PCJ – Chapter 653 Ji Jiaxin Goes Missing

“Um… Secretary Fu, could I take some time to consider it?” Zhang Jiaohua asked.

Fu Jianping nodded with a smile and said, “Of course, no rush. Comrade Zhang Jiaohua, take your time…”

Just as Zhang Jiaohua was about to say more, his phone suddenly rang. He hesitated for a moment, unsure if he should answer it right away.

Fu Jianping quickly said, “Go ahead and take the call. It might be something important.”

Zhang Jiaohua looked at the caller ID—it was Mei Qing.

“Teacher Mei…” Zhang Jiaohua answered the call and greeted her.

Mei Qing’s urgent and panicked voice cut him off, “Zhang Jiaohua! Something terrible happened! Ji Jiaxin is in trouble!”

“Teacher Mei, don’t panic. What exactly happened?” Zhang Jiaohua was starting to get worried. Mei Qing wouldn’t be this anxious if it weren’t something serious.

“Ji Jiaxin disappeared on her way back today. After she returned, I called her to ask her to bring me something, but the call suddenly cut off. I heard sounds of a struggle through the phone, and then the sound of the phone being smashed. Ji Jiaxin even shouted for help. But by the time I rushed over with people to rescue her, she was already gone,” Mei Qing explained.

“Have you informed Wei Chenguang and the others?” Zhang Jiaohua asked.

“Yes, they’ve already sent people out to search everywhere,” Mei Qing replied.

“I’ll come over right away,” Zhang Jiaohua said, clearly alarmed.

“If you’ve got urgent matters, go ahead. Don’t worry about me. If you need help, just say the word,” Fu Jianping said.

“A friend of mine in Beijing is in trouble. I have to rush back. Everything else will have to wait until I return,” Zhang Jiaohua said.

“No problem at all. Before you make your decision, the position of Party Secretary of Tianbaqiao Town will remain reserved for you,” Fu Jianping replied. Naturally, the Daihua County leadership was making a smart move. Zhang Jiaohua had already brought about remarkable change as just a village official. If he were given a bigger role, the benefits for the county would only increase.

Zhang Jiaohua nodded, quickly packed up a few things, and rode off on his motorcycle. Once he reached a remote area, he threw the motorcycle into his Cultivation Map and then entered the map himself.

Previously, Zhang Jiaohua had been studying how to connect the Cultivation Map space with the real world. These were two separate realms, but every time he entered or exited the map, he always arrived at the same spot. That was because switching between realms left a marker in the original space. As long as that marker could be sensed, it was easy to reappear in the desired location.

During his last trip to Beijing, Zhang Jiaohua had already left a marker in the Xiyun Secret Realm. Now, with a single thought, he appeared directly in that realm.

As Zhang Jiaohua exited the Xiyun Secret Realm, he happened to bump into a flustered-looking Mei Qing.

“Zhang Jiaohua, you’re finally here!” Mei Qing exclaimed, as if seeing her pillar of support.

“Teacher Mei, don’t worry. I’ll start searching immediately,” Zhang Jiaohua reassured her.

“Do we know the exact location where Ji Jiaxin disappeared?” he asked.

“I’ve already contacted Director Zeng. He said that based on the last location of Jiaxin’s call, she disappeared near a signal tower about five kilometers from the school. That’s the tower where her last call was routed through. The exact location is…” Mei Qing quickly explained.

Time was of the essence. Zhang Jiaohua didn’t waste another second and vanished right in front of Mei Qing. In the next moment, he reappeared within the area where Ji Jiaxin had disappeared.

His sudden appearance startled the pedestrians on the street, but they assumed he had just jumped out from a nearby building, so they didn’t react too dramatically.

Zhang Jiaohua ignored them. Right now, rescuing Ji Jiaxin was all that mattered. Every moment wasted increased the danger she was in. He had a strong feeling that her disappearance might be linked to the previous incident involving the Japanese agents who tried to steal lab data.

Zhang Jiaohua slipped into a deserted alley and, seeing no one around, released the Mountain-Hunting Dogs one by one. He also released groups of black cats. As soon as they were out, they scattered in all directions. Zhang Jiaohua had already obtained a personal item of Ji Jiaxin’s from Mei Qing, so now these animals could use her scent to search.

While a few hundred dogs and cats might seem insignificant in a city the size of Beijing, within the local area of Jiaxin’s disappearance, it was enough to form a sweeping search grid.

It didn’t take long before a few of the dogs began barking furiously—they had found something!

Zhang Jiaohua rushed over at once.

The Mountain-Leaping Leopard had also arrived and barked a few times toward a specific direction.

Zhang Jiaohua immediately understood: Ji Jiaxin had been taken in that direction. “Chase them! Fan out! If you find the enemy, attack immediately!” he commanded.

The hundreds of dogs scattered like a wave. The black cat groups did the same.

Zhang Jiaohua had no idea where Ji Jiaxin was at the moment, so he had no shortcut—he had to follow the leopard on foot, sprinting rapidly through the streets.

As he ran, he thought hard: Why would they target Ji Jiaxin? These people had clearly investigated those around him. Ji Jiaxin’s frequent visits to the secluded Xiyun Secret Realm must have caught their attention. Her behavior was too unusual—a college student constantly going to such a remote place was bound to raise suspicion. These people had probably followed her to the Xiyun Realm, and, being unable to enter it, decided to use Ji Jiaxin as a breakthrough point.

The Mountain-Leaping Leopard led Zhang Jiaohua through several blocks and eventually into a remote area near the outskirts of Beijing.

But once they reached that spot, Ji Jiaxin’s scent suddenly disappeared. Even the leopard couldn’t pick it up.

Zhang Jiaohua knew at once—someone had used a special method to obscure her scent trail.

He began to panic slightly. With her aura concealed, he had no reliable method left to continue the search.

“Wait a second…” Zhang Jiaohua suddenly had an idea.

He quickly pulled out a piece of yellow talisman paper and used cinnabar to draw a Tracking Talisman. Then he folded the paper into the shape of a paper crane. When he tugged on the tail, the paper crane flapped its wings like a miniature immortal crane and took flight.

Zhang Jiaohua followed closely behind it. He watched as the crane circled the village once—then suddenly changed direction and flew back toward the city.

“I’ve been duped!” Zhang Jiaohua instantly realized the truth.

They had deliberately lured him out to the suburbs. Ji Jiaxin was likely still hidden somewhere in the city. The most dangerous place is often the safest. He had probably passed right by her earlier without even noticing.