Inside a suite at Laurel Resort, a middle-aged man with a face full of pockmarks suddenly furrowed his brows. "Why am I still staying here? Something feels off, but I can't quite put my finger on it."

Muttering to himself, he got up and hurried toward the door. He moved so quickly that when he reached the lobby, he didn't even bother checking out. He just walked straight outside.

However, he hadn't gone far before he suddenly stopped in his tracks. "Why are there so many people from headquarters here?"

Sensing something was wrong, the middle-aged man's figure flickered and disappeared in an instant. Then, he reappeared by a mountain stream some distance away from the resort.

He muttered, "That was close. I almost got surrounded. But why is headquarters deploying so many people to encircle Laurel Resort?"

A voice suddenly answered him, saying, "Because there's a Malevolent Phantom inside. That's why."

Before he could react, he realized his body was no longer under his control.

"F