Chapter 10: Chapter 9: The Forum of Pandemonium
He Xiaotian pretended not to hear. ’Are you kidding me?’
Even at half price, my little piggy bank couldn’t handle the cost of all your manuals put together.
’Do you think I’m some rich kid like you used to be?’
Tossing away a hundred thousand yuan without batting an eye.
Just as Liu Junming was feeling dejected from his failed sales pitch, his phone rang.
"Hello! Director Huang, what’s wrong? What?! I understand. I’m heading back to the station right now."
After hanging up, he immediately grabbed his jacket and headed for the door.
"Cousin, there’s trouble at the station. I have to go back. Just order some takeout for dinner. Bye."
"Wait, cousin, hold on..."
Before He Xiaotian could finish, the security door slammed shut with a BANG. He was clearly in a real hurry.
"Cousin, I just wanted to ask where I can buy wild ginseng."
The whole scene left He Xiaotian not knowing whether to laugh or cry. His cousin couldn’t even wait for him to finish a single sentence.
Although he had lived in Z County his whole life, his world had always been very simple.
His life was a straight line between home and school, day in and day out.
He’d basically never explored the town. How could he compare to his cousin, who’d been a police officer for three years?
The county seat might be small, but it was a sketchy place, and information was hard to come by.
’Never mind finding a place that sells wild ginseng; even if I did, how could I be sure they wouldn’t rip me off?’
’As a simple college student, I’m no match for a ’seasoned cop’.’
’Looks like I’ll have to bother Mom.’
He immediately took out his phone and made the call.
RING... RING... RING...
"Hello? Xiaotian, what is it?" his mother’s voice came through the phone, but for some reason, it sounded anxious.
"Mom, is there trouble at home again?" He Xiaotian frowned, his tone serious.
"No... Nothing’s wrong. Is there something you need? If not, I’m hanging up!"
"Whoa, hold on! Okay, it’s best if nothing’s wrong. I just wanted to ask you, is there anywhere in Z County that sells wild ginseng? If not, a similar supplement would work too."
The other end of the line went silent for a moment as she seemed to be thinking.
"Tongxi Pharmacy. They sell traditional Chinese medicine and have been around for decades. No one’s ever had a bad word to say about them. The owner won’t cheat you."
"Thanks a lot, Mom. Bye."
"Bye."
After ending the call, He Xiaotian’s expression instantly darkened.
’Something’s definitely wrong at home. They’re just hiding it from me.’
’I’m a grown-up now, not some kid who needs you to carry the world for me.’
He muttered to himself and got up. He was going to Tongxi Pharmacy.
"Sharpening your axe won’t delay chopping the firewood." That saying had always been deeply ingrained in his mind.
Because those were his father’s words.
He had to admit, his own strength was minuscule.
Even with the Experience Points system, having learned the > to its initial stage and generating a torrent of Inner Strength as thick as his arm, he still felt it wasn’t safe enough. He needed to get stronger, and fast.
His mother’s tone had been anxious, but there were no other emotions mixed in.
’That means the problem probably isn’t too serious for now.’
So, the most urgent task was to continue raising the level of his martial arts.
A trip to Tongxi Pharmacy was essential.
If things went smoothly, he was confident he could be back home in less than three hours, before dark, to see what was really going on.
He went downstairs, got into his ten-year-old second-hand Audi, and sped toward Tongxi Pharmacy.
In less than ten minutes, he arrived at an antique-looking pharmacy.
He Xiaotian didn’t have time to look closely; he got out of the car and immediately pushed the door open.
"Wild ginseng."
He didn’t waste a single word, getting straight to the point.
"We have it, but it’s quite expensive."
The middle-aged man behind the counter offered a professional smile and spoke calmly.
"How much?"
"Fifty thousand per plant."
"Fine."
He Xiaotian didn’t argue, agreeing immediately.
The rest was simple. He scanned the code to pay, grabbed the box containing the wild ginseng, and left right away.
The whole process involved no haggling, and certainly no tough-guy threats like, "If you dare sell me a fake, I’ll trash your shop."
Since his mom had said the prices here were fair and the owner was honest...
...there was no way he, as her son, would do something so childish.
’As for the old hen?’
’At a time like this, who needs a hen?’
’Just add water, stew it down, and extract the essence.’
’Then I’ll hurry home and see what the hell is going on!’
If it was a business problem, he would be powerless to help.
「Huayuan District, Apartment 301.」
He Xiaotian had already put the wild ginseng in the pressure cooker. Half an hour would be enough to cook it until it was tender.
Then, it would be time to level up his > by drinking the soup and eating the ginseng.
Bored while waiting, he took out his phone and started scrolling through the Z County forums.
It was partly to kill time and partly to distract himself.
[SHOCKING! Why is Z County Public Hospital suddenly overflowing with patients in a single afternoon?]
This title undoubtedly caught He Xiaotian’s attention.
After all, he had just left that very hospital not long ago.
He vaguely remembered that many of the rooms had been empty.
’How could it suddenly be full after just a little while?’
[The original poster has a relative at the police station. He told me that while on patrol today, they encountered a man-bites-man incident. The suspect was pale, his eyes were bloodshot, and he kept letting out low, beast-like growls from his throat.
As of now, there have been over a dozen biting incidents, with at least a hundred people injured, causing the county’s public hospital to be overwhelmed. The suspects who suddenly went berserk have also been isolated by the police for separate treatment.
According to inside sources, the cause has not yet been identified, and the case is under intense investigation. One noteworthy point is that while going crazy, most of them were heard muttering the word "meat."
If any of you forum members encounter this, please report it to the police immediately and stay away from the suspects. They are very likely to go berserk and attack people around them.]
After reading the entire post, He Xiaotian saw that it had already amassed over a thousand replies.
Among them were dismissive, mocking, and corroborating comments, but most were meaningless.
[Dozens of disappearances in a single night. What’s behind it all? Why are the crime scenes completely clean, as if the victims vanished into thin air?]
Scrolling to this post, He Xiaotian immediately thought of the food street and the crystal.
[Many people in Z County probably have no idea that dozens of people went missing last night. I heard the police station’s phone lines were ringing off the hook. What’s remarkable is that the crime scenes were spotless.
It’s like the perfect crimes you read about in novels. The victims seem to have just evaporated, like a drop of water on a red-hot iron plate. SIZZLE. I suggest everyone stay indoors at night, and even if you’re home, make sure you’re with friends.
Otherwise, you might suddenly disappear, and even the police won’t be able to do anything. Maybe you should write your will now?]
’A pandemonium of demons!’
For some reason, those four words flashed through He Xiaotian’s mind.
BEEP!
Half an hour had passed in a flash. He put down his phone and strode into the kitchen.
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