After receiving the call, Ma Zhenxing and his colleague Bian Yi arrived at the scene.
They were police officers from Mo Bei City's Ma Er Wan District, Yun Lin Town. The place was relatively quiet and the crime rate was low. The population was small and most of the residents were elderly so theft was rare. Most of their job was to mediate disputes between neighbours.
However, this call from Bei Mian Village was rare and strange, it was probably a case of illegal logging.
Since the old man, Tian Fuhou, was now quite a celebrity in this area and he was quite old, no one dared to disrespect him.
That morning, Ma Zhenxing and Tian Fuhou arrived at the scene. They saw Wang Fuhou and his old wife standing there, confused, nervous and unsettled.
"I remember there were many trees here! They're gone! " Once he saw them, Wang Fuhou rushed forward to grab them. His wrinkled face was filled with fear and agitation. "I pressed my hand on the tree trunk and reached my hand in. It felt like I was being burned, look at my skin!"
Ma Zhenxing watched as the old man rolled up his right sleeve. The skin on his palm and forearm did look like they were scalded or perhaps that was just how the old man's skin was.
It was hard to believe. There were fewer trees in the surroundings than in other areas along the way, and the land was more barren and dark. However, illegal logging required vehicles to transport the wood. It was impossible for a human to lift such a huge tree. However, this road was not suitable for large vehicles, and there were no traces of the vehicles.
"Master Tian, are you sure you're not mistaken?" Ma Zhenxing asked.
"Of course I am!" Tian Fuhou grumbled, "I remember every single tree here, I'm not mistaken."
"There's really nothing else." His wife, Mai Dong, sighed. "The tree that was planted for decades was still there yesterday!"
"Master Tian, you said that I can put my hand into the tree?" Bian Yi teased. He must have drunk too much. "Let me try." Ma Zhenxing vaguely felt that something was wrong, but before he could say anything, Bian Yi raised his right hand disapprovingly and pressed it against the withered trunk of the locust tree. His hand reached in, and the middle-aged man's face instantly changed.
With a scream of pain, Bian Yi pulled his hand out. His whole hand was shaking and his face alternated between red and white. "Inside, it's real, it's real …"
Ma Zhenxing was stunned. Tian Fuhou said excitedly, "Look, look!"
Before they could do anything, they suddenly saw with their own eyes that the locust tree seemed to ripple on the surface of the water, and then it disappeared. In the blink of an eye, it disappeared. In the surroundings, the trees had also become sparser. It wasn't just a locust tree that had disappeared.
"This, this …" Bian Yi murmured blankly.
Tian Fuhou and Mai Dong were almost 80 years old but this was the first time they had seen something like this. Their aged faces were unsure of how to react.
"Report to Phecda." Ma Zhenxing finally spoke. His whole body suddenly trembled, and an unknown fear surged into his heart. "Report to Phecda."
This matter was already beyond their capabilities. In his panic, Ma Zhenxing used his phone to report to the police. The police were nervous when they heard the news. They immediately connected the call to Mo Bei Phecda. This was Ma Zhenxing's first time dealing with these people. "The tree is gone, and I can reach my hand into it …"
After a long time, Ma Zhenxing finally calmed down and explained the situation clearly.
For these people who only worked as mediators and the last time they caught a thief was last year, they did not know what to do.
Mo Bei Phecda placed great importance on this. They told them to stay where they were for now. Soon, disease control officers would come to pick them up for quarantine. Ma Zhenxing was confused. Even though they said this was normal procedure, he was still reminded of the legionella pneumonia last year …
"What the hell is going on?" Tian Fuhou paced back and forth anxiously. His face paled and he suddenly coughed.
When the old man coughed, Ma Zhenxing and Bian Yi panicked. Ma Zhenxing asked, "Master Tian, are you alright?"
"Old man coughed a few times … it's nothing serious." Tian Fuhou whispered but he was worried too. Mai Dong patted her husband's back.
Bian Yi sighed. He took out the cigarette box and lighter from his pocket. He pulled out a cigarette and was about to light it.
"Officer Bian!" Tian Fuhou shouted but his voice was still loud. He said urgently, "You can't light a fire here, can't you see there are trees all around us! Sigh … " Bian Yi put away the cigarette and lighter sheepishly. Tian Fuhou added, "These trees are at least 10 years old …"
The old man grumbled as he studied the sparse trees around him. "Officers, do you think all the trees here will disappear just like that?"
"Sir, we have no idea. This is a supernatural event." That was all Ma Zhenxing could say. He was also at a loss.
About half an hour later, the sound of a helicopter came from the sky. Phecda's people had arrived.
Soon, the four saw a group of people walking down the path filled with dead leaves. They were all in airtight protective gear and armed with guns. They were Snow Team from Mo Bei Phecda's Special Mobile Force. The leader was a middle-aged man, Lee Weiquan. "Officer Ma, Officer Bian, thank you for your hard work. We'll take over from here."
Ma Zhenxing sighed in relief. He felt like he had found his backbone.
"The disease control team will be here soon. You'll have to walk on the ground." Lee Weiquan said, "Officers, please give us an indication of the mutated area."
Actually, after the team walked around the area, they could see that the soil looked different because there was a clear dividing line.
They frowned. They had interacted with supernatural forces before and there was a large base at Mo Bei where the Phecda Hero Gu Jun had trained. They had regular training sessions, they had been exposed to spells and Ancient Seal … but this place did not feel like the corruption of darkness. It was strange and unusual.
Researcher Liu Wenhan held a handheld camera and poked it into the trunk of a pine tree. As expected, it went right in.
On the detection screen outside, everyone could only see a blurry and distorted image. It was definitely not the inside of the tree trunk.
Suddenly, the image turned black, the camera malfunctioned.
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Liu Wenhan slowly pulled the device in her hand back bit by bit. She saw that the camera had already shattered, and the entire device that had penetrated into the tree was charred black, as if it had been burned by some kind of energy …
'Is it the power of spells?' Lee Weiquan knew this was not good. The situation here was more serious than they anticipated.
"Command central, command central." Lee immediately used the satellite walkie-talkie to report to the headquarters. "This is the Snow Dust Unit. The situation is confirmed. There is a spatial distortion in the forest, it's about 300 cubic metres. The officers confirmed that the number of trees is still decreasing and the cracks on the remaining trees are worsening. The situation might be worsening. "
At the same time, Tian Fuhou studied the Phecda members. He knew Phecda was more capable than a normal department. He turned to ask Miss Chen who was questioning him and his wife, "Miss Chen, will all my trees disappear just like that?"
"Sir, don't worry." Chen Qiuxuan consoled but she did not dare give Sir any guarantee, "It shouldn't be that serious, just take it as a rest."
"No rest, no rest …" Tian Fuhou grumbled, "Even though I'm not young anymore, I'm still able to work …"
The old man looked from one wood to the other, and thought of the old days.
At the time, this place was a wasteland. He and his wife worked from dawn to dusk. First they leveled the land, then they built canals, then they planted the trees … Most of the time, they only had one meal a day. They ate the fried rice that they brought with them soaked in water … After a day's work, they would sleep and continue the next day.
"I still wish to contract another 10 mu of land." Tian Fuhou said, "This time, I won't plant other trees but Mongolian pine trees. These trees can live for hundreds of years, unlike poplar trees that can only live for a few decades. Miss Chen, in a few hundred years, this desert will turn into a forest, we can't lose these trees … "
"Sir …" Chen Qiuxuan was about to say something when her heart squeezed. Lee Weiquan, Officer Ma and the rest were shocked.
Tian Fuhou's face was pale and blood was leaking out from his nose.
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