In the silent corridor, Nasha, wearing workshop attire, stopped in front of the tightly shut door. She looked up, glanced at the room number 1305, and reached out, about to press on the doorknob.

Just then, she paused slightly and shifted her gaze to the side.

An elderly man with white curly hair and beautiful brown-golden pupils was standing beside her.

"Sir," Nasha looked up, somewhat puzzled, at the elderly man in front of her and asked, "Do you need something?"

"Just a small matter," He Ao glanced at her and then at the room number 1305, "Do you know much about the previous landlord of this apartment?"

"Previous landlord?" Nasha looked questioningly at the elderly man in front of her, "This apartment I rented from the Nolanka Group; it’s a company apartment. Before that, it seemed to be an apartment from Stars Pharma."

"And before that?" He Ao smiled at her, "You have been to this room before, before you joined Nolanka Group, right?"

Nasha was slightly stunned, then her gaze froze momentarily. She looked up at He Ao, and after a brief pause, said quietly, "I do know the previous landlord here. When I was a stripper, she was a regular visitor of mine and had invited me to her home, but she has long since left this city. Are you looking for her for something?"

"By ’not in this city,’ do you mean," He Ao smiled and asked, "She told you she was leaving?"

"She just said she would leave for a while and told me not to worry," Nasha paused and spoke slowly, "But since then, she has not returned."

"Is that all she said to you?" He Ao looked at her and asked gently.

Nasha glanced at He Ao, and after a brief pause, she looked up at him and asked softly, "May I ask, what is your relationship with her?"

"Friends," He Ao observed Nasha’s hesitant expression and continued, "Friends, not very close ones, we had some simple transactions before."

"What kind of transactions?" Nasha asked cautiously, taking a slight step back.

"I was her customer, and she was a businesswoman," He Ao explained calmly and gently, watching Nasha, "She told you she would leave and never returned?"

"Yes, she said once the situation calmed down, she’d come back to find me, but after that, I never heard from her again, not even a reply to her emails," Nasha sighed, "But for a stripper, there are many who say things in earnest; she wasn’t the only one."

She looked up at He Ao, "So, sir, what exactly do you want? I’ve told you everything I know."

"You haven’t told me why you chose to rent this apartment," He Ao asked calmly.

Hearing this question, Nasha paused slightly, "Do I need your permission to rent a room?"

She gazed into He Ao’s brown-golden pupils, and after a brief silence, her face flushed slightly, and she bit her lip, "Back then, she said if she never returned, she’d find a way to give me this apartment, but she’d need me to occasionally clean the house and maintain its tidiness. At that time, such an apartment was a huge fortune for me."

Saying these words seemed to lift an inner obstacle, and she paused, continuing, "But later, she was gone for too long; this apartment started owing property taxes. I couldn’t afford to pay the taxes for her, so I watched it get auctioned off by the City Government and acquired by Stars Pharma."

"You considered paying the property taxes for her?" He Ao glanced at the apartment and asked casually.

"That was just hypothetical, if I had the ability," Nasha shook her head, looking up as she verified her fingerprint and gently pushed open the door, "But the fact is, I couldn’t; a stripper doesn’t have much to say, if someone treats her well, she’s already satisfied."

She gently blocked the naturally bouncing door with her body, looked up at He Ao, and said softly, "Are you looking for Lilin? Or do you think there’s something she left behind in this apartment?"

She glanced around at the surroundings and then said slowly, "Stars Pharma and Nolanka Group both renovated this apartment multiple times; there shouldn’t be anything left."

She turned her gaze to He Ao, "If you wish, you can search for yourself."

"You don’t mind me entering this apartment?" He Ao looked at Nasha, slightly surprised by her gesture.

"I’ve been a stripper for many years, I have some discernment," Nasha said slowly, "You seem like someone with an identity and status, certainly not here to covet my little belongings or even this small apartment; you must have something important."

She glanced at He Ao, "I noticed you this morning at the bar; you’re not a familiar face, suddenly appearing in this neighborhood, surely with your own intentions, though I didn’t expect your purpose to be here."

She was extending kindness to He Ao.

He Ao raised his gaze, looked at her quietly, and smiled, "You’re very smart."

With that, he didn’t hesitate and directly walked into the apartment.

Nasha didn’t close the door but stood at the entrance, watching as He Ao surveyed the room.

Honestly, there was indeed not much left in this apartment; it was noticeable that the furniture and decorations had been changed many times. Only the floor showed slight wear, seemingly from the beginning.

He Ao scanned the living room and quickly entered the bedroom.

Nasha hesitated for a moment, then followed him into the bedroom.

Then she saw He Ao walk straight to the side of the bed and smiled, asking her, "Can I move this?"

Upon hearing this, Nasha was slightly stunned and realized He Ao was referring to the bed. She paused and said slowly, "Certainly, do you need help?"

"No need." He Ao shook his head, reached out, grabbed the bed edge, and lifted the iron bed directly.

Underneath the bed, quite a bit of dust had accumulated, clearly unattended for a long time. Scattered underneath were some small earrings, tangled stockings, and candy and medicine still in packaging.

But Nasha was no longer interested in noticing these; her gaze was entirely focused on He Ao’s seemingly not-so-sturdy arms.

The arm lifted the heavy iron bed.

"What kind of businesswoman was Lilin exactly?" she swallowed nervously and asked cautiously.

"Black market trader," He Ao casually placed the iron bed aside and slowly walked to the center of its original position, asking casually, "Was the bed positioned like this then?"

"Yes," Nasha nodded slightly, "The bed always stayed here; Lilin liked to keep it that way."

Upon hearing this answer, He Ao nodded slightly, then reached out, tapped the central floor tile under the bed, and gently exerted force, breaking the tile.

A hidden silver metal box was revealed.

Nasha watched this scene cluelessly, her eyes filled with confusion and disbelief.

"Don’t usually watch mystery movies?" He Ao sensed her puzzled gaze, casually asking while picking up the metal box.

"I have, but I never thought it would happen to me," Nasha nodded, swallowing hard.

"Morolin never let you into her bedroom?" He Ao slowly opened the metal box in his hand, speaking casually.

"She invited me, but I never came in. When I visited before, I would stay in the living room," Nasha paused for a moment and added softly, "I know she likes me, but I’m not really into women."

Then she slightly raised her head and asked softly, "Is Morolin’s real name Lilin?"

"Not necessarily," He Ao shook his head, "it’s just the name I know of her. Maybe the one you know is her real name."

As he spoke, he had completely opened the metal box.

There was no strange Extraordinary Items inside, only what seemed to be a paper notebook.

This kind of notebook is common in the Main World, but in the Federation, where paper books are very expensive, it is considered a rare item.

Generally, only students from elite private schools and members of some ancient families use these.

Nasha was startled to see this paper notebook and asked softly, "Is this an antique?"

"No," He Ao picked up the notebook and slowly opened it, "it just looks like a simple, ordinary notebook, maybe used for journaling."

He opened the first page, and the first line revealed itself in his field of view.

[Based on rearranging past records, I believe I’ve lost a segment of memory.]

He Ao’s gaze paused.

[This is not good news. As a ’Record Master’, someone with the ability to modify and delete my memory without me noticing for a short time must be far beyond my understanding.]

[It’s certain that I’ve been drawn into some terrifying vortex, becoming a pawn for some existence at its center.]

[Great, this is worse news.]

[I can’t continue, I have to leave here.]

He Ao turned to the next page, but the subsequent pages seemed to have been directly torn out, and the following content was about Limen City.

[How can such a remote place as Limen City still encounter acquaintances. These guys love to wander around, can’t stay long here.]

[Before news of me being here spreads, I have to get out, this identity must be discarded; fixed assets can’t be sold, it’ll cause delays, and alert others that I’m leaving.]

[I need someone to tidy up the house, to keep up the appearance of someone still living here. That stripper is perfect; she’s clever and discreet. I need to find a chance to talk to her about this.]

He Ao kept turning pages; several more seemed to be torn out.

[The airship ticket is bought, and the new identity is almost ready, but I can’t shake a feeling of unease. Was my discovery really just an ’accident’?]

[What was that missing segment of memory? If someone can erase my memory without me noticing, it must be someone of at least B-level status? Such a person could either be a leader in some Evil God Church or should be at the Federation Central. I shouldn’t encounter such a being in my active area, right?]

[If I am to be used as a pawn, what is my purpose? What is the merchant’s purpose? ’Transfer’? To transfer something to someone?]

[So, does that entity want me to give something to someone? What could that be?]

[Without memory, I have no idea what could be wrong. These Higher Beings are terrifying; why would such a minor entity like me be caught in their disputes and schemes.]

The next page, along with several subsequent ones, was also torn out, leaving no content.

He Ao touched the back of his neck, seemingly feeling a slight itch stirring at the back of his neck.

The contents further along seemed to skip another period of time.

[No, that person didn’t ’accidentally’ discover me. Someone suspects me; they were guided to ’appear’ there to test me.]

[Everything’s wrong, I can’t leave, I have to stay here, I’m just turning over a new leaf, not uncovering some terrifying secret, need to find a small town to hide in.]

[All wrong, all wrong, I can’t leave here, the new identity can’t be processed, the airship ticket must be canceled, no, it can’t be canceled, have to pretend to go on vacation, openly and grandly.]

[Luckily I’ve only told that stripper that I’m leaving. Everything can be salvaged; I just need to find another opportunity to talk to that stripper, calm down, calm down.]

Further pages were torn away again.

Only the last page remained, seemingly stained with some blood, with words written in blood on the back.

He Ao turned the page, looking at the back.

A line of bright red text appeared in He Ao’s field of view.

[Hawke, if you found this notebook, it means I’m already dead, and I think you might be the only one who will investigate my existence if you discover any issues.]

[I’m regrettable to tell you...]

The blood obscured the remaining words.

"Your Talent Sequences are flawed." A deep, hoarse voice, carrying a hint of coldness, echoed behind He Ao.

He Ao turned around, finding a woman hanging upside down from the ceiling, her hair dangling like a broom suspended in midair, her body covered in blood, floating behind He Ao. A chilling and sinister atmosphere permeated the room.

"Ghost, ghost." Elsa, standing nearby, stared wide-eyed at the scene, utterly speechless, and she suddenly fainted with a ’gah—’.

"What seems to be the problem?" He Ao raised his eyebrows, looking at the resentful spirit hanging behind him.

The resentful spirit seemed taken aback by his calm inquiry, momentarily stunned, appearing to be stuck in some kind of freeze.