Mysterious Revival

Chapter 1040 - 1006 Investigating the Missing Person

There are still some escaped messengers on the fifth floor, and from Wang Yong's mouth, it was learned that there are messengers even more senior than him.

It's important to know that he is also a fifth-floor messenger who has delivered two letters, which already makes him quite senior. The messengers he refers to must be those who reached the fifth floor before him.

"Whether messengers more senior than you still exist or not is no longer important. Now that we control the fifth floor of the post office, their appearance or absence doesn't affect the big picture. We hold the decision-making power on this floor,"

Yang Jian reassured Wang Yong at this moment.

The others nodded in agreement.

They now had enough people, with Yang Jian, Li Yang, Wang Yong, Zhou Ze, Brother Long, and Zhong Yan, making a formidable team of six messengers.

Even if some old messengers were still alive and dared to show themselves, their fate would be no different than that of Lu Sheng, nailed to the ground alive.

"Since that's the case, what's your next move, Captain?"

At this moment, Zhou Ze, the messenger, asked somewhat impatiently.

Yang Jian said, "No rush, let's hold off on this matter. There's something else I need to confirm. I want to know if any of you have seen Sun Rui, who was stationed in the first-floor lobby. He's missing, and I want to find him, dead or alive."

"Sun Rui? Who is Sun Rui, and is there even anyone in the first-floor lobby?" Zhou Ze was a bit confused. "Sorry, I rarely come to the post office, so I really don't know about the recent events."

Li Yang said, "Sun Rui is the head of Dahan City. Initially, Sun Rui, the captain, and I teamed up to break into this place to resolve the Ghost Post Office. But Sun Rui chose to stay in the first-floor lobby to cut off the entry of new first-floor messengers. He has been stationed there for some time. Ten days ago, when the captain and I received a delivery task, we saw him; he was still on the first floor then."

"But yesterday, when we came to the post office, Sun Rui had disappeared mysteriously."

"So that's the situation. Is there also a person in charge on the first floor?" Wang Yong mused, understanding what the person named Sun Rui was doing.

This Sun Rui probably intended to kill all first-floor messengers, cutting off the supply of newcomers. This way, the Ghost Post Office's operation would stop.

It's a good method, just very difficult because someone still needs to clean up from the first to the fifth floor messengers.

Thinking of this, Wang Yong looked again at Yang Jian.

It turns out there was such an aspect to Yang Jian's previous killing of messengers.

This is indeed a method. If truly helpless against the Ghost Post Office, then purging all messengers is viable.

Without anyone delivering letters, the curse of the Ghost Post Office wouldn't spread, and the place would naturally remain forever sealed.

"Honestly, I haven't come to the post office for a long time, so I am not clear about this matter and didn't even know of Sun Rui's existence, my apologies," said Brother Long, the bald elderly, shaking his head.

At this point, the middle-aged woman named Zhong Yan said, "I visited the post office three days ago and saw Sun Rui. There was a small conflict between us then, almost a fight, but that was days ago. Now that Sun Rui is missing, I don't have any data or information."

Yang Jian immediately looked at her, "Three days ago?"

Zhong Yan nodded, "Yes, three days ago, Sun Rui was sitting behind the big counter on the first floor, seemingly for quite some time."

"Any clues to provide?" Yang Jian continued to ask.

"Let me think," Zhong Yan was recalling, trying to remember the events of three days ago.

In truth, she hadn't had much contact with Sun Rui, just a brief meeting on the first floor. There weren't many incidents, and the clues she could note down were limited. But as a messenger on the fifth floor, observing surroundings is a must-have skill.

Zhong Yan, although an average middle-aged woman, was recreating the scene in her mind.

Eliminating unimportant details, she tried to focus on things worth noting.

"Sun Rui was seated at that counter, with an unlit oil lamp on it," Zhong Yan said, "He looked unwell, holding a cane, with a gun in hand, specially made."

"These clues aren't important," Yang Jian said, "Anything else?"

Zhong Yan continued to think, then said, "Besides that, there seems to be nothing suspicious. However, when I was going upstairs, I glanced back at him. There was an oil painting at Sun Rui's feet."

An oil painting?

Yang Jian's expression shifted, "What kind of oil painting?"

"Similar to the ones here, but I didn't see it clearly. Still, it seemed special in some way, leaving me with a vague impression," Zhong Yan said.

"Having oil paintings in the post office is quite normal, whether on the fifth floor or in the first-floor lobby. The exact origin of these things is still unknown. I only know that every once in a while, several new and unseen paintings appear," Wang Yong voiced.

"Let's have a look on the first floor," Yang Jian directly said.

During the previous rush upstairs, he hadn't paid attention to the first floor's situation. Now, it's indeed time to take a good look back downstairs.

The post office's fifth-floor hall and the first-floor lobby are quite special places.

As only these two places have oil paintings, while the other floors do not.

Yang Jian immediately took action; he pushed open the door and walked out, quickly descending the old wooden stairs.

Although the black letter was on him, the delivery task would not start as long as he didn't leave the perimeter of the Post Office, so it wasn't a concern for the moment.

Seeing this, the others followed suit.

After all, Yang Jian was the leader here, and it was best to respect his decisions.

The group soon returned from the fifth floor of the Post Office to the first floor.

There wasn't much change on the first floor of the Post Office; it was still arranged the same as before, the light overhead remained dim and yellow, and outside, colorful neon lights flickered, embodying a kind of outdated style.

Yang Jian came to the counter where Sun Rui had been before, his ghost eyes scanning everywhere, especially observing the paintings on the wall.

The paintings depicted various portraits—men, women, elderly, children—all painted in a similarly dark and eerie style, clearly by the same hand.

He also checked around the counter and found no other fallen paintings.

"All the paintings on the first floor are here. If Sun Rui's disappearance is related to the paintings, can you recognize which painting it might be?" Yang Jian turned to Zhong Yan.

She was the only messenger who had contact with Sun Rui a few days ago, so her information was crucial.

Zhong Yan also scrutinized the paintings hanging on the wall, comparing them with the painting she saw three days ago before finally pointing a finger: "If I've judged correctly, the painting I saw three days ago should be that one."

Following the direction of her finger, Yang Jian saw the painting.

The painting depicted an old man, around sixty or so, sitting sideways in a chair, looking forward, with a wall behind him. There was a window on the wall, but it was pitch black, making it impossible to see outside.

The style was rather oppressive, and looking at it for a long time caused an intense unease.

"Take that painting down." Yang Jian glanced at it and immediately said.

"I'll do it." The messenger named Zhou Ze volunteered for the task.

He walked over, climbed onto the nearby counter, and tiptoed, just barely reaching the painting on the wall.

However, the painting seemed embedded in the wall and did not budge.

"There's something wrong with the painting." Zhou Ze immediately said.

Yang Jian's ghost eyes scrutinized, unaffected or suppressed, unlike the feeling he had when facing ghostly paintings before. Yet, at this moment, he saw the old man sitting by the window in the painting blink mysteriously, seemingly glancing in this direction.

"The person in the painting moved."

"Yes, he just blinked and seemed to turn his head slightly, but then stopped."

The messengers, all attentive observers, noticed this detail.

"There's not much difference with the paintings on the fifth floor." Wang Yong pondered: "But it doesn't make sense that it can't be taken down unless someone is tampering with it."

"The person in the painting is problematic; it ought to be related to that person." Brother Long's eyes shifted slightly, concluding.

As if to confirm his words, the person in the painting suddenly stood up and turned to face forward.

At that moment.

The portrait hanging on the wall loosened and fell off.

Zhou Ze's face turned solemn; he quickly took it down, placed it on the counter, and promptly stepped back a bit.

"So, is Sun Rui's disappearance related to this painting?" Yang Jian's expression shifted slightly as he stepped forward.

Zhong Yan said: "I only know that Sun Rui was indeed studying this painting three days ago, but whether it is related to his disappearance, I can't be certain. After all, three days have passed, and anything could have happened."

Yang Jian didn't speak, merely extending his Ghost Hand to touch the paint surface.

Nevertheless, his Ghost Hand seemed to sink slowly as if submerging into water.

The old man in the painting started moving again, retreating as though Yang Jian's hand was about to touch him, forcing the elderly figure in the painting to withdraw.

Soon, the old man retreated behind the wall in the painting.

Everyone watched this scene, their expressions particularly grave.

Because the old man in the painting could very likely be a ghost, and if Yang Jian could reach into the painting, then Sun Rui probably could too, thus suggesting that Sun Rui might have disappeared into the painting.

"Be careful."

Suddenly, Wang Yong issued a caution.

Suddenly, the face of the old man in the oil painting changed. It was no longer calm; instead, he slightly lowered his head. A layer of black shadow shrouded him, his facial features became somewhat blurred, and he instantly turned eerie and sinister, as if the hidden fierce ghost had revealed its true face.

In the next moment.

Yang Jian staggered; he felt as if his Ghost Hand had been grabbed by someone, but at that moment, his Ghost Hand also grabbed the other party.

The Ghost Hand had the ability to suppress a fierce ghost.

At this moment, he retreated without hesitation, trying to pull the thing in the oil painting out.

The Ghost Shadow at Yang Jian's feet swayed with astounding strength, and coupled with the suppressive power of the Ghost Hand, he actually managed to pull the old man in the oil painting, who was originally retreating, closer to the painting.

The character occupied more and more area, as if the old man was being forcibly dragged out.

"Is this even possible?"

The others couldn't help but twitch their eyelids at the sight, as if the fierce ghost was about to be pulled out of the oil painting alive.

Previously, on the fifth floor, Yang Jian suffered, losing a hand, so he wouldn't suffer again this time.

With experience came preparation, so this time he used the Ghost Hand.

But just as success seemed imminent.

The old man in the oil painting suddenly moved again; he reached one hand out of the painting, and when he pulled it back, it held an axe, seemingly used for chopping wood in the countryside. The axe was red, the handle black, creating a sharp contrast in color, making it extraordinarily striking.

"Captain, he wants to chop off your hand," Li Yang hurriedly said.

Yang Jian's face darkened, "If he wants to fight, then I'll accompany him to the end."

He reached out and forcefully nailed his long gun to the ground, then released it, abandoning the supernatural weapon, and gave up pulling, pressing himself against the oil painting.

As soon as he got close to the oil painting.

Yang Jian's whole body rapidly sank into it, as if he was about to enter the painting.

"Too reckless."

The messenger named Zhou Ze muttered sotto voce, "No messenger on the fifth floor dared to enter the oil painting, how dare he... It's said that once inside, it's easy to get lost and can't find a way out, ultimately getting trapped inside alive."

But it was too late to say all this.

Yang Jian had already sunk into the oil painting, disappearing from sight, while his figure appeared within the painting.

"Didn't take any weapon inside? Is it because he thinks weapons can't enter the painting?" Wang Yong whispered.

Li Yang said, "Forget about that now; the most important thing is to determine the danger level of the old man inside the painting. Do we need to support him? If needed, we will go inside the painting as well."

The others looked at the long gun standing on the ground and then at Yang Jian in the painting.

"Let's observe first and be ready to act at any moment," Wang Yong said.

Right now, everyone was part of a team, so they naturally had to be united.

At this moment.

The situation inside the oil painting changed again. Yang Jian, who had entered the painting, began to confront the old man, and the old man, who had originally raised the axe intending to chop down, was suddenly grabbed by the arm by a towering black shadow standing behind Yang Jian.

The axe couldn't chop down, but the old man retreated.

It seemed like he was trying to escape.

No.

Something was wrong.

Yang Jian's figure inside the painting was also moving uncontrollably, as if he was being dragged by this old man to some unknown place.

"He became disadvantaged after entering the painting." Zhou Ze observed for a moment, then said.

"Let's go in and take a look."

Wang Yong said, then moved forward without another word, pressing himself against the oil painting, his figure gradually merging into it.

Zhong Yan, Brother Long, and Zhou Ze were momentarily stunned.

Are they really all that brave?

Not afraid at all?

What they didn't know was that after understanding the current situation outside and Yang Jian's identity, Wang Yong had realized what he should do.

This wasn't bravery.

It was a unified front, requiring solidarity and cooperation.

If one does not actively step out when faced with danger, the final outcome is predictable.

Seeing this, Li Yang remained motionless, needing to stay outside to guard against unexpected events.

The other messengers who joined later weren't that trustworthy, so he needed to be wary and also keep an eye on the supernatural weapon left outside, preventing anyone from stealing it.

Inside the oil painting.

Yang Jian was in a rather cramped room, surrounded by walls on all sides, with a window on one wall, but the other wall had a painting.

The scene in the painting was actually a scene inside the post office.

The people inside the oil painting were looking at them, and they were also looking at the people inside the oil painting.

This seemed a bit strange.

However, Yang Jian's attention wasn't on that right now; it was focused on the old man, who wasn't actually that old, yet gave off a very eerie, chilling feel, as if he wasn't quite real, reminiscent of encountering a ghost painting in the past.

Though this old man wasn't as ferocious as a ghost painting.

At this moment.

The two were confronting each other; Yang Jian's Ghost Shadow and Ghost Hand gripped the old man, attempting to subdue and suppress him, but it was clear the suppression wasn't successful as the old man could still move.

This old man dragged Yang Jian out of the room towards a black door.

His strength was immense, making it irresistible.

But Yang Jian could not release his grip; the old man still held an axe in his hand, and who knew what would happen if it struck.

"What exactly is inside the oil painting? A person or a ghost?" This thought emerged in his mind.

However, at this moment, the standoff was broken.

Wang Yong also managed to infiltrate from the post office, entering the world inside the oil painting.

"Let me help you." Wang Yong took a glance at the situation and immediately dashed forward.

"Seize the axe from his hand," Yang Jian promptly commanded.

Wang Yong immediately reached out, grabbing the axe, a struggle with a corpse ensued, and the old man with a pitch-black face and a malicious expression suddenly twisted his arm, momentarily escaping the Ghost Shadow's hold, swinging it at him.

But in the next moment.

A ghostly figure appeared in front of Wang Yong, standing towering before him, blocking the axe's strike.

However, a huge gash tore open on the ghost's body, unable to heal.

"Dare to strike?"

Yang Jian seized this opportunity, and his Ghost Shadow teamed with the Ghost Hand to grasp the old man's other arm.

With the Ghost Hand's suppression combined with the Ghost Shadow's dismantling, the old man's arm was disassembled like a block, one limb removed.

The old man, seeing this, uttered not a word; he turned and ran, swiftly pushing open that black door and quickly distancing himself.

"Don't chase," Yang Jian cautioned.

Wang Yong didn't pursue, apprehensive because even his ghost had been cleaved by that axe. If he rashly pursued, he might get counter-killed.

"If only we could remove the axe-wielding hand," he remarked regretfully.

Yang Jian said, "This old bastard is crafty; he held back, baiting me into a trap. When you appeared, he had no choice but to attack you; otherwise, that axe swing was intended for me. However, I also held back, guarding against him."

With that, he touched his forehead.

The Ghost Eye was usable.

Then he continued, "That the old man has such scheming indicates he isn't a ghost."

"But... neither is he human."

Seeing the arm in his hand, it wasn't flesh, it seemed like wood, or perhaps painted, lacking vitality, lifeless, just feeling very strange.