Mark

"No one's come in or out," Tubin said, shaking his head. "The farm's too far from town. The workers only leave on Sunday afternoons to pick up supplies; otherwise, they stay put. And with the stables being renovated, we haven't had any customers coming by to ride."

Tu Ran exchanged a glance with Ding Naiqing.

So the alien creature was definitely still on the farm.

Tu Ran stepped closer to Tubin. "Could you gather everyone here? We need to do a sweep."

Tubin hesitated, then nodded, though he looked troubled. "The regular workers are fine, but the mistress has been ill since Mr. Igan passed. She's still bedridden, so she can't come out."

Tu Ran offered a smile. "That's all right. We'll visit the mistress ourselves. For now, have everyone else assemble here."

"Understood. Please wait a moment." Tubin hurried off.

This farm was unusually large, so gathering all the workers would take some time.

The group waited where they were. Tu Ran leaned against one of the hay shed's support pillars to rest.

Ding Naiqing came over, brow furrowed, and asked in a low voice, "Sister Tu Ran, if those creatures are really possessing these workers, can you tell them apart?"

Tu Ran shook her head honestly.

If only she had X-ray vision, she could spot them at a glance.

"Then how are we supposed to tell which ones are the creatures and which are normal?" Ding Naiqing looked frustrated.

"Didn't you say they don't have human memories?" Tu Ran said.

"But the guards from the Federal Government's Regaken State branch already tried that this morning—they had pairs who knew each other question one another, and everyone answered perfectly."

Tu Ran frowned. Things were getting more complicated. "Since no one has come or gone, and Kenney Igan's body is right here, that means the creature is still on the farm. Unless… it didn't possess another human? Maybe it's hiding somewhere on the property?"

Hearing this, Ding Naiqing considered it. "Then let's scan the place with a thermal imager first?"

Tu Ran nodded.

Ding Naiqing turned to give instructions to the guards. After a brief exchange, two of the guards nodded and hurried off.

What other options were there? Tu Ran stared at the toes of her boots, her mind churning. Without realizing it, she had scraped a small pit in the dirt with her boot.

Suddenly, the corner of her eye caught a winding line in the soil near the corner of the haystack.

It was very faint—if not for the original body's excellent eyesight, she might have missed it.

Tu Ran walked over quickly, crouched down, and leaned in for a closer look.

A moment later.

"Ding Naiqing," she called.

"Hmm? What is it?" Ding Naiqing looked toward her.

Tu Ran beckoned him over.

Ding Naiqing immediately walked over and crouched down beside her.

Following her gaze, he spotted the trace as well.

Tu Ran raised the question, "Don't you think this winding line looks like the track of a snake slithering?"

Ding Naiqing thought for a moment. "It does look like it, but the track is too short."

Indeed, the winding wavy line extended less than a meter from where the haystack stood, leaving its mark because there was a layer of loose soil on the ground.

"It is short," Tu Ran agreed. "But—" She looked at Ding Naiqing meaningfully.