Substitution

That evening, on Chang Street in Jia County. Chen Chuan, Officer Wang, and several plainclothes Public Security Bureau officers walked along the bustling street. Snack stalls lined both sides of the night market. Lantern-hung shops selling all sorts of trinkets stood shoulder to shoulder. Lantern riddles, pitch-pot, wrestling, amateur theatrical singing, and other festivities were in full swing, and fireworks occasionally crackled and flared in the distance. For a small county town, it was lively indeed. And according to Officer Wang, the Skillful Goddess Festival itself would be the noisiest time of all, when more than half the town's population would take to the streets. This was precisely what worried the Administration Bureau most. They feared the situation would spiral completely out of hand, yet they could not possibly order everyone to stay indoors; even if they issued such a mandate, enforcement would be impossible. Regardless, the festive atmosphere at least allowed them to loosen their tightly wound nerves for a moment. Chen Chuan said to them, "You'd all better buy something—even just a snack. If you buy nothing at all, that thing might end up on you when you head back. Though, of course, that's only a possibility." Startled by his warning, Officer Wang and the security officers promptly scattered to the stalls on either side to purchase a few items. When they returned, Chen Chuan said, "All right. We don't have any specific tasks tonight, so feel free to look around the night market." Seeing that Chen Chuan remained where he stood, Officer Wang asked, "What about you, Expert Chen? You're... not buying anything?" Chen Chuan gave a simple grunt of confirmation. Officer Wang could not help shivering. Chen Chuan bought nothing and ate nothing. Around ten o'clock that night, as the group made their way out of the night market, he suddenly sensed something. *Has it really appeared?* Reaching into his pocket, he drew the object out and held it up to his eyes. Sure enough, it was a concentric knot—not a fresh one, but the very knot he had recovered from the corpse earlier that day! He had distinctly left it in the car, yet now it had inexplicably turned up in his pocket. Seeing him pull the item out so suddenly, Officer Wang gasped in shock. "Expert Chen, why did you bring that with you?!" Chen Chuan said steadily, "I didn't bring it. It appeared on its own." "Wh-what?" Officer Wang's voice quavered slightly. "Don't worry." Chen Chuan glanced at him. "I know what I'm doing." Seeing how composed he was, Officer Wang steadied his nerves. "Expert Chen, what do we do next?" Chen Chuan put the knot away. "We wait until tomorrow. Tomorrow, please check on things, Officer Wang. If no one dies from a butterfly tattoo, that will prove my hypothesis is correct. If deaths continue, then we'll have to try another approach." Urban legends always followed certain rules, especially those affecting groups. He had noted that along the timeline, ever since the butterfly tattoos were first discovered ten days ago, exactly one person had died every single day—no more, no less. Yet that raised a question: what if someone who received a concentric knot didn't die from it? The knot in his hand had indeed been obtained by someone, but that person had not died from the butterfly tattoo; he had perished from an unrelated accident. Now that the knot was in Chen Chuan's hands, a contradiction with the urban legend's fundamental rule had emerged. He wanted to see whether the urban legend would bypass him, or if it would be unable to proceed without killing him first. If it was the latter, then as long as he stayed alive, no one else would die. If his possession of it had no effect whatsoever, he would simply switch methods. After leaving the night market, he arrived at the inn Officer Wang had arranged for him—the finest in Jia County. Approaching the front desk, he signaled for the staff to step away, then placed a call to Cheng Zitong. He outlined the general situation and reported that he already had a lead. Cheng Zitong said gravely, "Using an accidental death to find a breakthrough is a good approach. But doing this means drawing the confrontation with the urban legend entirely onto yourself. Xiao Chuan, are you confident?" Chen Chuan said, "I'm confident, Teacher. When I discussed things with Bureau Director Lei before, he said I possess an aptitude I wasn't even aware of, one capable of withstanding the encroachment of urban legends. I believe he was right." Cheng Zitong acknowledged this with an affirmative hum. When others undertook commissions involving urban legends, they required prolonged intervals between cases and inevitably suffered inexplicable bouts of weakness. Yet this student of his always emerged hale and vigorous, took on back-to-back commissions, and seemed in increasingly higher spirits. There was ample reason to believe Lei's assessment. Even so, he offered a solemn reminder: "An urban legend is still an urban legend, and good swimmers are often the ones who drown. Even though you have plenty of experience now, remain cautious. Call me anytime if something goes wrong." "Understood, Teacher." After hanging up, Chen Chuan settled into his room at the inn. As for the concentric knot, he had casually tossed it aside upon entering the building, yet when he lay down to rest, his fingers brushed against it by his pillow. He was not surprised. By rights, the item should have transformed into a butterfly tattoo, but instead it remained in physical form. Throughout the night, he could feel a force continuously encroaching upon him. It was not particularly intense, however, and fell far short of what the flying head had exerted. When morning came, a report was delivered. Chen Chuan's eyes narrowed. "Where are the remains?" "They've been sent to the examination office. Results should be out soon." Chen Chuan nodded. All they could do was wait; only once the facts were established could they determine their next step. By midday, Officer Wang hurried over to inform him that the corpse's death was indeed caused by the butterfly tattoo, but the remaining rotten flesh was at least seven days old, meaning it was not a recent fatality. Chen Chuan pondered for a moment, then asked, "Have any other similar remains been discovered?" Officer Wang shook his head. Chen Chuan considered the matter. It seemed his method might truly be working, but to be sure, they needed to observe for another couple of days. That night, he noticed the signs of etherealization deepen considerably. Rather than being troubled, his spirits lifted, for this suggested his approach was right. By the following day, Chen Chuan remained in wait. That night, the signs of etherealization deepened further, even stimulating his mutated tissue. At this point, he could be certain his strategy was correct. An urban legend of this sort was difficult to eradicate in one stroke. The most effective way to handle it was to identify the crux and engage it in a battle of attrition. He knew this was a tug-of-war: either the urban legend would wear him down to death, or he would deplete the source of its power. The former was unlikely to happen, for if something felt truly amiss, he would leave Jia County ahead of time. That was the standard countermeasure against most urban legends—leave the affected area, and unless someone was actively directing it, one could generally evade the danger. In densely populated areas, however, the local residents could not simply pack up and leave on a whim. As the days passed, Officer Wang's admiration for Chen Chuan grew by leaps and bounds. On the very day Chen Chuan arrived, he had produced a workable plan, and over the past two days, not a single new incident involving the butterfly tattoo had occurred. Chen Chuan, however, knew it was not yet time to relax. "It isn't over yet," he said. "Tomorrow is the Skillful Goddess Festival. If we pass through it smoothly, all will be well; if not, there will still be trouble." He suspected the urban legend was linked to the festival itself. With the celebration arriving the next day, an even stronger surge of encroachment would likely follow. Only by weathering that day could they truly clear this hurdle. Hearing this, Officer Wang grew anxious once more, though his confidence in Chen Chuan held firm. "Expert Chen, is there anything you need? I can arrange it." After a moment's thought, Chen Chuan replied, "If there's anything to do, ensure that not too many people gather near this inn." "Understood." With a solemn expression, Officer Wang left the room and immediately set about the arrangements. Another day slipped past, and the Skillful Goddess Festival arrived. Chen Chuan found his judgment confirmed. With the festival underway, the pressure encroaching upon him mounted rapidly. He reasoned that the power dispersed among the various concentric knots was likely converging upon him one by one. Now it was a matter of who could hold out longer. Judging by its current intensity, it still could not compare to the flying head from before. Back then, he had nearly failed to endure it, but that was because he had also had to fight the creature simultaneously. Now, free from combat, he could conserve a great deal of overlap time. Even so, as a precaution, he instructed the company driver to remain on standby outside. If he felt he genuinely could not hold on, he would leave Jia County early to evade the surge, then devise another solution later. Meanwhile, outside, the Skillful Goddess Festival reached its climax. The county town's residents flocked to the streets in celebration. Aside from the New Year, this was a rare holiday for the small town, and most of its inhabitants came out to unwind. Sitting inside the inn, Chen Chuan watched the fireworks rise and burst outside the window, while his body endured an intense stimulation akin to several times the normal dosage of medicine. Regulating his breathing, he guided the growth of his mutated tissue. Time ticked away. When midnight struck and the clamor outside died down, the relentless pressure began to recede, quickly dropping to a much lower intensity. Though it lingered, it was nowhere near as fierce as before. He knew the most perilous moment had passed. He did not sleep, remaining cross-legged where he sat with the Xuejun Saber resting at his side within arm's reach. As the sky gradually brightened, a beam of morning sunlight slanted in through the window. Saber in hand, he stepped down from the bed and walked to the window. Breathing in the fresh morning air, he gazed out at the rising sun climbing over the distant hillside. Suddenly sensing something, he reached into his pocket for the concentric knot, only to grasp a handful of decayed powder; only a single silk loop from the tassel remained intact. He looked down at the remnant in his hand. When the room was fully bathed in sunlight, a knock sounded at the door, followed by Officer Wang's cautious voice: "Expert Chen, are you there?" Chen Chuan replied, "The door isn't locked. Come in, Officer Wang." Hearing Chen Chuan speak in his normal, energetic voice, Officer Wang let out a sigh of relief. Pushing the door open, he saw Chen Chuan standing by the window gazing at the scenery outside. He walked over to join him and said, "This is the tallest inn in Jia County. You can see most of the town from here, as well as the Hulu River out there. I heard the town used to suffer frequent waterlogging, but during the Great Expansion, the waterways were dredged and renovated, so that rarely happens now." Chen Chuan nodded. "Officer Wang, you can go check on those people who were detained and see if the butterfly tattoos are still on them." Officer Wang blinked in surprise, then dashed out like a gust of wind. Less than half an hour later, Officer Wang called, shouting excitedly through the receiver, "Expert Chen! They're gone! They're gone! The tattoos on all of them have vanished!" Chen Chuan could feel his sheer thrill even through the phone. Smiling, he said, "That's good. In that case, Officer Wang, my commission here in Jia County is complete. I'll be leaving shortly to return to Yangzhi." "Wait, please wait!" Officer Wang said hurriedly. "Let me see you off, Expert Chen!" Chen Chuan agreed. After packing his things, he left the inn, notified the company driver to bring the car around, and waited outside. In less than ten minutes, Officer Wang came sprinting over, sweat dripping from his forehead. Holding a book in his hands, he rushed up to Chen Chuan and handed it over with genuine sincerity. "Expert Chen, thank you so much for solving Jia County's trouble. I don't have much to offer as thanks, but I remember hearing that you're interested in local customs and folklore. This copy of *Legends of the Three Mountains* records quite a few old-era tales from the neighboring counties and towns. Please accept it—I hope you won't find it too modest." Chen Chuan took it with a smile. "Thank you, Officer Wang. I like this gift very much. Well, I'll be on my way. Please head back." He waved to Officer Wang and got into the car. Officer Wang waved back, standing in place and watching the vehicle drive away into the distance, remaining there for a long time.