Chapter 63: Off to See the Shaman!

“What did you say? Inspector Fang?” Qin Wensu noticed the fine beads of sweat on Fang Si Ting’s forehead. Her expressionless face seemed to pick up on a hint of… nervousness?

That was truly rare.

“In a bit, Xiao Fen and I will go investigate Lu Kaiyu’s interpersonal relationships. If there’s nothing else here, you all head back first.” Fang Si Ting said in his usual sharp tone.

After saying that, he lowered his head to observe Xiao Fen’s expression beside him.

Xiao Fen lifted his gaze and glanced at him, then quickly looked away. His thick eyelashes cast a shadow.

Whoever wanted to go with him could go.

“Let’s go.” Xiao Fen followed Fang Si Ting for a few steps, then saw Ou Yu staring at the alley entrance and urged him.

He looked in the direction Ou Yu was staring and suddenly remembered that Ou Yu had seen something that night—a Deformed Person.

“Brother Ou Yu,” Xiao Fen said, “that night you saw a Deformed Person. I previously suspected it was a Folded Person, but now that I think about it, it probably wasn’t.”

“You think so too?” Ou Yu was slightly stunned. He had just been suspecting the same thing. “But how could an ordinary person grow like that?”

“Is it possible the killer was carrying a corpse while walking? The head hanging down the back should have been the victim’s. The victim and the killer’s bodies were both wrapped in the raincoat together, so it didn’t look particularly bulky because the corpse was very stiff and hard to carry on the back. He probably just grabbed the victim’s legs straight up and lifted the victim like that, making the figure appear tall and slender.”

A chill crept up from the soles of Ou Yu’s feet. “You’re saying I ran into the killer? But I didn’t see another head.”

Fang Si Ting pondered and said, “That person was probably quite petite. The entire body was hidden inside the raincoat, peeking through the gaps to see the road. He was also worried about bumping into someone—he wouldn’t want to risk his face being seen and recognized.”

“Exactly. Think back carefully: the head hanging upside down on the back—was that face alive?” Xiao Fen said.

“It was too far away at the time, and it was pouring rain with dim lighting…” Ou Yu closed his eyes and tried to recall for a good while. “I couldn’t tell.”

“But that night, you said you saw him smile.”

“I’m not sure. It might have been psychological. Seeing an upside-down head makes it easy to imagine things.” Ou Yu gave a bitter smile. “But the impression of that face in my mind is very blurry now. I can’t recognize it at all.”

【No way, I actually missed the scene where Ouyou came face-to-face with the killer?】

【Too bad about the heavy rain that night—the cameras all crapped out. Suggestion to the Program Crew: get some waterproof, more durable equipment. They’re way too unreliable.】

【Dropping the ball at the critical moment. Don’t blame us for always flaming you, Lu Family.】

————

Capital Criminal Investigation University.

After finishing the day’s lecture, Lü Siming released the live stream recording.

“Professor, Zhong Houwang also saw that ‘Folded Person’ at 10:04 p.m., and we estimated Ou Yu saw the ‘Folded Person’ around 10:13 p.m.—a 9-minute gap. From the central southern part of the town to the northernmost edge is at least a kilometer, in heavy rain and darkness, while carrying a victim weighing over a hundred jin. It’s completely impossible on foot.” A student raised the question.

“Could it be two people?” another student said. “How could something like this happen twice? If the killer had an accomplice, it would definitely be possible.”

“Or maybe someone can really teleport.”

“Confucius did not speak of strange events, feats of strength, or chaos of spirits. We’re criminal investigation students—we can’t believe in that even more. From a scientific perspective, he used some mode of transportation.” Another student chimed in. “I think the killer definitely had a motorcycle or electric bike or something. Halfway through, he ran into Lu Kaiyu and Ou Yu. If they saw him transporting a corpse, he’d be arrested for sure, so he got off, created a terrifying illusion to scare them off, making them think it was some Weird thing.”

“Then why didn’t the killer hide when he encountered them? Why get off and drag the corpse out on purpose?”

“Yeah, that would expose him directly. The killer wouldn’t be that stupid, right?”

“He was seen by Ou Yu.” Lü Siming said, “According to Ou Yu’s description, he first saw the killer’s back—that is, the corpse—then saw the ‘Folded Person’ turn around. The alley leading to the Substitute Life Well is narrow with stairs, so the killer could only move the corpse on foot, no vehicle possible. After seeing that Ou Yu had spotted him, maybe to escape, he noticed the light at Zhong Houwang’s house and improvised to make Zhong a witness. With so many horror rumors in the town, one more wouldn’t raise eyebrows. He used the local gossip from a town resident to dispel Ou Yu’s doubts, making him think he’d seen some Weird thing.”

“So, is it possible Lu Kaiyu disappeared because he saw the killer’s face, so the killer grabbed him?”

“That makes sense. The stranger who died in the well a year ago for unknown reasons—I don’t quite agree with Brother Fen’s idea that it’s the same killer, but that case definitely inspired this killer. He used the Substitute Life Well legend, grabbed Guo Dongying, imprisoned and tortured him for a year before cruelly killing him. This person definitely has a grudge against Guo Dongying.”

“Makes sense.” Lü Siming agreed with this view and said, “So, temporarily dropping the investigation into Guo Dongying was a wrong choice. You few keep monitoring Fang and Xiao’s Live Stream Chat. We’ll contact the Program Crew staff and check the other criminals’ live streams for clues. Break through from Guo Dongying.”

Professor Lü and his students were full of vigor. They quickly shifted to a different investigative direction from Fang Si Ting’s team and continued competing with them in secret.

Xiao Fen’s group could investigate the scene firsthand, but they had the advantage of overlooking the big picture. It was still unclear who would win.

————

Following the address provided by Wang Wenfang, Fang Si Ting and the other three found Purple Gold Village. They followed the main road at the village entrance all the way to the end and saw an ancient siheyuan courtyard with red pillars carved with wild beasts at the gate. This was the Shaman’s home.

At that moment, the front door of the residence stood wide open. Rhythmic chanting of scriptures drifted out from inside, in the local Tengcha dialect, mumbled indistinctly like a buzzing in the mouth, hard to make out clearly.

Xiao Fen and the others skirted around the shadow wall, and what met their eyes was a courtyard. In the center, on a bamboo stool, sat a teenage boy, shirtless with his eyes closed, his face contorted in pain as sweat poured nonstop from his forehead.

Behind him stood a man in his forties, dressed in a fitted black robe with white patterns. The collar and cuffs were embroidered with local Tengcha exorcism divine beasts. His jet-black hair was tied back in a bun at the nape of his neck, secured with a wooden hairpin. He wore black pants and cloth shoes below.

In their H Country’s eyes, the outfit was a bit mismatched yet carried ethnic flair.

The middle-aged man had a square face, round cheeks, a garlic-bulb nose, thick eyebrows, and big eyes. He sported a beard from his sideburns to his chin—black and dense, hanging down to his collarbone.

His build was slender, not tall at all. He did have a bit of an immortal, otherworldly air, but Xiao Fen spotted at a glance that his shoes had two-to-three-centimeter height-increasing insoles.

Perhaps that was a man’s dignity—even padding a few centimeters couldn’t change the fact that he was short.

Up close, fine lines creased the corners of his eyes. He looked not young, but nowhere near over a hundred years old.

Xiao Fen thought that if he shaved the beard, the facial features around his brows, eyes, and forehead actually resembled Wang Wenfang a bit.

Of course, this man couldn’t be Wang Wenfang in disguise—the build and voice didn’t match at all.

The Shaman’s face was coated in red pigment, his expression solemn. He held a Peach Wood Sword in hand, grabbed a Yellow Talisman from a box under the table, skewered it on the sword, and tapped it upward on the boy’s shoulders and the top of his head. The talisman paper ignited without fire.

Then, the Shaman spat on the Peach Wood Sword, swung it in the air a few times while chanting incantations, and slashed at the boy’s bare upper body.

Pain appeared on the boy’s face.

Red wounds began appearing where the Peach Wood Sword struck. In that moment, the wooden sword suddenly gained an edge—every strike landed true, flaying the skin and splitting flesh.

The scene was truly horrific.

Seeing this, the group hurried forward, shouting for him to stop.

“You’re murdering someone!” Ou Yu said angrily.

The boy on the bamboo stool suddenly “waa” and vomited a large mouthful of stomach acid. He opened his eyes, clear-headed now. His parents nearby hugged him excitedly, but the Shaman held them back.

He applied the talisman paper to the wounds. When he peeled it off, the boy was completely fine—not even a scar.

Ou Yu was stunned.

Zhang Jian and the people in the Live Stream Chat cried out miracle.

How could someone covered in blood recover in the blink of an eye? Were those talisman papers really that magical?

“It’s done. The Three Fires extinguished by the Malevolent Ghost’s slap have been reignited, the soul recalled. The wrongful soul inside him has been slain.” The Shaman said flatly. “Don’t go to Guiwu Forest again. The miasma there is too toxic. Once a soul lingers, those demons and evils easily burrow into the body.”

【I was totally buying it earlier. If you hadn’t mentioned Guiwu Forest, I might’ve fallen for your ghost talk.】

【All thanks to Brother Fen lol, zero mystique left now.】

【Yeah, if Brother Fen hadn’t cracked the forest’s truth, I’d really call you Grandmaster. Now I’m just watching your performance.】

【What a load of feudal superstition. Immortality’s fake too—wasted my excitement.】

【@National Religious Affairs Committee, wanna take a page from the Publicity Department and get Brother Fen as a spokesperson? There’s still plenty of this crooked rural nonsense.】

The Shaman wiped the Peach Wood Sword a few times with a yellow cloth. Seeing Xiao Fen and the others, he said, “You’re here about Lu Kaiyu, right?”

Zhang Jian said in surprise, “Sir, you calculated that accurately.”

Xiao Fen was speechless. Did that even need calculating? Everyone in town knew about these past couple days’ events.

“Mind if we chat?” he asked.

The gentleman waved his hand and stood aside, ushering them into the living room. His every gesture had a profound, inscrutable air.

“I’m saddened by Lu Kaiyu’s matter. Each person has their own fate—this was his tribulation. No one could stop it.”

“You mean Lu Kaiyu is already dead?” Xiao Fen scoffed. “Only the killer could be so certain.”

Since Guo Dongying could disappear a year ago and only die on the 24th, it showed the killer didn’t kill immediately but imprisoned them for some unknown reason, waiting for the right moment—like finding the next more satisfactory prey—before killing and switching targets.

So Lu Kaiyu was definitely still alive.

“I’m not the killer.” Falsely accused, the Shaman remained unhurried in expression and tone, stroking his long beard. “His Eight Characters Birth Chart is excellent—top-notch fate, once-in-a-century. He’ll have smooth sailing his whole life, living in luxury, and reaching eighty-eight would be normal.”

“So you’re saying he’ll survive this tribulation and live to eighty-eight?” Zhang Jian said.

“That’s the normal case. But now…” The Shaman trailed off midway, shook his head, and refused to say more.

Xiao Fen sneered.

The Shaman suddenly looked at him.

“You don’t believe me?”

“Of course not.” Xiao Fen briefly explained the trick the Shaman had just used to exorcise the boy.