Chapter 24: The Killer

 Chapter 24: The Killer

Yeah, I almost forgot about that guy.

Li Dongze's words reminded the captains that they had already recruited a Night Walker in the Lingjing team of Kangyang District, so they didn't need to borrow anyone from the Taiyi Sect.

Big Muscle showed a pleased expression and immediately said, "Then what are we waiting for? Let's contact that guy. As I said, we should cultivate our own Night Walkers. Our own people are the most reliable in critical moments."

The other captains nodded in agreement.

Li Dongze glanced at Fu Qingyang, who nodded slightly, and then took out his phone and left the meeting room.

"I'll go contact him."

...

After finishing the morning classes, Zhang Yuanqing slung his backpack and left the classroom. He planned to skip the afternoon classes and visit the office of the second team of the Lingjing Squad in Kangyang District.

His focus for future social interactions would be on the Lingjing Squad.

Zhang Yuanqing didn't particularly like school, and he wasn't very interested in studying. The young people in Songhai had a kind of inherent laziness, lacking aggressiveness and determination.

In this world, there are only two types of people who will struggle: those who have cultivated positive habits from a young age and those who are forced by life.

After becoming a Lingjing Walker, Zhang Yuanqing finally regained his long-lost spirit of fighting. On one hand, it was because of the threat to his life, and on the other hand, it was to fulfill his dream of wandering the rivers and lakes as a young swordsman.

The Lingjing world was full of danger and strangeness, but once he tasted the sweetness of it, he couldn't bear to be an ordinary person anymore.

As he arrived downstairs, about to rent a shared bicycle, his phone in his pocket started ringing. It was a call from Li Dongze.

"Captain?" Zhang Yuanqing answered.

"Where are you now?" Li Dongze spoke rapidly, getting straight to the point.

"At school," Zhang Yuanqing replied.

"Songhai University, right? I'll have Guan Ya come and pick you up," Li Dongze said urgently.

"Pick me up?" Zhang Yuanqing sensed the urgency in Li Dongze's tone and asked tentatively, "What's the matter?"

"A colleague of ours got killed. We need a Night Walker to devour the spirit body and retrieve the other person's memories. Can you do it?" Li Dongze asked with some concern.

Uh, it should be possible... Zhang Yuanqing replied, "I'll give it a try?"

Devouring the spirit body was not difficult; it was a natural ability of the Night Walker. His mind told him that he could do it, but when it came to extracting memories, he had never actually devoured a spirit body before and had no experience, so he couldn't guarantee it.

"That'll do." Li Dongze didn't say much and hung up the phone.

Zhang Yuanqing put away his phone and walked towards the school gate on foot. A few minutes later, he stopped at the school gate, silently waiting for Guan Ya to pick him up. At the same time, he noticed a girl wearing a pleated skirt standing on the roadside, holding a brand-name handbag, as if waiting for someone.

Xu Yingying?

Zhang Yuanqing examined this "campus belle." Her dress was very sophisticated, from the bracelets, necklaces, earrings, to the handbag... all looked expensive and distinct from most female students at the school.

Ordinary girls from ordinary families couldn't afford this kind of appearance.

Feeling Zhang Yuanqing's gaze, Xu Yingying smiled lightly, flipping her hair and straightening her posture, showcasing her most charming pose, feeling a slight sense of superiority in her heart.

This boy had a quite good appearance, so she instinctively displayed her beauty.

But now, she was already in a different world from ordinary university students, so she was filled with a strong sense of superiority.

Her entire outfit cost as much as a year's living expenses for an average college student.

At this moment, Xu Yingying saw a blue sports car approaching and slowly stopping at the school gate.

The woman driving the car wore a neat white shirt and sunglasses, making it hard to see her face clearly. However, her fair and sharp jawline, delicate and finely carved mouth, hinted at her high attractiveness.

Xu Yingying pursed her lips, changed her posture, and positioned the logo of her brand-name bag towards the sports car.

At the same time, she saw Zhang Yuanqing running towards the car, opening the door, and getting inside.

The wealthy woman stepped on the gas pedal and swiftly drove away with her little companion.

Xu Yingying's mouth hung open, her face filled with surprise.

For a moment, she couldn't tell if this male classmate was a low-key wealthy kid or one of her peers—the seafood trader or the steel wool ball merchant.

....

In the Kangyang District Security Bureau, in the autopsy room...

Zhang Yuanqing stood beside the autopsy table and lifted the white cloth, revealing a gruesome corpse before him. The deceased was covered in bruises and knife wounds, with a horrifying gash in the chest, a ghastly sight to behold.

If it were two days ago, seeing such a body would have made Zhang Yuanqing feel physically uncomfortable, but after experiencing the beatings at the Mountain God Temple, the sight of the corpse no longer caused much turbulence in his heart.

"Let's get started," said Li Dongze, leaning on his cane, eagerly anticipating the process.

Zhang Yuanqing nodded, examining the body of Zhao Yingjun. He felt the lingering spirit within this cold corpse gradually becoming active and awakening. The aura of a Night Walker had a deadly attraction to spirits, capable of awakening the slumbering spirits.

Quietly mobilizing the power of Taiyin within him, his eyes and pupils turned completely black, he extended his hand and made a virtual grab towards Zhao Yingjun's body.

A phantom figure was grabbed out, having the facial features of Zhao Yingjun, but with a lifeless and hollow expression. After death, about ninety percent of consciousness dissipates, leaving the spirit in such a lifeless state. As consciousness dissipates, memories naturally become fragmented, only retaining some deeply ingrained memories. Memories before death were often profound and close to the moment of death, thus preserved.

After extracting the spirit, Zhang Yuanqing suddenly felt the desire to "consume" it. Instinctively, he opened his mouth and gently sucked. Zhao Yingjun's spirit turned into a faint green smoke, floating into his mouth.

A sharp pain arose in his forehead, his consciousness seemed to swell, with numerous foreign things cramming into it.

...

Zhang Yuanqing heard a low sobbing sound, a whimpering cry, and heard a sinister and menacing voice saying, "I don't have much patience. You'd better answer honestly."

He realized he was reading the last memories of the spirit. Slowly "opening" his eyes, the surroundings became clear—it was a lavishly decorated suite.

He sat on the soft bed, completely naked, with discarded clothes and women's underwear scattered on the floor.

Not far from him, at the bedside, there was a young woman crouching, also completely naked, with fair and tender long legs, a tight abdomen, and well-shaped breasts, showing off her youthful and attractive curves. She was the one sobbing.

A woman? Naked? This sight stunned Zhang Yuanqing, wondering why Captain didn't explain the situation at the crime scene clearly. How could he let me witness an adult scene like this? I'm still a child...

Through the deceased's perspective, he looked at the person by the bed—a man with a fierce and wicked appearance, a half-inch scar on his left cheek, sparse eyebrows, and a fierce and sinister gaze.

He held a shiny willow blade in his hand.

The man held a brightly gleaming willow blade in his hand.

The killer... Zhang Yuanqing stared at the face, firmly remembering the appearance. At this point, he had completed half of his mission.

The man pointed the tip of the knife at "Zhang Yuanqing's" chest and said fiercely, "Where is the Holy Grail? Where is the roster?"

He seemed to have asked this question many times, his expression filled with impatience, and his gaze filled with murderous intent.

"I don't know, I really don't know... Please, spare me," Zhang Yuanqing heard 'himself' begging for mercy.

The man squatted at the bedside, completely losing his patience, rubbing his face as if exhausted, muttering, "I give you a chance, but you're useless... I give you a chance, but you're useless..."

As he spoke, he pushed the tip of the willow blade into 'Zhang Yuanqing's' chest.

A sharp pain surged, and his consciousness instantly blurred. Zhang Yuanqing collapsed weakly on the ground, witnessing the man unfastening his belt and grabbing the pretty woman's ankle, pulling her forcefully towards him.

The scene came to an abrupt end amid the woman's screams.