The room was pitch dark, and I had no idea what time it was. This kind of interrogation room, with its oppressive darkness, was designed to break a person’s spirit. Thankfully, these guys weren’t entirely heartless—they gave me a boxed meal.

Originally, I thought I’d be stuck enduring this abuse for a few more days. But to my surprise, by evening, the door to the room suddenly swung open. Leading the group was a man in his forties, followed by Brother Xiang and Jin Xishan. As soon as they came in and saw my injuries, Brother Xiang rushed over, grabbing me in a hug while cursing, “Xiao Hui, who did this to you? Tell me, and I’ll make sure they pay!”

“Old Li, you’re still so hot-headed.” The man leading the group was obviously here to help me, and even Li Shanshan’s father was trailing behind him. That earlier remark was clearly directed at him.

The man walked up to me, helped me to my feet, and asked kindly, “Young man, you’re Chen Hui, right? Are you okay?”

“Uh…” I froze for a moment, and Brother Xiang whispered in my ear, “That’s Xishan’s dad.”

Not being stupid, I quickly gave Jin Xishan a grateful look. It seemed Brother Xiang noticed I’d been gone too long and sensed something was off, so he had Jin Xishan pull some strings to rescue me. I quickly turned to her father and said, “Thank you, Uncle, I’m fine.”

“Just call me Uncle Jin. We’re the ones who owe you and your friend for what you did for my father.” Uncle Jin smiled warmly.

The man called Li Bureau Chief, or Li Qingshan, stepped forward and snorted, “Old Jin, you should’ve told me earlier you knew this kid. But make sure he behaves himself and doesn’t keep hanging around my daughter.”

Uncle Jin glanced around and said, “Have your men leave. I have something to discuss with you.”

Li Qingshan nodded and ordered the officers behind him to step out. Soon, only Brother Xiang, Jin Xishan, Li Qingshan, Uncle Jin, and I were left in the room.

As the officers left, Brother Xiang leaned in to whisper that Uncle Jin’s full name was Jin Jianguo, and he was a deputy district mayor in Chongqing.

Once everyone was gone, Jin Jianguo began, “Old Li, you’ve handled this matter far too impulsively. You’ll need these young men to help find your daughter, yet you went and beat one of them up. Let’s see how you plan to ask them for help now.”

“What’s going on? Jianguo, explain this to me,” Li Qingshan demanded. As the head of a police station, he wasn’t just some brute. His earlier outburst had been fueled by the panic and anger of having his daughter kidnapped.

Jin Jianguo then recounted everything that happened on Mountain Mei. He concluded with, “These two young men are genuine Yin-Yang Masters, not some street charlatans.”

Hearing this, Li Qingshan’s eyes lit up. He turned to me and asked, “So you’re saying you can help me find my daughter?”

Li Qingshan didn’t bring up the beating, and I wasn’t dumb enough to mention it either. What good would it do to demand an apology from a police station chief?

“Didn’t you track down the van that took Li Shanshan?” I asked.

Li Qingshan shook his head, his face filled with anger. “They used fake plates. There’s no trace of them. If you two can help me find her, I’ll host a banquet to make amends for this misunderstanding.”

“No need for a banquet, Chief Li. Just give me your daughter’s birthdate, and I’ll try to calculate her general location. I can’t guarantee exact details, but I can narrow it down to a general area,” I replied.

Li Qingshan looked relieved and said, “Deal. Oh, by the way, aren’t you two still in police academy? Once you graduate, you can come work for me directly.”

“Old Li, you’re quite the schemer,” Jin Jianguo said with a sly grin. “Getting them to help you find your daughter and then roping them into your Jiulongpo Police Station? If other district chiefs find out there are Yin-Yang Masters in the police academy, they might rush to the school personally to recruit them. You’ve got it all planned out, don’t you?”

“Old Jin, keep this under wraps, would you?” Li Qingshan said before turning to us. “Think it over carefully. No rush to give me an answer.”

“Why are you all treating Yin-Yang Masters like some rare delicacy?” Brother Xiang asked Uncle Jin, clearly puzzled.

Uncle Jin didn’t hold back and explained, “The country started integrating Yin-Yang Masters into the police force years ago. There are many cases that defy logical explanations and involve supernatural elements. That’s why they formed a Paranormal Investigation Team, also known as the Demon Catching Bureau.”

“At first, the Paranormal Investigation Teams were under local police jurisdictions. But due to coordination issues, the state established a centralized organization focused on dealing with ghosts and demons—the Demon Catching Bureau. However, joining that bureau is extremely difficult; you need more than just skills in Daoist arts. The Paranormal Investigation Teams still exist, solving local supernatural cases, while the Demon Catching Bureau handles the really tough ones.”

“Wow, so it’s real? Like the legendary Chinese Dragon Team?” I asked, my excitement growing.

Uncle Jin chuckled and shook his head. “Don’t get ahead of yourself. The Demon Catching Bureau is directly overseen by the central government. What I’ve told you is all we know. Once you graduate, you can try taking their entrance exam. But for now, let’s focus on finding Li Shanshan. Old Li is at his wit’s end.”

“Here’s Shanshan’s birthdate. Please, help me find her.” Li Qingshan handed Brother Xiang a slip of paper with her details, looking utterly desperate.

Brother Xiang led us to the rooftop of the police station, staring at the stars as he calculated.

Using a piece of paper, Brother Xiang started drawing and writing. Calculating someone’s fate through birthdate isn’t as simple as a charlatan’s finger-counting trick.

After about five minutes, Brother Xiang pointed southward and said, “Thirty kilometers southwest, within a one-kilometer radius. That’s as precise as I can get.”

Li Qingshan quickly pulled out a map and examined it. His eyes lit up as he said, “Got it!”

It turned out the location Brother Xiang pointed to was in the outskirts, surrounded by wilderness with almost no buildings—just an abandoned factory. If the kidnappers had hidden in the city, finding them would’ve been much harder. But hiding there was like yelling, “Come and get me!”

“Deploy the team! Surround them! Damn it, kidnapping my daughter—I’ll see what they’re made of!” Li Qingshan was fuming with rage and stormed downstairs. Jin Jianguo patted Jin Xishan on the shoulder, telling her to head home and rest. Knowing she couldn’t contribute much, she didn’t insist on tagging along.

Brother Xiang, Uncle Jin, and I hurried after Li Qingshan to rescue Li Shanshan.