S.C.I Mystery Series Volume 5 Chapter 170

Special Files – Witches 17 – Summoning Technique

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Among the cases handled by SCI, they occasionally come across ones where some people, without realising it, become the prey of certain bad individuals. Or, in more "advanced" cases, become tools of some people, unknowingly getting involved in certain events.

Hou Yingqi fell into this category.

Someone sent her a seemingly beneficial but potentially harmful clue via email.

This might indicate that Hou Yingqi's investigation caught someone's attention, or perhaps she was getting close to the truth and had to be stopped.

The group studied the email's plan to summon a "witch" and found an interesting point – everything happens in the basement of Shin's house.

Zhan Zhao curiously asked Hou Yingqi, "The plan requires the summoner to live independently in the basement for three days to complete the summoning ritual. Did you stay there for three days?"

Hou Yingqi nodded, "At that time, several of my team members were in the basement above the one I was in.

The basement where I stayed was equipped with comprehensive surveillance equipment. The team in the basement above was responsible for recording, while I was responsible for the summoning ritual below.

"Everything was recorded on video."

Hou Yingqi opened the archived files on her laptop, finding that the archives were very detailed. Over the three days, there was a video segment archived every hour, with a total of 24x3 segments, none missing.

The entire summoning ritual was extremely harsh. Hou Yingqi wasn't allowed to eat throughout and could only drink a small amount of water.

The basement lights had to remain on, synchronised with natural daylight, with ground lights used at night. No electronic devices like phones or computers could be used to contact the outside world. Every two hours, the witch had to be summoned using meditation and reciting a summoning script.

The email included a summoning script of about three thousand words.

Bai Yutang thought the length was a bit exaggerated, it would take a long time to recite...

Zhan Zhao and Zhao Jue stroked their chins as they looked at the summoning script. After reading it, they roughly understood what was going on.

It was a cleverly structured article with obvious psychological suggestions, containing a lot of hidden information.

On one hand, it created an image of an immortal and vengeful ghost girl for the reader.

On the other hand, it constantly suggested that the little girl was dormant underground and could be awakened through the summoning.

Zhao Hu and Ma Han also read the script and felt that although the writing style was somewhat eerie, it shouldn't cause someone to see ghosts just by reading it, right?

"You have to consider the environment at the time as well as the physical state." Zhan Zhao thought. If you followed the entire process in the email meticulously, three days would be enough to cause Hou Yingqi to hallucinate. She wasn't wrong, it was indeed a reckless endeavour, and this lady is certainly very brave.

"The person who wrote you the email must have been inside that basement." Zhan Zhao said, combining the basement's photos with the article. There were many detailed descriptions of the basement structure in the article, which someone who hadn't been inside wouldn't be able to write.

"What did you see specifically after you were trapped?" Zhao Jue asked with great interest.

"I didn't notice anything unusual the first day. On the second day, I started experiencing some ringing in my ears, and then I heard some strange sounds, like whispers. The second night, while I was half-asleep, I heard the voice of a little girl several times and was woken up from nightmares. By the third day, I felt exhausted and started getting paranoid, and my vision became a bit blurry... Then, on the third night, I started seeing strange things, occasionally seeing a little girl in the shadows in the corners of the room or behind furniture..."

As Hou Yingqi described, the atmosphere should have become eerie, but Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang were struggling to contain their urge to laugh.

It wasn't because of what Hou Yingqi said, but because Mia, sitting between Zhao Jue and Bai Ye, seemed scared and huddled behind the bear.

At the moment, there was a khaki-coloured teddy bear between Zhao Jue and Bai Ye, which was moving. The scene was particularly comical...

Zhan Zhao couldn't resist, so he took out his phone and snapped a photo of the opposite side.

Bai Ye and Zhao Jue were initially focused on listening to Hou Yingqi, but when they heard the noise, they looked up together, puzzled, tilting their heads slightly... At the same time, the big bear also tilted its head.

Zhan Zhao snapped a couple more photos, thinking – This is great! I can use it as my laptop background and print it as greeting cards for the New Year...

Zhao Jue casually picked up a tissue from the table and threw it over.

Just as Zhan Zhao put down his phone, he got hit on the head.

Bai Yutang caught the tissue and placed it back on the table, then smiled at Hou Yingqi, who was a bit confused, signalling – Sorry, please continue.

Hou Yingqi had been quite nervous earlier, especially since she had overcome that psychological shadow only after a long period of therapy. Recalling it all over again was quite frightening. But just as the tension was broken by Zhan Zhao, that sense of horror and suspense dissipated instantly, especially with Bai Yutang's smile just now...

Hou Yingqi realised... indeed, a handsome guy's smile could heal a wounded heart!

At the same time, everyone noticed Bai Ye and Zhao Jue sitting on the sofa with a large teddy bear, making the atmosphere suddenly less intimidating...

Hou Yingqi's attention was also drawn. Apart from the amusing scene, as she looked around, she was surprised by how similar Bai Yutang and Bai Ye looked. Was there some kind of blood relation?

With her curiosity piqued, Hou Yingqi's imagination started to wander a bit. Of course, even with her imagination, she probably couldn't figure out the relationships among the Bai family members.

"After that," Hou Yingqi continued, collecting her thoughts, "I started behaving strangely after experiencing hallucinations. My colleagues who were monitoring me noticed the issues simultaneously and terminated the experiment, pulling me up... But then the nightmares began. I started intermittently seeing that little girl, but my colleagues couldn't see her."

"Where did you see her?" Zhao Jue suddenly asked. "Was she following someone?"

Hou Yingqi widened her eyes in surprise and nodded vigorously. "Yes! She often appeared following someone, I saw it several times, it seemed so real, but the person being followed couldn't see her at all!"

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang exchanged a glance. It sounded similar to the testimonies from the witnesses back then... Could it be that the villagers who witnessed the little girl half a century ago had experiences similar to Hou Yingqi's today?

Everyone felt puzzled, with various explanations not making sense... What about Old Chen's experience back then? Was he also influenced by suggestions? So, was Shen Jinmei not a witch but a hypnotist?

Could that be possible? Everyone found it somewhat far-fetched. Shen Jinmei was a child bride, and the rural women of that era, may not even recognise a few words... How could she have mastered a skill like hypnosis?

"Only those who are capable of hypnosis can conduct this experiment." Zhao Jue shook the printout of the summoning script. "Without being confined in a basement for three days, repeatedly being subjected to suggestions, and doing nothing but creating a hypnosis effect that can cause hallucinations... instead of calling it hypnosis, it's more like a spell... Perhaps she really is a witch."

Zhan Zhao frowned at him – Are you serious?!

Zhao Jue raised an eyebrow, then turned to Hou Yingqi. "What happened next? Did you seek psychological therapy?"

"Mhmm!" Hou Yingqi nodded, "I saw a psychologist for half a year."

"What's the psychologist's name?" Zhan Zhao inquired.

"Her name is Guan Yi, Dr. Guan." Hou Yingqi answered.

"Oh..." Zhan Zhao nodded. Reputable doctors in the field knew each other, and Dr. Guan Yi was a psychological authority and considered a famous doctor. Hou Yingqi was quite lucky to have found her for treatment.

"My aunt and Dr. Guan happen to be neighbours. Dr. Guan said I was lucky because there aren't many doctors in S City who could treat me properly. If I encountered an unreliable one, I might have ended up being declared mentally ill." Hou Yingqi added.

Zhan Zhao nodded, that was a valid point.

Meanwhile, both Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang observed Zhao Jue for a moment.

Guan Yi was probably older than Zhao Jue, and they weren't sure if they knew each other.

However, Zhao Jue seemed uninterested in who treated Hou Yingqi but rather opened her laptop and started examining the surveillance footage from different time periods.

Hou Yingqi continued, "My colleagues have watched the surveillance footage many times, and the little girl never appeared."

"So, did you take a break after you got treated?" Zhao Jue asked.

"That's right," Hou Yingqi nodded. "I originally wanted to continue investigating this case, but Dr. Guan advised me not to. She said either leave the country for a few years or report it directly to the police or SCI."

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang both looked at her – Why didn't she report it?

Hou Yingqi was speechless. "How would I report it? Hello? '110? I saw a ghost?'"

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang couldn't help but chuckle.

"Dr. Guan told me that I might have caught the attention of a very capable bad person. He might find me interesting or troublesome, but either way, it would be dangerous for me to investigate further." Hou Yingqi sighed, "After getting treated, I was still conflicted about this matter. I travelled abroad for a while to clear my head and avoid drawing attention. The show took a short break, and I just got back when Jiali called me. It was perfect timing, so I rushed over."

"So, instead of going to the police station, you'd rather talk indoors... Are you afraid the person who sent you the email is still watching you?" Zhan Zhao asked.

Hou Yingqi clicked her tongue, "I'm not sure if it's some kind of aftermath or psychological effect, but I feel like someone has been following me after I returned."

Everyone furrowed their brows upon hearing this.

Bai Yutang asked, "Can you... elaborate on the moments when you felt like someone was following you?"

"Mhmm... I've been quite cautious since I got back, especially at night. I don't go out much at night, mostly during the day. There was one time when I went out shopping for clothes. I took two dresses to the fitting room to try on. After putting on one and coming out to look in the mirror, wanting to match it with a bag, I went back in to change into the second one. That's when I noticed a cut on the second dress hanging in the fitting room. It was fine when I brought it in, I couldn't have missed such a big tear in the chest. Another time, I went for coffee with a friend. I ordered a cold brew, but when it was my turn to pick up my drink, it had been changed to a mocha. I asked what happened, and the guy at the counter said someone had come and swapped my order to a mocha. I asked who, and he said it was a guy who came in with me, he thought we were together... I was so scared at that moment..."

Bai Yutang frowned.

Behind him, Zhao Hu and Ma Han felt sorry for this girl, "Are you... okay alone? How about taking a few days of protection?"

Suddenly, Zhao Jue spoke up, "There are quite a few vacant rooms here."

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang looked at Zhao Jue with surprise – Was he suggesting that Hou Yingqi should stay here?

"Really?" Hou Yingqi was both surprised and delighted, "I can stay here?"

Zhao Jue smiled faintly and asked her, "You still want to continue with what you do, right?"

Hou Yingqi nodded immediately.

"How about a partnership?" Zhao Jue suggested. "Your ability to gather intelligence is good, and you have channels and platforms for making programs. I can use that..."

Hou Yingqi didn't let Zhao Jue finish before nodding vigorously. "Boss!"

Although Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao didn't say much, they still felt something was off... Zhao Jue rarely showed such enthusiasm. Was he up to something?

‿︵‿︵ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ・❉・ ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ‿︵‿︵

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Translator Notes

Please feel free to comment any mistakes I made so I can improve and do better as I go through the book.

Translated: June 4, 2024 by Angel

Edited: December 18, 2024 by Soojin