I was a rookie reporter in the 00s

In the shadow priests' secret base, a vast basement, three missing persons—street musician Jack, librarian Tom, and night runner Amy—were bound to a cold stone platform. Around them, a group of black-robed priests gathered around the altar, chanting incantations and drawing strange symbols in the air with their staffs.

The leader stood at the center of the altar, a mad glint in his eyes. His voice was deep and powerful: "The ritual is about to begin. We will open the portal to another world and awaken the sleeping gods."

Following his command, the priests chanted their spells faster, the runes on the altar began to glow, and the entire basement was filled with strange energy. Jack, Tom, and Amy felt an invisible force pulling at them, their consciousness began to blur, and their bodies trembled uncontrollably.

Inside the basement, the energy reached its peak. The runes on the altar glowed brightly, and a powerful force surged from the portal, enveloping Jack, Tom, and Amy. Their bodies began to levitate, the air around them distorted by the force.

There was a fanatical glint in the chief's eyes. He knew that in just a few moments, the ritual would succeed and they would gain unprecedented power.

"Powers of Shadow, answer my call!" the leader shouted, his voice echoing in the basement.

The priests' voices rose in pitch, their incantations and the light of the runes intertwined to form a powerful energy field. Jack, Tom, and Amy's bodies began to emit a faint glow, their life energy being gradually drawn away and integrated into the ritual.

Just as the ceremony was about to reach its climax, Zhang Wanqing, Fu Siyuan, and Li Wei finally arrived at the basement. Their eyes swept through the basement and saw the bound Jack, Tom, and Amy, as well as the altar in the center and the fanatical priests.

A strong sense of anger and worry surged in Zhang Wanqing's heart. She knew that if she didn't take immediate action, Jack, Tom and Amy would lose their lives.

"We must stop them!" Zhang Wanqing's voice was firm and powerful.

Fu Siyuan quickly began analyzing the basement's energy field, searching for ways to disrupt the ritual. His fingers pounded rapidly on the keyboard, trying to find a weakness in the altar runes.

Li Wei led his elite team and prepared to rush directly to the altar to rescue Jack, Tom and Amy.

The battle in the basement was about to begin. Fu Siyuan successfully found the weakness of the rune and quickly wrote a program, which he sent to Zhang Wanqing and Li Wei via mobile phone, allowing them to interfere with the altar's energy field.

Zhang Wanqing and Li Wei acted quickly, using Fu Siyuan's program to disrupt the altar's energy. The runes on the altar began to flicker, and the energy field began to fluctuate. Jack, Tom, and Amy's bodies slowly descended onto the stone platform.

The leader's face was gloomy, he knew that their plan had been disrupted. He quickly ordered the priests to strengthen the spell and try to stabilize the energy field.

The priests' voices grew louder as they tried to suppress the interference of Zhang Wanqing and Li Wei. The energy field in the basement became unstable again, the light of the runes and the priests' spells intertwined to form a storm of energy.

Zhang Wanqing and Li Wei struggled to move forward in the storm. They had to get close to the altar to rescue Jack, Tom and Amy. Every step they took was full of danger, and the storm of energy almost swallowed them up.

Fu Siyuan was operating nervously at the control console in the distance. He knew that only by completely destroying the runes on the altar could he stop the ceremony from proceeding.

After a tense battle, Zhang Wanqing and Li Wei finally approached the altar. As they approached, the atmosphere in the basement grew tense. The runes on the altar began to crack under Fu Siyuan's program interference, and the energy field quickly dissipated like smoke on the wind. Jack, Tom, and Amy's bodies were freed and slowly descended from the air. Their eyes were closed, their faces pale, but they were still breathing.

The leader's face turned pale, he knew that their plan had failed. His eyes revealed a hint of madness, he decided to take a final revenge, he still had one last trump card.

"Activate the backup plan!" The leader's voice was low and threatening. His voice echoed in the basement, with a hint of despair in it.

The backup plan was the Shadow Priest's last resort, a desperate attempt to reverse the situation. The leader pressed a red button hidden in the altar's base, and the basement walls suddenly opened, revealing rows of screens and consoles.

The screen showed every corner of the city, from busy streets to quiet residential areas, each scene revealing a peaceful daily routine. But with the leader's command, these images began to change, shadows began to spread across the screen, and expressions of fear appeared on people's faces.

The core of the backup plan is to release a special sound wave to affect people's minds, causing them to panic and confusion. This sound wave can penetrate buildings and affect everyone, causing them to lose their minds and become puppets of the shadow priests.

As the backup plan was activated, the city descended into chaos. People on the streets began running aimlessly, fear and confusion evident on their faces. Families began arguing, friends became enemies, and even pedestrians on the street began to curse at each other, some even engaging in physical violence and injuring each other. The entire city was enveloped in an invisible panic.

Zhang Wanqing, Fu Siyuan, and Li Wei stood at the entrance to the basement, their eyes looking through the chaotic crowd and seeing the turmoil in the city. Their hearts were filled with worry, knowing that if this plan was not stopped quickly, the entire city would fall into disorder.

"We must find the source of the sound waves and shut it down!" Zhang Wanqing's voice was firm and powerful.

Fu Siyuan quickly began to analyze the frequency and propagation path of the sound waves. His eyes were fixed on the screen and his fingers were tapping quickly on the keyboard.

"I found it. The sound waves are emitted from four corners of the city. We need to shut down these four transmitters at the same time." There was a hint of nervousness in Fu Siyuan's voice.

The three quickly split up. Zhang Wanqing and Li Wei headed to the locations of two transmitters, while Fu Siyuan stayed in the basement and tried to remotely disable the other two transmitters.

Zhang Wanqing and Li Wei shuttled through the chaotic streets, their eyes determined, and every dodge was full of wit. They had only one goal in mind, which was to shut down the transmitter and prevent the plan from continuing.

Fu Siyuan was working nervously in the basement, trying to crack the transmitter's security system.

Zhang Wanqing and Li Wei successfully approached the two transmitters. Using the jamming equipment provided by Fu Siyuan, they successfully destroyed the core components of the transmitters. As the transmitters exploded, people on the street gradually regained their senses and the panic began to dissipate.

Fu Siyuan also made progress in the basement. He successfully cracked the transmitter's security system and remotely shut down two more transmitters. With the last transmitter shut down, the chaos in the city was under control.

When the last plan was successfully thwarted, the leader's face turned pale, and his eyes revealed despair. He knew that his last resort had failed, and the end of the Shadow Priest had come.

Zhang Wanqing, Fu Siyuan and Li Wei stood in front of the leader, their eyes full of determination and justice.

"Your plan has failed," Zhang Wanqing said with a hint of victory in her voice. "The era of the Shadow Priest is over."

A flicker of reluctance flashed in the leader's eyes, but he knew he was powerless to change the situation. He slowly lowered his head, accepting his fate.