Chapter 23: Research Institute No. 21
Did he see a ghost?!
Chu Jiang watched as the flyer disappeared from his hand. He stepped back, worried, and even his right palm started bleeding.
Ever since he discovered the existence of ghosts in the world, whenever Chu Jiang saw anything unscientific, he would connect it with ghosts.
The disappearance of the flyer at this moment seemed identical to the disappearance of the two hints from the Ghost Diary earlier.
Wait, could that blonde nun who gave him the flyer be a ghost?
Well, this joke just got bigger. He had seen three ghosts on the same day... no, four. They were Slender Man, Ghost Tree, Ghost Nun, and the flyer-giving blonde nun.
And as for this Holy Word Religion, could it be a mysterious organization with supernatural powers? Could their god also be real...?
Just thinking about it gave Chu Jiang goosebumps. What on earth had happened to this world?
First, ghosts appeared, and now even gods were showing up.
If given the chance, Chu Jiang really wanted to have a good talk with the messy old man and the well-dressed young man from yesterday. As special individuals with official identities, they must know a lot about the truth of this world.
After standing still for a while, Chu Jiang realized that nothing happened. The disappearance of the flyers didn't attract any ghosts or cause him any harm.
Worried that it might be some kind of curse, Chu Jiang decided to go back home. To his relief, his family was sleeping peacefully and nothing was wrong.
With confusion in his mind, Chu Jiang had no choice but to continue his journey away from home.
Along the way, Chu Jiang kept analyzing the words on the flyers. Unfortunately, he didn't bother to remember any English, otherwise he could have found someone to translate it later.
Chu Jiang had already analyzed everything written in Chinese on the front side of the flyer, so there was nothing more to say about it.
It was the backside that made him feel like... someone was trying to seduce him?
Oh well, never mind. He didn't want to think about it. Even if a female ghost appeared, he wouldn't be able to enjoy her company anyway.
......
Since there was something wrong with the flyers given by the nun, Chu Jiang had no choice but to go to the police station next.
However, he was not in a hurry. He would have breakfast first before discussing anything.
Just in time, when it was slightly bright outside, Chu Jiang arrived at the central station in the city. It was quite early, but there were already many passengers waiting for their trains.
Chu Jiang arrived at the steamed bun stall at the entrance of the station and casually ordered a few things.
But to his surprise, as soon as he sat down, a middle-aged man came over holding a deep-fried dough stick (youtiao) and sat down across from him in a familiar manner.
Although the man had changed into a different flowered shirt, Chu Jiang still recognized him at once. This was the man who had taken their statement yesterday.
"Let me introduce myself, my name is Li Buhuo, I am an employee of Research Institute No. 21."
"Research Institute??" This was a bit unexpected for Chu Jiang. "Shouldn't it be the Center for Paranormal Events, or the Agency for Supernatural Phenomena Research and Defense, or something like the XX Security Department or XX Security Bureau?"
Fortunately, the two of them were sitting at the corner table, otherwise someone might suspect that Chu Jiang and him had escaped from a mental hospital.
Li Buhuo smiled. "Is this something we can discuss openly?"
"Even if we call it the security department or the safety bureau, it might make others think of something else. It's better to call it a research institute, which sounds like a scientific organization, even if we investigate strange things, it seems normal."
Chu Jiang nodded and casually caught the soy milk and doughstick handed to him by the stall owner. "So what's the full name of your research institute? How many are there in total?"
"It's the 21st Special Incident Research Institute, just this one department. We have a deep cooperation with the police, and they provide us with identification to make our work easier."
"Of course, we don't deal with general criminal activities. We don't have that much energy. We only handle paranormal events that fall within our jurisdiction."
"Then why is it called the 21st?" Chu Jiang, while eating, was very confused.
"I have no idea. I didn't choose the name. Maybe it sounds more crowd-pleasing this way."
"Enough with the small talk. Judging by how you're packing up, are you planning to leave the city by hitchhiking?" Li Buhuo asked.
Well, I was just passing by, I actually wanted to find you...
Of course, Chu Jiang replied earnestly on the surface, "Yes."
After he finished speaking, he briefly explained the problems he encountered.
This included unexpectedly gaining supernatural powers at school and the toll these powers took on his body, as well as his worries about his family.
Li Buhuo nodded repeatedly and said, "You are a good child."
Chu Jiang was speechless and said, "I am an adult now."
Li Buhuo chuckled and said, "I was a bit surprised that you didn't mention it when we were taking notes yesterday. Even if it was at the police station, you could have talked to me privately."
"Before experiencing sleep paralysis, I had no idea how terrifying supernatural powers could be."
Li Buhuo nodded repeatedly and said, "It's good that you can understand. I have seen many people who gained supernatural powers due to various accidents. Most of them ended up on a dangerous path and died a terrible death."
"As for why I came here, to be honest, it was more of a personal choice."
"Although you are currently under close observation, this matter is not under my jurisdiction. It should be handled by Xu Bing."
"Xu Bing is the boy who was with me yesterday. I am no longer in charge of Luoxi City, he is now."
"I am just showing the new person around and handing over my work before officially leaving this city."
"Unexpectedly, in these last few days, something big happened at Luoxi No. 7 Middle School. Yesterday, I thought I might lose my job."
Li Buhuo smiled as he spoke.
"Does a city only have one person in charge?" Chu Jiang asked.
"Otherwise? Some cities don't even have enough staff. After all, we are a short-lived group of people." Li Buhuo's expression became gloomy as he said this.
This made Chu Jiang feel uneasy. In his eyes, Li Buhuo was an official staff member. If even they were short-lived, wouldn't he die even faster?
"Let's not talk about that," Li Buhuo's gloomy expression vanished. "Yesterday, so many people died at the school, but you remained calm. That's why I admire you."
"If you have the chance, I would like to invite you to join our research institute. Of course, I get a commission for recruiting, I won't hide that from you."
Chu Jiang didn't give an answer right away. Instead, he continued to listen. He believed the other person didn't come just for the small reward.
Seeing that the other person didn't refuse, Li Buhuo continued, "You don't have to make a decision right away. I'm just giving you a choice."
"In addition, I can give you a special website address. You can register an account by entering the referral code I gave you."
