Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Xiao Chenyang’s eyes lit up and he said, “I’ve never thought much about you in our previous lifetime. However, I’m starting to think that you’ve got some brains now.”
“I’m a little glad to hear that from you, just a little bit. And that’s because you were indirectly saying that I didn’t have any brains in my previous lifetime.”
“If you did, would you have jumped to your death? Shouldn’t you have killed Xihou Jiaping first?”
She was at a loss for words. Had that event happened in this lifetime, she would have definitely killed Xihou Jiaping and would never have killed herself. She had no idea what she was thinking back then.
“Yes, I was really foolish in my previous lifetime. I’m going to visit the archeological team now. Rest well.”
“Wait a minute…”
An Xiaoning stopped in her tracks and asked, “What’s wrong?”
“I’d like to ask something of you.”
Staring at him calmly, she said, “Go ahead. I’ll help as long as it’s within my means to.”
“I suddenly remembered that you’re capable of fortune-telling. Can you read Erlan’s birth characters, then?”
Staring at him, An Xiaoning said, “I’d like to know what you’re planning to do after you find out the outcome. Can you tell me?”
“If she’s destined to marry Yan Ge or another man, I’ll stop disrupting her life from now on. If she’s destined to be with me for the rest of her life, I’ll know what to do. I’ll wait for her to come to me.”
An Xiaoning nodded and said, “Alright, I’ll answer you when I get back later.”
Xiao Chenyang said, “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
She exited and rushed to the archeological research center in A City.
She would not have made her way there so early in the morning if it weren’t because of an urgent matter.
She pulled up at the entrance in her red Ferrari. Before she even alighted, she heard Wang Jinsheng greeting her eagerly, “Ms. An, you’re finally here. We’ve been waiting for you.”
An Xiaoning alighted with her white purse and closed the door before locking her car. She then asked, “You made me come all the way here without telling me the reason. Just what’s going on?”
“If it weren’t for something urgent, we wouldn’t have dared to call you here bright and early in the morning. Come in, let’s talk while we walk.”
An Xiaoning walked beside him toward the main entrance.
Wang Jinsheng said softly, “It’s a long story, and this matter arose because of a coffin we had found near the deep lake. The corpse inside the coffin is well preserved and completely intact. Given the humidity of the surrounding environment, it’s basically impossible for the corpse to be so well preserved. Under humid conditions, corpses tend to decompose easily. What puzzled us the most was that there was a layer of glutinous rice coated around the corpse, and there were three amulets pasted on the corpse’s forehead. The cement that was used to seal the coffin was also mixed with glutinous rice. We found it extremely abnormal and decided to call the police because we didn’t dare to touch the items inside the coffin. The police then contacted the national relic authority, who sent their team to take a look at the corpse. Everyone was terrified and anxious. The residents nearby have also started spreading rumors, and they all think that it’s a vampire. They’ve begun gossiping endlessly. The higher authority then told us to cremate it secretly. However, as soon as the orders were sent, we discovered that the national relic team members had all gone missing,” said Wang Jinsheng, who was clearly frightened.
“They’ve all gone missing?” An Xiaoning stopped in her tracks and looked at him calmly before asking, “Do you guys think that it was the corpse’s doing?”
“We and the police have deduced that the three amulets on the corpse must have been removed, causing the corpse to become a vampire…”
“Aren’t there any surveillance cameras?”
Wang Jinsheng answered, “No… The police have already begun searching for them and sent lots of officers on the quest. So far, there hasn’t been any police reports of a missing person.”
“In that case, shouldn’t we be trying to verify the corpse’s identity? We’ll try finding the corpse’s descendants first. If there are any, they should be aware of the details. We’ll think of another solution if there are no descendants.”
Wang Jinsheng nodded and said, “We thought so too. However, the thing is, it’s extremely difficult to find the corpse’s descendants. There are a few villages around the lake. Our team members have already gone to verify it, but there hasn’t been any news. That’s why we’re really anxious now. We really don’t know what to do.”
“If even you guys can’t find the descendants, what can I do?”
Wang Jinsheng smiled and said, “That’s exactly why we asked for your help, Ms. An. Besides, who knows what might happen? We’re just ordinary people. If the corpse had really become a vampire, we really won’t know how to deal with it…”
After some thought, An Xiaoning said, “This is the job scope of you archeologists and the police. Although I’ve partaken in the investigations conducted by the police before, my decision to take part has always been dependent on my mood. If the corpse didn’t mutate, there’s no need for me to step in. If it did, I’m not entirely confident about dealing with it. After all, I’ve never encountered a corpse before. I’m not very certain.”
“Ms. An, I’ve already contacted the police, and we all agree that there’s no one else who can solve this matter except you. You definitely can do it.”
“Since you’ve said that, how about this? Let the police continue investigating while you get the archeologists to visit the villages nearby again. We’ll reward anyone who provides true and useful information with 100 thousand dollars.”
Wang Jinsheng asked in astonishment, “One hundred thousand dollars? Who’s going to fork out the money?”
An Xiaoning gave him the side-eye and quipped, “Are you expecting me to? Use the money from the government funds that have been granted to your team.”
Wang Jinsheng assented, “Yes, yes, we’ll do as you say.”
“Take me to that coffin now. The items inside the coffin are all intact, right?”
“We didn’t dare to touch them so we still have no idea how the amulets fell off.”
Gesturing for him to take the lead, An Xiaoning said, “Let’s go, then. However, Captain Wang, have you never encountered any mutated corpses throughout the many years of archeological work that you’ve done?”
Wang Jinsheng answered softly, “I did encounter one in my first year of working with the team. It’s been three decades since that had happened. In the end, the zombie was subdued with an incinerator rifle. Thus, we don’t know how to deal with this.”
After a moment of hesitation, An Xiaoning asked, “What happens if you get bitten by the zombie? Will it result in instant death?”
“The bitten victim will become a zombie too…”
“How could there be no surveillance camera footages? Did something happen?” An Xiaoning asked
“I don’t know. When we viewed the footages, the screen kept flickering and we couldn’t see anything at all. There were merely some sounds of static, so…”
An Xiaoning did not say anything else and followed Wang Jinsheng to where the coffin was placed.
The coffin was black and decomposed, and it reeked of an overwhelming stench. The lid of the coffin had been placed at the side.
