Hunter of Mysterious Creature-Chapter 355 - 22: The Pretender 2

Sun Hang confessed that his will was indeed weak—yet he chose to leave a comfortable life behind and come to these desolate mountains to act like a troublemaker; perhaps he really was kicked by a donkey in the head.

Starting the car, shifting gears, turning the steering wheel, making a U-turn... Sun Hang hadn’t driven more than 100 meters before he saw a road sign resembling the one he saw earlier.

However, the words on the sign gave Sun Hang a sense of "searching far and wide only to find it easily."

"Shuzhou direction, 200 kilometers."

Beneath these big words, there was a line of smaller text: "15 kilometers to Highway 4218."

...

...

Highway 4218.

The last remaining vehicle, Number Three, raced along the winding mountain road, with the remaining team members gathered inside the transport compartment, their expressions uncertain.

Wang Xiyi let out a long sigh, glanced at her wristband, reached up to tap the cabin roof, and said, "Two more minutes, Candle Dragon, it’s your turn."

To ensure immediate response to unexpected events, the team’s three main forces—Wang Xiyi, Candle Dragon, and Ye Jiu—take turns keeping watch on the roof, swapping every thirty minutes.

"It’s fine, I don’t fear the cold. Honestly, if you ask me, staying up here all the time is okay," Candle Dragon’s voice sounded both from outside the transport compartment and through the internal communication channel, "Wait, looks like something is happening!"

"Stop! Turn off the lights!" Wang Xiyi said without hesitation, "Everyone, prepare for combat!"

"On the distant mountain road, I saw car lights flash by," Candle Dragon said again.

"Car lights?" Wang Xiyi kicked the cabin door open and was the first to jump out of the transport compartment.

"Where, where... Ah damn!" Ye Jiu also crawled out of the transport compartment, but while he managed to get out, the Wolf-tooth Spear strapped on his back got stuck in the door frame, suspending him at the rear of the transport compartment.

"Just in that direction," Candle Dragon pointed towards the one o’clock direction, "Now it’s gone around the mountain and out of sight, but I’m not sure if those were car lights."

"Can’t be the eyes of some mysterious creature, right?" Ye Jiu finally pulled the Wolf-tooth Spear out of the compartment and leaped onto the car top, "Would a mysterious creature need to move along a winding mountain road?"

"I’ve seen cars turned into mysterious creatures," Candle Dragon said.

"Hey, I wonder if it’s Sun Hang in that car?" Ye Jiu suddenly suggested, "Even his nameplate could turn into a metal snake, what monstrous transformation could happen to the car he drove... Eh, I’d rather not think about it."

"Quiet," Wang Xiyi hissed.

The sound of an engine and tires scraping started to approach. When the vehicle rounds the mountain, it will appear directly on the same stretch of road where Wang Xiyi and her crew are.

"This sound..." Zhong Ling also stepped out of the transport compartment, whispering, "It’s Sun Hang’s car."

"Everyone stay alert," Wang Xiyi raised a ghostly blue flame in her hand, "What Ye Jiu just said isn’t entirely implausible."

"No way, I just said that casually... Am I some kind of jinx?" Ye Jiu complained.

"We’ll find out soon enough."

Finally, accompanied by two beams of light emerging from behind the mountain, a familiar off-road vehicle came into view.

"It’s the car Yang Qi lent to Sun Hang..." Wang Xiyi squinted, "Seems like there’s someone in the driver’s seat."

"Is it Sun Hang?" Ye Jiu asked instinctively.

Wang Xiyi didn’t answer but instead spread her wings and soared into the sky.

...

...

After confirming the direction, Sun Hang drove back along Highway 4218, sensing many mysterious creature presences, but they fled upon his approach. Forget about attacking Sun Hang, they didn’t dare linger near him. Thus, Sun Hang abandoned thoughts of a "supplemental feast" and focused all attention on the journey.

After rounding a series of five hairpin bends, he noticed a shadow lurking on the roadside several hundred meters ahead. Unsure whether to stop or drive straight over, a familiar presence rapidly approached. Suddenly, a heavy form slammed down onto the hood!

"Boom!!"

"Damn! The car!" Sun Hang immediately braked as he witnessed the engine sink.

The figure squatting on the hood didn’t fly off or smash into the windshield due to inertia but rather hopped down and nonchalantly opened the door.

"Mr. Wang? Why are you here?" Sun Hang asked, bewildered.

"I was going to ask you, why do you rush like a madman into the Surrendered Area?" Wang Xiyi questioned with a stern face, "Do you realize how worried we were? The entire Celestial City Mysterious Creature Research Institute nearly exploded!"

"I didn’t willingly run into it," Sun Hang tossed the empty scent bottle to Wang Xiyi.

"What’s this?" Wang Xiyi queried, examining the scent bottle.

"Someone secretly hid this bottle in the car. It contained a volatile hypnotic substance. Once inhaled, I temporarily lost consciousness and control of my body," Sun Hang explained, "When I regained awareness, I was already in the Surrendered Area."

"Who did it?" Wang Xiyi instinctively wanted to crush the scent bottle but realized it was vital evidence and promptly let go.

"Someone from the Celestial City Management Committee who doesn’t like me... but he’s not the mastermind; he was coerced," Sun Hang replied.

"Who is it? With evidence, I can get this person locked up," Wang Xiyi declared.

"Ah? Why imprison them?" Sun Hang expressed in astonishment.

"Even under duress, they framed you, causing serious repercussions which warrant severe punishment," Wang Xiyi said.

"No, no, no... you’ve completely misunderstood me," Sun Hang shook his head repeatedly, "I meant why waste precious resources by jailing such scum?"

"Uh..." Wang Xiyi hesitated, "And... the mastermind?"

"The mastermind... is a mysterious creature," Sun Hang admitted after pondering.

"A mysterious creature? A mysterious creature coerced a human to frame a Hunter... you’re sure?" Now it was Wang Xiyi’s turn to be astonished, "If it was a mysterious creature, why didn’t it act directly?"

"That’s my point of confusion, which is why I need to personally question that person."

"By the way, on our way here, we encountered a powerful mysterious creature with metal manipulation abilities similar to yours. After defeating it, we found your nameplate in its core."

"My nameplate?" Sun Hang rummaged through his pocket, pulling out a metal nameplate, "I’ve kept my nameplate with me the whole time." 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

Besides this nameplate, his pocket also held the "power bank" Shariputra he obtained from Longyan Temple.

"Huh?" Wang Xiyi was stunned. Then, in the next moment, she spread her wings and flew upwards towards the engineering vehicle whose lights had just turned on.

Soon, the two groups convened, and Wang Xiyi cautiously retrieved a glowing metal nameplate from the containment device.

Except, the name on this nameplate was no longer Sun Hang’s but a string of Russian words.

The first part of the Russian text was unfamiliar to Sun Hang, but the latter part was eerily recognizable.

"Does anyone know Russian?" Sun Hang asked.

"I do," Candle Dragon glanced at it and said, "It’s a female name, Elena Demoshena."

Elena Demoshena?

Anna Demosheva?

Anna’s nameplate vanished mysteriously, so where did this nameplate with the same surname as Anna’s come from?

Anna’s... sister?