Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 31: The Number of Murderers

The sun was setting, making the factory building dimmer. The window behind Peng Ge gradually became stained with night, making the head without any bumps look like an actor dressed up as a monster in a haunted house.

The unrealistic head looked as if it were forcibly connected to a living body.

A twisted smile showing eight teeth was painted on his head, and his moist eyeballs became even more bloodshot.

Peng Ge seemed to want to sit down or throw himself forward. He was swaying back and forth, but unfortunately his feet didn’t seem to work and he was stuck firmly to the ground. He looked like a clown in a box, springing back and forth.

This was something a living person couldn’t do.

“Haha.” He sputtered intermittently. His voice was to the point of almost wailing. “Haha…!”

Seeing this unusual scene, several policemen became nervous, but none of them backed away. They watched with bated breath as Zhong Chengshuo, the “professional,” prepared to rush up and save them if there was any trouble.

Peng Ge swayed and wobbled back and forth until he got within two meters and stopped in his tracks.

He stopped almost face-to-face in front of Zhong Chengshuo, still repeating that sentence over and over again. His voice was high but also low, hoarse, and distorted, like a broken, repeating soundtrack.

“Haha, bitch. You’re here now but want to go back? Haha…”

Zhong Chengshuo remained still. “Actually, I plan to go home after getting off work in half an hour.”

“Also, please don’t swear,” he added belatedly.

Peng Ge: “……”

He stopped raving and his body froze, as if he didn’t know how to react to this.

Yin Ren didn’t hold back and laughed out loud. “Hey, Zhong Ge, what does that person look like in your eyes?”

“In his twenties. Face is pretty bad, looks a bit dehydrated. It’s best to send him to a hospital for rehydration as soon as possible,” Zhong Chengshuo said succinctly, as if he were only speaking facts.

He didn’t seem to see the abnormality on Peng Ge’s face.

At the same time, Lu Xiaohe’s drone popped up. “The concentration of evil qi around the target is 0.24~0.28fR and it’s increasing. There are no signs of evil qi spreading. Preliminarily, it’s judged to be a non-infectious anomaly so personnel from the science post can approach normally.”

As soon as Lu Xiaohe’s voice fell, Zhong Chengshuo’s figure flashed.

Like a panther jumping on its prey, Zhong Chengshuo’s sense of oppression exploded in an instant. He completed a set of attacks within the blink of an eye. After being kicked in the knee, Peng Ge let out a sharp “ha!” sound. The unknown force failed to support his body this time—Zhong Chengshuo took him down and kneeled on both his knees.

Peng Ge squirmed, and his joints twisted and clicked. His head flopped around frantically as he struggled to escape, creating an extremely unsightly scene. Zhong Chengshuo ignored it and just held him firmly in place. Peng Ge was a little over 1.8 meters tall and looked quite strong, yet he didn’t know how Zhong Chengshuo could hold him down with so much force.

Officer Sun spoke up hesitantly. “That man’s face…”

Zhong Chengshuo: “I don’t see anything wrong. If you think something’s off, there may be hallucinogenic gas or mold nearby.”

Officer Sun suddenly reached an epiphany and gave quick instructions. “Go up and help! Listen, the environment is unsanitary, so pay careful attention.”

Two minutes later, all three gangsters were taken to the police car.

Peng Ge was restrained and taken by 120 to Haigu People’s Hospital. It seemed there were people in the hospital who were aware of Shian, as when the medical staff came to pick him up, their expression was unusually calm as they looked at the flat face.

“Send him directly to the security zone.” He ignored Peng Ge, who was frantically struggling, and made a quick decision. After saying this, he also skillfully performed a special disinfection.

When everything was wrapped up, it wasn’t even dark yet.

As Zhong Chengshuo expected, they got off work on time. Yin Ren stopped by and bought some roujiamos recommended by the local ghost. With each holding one, they found a secluded corner on the side of Wanxing Street and ate dinner face-to-face.

The bun was crispy and fragrant, and when the sauce hit the tongue, it burst into a mouthful of flavor. The roujiamo went straight to his belly, causing Yin Ren’s remaining unhappiness to dissipate with the night wind.

He really hadn’t tried this kind of life before. Now he was busy with his work, but he didn’t have to worry about food or clothing, and he even had someone he was close to.

It was quite novel. Lord Ghost King, who remembered eating but not beating, was satisfied and decided to buy two more roujiamos later as a midnight snack.

Since it was a while after dinner time, Zhong Chengshuo was quite hungry and ate faster than usual, which was unusual since he didn’t like this kind of thing. Zhong Chengshuo suddenly froze as he was eating and began to pant quickly.

Lord Ghost King didn’t hold back and smiled gloatingly at him. Zhong Chengshuo glared at him reproachfully and silently turned his back to him.

Yin Ren didn’t mind. “Do you want to eat mung bean shaved ice? It’s just a few steps away, and I heard it’s very healthy.”

Miss Hu Tao sincerely recommended it. She said that she often ate it when she was trying to lose weight. Being a calorie control fanatic, Zhong Chengshuo shouldn’t resist this.

Sure enough, hearing this suggestion, Zhong Chengshuo turned back around. “Okay.”

……

The next day. Haigu People’s Hospital. Shian Area.

After a night of treatment, Orange Head finally regained some sanity. Seeing Yin Ren and Zhong Chengshuo talking at the door, he subconsciously shrank to the corner, but thankfully didn’t try to escape.

Orange Head’s name was Qian Zhicheng. He was nineteen and had just muddled through high school. He currently worked in the back kitchen of a restaurant.

According to Qian Zhicheng, he hadn’t “mixed in with society for long”, and he was still at the initial stage of feeling it was “cool” to be unemployed. He was taken in by Wu Tao and learned many bad things. Now that this kind of thing happened, Qian Zhicheng didn’t even bother to take care of his hair. He let his orange hair stick to his scalp, making him look like a drenched Pomeranian.

“The police just left,” he said timidly.

“The focus of our inquiry is different from that of the police.” Yin Ren gave him a kind smile.

Seeing that beautiful, smiling face, Qian Zhicheng froze for a moment and became a bit tongue-tied. “Ah, okay. You can ask.”

After confirming the question, Qian Zhicheng wrapped himself in a blanket and started to tell the story in a stumbling manner…

On the night of Wu Tao’s death, Qian Zhicheng was indeed in the closed area, but they didn’t act together.

At the time of the incident, Wu Tao only had Peng Ge by his side.

“Peng Ge”, whose real name was Wu Pengpeng, was related by blood. In terms of seniority, he was Wu Tao’s nephew. This pair of uncle and nephew were famous gangsters on Wangxing Street and were considered “partners” in a sense.

“Peng Ge is young, so he’s not as courageous as Tao Ge… Ahem, not as courageous as Wu Tao.” Qian Zhicheng’s face turned bitter. “That night, Wu Tao said he wanted to take Peng Ge to ‘taste some excitement and open his eyes’. He said he had been watching someone who was clean and wasn’t troublesome.”

Yin Ren: “When the two of them left, they didn’t take you?”

“No, he does that often when he goes and does his thing. Wu Tao suspected that we were too young and was afraid that if we were questioned by cops, we would spill everything.”

“What is ‘doing his thing’?”

“I already told… the police! It’s looking for women to play with, but I wasn’t there, so I’m just guessing. I don’t know anything else. I really don’t!”

Qian Zhicheng hesitated and became a little emotional. As if he remembered something, he began to tremble violently again.

“Peng Ge ran back alone in the second half of the night, looking ghastly like that. Who the hell would dare go up and ask questions?! A few of us wanted to run, but no matter where we ran, we would always return to the vicinity of the factory… Thankfully the factory had some food and drinks left, so we stayed there and as far away from him as possible until the police came.”

He scratched his hair hard as his eyes darted around. He started to mumble frantically, “I don’t know anything”, “Why aren’t you afraid” and so on.

If this guy were to see Wu Tao’s death, he might actually collapse on the spot.

“That’s good.” Zhong Chengshuo stood up and said, “Have a good rest and drink plenty of hot water.”

Qian Zhicheng: “?”

Yin Ren knew this person’s “Art of Communication” illness had struck again. He glanced at Qian Zhicheng sympathetically as he dragged Zhong Chengshuo out the ward.

Next door to Qian Zhicheng was “Peng Ge” Wu Pengpeng.

Wu Pengpeng was fixed to a special patient restraint bed. There were several IV bags hanging from the infusion rack around him. In Yin Ren’s eyes, his facial features were still flat, and this “strange disease” seemed to be spreading—Wu Pengpeng’s nails had become flat, like they were painted on his fingertips.

There was a cold-eyed nurse in the ward who had a black seal on her clothes, unlike the other nurses.

“Fifteen minutes.” She waved her hand at them. “This person shows no signs that the evil qi is weakening. He’s very weak and isn’t suitable for long-term inquiries.”

Wu Pengpeng turned his head with difficulty as he tried to move his fingers. “…Ha…”

Zhong Chengshuo: “His literacy?”

“Not normal. Right now, he can’t understand words or drawings, let alone be actively writing.”

The nurse frowned slightly.

“He responds to sounds but will only answer in the same sentence. Be careful, you guys. The patient is emotionally unstable and can’t be stimulated too much.”

She skillfully changed the IV bags and took away the empty bags. Her right ear had a Shian headset, which Yin Ren could hear the call inside: [1103, 1103. Ward 4 Guo Laifu self-harming behavior suddenly appeared. Please deal with it immediately…]

“I’ll leave for a while and come back in fifteen minutes.” The nurse’s eyes were still cold as she pushed away her medical trolley. She left quickly, leaving only the sound of the bedside machine beeping softly. The smell of medicine in the ward had faded a bit.

“I have a few questions I want to ask you. Can you understand what I’m saying?” Zhong Chengshuo opened the notepad app on his phone.

Wu Pengpeng cranked his neck, looking as if he was about to nod, but that movement only turned into a weird twitch in the end. He tried to blink again, but unfortunately, his “flat eyelids” didn’t listen.

“…Ha…Ha…Bitch…” Wu Pengpeng’s voice was full of despair.

Zhong Chengshuo was unmoved by the tragic image. He continued calmly, “It seems that you can still make noise, so one ‘ha’ means yes, and two ‘ha’ means no. Let me ask again, can you understand me?”

Wu Pengpeng: “……”

Wu Pengpeng: “Ha.”

“Are you twelve years old this year?”

“Ha ha.”

“Very good.” Zhong Chengshuo nodded. “In the early morning of July 13^th, did you walk around in the closed area with Wu Tao?”

“Ha—”

“Were you planning to attack women? As far as we understand, Wu Tao claimed to have been watching someone who was ‘clean and not troublesome’.” Zhong Chengshuo was direct. “Wu Pengpeng, you’d better not lie. Between the ‘status quo’ and ‘going to jail’ you should know which one is worse.”

Wu Pengpeng’s lips trembled. “Ha…”

“Did you act with Wu Tao the entire time?”

“Ha.”

“Did you come into contact with Wu Tao’s goal?”

“…Ha.”

“There are no other traces at the scene. Wu Tao’s attack should have been unsuccessful. Let me change the question. Did you witness Wu Tao’s death—”

“Wait, don’t—” Yin Ren didn’t have time to cover Zhong Chengshuo’s mouth.

Hearing the words “Wu Tao’s death”, Wu Pengpeng convulsed and started struggling frantically. He trembled as he tugged on the restraints, moving so fast that he even left afterimages. There were gurgling sounds coming from his throat at exact intervals, as if he had been wound up by someone. The heavy hospital bed started to shake, knocking on the floor loudly.

“Hahahahaha!” His grin became wider and wider as he cackled madly at the ceiling. “Hahahahaha, bitch!”

The evil qi around Wu Pengpeng became disordered.

“Alright, there’s no need to ask.” Yin Ren sighed. “Didn’t the nurse say he couldn’t be stimulated?”

Zhong Chengshuo blinked in confusion. “But I didn’t stimulate him.”

Yin Ren faintly glanced at him with eyes full of regret. He shook his head and walked to the hospital bed.

Fwip.

Something being torn sounded as Wu Pengpeng’s hospital gown was ripped open by Yin Ren.

Zhong Chengshuo was stunned. “What—?!”

Even Wu Pengpeng, who was going crazy, was also dumbfounded by this act. He froze naked on the hospital bed, as if a pause button had been pressed.

Yin Ren didn’t care. He loosened the shackles on Wu Pengpeng’s side, lowered his body, and carefully observed Wu Pengpeng’s back.

“I’ll hold him down. Go and take a picture of what’s on his back.” Yin Ren gestured to Zhong Chengshuo.

Zhong Chengshuo: “…How do you know there’s something there?”

Yin Ren: “By observing the flow of evil qi. Chapter one of the Book of Exorcism. While this man was in a frenzy, there was something collecting behind his waist. Move quickly. We can’t let this thing disappear.”

Zhong Chengshuo hurriedly acted and took dozens of photos in a row.

Yin Ren’s judgment was correct.

There was a weird palm-sized mark on Wu Pengpeng’s back. As Wu Pengpeng calmed down, it rapidly faded.

While one was holding down Wu Pengpeng, the other was frantically taking pictures. At this terrible juncture, the cold-eyed nurse opened the door.

Nurse: “…” This seemed to be different from the “inquiry” she imagined.

She was expressionless and said nothing as she cracked her knuckles.

The next moment, Zhong Chengshuo and Yin Ren felt something tight wrapped around their necks and then saw their vision spinning as they were dragged out of the ward by their collars. They both fell to the ground, and before they could speak, the door to the ward was slammed shut.

Yin Ren gazed at the ceiling and slowly spread out his arms. “Not bad for a Black Seal of Shian. They certainly have a few tricks up their sleeves.”

Zhong Chengshuo was trying to get up. “We have to send the image to Lu Xiaohe.”

“No rush.” Lord Ghost King slowly and methodically got up. “Let’s check something else and submit it together before the end of the day. Right, I have a favor to ask of you.”

Five minutes later, in an empty ward.

Zhong Chengshuo assumed a standard stand-up pose. When he spoke, his voice was cramped. “…Help with what?”

In front of Zhong Chengshuo, Yin Ren was sitting in a hospital bed. He had already untied his shirt and had his back turned to Zhong Chengshuo.

After the Gao Mengyu incident, Yin Ren fell in love with loose black shirts. The way he was undressing was a bit different from the norm—right now, Yin Ren didn’t take off his shirt completely, but only took off one sleeve, leaving the sleeve to hang loosely slanted across his skin.

A large part of his back was exposed, allowing the shimmering sunlight to bask his white skin. Yin Ren had beautiful back lines that fit his muscles perfectly; delicate and smooth like a swimming fish.

To make sure his back was exposed, Yin Ren lifted his long hair and pulled it to the front of his shoulders, faintly revealing the slender back of his neck.

The faint fragrance that made people slightly drunk reappeared, but it was more obvious than last time.

Zhong Chengshuo held his breath as he asked again, “…What do you want me to do?”

“I need you to poke at the location of the mark just now,” Yin Ren said casually. “It’s one thing to see it, but it’s different to feel it.”

“…Why do you need to feel it?”

“To study the flow of evil qi when he goes berserk,” Yin Ren answered sincerely. “Since we were driven out, I can only analyze it using myself.”

Wu Pengpeng had poor proportions. He was tall but short-legged. Yin Ren couldn’t figure out the exact location of the mark because of this. Given that he was currently surrounded by people of Shian, it wasn’t convenient for him to use one of his extra-long arms to poke himself.

Lord Ghost King didn’t want to take his work home, and it wouldn’t be a loss to ask his partner for help.

Zhong Chengshuo pursed his lips and walked over slowly. He stretched out his index finger, hesitated for a few seconds, and gently tapped Yin Ren somewhere in the back of his waist.

“Wu Pengpeng’s mark is here.”

Yin Ren’s skin was cool and smooth to the touch, but Zhong Chengshuo felt as if his fingertip had contracted a fever. A wave of numbness rippled through him.

“Sure enough, it’s really a bit off.” Yin Ren hummed in response and started to calculate the flow of evil qi in his head. “Draw to the lower left a little bit. Move slowly and try to follow the muscles.”

“……Okay.” Zhong Chengshuo moved his fingers imperceptibly.

His fingertip movements were slow, like a drop of warm water sliding on skin.

The room was quiet. Yin Ren had missed a few strands of hair that were still hanging around his back, which shook slightly with his movements.

“Actually, we’ve asked a lot of things already,” Zhong Chengshuo suddenly said.

Yin Ren divided his attention from his calculations and responded, “What?”

“The murderer’s behavior is somewhat inconsistent,” Zhong Chengshuo whispered. “Wu Tao was choked to death by insect corpses. This was due to the hand of a corpse servant, but looking at Wu Tao’s death, his murder seems ritualistic, and his corpse was handled very delicately.”

“Indeed.”

“Assuming that the clues provided by Wu Pengpeng are correct, Wu Tao attacked a woman that night, but the police had checked surveillance records and found nothing.”

“If she was a simple victim, there’s no need to avoid surveillance… The possibility of her being killed by the murderer is also very low. After all, Wu Pengpeng is still alive as a witness.”

“I understand what you want to say.” Yin Ren let out a low laugh. “If she’s a corpse servant, this matter doesn’t make sense.”

Zhong Chengshuo’s eyes flashed. “Yes.”

“Let’s see. If she was really attacked suddenly, it’s understandable that she would fight back with the insect corpses. Her first reaction should be to flee rather than remain in that location and cut up human flesh.”

Yin Ren adjusted his sitting posture, and his tone became more relaxed.

“Either that, or she has long been eyeing Wu Tao and wanted to use his corpse as a background, but then she didn’t need to use insect corpses and leave clues behind to reveal her identity.” They had all entered a new era. Wasn’t a stun gun just as good?

“You sound like you have your own guess,” Zhong Chengshuo stopped his movements.

“Probably the same as yours.”

Yin Ren turned his head. His eyes were glowing faintly red in the sun. He curved them as he smiled slyly.

“…There may be two murderers. At least when Wu Tao was killed, there were at least two people at the scene, excluding Wu Pengpeng.”

“Nn.” Zhong Chengshuo began to slide his fingertips again. “The woman who was attacked was most likely an unregistered corpse servant. When she was attacked by Wu Tao, those insect corpses were her self-defense in a moment of panic.”

“When Wu Tao was struggling, another person intervened and divided his body up by some means. It’s very likely that Wu Pengpeng witnessed all this and was affected by it, showing mental abnormalities.”

“In this way, that inexplicable sense of division made sense. The problem is, what’s the intention of the corpse splitter… It’s not clear to me why the death scene was set up like that. I can’t draw any conclusions from it.”

“It’s only been two days. Don’t worry.” Yin Ren became a bit drowsy from the sun and yawned. “Hey, hey. Stop. Where you were just now, remember to take a picture for me.

“What? Oh, this—”

Before Zhong Chengshuo could finish, the door to the ward was opened. The cold-eyed nurse was staring at the two of them expressionlessly.

Yin Ren glanced at himself, who was exposed, and quickly laughed. “Uh, I can explain…”

Bang, bang.

This time, the two of them were thrown directly into the elevator.

“…Zhong Ge, now we can submit our work report.” Yin Ren casually pulled on his shirt and checked the time on his phone.

Zhong Chengshuo continued to struggle to get up, finally showing a trace of grievance on his face.

……

That night. Room 601, Building 4, Ping’an Manor, Zhong Chenghuo’s home.

“Night run?” Yin Ren was holding a large bucket of rum ice cream with a spoon in his mouth.

“Yes. I run at least three times a week.” Zhong Chengshuo replied while changing into his running shoes. “I’ll be home before eleven. My dad made braised knuckles with rock sugar, so I’ll bring some back when I return.”

“Thank uncle for me.” Yin Ren’s tone was extremely sincere.

“Do you want to go for a run together?”

“No.” Lord Ghost King climbed back to the sofa and continued hugging his ice cream bucket. “Leave me and let me gain weight alone.”

He was really too lazy to move but had to put on a show for it. In fact, even if Yin Ren ate all the people of Haigu, he wouldn’t even gain a single pound.

Zhong Chengshuo didn’t try to persuade him and went out by himself.

It was just that his night run deviated a little bit from the normal route.

More than an hour later, Zhong Chengshuo was standing in front of the warehouse again. He wiped his sweat and entered the basement. He rummaged through a box at the top of the shelf, picked up a glass tube carved with runes, and took out a case of sample protectant.

After finishing his preparations, he took out a small bag from his pocket.

The bag was similar to the glass tube and was also painted in dazzling runes. It wasn’t until Zhong Chengshuo opened the bag that the contents inside were revealed.

It was a handful of dark hair.

Zhong Chengshuo sealed them up, pulled out a pen, and quickly wrote a line on the label.

[Yin Ren (?), July 13, 20xx]

The broken hair lay quietly in the sample protectant, as black as the bottom of the abyss.

Zhong Chengshuo carefully examined it for a moment, then put it in the sample basket on a certain level of the shelf. Under the pale light, countless strange specimens floated and sank in glass tubes.

A trace of minced meat, a tooth, a piece of strange-colored skin… Roughly speaking, the contents weren’t the same.

However, at the moment he was about to leave, Zhong Chengshuo hesitated.

After a few seconds of stagnation, he turned back to the shelf and picked out the hair sample again.

He stared at it quietly.

After a long time, Zhong Chengshuo let out a soft sigh. He removed it from the computer desk and placed it in the most conspicuous position.

With a click, the lights went out.

Everything sank back into darkness.

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The author has something to say:

Nurse 1103, at this moment, surpassed Fu Xingchuan and became the strongest combat power in Haigu (×

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<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 30: Strange Disease

Yin Ren didn’t intend to report his findings. What a joke! He was just an innocent entry-level ghost master, and such a rookie wouldn’t be able to see such exciting information.

Before the smell of the Evil Spirit completely dissipated, Yin Ren deliberately placed the insect corpse on his phone.

His phone instantly became excited. “Woof woof woof!”

…It was no coincidence that the phone responded to him back then.

It was strange. He didn’t know how to feel after sleeping for a thousand years, and now there were Evil Spirits and detectors for them everywhere. Of the six sealed evil Evil Spirits plus Yin Ren himself, only seven had emerged in a thousand years. Could it be that an eighth would come soon?

Yin Ren decided to reserve his opinion.

Evil qi wasn’t easy to hide. As soon as he emerged from the seal, the metaphysical institutions within a radius of 800 miles were completely under martial law. This was the result of his deliberate suppression of power.

If a new Evil Spirit were born, it would be impossible for Shian to remain silent. There could be no other secrets in it.

Considering that it was time to get off work, Lord Ghost King didn’t want to think too much about it. He chewed on the milk tart as he knocked on Zhong Chengshuo’s bedroom door.

“What’s the matter?”

“Do you have scissors? I want to trim my hair,” Yin Ren said.

His hair really needed a touch-up. His bangs and sideburns were long, which was fine a thousand years ago, but now the rate of people turning heads to look at him was too high.

Yin Ren could theoretically shorten his hair on his own, but that would be a bit too suspicious. Taking a step back, Zhong Chengshuo was monitoring his spending. Not only that, if “parts” of an Evil Spirit were to land inside a barbershop, the owner and subsequent customers would suffer eight lifetimes of bad luck.

Thus, he could only do this himself.

As usual, Zhong Chengshuo didn’t let him down. “I have special scissors. I can help you cut your hair, but you have to wash it first.”

“You know how to cut hair?”

“I don’t like barber shops.” Zhong Chengshuo stood up and grabbed a small toolbox. When he opened it, there were a myriad of hair scissors, clippers, and an old-fashioned shear inside.

“Why don’t you like the barber shops?” When Yin Ren asked this, Zhong Chengshuo had already put on disposable gloves and tied a bib on Yin Ren.

“Haircuts are getting more expensive, and the hairdressers often talk a lot.” Zhong Chengshuo held a hand of Yin Ren’s long hair and said, “Do you want to cut it short? How short?”

“Not short. I just want to trim the front.”

Yin Ren liked his long hair dearly. They could ensure that even when he was lying on the sofa, the tips of his hair could reach food on the coffee table, which was quite convenient.

Zhong Chengshuo didn’t say anything else.

He adjusted his glasses and started to cut Yin Ren’s hair. The cold metal occasionally would touch Yin Ren’s face, giving a feeling of coolness that was covered by warm breath, which felt wonderful.

Yin Ren suddenly realized that this was the first time in his life that he had “cut his hair”.

At some point, Zhong Chengshuo replaced the scissors with a sharp razor. He drew the razor close to Yin Ren’s face in a smooth, clean motion. The blade scraped against the black hair, making a soft rustle. It seemed as if the razor came to life in his hands. The light of the blade was like a dense, cold rain, creating a faint chilling air that slid down the blade.

This kid is really good with knives. Yin Ren lowered his eyes.

The piece of metal brushed against Yin Ren’s long hair and lightly rubbed against his skin. Then it followed Yin Ren’s cheek all the way down to his neck. In the mirror stained with water mist, the contrast between metallic gray and pale skin was quite conspicuous.

Yin Ren didn’t seem to notice that he was staring calmly at the mirror as his body moved up and down to the rhythm of his breathing.

The delicate blade rubbed against his skin; the touch was cold and thin, like a light kiss. Finally, the sharp blade became like a steel butterfly and gently rested on Yin Ren’s neck.

That was the location closest to the artery.

In the mirror, Zhong Chengshuo’s face was hidden by the mist; only a pair of black eyes were extremely dazzling.

Both of them were motionless, and neither of them spoke.

Yin Ren narrowed his eyes. He didn’t have the slightest anxiety in his heart—even if this kid cut off his head on the spot, he could instantly grow three back. If things really came to that point, the one who would die wouldn’t be him.

More than being nervous, Yin Ren was more curious about the next development.

The small room was silent for more than twenty seconds.

“…Is it okay to have your sideburns in this position?” Zhong Chengshuo asked softly.

“Yes,” Yin Ren replied casually.

Zhong Chengshuo hummed and started to move his hand again. After a while, the razor was replaced by a hair dryer.

Yin Ren had to admit that Comrade Zhong Chengshuo’s skills were quite good. Though he still had long hair up to his waist, as long as it was tied up in a ponytail, the heterogeneous feeling of being out of time disappeared instantly. Now, with his bangs and sideburns cut just right, he looked light and sprightly.

“Done. Personally, I suggest you take a shower and wash away all the hair debris.” Zhong Chengshuo nodded and took off his disposable gloves. “I’ll clean the place. Remember to take out the trash tonight.”

“Nn.” Yin Ren tied up his long hair with satisfaction, ruffling through the freshly trimmed strands.

There was no need to take out the trash. The excess hair would decompose into evil spirits and be recycled by him. After all, the garbage men were innocent, and these hairs were still dangerous goods…

And much more.

Yin Ren picked up a pinch of wet, broken hair.

Perhaps because of the separation from his body, the evil qi in the broken hair was extremely weak, and the degree of vitality had also decreased.

Yin Ren was actively suppressing it at the moment. The evil qi in the broken hair hadn’t been exposed. This subtle difference in “freshness” could only be vaguely noticed by Yin Ren, the owner.

If Yin Ren didn’t control it, the evil qi in the broken hair would spread unscrupulously, contaminating everything it encountered.

For example, a small insect corpse.

Yin Ren let go of the hair causing it to fall back to the floor.

It seemed like it may be the birth of a new friend. He felt that there was something off with the smell on the insect corpse, and now it seemed that the evil qi wasn’t fresh and strong.

Most likely, the source wasn’t “original goods”.

Depending on the degree of change in the odor, the insect corpse could have come into contact with two kinds of things—either a small fragment of the Evil Spirit’s body or objects that were seriously contaminated by the Evil Spirit.

According to Shian’s information, there were six Evil Spirits still under seal. It was impossible for anyone to obtain fragments of their body, but if it was an object that was affected by an Evil Spirit, it could give off their smell… It was hard to say.

Unfortunately, after he became an Evil Spirit, he didn’t have time to smell his six predecessors, so he couldn’t tell which of them lost something in the garbage dump.

‘How unfortunate.’ Yin Ren couldn’t help but feel a bit sad.

What about the promise that a newcomer’s work was similar to <Approaching Science>? First the gap, now a part of an Evil Spirit. It was more like “Approaching Hell” instead.

……

Facts proved that the overtime the police put in was more intense than that of Shian. The next day, a lot of information appeared on Lu Xiaohe’s display.

“Officer Sun has made some progress. On the night of the crime, Wu Tao deliberately avoided all the cameras and stayed at the edge of their blind spots in the closed area.”

Lu Xiaohe had changed into a t-shirt with “Hair comes back after it’s gone” printed on it. Her tone was full of energy.

“Wu Tao recently got very close to a few gangsters on Wanxing Road. According to the investigation, they often move around the closed area, so most likely they are doing something shady.”

After all, except for a few small numbers of homeless people, no one lived in the closed area.

“The preliminary analysis of the trace inspection has come out. There are traces of a fight scene that were fresh, but it didn’t look intense, and they were not able to find biological samples of another person.”

Zhong Chengshuo: “Are there any new discoveries from forensics?”

“New discoveries? In order to figure out Wu Tao’s circumstances, forensics had to call in all their pathologists in the middle of the night. I have a few friends in that circle who were complaining about blood and tears, saying that their blood pressure will rise whenever they see minced meat now.”

 Zhong Chengshuo: “…” So that means there are no new clues.

“But Xiao Yin’s point yesterday was very good. I have made some metaphysical discoveries.”

Lu Xiaohe bent down and took out a large book from her backpack by the table.

The book looked older than everyone present combined. The pages were conspicuously yellow, as if they had been soaked in tea, and it was thick enough to be used as a murder weapon. The book cover was made of a dark yellow material, and on it was printed <The Book of Exorcism> by “Zhong Yi”.

Zhong Chengshuo: “This is?”

“A No. 1 must-read for senior cultivators.” Lu Xiaohe put the book on her lap and flipped through it. “For fear of missing details or miscommunication, there’s no vernacular book for this thing, so it’s not easy for me to check it.”

Zhong Chengshuo’s gaze stopped for a while on the word “Zhong Yi”.

“I have never heard of this author,” he said.

“I don’t know about other places, but the non-science posts in Shian call him the ‘Great Heavenly Master’. They say he’s a super fierce man who was able to seal six Evil Spirits alone. It’s said that many cultivators worship him at home, similar to merchants worshiping the god of wealth.”

Lu Xiaohe tapped on her keyboard, and an ancient painting filled the screen.

In the ancient painting, there was a black-faced man with big arms and a round waist. He was dressed in gold and jade battle armor, with a long beard, a fierce face, and muscles so swollen they were about to burst out. The painting portrayed him stepping on a headless ghost, holding a long-handled broadsword, as he glared angrily outside the painting.

Yin Ren exclaimed, “Wow.”

The glaring was so intense that it seemed as if his eyes were about to fall out.

“In the historical records, Zhong Yi hated evil with vengeance. He killed all the demons and ghosts in the world, leaving behind numerous records of evil beings for later generations. This person was loyal to the imperial court at the beginning and had the backing of the Huaji Division—you can regard them as the predecessor for Shian.”

Lu Xiaohe sighed.

Zhong Chengshuo: “Are we public* now?”

*Clarity: As in a part of the government that serves the public.

“Not exactly. The group has its own business. For example, a classmate of mine is engaged in technology in the department next door. They developed a new AR technology that’s selling pretty well this year. She’s also a neuroscientist and is a red seal here and has brought a lot of data on evil beings in the past.”

The same kind of neuroscientist, Ms. Lu, spoke full of admiration.

Zhong Chengshuo, Yin Ren: “……” It appears that using the experience of fighting ghosts to improve the realism of AR produced satisfactory results.

“Forget it. We’re getting off topic.” Lu Xiaohe patted the book. “Anyway, this book has been revised several times as many cultivators have added their own insights and experiences. You can think of it as an encyclopedia of the metaphysical world.”

She closed the imposing ancient painting and replaced it with a scanned page from the book filled with text.

The words in the article were extremely obscure. Being a top student, Zhong Chengshuo could handle it, but Yin Ren felt dizzy after reading it. God forbid, his literacy and reading skills were extremely limited, and he had never read any serious books before.

Lu Xiaohe thoughtfully translated it. “In the middle of the Gong Dynasty, Linzhou—now near Lincheng in Province V—had records of a rogue corpse servant. The person was a peasant woman who lived in the village. Her husband died young, leaving her with a blind sister and a son and daughter.”

“There was a drought in Linzhou in the past year. Seeing her situation, a kind neighbor came to deliver food, feeling pity for her young children, but discovered a faint smell coming from the house. When he went to check, he saw the woman eating at the same table with three mummified corpses.”

“The three corpses were shriveled and rotting, but they moved as flexibly as if they were living. Two of the corpses were children that clung to the woman silently, as if they were acting coquettishly. The woman looked as thin as a twig, but she left the food to the corpse children around her arms. The neighbor was so frightened that he dropped the bowl of food. When the woman noticed the guest, she hurriedly greeted him, but what she said was incomprehensible… Basically, the original text said ‘talking crazily in some ghost language that wasn’t human speech’.”

“What happened afterwards?” Yin Ren propped up his chin and listened with relish.

The version he heard was just “people went crazy”, and as far as how crazy, he didn’t know the details.

“Later, the people in the village were so scared that they beat the woman to death and burned all four bodies along with the house.”

Yin Ren: “…Isn’t that going a bit too far?”

“Who’s to say?” Lu Xiaohe shrugged. “Coupled with Qin Ge’s case, it’s very likely there has been a huge change around a rogue corpse servant, such as the death of a relative. This can be regarded as a direction for your investigation.”

“What about the dicing technique of the living?” Yin Ren was still brooding about this matter.

“No clue.” Lu Xiaohe laughed dryly.

“First, follow the clues we have. Today, you two don’t have to go out in the field. Let’s go dig through the deaths in Haigu in the past six months. I have divided it equally and sent it to your emails.”

Although he was mentally prepared for this kind of carpet investigation, Yin Ren became more shriveled as more time passed on his investigation. He wasn’t allowed to eat in the office area, which made him agitated that he had to maintain this human form.

“What a long table.” Yin Ren dragged his mouse painfully as he titled his head to lie on the table.

When his seal broke, he had imagined many possible opponents but didn’t think there would be one named “Excel“. He and Zhong Chengshuo sat for most of the day but didn’t even go through half the list. They saw all kinds of modern diseases and methods of death.

After lunch, even the tender lamb and fatty roasted goat failed to dispel the numbness in Yin Ren’s eyes.

Was this the legendary “easy civilian job”? Fortunately, he didn’t insist on choosing the civilian job. Yin Ren even thanked the stars that he managed to narrowly avoid a catastrophe.

Time passed, and with each minute, Lord Ghost King felt an imminent collapse. Just when Yin Ren was about to slide under the table, Zhong Chengshuo spoke up, seemingly unable to ignore his state any longer.

“Don’t bend your waist. Be careful that you might slip a disc and get a hernia.”

Despite it being almost the end of the day, Zhong Chengshuo’s sitting posture remained the same.

Yin Ren ignored him and wilted his head. “Just in time. Let me ask, I can understand drunk driving, but what’s drug driving? Can people still drive after eating poison*?”

*Clarity: The term used here is drug/poison (毒). This is why Yin Ren is confused, as the modern usage refers to something much different than in the past.

There were too many strange diseases and terms, and Yin Ren was too lazy to look them up one by one. He gave up the manual search and instead used his partner as a voice-activated search engine instead. Anyway, their mouths were idle, and Zhong Chengshuo didn’t mind answering his questions.

Unfortunately, Lord Ghost King had to wait for his answer as Zhong Chengshuo’s cellphone rang.

“Hello, Uncle Sun? ……I see. Let’s go now.”

Yin Ren groaned. “Spare me. There’s only half an hour left before work—”

“Emergency field work.”

“What kind of work?” Lu Xiaohe and Yin Ren asked at the same time, the former’s tone being curious while the latter’s was lifeless.

“Uncle Sun is trying to track down the few gangsters who are familiar with Wu Tao. So far, they’ve managed to track them to the closed area, but there’s something wrong with the police dogs—they seem to all go on collective strike and are unwilling to approach the closed area.”

Zhong Chengshuo adjusted his glasses and straightened the folds on his clothes.

“The detectors have also failed and can’t be used properly. If they were to solely rely on manual investigation, the workload would be too large. Uncle Sun hopes that Shian can provide technical support.”

Yin Ren: “…What’s the hurry? You’re a science post. It’s not like you can help much even if you go.”

“I’m your partner, and I must act with you. Aren’t you going to go?” Zhong Chengshuo said it with surprise.

Yin Ren: “……”

Yin Ren’s facial expression twisted. “I’ll go.”

While muttering, he quietly opened Coffin Nails: [@Hu Tao, Is there anything delicious near Wanxing Road? Urgently need 😫]

He even ding* her mercilessly.

*Basically, a reminder notification you send.

……

Fortunately, things weren’t as troublesome as Yin Ren had imagined.

Shian was experienced in dealing with such matters and had a complete set of existing plans. The group’s work roles were quickly assigned to everyone.

Yin Ren could detect the path of the evil qi, Zhong Chengshuo was frighteningly good with directions, and Lu Xiaohe’s drone had a strong anti-interference function. One checked for evil qi, one created a route, and the last scanned the premises. It could be that they didn’t want to work overtime, so all three of them cooperated very smoothly.

In less than two hours, the group found the gangsters.

Compared to the middle-aged and elderly homeless people who were usually alone, the four young men stood out conspicuously in the scan results.

The lookout had dyed orange hair, pimples on his face, and metal piercings on his ears, nose, and lip. He looked around with bloodshot eyes and an air of unruliness.

Looking at Officer Sun’s complicated expression, this was probably someone who regarded the detention center as his main home.

However, this time, seeing Sun Qinghui’s police badge, he didn’t show any resistance. As if meeting an old friend from thousands of miles away, Orange Head’s nose turned red, and tears gushed down his face.

“Comrade Policemen!!!”

Orange Head scrambled over and knelt down, clinging to Sun Qinghui’s legs, refusing to let go.

“Help, comrade policemen—!”

Seeing the gangster cooperate so enthusiastically for the first time, several police officers looked at each other in puzzlement.

“We’ve been trapped here for two days!” Orange Head was sobbing, with tears and snot flowing everywhere. “Our phones have no signal! I can’t walk out. No matter where I go in this shitty place, it’s like ghosts hitting the wall*. Wuwuwu… Peng Ge also has a strange illness. He’s so sick that it’s fucking scary. Wahhhhhhh—”

*(鬼打墙) Idiom referring to one’s self-perception getting blurred, so you don’t know where you’re going and end up walking in circles. When you tell someone about this experience, it’s difficult for them to understand, so it ends up being “ghost hitting the wall” (as in, a ghost is supposed to pass through a wall, but somehow ends up hitting it instead).

Sun Qinghui: “…You, get up first. Don’t panic and speak properly.”

Officer Sun took out the thermos cup he was carrying and poured a cup of tea for Orange Head. Orange Head was obviously thirsty. He swallowed the tea in three gulps and even licked the bottom of Sun Qinghui’s cup lid.

Sun Qinghui sighed and handed over the rest of the thermos. “Drink.”

“I, ahem, I was outside looking to see if there was anyone around, hoping to find someone to ask for help.” After he drank the entire thermos, Orange Head finally had the strength to speak. “There are three brothers inside, one of whom is very sick… Let me tell you, it’s really scary, but we dare not send Peng Ge out for fear that he will die, so we’ve been staying here…”

He spoke incoherently, and his eyes were full of fear.

Sun Qinghui frowned and turned to two young policemen. “Xiao Ai, Xiao Zhang, you two contact 120. The rest of you follow me. Young man, lead the way.”

Orange Head frantically nodded. He wiped the tears and snot from his face, shivered, then looked around for a while before he suddenly jumped.

“Can’t you guys see him?” He pointed to Yin Ren and screamed, “There someone there! That one! ……No, that long-haired enchantress*!”

*(妖精) Depending on context, it can be translated in different ways, but the overall meaning is a gorgeous supernatural being that’s very alluring.

Sun Qinghui: “……”

Sun Qinghui: “…Don’t be nervous. We can see him. He’s a third-party appraiser comrade who cooperates with us.”

It seemed that Orange Head’s spirit was on the verge of collapse. His eyes darted wildly as he kept nervously looking at Yin Ren from time to time. Yin Ren snorted and adjusted his work ID in the most conspicuous position.

After making sure that the people around him could indeed interact with Yin Ren, Orange Head was finally willing to lead the way.

These gangsters had found an empty factory building and established it as their base.

The factory building was spacious. The ground was full of ruins mixed in with crushed beer cans and to-go containers, which attracted dozens of flies that were buzzing around. The walls were painted with unsightly graffiti, and there were spray cans piled up in the corners.

The other two gangsters hid among the paint cans, where they nearly buried themselves in them. Even seeing that someone was coming in, the two didn’t dare to come out and just continued to stare in a certain direction…

It was near a window.

Below the window, a few camping mattresses were laid out in a mess. The mattresses were covered with suspicious stains, and there were a few dirty condoms lying around.

In the center of the pile of mattresses, a young man was lying upright.

The man was quiet. He faced the window with his back to the group, as if he were admiring the sunlight. Sun Qinghui shouted “hey” a few times, but the man remained motionless.

“Don’t go over there.” Seeing Officer Sun about to step forward, Orange Head hurriedly grabbed him. “Don’t. Don’t go over. There’s something seriously wrong with Peng Ge. None of us dared approach him… You, be careful!”

Zhong Chengshuo decisively gestured to Officer Sun. Before he could speak, Zhong Chengshuo had already taken the lead and stepped forward.

At first, the person lying down didn’t react at all, but when Zhong Chengshuo stepped within two meters of the man, the man’s body shook and he suddenly sat up, like a zombie.

He turned his head and looked at Zhong Chengshuo.

When Yin Ren saw the young man’s face clearly, he felt dizzy for a moment. It’s over. It’s impossible to get off work on time today.

The young man’s eyebrows, nose, and mouth were all “printed” on his face.

They were fine and vivid, but they lacked bumps, as if they were all on the same plane, like a ball wrapped around a poster of a human’s face. When the man blinked, Yin Ren saw the changes in the line without any undulation in his eyelids, giving him a sense of incongruity like a valley of terror.

Yin Ren felt that this feeling was a bit familiar. Thousands of years ago, craftsmen made puppets for children. Their facial features were carefully painted on the wooden balls used for their heads, which bore an uncanny resemblance to what he was seeing now.

“Haha…”

“Peng Ge” turned to Zhong Chengshuo stiffly and took the initiative to speak. His voice was hoarse, and there was almost a desperate cry in his laugh.

Zhong Chengshuo subconsciously became vigilant and lowered his center of gravity. “What?”

“…Haha, bitch. You’re here now but want to go back?”

Peng Ge’s eyes were bloodshot as he moved forward, crying and laughing.

“Haha, bitch. You’re here now but want to go back?”

“Haha, bitch. You’re here now but want to go back?”

“…You’re here now but want to go back?”

---

The author has something to say:

Xiao Zhong: ? I’m getting scolded again.

Xiao Yin: Damn it, I have to work overtime again.

---

Kinky Thoughts:

Wait until Yin Ren finds out about “PowerPoint”.

---

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

---

Chapter 29: Strange Smell

“Except for the skull, Wu Tao’s muscles, bones, and internal organs were precisely divided into cubes with a side length of 1 mm.”

Lu Xiaohe pointed at three pictures and arranged them in order.

“This is the segmented bones, muscle, and fat. The muscle and fat are deformed because of corruption, so it took a lot of effort from forensics to discover this pattern. The bones are more obvious—look, the grains are clearly separated.”

The cubes in the picture had a smooth cross-section and an extremely standard shape. They were closer to some kind of industrial product than human bones.

Yin Ren thought about it for a while and didn’t think any kind of evil creature would have such a strange hobby. He tugged on Zhong Chengshuo and said, “Can technology nowadays do this?”

“If the human body is frozen and finely cut under certain conditions, theoretically it can be done.”

Modern humans are so terrible. Yin Ren couldn’t help but click his tongue.

Lu Xiaohe said approvingly, “Indeed, but Wu Tao’s body didn’t have any traces of being frozen, and there was no such condition at the crime scene.”

“To carry out such a crime, this wasn’t something done through improvisation… Lu Xiao… Lu Jie, can we look at Wu Tao’s social relations?”

Like Sun Qinghui said, regardless of the technique, as long as the murderer was a living person, then their motives for killing weren’t that much different than those of an ordinary murderer.

It was very likely the murderer had contact with Wu Tao in some way.

“You’re a bit late there. The police are also having a headache with that.”

Lu Xiaohe slightly frowned. “It’s common for Wu Tao to owe money and not pay it back, and extortion is pretty common. He has hundreds of enemies in terms of money, and he’s also indispensable in gangster fights around Haigu. This guy has committed a lot of bad crimes and offended many people.”

“What’s more disgusting is that this bastard often harasses little girls. He only picks out girls who go into the city for work. He would get drunk first and insult them, then coerce or try to seduce them, then pretend to date them for a few days, and finally kick them to the curb with some bullshit excuse.”

Yin Ren: “Why isn’t he locked up?”

“This man is a frequent visitor to the detention center, so he’s quite smart. He only targets girls who are timid and don’t know how to preserve evidence. The simple ones are deceived by his slick tongue, and they just thought things didn’t work out. The smart ones know something’s up, but they are afraid of retaliation from Wu Tao’s gang, so they don’t dare say anything—since no one reported a crime and there’s no evidence, it’s difficult for the police to catch him.”

As she spoke about the deceased, Lu Xiaohe didn’t have the slightest trace of sympathy.

“Officer Sun has been handling the case steadily. They should now be investigating nearby surveillance records and looking at Wu Tao’s related contacts.” Zhong Chengshuo thought for a bit. “We can put our energy into other areas first.”

After Zhong Chengshuo finished speaking, the two science posts looked at Yin Ren simultaneously.

Yin Ren: “?”

Lu Xiaohe: “I don’t understand the metaphysics angle, so I invite Master Yin to speak.”

Zhong Chengshuo: “Yin Ren, you’re the one who discovered the insect corpses. Do you have any other thoughts?”

Yin Ren was about to pull out his phone and search for human freezing when he retracted his hand resentfully and gathered his hair. “A corpse servant.”

“…What?”

“I don’t know anything about cutting living people into cubes, but a corpse servant can indeed manipulate insect corpses. When I entered the physical examination, there were three insect corpses as one of the props during the Three Divisions of Heaven test.”

Lu Xiaohe slid her chair in front of a computer and typed in a few strings of text. The screens on the wall were instantly covered with results.

“There’s only one lineage of corpse servants left. Central South Qin’s family. There are a total of 79 registered corpse servants in Shian, of which there are only 4 in the Haigu branch. They are all from the Qin family. Wait a minute…”

Lu Xiaohe pulled out a list of employees and quickly locked on one of them.

The call bell rang, and within ten seconds, a middle-aged man with a crying face appeared on the screen. “Lu Xiaohe?”

“Hello Qin Ge. There’s something we need your consultation on. Is it convenient for you to talk right now?”

A few strange sounds of unknown origin came from behind the middle-aged man, which were followed by a burst of black blood that splashed on his cheek. Qin Ge turned his head to look, causing the camera to shake violently. “Wait a minute. Ah, I’ll find a place to hide first… Now, this is good. What’s up?”

“We have a case in hand that may involve corpses.”

“Kid, you know the situation of the Qin family. There are not many corpse servants left, and most of them have joined Shian.” Qin Ge was speaking hurriedly, so his accent leaked. “I’m working every day. How could I go out and cause trouble?”

“Is it possible that it could be a rogue corpse servant?”

Qin Ge: “Not possible. It’s not enough for a corpse servant to have talent. Someone has to teach them. Our family is the only one in China, and we haven’t accepted any foreign apprentices for many years—haa, we can’t even convince our own family members.”

Yin Ren said curiously, “Isn’t the corpse servant quite powerful? Why can you not retain them?”

Thousands of years ago, there were dozens of families who focused on necromancy. The types of corpses raised were divided into men, women, old, and young. All kinds of corpse raising techniques were used with flying colors. Given such a scene, after thousands of years, how was it that there weren’t even over 100 people in this business?

The family tradition was dying, but Qin Ge didn’t seem regretful at all. “Blame that on cremation. There are also laws against vandalizing corpses. More than half the techniques handed down by our ancestors can’t be used nowadays.”

“And there are some techniques in my family… Well, they are quite common. Half of the younger generation went to orthopedics, and the other half became physical therapists. The one third of us that are left aren’t book smart and are forced to inherit the family business.” Qin Ge cracked his knuckles, showing a look of longing.

Zhong Chengshuo: “…” So that’s why you can’t study well.

Lu Xiaohe: “Thank you, Qin Ge. I see. Then I’ll let you go first—”

“Hey, wait. I suddenly remembered something. It seems there have been rogue corpse servants before.”

Qin Ge patted his head.

“I heard this from my grandmother, who heard this from her second master. Nearly a hundred years ago, there was a foreigner who became a corpse servant in the Qin family’s territory.”

“That person didn’t listen to people, nor did he speak human language. No one knew where he came from, but he just walks around hand in hand with carrion corpses every day, shitting and pissing his pants. My grandmother’s second master said that the man was a complete lunatic and soon died of illness.”

Yin Ren got distracted and started playing with the tip of his hair.

Thousands of years ago, he had only heard of a case of a “self-taught” corpse servant. Coincidentally, a lunatic was also involved in that case.

Beside him, Zhong Chengshuo was taking serious notes.

“If it’s really a crime committed by a rogue corpse servant, the murderer may be mentally unstable and very capable, given how he could create such a murder scene in that short amount of time…” Zhong Chengshuo pursed his lips. “But what is the meaning of that murder scene?”

“I have some ideas—I’ll go to the library to get something. You two can rest for a bit.” Lu Xiaohe stood up and walked to the door.

Only then did the two of them realize that Lu Xiaohe’s right leg was a bit lame.

Her sneakers had been specially modified, and the soles on both sides weren’t quite symmetrical. She walked with slightly smaller steps, slower than normal, and her body would subconsciously lean left.

However, Lu Xiaohe walked briskly with her head held high, and soon her figure disappeared from their vision.

Zhong Chengshuo lowered his head and was just about to continue organizing his notes when a fist suddenly stretched out in front of him, causing him to lean back. “What’s the matter?”

“Didn’t you fix my phone for me last night? Here’s my promised return gift.” Yin Ren opened his palm to reveal a keychain.

The keychain had a cream-colored hamster hanging on it, with its two small paws holding a red banner that read “Wealth and Prosperity”. The overall craftsmanship of the keychain was rough, but it wasn’t too bad—in fact, it gave it a rustic and cute look.

Yin Ren kept the “Blessing and Luck” keychain for himself and had already hung it on his cellphone. Lord Ghost King wasn’t too fond of money and firmly believed he needed more luck.

“For me?” Zhong Chengshuo asked as he took the keychain with both hands. His expression showed a bit of surprise.

Yin Ren: “Yes. I treated it with a method I learned at Shian. It can ward off evil spirits. You don’t like it? You can switch models if you don’t.”

Zhong Chengshuo rubbed the plastic keychain for a while, then carefully hung it on his cellphone. Yin Ren thought this person would say something like “a science post doesn’t need it” but who thought Zhong Chengshuo was being extraordinarily cooperative at this time?

The rhetoric that Yin Ren had prepared for so long became useless.

“So you like this kind of thing too.” Yin Ren felt very satisfied with his vision. “Look, it’s quite suitable, no?”

“No one has ever given me a gift like this before.”

Yin Ren: “……”

Yin Ren: “No way.” How could Comrade Zhong Chengshuo be this friendless?

“My parents will give me birthday gifts,” Zhong Chengshuo kept observing the dangling keychain on his phone, “but that’s different.”

“You never got anything from your friends?”

Zhong Chengshuo stated frankly, “From kindergarten to graduate school, I didn’t have particularly close friends. Some suitors would give me gifts, but they were conditional, so I didn’t accept them.”

“No, when you were studying…”

“I have never broken any rules and have been studying hard,” Zhong Chengshuo said confidently.

In kindergarten, while countless children fought for building blocks and toys, he was reading books; in elementary school, while primary students were playing games and collecting cards, he was reading books; from junior high to high school, while boys’ and girls’ feelings started to bud and they began to engage in ambiguity, he continued to seize all his time and read books.

This behavior continued until his graduate student days, when Zhong Chengshuo was promoted to the number 1 book king of University A. Originally, his handsome face earned him a lot of points, but they were all deducted by his behavior of “eating two steam buns for all his meals and spending all his time in the library”.

But wasn’t the focus of school to “study”? Besides, he wasn’t interested in having fun. Zhong Chengshuo felt he hadn’t done anything wrong. Naturally, it wasn’t like he was a complete loner, but for various reasons, most of his “friends” maintained a general acquaintance status.

Under this situation, he only received group messages from them every New Year’s holiday.

“Maybe I have a bad personality.” Zhong Chengshuo concluded.

“Really?” Yin Ren was puzzled. “I think you’re a very nice person.”

In terms of ordinary people, this guy was indeed a bit out of touch, but “out of touch” didn’t equate to being “bad”.

Lord Ghost King reminisced about his former neighbors—they were either focused on making all kinds of racket and causing all kinds of disasters, or they were busy killing the weak, or finding opponents to fight. Of course, those that rushed up to Yin Ren to pick a fight were turned into ingredients for his breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Zhong Chengshuo knew when to get to bed on time, knew how to respect life, didn’t steal his food, and even took the initiative to fix his phone.

How could this comrade of his say that he has a bad personality?!

“As long as you learn to get along with people, you’ll be very popular,” Yin Ren said seriously.

“But I don’t need to be popular.” Zhong Chengshuo touched his keychain again. “And I get along fine with you.”

Silly boy. That’s because I’m not human. Yin Ren sighed in his heart—he had lived sober for nearly four hundred years. If he couldn’t fool a youngling, then he would really live to a dog’s age*.

*(年纪都活到狗身上) Saying referring to living a life in vain.

“In short, the first step is to get along with people. Don’t worry.” Lord Ghost King continued to speak solemnly.

……

The top floor of the Shian Building.

The Evil Spirit pursuit came to an end. Fu Xingchuan’s face finally had more color in it. He was lying on the sofa of the office with a magazine titled “World Tourist Attractions” smothered against his face.

“What do you think?”

It wasn’t Professor Li that was in the office, but Xiang Jiang, whom he was addressing.

Xiang Jiang was still dressed haphazardly like a hobo. He sat expressionlessly in the reception chair with his head lowered as he fidgeted with his cup of coffee.

Fu Xingchuan sighed.

“…If he really has amnesia.”

Xiang Jiang: “If you want to ask me for a second confirmation, I have only one conclusion. There’s no sign of Yin Ren being possessed by a ghost.”

“Right, I didn’t notice anything either,” Fu Xingchuan murmured. “Except for amnesia, this person’s situation is too strange—there’s no record of this person in the face authentication database, and there is no missing person report that matches him. We even specifically asked the big guys to analyze him, and they found no signs of plastic surgery.”

“Yin Ren is good at communication, so he must have been in contact with society. With his appearance, it’s impossible not to have any splashes on the internet, but so far, we have found no videos, photos, or comments about him online.”

“So he should have been exposed to society in his early years and failed to show up for various reasons during his growth period. There are no signs of abuse on his body besides his skin being excessively pale. Not to mention illegal confinement; he could have been imprisoned somewhere for a long time… Regarding this matter though, most people related to the metaphysics would intervene.”

“Metaphysicians imprisonment… Raising human sacrifices? Making corpse puppets? Soul shifting?” Xiang Jiang finally raised his head and moved his face slightly.

“I’m not sure. There are too few existing clues, but he had that dagger. If such a thing could be picked up so easily, our archeologist would be rushing up and beating me silly with it.”

“You can check Sunken Society.”

“Already doing it. Yin Ren is a nominal ghost master. As his senior, your contact with him is indispensable, so help me keep an eye on him. Hao Wenzhe is also watching—Yin Ren GPS position, keyword search records, internal group activities, and data browsing are all being kept under close watch.”

“Nn.”

“You two can discuss it. Issue a comprehensive report every week and hand it directly to me.”

“How long do we have to keep watching?”

“Good question.” Fu Xingchuan lifted the magazine on his face and scratched his unshaven chin. “Keep an eye on him until you are sure who he is.”

Xiang Jiang hummed back with a lack of interest again. “Is there any progress on Hao Wenzhe’s side?”

“One feedback has been collected so far.” Fu Xingchuan slowly put the magazine back on his face.

“What?”

“After Yin Ren joined Shian, the meat consumption in the cafeteria has increased by 2%. The cafeteria also asked the logistics department yesterday if they had any clues as to why.”

Xiang Jiang: “……”

Given that they went in for their shift in the afternoon, work ended in a blink of an eye.

The culprit of the “cafeteria meat evaporation incident” had just finished his meal. Yin Ren was still reveling in the aftertaste of the fatty, honey-flavored char siu pork when his cellphone suddenly “barked” weakly.

How did this happen? This thing had learned reluctance as it only responded with dull “barks” for its ringtone.

[Hu Tao: Boss, are you off work?]

[Hu Tao: Shian is on Jiangxue Road. I remember there’s a Master Bao nearby. Bring me some seaweed and meat floss cake and a milk tart.]

[Hu Tao: @Yin Ren 👀*]

*Secretly watching emoji

Yin Ren: “……”

Why did he have the feeling that the GPS in this app is a bit off? Traditionally, ghost masters communicated with their ghosts in one direction by burning talismans, and even then they rarely did that. Was this the price he had to pay for a paperless office?

[Hu Tao: I’m also your first employee, so you need to provide me with some company benefits. Come on, ghost master. I know you’ve read my messages.]

[Hu Tao: I’m a local, so I know where all the delicious food is. Want my recs? Sister will tell~]

[Yin Ren: I’ve written it down. I’ll buy it later.]

[Hu Tao: 🙏]

“You can go back first. I’m stopping by to get some snacks,” Yin Ren said thoughtfully as he thought about Zhong Chengshuo’s unshakable schedule. “I’ll take the subway. I remember where our home is.”

Zhong Chengshuo: “I’ll join you.”

“Although you have to be present when I spend money, there’s no need to be so strict. I ordered takeout a few times, so I’m familiar with the prices now.”

Yin Ren was confident in his adaptability to society. He had become stronger. At least he wouldn’t be taken for a ride by merchants’ various tricks.

Zhong Chengshuo: “I want to go with you.”

“…To improve your communication skill?”

“Nn, it at least meets the demand of the job.”

Although the motivation was Zhong Chengshuo’s personally, Yin Ren didn’t care. Instead of going straight to the subway station, they walked slowly around two intersections looking for the Master Bao.

The city was full of traffic at this time. An endless stream of people came and went, filling up both sides of the streets. Neon lights flickered among noisy slogans and music playing from loudspeakers. Zhong Chengshuo began to hold Yin Ren’s wrist after he almost got off track due to fried chestnuts.

Yin Ren: “…” Although he didn’t care, the eyes of passersby looking at them felt a bit weird.

It seemed that a thousand years later, people were still not as open. Yin Ren shook his head spiritually and sighed.

“I saw the Master Bao.” Zhong Chengshuo decisively ignored the passersby. His goal was single-minded.

There were a lot of people lined up in front of the shop. The shop exuded a very nice baking aroma. Yin Ren took a deep breath and sucked up all the sweet fragrance. He decided he’d have a few servings of everything. Zhong Chengshuo stood quietly behind him, seemingly unmoved.

Even though the mask covered most of his face, Yin Ren’s long hair and sharp eyebrows were still eye-catching. When it was his turn to buy, the uncles and aunties next to him became enthusiastic. They started chatting and recommending the popular stuff on Twitter. The clerk was happy to see that Yin Ren didn’t refuse any of their recommendations.

After paying, Yin Ren was holding paper bags in both hands, while Zhong Chengshuo shared one side.

Yin Ren took the opportunity to take out an egg tart and gestured to Zhong Chengshuo. “Everyone said it’s best when it’s freshly baked. Try it while it’s still hot?”

A flash of hesitation appeared on Zhong Chengshuo’s face. “It’s not very healthy.”

“Even if it’s poisonous, it depends on the dose eaten.” Yin Ren’s smile didn’t fade. “And the first bite is the most delicious, greatest fun, and least expensive—a good mood is equally important as health. Here.”

Zhong Chengshuo didn’t resist anymore. He lowered his head, leaned slightly, and took a bite of the warm egg tart.

Crunch.

The meringue of the egg tart was crisp and crunchy, the egg filling was silky and slightly sweet, and an explosion of burnt fragrance filled his mouth. The sweet aroma penetrated deep into his tastebuds, as if it were caressing the velvet of his mind. Zhong Chengshuo wiped the corners of his mouth and said, “It’s very delicious.”

“Shee?” Yin Ren directly stuffed the rest of the remaining egg tart into his mouth, making his voice muffled. “Ish yur mood butter nao?”

“Nn.” Zhong Chengshuo nodded firmly. “What benefit does this have for learning how to communicate…?”

Yin Ren glanced at him and put his mask back on. “It’s a great thing to be happy in life, so there’s no need for any deeper meaning. Well, it’s hard to… There are some things you have to experience before you can better understand, ahem, other people’s thoughts.”

Zhong Chengshuo paused. “Speaking from experience?”

“Guess?” Yin Ren curved his eyes.

“…When we go back, let’s buy some fried chestnuts.”

“You catch on quick.”

“I’ll eat one, and the rest will be considered the tuition fee.” After all, it was Yin Ren who really wanted to eat them.

“As expected from an outstanding student certified by Shian. Zhong…”

Yin Ren’s expression suddenly froze. His empty hand moved without a trace, instantly pinching a small black dot into his palm.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. Just a bug.”

A dead fruit fly was lying in the palm of his hand. Its insect body was shriveled, indicating that it had died some time ago. The corpse had just been flying around them for a while. When it saw the two of them focusing on their conversation, it crept closer and tried to get into Yin Ren’s bag.

The insect corpse had a very light evil qi on it. The person who controlled it was on an abysmal level. Undoubtedly, this was a novice.

The problem was elsewhere…

There was an indescribable smell to that evil qi. From the moment Yin Ren caught the bug, the smell began to quickly dissipate. It was a scent that Yin Ren had never been exposed to before. It made his chest throb, and his hair slightly stood up.

Absolutely unfamiliar, yet all too familiar.

As an inexperienced newborn Evil Spirit, it took Yin Ren a while to determine the source of the subtle feeling.

The smell was extremely weak but decadent, like an ember of a fire buried in the deepest part of the ashes, which could be extinguished at any time.

But there was no doubt that it came from his kind.

…On that insect corpse, there was a faint “smell” of another Evil Spirit.

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The author has something to say:

Qin Ge: 1/2 plus 1/2 plus 1/3 equals 1. Is there any problem?*

*Clarity: For those who missed the joke, this is why he’s a corpse servant instead of being in a medical profession like the others… though I don’t think math is really required for it…

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Kinky Thoughts:

Apparently, the place Hu Tao sent Yin Ren to is called 包师傅. It’s a pastry and dim sum shop.

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<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 28: Autopsy Results

Since it was so late, the two had to take a taxi to the crime scene.

Zhong Chengshuo had cleaned up neatly, but his entire being was lingering with the breath like he was about to die. Yin Ren couldn’t bear looking at him like this, so he held a dark brown object under Zhong Chengshuo’s nose.

“What’s this?”

“Devil’s spicy duck wings. I just bought them tonight.” Yin Ren reluctantly parted ways with some of his food. “I haven’t touched it. Have some so you can refresh yourself.”

He didn’t know if it was due to drowsiness or determination, but Zhong Chengshuo actually grabbed the duck wing and took a bite, which was then followed by a shiver.

As usual, his spirit was the same, and even his eyes became completely dead.

Until they got out of the car, Zhong Chengshuo was inhaling frantically. The culprit behind this expressed regret as he ate up the remaining spicy braised vegetables.

When they approached the scene, the two of them put on unilateral headphones assigned by Shian. After a while, Lu Xiaohe’s voice came through.

“I see you two have almost arrived at the scene. Go another 900 meters and turn right. I have to check in with the police. You can head directly to the crime scene.”

“We have just been promoted to the C-level investigation team? Are we even allowed to take on criminal cases?”

“No, this case isn’t strange at the moment,” Lu Xiaohe said in a cheerful tone, then proceeded to speak in rapid fire. “If the matter was more serious, Shian would assign a more advanced investigation team to intervene. Aren’t you two experienced in this aspect, you two cat catchers.”

It seemed that the company-wide criticism still had its aftereffects. Now they were even given inexplicable titles.

“By the way, the evil qi index near you two is normal. All living beings are recognized. There’s no need for special attention for the time being.”

Yin Ren was surprised. “How do you know?”

Wasn’t Lu Xiaohe a science post? Could it be that she possessed the long-lost ability of clairvoyance?

“Haha, I’m above you.”

Yin Ren immediately raised his head, catching sight of a bat-sized drone hovering in the air. It flew smoothly and quietly, making it difficult to notice.

“Have I not introduced myself yet? Lu Xiaohe, Ph.D. in neuroscience from University A. I’ve been in Shian for two years… Hey, pay attention. You’re about to arrive at the crime scene,” the female voice said cheerfully.

Zhong Chengshuo: “Nice…”

“I’ll hang up first. We’ll talk later.” With a beep, the call was disconnected.

“…to meet you, sister,” Zhong Chengshuo finished dryly.

Yin Ren patted Zhong Chengshuo sympathetically.

Several police cars were parked at the scene of the crime. A cordon was already drawn at the scene. A man wearing an old black leather jacket that looked to be in his forties walked over. He had a solid build, a square face, and a lot of white hair sprinkled on his cropped head.

Seeing the two approaching, he took out his ID from under his arms with a flat face, but when he saw Zhong Chengshuo, the man immediately became happy.

“Hey, what a coincidence. Xiao Zhong, aren’t you working in research? Why are you here?”

Zhong Chengshuo was taken aback, then said, “Uncle Sun.”

Yin Ren took the lead, stepped forward, and stretched out his hand. “Hello, Uncle Sun, I’m Zhong Ge’s colleague.”

When Uncle Sun saw Yin Ren, his smile dimmed imperceptibly for a moment, then he stepped forward enthusiastically and shook Yin Ren’s hand. “I’m Sun Qinghui. Don’t call me uncle. Just call me Lao* Sun.”

*Generally used to address people older than you to show closeness/respect.

Sure enough, he was a policeman, and a pretty good veteran at that. Yin Ren retracted his hand and made this judgment silently.

Naturally, those who fought on the battlefield and upheld justice carried a fierce aura of righteousness. The more energetic these people were, the stronger their momentum. Thousands of years ago, the fierce soldiers on the battlefield could break evil qi and kill ghosts based on this principle.

Evil beings were usually reluctant to touch these kinds of people. On the other hand, in order to prove his “innocence”, he must step up his efforts to foster a good relationship.

So, Lord Ghost King smiled even more brightly. “My name is Yin Ren. Zhong Ge and I are here to help. Please give us your guidance.”

“Ah, so you’re the ones Xiao Lu mentioned.” Sun Qinghui guided them around the cordon. “Who would have thought it would be you guys. Xiao Zhong didn’t mention anything. Xiao Yin, is this your first time seeing such a scene? Are you scared?”

Yin Ren, who had been lying on a pile of bones for more than a thousand years, said, “A bit.”

Sun Qinghui smiled heartily and patted Yin Ren on the back. “It’s okay. If you need to vomit, just go ahead. You’ll eventually get used to it.”

“Uncle Sun, have you worked with Shian before?” Zhong Chengshuo asked solemnly as he followed them.

“For so long that I’ve lost count of how many years.” Sun Qinghui turned his head. “What, Boss Cheng and them didn’t tell you?”

Zhong Chengshuo: “No, I just… I thought you didn’t believe in strange forces.”

“Believe it or not, isn’t Shian just engaged in high-tech stuff? Maybe there are reasons behind it.”

Sun Qinghui waved to the forensic staff at the scene and led the two into an alley.

“Whether a person is stabbed to death by a knife, killed by a gun, or dies strangely, they are all killing methods. The important thing is that a murderer killed someone—and if there’s a murderer, we must catch them. It’s normal to find a third party to cooperate. It’s not a big deal.”

Zhong Chengshuo respectfully nodded.

Yin Ren was enlightened. In the eyes of this veteran detective, “anomalies” were just a classification of clues on the scene. Since that wasn’t something easy for the police to investigate, they outsourced the relevant work to Shian.

However, Zhong Chengshuo’s attitude was a bit strange.

This person usually wasn’t good at getting along with people. Despite his gentle look, he was quite abrasive when handling things. Seeing that Sun Qinghui was around, the atmosphere around Zhong Chengshuo seemed to have softened a bit.

“Here.”

Sun Qinghui stopped at the corner of the alley.

The crime scene was on the edge of the old city. The nearby buildings were old and dilapidated. The city hadn’t had time to tear them down and build new ones. The area was sealed off, and there were no residents living there. At most, they would have a few homeless people who would sneak in for a day or two.

There wasn’t much surveillance around, and this alley happened to be in a blind spot.

“The case was reported at 1:25 a.m. The informant is from the Urban Planning Committee, an intern.”

Sun Qinghui sighed.

“According to regulations, you have to enter this kind of place during the day and be accompanied by Party A and a government personnel. The intern lost his phone here, so he secretly came here alone since he was too scared to trouble Party A.”

As a result, the unlucky kid found his phone but also gained some major mental trauma. The person who reported the crime wasn’t at the scene. It was said he was taken away for emergency psychological intervention.

The three of them stopped near the body and were completely speechless for a while.

At the end of the alley stood a crimson cone with a diameter of less than a meter, organized like a large barricade. Under the moonlight, the crimson cone shone with the color of raw flesh, which appeared to look like it was made of minced meat.

On top of the cone was a human skull placed upright. There was no flesh or blood on the skull; it looked extremely clean, like a specimen.

Below the cone was a round pool of blood, which the cone was centered around, and it emitted a heavy smell of blood.

The edge of the pool of blood was surrounded by more than a dozen miscellaneous items. They were spaced at an exact distance from each other, and they seemed to be tracing the edge of the round pool of blood. These miscellaneous items were so neat that they looked creepy—a t-shirt, shoes, pants, and socks were stacked neatly; a kitchen knife that looked brand new, and even wads of things like toilet paper and receipts were flattened and neatly folded.

There were also a lot of dark things there. Zhong Chengshuo took a closer look and found that it was a small pile of hair.

Zhong Chengshuo looked at the clump of minced meat in the center and said, “…This is the corpse?”

Based on the size of the meat and the amount of bleeding, the victim was probably an adult.

‘It is indeed a corpse,’ Yin Ren replied in his heart. The pile of meat exuded a strong human smell. The victim must’ve died just now.

Sun Qinghui: “Yes, it’s a corpse. According to the Urban Planning Committee, it wasn’t here around 9 p.m. There are no tire tracks nearby, so there are no signs of transportation. Whether this is the first crime scene and how many people have died, we still have to analyze and study it.”

Yin Ren covered his mouth cooperatively and retched a few times.

“The residual evil qi index on the corpse is 0.01~0.02fR. This person has been exposed to an evil being, but he didn’t die from an attack from it.” Lu Xiaohe’s voice sounded in their ears again. “Shian didn’t find any similar cult rituals in their database either. Please actively follow up on this, you two.”

“The sense of ritual is strong, like the kind of thing a lunatic would do.”

Sun Qinghui stood by the pool of blood with his brows tightly locked.

“Haigu has never had this kind of modus operandi before. We’re already investigating unsolved cases in the nearby area. Feel free to look around and update us if there’s any news.”

The temperature on summer nights was high. Many insects followed the smell of flesh and blood and crawled around the minced meat. Zhong Chengshuo and Yin Ren put on gloves, with the former checking the surrounding environment while the latter squatted down to observe the corpse pile.

Zhong Chengshuo almost rubbed his face on the nearby wall. As they investigated, the sound of pictures being taken intermittently sounded. Two hours later, he and Yin Ren were squatting together. Seeing his partner’s face, which looked like he was hesitant to speak, Yin Ren opened his backpack knowingly and handed him a bottle.

“Oolong tea, sugar-free.”

“Thank you. I’ll pay you back for it,” Zhong Chengshuo said sincerely.

“No, it’s fine. It’s rare for you to have such an oversight.” Yin Ren pulled out a can of peach-flavored soda and downed half of it gleefully.

“I can’t fit it in my backpack.” Zhong Chengshuo drank a few sips of tea and let out a small sigh. “Science posts have to carry medical kits and simple tools when going to work, so it’s inconvenient to carry other things.”

…How miserable.

After briefly sympathizing with his partner, Yin Ren cleared his throat. “Did you find anything?”

“There doesn’t seem to be any trace of a fight. Whether this thing was fresh or not, the police should be analyzing it. What about you? Can you… talk to the dead or something?”

As an atheist, Zhong Chengshuo asked this question with extreme uncertainty.

Yin Ren patiently explained, “There’s no way to talk, let alone the fact that it’s difficult for people to turn into ghosts. Even if it becomes an evil spirit, most of the time they can’t communicate well, which makes their testimony even less credible. People can’t know everything while alive, and they won’t suddenly open their eyes after death.”  

“That’s what the Shian textbook says,” Yin Ren thoughtfully added.

“I see.” Zhong Chengshuo drank two more sips of his tea. “If I was suddenly hit by a car while walking down the street, I might not even be able to react to how I died.”

“Exactly.” Yin Ren shook the can at him. “That’s a good example, but you shouldn’t use yourself as an example next time.”

Zhong Chengshuo’s gaze stopped on the shaking can for a moment. He thought for half a second, then picked up his oolong tea bottle and clinked it with Yin Ren’s can.

Yin Ren: “……”

Yin Ren: “Have you started reading that book, <The Art of Communication>?”

Zhong Chengshuo blinked, and the bottle was frozen in the air, seemingly at a loss.

“Haha, a toast is quite good.” Yin Ren couldn’t help laughing. “Cheers!”

Suddenly, a pair of hands pressed down on their heads.

“What are you doing at a crime scene? Be serious.”

“Uncle Sun.” Zhong Chengshuo hurriedly greeted.

“Did you find anything?”

Zhong Chengshuo: “There are no traces of fighting. No obvious bloodstains or damage. The conclusion of the crime scene investigator should be more comprehensive than mine.”

Sun Qinghui nodded. “Xiao Yin, how about you?”

Yin Ren: “I found four dead bugs.”

Seeing the confused faces of Sun Qinghui and Zhong Chengshuo, Yin Ren explained, “There are small black insects buzzing around the meat pile. The person who is that meat pile had just died not long ago, but the bugs in the meat have been dead for four or five days.”

Sun Qinghui was shocked. “Hah? Can you talk to the soul of a bug?”

Yin Ren was helpless.

He suddenly understood the feelings of programmers online who often ranted about “not wanting to fix code anymore”.

“I particularly like natural science,” Yin Ren said solemnly. “Look, it can be seen with the naked eye.”

He couldn’t advertise that he was familiar with all kinds of corpses in front of a criminal detective.

“I see. I’ll make sure forensics pays more attention to it later.” Sun Qinghui yawned. “The forensic pathologist is about to enter. If you two are finished, I’ll take you for a meal.”

Zhong Chengshuo hesitated. “We—”

“Go if you want to. Shian’s regulations aren’t so tight. Officer Sun Qinghui is an acquaintance of yours, right?” Lu Xiaohe also yawned through the earphone. “Just record the scene and continue investigating tomorrow… Uh… I mean, continue during the day.”

She was about to fall asleep.

As for Yin Ren, he would readily agree.

……

A street away, Sister Xu’s Spicy Hotpot was brightly lit.

The storefront wasn’t very large, and it was fairly clean. The plastic tables and chairs were polished, and the tiles on the floor weren’t messy with dirty footprints. The proprietress specialized in night business, and the ingredients in her plastic basket looked fresh.

She saw Sun Qinghui come in and boldly waved her hand. “Night shift again? Still with… Ah, this crop of newcomers is so handsome.”

“They’re not our newcomers. Xu Fang, don’t you recognize the one wearing glasses? That’s the son of Lao Zhong.”

“How would I be able to recognize him? The last time I saw him was when he was seven or eight, but I do have a bit of an impression. That kid kept saying he wanted to be a police officer when he grows up.” Xu Fang’s eyes widened with a smile, revealing a homely look. “I’ll take care of drinks tonight, so eat as much as you want.”

Yin Ren piled up a mountain of ingredients in his basket and muttered in a low voice, “You originally wanted to be a policeman?”

“Yes, but my parents disagree.”

Unlike Yin Ren, he wasn’t a fan of synthetic meat products. Zhong Chengshuo picked out some quail eggs, mushrooms, and vegetables. The proprietress neatly weighed the baskets and attached the price to them.

“They’re getting older, and I wasn’t insistent on doing it, so I changed my employment direction.” Zhong Chengshuo spoke calmly despite his failure to become a police officer.

“Xiao Zhong’s temperament is too strait-laced, which really isn’t suitable for a criminal police officer,” Sun Qinghui interjected with a smile. “If you want to do well in this profession, you have to be refined. Criminals are cunning, so watching people order food* is a required basic skill.”

*(看人下菜) Metaphor referring to treating people unequally and/or different. || Basically, he’s saying you have to treat criminals differently, but Zhong Chengshuo is too upright for such a profession (which I find kind of ironic).

“Maybe it’s because Xiao Zhong is afraid he will follow Fengfeng’s old path.” The boss sighed. “I say, Fengfeng was such a nice little girl…”

“Hey, Boss Cheng and Lao Zhong aren’t that kind of people. Speaking of which, Xu Fang, Xiao Zhong is now a top student at University A. Isn’t that amazing?” Sun Qinghui interrupted her with a smile.

The boss’ eyes lit up, and the topic turned to her child, who had entered high school.

The spicy hotpot was rich and fresh. Yin Ren dipped it in a ton of sesame sauce and ate it with relish. Zhong Chengshuo was caught up with the boss trying to tell him her “secret recipe” and was making a painful look as if he were constipated, while Sun Qinghui looked on happily.

The small shop didn’t really have a quiet ambience. Zhong Chengshuo and Yin Ren noticed that within a few minutes, night shift workers, drivers, medical staff, and the like joined in on the conversation, creating a bustling myriad of dialogues accompanied by heat steaming everywhere, which was quite lively in the early hours of the morning.

When Yin Ren emptied his third bowl of spicy hotpot, it was already close to 5 a.m. The sky had gradually lit up, signifying the start of a brand new day.

Beside him, two workers toasted and started singing a song out of tune. A nurse had added a filter as she photographed her hotpot, while another kept peeking back at Yin Ren. Sun Qinghui was busy chatting with the boss about her children’s further studies while a driver was talking to Zhong Chengshuo about the fees at University A.

However, in the midst of this lively atmosphere, Yin Ren suddenly felt a prickly itch as if he were being watched.

He stopped abruptly and looked outside the door.

In the gradually thinning night, a vague figure flashed by, leaving behind an afterglow. Yin Ren looked intently at the door again but found there was nothing outside.

The streets in front of the store were empty, and he didn’t sense the feeling of evil beings or remnants of evil qi—there was nothing.

Yin Ren watched for a while.

‘How interesting,’ he thought. ‘This case may not be so simple after all.’

The next day.

After a night out in the field, the two of them went back to Shian’s office in the afternoon. Considering the rich lunch served at Shian’s cafeteria, Yin Ren dragged Zhong Chengshuo straight back to Shian.

“We just joined the company, so we have to behave positively.” Lord Ghost King spoke generously.

<The Art of Communication> failed to stop Zhong Chengshuo from saying, “You just want to eat in the cafeteria.”

Yin Ren didn’t even blush. “Yes, but this doesn’t conflict with our good performance. Besides, we haven’t met our new colleague in our group yet. Wouldn’t it be good to greet each other?”

Zhong Chengshuo was speechless as he clung to <The Art of Communication> in confusion.

Was it because his communication level was too low or was Yin Ren’s amnesia too strong? For the first time in the 28 years of his life, Zhong Chengshuo’s self-esteem was hurt by his EQ factors.

Not long after, Comrade Zhong Chengshuo’s self-esteem suffered a second blow.

As a C-level investigation team, they had an office in Shian. The office wasn’t large; one side had two desks adjacent to each other, each equipped with a computer and a bookshelf. The wall directly opposite of the door was full of multi-screen monitors, and the equipment underneath looked as complicated as an airplane cockpit.

In front of the “cockpit” was a girl sitting on an engineering chair, smiling at the two of them.

The girl was about 30 years old. She had a round face and eyes and wore light makeup. Her hair, which was slightly coarse and stiff, was tied up in a high ponytail. She wore a loose cow-print t-shirt and casual pants, accompanied by a pair of sneakers.

She didn’t look pretty, but her facial features gave off a warm feeling. Just from a first glance, they could tell she belonged to the “good character-type”.

“Wow, nice to meet you. You two are really handsome,” Lu Xiaohe said with a smile; the pace at which she spoke was still as fast as ever.

“I’m Lu Xiaohe from last night. You can call me Lu Jie or Xiaohe. If you have any questions about Shian, I’ll be happy to answer them at any time—oh, yes, I got your contact information and sent out a friend’s request. Remember to accept it.”

Yin Ren turned on his phone and found a friend application from “Milky Way”. Their “Shian—Farmer Orchard (3)” had now become “Shian—Small Work Group (4)”.

“Remember to use the Shian’s app for check-in and communication. Reserve the WeChat group for gossip and external communication,” Lu Xiaohe said. “I’ll provide you with tech support, information, and strategic rear support. You can rest assured. I’m very reliable.”

Yin Ren was full of expectations. “Really?”

Lu Xiaohe: “Really. I’ve been on this job for two years, and all the field teams I’ve supported are alive, and none have any serious disabilities.”

Yin Ren and Zhong Chengshuo: “……”

“Just kidding,” Lu Xiaohe chuckled. “Let’s get down to business.”

She grabbed the remote control casually, without looking at it, and pressed the power button. The screens all over the wall suddenly lit up, forming a large image. On the screen were all kinds of gory details that had to be mosaiced, as well as pictures of bugs that were a bit too detailed.

“The preliminary autopsy results from the police have come out. Shian will continue to follow up on this matter.”

“There was only one victim. Wu Tao, 36 years old. A famous gangster in Shangguang District. In other words, this guy is 100% pure scum. He’s been eating, drinking, gambling, and causing trouble with the local vagrants. When he was young, he was caught for petty theft. The police have this on file.”

Lu Xiaohe leaned back in her chair and turned half a circle, then switched the screen to Wu Tao’s profile.

“The clothes, skull, pile of meat, and hair you saw last night belonged to him. Wu Tao’s time of death was around 1 in the morning last night. The cause of death… could not be determined.”

Zhong Chengshuo: “Why?”

“Well, the problem lies in the bugs Xiao Yin found last night.”

Lu Xiaohe switched the screen.

“Forensics isolated 547 fruit flies from that pile of meat. The insect corpses probably gathered in Wu Tao’s mouth, nasal cavity, and trachea. A large number of bugs poured into his trachea in a short period of time, which indeed can kill.”

“But those fruit flies have been dead for more than a day, so it’s theoretically impossible to attack Wu Tao like that.”

“And when Wu Tao was pulverized into minced meat, his vital signs hadn’t completely disappeared. In addition, leaving aside the cause of death, the pile of minced meat is also very strange.”

Lu Xiaohe zoomed in on the pile of the shapeless corpse and continued without changing her expression.

“He wasn’t shredded up artificially, or this was done by some kind of machine.”

“Except for the skull, Wu Tao’s muscles, bones, and internal organs were precisely divided into cubes with a side length of 1 mm.”

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The author has something to say:

Me to my gay friend: I need materials, buddy. I’m looking for a corpse finder who also works in urban planning. The body is in the closed area of the old city. The idea now is that the discoverer is trying to find his phone that he lost there at night, so I want to consult for some industry details.

Gay friend: Oh, that’s easy. You can create a scene where the planning group of a design institute is sent to investigate the old city. When work ended at midnight, a helpless person forgot his cellphone at the research site. The research records were all on his phone, and he had to submit the report tomorrow. After receiving feedback, the leader said he shouldn’t trouble Party A, but the report must still be submitted on time, so he needs to find a way himself.

Me: .

Gay friend: .

Me: That’s too heavy.

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