Chapter 149: Old General Huo

Upon hearing this, I immediately felt overwhelmingly nervous. Didn't that title sound a bit too terrifying? No wonder the other party had been able to sweep that incident under the rug so effortlessly last time. A former commander of a military region—even in retirement—would have disciples and subordinates who were all extremely powerful figures. Even Chief Peng was one of his students.

And for such a towering figure to actually ask for my help, how could I not be nervous?

Noticing my nervous state, Peng Lei gave my shoulder a hard pat and said, "What are you so nervous about? Elder General Huo isn't a tiger; he's just a benevolent old man in his nineties. You surely don't think he's going to eat you, do you?"

I forced a smile onto my face and said, "It's probably just because I've never met such a big figure before. I'm just nervous, that's all."

Soon, Peng Li parked the car in front of a traditional courtyard house, and the three of us got out.

As we stepped into the courtyard, my heart was still beating wildly. Glancing at Peng Li beside me, though he was holding up slightly better than I was, he looked just as unnatural.

Upon entering, I saw an elderly man dressed in a white Tang-style shirt watering the grape trellis nearby.

He had a full head of white hair and a face covered in wrinkles, yet he radiated immense vitality, especially his eyes. They were sharp and piercing. Even before getting close, I could sense a unique aura emanating from him—a majestic presence that commanded awe without anger, naturally inspiring profound respect deep within one's heart.

"Teacher!" Peng Li called out, then walked toward the old man with a smile.

The old man turned his head to see us, put down the watering can, and smiled as he said, "You're here!"

Peng Li and I hurriedly stepped forward to greet the old man, respectfully saying, "Good day, Elder General Huo."

Elder General Huo nodded with a smile and asked, "Are you this young fellow Wu Dao?"

I nodded hastily, "Yes, Elder General Huo."

Elder General Huo said, "Little Lei tells me you have some abilities. I've run into a bit of trouble this time, so I specifically asked you here to help this old man with a favor. I wonder if you'd be willing?"

I quickly replied, "Elder General Huo, what are you saying? As long as it's something within my power, I will naturally spare no effort."

With that, Elder General Huo had us brought into the house and personally brewed a cup of Longjing tea for each of us!

Although Elder General Huo was indeed very approachable, I was still terribly nervous. Finally, I couldn't help but ask what matter had prompted him to seek me out.

Elder General Huo took a sip of his Longjing tea, a trace of sorrow instantly flashing across his face, and then said, "I have a grandson named Huo Liang. You certainly know him!"

My heart skipped a beat. I never expected that Huo Liang was actually the grandson of this elder general.

Seeing the stunned look on my face, Elder General Huo continued, "My grandson has indeed been a bit overbearing lately. After what he did to you young fellow Wu Dao last time, I gave him a harsh dressing-down as soon as I got back, so I hope you won't take it to heart."

Filled with apprehension, I hurriedly said, "Elder General Huo, last time I actually owed it all to your help. Besides, what young person doesn't have a bit of a temper? I was partly at fault too, so of course I didn't take it to heart."

Then, as if realizing something, I asked, "Could it be that the matter Elder General Huo wants my help with this time is related to your grandson, Huo Liang?"

"Correct!"

With that, Elder General Huo pulled a stack of photographs from a drawer and placed them beside me.

I picked up the photos, and my heart gave a heavy thump.

They were all pictures of Huo Liang, but the things he was doing in them were utterly bizarre.

One photo showed Huo Liang inside a resort villa, actually gnawing on the neck of a live chicken, while dozens of dead chickens were piled up around him.

Another photo showed Huo Liang in a suburban cemetery. Behind him stood a vast expanse of tombstones. The background of the photo was nighttime with a full moon hanging in the sky, yet Huo Liang was actually kneeling before those graves, kowtowing in profound worship toward the empty moonlit sky.

Finally, there was a selfie of Huo Liang. He was wearing a black windbreaker and baring his fangs at the camera, and across a row of white teeth were two exceptionally long and sharp fangs.

Aside from these, there were several other photographs. In every single one of them, Huo Liang's behavior was exceedingly strange, and whenever he took a selfie, he would bare those two long, sharp fangs.

"A zombie?" Seeing these photos, Peng Li spoke up, then looked over at Elder General Huo and asked, "Elder General Huo, could you be suspecting that your grandson has turned into a zombie?"

At this moment, Elder General Huo's brows were tightly knitted as well. "I don't know what my grandson has turned into. After all, I'm not a person of the Yin-Yang realm. That's specifically why I invited you both here. Moreover, Huo Liang lost his parents at a young age and grew up by my side; I've always spoiled him in everything, and he's my only grandson. If he truly has become a zombie, I hope you can put him down and keep him from going out to harm people!"

I could hear a profound sorrow in Elder General Huo's voice. It was clear that he cared deeply for his grandson. Yet, given Elder General Huo's righteous character, if Huo Liang truly had become a zombie, he would never tolerate him running around harming others.

I studied these photos for a long time. Based solely on Huo Liang's actions, he indeed bore a striking resemblance to a zombie. However, I could be certain that the Huo Liang in the photos was not necessarily a zombie.

"Elder General Huo, I actually believe that your grandson is not a zombie. Instead, it looks much more like he is imitating one."

"What do you mean?" Elder General Huo asked.

I replied, "As far as I know, common zombies are divided into four tiers, distinguished by the color of their eyes: red, green, blue, and white. Yet the eyes of your grandson in these photos are no different from those of normal people. Therefore, I roughly deduce that he is not a zombie!"

"Don't zombies have both a human form and a zombie form? Could it be that he was in his human form at the time, which is why his eyes didn't change color?" Peng Li asked.

I shook my head and said, "Impossible. If he were in human form, he wouldn't have fangs in his mouth. Once fangs grow out, the eyes inevitably change color."

"Then what do you young fellow think my grandson has turned into?" Elder General Huo asked.

I shook my head and said I couldn't be certain based solely on these photographs. I then asked Elder General Huo where Huo Liang currently was, who he had been associating with recently, and what behaviors of his differed from normal days.

Elder General Huo replied that he rarely interfered in Huo Liang's personal life, but during this period, his behavior had indeed become very abnormal in many ways. Aside from the bizarre actions seen in the photos, another very obvious trait was that he feared the light.

"Fears the light?" My brows immediately furrowed. "Where is he right now?"

Elder General Huo stood up and said, "Come with me," and began walking outside.

After leaving the military district courtyard, Elder General Huo headed directly toward the military base. Along the way, Peng Li and Peng Lei received an urgent phone call—apparently, a major case had broken out in the city that required their handling—so they had to leave early.

Before leaving, Peng Li had asked me whether I was confident I could resolve Huo Liang's situation. I smiled bitterly and replied, "We haven't even figured out the situation yet, how could I have any confidence?"

I then said to Peng Li, "Didn't Zhang Wushang recently join your Paranormal Investigation Unit? He's much more capable than I am. Why not ask him to help with this?"

Peng Li replied helplessly, "That Zhang Wushang is an odd fellow. Coming to Bashu City this time, he is only responsible for training the members of our Paranormal Investigation Unit; he refuses to get involved in anything else. Actually, I spoke to him about this before coming to you, but the guy wouldn't give anyone face and flatly refused me."

I let out an "oh" and asked no more questions, proceeding into the Bashu Military Region alongside Elder General Huo.

Just as we reached the entrance of the military compound, a soldier came running toward us and immediately saluted Elder General Huo. Upon seeing this soldier, I was momentarily stunned, because he was none other than one of the men who had accompanied Huo Liang and given me a severe beating last time.