AITAMITB Chapter 87

Guan Huimin has gone missing.

In one of S City’s most upscale neighborhoods, a living person suddenly disappeared under countless surveillance cameras.

Normally, a routine missing person case like this wouldn’t have much to do with the Night Walker; the police should handle it.

However, Guan Huimin wasn’t the first person to go missing recently, and in her case, they found a symbol that could serve as a breakthrough. After identification, it was confirmed to be a sign of an evil god.

This is why Zhao Xiaokui met Nie Fu. In similar cases, the first step was to check if the victim’s closest connections had any ties to the evil god.

When she arrived with her team, Nie Fu was sitting in a chair at the police station, hunched over, covering his face with his hands. His expression was indiscernible, but a strong aura of sadness enveloped him.

As the Night Walkers entered, a female police officer in the room reminded, “Mr. Nie, the members of the special task force we brought in for your wife’s disappearance are here. They have a few questions for you, and we hope you’ll cooperate.”

Nie Fu wiped his face, lifted his head, and looked at the group before him.

The Night Walkers were all dressed in uniform combat attire, black clothes covering them from head to toe, and face masks revealing only sharp eyes. On their shoulders, a round emblem embroidered with a snow-white, night-sky-slashing longsword exuded a formidable and resolute demeanor. It was evident they were far from ordinary.

The panic in his heart subsided somewhat. Suppressing his inner pain, Nie Fu said, “Go ahead, ask your questions.”

Accompanying Zhao Xiaokui was Zhang Hongyi’s team. As a second-tier superhuman, she already had the qualifications to lead a team independently. However, Zhao Xiaokui disliked taking on a leadership role and preferred solo operations. Therefore, for this mission, she directly mobilized a familiar team to cooperate with her actions.

Zhao Xiaokui and Zhang Hongyi exchanged a glance, leaving the questioning to Zhang Hongyi while discreetly assessing Nie Fu on the side.

“Was there anything specific that happened before your wife went missing?”

“No, everything was the same as before.”

“Have you made any new acquaintances?”

“No, they are all people from work.”

“Did you bring anything special home?”

This question made Nie Fu ponder for a moment, and then he shook his head, “I didn’t, but I’m not sure if my wife brought anything.…”

…

After the questions, Zhang Hongyi looked at Zhao Xiaokui. She closed the materials provided by the police at the scene, and shook her head at him, indicating that she hadn’t noticed anything. She then said, “We might need to visit your home. Has there been any change in the arrangement at home these past few days?”

“No. Since Huimin went missing, I haven’t made any changes at home. I’m afraid I might miss any information she left.”

Nie Fu and the others got into the Night Walkers’ car.

Hong Ying said, “Mr. Nie, could you please describe what happened on the day your wife went missing again? It would be better if you could be more detailed, starting from the morning when you woke up.”

Nie Fu’s eyes were red, but he did not resist this request.

He remained silent for a moment, covering his face with his hands, before slowly speaking to ease his emotions, “On that morning, I woke up at 6:30. Huimin had already prepared breakfast for me. She made lean pork congee with preserved eggs. After eating, I left home… At around noon, Huimin called me, saying she had bought a new doll, very cute, and asked if I would come home for dinner that night… I should have gone home. I should have… If I had come home at that time, she wouldn’t have met any trouble.”

The car was filled with silence, only interrupted by the restrained sounds of the man’s crying.

After a while, Nie Fu continued, “Around 4:00 in the afternoon, I suddenly felt very anxious. My eyelids kept twitching, and I couldn’t explain why. I thought it might be a health issue and had my assistant schedule a hospital checkup. I messaged Huimin about it, and she reminded me to balance work and rest…”

“When did you realize your wife was missing?”

“Around 10:00 at night. I had just finished work and returned home, only to find that the lights were off and it was cold and desolate. The house looked like it had been ransacked, and I was afraid something happened to Huimin. I called her, but her phone was unreachable. The police tried to comfort me, saying she might be at a friend’s place, but I knew Huimin wasn’t like that. She would always let me know wherever she went…”

“Moreover, on our bedroom’s wedding photo, I found someone had written ‘go die’ with blood and cut Huimin’s face with scissors…”

Zhao Xiaokui remained silent, showing no intention to speak or reveal her identity.

She sat quietly in the passenger seat, recalling her encounter with Guan Huimin.

Though they had only met once, she had a good impression of the woman. Learning about her troubles now made Zhao Xiaokui feel somewhat uneasy.

Soon, they arrived at the residential area where Nie Fu lived.

Nie Fu resided in one of those favored by the wealthy, with small high-rises allowing for privacy – each floor occupied by just one household. It suited Nie Fu’s needs as a celebrity requiring discretion.

Nie Fu led them upstairs and unlocked the door with his key.

Inside, as Nie Fu described, it was chaotic, appearing as if nothing had been touched.

“Wait a moment,” Zhao Xiaokui suddenly spoke, halting the steps of Zhang Hongyi, who was ready to move forward.

Zhang Hongyi’s raised foot hung in the air as he asked in confusion, “What’s wrong?”

“Step back,” Zhao Xiaokui instructed.

Zhang Hongyi retraced his steps, naturally controlling his body as an extraordinary individual would.

“You haven’t been back here these past few days, right?” Zhao Xiaokui asked Nie Fu.

Though Nie Fu felt that the voice of this special operative sounded surprisingly youthful, he didn’t underestimate her. When the police hinted that his wife’s disappearance might involve some special individuals and, after each private detective who took the case refunded him, he had placed all his hopes on this special task force.

“No, since the police told me they needed to report to higher-ups, I haven’t come back here. I’ve been staying in another place,” Nie Fu replied.

Zhao Xiaokui turned on her flashlight, set it to the revealing mode, and gently placed it on the ground. Soon, a series of messy footprints became apparent.

Witnessing this scene, Zhang Hongyi’s pupils contracted. “Someone came in?”

Lin Bai quickly analyzed, “From the time Guan Huimin went missing until today, three days have passed. However, the footprints were left yesterday. The person who kidnapped Guan Huimin came again yesterday!”

Nie Fu’s teeth ground together, making a grating sound. “Whatever they want, I can give it to them, as long as they return Huimin to me.”

After documenting the photos of the footprints, they found more traces in Nie Fu’s bedroom and kitchen.

The team split up to examine and collect evidence. The bedroom was entrusted to Zhao Xiaokui and Hong Ying, two female agents. As soon as they entered, they saw, just as Nie Fu described, wedding photos of Nie Fu and Guan Huimin with the words “go die” written in blood, creating a hollow expression on Guan Huimin’s face.

Zhao Xiaokui asked, “What kind of blood is this?”

“Human blood,” Hong Ying said. “The police confirmed after sampling that it should be blood stolen from the blood bank.”

“Blood bank…” Zhao Xiaokui sniffed. Perhaps due to absorbing the power of faith, her senses had become even sharper, and her mental power was more intense than before, at least a hundred times. Whether it was her perception or a mere illusion, she couldn’t shake the feeling that a deathly aura lingered around the two blood characters. Unable to resist, she said, “Can the blood bank trace information about blood donors? Let the police track this person and see if they’re still alive?”

Hong Ying snapped back to attention, her expression turning grave. “Are you suggesting…?”

Having experienced Shen Zhifei being attacked with sulfuric acid, Zhao Xiaokui, accustomed to the straightforwardness of cultists, genuinely doubted that they would go to such lengths to steal a bag of blood from the blood bank just to write two words.

These two words seemed more like a spontaneous act fueled by anger.

Opening the couple’s wardrobe, Zhao Xiaokui was startled by a doll inside, tilting its head. She stopped her heart from racing wildly and asked, “Mr. Nie, does your wife like these kinds of dolls?”

She thought Nie Fu was referring to traditional stuffed dolls, not these lifelike 3D dolls that closely resembled real people.

Looking at the doll’s lifelike features, if she hadn’t sensed any danger, she might have thrown a punch at it.

“My wife loves children, but due to health reasons, it’s been almost ten years since we got married, and she hasn’t been able to conceive. So, she has a special fondness for these dolls…”

“Is there anything wrong with the dolls?” Hong Ying walked over, observed the doll with the head and body placed in different locations, and after a moment of silence, said, “…they are somewhat eerie.”

“There’s a faint aura. I’m not sure.”

Hong Ying nodded, placing the doll in an evidence bag. She understood that the aura Zhao Xiaokui mentioned was the aura of an evil god.

Zhao Xiaokui continued inspecting the couple’s clothes, then suddenly asked, “Mr. Nie, I remember you have a blue shirt with a purple bougainvillea embroidered on the chest. Did you take it to be laundered?”

She and Shen Zhifei had seen Nie Fu wearing that shirt at the temple fair. Nie Fu was momentarily stunned but then understood what Zhao Xiaokui was referring to. Although he didn’t understand how Zhao Xiaokui knew about that particular shirt, he shook his head, saying, “No, it should be in the closet. This shirt was a New Year’s gift from my wife this year. She really likes bougainvillea. I wore it out once during the New Year with friends, and it has been hanging since then.”

Zhao Xiaokui stepped aside and said, “You check, look for any clothes or pants that you remember but are missing. Especially your more personal items like shirts, underwear, and the like.”

Thinking about it, she added, “Especially clothes that are close to your body, like shirts and underwear.”

Ten years ago, Nie Fu probably wouldn’t have remembered what clothes or pants he had in his closet. He would just randomly put on something when staying indoors, and when going out, his assistant would coordinate his outfit, allowing him to showcase his charm in front of his fans.

It was only after marriage that Guan Huimin liked to praise him in various ways – how handsome he looked in certain clothes, how youthful he appeared in others, how good his figure looked in specific outfits, and so on. In front of a loved one, a man always hoped to present himself in a better light. In Nie Fu’s mind, there was a separate area designated for these things.

Upon inspection, something indeed seemed off.

The household finances, including bank cards, passbooks, and even cash and gold bars kept at home, were untouched.

However, Nie Fu’s clothing told a different story. Several shirts that he distinctly remembered were missing, those which could be verified with online shopping images. Several pairs of pants were also gone, the kind that, when worn, had earned him compliments on his well-shaped buttocks from fans multiple times. Not to mention the underwear – when he opened the drawer designated for underwear, it was noticeably short by almost half, with only a few unopened packages left.

Nie Fu’s expression instantly turned grim.

Zhang Hongyi, not understanding the situation, rubbed his bald head and explained, “This could very well be the work of a sasaeng fan¹ a crazily obsessed fan..”

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Translator’s corner:

No offense, but those types of fans are really scary…

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  a crazily obsessed fan.