The Eldritch Files

With the plan set, Han Su and his team drove straight to Highway 17 outside the city.

The first step in capturing the Ghost Truck was to set a trap.

And this area, located at a bend on Highway 17, was the trapping point meticulously chosen by the Doctor.

Here, based on the terrain, they could arrange from three to twelve different blocking positions in a triangular, six-pronged, nine-pointed, or twelve-pointed formation. The more blocking positions, and the stronger the Spiritual Power of the personnel manning them, the more effective the block would naturally be.

Of course, officially, Han Su had only requested three blocking positions, so they wouldn’t need that many.

When Han Su arrived and looked down from the hillside, he saw two vehicles from the execution department approaching from the direction of the city. One car carried Executioners specializing in drawing mystical symbols, while the other was escorting the approved special weapon.

To Han Su’s surprise, the person leading the team was actually an acquaintance.

The Little Fatty who had briefly acted as his captain during a Disaster Management Bureau assessment mission saw Han Su the moment he stepped out of the car, his eyes widening in shock.

Then, he shook his head helplessly. ’This guy climbs the ranks so fast, yet somehow I’m not surprised at all, am I?’

’Just a month ago, he was a rookie I was leading. A month later, I’m the Executioner working for him. This reversal of roles is really something you can’t prepare for...’

Soon, as they worked, a huge symbol about fifty to sixty meters in diameter was drawn out on the highway. Looking down from the hillside, crimson lines formed interlocking patterns of circles and triangles, creating a rather conspicuous and eerie sight.

However, grotesques were not living people; they would, on the contrary, turn a blind eye to such an obvious trap.

Even if one was wary, it would often only realize there was a trap after appearing here and would then try to flee desperately. But the personnel at the blocking positions would forcibly keep it in reality, making escape impossible.

While the mystical ritual was being drawn, another armored vehicle drove up. The security personnel on board carried down a black case and handed it to Han Su to sign for.

This was the special weapon capable of destroying the Ghost Truck:

The Nail of the Dead Sea.

He had long since read about this special weapon, exclusive to the Disaster Management Bureau, in the files, but seeing it up close was still staggering.

After signing for it, Han Su lifted the weapon from the case. It felt incredibly heavy, at least twenty kilograms. Someone without training in Mysterious Power would find it difficult to even wield it flexibly.

Initially, it was only about a meter long in his hand, but when assembled, it formed a mechanical spear a full two meters in length.

The thing didn’t even come with an instruction manual, nor did it need one. Its operation was simple enough: just plunge the Nail of the Dead Sea into the Ghost Truck’s core—that is, its engine—and that would be the end of it.

Miss the mark, and that would also be the end of it.

”A special creation that can kill grotesques...”

The Doctor stood silently to one side, watching with an admiring expression. ”Some of the Disaster Management Bureau’s technological methods are completely different from conventional ones.”

”It’s almost as if they’re branches extending from two completely different tech trees!”

”However, the delivery of this item also means you must complete this mission within twenty-four hours.”

”When does the mission start?”

Hearing this, Black Tiger and Crow, who were standing nearby, also looked up at Han Su.

Han Su was sitting on the roof of a car, watching the sun set in the distance. For a city kid like him, it was a rare sight.

He glanced down at his call with Special Assistant Xu and said in a low voice, ”In twenty minutes.”

The Doctor pushed up his glasses with his index finger, a gesture that seemed to signal his excitement. He smiled. ”In that case, we should get to our blocking positions.”

True to his word, he turned and walked toward his designated position within the mystical symbol, looking more determined than anyone.

Black Tiger, for his part, said nothing, simply picking up his case and leaving.

Miss Crow looked like she wanted to say something, but seeing the look on Han Su’s face as he lowered his head, she simply picked up her case and went on her way in silence.

The three of them walked to three different positions, faintly forming an equilateral triangle with hundred-meter sides, which corresponded with the mystical pattern at Han Su’s feet.

At that moment, Han Su called Xu Ji over. ”You should go,” he said.

Xu Ji had finally gotten a chance to get close and talk to Han Su, only to be hit with this sudden dismissal. He froze for a moment, then said, ”I’m not going.”

”Good.”

Han Su turned off his recording device. ”According to my department’s operational procedures, I’m required to advise civilians like you to leave the area before a mission begins. I’ve now done so. You refused to listen, so anything that happens next is your responsibility.”

”?”

A sense of unease crept into Xu Ji’s heart. He suddenly lowered his voice and asked, ”So, when does it actually start?”

Han Su smiled. ”That depends on how strong your family’s money-tainting ability is.”

...

...

Night had gradually deepened. Han Su watched the surroundings sink into heavy darkness, the brilliant lights of Qinggang City in the distance filling a third of the night sky.

Looking out from his position, he could see three points of light flashing intermittently. Those were his three team members in their blocking positions, sending signals at regular intervals.

Han Su relayed the designated location and time to Special Assistant Xu and waited patiently. Before long, he suddenly saw lines of vehicles with their lights on, approaching from all directions along the pitch-black highway.

The surrounding roads had already been blockaded, making it impossible for ordinary people to get here at this time. It wasn’t hard to guess the identity of these arriving vehicles.

One after another, they rushed to six different locations, gathering in their respective positions like a dark, pressing mass.

Then, their headlights flashed in unison, signaling to Han Su that they were in position and confirming their identities.

”I knew it!”

The arrival of these vehicles, all positioned perfectly at the area’s blocking points, made Han Su’s plan obvious to even the most unobservant person. The Doctor, standing at the bottom of the slope, his eyes shining, sighed with feeling. ”It’s good to have connections...”

Black Tiger suddenly grew wary. ’So many people are here. I hope no one causes trouble.’

Miss Crow, on the other hand, was completely taken aback, her face even turning a little red. ’Auntie set such a difficult price, yet he easily found even more people...’

’Should I tell her? With so many people, a lot of whom look tough to deal with, it’d be useless even if Auntie came, wouldn’t it?’

’...’

”Holy cow...”

In the middle of the ritual circle, Xu Ji, who had been waiting in boredom, suddenly perked up. He looked at the lights shining from six directions and said, ”Old Han, oh, Old Han, I thought you didn’t like a big fuss. I never expected you to put on such a huge show! Compared to us...”

”...the only thing you’re missing is a few hundred pretty girls!”

Seeing all these spots filled with people, Han Su felt his worries melt away, replaced by a faint sense of anticipation.

He turned to Xu Ji with a smile. ”No matter how many people they brought, they’re just support. Tonight, the two of us are the main characters.”

”Are you scared, facing that kind of thing we ran into before again?”

”What’s there to be scared of?”

Xu Ji stood up on the car roof, hands on his hips, and grinned. ”This is just exciting!”

”Besides...”

He suddenly lowered his voice and said to Han Su, ”If this was a problem you could solve on your own, would you have even thought to bring me along?”

”I’m just happy I can help out a brother.”

”...”

Seeing Xu Ji’s unprecedentedly serious expression, Han Su nodded. ”It’s good that you have that awareness.”

”Then you’d better not die later, or I’ll have a hard time explaining it to your family.”

”Huh?”

Xu Ji, who had just been feeling sentimental, suddenly lost his nerve and stammered, ”Wait, is dying really a possibility?”

Han Su had already turned and started walking into the mystical symbol on the ground. He smiled. ”Hurry up. Since the landing net is ready, it’s time for the two of us to lay the bait.”

The mystical symbol was about twenty meters in diameter, its width perfectly matching that of Highway 17. The material used to draw the pattern seemed to be a mixture of substances and incense, and one could smell the faint fragrance of mugwort.

Such a symbol appearing on a highway in the middle of the wilderness was already strange enough, and the nightfall only added to its mystique.

Han Su led Xu Ji to a specific spot. ”The Disaster Management Bureau has a Spell that normally can’t be taught to ordinary people. But you ’overheard’ it while I was practicing.”

”In a moment, we will recite the Spell inside this hexagon, and that will signify the start of the mission.”

”Once you’ve recited it, your part of the mission is over. After that, no matter what happens, just remember to hide behind me as much as possible, understand?”

”...”

Xu Ji was already getting nervous. He craned his neck, looking around warily, and said, ”Don’t worry, you don’t have to teach me that!”

”I learned how to lie at age three and how to deny everything at age four. It’s my family upbringing. I’m way better at it than you.”

”...”

Han Su sighed helplessly. He instinctively wanted to give a few more instructions, but then he remembered the guy’s personality and realized it was unnecessary.

’I might doubt Xu Ji in any other area, but there’s no need to doubt this guy’s survival instincts and shamelessness.’

’After all, he was the first person to sense my intentions and follow me, scared out of his wits, out of that Ancient Castle, all without understanding a thing about the situation...’

He first carefully let Xu Ji ”overhear” the Zero Sequence No. 5 Spell he was going to recite. Then he and Xu Ji took a few steps apart, each standing at a corner of the hexagon, facing each other. Everything around them fell into a dead silence.

The night seemed thicker than usual. The wind in the wilderness rustled through the man-high weeds, swaying them back and forth. A white plastic bag was swept high into the air, drifting about like a Ghost.

Then, Han Su gently held up three fingers, then two, then one.

As the countdown finished, he and Xu Ji spoke at the same time. Their voices overlapped, weaving together and resonating, as if giving rise to some mystical significance:

”I command thee to appear in the Light...”