The call was from Hong Kun. Zhou Huan arranged a meeting place with Hong Kun over the phone, then he locked up, took Dongzi with him, and sped off in his car.

The highways were nearly deserted at night, allowing Zhou Huan to drive at a high speed. The location Hong Kun set was a newly developed residential area known as Shanshui Longcheng. Its residents had only recently moved in, but the worst fear of the developers and property management had materialized: someone had inexplicably died there.

As soon as Zhou Huan entered the complex, he spotted a large crowd gathered around the outdoor fitness area in the central courtyard.

"Look at this person, how could he just slice open a corpse's stomach like that, without even calling the police?"

"I already called them; the police should be here soon."

"Hurry, look! What is that person taking out of the body's belly?" The surrounding onlookers buzzed with discussion.

Zhou Huan and Dongzi had just gotten out of the car when an elderly man with a head full of white hair burst from the crowd, rushing toward the corpse while weeping loudly: "Xiao Bao, how could you leave so suddenly?" The old man then turned and grabbed the person squatting next to the body, clutching something taken from inside it—that person was Hong Kun.

The old man raised his hand and struck: "You wicked bastard, did you kill my grandson? He was the only seedling our family had; give me back my grandson!" The elder was clearly agitated. Though the two slaps were not enough to cause pain to a man in the prime of his life like Hong Kun, being treated this way in front of so many people was a profound loss of face for him.

"Old Yang, he didn't kill the child. We all arrived before him. He only got here when we went to inform you just now. The police will be here soon; let them investigate. Please, try not to get too worked up." Someone nearby tried to calm the elder.

Hong Kun showed no particular reaction to the old man; instead, he stood up and walked straight toward Zhou Huan, who was standing outside the crowd.

The object in his hand was dripping thick, black fluid, drop by drop: "Master Zhou, isn't this the small coffin you brought back to Fushou Hall last time? I saw that this person's death was identical to the old woman's case, so I was certain there was something unnatural inside his abdomen. Thus, I took the liberty of extracting it for you. However, this time the small coffin was dug out from the deceased's neck. It seems he tried to swallow this thing whole before he died. Take a look..."

Zhou Huan knew what Hong Kun meant: he wanted Zhou Huan to open the coffin again. This would not only allow Hong Kun to mock Zhou Huan for losing the infant and the coffin but also force Zhou Huan to make the coffin explode once more, utterly humiliating him in front of everyone.

"Fine, I'll open it this time. You hold this for me first; I need to examine the body." Zhou Huan stepped toward the corpse, fixing his gaze on it. The entire body was covered in bloody imprints, each mark distinctly pressed. It was the same as the deceased at Elder Sun's house: every blood imprint formed a fissure, and piecing them together revealed intricate patterns.

"Dongzi, memorize the patterns on the body; we will need them." Before Zhou Huan finished speaking, Hong Kun pulled out a piece of paper from behind Zhou Huan.

"Zhou Huan, I've already drawn them out for you. I wonder if they meet your requirements." This was a blatant provocation from Hong Kun, which caused Dongzi to once again lose his rare composure and rationality.

Dongzi pretended nothing was amiss and took the drawings Hong Kun offered: "Thank you, Master Hong. I'll accept this on behalf of my brother!" He carefully tucked the drawings into his pocket, turned around, and threw a punch, landing squarely on Hong Kun's nose: "You uncivilized brute, get lost now, or the next move will be a kick."

Dongzi’s punch was indeed heavy, sending stars swirling before Hong Kun's eyes, and he could taste the sharpness of vinegar, soy sauce, and scallions in his nose. He could only crouch down, clutching his nose, and hold up a hand signaling: "Fine, stop hitting me, I'm leaving!" Hong Kun slunk away miserably.

Zhou Huan turned and glared fiercely at Dongzi, then leaned close to Dongzi's ear and whispered, "That punch was well thrown!" This comment completely bewildered Dongzi. Usually, he could expect a scolding or a slap, but this time...?

Dongzi scratched his head, looking from Zhou Huan to the departing Hong Kun. Then, noticing the surrounding crowd watching him, he composed himself, squatted down next to Zhou Huan, and offered to help.

Zhou Huan took out gold powder from his bag, placed a copy of the Ksitigarbha Sutra into the deceased's coat pocket, covered the body with the white curtain he brought, sprinkled the gold powder, and then sprayed yellow wine over the upper body.

Afterward, Zhou Huan pulled the elderly man, who had been crying hysterically, aside: "Elder, we also grieve for the loss of your grandson, but please, do not be overly distressed. I, Zhou Huan, am investigating this matter. This is a supernatural event, so under no circumstances should your grandson's body be touched for the next two hours."

The old man was stunned, his eyes staring blankly at his grandson on the ground. He nodded in agreement: "Alright, you are Master Zhou. I understand. Do as you say. I feel like I won't live much longer either. Waaaah..." A fresh bout of loud wailing followed.

Zhou Huan surveyed the surroundings again, his gaze drifting up to the Huanghai Mingzhu Pagoda on Yuanbao Mountain. This connected directly to the incidents that occurred in Yuanbao Mountain Park and Maokui Mountain Park.

Zhou Huan checked his watch: precisely ten o'clock at night. He instantly rallied: "Dongzi, pack up. Once the police arrive, we’ll explain what happened and leave."

"Brother, we're not sleeping tonight, are we?"

"No sleep!"

"Understood. I'll prepare the logistics!" Dongzi packed up, bound the small coffin with three bundles of large talismans, hung the Seven-Star Peach Wood Sword he had personally made around his waist, and slipped into a supermarket in the complex, buying plenty of food and water.

Seeing Dongzi execute this flawlessly, Zhou Huan felt a surge of emotion and affectionately patted Dongzi’s shoulder: "Good job, I didn't bring you along for nothing!"

The wail of police sirens soon followed as several patrol cars arrived on the scene. Upon arrival, the officers first dispersed the crowd and then cordoned off the area around the corpse with barrier tape.

Zhou Huan did not recognize the arriving officer, but the officer seemed to recognize Zhou Huan and stepped forward to ask: "Who are you? I feel like I’ve seen you somewhere before?"

"My name is Zhou Huan. It seems this jurisdiction isn't under the Badao Precinct. I specialize in handling supernatural events like this. You can contact Little Li at the Badao Precinct!" Zhou Huan introduced himself and explained his role.

"Oh, Master Zhou Shou. I know you. What, is this another supernatural case?"

"Yes. Please bear with the extra work. Do not move the body for another two hours, or it will disintegrate, and none of you will be able to piece it back together." Zhou Huan only relaxed after seeing the officer nod in understanding. He then turned to take his leave, rushing off with Dongzi. Less than half an hour later, just as the clock struck midnight, they arrived at Maokui Mountain.

Zhou Huan parked the car by the roadside, slung his bag over his shoulder, and headed straight with Dongzi to the mountain god temple, picking up a large stone to sit on.

"Brother, we’re waiting here?" Dongzi was a little confused but trusted that Zhou Huan's actions were correct.

Zhou Huan pulled a piece of bread and a packet of yogurt from a plastic bag and began to eat: "Dongzi, eat up quickly. We need to keep our eyes wide open in a bit. Anything could happen, and if another innocent person dies, it will be even more troublesome for us."

"Mm!" Dongzi agreed, grabbing a bread in each hand and starting to chew.

Normally, at this hour, there were almost no people on the mountain to digest their meals; only the occasional couple could be seen passing by, and the youngsters who danced street style in the plaza were still at it. However, the park lights were still bright, allowing clear visibility of the figures in the square and even the shadows of things in the woods on the mountain.

The remaining few street dancers glanced at their watches, chatted briefly, stopped their energetic music, packed up their gear, started their motorcycles, and drove away towing two large speakers.

Zhou Huan checked his watch; the hands pointed exactly to midnight.

"It's twelve o'clock. That guy should be showing up soon!" Zhou Huan’s voice was very low.

Dongzi symbolically crouched down, widening his tiny eyes, looking around and listening intently with his ears perked up.

At that moment, a couple walked past them, drawing the immediate, intense focus of the two men. The couple, startled by the gaze fixed upon them, took off running, the man dragging the woman, even carrying her on his back for a short distance.

"Brother, we saw wrong!"

Zhou Huan frowned slightly, feigning anger as he asked Dongzi: "Were you staring at them with those ugly eyes of yours?"

"No, I just heard movement, so..." Dongzi had only started to explain when he saw a long-haired woman in a long, floral dress passing by Zhou Huan’s car down the slope, walking as if she had lost her soul, her steps unsteady and soft.

"Brother, look!"

Zhou Huan held up a hand to stop Dongzi’s words, focusing intently on the woman himself. The woman seemed to be walking toward them, getting closer and closer. As she approached their position, she turned away from Zhou Huan and Dongzi at a fork in the path, as if she hadn't seen them at all.

"That's not right. That path leads to the summit. Why is she going up there so late, and she's not a couple?" Dongzi muttered to himself while watching the woman.

Zhou Huan slowly stood up, lightly patting Dongzi: "Let's go. Follow her from a distance and see what she intends to do. If it's a suicide attempt, we might still be able to save her!"

Dongzi followed Zhou Huan, trailing the young woman, both taking great care to place their feet down lightly as they walked.

As the woman walked, she began to sob, and as she neared the summit, her crying grew louder.

Zhou Huan and Dongzi followed her all the way to the mountaintop, where a large rock served as a seat near the mountain god temple. The woman, still crying, looked down toward the valley, muttering: "You wouldn't listen to me, so I’ll die to show you!"

As soon as the woman finished speaking, she pulled off her outer shirt, leaving only a thin camisole underneath, and placed the discarded clothing onto the rock.