The world of supernatural phenomena comes in many types.
The first type shows no signs of life and is collectively known as "Strange Objects". Due to the relatively easy study of the supernatural nature of "Strange Objects", humans often exploit their supernatural properties.
The second type shows signs of life and might have "thought", possessing high destructiveness, collectively known as "Bizarre".
Countries around the world have special organizations studying supernatural phenomena, such as Roshomon, Shrine, Church Court, Humanity Security Organization, and others.
The power of Supernatural Organizations is naturally related to the strength of the nation, the level of civilization, and its continuity. The Black-clothed Guard of Great Xia Country is a relatively powerful Supernatural Organization that can still exercise power even when situated abroad.
But, the so-called "powerful" is only limited to the human category; there are too many unsolved mysteries in the world, and no matter how careful one is when facing the mysteries, it is never excessive.
After listening to Li Qingshan's report, feedback soon came from the headquarters.
"You have encountered a Bizarre that might be 'Faust', or it might be 'Dealing with the Devil'."
A neutral electronic voice came from the other end of the phone, "I regret to inform you that we have encountered several similar cases before, and we have not found a solution."
"All the parties involved ended up dead."
"However, these individuals were all ordinary people, which does not lend much credibility to their experiences. We believe that as long as you control your desires and do not engage in transactions with these Bizarre, it could effectively prolong survival."
The story of "Faust" is widely known: the devil enticed Faust to sign a contract with him.
The devil would satisfy all of Faust's earthly desires, but in exchange, he would take Faust's soul after his death. Parties often fall into the trap of their own omnipotence, with desires beginning to inflate endlessly.
But they do not realize that all desires are exchanged for their own souls, and the more the desires inflate, the faster the soul is consumed.
"Dealing with the Devil" is also a similar supernatural phenomenon; you get something but lose something else.
But "Dealing with the Devil" and "Faust" are somewhat different, as it does not require a soul but demands something the person cherishes most, such as a loved one, or part of a bodily organ, and so forth.
The more exchanges are made, the more pain the individuals suffer, ultimately leading them to suicide.
Li Qingshan clenched his fists tightly, his palms turning white from exerting too much force. "That means... the Bizarre I signed a contract with might involve some kind of trade. Is that right?"
"Perhaps so... You need to restrain your desires as much as possible, ignoring all its various temptations, and stay focused."
"Since it didn't kill you outright, it surely has more intentions."
"Considering your past achievements, within three days, we will charter a private plane to bring you back to the headquarters at Kunlun Mountain, although we cannot guarantee your absolute safety. Meanwhile, you will be under strict surveillance as we need to study the Special Curse on you."
"I can understand," Li Qingshan said slowly.
He was not the sort to curse his fate.
Becoming consumed by the mysterious might be seen as a kind of predetermined destiny for a Black-clothed Guard Investigator...
Each contact with the mysterious yields precious experimental data, with many death row inmates consumed in investigating the mysterious.
A willful and relatively cooperative Investigator is an excellent experimental subject.
However, when one becomes the experiment, there is always an inexplicable feeling of annoyance.
Thinking this, he couldn't help but laugh silently: people just don't want to die after all.
In the following half hour, a camper van arrived at the door, belonging to a colleague from the Black-clothed Guard.
Face-to-face contact was not allowed by safety regulations, so the person in charge simply made a phone call from downstairs, "Mr. Li, we will now be responsible for monitoring your daily life. Please start with a psychological survey... we need to confirm whether you have developed delusions."
...
...
While Li Qingshan was undergoing his isolated investigation, the main culprit, Wang Hao, was sound asleep.
His favorite activities were playing video games,
eating,
and sleeping.
And the fourth... of course, pretty girls!
What could be more satisfying than playing video games all night long and then sleeping all day?
That feeling of slowly recharging after being drained...
Well, actually, it's not fun at all.
The sleep deprivation required double the rest time to recover, creating a loathsome feeling of wasting life yet being helpless.
If he were a masochist, he might enjoy that feeling.
Wang Hao yawned and woke up from his drowsy state. Checking the time, it was six in the morning. He had slept all day and night; no jet lag required, which felt great!
He silently vowed, "From today onwards, no more all-nighters!"
After brushing his teeth and washing his face in the bathroom, he opened the bedroom door and came into the living room.
His small villa had three floors in total, spanning over four hundred square meters...
As for the price, forget money, Jin Li's nature didn't like money!
Many finances were managed by his parents, who were investment experts and spent most of their years traveling the world after achieving financial freedom.
In the kitchen, a pretty girl was scooping congee with a spoon. The fragrance of longan and lotus seeds wafted from afar.
The freshly cooked congee was very hot, yet the girl eagerly scooped a spoonful and tentatively tasted it, then blew on it to cool.
Oh, it turned out to be his cousin.
Her name was Han Xiaoyue, a distant relative with almost no blood relation."
Han Xiaoyue was an unfortunate girl whose parents had died in a car accident when she was three, leaving her to live a poor and dependent life from a young age...
This contrasted sharply with Jin Li's fortune.
From some perspectives, she seemed more like the protagonist of a novel.
Since Wang Hao was lazy and inept at daily chores, and his parents were often traveling, it fell to the industrious and courageous, cooking-savvy niece to look after their precious son, lest he be poisoned by takeout cooking oils.
Upon seeing Wang Hao, Han Xiaoyue exclaimed in surprise, "Wow, up so early today, Mr. Wang? Don't you usually sleep until nine?"
Seeing the "whoosh" of an egg dropped into the pan and the ensuing fragrant scent of fried eggs stimulated his strong appetite. He swallowed his saliva and greeted her, "You're up early too, haha, what's the date today?"
Having slept for so long, he was indeed hungry.
"Are you aware you've slept for a day and a night?" Han Xiaoyue stared at his dark circles, taunting him somewhat maliciously, "You must have been gaming all night, right? Be careful, or I'll tell your mother!"