North America Gunman Detective

Chapter 1246 - 683: The Story of Ghost Lake (Part 2)

Just a few minutes later, Jimmy could already notice some faint halos around Father Bennett through his Heart Eye Vision. This speed seemed fast, but it was noticeably slower than when Jimmy accompanied Father Rodney and others during the exorcism. It seemed that if Father Bennett wasn't much worse than Father Rodney and the others, there could only be one explanation: the previous possession caused not only physical but possibly also spiritual and faith-related damage to him.

Father Bennett held a badge in his right hand, gently placing it on Nia's forehead, and then maintained this posture while continuing to pray, soon stopping afterward.

He put away the badge, frowned, and turned to look at Jimmy, "I think your guess is correct, but I won't be able to awaken her for now."

Jimmy also frowned, "What? Is there a problem?"

Father Bennett nodded, "I think so. She hasn't become a vegetable, and her soul is still there, but it seems something I don't understand is suppressing her, preventing her from responding to us. Perhaps we need to visit the place where the incident occurred."

Jimmy: "I haven't confirmed the location with the local police yet, I've been in the hospital since I arrived."

Father Bennett pondered, "We should go and take a look, perhaps we might discover something."

Jimmy nodded, took out his phone, and called the number of Sergeant Porter, which he had left with Jimmy before he left, otherwise, he would have had to return to the police station to find him.

Fortunately, Sergeant Porter did not decline and soon arrived at the hospital. Jimmy and Father Bennett followed him downstairs, got in the car, following him and another police car to the place where Nia and the others were previously discovered.

Ghost Lake is located in a remote area to the northeast of Newport City. It's fairly secluded, with a small hill nearby. To the locals, this area doesn't have much to offer in terms of scenery, so hardly anyone visits. The only road is a hardened dirt path, not paved, and seems to haven't been maintained for quite a while. Many parts have been eroded by rain, exposing a lot of stones beneath the surface.

Sergeant Porter and two officers parked by the roadside ahead. Jimmy and Father Bennett also got out of the car. Sergeant Porter pointed at the woods ahead, "We can't drive any further, let's walk from here."

A narrow path cut through the woods, and soon a small lake appeared before them. The lake's surface was less than 200 meters wide, appearing quite clean. At least, there were no islands of industrial waste or plastic bags floating on it. Currently, there wasn't much wind, and the lake surface was calm.

Sergeant Porter: "Over here, this was where the missing students set up their tents." He pointed to a patch of ground, "This area has already been cleared. The tents and items were taken back to the police station's evidence room."

Since they got out of the car, Jimmy had been frequently switching back and forth between Heart Eye Vision and normal vision. Heart Eye Vision wasn't able to check evidence or observe ground traces. It could only be used to detect certain special things, so to Sergeant Porter, Jimmy's reactions seemed slightly delayed.

Jimmy didn't find any filth here. He looked at Father Bennett, who shook his head. Jimmy then turned to Sergeant Porter, "Were there any traces of the three students found? Or perhaps, their bodies?"

Sergeant Porter: "No, after we discovered the tents here, we discussed with Detective Yang and sent those items back beforehand. I'm not sure if Detective Yang found anything afterward. They fainted not far from here."

Sergeant Porter led Jimmy and the others along the lake for dozens of meters. The weeds here were dense, with the tallest reaching chest height, estimated to be over 140 centimeters. If someone were lying on the ground covered by weeds, no one would see them.

Soon, they came to a patch of pressed-down weeds, "This is where they were found, just a few meters from the lakefront."

Jimmy looked at Father Bennett. The two nodded to each other, and they began to examine the scene from both sides, gradually expanding their search range until they reached the lakefront.

However, perhaps because it was noon, with strong sunlight shining here, they didn't find anything unusual.

Jimmy returned to Sergeant Porter's side, "Sergeant Porter, can you tell me about the legend of this lake?"

Sergeant Porter nodded, "I specifically looked into it when I went back, and also consulted two elderly people to verify the original story. Before the 40s and 50s, there didn't seem to be such a legend here; the stories began around that time.

A couple was involved, with the man enlisting and staying in Europe for several years before returning. His lover believed he had died in action and later married someone else.

When the man returned, they met again, and as one might expect, a dramatic series of events unfolded. However, the woman's husband discovered them and shot the man dead during one of their meetings here, throwing him into the lake. Under the husband's threat, the wife was about to leave with him but took the opportunity to knock him unconscious and then jumped into the lake, committing suicide.

After waking up and discovering the tragedy, the husband jumped into the lake, brought his wife's body to the shore, and, deeply grieved, killed himself here as well.

Since then, rumors of sightings of ghosts began to circulate. People claimed to have encountered two ghosts here, trying to lure them into the water on the lake and shore, though no evidence has ever proven this.

According to the legend, ghost sightings generally occur in the evening and at night. The ghost, dressed in white, floats above the water, and in the moonlight, emits blue specks of light. However, many have searched here, some even keeping watch based on the legend's timing, but they have found nothing, so it eventually faded away. In recent decades, no one has sought the ghosts here.

Jimmy: "Is this story true?"

Sergeant Porter: "That's the legend. The two elderly people I spoke with said these stories existed since their childhood. However, I haven't found any related personnel information from the police station records. There was too much disorder and loss or damage in the historical records to find a complete set, making it difficult to uncover everything.

Several farms existed near here decades ago, but they've since been abandoned, leaving this area deserted and too remote.

Jimmy looked at Father Bennett, "Father, did you sense anything unusual?"

Father Bennett shook his head, "I didn't find anything. I think perhaps the timing is off."

Jimmy: "So, what should we do now?"

Father Bennett thought for a moment and said, "Let's first move Mrs. Yang and the others to the church. Father Rodney should arrive this afternoon."

Jimmy: "Father Rodney will come too?"

Father Bennett: "Yes, I think it might be more convenient at the church. Let's head back; I need to contact the priest at St. Mary's Cathedral to make arrangements."

Jimmy nodded, updated Sergeant Porter, and the group retraced their steps. As they neared the location where the students' tents were set up, Jimmy suddenly stopped, turning to look at the lake, "Wait, be careful."

Jimmy's eerie Sixth Sense had returned. Someone was watching him, there was danger. Whenever this sensation emerged, it either involved a supernatural occurrence or an imminent attack, never something benign.

Jimmy reached for two 1875 revolvers, his hands hanging low, ready to shoot at any moment, Heart Eye Vision activated as he glared at the lake's surface. However, he saw nothing. The lake was like a mirror, clear of anything, "Sergeant Porter, you all should step back."

The water and ground formed a connected solid structure, and Heart Eye Vision couldn't penetrate these tangible entities.

Father Bennett retrieved a cross from his robe, murmuring softly, but after waiting a few minutes, nothing unusual happened.