Chapter 107: Within Reach

“This is the mayor,” Zhi Huan said, pointing to the last hospital bed where a person was wrapped most tightly. Only he was bound with restraints around his limbs and waist, tightly wound.

Clearly, the symptoms of his body parts becoming ‘possessed’ were the most severe.

“Why is his mouth also gagged?” The warm-hearted man crossed his arms, asking with keen interest.

Zhi Huan chose to answer with action, yanking out the cloth stuffed in the mayor’s mouth.

In an instant, a loud, piercing scream echoed throughout the room.

“Old Li! Save me! Please save me! Don’t keep me tied up! Help me! Help me... sob sob.”

The noise was overwhelming. No sooner had the mayor opened his mouth than Zhi Huan, wearing a look of disdain, shoved the cloth back in.

“See? If you don’t gag him, he’ll keep yelling nonstop, from start to finish. And... if different parts of his body are freed at the same time, the effects differ.”

Saying this, Zhi Huan removed the gag again and untied the restraints on the mayor’s left hand.

Suddenly, the room was filled with chaotic noise again, but immediately, a sharp, resonant smack drowned out the mayor’s voice.

Smack!

A vivid red palm print appeared on the mayor’s face. His lips trembled violently as he tried to cry out, but the same left hand that had just slapped him was raised again high.

“Save me! Old Li! I want to amputate! I want to amputate! Cut off this damn left hand for me!”

Smack! Smack!

Beaten senseless by two consecutive slaps, the mayor couldn’t utter a word. Seeing the left hand raise again for another slap, Zhi Huan hurriedly untied the mayor’s right hand as well.

Bang!

The newly freed right hand swiftly struck the left arm mid-swing. The mayor’s face contorted in intense pain.

But the right hand seemed numb, clenching into a fist and continuing to attack the left hand, which responded fiercely in kind.

For a moment, the two hands fought each other in a relentless duel, neither gaining the upper hand. Qi Chen and the warm-hearted man watched in stunned silence.

Everyone else in the room, however, seemed accustomed to this scene, wearing only expressions of speechless resignation.

“Tie him up again quickly!” Yan Yan snorted, unable to bear it any longer.

Zhi Huan promptly restrained the mayor tightly once more. After finishing, he wiped the sweat off his forehead and said helplessly:

“We just untied him a little, and look how much chaos it caused. If we freed his feet too, it would be even more intense.”

Qi Chen and the warm-hearted man exchanged sympathetic glances toward the mayor lying on the bed. No one deserved this.

No wonder the doctors said this wasn’t physiological—it was a matter directly reported to Old Li for the eerie walkers to handle.

The mayor and several special ops members’ conditions indeed resembled some strange influence.

...

...

“Did you two just sense any eerie aura?” Yan Yan turned to ask Qi Chen and the warm-hearted man, especially Qi Chen.

After all, Qi Chen was well known within the eerie affairs department for his high mental resilience; he might detect eerie auras that ordinary walkers could miss.

However, Qi Chen frowned, thought for a moment, and slowly shook his head.

“I didn’t feel any eerie aura coming from him... Maybe we should try untying his hands a bit longer?”

The mayor on the bed suddenly struggled violently, his gaze toward Qi Chen having changed.

A devil disguised in human skin?

“Better not,” Zhi Huan said with a forced smile as he caught sight of the mayor’s reaction. “If we can’t sense it, it just confirms our earlier guess. The eerie power on the mayor and those special ops guys isn’t from natural eerie sources, but rather the abilities of eerie walkers.”

If it were natural eerie phenomena, there would be a discernible eerie aura released. But if it’s from eerie walkers, many special powers won’t emit any eerie aura.

For example, objects whose hardness has been altered by the warm-hearted man’s ability don’t pick up any eerie aura.

“But since it’s from eerie walkers, the range, intensity, and duration of their powers can hardly compare to natural eerie,” the experienced warm-hearted man took over the analysis. “Even the remote-type eerie with wider range can’t reach beyond Huangshi Town!”

“Exactly.” Yan Yan’s deep voice affirmed this, every movement exuding the aura of an elite soldier. “If the source is indeed an eerie walker, then whoever influenced the mayor and those special ops members must still be in Huangshi Town.”

“Because more and more people keep showing the same symptoms, and the symptoms continue to worsen.”

“That’s the main reason why we called for reinforcements from City No. 3. Our personnel can’t be scattered too thin searching the town. If we spread out, we risk being picked off one by one by potential enemies. And Zhi Huan and I can’t leave Old Li’s side easily; if Old Li is the target, it would be disastrous.”

At this point, Qi Chen nearly grasped the entire situation. Their primary mission in Huangshi Town wasn’t merely escort duty but to assist Old Li and others stranded there in resolving this eerie incident.

If Old Li weren’t here, Yan Yan and Zhi Huan could have gone to town themselves to investigate. But Old Li was the key figure, and the two veterans couldn’t leave him unguarded.

Moreover, the distance between Huangshi Town and City No. 3 wasn’t short, so they had to rely on Fu Ying to summon new eerie walkers for assistance.

The longer this dragged on, the greater the risk. No wonder Fu Ying and the administration had ordered them to rendezvous with Old Li as swiftly as possible.

“Now that we’ve preliminarily identified the target as an eerie walker rather than a natural eerie phenomenon, the rest is up to you two—Warm-Hearted and Face Mask,” Yan Yan’s face grew serious. This concerned Old Li’s safety; he must ensure everything was foolproof!

“No worries, don’t rush either,” Old Li chuckled, handing two oranges to the eerie walkers present.

“It’s been a long time since I left the city. It’s good to experience the scenery outside. Only by understanding life beyond the city, by truly going down to the grassroots, can we know how to guide the future construction of City No. 3.”

“You two, just be steady and careful. Watch your safety; this old man isn’t in any hurry.”

“Take your time.”

...