Chapter 242: The Resonator
Chapter 242: The Resonator
As soon as the ritual was completed, Chen Chuan noticed the dematerialization phenomenon on his Second Self significantly weakened, indicating the success of the ritual setup.
However, this was only a temporary restraint on the influence of the entity, and it couldn't last for long.
From this moment on, the ritual materials began to deplete continuously.
If the previous haunting tale they encountered was too weak, this one was too strong. To confine it for an extended period, without any special Tantric ritual tools, they would need a constant supply of materials.
Aside from whether they could find such a large quantity of materials, even if they did, Chen Chuan didn't have the financial resources to sustain such an endeavor. Therefore, if possible, they needed to quickly find a way to weaken or dispose of it as much as possible.
If there was no other way, they would have to give up.
Chen Chuan had done everything within his power, and while he didn't mind lending a hand to others when his abilities were sufficient, he also had his limits.
He gathered his things, left the backyard, and carried Chong Dage's body back to the outskirts of the slum district.
Many people in the surrounding area, having felt the disappearance of the discomforting sensation, rushed into the house. A young man passing by Chen Chuan handed him a bottle of cheap bottled water.
Chen Chuan didn't refuse and thanked him before taking it.
Lao Qi was sitting in the car, struggling to stay awake. He had tried to fight off sleep several times by smoking, but since having a daughter, he had quit. Seeing Chen Chuan, he looked at Chong Dage's body and exclaimed in surprise, "Chong Dage? Brother Chen, who did this?"
Chen Chuan put down the body and explained, "After we left, someone else must have come. They killed Xiao Man, and everything that happened afterward was caused by them."
"Damn!" Lao Qi couldn't help but curse.
Chen Chuan said, "The ritual I set up can last for a day or two at most. It's hard to completely solve the problem, but it's possible to confine this haunting tale to a small area. The condition is to find and deal with the murderer."
"However, when I arrived, everyone around was either unconscious or dead. We need to find someone who was nearby at that time and ask about the situation."
Lao Qi looked at Chong Dage's body and said, "Brother Chen, I know someone who might be able to find answers from Chong Dage's implant and boundary vessel."
Hearing this, Chen Chuan asked, "The person you know, is he a Resonator?"
Lao Qi nodded.
Resonators, also known as Secret Guests, are individuals with implants in their brains and nerves, allowing them to interfere with and disrupt the information exchange between others' boundary vessels and the biota field around them.
Some skilled Resonators can even steal information from boundary vessels and cause others' implants to misjudge external stimuli, leading to incorrect reactions.
Originally, this group was cultivated by government departments and corporations to steal information from competitors. However, as the technology spread and the number of Resonators increased, they became prevalent in society. Nowadays, many organizations hire Resonators to protect against information theft and intrusion from others.
When Chen Chuan browsed the news, he was reminded not to communicate with strangers casually to avoid information theft or boundary vessel disruption by Resonators.
"Are you sure about this?" Chen Chuan asked.
"I think it should be fine," Lao Qi replied.
"Then let's give it a try," said Chen Chuan.
Lao Qi nodded and said, "I'll contact him." He pressed his neck, and an orange light flashed in one of his eyes. After a while, he said, "He's here; let's go."
"Let's go," Chen Chuan agreed.
The two immediately got into the car and left. They turned onto the main street and drove for over an hour before arriving at the entrance of a high-end apartment building.
After making contact and passing through tight security, they entered the apartment building and climbed the stairs to the seventh floor, reaching the apartment door, which was opened from the inside.
A large man with slightly curly hair and a fleshy body opened the door. He had a double chin and fair skin, holding a cup of hot drink that emitted a rich aroma. He waved at them in a friendly manner.
Lao Qi introduced, "Brother Chen, this is Wu Bei, a Resonator employed by our Passage Commission Company. He's a good person, very enthusiastic, and always willing to help those in need."
Wu Bei felt a bit embarrassed by Lao Qi's praise and moved his bulky body to invite them in, "Come in, come in."
Once inside, Lao Qi, aware of the urgency, got straight to the point and briefly explained the situation.
Wu Bei asked in a low voice, "Did you bring the body?"
"It's in my car," Lao Qi replied.
"Okay, let me take a look..."
Wu Bei closed his eyes, and Chen Chuan noticed a faint glow on his neck, the back of his head, and beneath his skin. This was likely due to the surface implant covering the one beneath.
"Umm..."
After observing for a while, Wu Bei suddenly covered his neck as if struggling to breathe. His face turned red, and he seemed unsteady.
Chen Chuan extended a hand and gently supported Wu Bei's arm, effortlessly holding up his three-hundred-pound body.
Wu Bei breathed heavily for a while before recovering. He glanced at Chen Chuan gratefully and said, "I'll transmit it to you..."
Lao Qi immediately said, "I don't need..." But before he could finish, a highly impactful scene from the boundary vessel had already invaded his mind.
He witnessed a vision of himself sitting in a shanty, conversing with Xiao Man. He faintly heard words like "your brother," "sewer hunter," and "human organ trafficking."
Suddenly, the door was kicked open, and a sullen-faced man emerged. The vision of himself pushed Xiao Man aside and engaged in combat with the intruder. The initial exchange was evenly matched, but when the opponent brandished a knife, he relied on his implanted arm to block the attack. During the scuffle, Xiao Man managed to fire a shot at the man, but missed.
Unexpectedly, his arm suddenly stiffened, and his muscles contracted, causing him to stumble forward.
The man thrust his knife into his abdomen, twisted it, and then withdrew it. He wiped the blade on his neck, and a chill ran down his throat.
As he fell, he grabbed the knife, and amidst the blur, he heard a gunshot.
The scene plunged into darkness.
Lao Qi's face paled as he received not only the vision but also Chong Dage's residual memories, emotions, and pain, as if he had experienced the killing firsthand.
Gasping for breath, he braced himself on his knees. Once he regained his composure, he glared at Wu Bei.
Wu Bei, feeling guilty, scratched his head and said, "Sorry, Uncle Qi. It wasn't intentional." He then turned to Chen Chuan.
In contrast, Chen Chuan remained calm, seemingly unaffected. Wu Bei widened his eyes and asked, "Chen, didn't you see that?"
Chen Chuan replied, "I saw it, Wu. Can you identify this person?"
"Yes, just a moment," Wu Bei answered.
Even if the person was a citizen, as long as they knew what the person looked like, they could use the official non-active consciousness body to find information about them.
Soon, he said, "Found him. Bochen... commissioner... " He followed the field exchange information from that time and traced it to a car, "Citizen Lang Teng... commissioner... and another one... hmm..."
He tilted his head slightly, and the light under his skin flickered. "Phew, that was close," he said, relieved.
Addressing the other two, he said, "The last person's biofield was wiped clean. I tried to investigate further, but I almost touched upon the feedback from that person's field. They must be a Resonator too."
Chen Chuan asked, "Are they commissioners? From which company?"
Wu Bei shook his head. "They're not from any commission company. They belong to a delegation team called Golden Shrimp."
Lao Qi's face changed at the mention of the name. "I should have known," he muttered.
Chen Chuan looked at him and said, "Uncle Qi, do you know them?"
"Chen, remember I told you about the delegation team for the Tantric Commission? It's them!" Lao Qi thought for a moment. "But this is too much of a coincidence. There must be a reason."
Using his Boundary Vessel, he checked and found that the Tantric Commission's task was marked as completed. He looked further and discovered a previous cancellation with the reason: "Commission completed, requesting refund of the commission deposit."
"No wonder..."
Lao Qi shook his head. He said, "I told them not to ask for a refund of the commission deposit. It would cause trouble. Once a cancellation is initiated, the commission fee will be frozen for a day, awaiting confirmation, and then most of the fees can be withdrawn, excluding the platform handling fee."
He continued with disdain, "But those Golden Shrimp people probably consider the money theirs once it's on the commission platform. If they hadn't canceled, it would have been fine, but now, they'll definitely attract attention."
Chen Chuan pondered for a moment. This incident was likely triggered by the team's notice of the refund, which led to the killing of Xiao Man, as Chong Dage was with him at the time.
These people probably saw it as a convenient opportunity to kill someone, and Chong Dage was simply an additional casualty.
The next step was to find this Golden Shrimp delegation team.
He thanked Wu Bei.
"No problem," Wu Bei replied.
Chen Chuan said, "Sorry for the trouble. Let's go, Uncle Qi."
Wu Bei hesitated but ultimately scratched his head and said nothing. He saw the two of them out.
Once outside, Lao Qi asked, 'Chen, what do we do now?'
Chen Chuan straightened his collar and quickened his pace slightly. "Uncle Qi, you go back first. I'll deal with the one who attacked."
"But Chen, that's a delegation team. They'll gang up on you, and Golden Shrimp's people are no pushovers. There are fighters, and possibly guns..." Lao Qi hurried to catch up, anxious to warn him.
Chen Chuan paused and turned his head. "If that's the case..." he said calmly, "then we'll deal with them together." With that, he walked out.
...
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(End of Chapter)
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