Shen Hao excelled at quickly sorting out the threads from a tangled mess.
Using the known to deduce the unknown—this is the most basic skill for a police academy graduate, and it's something he's purposefully honed throughout his years in the Xuanqing Guard.
"You've read the monthly Xuanqing Case Bulletin, haven't you? Do you still remember the major cases reported from various places?" Shen Hao didn't answer Wang Jian's question directly, but instead brought up an internal publication from the Xuanqing Guard.
"I have, and I remember most of them clearly."
"Then tell me, from the start of last year until now, how many cases involving evil cultivators have happened nationwide?"
"Uh? That should be around two hundred, right?"
"Two hundred and seventy-eight. Now think: out of all those cases involving evil cultivators, how many were actively targeted at our Xuanqing Guard?"
"Uh..." Wang Jian's memory wasn't as perverse as Shen Hao's, and he hadn't really paid attention before. So when Shen Hao asked, he couldn't answer.
"Only five. This shows that although evil cultivators act recklessly, they're actually very wary of us Xuanqing Guard and they rarely dare provoke us directly. Now think about last night—why did an evil cultivator control a third-grade evil and launch a direct attack on our investigation base?"
"..." Wang Jian knew Shen Hao was teaching him and started thinking carefully. Right, evil cultivators are powerful, but compared to Xuanqing Guard, they're at a clear disadvantage; most of the time, they're the ones being hunted down. Where would they get the guts to stir up trouble?
Was it vendetta? Or some other motive?
Vendetta is hard to say, but could there really be some compelling reason?
Wang Jian felt like he understood a bit, and after hesitating for a while, said, "Xiaoqi, you mean that bastard had a reason he had to bare his teeth at us?"
"Even a cornered dog will jump the wall; for someone to attack our base so boldly, there must be a reason he HAD to take the risk. Find him, and I bet we'll be close to solving the case—maybe even avenge our fallen brothers while we're at it."
"You're saying… we can still find that bastard?"
"We'll only know if we try."
Wang Jian didn't continue the topic. Instead, he made up his mind that he wouldn't let a single clue slip by—if there was even half a chance, he would track down that evil cultivator from last night and kill him.
"By the way, is everything settled at the manor? Any discoveries?"
"All handled. There were clear signs of recent habitation—ashes in the kitchen were fresh, so someone lived there within the last ten days or so. Plus the Evil Chasing Disc reacted strongly, so I deduce it was likely the evil cultivator who attacked us last night."
As for why he didn't suspect someone else was living in that abandoned manor, Wang Jian didn't explain, and Shen Hao didn't need him to explain.
A place so drenched in yin aura, accompanied by the stench of corpses and blood—ordinary people wouldn't dare stay, not even animals except for scavenging rats or evil cultivators naturally attuned to the yin.
Shen Hao agreed with Wang Jian's analysis.
"That manor was part of the Qi Family's holdings, probably used to deal with those corpses buried beneath it. Now that evil cultivators are lurking there, your earlier suspicion that the Qi Family was a human blood seller seems even more credible."
The main customers of human blood sellers are evil cultivators, but Shen Hao hadn't expected that the Qi Family's shady dealings were so deeply entangled with them.
Colluding with evil cultivators—that's enough to wipe out nine generations!
"Knock knock knock!"
As the two chatted, a Xuanqing Guard warrior knocked and entered, holding a portrait.
"Reporting: This is a portrait described by the Fengyuan Inn's attendant and gatekeeper after repeated recall. They said a certain guest in the inn often met up with several vagrants."
He spoke as he handed the portrait to Shen Hao.
Shen Hao looked down—the portrait showed a thin, middle-aged man, about fifty years old, with an honest face. He looked familiar!
"That's... Xiao Zhongliu?!"
Not only was Shen Hao stunned, even Wang Jian beside him froze. Who would've thought the report from Fengyuan Inn would lead straight to someone who should have vanished without a trace?
Shen Hao waved to dismiss the warrior and, after repeatedly confirming the portrait, breathed out heavily and unconsciously rubbed his brow.
A headache.
Wang Jian meanwhile wasn't idle; he immediately rushed out and brought back the detailed investigation records from Fengyuan Inn. He had arranged for his subordinates to handle the matter earlier, but now he couldn't wait and wanted to dig in personally.
"According to the inn attendant's memory, Xiao Zhongliu visited Fengyuan Inn for the last time on the morning of March 23rd, and even booked a private room near the back door."
"Near the back door?"
"Yes, if you open that room's door, it's a direct access to the inn's back entrance. Not many people go there. If the attendant hadn't happened to fetch water for the tea room, he might not have seen Xiao Zhongliu meeting with three vagrants."
"Three? Are we sure that's Xie Mountain, Chen Erniu, and Ma Jiu?"
"Confirmed. The attendant and two idle men chatting in the inn's alley all gave consistent descriptions. After showing them the portraits, they said it was definitely those three."
"Clack clack clack..."
Shen Hao listened to Wang Jian's report, subconsciously tapping the desk, and his mind felt tangled.
He thought that finding the person who met with Chen Erniu and the other vagrants at Fengyuan Inn would reveal the truth behind the Qi Family massacre, or at least push the case forward dramatically. But he never expected the person appearing in Fengyuan Inn would be Xiao Zhongliu.
If the previous suspicions are true, then Xiao Zhongliu should be directly connected to the deaths of Ma Jiu, Xie Mountain, and Chen Erniu—possibly even the killer himself.
So Xiao Zhongliu likely isn't missing, but hiding. He may even be linked to the evil cultivator who escaped last night.
But now that Xiao Zhongliu is exposed, what about Qi Wen Yuan and Qi Heng Soldiers, who disappeared with him? Where are they?
Despite the headache, Shen Hao understood that this new lead had helped him eliminate many false possibilities, refocusing the case's clues back on the Qi Family.
"Seems we'll only find the truth by digging deeper into the Qi Family's background... Wang Jian, go to the government office again and do a full background check on Xiao Zhongliu—his hometown, parents, relatives, life... Don't worry about trouble, check everything. If they're out of town, ask the General Flag to coordinate. You have one day. Go!"
"Yes, Xiaoqi! I'll get you a solid answer before dinner!" Wang Jian said, then rushed out.
Soon after Wang Jian left, a directive signed by Shen Hao was implemented: all Xuanqing Guard and Five Rams City garrison soldiers were ordered to speed up the citywide investigation, expanding the search to all surrounding manors and villages. They were ready to dig three feet deep—plus, every soldier held a portrait, and it was Xiao Zhongliu's image.