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Chapter 238 Dialogue
"This sect appeared fifty or sixty years ago, but it didn't have any special characteristics back then. Its actions were just about making money, and people were too lazy to investigate things like that at the time."

As Han Ruiming narrated, a story gradually took shape.

This "Ascension to Immortality Sect" originated from a remote region, but it's actually no different from those rampant cults of the past. Its doctrines boil down to just two things: swindling money and swindling women.

In the early years, the security situation in remote areas was generally known. They were too busy dealing with major criminal cases to deal with a small sect with only a few members. With a bit of sheer luck, the sect miraculously managed to survive for a full ten years, until the birth of the sect leader's child.

—The child was conceived through an affair between the cult leader and a female follower. But unlike his good-for-nothing father who only knew how to cheat people out of money and sex, this child was a smart kid from a young age. Instead of going along with his father's ways, he studied hard and eventually became the top college student in the city.

But unfortunately it is.

Such a talented young man had his future ruined simply because of a research trip to a remote mountain forest.

At this point in the story, Han Ruiming lit another cigarette before beginning his narration again.

"Too much time has passed, and no one knows exactly what happened. All that is known is that the expedition team disappeared in that old forest for almost half a month. In the end, only this young man returned; the rest were reduced to scattered bones, including his girlfriend of several years, whom he was planning to marry after graduation. After returning, he went mad, claiming that he saw the legendary Heavenly Palace in that forest, and then said he would lead everyone to ascend to immortality."

The old man paused, then continued.

"But putting others aside, his father was quite happy, feeling that his 'career' finally had a successor—but before he could enjoy his happiness for long, he suddenly died mysteriously."

"His son killed him?"

"I don't know. Back then, criminal procedures weren't as sophisticated as they are now. His father's body didn't undergo any examination before being sent directly for cremation. But it's said that there was something unusual back then. During the cremation, the funeral home staff kept hearing something banging against the furnace door, but after opening it several times, they only found an ordinary corpse."

Han Ruiming took a deep drag on his cigarette and continued.

"After his son took over, the small sect flourished and became the largest church in the area in just seven or eight years. However, this also attracted the attention of the higher-ups. Due to some special reasons, they could not directly eradicate it, so they decided to send an unfamiliar police officer to infiltrate as an undercover agent."

"So...this police officer is your daughter?"

Han Ruiming stopped speaking.

He looked up at the photograph, his gaze becoming somewhat unfocused, oblivious even to the cigarette burning his fingers.

"...That's right, she's different from me, she's an exceptionally talented child. When she heard about this task, she was the first to volunteer. Although I felt a little uneasy at the time, I ultimately agreed. And that's the thing I regret most in my life."

Han Ruiming threw away his cigarette butt and spoke in a voice as ethereal as smoke.

"At first, there were no problems. Like other cults, it was about swindling money and sex. The only difference was that the cult leader never took advantage of the women he swindled. But as the investigation deepened, Ali quickly discovered a problem—the frequent disappearances and murders in the city seemed to be related to this cult. However, as the investigation progressed, Ali's mental state deteriorated. I advised her to put it down for a while and come back to rest, but she felt she couldn't leave the victims alone, so she insisted on continuing the investigation."

Hearing these increasingly heavy words, the little ghost girl shrank back cautiously—but Zhou You quickly patted her body and gently comforted her.

So only Han Ruiming's words remained in the underground chamber.

"Then... Ali just disappeared abruptly. No matter how hard I investigated, I couldn't find any trace of her, until one day, I received a beautifully packaged large gift box—"

The aged voice abruptly stopped, then became like a breath from the abyss, filled only with pure hatred and rage. "That's Ali's body, neatly dismembered and evenly arranged. Her head is on top, these reports are underneath, and on top of that is a greeting card that reads: Happy Birthday, Dad."

That day also happened to be my birthday.

Even Zhou You, who was listening in, couldn't help but lower his gaze.

However, at this moment, Han Ruiming's voice suddenly became calm.

"I don't remember much about what happened that day. I only know that I disregarded the strict orders from above and led my team to sweep through the entire sect like madmen. We even captured the leader directly in a cave—but he didn't resist at all. He just held a naked female corpse and kept saying, 'We failed this time. We failed this time.'"

“I picked up the gun, intending to kill him outright, but my colleagues who arrived at the scene immediately stopped me, and even the gun was confiscated. Then, because I disobeyed orders, I was suspended from my duties and investigated, and the case was transferred to higher authorities.”

There was a long silence.

Seeing that Han Ruiming had stopped speaking, Zhou You couldn't help but ask.

"and then?"

However, Han Ruiming simply picked up the case file with the last part torn off and waved it lightly.

"And then? Just like this case file, it just fizzled out. The core members of the church were either arrested or killed, and the leader was sentenced to death, but he inexplicably escaped from prison on the second day after he was imprisoned, and has not been caught to this day."

Zhou You raised his eyebrows.

"After that, no further investigation was conducted?"

Who would have thought.

Upon hearing this, Han Ruiming suddenly burst into laughter, which grew louder and louder. Then, he abruptly asked Zhou You a completely unrelated question.

"Tell me, do you know why this cult leader was able to develop the church to this extent in just a few years, even overshadowing established Buddhist and Christian groups for a time?"

"I don't know."

"It's very simple. That cult leader has two magic weapons for controlling people's hearts."

"The first is his secret drug. Once taken, it causes hallucinations, as if one has ascended to the gates of immortality. This is used to control new and lower-level members of the cult."

"The second is the so-called path to godhood—you should know that the richer a person is, the more they are afraid of death."

"You mean"

“That’s right.” Han Ruiming gave a cold smile. “Now you should know what I meant by ‘certain’ reasons at the beginning, right?”

(End of this chapter)