Eldritch Horror Theatre

To go check out the scene...

None of the three people in the office expected Fu Qian to suddenly make such a request. For a moment, they simply stared at each other in dismay.

As a suspect, this was undoubtedly not the attitude he should have.

But Fu Qian's tone was so natural and calm that it didn't sound out of place at all.

"What's wrong? Don't suspects still have to visit the crime scene?"

...

Naya cast an inquiring look at Li Weixuan, who in turn turned his head to look at Yuan Fang.

Finally, after a long silence, Yuan Fang nodded.

"Then we will head over there together."

As it turned out, the Yuan Clan treated its people quite well.

Even for a former regional head, Jia Yi's mansion was still several tiers above the place Betty lived.

Right now, the murder scene was nothing short of a disaster.

On the massive bed, two naked corpses lay with their limbs entangled, firmly mashed together in a gruesome state.

Judging from the clothes cast aside, the other person was likely the female companion Jia Yi had brought back from the banquet.

The crime scene had been carefully preserved, with several Night Watchers standing guard around the perimeter.

The one leading them was actually an acquaintance—Hu Mingyi.

Watching the four of them enter the room, his expression was somewhat complicated.

"Thanks for the hard work," Fu Qian greeted him naturally, walking over to the bed for a closer look.

It was obvious that the two had been murdered in the middle of their intimacy.

There were two fatal wounds, and either of them was enough to kill a person ten times over.

The first was a shocking, massive hole. Striking from top to bottom, it had nearly punched straight through both chests. It looked as if it had been made by a single punch.

Further up, both of their heads had been smashed flat like watermelons, splattering red and white matter all over the bed.

What was especially striking was that their hard skulls had been utterly pulverized by the blow; it was almost impossible to find a fragment larger than a fingernail.

Just how deep was this grudge!

"This is definitely the work of a transcendent," Fu Qian remarked. Faced with this bloody scene, he examined it with extreme focus and calmly analyzed the situation, entirely lacking the self-awareness a suspect ought to have.

"Who was the first to find them?" he asked, looking back at Hu Mingyi.

...

Faced with Fu Qian's question, Hu Mingyi looked rather speechless and subconsciously glanced at Yuan Fang. 'Did you completely mistake your role here?' Beside them, Yuan Fang also frowned tightly at Fu Qian's attitude, though he eventually nodded.

"The servants were the first to find them around noon. The time of death should be quite a bit earlier than that," Hu Mingyi explained, having received his superior's silent approval.

'It really matches my timeline perfectly. This targeting is way too obvious,' Fu Qian thought. The crucial point was that he also had a significant motive.

Jia Yi reporting him wasn't exactly top-secret information. If someone were a little careful, they might even dig up their previous conflict—an incident that had practically gotten the guy fired.

With Jia Yi dying like this, no matter how heavy the traces of a frame-up were, Fu Qian would remain the prime suspect until there was clear evidence to the contrary. Under these circumstances, his future actions would inevitably be restricted. This was a bona fide open scheme! Someone didn't want him wandering around.

There could only be one reason for such targeted actions: his appearance at the banquet as a transcendent had aroused someone's vigilance and suspicion.

'Not bad!' Thinking of this, Fu Qian nodded with a satisfied look on his face. Whether or not it was the Attendant of Ecstasy he was looking for, having someone try to stop him was a good thing. It meant what he was doing was right.

"Why do I get the feeling you're in a good mood?" Fu Qian's demeanor caused Naya, who was standing beside him, to frown deeply.

"Even if you didn't kill him, this is very likely related to yesterday's events. Shouldn't you feel like you've implicated someone else?"

"Is it that obvious?" Fu Qian wiped the corner of his mouth.

"What do you think?"

"First of all, I wasn't familiar with this guy," Fu Qian said, pointing at the bed.

"Secondly, he was killed as an innocent bystander. The only person who should be condemned is the murderer. I didn't do anything wrong, so why should I blame myself for someone else's fault? And next, to prove my innocence, I will avenge him. No matter how you look at it, I have no reason to feel guilty."

...

"What you said... is actually both cold-blooded and reasonable. I don't like it, but I can't refute it either," Naya said in a heavy voice after a moment of silence.

"Of course. I am known as a master of legalism, after all."

...

"The method was very clean and efficient. There are some mutations in the flesh and bone; we can almost confirm this was done by a transcendent." While Fu Qian was talking with Naya, Li Weixuan had also been looking the bodies up and down, finally arriving at this completely useless conclusion.

Fu Qian wasn't surprised by this. After all, even he—a Demigod Realm expert and professional consultant—hadn't noticed much more.

However, speaking of which... Fu Qian looked down at the corpses. For some reason, he kept feeling that something was off.

Stepping closer, he carefully scrutinized the two corpses all over again, refusing to let a single detail slip by. Unfortunately, faced with such a grotesque and bloody scene, his intense focus easily made him look like a pervert.

Wait a minute!

At a certain moment, Fu Qian's gaze sharpened as he finally realized where the sense of incongruity came from—unlike the socialite Betty and her partner, the degree of mutation in the flesh and bone of these two seemed very inconsistent. For the woman on top, the physical mutation was extremely light; only the faintest traces could be seen. Underneath her, Jia Yi's mutations were much more obvious in comparison. He was already faintly showing some non-human characteristics.

Why was it like this? In Fu Qian's understanding, the reason for the distortion was most likely the desires activating within their bodies. It was a pity that those things weren't yet strong enough to survive outside a host. They had long since dissipated with the deaths of the two, making it impossible to use them as a reference now.

"I just heard Professor Naya say that Professor Fu left the Academy today?" Hu Mingyi asked from the side while he was lost in thought.

"That's right."

"Then is there anyone who can provide an alibi for you?"

"Probably not." Fu Qian didn't want to expose his Old Man Lu alternate persona just yet. He didn't even want to reveal the matter of the Invitation Letter.

Discovering the activated desires in Betty was just an accident. If the Night Watchers found out, they would inevitably take action against everyone who attended the banquet. Once that happened, the Attendant of Ecstasy involved in this might just go straight into hiding, and it wouldn't be so easy to find them again.

"If that's the case, I'm very sorry. Although there are many suspicious points, we have no choice but to place some restrictions on you," Hu Mingyi finally said, gritting his teeth.

"As you should. But since there are so many suspicious points, shouldn't you give me a chance to prove my innocence? Let me participate in the investigation," Fu Qian said with a smile.

"If you're worried about me slipping away, you can have Professor Naya keep an eye on me."

'Damn it, I'm incredibly busy, alright! Who has the time to watch you every day?' Hearing Fu Qian's words, Naya instinctively wanted to curse.

"That's fine," Li Weixuan nodded before she could say anything.

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