Detective Agency of the Bizarre
Chapter 118 - 118 118

118: 118.

The answer is right there 118: 118.

The answer is right there This is Drum Tower Street.

The place where Liu Wenwei disappeared, and the location of that door.

Originally clueless, the tangled mess of threads was pulled apart, and unexpectedly, it turned out all the knots were loose; with just a slight tug, the threads were sorted out.

Everything connected together, transforming into the truth.

Lu Li stood up again, pushed the door, and left the coffee shop, crossing the pedestrian street to stop in front of the Tang He railing.

The outline of a white Xiali car appeared not far across the river.

The coffee shop, he, the car, nearly in a straight line.

Mist was rising at their feet, similarly venting water along this straight line in the sewer below.

The rain had slowed down in the past two days, mostly just drizzling or overcast weather, the flow in the underground channel wasn’t as turbulent as the previous days, but still carried a depth around the lower leg, washing into the river in frothy runs.

Standing inside it, one could easily be unsteady due to the washing currents.

“You suspect…” Yang Chunxue realized something.

“Hmm.”

With a simple response, Lu Li took out his phone and dialed Shen Qian.

A few seconds later, the call connected, first with a sound of heavy breathing.

“Bring two sets of weighted waterproof pants to the entrance of the sewer on Drum Tower Street.”

“Boss, have you lost your mind?

I’m on vacation.”

Lu Li paused slightly, thinking of something, and answered in the silence, “…enjoy your rest.”

“Hey, boss—”

Beep—

After hanging up, Lu Li quickly dialed another number.

“You don’t look quite right…” Yang Chunxue said with some concern.

At this moment, Lu Li looked a bit… irrational.

As the call connected, Lu Li ignoring Yang Chunxue, began, “I need two weighted waterproof pants delivered to 413 Drum Tower Street, as soon as possible.”

“No problem, it’ll be there within thirty minutes,” the voice on the other end replied.

“That’s too long.”

“Is it urgent?

If Boss Lu can cover the fines for running red lights, I can make it in no more than fifteen minutes.”

“Okay.”

“Right away!”

After hanging up, Lu Li looked at Yang Chunxue

“What did you just say?”

…

Thirteen minutes after the call ended, a pickup truck styled like a maintenance vehicle appeared in the distance on the pedestrian street, stopping near Lu Li.

A middle-aged man jumped out of the vehicle, waving and grinning, revealing several gold teeth.

He walked around to the back, picked up two heavy waterproof pants, and placed them beside Lu Li.

“Phew… Specially modified like this, unrestricted access, second only to special vehicles,” the man with the gold teeth said, breathing out.

“Are you going to fish in the water?”

Lu Li picked up a pair of waterproof pants, which looked somewhat like rain boots, with a waterproof rubber coating, and the overalls style fitted well on the body.

The deliberately thickened and weighted lower part of the pants pinned well in the water flow.

“Rescuing a person.”

“Oh, a big job.” Boss Jin remembered, knowing what to ask and what not to, he waved and stepped back, revealing his trademark smile, “Old rules, rental fee and any potential fines settled at the end of the month, good luck.”

He jumped into the vehicle, started it, and drove away.

Lu Li watched as the crowd parted and the car moved further away.

Lu Li picked up the overalls, and walked down to the river channel from the stairs nearby.

The underground channel’s railing was locked tight, though the lock was nowhere to be found, the unlocked gate unable to deter the determined.

Lu Li donned the heavy, non-breathable waterproof overalls, and his gaze fell on another pair of trousers on the ground, pausing slightly.

“That’s why I said you looked a bit off…” Yang Chunxue touched her forehead helplessly, torn between feeling pity and laughter.

Did this guy actually take two sets of waterproof pants, intending to prepare one for himself too?

“Let’s keep it as a spare,” Lu Li didn’t say much, he clipped the flashlight to his chest, took out his cell phone for additional light, and approached the metal gate.

Stepping into knee-deep water, the cold, bone-chilling temperature penetrated his skin through the thin fabric.

A cool air stream carrying the scent of earth and blood surged from the sewer, stirring his black hair.

Lu Li opened the decorative rail door, raised his cellphone, and entered the dark, damp underground passage.

The sound of rushing water echoed in the narrow, closed sewer; splashes met splashes, echoes met echoes, overwhelming his ears.

It was hard to say whether this was good or bad.

The noisy water flow added a bit of liveliness to the sewer, much like a rainy night that somehow instills a sense of safety.

Yet, the noise could also lead to irritation and potentially cause him to overlook any potential clues.

Splash— Splash—

The water stirred up by his movements and the echoing sound of flowing water were insignificant; Lu Li, with his flashlight held high, walked forward with firm, unwavering steps.

His goal was clear, the door 200 meters from the entrance with a key in the lock.

Yang Chunxue avoided the water flow, floating high behind Lu Li.

Minutes later, the flashlight reflected back its white light up ahead.

It wasn’t damp condensation, but the reflective color of metal.

The sound of the water echoing in his ears never stopped.

The last time Lu Li had heard this water sound, it seemed to have come from this very place.

An indescribable emotion germinated within him, a voice hiding behind the door, beckoning him to enter.

Less than ten meters from the door, Lu Li stopped.

The water flowed around his legs, rushing away.

His right hand, tightly clutching the Bagua Jade Pendant, had turned somewhat pale from the force.

On the map, several marked points exactly lined up here.

Everything seemed to match up.

Liu Wenwei had disappeared on Drum Tower Street five years ago, not captured by any surveillance.

She might have entered this door.

And today, five years later, the Spiritual Guide directed Lu Li here, close to the truth.

Now clear about Liu Wenwei’s whereabouts, Lu Li could turn back—but he didn’t want to.

He had not yet seen her with his own eyes.

“Sigh…”

Lu Li sighed lightly for the first time, as if making up his mind.

Then, it was time to end all this…

He lowered his arm holding the cellphone, turned off the light, reached into his coat to pull out an umbrella, and removed the cover.

He placed the cellphone into the umbrella cover, along with his wallet, a kitchen knife, and the Ghost Envoy Manual materialized in his palm.

Gathering the opening of the cover, Lu Li handed it to Yang Chunxue.

He instructed one by one, “You can manage the office, or let Shen Qian take care of it.

I’m not sure what it will be like for you to lose the Ghost Envoy and be absorbed into the Ghost Envoy Manual, so just in case, you better find a new Ghost Envoy soon.

Your close friend Sun Zhi might be a suitable candidate.

She might not be suitable as a Ghost Envoy, but she’d be fit to be your Ghost Envoy.”

Trust was very important; apart from himself, only Sun Zhi, who was still her close friend, held that trust.

Yang Chunxue did not accept the items Lu Li handed over, his actions akin to a last will made her anxious, “You’re not planning to go in, are you!”

“The answer is behind this door.”

Lu Li did not deny it.

Yang Chunxue couldn’t understand Lu Li’s actions and shouted, “You already know she’s in there, do you still need to go in to confirm?”

“I haven’t found her yet; she remains missing.”

The current results were not satisfying to Lu Li.

His expression was calm, his dark eyes staring at the clear eyes of Yang Chunxue.

“I’ve said it before.

Alive, I must see the person; dead, I must see the body.”