Hide and Seek: The Mad Girl Sees All novel Chapter 118

Chapter 118

Chapter 118

ACCA

Zoe called back almost immediately.

“Lyra, the helicopter’s been approved,” she said.

Lyra was about to head to the helipad, but Zoe’s next words made her pause.

“The Chief Advisor wants you to wait a bit before heading out,” Zoe said.

“Why?” Lyra asked.

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“The materials and ancient texts submitted by the public today are being sent over to the Command Center. That thirty seven-page handwritten manuscript should get there by ten o’clock,” Zoe explained.

Zoe paused. “The Chief Advisor wants you to check it out before you leave. Maybe you’ll find something new.”

Lyra thought it over. She was pretty curious about that thirty-seven-page manuscript, and ten o’clock wasn’t too far away, she agreed. “Sure.”

“Alright, Lyra. After you finish eating, head straight to the IT Department at the Command Center. The Chief Advisor and Ms. Reed are already there, and the books and materials will be delivered there too,” Zoe said.

“Got it. I’m heading over now,” Lyra replied.

After hanging up, Lyra turned and made her way to the IT Department.

The IT Department was located on the east side of the Command Center. When Lyra walked in, the room was already filled with people.

Lana stood in front of a row of computer screens, her eyes fixed on the stream of data scrolling across the monitors. A few Tech Specialists were typing furiously, sorting through the information.

Ms. Reed sat by the window at her desk, several ancient texts spread out before her. Nearby, a few team members were busy categorizing and labeling materials, with stacks of printed documents neatly piled in the corner.

“Lyra, come here,” Ms. Reed called out, patting the chair next to her.

Lyra walked over, pulled out the chair, and sat down. Ms. Reed slid a stack of papers across the desk to her.

“I put this together last night. Take a look at this first,” Ms. Reed said.

Lyra took the stack. It was a set of A4 sheets, all handwritten.

The title read, “Collected Records on the Source.”

The first entry was from the “Classic of Purity and Stillness.”

The Great Way is formless, yet it gives birth to heaven and earth, it is without emotion, yet it moves the sun and moon; it is nameless, yet it nurtures all things.”

Ms. Reed had written a note in red ink next to it: “The Source of Vitality.”

The second entry was from the “Yellow Court Scripture.”

“The Crown Center and every joint house a spirit.”

Ms. Reed’s note: “The point where soul and body meet, could it be the Vital Flame?”

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The third entry was from the “Inner Chapters of the Book of the Master Who Embraces Simplicity”

“Man exists within vital energy, and vital energy exists within man. From heaven and earth to all living things, nothing survives without it.”

Ms. Reed’s note: “Vital energy, life force, could this be the vessel for the Vital Flame values?”

Lyra read through each entry, her brow furrowing more and more as she went.

It wasn’t that she didn’t get what they were saying, Lyra thought. It was just that none of it fit together.

“Ms. Reed, are all these talking about the same thing?” Lyra asked.

“Yes,” Ms. Reed replied, taking off her reading glasses to wipe them before putting them back on.

“Some ancient systems call it vital energy, original energy, or primal breath. Others call it true nature or true mind. The terms differ, but they point to the same source, Ms. Reed explained.

She pointed at the third entry. “See this line? ‘Man exists within vital energy, and vital energy exists within man. We live in it. and it lives in us.”

“What about the Wraiths?” Lyra asked.

“Wraiths don’t belong in this cycle. They’re outsiders. They slither across the ground, draining the earth’s energy. It’s like they’re breaking the natural order and stealing what should rightfully stay with this land,” Ms. Reed explained.

Lyra picked up a pen, drew a circle on a blank sheet, and wrote “vital energy” inside. Then she drew two lines from the circle. labeling one “people” and the other “land.”

Lyra explained, “People and the land both share this vital energy, but the Wraiths are siphoning it away.”

Ms. Reed nodded.

Lyra sketched a triangle outside the circle, wrote “Wraiths” inside, and drew an arrow from the triangle pointing toward the

circle.

“So what about the Ghost Wall? Lyra asked, curiosity in her voice.

She drew a vertical line between the circle and the triangle, labeling it “Ghost Wall.”

“The Ghost Wall sits right in the middle, keeping the Wraiths from spreading any further…” Lyra explained.

Ms. Reed pressed her finger on the vertical line, her tone serious. “But it costs the ghosts their own soul power” The two of them stared at the sketch for a few seconds.

Lana walked over, glanced at the sketch on the desk, then checked out the notes Ms. Reed had organized.

“Ms. Reed, do any of these ancient texts say anything about how to actually use the Vital Flame values?” Lana asked

“No.” Ms. Reed shook her head. “Those old texts only describe methods like building vital energy, refining it, or returning to emptiness. We still don’t know how that matches the Vital Flame values on our panel.

Lana frowned. “We’re already building vital energy by feeding everyone well and raising Vital Flame values. But what is refining it? Is it cultivating those values? And what does returning to emptiness mean?”

Ms. Reed let out a sigh. “We still don’t have the answers, so I’m counting on that thirty-seven-page manuscript.”

She picked up another printed document from the desk, a high-res scan of the first page the netizen had sent yesterday.

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Chapter 118

“Check out this page. Ms. Reed said. “If the Vital Flame goes out, the living will cross into death. Those six words line up exactly with our Vital Flame values panel. Whoever wrote this must’ve either seen the panel themselves, or…”

“Or maybe she’s gone through it herself, or even practiced with the Vital Flame values,” Lyra chimed in.

Ms. Reed glanced at her and nodded.

Just then, Garrett walked in carrying a cardboard box stuffed with plastic bags of all shapes and sizes, each with a tag inside

“The first batch of books submitted by the public just got here from the regional hubs,” he announced.

He set the box down on the table by the door and checked the inventory on his tablet. “We’ve got twenty-nine items in total: eleven handwritten manuscripts, six traditional thread-bound books, and twelve loose sheets.”

Lana glanced over. “Sort them and send them to the right teams.”

Garrett nodded and called over two people to help move the box.

Lyra kept flipping through Ms. Reed’s notes, and when she got to the fourth page, she noticed a passage that Ms. Reed had circled three times in red ink.

It was from the “Seven Slips of a Cloudy Satchel,” and the original text read: “The human body contains thirty-six thousand spiritual entities, each with its own dwelling.”

Ms. Reed’s only comment was a single question mark.

Thirty-six thousand spirits?” Lyra read aloud.

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