Chapter 773: Chapter 644: Shadow Thief

At dusk, the abandoned industrial area along the coast of Wudu was shrouded in a grayish-purple glow.

The sun had sunk below the horizon, but the sky was not yet completely dark.

The people of Wudu referred to this time of day as "gray dusk."

This ambiguous moment between day and night was also when most of the city’s inhabitants hurried home before night fully descended.

But for the Spirit Communicator Association, gray dusk marked the beginning of work.

Harding stood at the entrance of an abandoned factory, his hands tucked into the pockets of his deep blue uniform.

His gaze swept across a clearing piled with rusted steel toward the distant, misty sea.

No ships dotted the water, only a thick fog rolling slowly, like the breath of some enormous creature.

He was forty-seven this year and had been with the association for over twenty years.

After retiring from field operations, he thought he’d never lead such missions again.

But this situation was different.

The previous dispatched team had vanished without even a message.

The association required experienced personnel, hence his return.

"Old Ha." Deke’s voice came from behind, "The site is clear. All three factory buildings on the north side have been emptied; no unauthorized persons present."

Deke walked over and stood beside him.

The young man’s face wore an eager expression, but deep in his eyes was a barely perceptible tension.

After all, he had only been employed for two years and previously faced only ordinary Dangerous Level anomalies; this was his first operation involving a Hazard Level anomaly.

"Where are the others?" Harding asked.

"The other three elite teams have already arrived and are conducting final equipment checks. The capture team is setting up the Sealing Array and the lighting group, which will take about thirty more minutes." Deke pointed inside the factory, "I’ve checked inside; the space is large, and the ceiling high enough for deployment."

Harding nodded without saying much.

He turned around, looking at the empty factory area behind him.

This abandoned industrial zone used to be one of Wudu’s largest shipyards, closed thirty years ago due to a mysterious attack.

Since then, the area remained abandoned, with empty buildings and rusting equipment, only occasionally frequented by homeless people and black market traders.

For today’s operation, it was an ideal location.

No civilians, ample space for preparation, and no worry about collateral damage.

Moreover, it was secluded enough not to attract unnecessary attention.

Gradually, several black vans drove into the factory area.

As the doors opened, association members in deep blue uniforms jumped out and started unloading various equipment.

Metal frames, Rune Stone Plates, high-power lighting, reels of cable...

Harding and Deke walked deeper into the factory.

The other three elite teams were already waiting inside.

Six people, three men and three women, ranging in age from thirty to fifty.

Each uniform was slightly different from that of regular association members.

The collars and cuffs were trimmed with silver, and beneath the badge on the left chest was a star marking representing "elite."

Some leaned against walls, others squatted beside equipment boxes, some engaged in whispered conversations, but all their attention focused as Harding walked in.

"Everyone’s here." Harding glanced at the group, "I won’t waste words, and I’ll get straight to the intel."

He pulled a folded piece of paper from his pocket and unfolded it.

On the paper was a hand-drawn strange figure: a translucent, flattened humanoid outline, lacking facial features and limb details, like a thin, crumpled black sheet.

"Temporary codename: Shadow Thief. Level: Hazard Level, initially judged as the peak of Hazard Level. As you can see, its form is a semi-transparent shadow, sliding across the ground. Its movement pattern always avoids light sources, preferring to roam along walls, under furniture, or any other shadowy areas at gray dusk."

Harding stuck the paper to the wall, then turned around.

"According to ’Prophet’ predictions, this entity’s pattern of killing is... it only attacks ’people without shadows.’"

Deke frowned: "People without shadows?"

"Yes." Harding nodded, "But its very existence is the reason for losing shadows. This entity feeds on shadows; as the Shadow Thief passes by your shadow, it ’bites’ a piece off the edge, making your shadow slightly smaller."

"This process is extremely covert; ordinary people won’t feel anything, and it’s hard to detect changes in the shadow even with the naked eye. But as it passes repeatedly, your shadow grows smaller until it entirely disappears."

Harding paused, allowing those present to digest the information.

"After losing one’s shadow, the Shadow Thief can convert your body into its nourishment. This process is incredibly slow, taking several days. Victims feel inexplicably fatigued, weak, and eventually die in a sleep without any abnormalities. Externally, the deceased show no trauma, no signs of poisoning, as if it were a natural death."

"So those missing people in the old city..." An elite team member spoke up.

"Some are missing, and some were handled by their families as ’natural deaths.’" Harding’s tone grew heavier, "We discovered this pattern only after comparing nearly four months of death records. Over a dozen people had been described by witnesses as ’lacking shadows’ before their deaths... but no one noticed this detail at the time."

There was a moment of silence in the factory.

"We’ve roughly confirmed the Shadow Thief’s operational boundaries through the victim’s geographical coordinates." Harding pointed to another hand-drawn map on the paper, "Its current activity area is concentrated between the seventh street and the twelfth street in the old town, and it hasn’t exceeded this range. But it might expand its activity area."

"The squad we sent out earlier was completely wiped out without even transmitting any information." Deke added, his voice deeper than usual, "So we suspect this ominous entity might have a ’second stage’ or other troublesome characteristics. Choosing the battlefield here today is to prepare for any unexpected situations."

Harding walked to the center of the factory, glancing up at the rusted steel roof beams.

"We’ve arranged the venue in advance. The Sealing Array covers the entire factory area, and the lighting group is distributed in a grid pattern to ensure no dead corners. The capture team is responsible for the periphery support and maintenance of the Array, and we eight..." he pointed to the elite team members present, "are ready to take action according to our own strengths."

"Understood." Six people responded in unison.

"Then take your positions."

The sky had completely darkened.

The lighting groups within the factory area were fully installed.

Each lamp is specially made, with rune etched on the lampshade, which can scatter light in a special way, ensuring no residual shadows within the illuminated range.

Besides illuminating, this is also to restrict the Shadow Thief’s activity space.

The sky gradually darkened.

Harding stood at the center of the factory, looking down at his uniform.

The collar, cuffs, and chest of the uniform glowed softly in the darkness.

This is the standard configuration of the Association.

Each uniform is embedded with trace fluorescent runes, ensuring the wearer is always in a state of "light" without generating extra shadows.

Everyone’s uniform glowed, tiny specks of fluorescence gathering into a reassuring halo in the dark.

Deke stood beside Harding, flexing his fingers.

"Old Ha." Deke said softly, "Do you think this Shadow Thief really needs such a big setup?"

Harding glanced at him: "That’s what the last squad thought too."

Deke closed his mouth.

Harding turned and walked towards a van at the back of the factory.

The van’s cargo door was open, and it was brightly lit inside—a literal "brightly lit".

The interior walls of the van were covered with various light sources.

Fluorescent lights, incandescent lamps, rune lights... illuminating every corner of the cargo hold like a noon desert, with no shadow existing.

In the center of the cargo hold, a stretcher was placed on a temporary scaffold.

A man was lying on the stretcher.

In his forties, gaunt, sunken eyes, skin showing an unhealthy grayish-white hue.

His eyes were open, gazing distractedly at the ceiling of the cargo hold, lips slightly moving as if saying something but no sound coming out.

Harding climbed into the van and squatted beside the stretcher.

"Can you hear me?" he asked.

The man’s eyes slowly turned toward him, blinking once.

It was the only action he could manage now.

"You are the closest victim we’ve found." Harding’s voice was light but clear, "Your shadow has completely disappeared. According to the Shadow Thief’s pattern, it will come to find you in the next few days. So, help us find it. Afterwards, the Association will do everything possible to help you recover."

The man’s eyes blinked again.

This time, the blink was slow, as if saying "okay."

Harding stood up, jumped out of the van, nodding to Deke next to him.

"Prepare to commence."

Eight high-powered lights lit up simultaneously below the factory roof.

White light poured down from above, illuminating the entire factory area like daylight.

Rusty machines, broken windows, cracked cement ground... everything lay bare under the light.

But the light also brought shadows.

Everyone standing under the light dragged a shadow beneath them, more or less, darker or lighter.

Harding looked at his shadow beneath him, his brows furrowed slightly.

Although the Prophet said losing part of a shadow wouldn’t matter, deep down there were some concerns.

But it’s a necessary sacrifice.

Although there is the "shadowless one" as bait, without shadows in the surrounding environment, the Shadow Thief won’t show up.

So they needed to use themselves as bait too.

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