Chapter 19
1
A faint current swept through the recently chaotic and unconscious crowd, just enough to stimulate their brains to wake them up. The people in the front surged towards the back. If these people didn't wake up soon, they would blame me if they got trampled and injured. This place is not like the Demon Realm, where killing and discarding bodies is a common occurrence and no one cares. It's not like the wilderness either, where there are not many people around. Unfortunately, this is a crowded and diverse place.
"You didn't get hurt, did you?" I held onto Qiong and stood outside the crowd, but Qiong hesitated to let go.
"No."
"Then... why don't you consider coming down?"
"Hey, is it too troublesome for you to carry your girlfriend right now?"
"Not... not at all. I'm just worried that you'll feel uncomfortable."
Qiong wrapped her hands around my neck and said contentedly, "Not at all. Are you finding me heavy, or are your kidneys tired?"
"Xiao Qiong, please stop focusing on my kidneys! My kidneys are fine!"
"Who knows~" Xiao Qiong's tone was extremely ambiguous. When a girl speaks like this, it's teasing foreplay, but...
"Oh, you want to test my kidneys? But unfortunately, according to the Dragon Spirit Contract, there are penalties for not having the Five Elemental Contract. We can't do adult things!"
Xiao Qiong gave me a hard slap across the face.
"You pervert, what are you thinking! I... I'm not ready yet."
"Alright... there's no need to listen or resort to violence. Haven't you heard the ancient saying, 'Love without marriage as the goal is tantamount to playing the rogue'? I admit that I have a thick skin and can withstand beatings, but that slap was quite forceful."
"Where did you learn this goody-two-shoes talk? I remember the Demon Dragon is notorious for being evil and immoral."
"Living as a human for a long time, I also understand the need to integrate into society. Morality can be low, but it shouldn't be absent. If Bai were here, he could give you a day-long lecture on morality!"
I saw many police officers coming around, probably here to maintain order and investigate the case. However, I also saw military vehicles from a distance, with the soldiers inside quickly and neatly assembling. The officer in front of them was extremely serious, just like eighteen years ago, exuding the same high-spirited aura.
Upon a command from the officer, the soldiers immediately took their positions, holding mass-produced magic guns in their hands. They must have undergone plenty of daily military training.
"Do they usually involve the military in ordinary murder cases?"
"Qiong, this is not an ordinary murder case. Curse daggers are quite expensive to purchase." I thought about it. The curse dagger may not necessarily be from The Divine Realm's version. Recently, the ones I've seen have all been curse daggers from The Divine Realm. It's difficult to determine the origin before seeing the murder weapon. It could be a counterfeit from The Human Realm as well. However, it's definitely not cheap to buy such a weapon. The person who just died didn't seem to have any special needs for a curse dagger.
"Master Qin?" The military personnel passed by us, and a sergeant following behind the military seemed out of sync with the soldiers' movements, indicating that he must have undergone more training than usual.
"You... your last name is Lu?"
"Yes, Master Qin, I'm Lu Zhong!" Lu Zhong should be one of the workers under my father, but I forgot what specifically he did.
"Hey, I'm asking you..." I moved closer to Lu Zhong's side, but it wasn't very convenient with Xiao Qiong in my arms.
"Master Qin, as long as you're alright, you should go take care of things first. I'll help you get out of the police questioning. I noticed Xiao Qiong obediently in your arms, and his gaze... I don't know how dirty it is!"
"Cough, " I put down Xiao Qiong and pulled Lu Zhong aside to ask, "Did something happen with the military coming?"
"Oh, there was just a nationwide news release. There have been murders in the most densely populated areas of every major city. Each victim has a wound in their chest and dies very quickly, unable to be saved. They all have one particular characteristic - their fingers are tightly clasped together."
"Fingers tightly clasped together?"
"Yes, that's praying!"
"Praying? The Human Realm shouldn't have much faith left."
"Sir, did you see the victim just now?"
"Yes, now that you mention it, he did have his fingers tightly clasped together."
"That's it. Based on this, our empire has classified these murders as organized and premeditated terrorist attacks!"
"So my father sent the military?"
"The plan for tonight is this: the police will collect environmental evidence, and the military will arrest people. Any suspicious person present will be apprehended immediately. The situation is very serious! Over a hundred murder cases happened simultaneously nationwide, and we haven't even caught a single suspect. The public will panic."
Lu Zhong seemed very troubled. After all, there were too many people at the scene, and the police were short-staffed. The military was not made up of professional detectives, so it would be lucky if they could catch someone tonight.
"Good luck, and do your best!" I patted his shoulder, giving him a pitying look. It must be tough for him. Even I didn't notice when the killer struck or when they escaped. If the imperial police and military could find them, it would be a miracle.
"Thank you, sir. You should leave quickly. If the reporters come, it will be difficult for me to slip you out through the back door. Those reporters are cunning."
"Don't worry, no one can stop me if I want to leave."
"..." In the blink of an eye, Lu Zhong noticed that I had disappeared along with Xiao Qiong, both vanishing in the amusement park.
2
At midnight, I, Bai Qin Yang, used space magic to take Xiao Qiong away and then swapped with Hei. Hei didn't want to deal with these matters, as he thought that the girl's situation was the most important. If the other matters didn't involve the girls, he didn't care much. But I, Bai Qin Yang, was different. As a former Holy Dragon, I had a responsibility to uphold world peace, although I now found that idea somewhat foolish. It was probably because that guy Hei's thoughts had rubbed off on me. Frankly speaking, I was more annoyed that someone was killing people right in front of me.
According to my understanding, the Underworld Envoys did not take away the souls of the deceased, so the souls of the victims should still be in the hands of the killer. Moreover, neither the police nor the military had discovered the hexagram magic array hidden within the wounds of the victims.
The hexagram is the most common and basic pattern in magic arrays, and most people believe that only children would use this kind of magic array. As a result, subconsciously, people don't pay much attention to it.
But those who have a deep understanding of magic arrays would know that the hexagram is actually a versatile shape. If a serpent-shaped pattern is drawn in the third corner of the hexagram, the magic array can weaken the creatures within the array. If a sun pattern is drawn above one corner of the hexagram, then the magic array becomes extraordinary. Anyone standing on it will feel the burning pain of the scorching sun.
However, this hexagram had nothing added to it. Yet, Nofice summoned the Nantos Dog, which can find the user of the magic array within twelve hours after the array stops being used. After twelve hours, the connection between the magic array and the user would disappear.
The South Tos dog is now constantly shaking its nose, walking up to a dark alley and stopping.
"Master!" Nofice appeared behind me and said expressionlessly, "There's a trap ahead."
"You know what the bane of traps is?"
"Spatial Magic."
"Correct." I picked up the Nantos dog, took a step forward, and instantly appeared on the other side of the dark alley without touching any mechanism or trap. The other party knew they were being tracked, but clearly underestimated me. I picked up a broken pair of scissors from the trash can and cut a nearly invisible steel wire behind me.
