape him."
Odick, with black hair and blue eyes, nodded slightly, considering it a greeting.
Seeing that the interrogator had arrived, Bai Chen remembered Long Yuehong's instructions and instinctively raised her hand to the edge of her pocket.
At this time, Cui En had led his bodyguards out and closed the door.
Bai Chen took the opportunity to put her hand into her pocket.
In the next second, her pupils dilated slightly.
She felt a paper-folded object!
She really felt a paper-folded object in her pocket!
She had confirmed that it wasn't there before going out!
This means... I'm dreaming? Corresponding memories surged up. Bai Chen suddenly broke free from a slightly muddled state and found herself walking out of the "Today" nightclub with Long Yuehong, with Eugene's fierce gaze seemingly behind her.
I'm dreaming... Bai Chen's heart stirred. She didn't show the slightest abnormality and replicated the scene from her memory, silently walking back to the building where "Afu Gun Shop" was located.
Then, she entered her room, lay down on the upper bunk of the bunk bed, and stared blankly at the ceiling in pain.
Just like that, she fell asleep at some point. When she woke up, after eating breakfast, Long Yuehong walked into the room and told her that the Guild had issued a task and that Ruins Hunters were looking for her, asking her to do some disguising when she went out.
During this process, Bai Chen deliberately omitted the scene where that mumbo-jumbo guy appeared, not letting him participate.
Dong, dong, dong... Suddenly, Bai Chen heard a knock on the door and woke up.
She found herself still in the small room in the Hunter's Guild.
Odick, who had been sitting across from her at some point, put away his knocking fingers, and his blue eyes calmly said:
"You fell asleep.
"Were you agonizing over Eugene's matter last night, tossing and turning and unable to sleep?"
"Yes, I wish I could kill him, but I don't have the ability, and I'm shaking with fear of him," Bai Chen said frankly.
She had a clear conscience.
Odick looked at her for a few seconds and nodded slightly:
"You're not lying."
He then asked a few more questions, and all received honest answers.
Bai Chen even took off her scarf and showed him the slave tattoo on her neck.
This made Bai Chen feel a little strange because she usually didn't want others to see this, but today she did it quite naturally.
Her explanation for this was to get rid of suspicion as soon as possible.
"I can understand your pain and fear," Odick said a useless sentence, then stood up and said, "You can leave now."
"So fast?" Bai Chen was quite surprised.
Odick responded simply:
"Because you're not lying."
Bai Chen didn't delve into it and stood up and left the room.
Back in the lobby on the first floor, she collected 20 Aure in paper money and 10 Credit Points. She met up with Long Yuehong, who was still a "Rookie Hunter," and walked out of the Guild hall, turning towards the central square.
On the way, Bai Chen encountered the mumbo-jumbo guy and his companion who lived across from her.
Just as they were about to pass each other, Shang Jianyao smiled and took out a nameplate, discreetly gesturing with it on his chest.
It was a nameplate with red background and gold lettering.
It said:
"Pangu Biology"
As soon as Bai Chen saw the nameplate, it was as if she had connected to the circuit of memories. Matters concerning Shang Jianyao and Jiang Baimian surged back into her mind.
She bit her teeth tightly, preventing herself from showing any abnormality.
After the two sides had distanced themselves, she slightly moved the corners of her mouth and raised her hand to cover her slightly reddened eyes.
It feels so good to have companions.