Celestial Human Diagram

Chapter 280 - 12: Resonance

The moment he completed the ritual, Chen Chuan saw the ethereal signs on his Second Self weaken significantly, a clear indication that the ritual was a success.

But this only temporarily restrained the entity’s influence; it wouldn’t last for long.

This was because the materials he had used for the ritual were already starting to deplete.

’If the last paranormal entity I encountered was too weak, then this one is far too strong. To restrain it long-term without special tools for Esoteric Rituals, one would have to constantly pour in more materials.’

’Setting aside whether I could even find that many materials, I certainly don’t have the money for it. So, if at all possible, I need to find a way to weaken or dispose of it as quickly as I can.’

’If there’s really no other way, I’ll have to give up.’

He had already done what he could. He didn’t mind helping others when it was within his power, but his assistance wasn’t unconditional.

He packed his things, exited the backyard, and brought Brother Chong’s body with him as he returned to the outskirts of the shantytown.

Once the unsettling feeling that had plagued them disappeared, many of the people nearby rushed back toward their shacks. As one young man passed Chen Chuan, he handed him a cheap bottle of water.

Chen Chuan accepted it with a word of thanks.

Old Qi was sitting in the car, struggling to stay awake. He’d fought the urge to have a cigarette several times, but he had quit ever since his daughter was born. Spotting Chen Chuan emerge, his eyes fell on Brother Chong’s body. He asked in shock, "Chong Dage? Brother Chen, what... who did this?"

Chen Chuan set the body down. "Someone must have come back after we left. They killed Xiaoman. Everything that happened afterward was their doing."

"Fuck!" Old Qi couldn’t help but curse.

"The ritual I set up will last a day or two at most," Chen Chuan said. "A complete solution will be difficult, but it should be possible to weaken this entity and confine it to a small area. The catch is we have to find the killer and deal with them."

"However, when I arrived, everyone around was either unconscious or dead. We need to find someone who was in the vicinity at the time and ask them what happened."

Old Qi looked at Brother Chong’s body and said, "Brother Chen, I know someone. They might be able to find answers from within Chong Dage’s implanted Realm Token."

Hearing this, Chen Chuan had to ask, "This person you know... are they a Resonator?"

Old Qi nodded.

Resonators, also known as Secret Guests, use special cranial and neural Implants to interfere with or disrupt the exchange of information between a person’s Realm Token and the surrounding Biological Domain.

The more skilled ones can even steal information from within a Realm Token or cause another person’s internal Implants to misjudge external stimuli and react incorrectly.

They were originally trained by government agencies and corporations for the sole purpose of stealing information from competitors. As the technology became more widespread and their numbers grew, they filtered into mainstream society. Today, many organizations hire them for defense, to prevent information theft and other intrusions.

While browsing the news, Chen Chuan had even seen public service announcements warning people not to communicate casually with strangers, lest a Resonator steal their information or damage their Realm Token.

He asked, "Are you sure he can do it?"

"I think he’ll be fine," Old Qi said.

"Then let’s give it a try," Chen Chuan said.

Old Qi nodded. "I’ll contact him." He pressed a hand to his neck, and an orange light flickered in one of his eyes. After a moment, he said, "He’s in. Should we head over now?"

"Let’s go," Chen Chuan said.

The two of them immediately got in the car and left the area. They turned onto a main street and, after driving for over an Hour, pulled up in front of a luxury apartment building.

After they made contact, they passed through strict security, entered the building, and took the elevator up to the seventh floor. When they reached the apartment door, it was opened from the inside.

The person who opened the door was a large, portly man with slightly curly hair, a doughy physique, and a pale double chin. He held a cup of a fragrant, hot beverage and gave the two of them a friendly wave.

Old Qi said, "Brother Chen, this is Wubei, Brother Wu. He’s not much older than you. He’s the Resonator hired by our courier company. He’s a great guy, very enthusiastic, always willing to help someone in a pinch."

Wubei seemed a little embarrassed by the praise. He shifted his bulky frame to the side and said, "Come on in, come on in."

After the two came in, Old Qi, knowing time was tight, skipped the pleasantries and explained the situation directly.

Wubei asked in a low voice, "Did you bring the body?"

"It’s in my car," Old Qi said.

"Alright, let me see what I can find..."

Wubei closed his eyes. Chen Chuan noticed a faint light begin to pulse beneath the skin of his neck and the back of his head. That must be the surface-level dermal implant concealing the hardware underneath.

"Ugh..."

After a moment, he suddenly clutched his neck, seemingly unable to breathe. His face flushed beet red, and he became unsteady on his feet.

Chen Chuan reached out and grabbed his arm, effortlessly steadying his over-three-hundred-pound frame.

Wubei gasped heavily, taking a long moment to catch his breath. He shot Chen Chuan a grateful glance and said, "I’m transmitting it to you now..."

Old Qi quickly said, "You don’t have to send it to me—" but his words were cut short as a deeply shocking scene flooded into his mind via his implanted Realm Token.

He saw through ’his own’ eyes, sitting in the shack and talking to Xiaoman. He vaguely heard phrases like "your brother...," "sewer Hunter," and "human organ trafficking."

Then, the door was kicked open with a BANG, and a grim-faced man burst in. ’He’ shoved Xiaoman aside and immediately engaged the intruder. The initial exchange was evenly matched; even though his opponent wielded a knife, ’he’ relied on his Implanted arm to parry. At one point, Xiaoman even found a moment to fire a shot at the man, but it missed.

But after a moment, ’his’ arm suddenly went rigid. The muscles contracted but failed to respond, causing him to lurch forward.

His opponent stabbed him in the abdomen, gave the knife a vicious twist, and pulled it out before drawing the blade across ’his’ neck. A sudden coldness bloomed at his throat.

As ’he’ fell, he grabbed the blade of the knife. Through the haze, he heard a gunshot.

Then, the scene plunged into darkness.

Old Qi’s face had gone pale. What had been transmitted wasn’t just simple images; it carried Brother Chong’s residual memories, emotions, and even his pain. It was as if he had personally experienced being murdered.

He too was gasping for air, his hands on his knees. Once he’d recovered a bit, he couldn’t help but look up and glare at Wubei.

Wubei knew he’d done something wrong and looked embarrassed. He scratched his head and said, "Sorry, Uncle Qi, I didn’t do it on purpose." He then looked toward Chen Chuan.

In contrast, Chen Chuan’s expression remained calm, as if he was completely unaffected. Wubei’s eyes widened. "Brother Chen, you didn’t see it?"

"I saw it," Chen Chuan said. "Brother Wu, can you find out this person’s identity?"

"I can, just a moment," Wubei replied.

Even if the person was a regular citizen, as long as you knew what they looked like, you could find their information through the official database of inactive Consciousness Bodies.

Before long, he said, "Found him. Bo Chen... a contractor..." He then followed the information exchanged in the Domain at that time and traced it to a car. "Citizen Lang Teng... another contractor... and one more... Huh?"

He suddenly tilted his head, the light beneath his skin flickering. With a hint of lingering fear in his voice, he said, "Close call, close call..."

"The last person’s biological signature was wiped," he told the two of them. "When I tried to trace it, I almost triggered the feedback from the Domain they left behind. I was nearly discovered. That must have been another Resonator."

Chen Chuan asked, "They’re contractors? Which company do they belong to?"

Wubei shook his head. "Not from any particular company. They belong to a team of contractors called the Golden Shrimp."

Hearing this name, Old Qi’s expression changed. He muttered, "I should have known."

Chen Chuan looked over. "Old Qi, you know them?"

"Brother Chen, remember I told you about the group that kept taking that abnormal commission? That’s them!" Old Qi thought for a moment more. "But this is too much of a coincidence. There has to be a reason."

He used his Realm Token to check and found that the abnormal commission was now marked as "Completed." Looking further back, he saw a previous "Cancellation" status. The reason given for the cancellation was: "Commission has been completed, requesting a refund of the deposit."

"No wonder..."

Old Qi shook his head. He looked up and said, "I told them not to ask for the deposit back. It would cause trouble. Once you file for a cancellation, the commission funds are frozen for a day pending confirmation. After a second confirmation the next day, most of the funds, minus the platform’s service fee, can be withdrawn."

He said in a disgusted tone, "But that Golden Shrimp crew, they don’t play by the rules. Once they take a job on the platform, they probably consider that money their own. It would’ve been fine if the cancellation wasn’t filed, but trying to get the money back was bound to attract their attention."

Chen Chuan mulled it over. It seemed this whole incident was likely because the refund request had attracted the team’s attention, and they had sent someone to get rid of Xiaoman.

As far as they were concerned, it was probably just a trivial matter of taking a quick trip to kill someone. Brother Chong just happened to be with Xiaoman at the time, so he was killed along with her.

’The next step, then, is to find this Golden Shrimp team.’

He said to Wubei, "Thank you, Brother Wu."

"Hey, don’t mention it, don’t mention it."

Chen Chuan said, "Sorry to have bothered you. We’ll be going now. Old Qi, let’s go."

Wubei looked like he wanted to say something but held his tongue. In the end, he just scratched his head, said nothing, and saw the two of them out.

Once they were outside, Old Qi asked, "Brother Chen, what do we do now?"

Chen Chuan straightened his collar and quickened his pace slightly. "Old Qi, you head back first. I’m going to deal with the killer."

"But Brother Chen, that’s an entire contractor team! They’ll definitely gang up on you! The Golden Shrimp’s people are no joke—not only do they have Fighters, but they might have guns..." Old Qi said, hurrying to keep up and warning him anxiously.

Chen Chuan paused his stride and glanced back. "If that’s the case..." His voice was placid. "Then I’ll just have to deal with all of them together." With that, he walked off.

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