Jiangcheng Special Investigation Bureau office building, basement archives room.
The smell of printer ink floated in the air. The hum of the dehumidifier working in the corner was highly irritating.
An archivist squatted on the floor, flipping through a stack of files that was half a person tall.
Although a “paperless office” had been advocated for a long time, ever since the appearance of the mouse spirit that could speak and run livestreams, the archives bureau had gained an extra task: preserving paper records.
Standing nearby was a rookie agent who had joined only six months ago. He held a registration log in his arms, not having written a single word for a long time.
“Sister Wang, is the Lu family's case really going to be settled like this?”
The rookie agent lowered his voice, his eyes wide. “Over a dozen people aged and died overnight. The oldest was barely in his early fifties, and the youngest had just turned eighteen. To say they died of illness—who would believe that?”
Without even looking up, the archivist pulled out the top file, which was stamped with a bright red “Top Secret” mark.
“Whether they believe it or not, the facts are right there. The scene investigation report, forensic identification, and supernatural detection data are in a thick stack. Do you want to read them?”
Only a few words were written in the paper file. The actual content required logging into the intranet and activating clearance to view.
“But the more I think about it, the weirder it gets.”
The young agent swallowed hard. “It's not surprising that Lu Bingkun died, since he didn't have many days left anyway.
“But his children were all in their prime, completely healthy. How did they wither away in a single night?
“There wasn't even a single external injury. It's as if their longevity was drained.”
When he mentioned the words “longevity was drained,” he unconsciously lowered his voice even further, feeling an inexplicable chill run down his spine.
The archivist straightened her back, picked up her thermos, and took a sip of hot tea. The rising steam softened her expression slightly.
“What you're saying now matches the first theory currently circulating within the bureau.”
“Three theories, right?” A colleague nearby got excited and edged closer to the two of them.
“I heard some people from the technical department chatting privately. They said there are three internal theories. The first is that Chen Shulan's vengeful spirit sought revenge. With the spiritual energy recovery, a fierce ghost that had been suppressed for decades escaped to claim lives, draining the longevity of her enemy's entire clan.”
“Yes, that one has the most support,” the archivist agreed, nodding.
“The dirty things Lu Bingkun did back then have almost all been dug up now. The authorities in Hong Kong should be about to take action against the Lu Group.
“Killing his wife and children, swallowing his in-laws' family assets, using his first wife's ashes to set up a wealth-gathering array, and even suppressing her soul for decades... If it were me, I'd also make him my first target after becoming a ghost.”
“What about the second theory? That a player might be posing as Chen Shulan?”
“That's not impossible either. The classes awakened now are highly diverse, like Physician, Butcher, and Shepherd. I heard a Spirit Medium was even detected this week.
“If someone really wanted to target the Lu family and used Chen Shulan's name to play ghost while using a special skill to drain people's lifespans, it's entirely possible.
“After all, if a fierce ghost was really seeking revenge, why didn't she come sooner or later, but chose exactly this moment?”
“A player? But what would a player gain from this?”
The young agent frowned. “Money? The ones who died in the Lu family were all the core members in power. The assets will ultimately go to the descendants of the Chen family. Where would such a powerful player come from?”
“That's why the third theory is even more mysterious.”
The colleague lowered his voice. “Many people suspect that it wasn't Chen Shulan, but a real underworld messenger. Lu Bingkun invited a ghost to extend his lifespan, but somehow offended the underworld messenger...”
The other two gasped in unison.
“An underworld messenger? Does the underworld really exist? Then why have we never seen one before?”
“Exactly. If there are underworld messengers, does that mean there must also be the Eighteen Levels of Hell and the Yama King?”
“Who knows?”
The archivist sighed.
“How long has it been since the spiritual energy recovery started? How many Instances have appeared? Just because it didn't exist before doesn't mean it won't exist in the future.
“If the underworld system really emerged alongside the spiritual energy, then things are going to get very lively from now on.”
The archives room fell silent for a few seconds.
After a long while, someone muttered in a low voice:
“No matter which one it is, one thing is set in stone—Lu Bingkun was trying to alter his lifespan.”
As soon as these words were spoken, the air in the room grew a bit heavier.
Lifespan.
These two words weighed heavily on everyone's hearts, like a thousand-pound weight.
Since ancient times, from emperors and generals down to commoners and peddlers, who didn't seek longevity? Who didn't fear dying of old age?
In the past, seeking immortality and practicing Dao were just legends and deceptive arts.
But things were different now.
Spiritual energy was recovering, Instances truly existed, and supernatural abilities were blossoming everywhere.
Even something like draining longevity had actually happened.
If this news leaked out, how many people would go mad?
The wealthy, the powerful, and those afraid of death would fight to the death to seize this kind of ability—there was no telling how chaotic things would get then.
That was why the Special Investigation Bureau had suppressed the news so tightly.
The scene videos, surveillance footage, autopsy reports, and supernatural data were all classified as top secret.
Everyone who handled the case had signed non-disclosure agreements, and even the families of the deceased could only receive an official conclusion of “sudden onset of a rare aging disease.”
Of course, the public statement was that an outbreak of an unknown group illness had occurred, and the cause was currently under investigation.
But even when covered by layers of secrecy, some could still feel the heat of such a raging fire.
Dozens of Lu family members had met with disaster simultaneously, and all of them were core members.
This news had already spread throughout the elite circles; only the ordinary citizens remained in the dark.
...
...
“By the way, how is the Lu family doing now?” someone changed the subject. “With all the people in power dead, who is going to take over such a massive business?”
“How else could they be doing? It's a complete mess.”
“The Jian generation was wiped out cleanly. For the branch in the country, only a few children of the Cheng generation are left. The oldest has just started primary school, and the youngest is still breastfeeding and can't even speak properly. Who can expect them to fight for the family property?”
“What about the shareholders and veterans? Are they just going to watch?”
“Watch? They've already made their moves,” an well-informed agent said with a smirk.
“Before Lu Bingkun's Seventh-Day Return has even passed, several major shareholders flew abroad overnight—I heard they plan to find Chen Jianhua and bring her back to take charge.”
“Chen Jianhua?” A colleague was taken aback. “Which Chen Jianhua?”
“Who else could it be? The eldest daughter of Lu Bingkun's first wife, Chen Shulan. When Chen Shulan died, this girl was only a little over three years old.
“She took her mother's surname and was disliked by her biological father. After reaching adulthood, she studied abroad and eventually settled there, almost completely cutting off contact with the Lu family.”
The archivist immediately understood and gloated, “So according to the order of inheritance...”
“Yes, all that family property will go to her. Lu Bingkun didn't leave a will and died too suddenly. Plus, he had signed prenuptial agreements with his subsequent wives, which clearly outlined the division of assets, meaning the spouses and other children have limited inheritance shares.
“After calculating everything, among the first-in-line heirs, the one with the largest share is actually this eldest daughter born to his first wife, Chen Jianhua.”
“After going around in a huge circle, the family assets that Lu Bingkun swallowed from the Chen family for his entire life have ended up back in the hands of the Chen family's descendants after his death.”
“If that isn't retribution, what is? Back then, he stole their property, took her life, and suppressed her for decades—
“In the end, he died, his lineage was almost wiped out, and his multi-billion dollar empire was returned intact to the Chen family.”
“I really feel like Chen Shulan did this. Wiping out all the competitors who would fight her daughter for the inheritance...”
The archives room fell silent.
That top-secret file was placed back into the iron cabinet.
The decades-long grievances between the Chen family and Lu Bingkun, along with over a dozen lives, ultimately turned into just a few brief lines on the archival paper.
...
...
The news among the public was half a step slower than the Special Investigation Bureau's confidentiality measures, but it spread faster than Song Mo had imagined.
The news of Lu Bingkun's death from illness and the collective outbreak of a strange disease among the Lu family's children first leaked from the financial circles, and was then reposted on the Spirit Realm forum.
A few pixelated funeral photos, combined with some ambiguous “insider leaks”... the gossip-loving public was absolutely thrilled.
【Breaking! Lu Bingkun, the boss of Jiangcheng's Kunsheng Group, is gone. Over a dozen of his children contracted a strange disease, turning white-haired and aging overnight. Suspected supernatural revenge!】
[1st Floor: First! Is this real? Lu Bingkun? The real estate guy? I just saw him on the news a while ago.]
[2nd Floor: I'm from Jiangcheng, let me confirm. The Lu family's One Summit is indeed sealed off. People from the Special Investigation Bureau went there, with over a dozen police cars driving in. The scale was huge.]
[3rd Floor: White hair and aging overnight? What kind of strange disease is so bizarre? Can anyone in the know explain?]
[4th Floor: Expert here. I have some inside info. The official side classified it as a sudden illness, but it was dug up that when Lu Bingkun was young, he caused the death of his first wife, swallowed her family assets, and even buried her bones in a grave to gather wealth.
Now that spiritual energy is recovering, his wife turned into a fierce ghost and came back for revenge, killing all the children in his family, leaving only the grandchildren alive.]
[5th Floor: Holy crap? That's insane! Is it real?]
[8th Floor: Let me chip in. Lu Bingkun's dirty laundry has long been spread in Hong Kong. Everyone knows his rise to wealth wasn't clean.]
[9th Floor: The more you think about it, the scarier it gets... Doesn't that mean those who did bad things in the past have to be careful now? Once spiritual energy recovers, all the vengeful spirits will come back for revenge?]
[10th Floor: Stop scaring people, okay? The banner of materialism will never fall! I still think it's some unknown virus or a hereditary family disease that just happened to trigger at the same time.]
[11th Floor: Hereditary disease my foot. Over a dozen people triggered at the exact same time? And all with aging symptoms? Is your family's hereditary disease that coincidental?]
...
[12th Floor: Oh no, oh no. I stole my neighbor's eggs when I was a kid. Will they come back to seek revenge on me? (doge)]
[13th Floor: Don't joke around, guys. Seriously, I'm starting to panic. When I was young, I got into a fight and hospitalized someone. Will they turn into a ghost and find me?]
[14th Floor: Come on, that's nothing. They had a blood feud of murder and asset-stealing, absolutely irreconcilable. A ghost wouldn't even bother with your trivial matters.]
[15th Floor: Honestly, if it really is vengeful spirits claiming lives, that's so satisfying. How much blood did these black-hearted capitalists suck from ordinary people? They deserved to die.]
[16th Floor: It's satisfying, but scary if you think about it deeply. Will ordinary people have any sense of security in the future? If a random fierce ghost can just kill whoever they want, what then?]
[17th Floor: What are you afraid of? We have the Special Investigation Bureau. Besides, if you do no wrong, you don't fear a ghost knocking at your door. Live an honest life, and why would a ghost come looking for you for no reason?]
[18th Floor: You can't put it that way. What if a bad person controls a fierce ghost to harm others? What if a player kills innocents? In the past, there were laws to govern us. In the future? We rely on ghosts to have morals?]
The post grew taller and tighter.
The discussion gradually shifted from the Lu family's private matters to the social order after the spiritual energy recovery.
Some gloated, while others were terrified.
Some sneered, while others were deeply worried.
As Song Mo scrolled through these posts, the inspirations and settings in her mind were gradually completed bit by bit.
...
...
At the same time, the circles of the wealthy and powerful had already boiled over, though on the surface, they still appeared as still as dead water.
Those who had a similar rise to wealth as Lu Bingkun, who had blood on their hands, or who had risen to power through crooked means, all panicked.
—Some contacted temples and Daoist monasteries overnight, donating incense money, organizing rituals, and requesting protective talismans, spending seven or eight figures without even blinking.
—Others began to frantically do charity work, building schools, constructing hospitals, and donating materials, wishing they could wash themselves into once-in-a-millennium great philanthropists overnight.
—Still others pulled strings and looked for connections, trying to contact powerful players to protect them.
There were also clear-headed people watching coldly from the sidelines.
But the wealthier and more powerful people were, the more they feared death.
And the more they feared death, the more they feared losing what they had, making them easily swept up in panic.
Thus, this storm of public opinion triggered by the downfall of the Lu family was like a pebble thrown into a lake, creating ripples that spread outward.
Meanwhile, the mastermind behind it all, Song Mo, was currently wearing slippers and sitting at a noodle shop downstairs, eating noodles.
Rate on N.U.
