Soon,

  more than a dozen veteran Spirit Wardens gathered together. This was all the fighting strength Blackwater City had left!

  Some were heads of the paranormal departments at the six major high schools; others were in charge of securing paranormal sites across the city.

  “What the hell is going on?! Why did a large-scale paranormal outbreak happen out of nowhere?!”

  Ron’s face was twisted with anxiety as he stared directly at the Chief of Public Security.

  “Sigh…”

  The chief let out a heavy breath and said, “Half an hour ago, Peace River spiraled completely out of control. Hundreds of Vengeful Spirits walked out of it, one after another!”

  “Anyone who crosses paths with them gets brainwashed, and starts walking straight toward Peace River.”

  With that, he pulled up several photos on the big screen.

  The images showed dripping-wet ghosts wandering into crowded areas.

  They didn’t kill anyone. They simply drew near, warped people’s minds, and drove them to throw themselves into the river.

  For a moment,

  all the Spirit Wardens fell grim and silent. Not a single one offered a plan.

  Even as veterans, none of them had ever faced a horror of this scale.

  “What’s the current situation?! Where are all the brainwashed people?!”

  Ron forced himself to stay calm.

  With their current strength, taking on the Ghost River was impossible. The only thing they could do was save as many lives as possible.

  “If we’re talking about saving them… it’s probably already too late.”

  The chief sighed again, then played live drone footage.

  Tens of thousands of people shuffled like walking corpses, slowly closing in on Peace River, already past the old blockade line.

  That meant they had stepped into a death zone.

  Anyone who tried to rescue them would be corrupted by the Ghost River’s power. They wouldn’t save anyone—they’d only throw their own lives away.

  At the sight, Ron closed his eyes. He understood all too well the fate of those people.

  He glared at the chief and snapped,

  “Why didn’t you launch a rescue earlier?!”

  The only way to save them was to knock every last one unconscious before they stepped into the river’s influence.

  And now, the perfect window had closed.

  “We had no one to send!”

  The chief smiled bitterly.

  “Most of our forces were assigned to evacuate civilians. The bureau is practically empty right now.”

  Ron froze. He glanced around the deserted Public Security Bureau headquarters.

  This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

  “Sigh…”

  He exhaled, his mind racing.

  But even he didn’t dare go near Peace River. One wrong move, and he’d be trapped too.

  There was only one person who could safely approach the river:

  John.

  But even then, it was too late.

  By the time John arrived, those tens of thousands would already be at the bottom of the river.

  Besides, John was just one person. Saving that many people was impossible.

  “…”

  After a long pause, Ron frowned sharply and ordered,

  “Alert the Spirit Warden Classes and Intelligence Classes at all six high schools. Have them assemble immediately and help evacuate the remaining civilians!”

  He had no time to grieve. All he could do was protect whoever was left in the city.

  Blackwater City had a population of over a million, after all!

  Everyone nodded and sprang into action at once.

  The whole of Blackwater City was destined to have no sleep this night.

  The only silver lining:

  The Ghost River’s power seemed to have a time or distance limit. At around two in the morning, the Vengeful Spirits that had emerged from the water began to retreat.

  Students from the Spirit Warden and Intelligence Classes worked with the remaining officers to calm civilians, while staying on high alert for another attack from the Ghost River.

  But after claiming tens of thousands of lives, the Ghost River appeared satisfied. It fell completely still.

  By early morning,

  the invasion from Peace River had temporarily quieted down. But news of the disaster spread like wildfire, and videos of tens of thousands drowning themselves shook the entire nation.

  This was the first Calamity?Class incident in the history of Great Xia.

  “Finally heading back to school…”

  The students of the Spirit Warden and Intelligence Classes boarded the buses heading back to campus.

  “Tens of thousands of people… I knew it was way worse than it looked.”

  John couldn’t help but glance toward Peace River and muttered to himself,

  “If it attacks a few more times, this whole city will be swallowed by the river.”

  Blackwater City was starting to look less like a city, and more like a hunting ground for the Ghost River.

  Its mind-warping power was practically unsolvable.

  “Boss John, do you think the official forces can stop it?”

  William asked from beside him, his eyes filled with worry.

  “No idea.”

  John shook his head. He had no clue just how strong the higher?ups really were.

  “Maybe…”

  Even as he said it, the thought of running away crept back into his mind.

  After a disaster like this, plenty of people would choose to move and flee Blackwater City.

  Other cities had paranormal incidents too, but nothing nearly this horrifying.

  William asked quietly,

  “Boss John… if you went in, what are your odds?”

  “???”

  John froze. Wait, don’t drag me into your bragging.

  “Let’s just say… I’d get out in one piece.”

  “…”

  William’s mouth fell open. “You can’t beat them either?”

  “William, don’t worship me blindly, alright?”

  John sighed.

  He could resist the Ghost River’s mind control, sure—but if he stepped into the water, he’d end up just like Yu Xian. Unless…

  John glanced down at his chest.

  Could the Ghost Mask take it on?

  But the damn thing never showed up unless it was feeding time.

  After that nightmarish evening,

  the whole of Blackwater City was wrapped in fear. People across the nation were shaken too.

  For the first time, everyone truly witnessed the unbridled power of ghosts.

  Meanwhile, inside a meeting room of the Jiangning Provincial Paranormal Affairs Department:

  Everyone sat heavy and silent. Not a word was spoken. The air was suffocating.

  A middle-aged man at the front scanned the room and said slowly,

  “I don’t know what threat level the Ghost River has reached. But I have to step in.”

  “Minister, don’t act recklessly!”

  Someone below quickly spoke up. “Think of the bigger picture!”

  This man was the strongest Spirit Warden in the entire Jiangning Province.

  If something happened to him, it would trigger a chain of disasters—even the entire provincial paranormal defense line could collapse.

  That was why the authorities had kept assessing the risk, refusing to act until they were certain of victory.

  “We can’t wait any longer!”

  Wei Feng shook his head. “If the Ghost River erupts again, the consequences will be unthinkable!”

  Right now, no one in Blackwater City could fight back. They could only evacuate.

  If it struck once or twice more, even if the Ghost River didn’t drown everyone, the survivors would flee.

  Blackwater City would become a ghost town, and that would spark nationwide social chaos.

  “This incident must be resolved,” Wei Feng said firmly. “And we must win.”

  He took a deep breath. “The whole country is watching. We have to give people faith—prove that the authorities can handle this.”

  “But the Ghost River is too terrifying…”

  “Don’t worry.”

  Wei Feng shook his head. “The high command has made concessions. The Lu Family from the North and the Paranormal Association will both send experts to assist me.”

  “The Lu Family is coming?!”

  Everyone was shocked. Getting the Lu Family on board must have cost the central government dearly.

  “Alright. Hold your positions. I’m heading to Blackwater City.”

  Wei Feng wasted no more time. He stood and left the meeting room.