The mascot of the wishing shop is a cat.

Chapter 178 Search

At this moment, Erlanster and An Qing came downstairs. Only a few minutes had passed between when they heard the noise and when they came downstairs.

Just then, the scene that appeared before my eyes was simply astonishing—it was clearly a shop that had been severely damaged and was in complete disarray!

The various flowers and plants that were originally neatly arranged to decorate the store are now lying haphazardly on the ground, as if they have been hit by a severe storm; the small, scattered items are also scattered everywhere, as if they have been arbitrarily thrown by the wind.

The tables and chairs inside the store were also damaged, all overturned and scattered on the ground, some even showing obvious signs of breakage.

However, in stark contrast to this chaos, only where Lin Xiyue and Molos stood was surrounded by a clean and tidy open space.

Upon closer inspection, it becomes apparent that this open space is tightly protected by an invisible energy shield, completely isolating them from the chaos of the outside world. That energy shield acts like an unbreakable barrier, maintaining the original order and tranquility of everything within the area.

The three of them were dumbfounded by what they saw.

"What, what happened? Yueyue, are you alright?! ヽ(?Д?)?"

An Qing was the first to ask, and she hurriedly approached Lin Xiyue to look her over, afraid that Lin Xiyue might get hurt.

"Uncle, what happened?"

Lanster slowly walked over, observing the signs of battle around him.

"Meros, is there something you can't handle?"

Earl was even simpler; he glanced at it and knew it wasn't a fight at all. The two buddies walked over and looked at Meros.

"Meow~"

"Ran."

Meros had already transformed back into his cat form. He casually answered Earl's question, then jumped onto Lin Xiyue's shoulder and squatted down.

According to Lin Xiyue, he's currently in a "power-saving mode." He speaks more concisely, but the only thing that hasn't changed is that he's incredibly clingy to Lin Xiyue, even more so than before.

"So, what happened?"

Earl watched An Qing pack her things, while Lanster was already studying the traces and simulating combat. With nothing to do, he plopped down on the still intact sofa and raised an eyebrow to ask Moros and Lin Xiyue.

"Here's what happened. We just opened the shop when a strange customer came in. He wanted to live forever, and after I refused, this is what happened. ┐('～`；)┌ He's really weird, and he looks disgusting too..."

Lin Xiyue explained what had happened to everyone, and after hearing it, everyone fell into deep thought.

"This man in black robes is elusive and definitely not a good person."

After a long while, Earl broke the silence first.

"And from the way he said it, it felt like he was possessed, like he believed in some strange thing."

Lanster echoed this.

"In any case, we need to investigate thoroughly first. Perhaps we can start with some unusual events that have occurred in the city recently."

Meros frowned, sitting upright on Lin Xiyue's shoulder, its tail swaying back and forth.

“I remember there were several mysterious disappearances before. At that time, the Psionic Center even issued a notice telling people to be careful when going out. These might all be related to him.”

An Qing chimed in.

"Let's divide the tasks now. Meros and I will go to the Psionic Center to inquire about the details of the disappearance case. Earl and Lanster, you two should carefully check the store for any clues about the man in black robes. Anqing, you take care of the logistics for us!"

Upon hearing An Qing's words, Lin Xiyue's eyes lit up, and she quickly began assigning tasks to everyone.

Upon hearing this, everyone thought it was a great suggestion and immediately put it into action.

After a while.

Lin Xiyue and Molos arrived at the Psionic Center. Through Lin Xiyue's previous acquaintance with Ling Ye and his team, they were allowed to access the center's archives and view details of some recent missing persons cases.

Because these are important documents, they are all in paper form to prevent them from being taken away. Of course, someone needs to supervise access to them.

"Why did you suddenly decide to check on the case? What happened? By the way, where have you been this past year? I haven't seen you at all."

Ling Yan followed Lin Xiyue and the others as required, watching them examine the case. Bored, he casually asked a question.

"Yes, that's right. I got back last night, and this afternoon, as soon as I opened the shop, a strange person came in. He looked absolutely disgusting, like..."

While searching through the files, Lin Xiyue chatted with Ling Yan about the events of the day.

Beside her, Moros also transformed into human form, helping her review the data. He wasn't really concerned about these things; after all, nothing was more important to him than Lin Xiyue, and he was only willing to do these things because Lin Xiyue wanted to do them.

"Hmm, it looks like they've been infected, that's why they look like that. You should report it; it's probably been dormant for a long time, which could easily cause problems."

Hearing Lin Xiyue talk about me, he realized that Lingyan was the kind of person who preferred physical fights, like Earl. He explained this and told him to report it.

"Oh?! Oh, okay! Okay, okay."

Completely bewildered, Ling Yan hurriedly opened the terminal after hearing Molos's words and sent Ling Ye the exact same words Lin Xiyue and Molos had said.

It's fortunate that he has a good memory, which is why he was able to do this. Of course, this also fostered his reluctance to use his brain.

Not long after, Lingyan received instructions from Lingye.

He indicated that he had been following Lin Xiyue and the others during this period to assist in the investigation. He explained that he had been delayed by some matters and would not be able to return for a while, so he was entrusting the entire matter to Lin Xiyue, and that she must report back to him regularly.

Ling Yan's eyes lit up as soon as he received the news. This was the first time he had been in full charge of a case!

Hehehe! (ˉ﹃ˉ)

Lingyan was already imagining his promotion, raise, marriage to Lingji, and the pinnacle of his life; he could practically drool.

"Hey! What are you doing? You look like an idiot!!"

Lin Xiyue stepped forward and patted Ling Yan on the shoulder, asking him with a look of disgust.

"Huh?! Oh, no, it's nothing. The captain told me to follow you guys during this time to assist with the investigation, so it will make your investigation easier. I have identification, so I can openly enter and leave many places."

Lingyan wasn't really stupid, so he immediately revealed his greatest use.

Of course, as everyone knows, his main role is to oversee the entire event, given the current low population density in Yuncheng, so that the higher-ups can rest assured.

……