The words struck like a bolt from the blue, catching everyone completely off guard. For a few stunned seconds, the entire crowd froze. Then a loud clamor erupted, and the students' expressions shifted drastically. Teacher Luo Lesheng bolted forward, intercepting Niulanshan Little Fairy and demanding harshly, "What did you say? What did you say?! What do you mean Xia Chaoxue is dead? Make yourself clear! If you dare spout nonsense, I'll break your legs!"
This teacher, who had claimed to be gentle and patient, now displayed extreme fury and impulsiveness.
"Teacher, Xia Chaoxue is dead, right inside her room in the female dormitory. I didn't touch anything at the scene," Niulanshan Little Fairy replied calmly. Turning toward the students, she continued, "Yuanshi Tianzun, take Ren Junzi and Crossing-River Pawn to investigate the scene. Teacher Luo Lesheng, go inform the academy's instructors to assemble immediately below the female dormitory."
She issued arrangements in an orderly fashion, almost by pure instinct.
Though they were technically students, the Saints present were all experienced official personnel serving on the front lines. In fact, when it came to crisis management and handling emergencies, their capabilities far outstripped those of instructors who had been retired from the front lines for years.
Without waiting for Niulanshan Little Fairy to urge them on, the students sprang into action, rushing toward the female dormitory.
*Xia Chaoxue is dead? That makes no sense. Murdering a colleague inside the academy is purely suicidal. What kind of grudge could drive someone to this...?* Zhang Yuanqing moved immediately, leading the group toward the dorms.
His mind swirled with confusion and shock.
Had he not known Niulanshan Little Fairy's personality, he, like Luo Lesheng, would have suspected she was spouting nonsense.
With that thought, he glanced back at the other students. Everyone's brows were tightly knit, their grave expressions tinged with bewilderment.
Clearly, these seasoned Saints also found the incident utterly baffling. What kind of motive could drive a killer to such extremes within the academy?
As his gaze swept across their faces one by one, Zhang Yuanqing saw Tianxia Guihuo shoot him a subtle look.
Even without Insight, he understood the implication.
—Now that a murder had occurred, the academy would thoroughly investigate every student's whereabouts from the previous night.
The dean was a Scout, and the academy possessed lie-detecting props; their expedition to the underground palace was bound to be exposed.
*I can use the Ghost Mirror to smooth out my emotional fluctuations and bypass a Scout's Insight. If the lie-detecting prop also belongs to the Scout class, the Ghost Mirror can resolve that too. If it's a mental control type, I can redirect it onto Little Doubi. I'm completely safe, but Tianxia Guihuo and Xiahou Aotian aren't. Sun Miaomiao and Zhao Chenghuang are only safe against the latter scenario.*
*They have no way to bypass a Scout's Insight.*
*Fuck, we finally managed to obtain the First Emperor's relics without a hitch last night, and now this happens today?!*
Anxiety churned in Zhang Yuanqing's chest.
*All I can do now is take it one step at a time. An unexpected crisis like this tests adaptability above all else. First, I need to get the Ghost Mirror to the Commandery Princess. But if I suggest heading back to the dorms right now, it would defy reason and logic, drawing suspicion...* Zhang Yuanqing abruptly halted and called out, "Niulanshan, come over here for a second."
Hearing him, Niulanshan Little Fairy stopped in her tracks mid-jog, and the other students turned around as well.
Zhang Yuanqing instructed the group unhurriedly, "You all go ahead. I need a quick word with Niulanshan Little Fairy."
In the wake of a murder, having a brief private chat with the person who first discovered the crime scene was entirely normal.
The students merely shot him a few glances before continuing toward the female dormitory.
"Don't call me Niulanshan, call me Little Fairy," she pouted.
*Little Fairy is just like gentleman—neither is a compliment these days, alright...?* Zhang Yuanqing had no time for nonsense and spoke rapidly:
"I have a task for you. Go question the plants and animals in the academy, especially around the female dormitory, to see if you can uncover any clues."
Wood Monsters understood the tongues of beasts and flora, allowing them to gain revelations from nature.
Although the grass couldn't very well reply, *"As soon as I came in, I saw Chang Wei beating Lai Fu,"* they could still yield vague leads. Something was better than nothing.
"Alright!"
Niulanshan Little Fairy hurried off to carry out the order.
Zhang Yuanqing watched her retreating figure, as well as the backs of the students ahead. After confirming that no one was paying attention to him, he discreetly slipped out the Ghost Mirror and dropped it into the bushes.
Keeping his expression entirely neutral, he caught up with the main group.
Behind him, a chubby, adorable infant spirit—its head crowned with sparse downy hair—balanced the bronze mirror atop its skull. Paddling its limbs rapidly like an agile cat, it scurried toward the male dormitory under the cover of the vegetation.
Soon, the group arrived at the female dormitory. As Swordsmen, Ren Junzi and Crossing-River Pawn cautiously pushed open the door and stepped inside first.
Zhang Yuanqing paused at the threshold and addressed the crowd:
"Members of the Spirit Realm clans, stay outside. Anyone who has earned a C-rank merit or higher, follow me in. The rest of you, stand by on the spot."
At this moment, he cast aside his usual slack, indolent demeanor, exuding the commanding presence of Yuanshi Tianzun—that of a peerless genius and a heavily decorated big shot.
The reason he only allowed those with C-rank merits inside was that merits were directly tied to capability. When handling a homicide, only the elite needed to be involved; there was no reason for everyone else to crowd in.
As for the scions of the Spirit Realm clans, very few among these second-generation youths could match the front-line Deacons when it came to case investigation.
Hearing his orders, the Saints silently stepped back. Tianxia Guihuo, Zhao Chenghuang, Sun Miaomiao, Niulanshan Little Fairy, Yuan Ting, and Peony Fairy—six people in total—followed Yuanshi Tianzun inside.
Passing through the foyer, they entered the bedroom. Crossing-River Pawn was scrutinizing the corpse, while Ren Junzi examined the room.
Zhang Yuanqing walked into the bedroom and looked toward the bed. The pristine white sheets were stained dark red with blood. A young woman wearing a silk nightgown lay on the mattress, staring blankly at the ceiling with wide, fixed eyes.
It was Xia Chaoxue.
Her beautiful face was drained of color, her eyes stretched wide. Her collar was slightly disheveled, and the hem of her nightgown barely covered the tops of her thighs. A pair of black lace panties hung from her ankle.
Crossing-River Pawn, his face grave and solemn, said, "There are two fatal wounds. One is a fractured cranium that pulverized her brain tissue. The other is a puncture to the chest by a sharp weapon that pierced straight through her heart.
"Xia Chaoxue put up almost no resistance."
He then looked at the lace panties dangling from her ankle and asked, "Which of you female students can examine her to see if she was sexually assaulted? Well, assault might not be accurate—rather, check if there are traces of sexual intercourse."
Peony Fairy glanced at Sun Miaomiao, then at Niulanshan Little Fairy, before stepping forward. "I'll do it. I have experience with autopsies and have handled similar cases."
With that, she walked over to the bed and lifted Xia Chaoxue's nightgown.
The men in the room turned away tactfully.
A few dozen seconds later, Peony Fairy announced, "There are signs of intercourse prior to her death."
"I have a question," Zhang Yuanqing suddenly piped up.
***
Room 404, Male Dormitory.
Commandery Princess Yinyao, sitting elegantly beside the desk, turned her head. She saw the chubby, adorable infant spirit slip through the wooden door and crawl over like a little seal, balancing a bronze mirror carved with soaring phoenixes on its head.
Seeing this, Commandery Princess Yinyao instantly understood Yuanshi Tianzun's intent. She established contact with the imprint in her sea of consciousness: *"I consent."*
Her body went rigid and motionless. A few seconds later, she leaned down, picked up the bronze mirror from the infant spirit's head, and wiped a hand across her forehead.
A pale, ghastly light flared, flooding her entire face like paint.
Streaks of black and crimson pigment outlined upturned eyes and a down-turned mouth, forming an insidious, sinister white face mask.
*White Face: Insidious and cunning, adept at schemes and machinations.*
After taking control of the yin corpse, Zhang Yuanqing leaned back languidly against the chair, projecting a mental murmur:
*"If any one of those four slips up, the underground palace operation will be blown. It's obviously too late to silence all four of them, so I have to find a way... I need a plan..."
*"Hiss... Which bastard chose this exact moment to kill someone and ruin my plans? I'm going to skin him alive and rip out his tendons..."*
***
"What's your question?" Crossing-River Pawn cast an inquiring look.
"Why assume it was consensual intercourse and not an assault?" Zhang Yuanqing asked.
Ren Junzi answered on Crossing-River Pawn's behalf:
"Because there are no signs of a struggle in the room. The state of Xia Chaoxue's body also proves she didn't fight back. From her facial expression, you can tell she never expected her assailant to kill her. Combined with the evidence of intercourse, we deduced it was committed by an acquaintance.
"Most likely, it was Xia Chaoxue's lover. We need to look into her interpersonal relationships. However, there is one suspicious point: Xia Chaoxue is a Water Ghost, and a Water Ghost's passive trait grants immunity to physical attacks, which should have saved her life.
"Even if Xia Chaoxue never anticipated the attack, she should have reacted the moment she was struck."
"That's precisely what I'm getting at," Zhang Yuanqing said. As he bought time, he utilized the White Face's mental enhancement to rapidly formulate a countermeasure. "What if Xia Chaoxue was under the influence of a mental control skill? The absence of a struggle doesn't necessarily point to an acquaintance; it could also be the scenario I just described."
Ren Junzi nodded. "A very logical deduction. But I believe there's a simpler, more direct method. That will require the help of you Starlords."
Zhao Chenghuang nodded coldly. "I'll do it."
Zhang Yuanqing wasn't the only one anxious, but from start to finish, the underground palace team hadn't exchanged a single glance or shown any outward abnormality, demonstrating formidable psychological composure.
Zhao Chenghuang shifted his gaze to fixate on Xia Chaoxue's corpse. A thick, pitch-black energy rapidly welled up in his eye sockets, blanketing both his pupils and sclera.
After staring for several seconds, his brow suddenly furrowed. The blackness receded from his eyes, and his voice turned exceptionally grim: "Her spiritual body has been eradicated."
*Eradicated...* Sun Miaomiao, Zhang Yuanqing, and Yuan Ting all wore strange expressions.
The others' gazes grew complicated as well, darting back and forth between the three from the Taiyi Sect.
Erasing a deceased person's spirit was an ability exclusive to Night Roamers. There were only so many Starlords in Qinfeng Academy—four students and one instructor.
Ren Junzi's gaze swept over the four Starlords, and he said mildly, "My intuition tells me this case is going to be very troublesome."
Just as he spoke, the bedroom door was pushed open. The white-haired old dean hurried in, accompanied by instructors Stargazer and Song Man.
Seeing the corpse on the bed, the old dean's face instantly darkened. He turned to the students in the room. "Report your findings."
Tianxia Guihuo recounted the two Swordsmen's analysis and the result of Zhao Chenghuang's spirit channeling in exhaustive detail.
"In all my years teaching at Qinfeng, this is the first time a murder has taken place—and the victim is even a Deacon..." The dean pinched the bridge of his nose and exhaled heavily. "Stargazer, go take a look."
Stargazer walked over to the bed and activated his Spirit Devouring skill. Moments later, he shook his head. "The spirit has indeed been eradicated."
The dean gave a slow nod. He personally circled the room to verify the scene, then asked, "Time of death?"
Crossing-River Pawn replied, "Roughly late into the night, or approaching dawn."
As of yet, no technique existed that could pinpoint a victim's exact time of death with absolute accuracy. Even Scouts with extensive forensic experience could only narrow it down to a broad window.
The old dean grunted in acknowledgment, his sharp gaze sweeping over the students present. "Everyone, assemble downstairs. With something like this happening, cancel all classes. It would be best if we can catch the killer before the training concludes; otherwise, this will have to be handed over to headquarters."
His tone was no longer gentle, carrying an incisive edge as if the students were no longer pupils, but potential enemies.
A student being murdered on campus was an incident for which he, as dean, bore undeniable responsibility.
Catching the culprit was his only way to atone for the lapse.
*Late night, approaching dawn...* The White-Faced Yuanshi Tianzun caught a flicker of inspiration.
They had disbanded and gone to sleep well before the late-night hours. If the scope of the lie detection could be framed around words like "late night" or "dawn," the lie-detecting prop wouldn't register any falsehood.
Because it wouldn't be a lie in the first place.
Even as various thoughts flashed through his mind, Zhang Yuanqing suddenly noticed a detail: Xia Chaoxue's nightgown.
*Why didn't she take off her dress in bed? Why was Xia Chaoxue still wearing her nightgown?*
*Xia Chaoxue had a great figure—ample bust, slender waist, and voluptuous hips. If it were me, I wouldn't let her keep her clothes on.*
The group followed the dean outside. Stargazer, walking at the rear, pulled the door shut, and they joined the students waiting in the corridor before heading downstairs.
A murder had taken place at Qinfeng Academy—an unprecedented event since its founding.
All the academy's instructors had been summoned below the female dormitory, standing opposite the students in two separate camps. Everyone listened in silence as the old dean recounted the investigation results in a low voice.
The current situation was that neither Song Man nor Niulanshan Little Fairy had gleaned any revelations from the local plants and beasts.
During the window of the crime, no outsiders had entered the female dormitory.
The case had suddenly become thorny.
The old dean spoke in a heavy voice: "I am the second dean of Qinfeng Academy. I've been here for six years, and the previous dean served for eight. In fourteen years, this academy has never seen a single murder.
"Student Xia Chaoxue's death fills me with shock, regret, and fury."
Pausing for a moment, he continued slowly, "But since this has already occurred, we must accept reality. All classes are suspended until this case is resolved and the culprit is brought to light.
"During this period, students must watch one another, teachers must watch one another, and students and teachers must maintain mutual vigilance. You've already heard the findings. Does anyone know which male student Xia Chaoxue was close to?"
No one answered.
The male students exchanged glances, while the female students scrutinized the men, including the male teachers.
At that moment, Yuan Ting spoke up:
"Dean, among the twenty-two students, Sun Miaomiao, Zhao Chenghuang, and I are from the Taiyi Sect. Sanyang Kai Taitai and Ren Junzi come from the same branch, and Yuanshi Tianzun and Tianxia Guihuo are from the same branch.
"As for the others, everyone comes from different branches. In other words, theoretically speaking, Xia Chaoxue shouldn't have a lover here. Ah, I'm not questioning her personal life, I'm just looking at the facts."
*Yuan Ting really is a supreme extrovert, isn't he? He already dug up everyone's background?* Zhang Yuanqing felt both admiration and a headache. If Xia Chaoxue didn't have a lover at the academy, who had she slept with last night?
The complexity of the case skyrocketed instantly.
"Then it must be rape," Zhao Feiwen said, looking toward Brother Red Chicken. "There aren't many in this academy capable of doing something like that, are there?"
"Who the fuck are you looking at?" Brother Red Chicken flew into a rage. "I have flocks of wives and concubines out there! Women worshipping me could form a line from Du all the way to the Capital City! Why the hell would I need to rape anyone?"
The old dean scrutinized Brother Red Chicken. "The case is rather complex. Indeed, it doesn't seem like his doing."
"???"
For a moment, Brother Red Chicken didn't know whether to be angry or relieved.
"Is this case really so difficult? I think it's quite simple," a voice sneered.
Everyone turned to look. The speaker was Zhu Mingxu, dressed like an idol trainee. Meeting the gazes of the students and teachers, he kept his hands shoved into his pockets and declared:
"The dean just said there were no signs of a struggle, suggesting an acquaintance, and the spirit was eradicated after death. There aren't many people capable of both. Right, Yuanshi Tianzun?"
The crowd erupted into an uproar.
Sun Miaomiao, Peony Fairy, Niulanshan Little Fairy, and several other female students glared furiously at Zhu Mingxu.
"You damn sissy, what bullshit are you spewing?!"
"Yuanshi Tianzun needing to use force? Believe it or not, if he were willing, your own mother would strip naked and spread her legs for him!"
"Femboys aren't in fashion anymore! With a face like that, you dare question Yuanshi Tianzun? Dumbass!"
When women hurled vulgarities, they were every bit as foul-mouthed as men.
Among official Saints, especially the females, the vast majority were Yuanshi Tianzun's fans.
Even setting fandom aside, he was an official colleague. How could they allow a Spirit Realm clan brat to slander him?
Covered in a torrent of verbal abuse from women, Zhu Mingxu turned red with anger and humiliation. He sneered, "The only ones who can eradicate spirits are Night Roamers! The only ones who can come and go without a trace are Night Roamers! And the only ones who can possess and control someone are still Night Roamers! You foul-mouthed bitches, tell me, if it wasn't Yuanshi Tianzun, who else could it be?
"Of course, it could also be Zhao Chenghuang, Yuan Ting, or Teacher Stargazer. Either way, it's down to these few. Just investigate them!"
The female students continued cursing, but none could formulate a logical rebuttal.
Zhang Yuanqing called out loudly, "The innocent need no defense. Dean, I am willing to undergo lie detection."
The raucous shouting instantly died down.
The dean nodded slightly. "This is an inevitable test."
With that, he drew a six-inch-long brownish horn from his inventory. "Hold this prop and answer my questions. If you lie, it will glow."
*It's not a Scout-class prop...* Zhang Yuanqing calmly took the small brown horn. Before the dean could speak, he took the initiative and declared:
"I did not go to the female dormitory last night. I did not kill Xia Chaoxue, and I certainly did not assault her."
Empowered by the White Face, his mind operated at unprecedented speed, becoming far more cunning, alert, and adaptable.
Everyone's eyes locked onto the brownish horn.
It didn't react in the slightest.
Many female students breathed a quiet sigh of relief.
Zhu Mingxu stared blankly, his face filled with disappointment before lapsing into deep thought.
The other four members of the underground palace expedition immediately understood: Yuanshi Tianzun was demonstrating the approach for them.
Following his playbook would work!
The old dean scrutinized him silently, gave a nod, and then asked out of nowhere, "Were you in your dormitory the entire night?"
*Why the hell are you asking that?!*
Zhang Yuanqing gazed calmly at the dean.
Had it not been for the Ghost Mirror's emotional dampening, his gaze would have sharpened instantly, or his pupils would have constricted.
To Zhang Yuanqing's ears, that simple inquiry exploded with an immense volume of information.
He had already proven his innocence.
By all regular logic, since he wasn't the killer, why ask this redundant question? What did whether he stayed in his dorm all night have to do with the victim?
Had he not cleared himself, such questioning would be understandable.
Yet the dean already knew through Insight and the lie-detecting prop that he was not the culprit, yet he still posed this question.
Only one person would care whether the students had left their dormitories during the night.
The armored man.
*But how could the armored man have known the stone doors were opened?*
Chapter 435