I Can See the Unseen

Chapter 1. The First Sighting Incident

The rain in Ning'an came without warning. Raindrops pounded the road outside the county police station, splashing mud onto the legs of passersby, making them all the more irritable.

Zhang Tong stood at the entrance, cigarette in hand, when distant headlights suddenly pierced through the downpour, their blinding beam cutting through the misty rain.

Before he could make sense of it, a large G-Wagon screeched to a halt right in front of him. A tall man wearing a rain-soaked jacket stepped out, slammed the door, and flashed a badge in Zhang Tong's face.

"UMA Special Investigations, Zane Lin," the man's deep voice rumbled through the rain-soaked night. Without waiting for a response, he took a long stride toward the station's entrance, quickly asking, "Where's the witness?"

Zhang Tong was startled. He flicked away his cigarette and hurried to follow, leading the way while whispering a quick summary, "In the office. It's a film crew—they were shooting thirty kilometers away in the old forest. Some equipment malfunctioned, so they stayed late. After dark, two people went to take out the trash. They claim they saw a strange shadow. One of them got so scared they tripped on a rock and passed out. He's already been sent to the hospital. The other witness, Lila Ling, is waiting inside."

As he finished, Zhang Tong couldn't help but glance at Zane Lin. The man's sharp, chiseled profile gave off an aura of calm and cold precision. He seemed normal enough—not the type to believe in superstitions.

Zane, unaffected by the scrutiny, stopped just outside the office and looked in.

There were three people inside, but the slender figure sitting in the center immediately caught the eye. A young woman, her back partially to him. It wasn't clear if she'd been caught in the rain, but her black hair starkly contrasted with her pale face. Wrapped tightly in a blanket up to her chin, she looked fragile, almost pitiful, sipping hot water while leaning against a female officer. Behind her, someone else was on the phone, pacing anxiously.

The young woman seemed alert, still in shock. She quickly turned her head, eyes locking with Zane's.

"That her?" Zane asked, without breaking his gaze.

Zhang Tong nodded. "Seems easily scared, but the other witness, Lily Zheng, she's even worse off. She could barely speak but still managed to describe what she saw."

He hesitated, then added, "She said it was something that looked like a person, but definitely wasn't. Really tall, covered in hair, and had a terrifying mouth. Moved incredibly fast. Swish—gone in an instant. Kind of like... uh, the wild man of Shennongjia, maybe?"

He knew how ridiculous that sounded. After all, Ning'an County didn't have the kind of wilderness that might hide such a creature. He wanted to believe they'd simply seen something else—a shadow, perhaps? He'd been a cop for years, and he'd encountered ghost stories before, but never wild man sightings. When he first heard the account, he thought it was a joke. That was until the chief handed him a contact number and said, "This isn't our case to handle."

Tonight felt like a scene from a mystery novel.

Zane, however, showed no surprise. He took the witness report and pushed open the door. "Got it. I'll speak with her alone."

Zhang Tong shot a questioning look at his boss, who nodded in approval. Just before Zane entered, Zhang Tong quickly added, "By the way, she's someone special—Lila Ling is the daughter of the CEO of Jindong Group. They only recently found her."

Jindong Group had once been a giant in the province's real estate industry and had since transitioned into the tech sector. When their daughter went missing years ago, the whole province was plastered with missing person posters, and rewards were offered for information. Oddly, even though they'd now found her, she'd been sitting in the police station for hours, and no one had come to take her home.

Better to tread carefully.

Zane's eyebrow twitched slightly, but he said nothing as he walked in. He pulled up a chair and sat down, speaking in a calm, soothing voice, "Lila Ling, right? I hear you saw something strange?"

Lila pulled the blanket tighter around herself, eyeing the man in front of her. "Who are you?" she asked.

Her pupils were black, with an odd coldness to them, and there was something unsettling about the way she stared.

Zane flashed his badge, confirming his official capacity. "Zane. I'm here to handle your sighting."

She seemed to barely glance at the badge before repeating his name, slowly, as though the two syllables were foreign to her, "Z-a-n-e."

Then, she leaned forward and spoke faster, "Do you believe me? I really saw that thing—it was huge and terrifying!"

"I believe you," Zane replied, his voice steady. "Can you describe it more specifically? Where and when did you see it? Was its speed within normal limits? Were there any distinctive features, something that made it clearly not human, like... I don't know, did it look like an ape?"

Lila nodded vigorously, then frowned and shook her head. Her thin neck tensed as she spoke, "It was just after dusk. The director told us to pack up quickly because it might rain. Everyone was moving things when Lily Zheng and I walked about fifty meters into the forest. At first, we thought it was just a hill. But then there was lightning, and in the flash, we saw it... I swear, it looked like a gorilla, but it wasn't! Its teeth stuck out—its mouth and teeth took up half its face! Its eyes were bulging and blood-red, and it was so tall. The trees on the hill blocked the top of its head..."

The more she described, the deeper Zane's frown grew.

Her description didn't match any known humanoid creatures. Could this be something unknown?

Seeing her pale face flushed from the effort, her words becoming more frantic and repetitive, Zane raised a hand to stop her. He grabbed a notepad and handed it to her.

"Can you draw it?"

Lila licked her dry lips, took the notepad, and hesitated for a moment before sketching.

Zane glanced at the drawing. Her skill was impressive—almost enough to identify the creature.

He stared at the sketch for a few seconds, then shifted his gaze to her hands. They were delicate, with pale veins running along the back, giving the impression of fragility. She must have led a life of luxury during her years of disappearance.

When Lila finished, Zane took the drawing and made some quick adjustments, changing the creature's features almost beyond recognition. He handed it back to her. "Is this closer?"

"More or less," she said, though clearly unsure. "I couldn't see all the details."

Without commenting on how far off the drawing actually was, Zane asked for the exact location of the sighting and had her leave a contact number.

"We'll conduct an on-site investigation next," Zane said as he stood up, delivering the usual final remarks. "I hope, Miss Ling, that you can keep this quiet for now. Don't tell anyone, and definitely don't post anything online. I'll be in touch."

With that, he pushed the chair back into place and asked, "Do you know which hospital Lily Zheng was taken to?"

Lila, now looking a little more at ease after her account, smiled weakly as she sipped her water. "Jiayu Hospital."

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