Zhou Huan drove, stewing in anger the whole way. That guy Dongzi was so reckless; to think he could just kick someone like that! But one thing Zhou Huan was certain of: Dongzi would never kill an innocent person. Even in a real rage, at most, he’d leave someone bruised and battered, but this time, someone was actually dead. So, Zhou Huan kept focusing on how to smooth this whole mess over. He was angry that Dongzi resorted to violence—he was getting so mature, yet always looking for a fight. What would he be like in the future?

“Master, here is your compass. Could you take a look when you have a moment?” After the last incident, Zhou Huan had given Shi Bingyuan the blueprints. Shi Bingyuan had spent nearly a week studying them to restore this particular compass. This time, however, Shi Bingyuan had added some of his own modifications. It was probably a bit more advanced than before, but largely the same.

Zhou Huan glanced at it casually, cautious as he was still driving. After a quick look, he smiled. “It looks great. Was it made according to the drawings?” “Mostly, yes, but I added some things to it.” “What did you add?” “A small needle guide. This needle can instantly shoot out an amulet, locking the spirit in place, saving us the trouble of tracking it down further.”

Tian Xiong found this fascinating. He had been trying to figure out how to link his Buddhist and Taoist incantations with Zhou Huan’s Shou Shi skills, so this was the first he’d heard of Shi Bingyuan’s creation. Thus, Tian Xiong also piped up, “Senior Brother, do you think this thing will be more accurate than before? Or, when we encounter someone like Huang Yunfeng last time, do you think the needle can still break off or fall out?” “That absolutely won’t happen this time, because I used both an iron needle and a water needle. Wherever the iron needle points, it’s locked down. Beneath it is a hidden channel for water flow, so wherever it goes, there’s no escaping that either,” Shi Bingyuan introduced his device with pride.

When Zhou Huan heard this, he laughed again. “It’s still you guys who put my mind at ease. This Dongzi, ah!” He kept mentioning Dongzi, sighing frequently, but he felt helpless; Dongzi was one of the closest people to him lately, practically a younger brother. He just couldn't discipline him.

In the blink of an eye, Zhou Huan’s car pulled up beneath the foreman’s apartment building. Parked at the entrance of the complex were a police car and an ambulance. A very short woman, wearing slippers, was crying and wiping her eyes with a tissue, accompanied by a little boy who looked about five or six years old.

Zhou Huan parked his car behind the ambulance. A police officer stepped out of the patrol car—someone Zhou Huan had never seen, perhaps just transferred from the Xiaohe precinct. Yet, this fellow immediately recognized Zhou Huan, speaking with great politeness.

“Master Zhou, I’ve seen your photo and reviewed your file. I truly admire you. How should we handle this scene?” “The usual way. I believe the officer before me explained matters. Take me to see the deceased.” “Yes, certainly. Oh, right, let me introduce you.” As he spoke, the officer led Zhou Huan over to the weeping woman. “Ma’am, this is the renowned national Shou Shi, Zhou Huan.” He paused, then added, “Oh, Master Zhou, my surname is Zhou too. My name is Zhou Shun, hehe!” He turned back to the woman, about to say something else, but unexpectedly, the woman suddenly acted as if possessed, her face covered in tears and sticky mucus dripping from her nose.

“Zhou Huan, your apprentice killed my old man! Give me back my old man, or I swear I’m not finished with you! My boy and I will move in and live off you!” The woman certainly had spirit; the demand she made in an instant was surprisingly effective.

Zhou Huan gave the woman a helpless look, examining her carefully from head to toe. “I should call you Big Sister. Don’t worry, I will give you a very satisfactory explanation regarding this matter. As for whether this incident is truly related to my apprentice, we still need to investigate.” “Save the formalities. You are his master; you’re bound to side with your apprentice and speak for him. If you’re the one investigating, who do you expect to believe you?”

At this critical juncture, the police officer, Zhou Shun, stepped in. “Ma’am, you don’t understand. Back in the day, Bao Longtu even killed his own nephew. Master Zhou is a man of absolute righteousness; he absolutely won’t show favoritism. Our Old Zhou family bloodline is just like that. Look, we still need to go upstairs and see your husband’s body to help solve the case sooner.”

Zhou Huan found Zhou Shun’s words jarringly discordant and frowned at him. He immediately turned back to the woman. “Big Sister, how about we go upstairs first to look at your husband’s body?” He tested her reaction.

The woman surprisingly quieted down, only for about two seconds. She stopped crying. Hearing Zhou Huan suggest going upstairs, she immediately replied, “Fine. I want to see what kind of explanation you, Zhou Huan—this era’s Bao Heizi—can give me!”

“Master, perhaps Tian Xiong and I should go, and you should remain clear of the scene to avoid suspicion,” Tian Xiong suggested, forgetting for a moment that he and Dongzi were fellow disciples.

Zhou Huan turned back. “Aren’t our ties to Dongzi the same? Let Big Sister follow us. Let’s go up and take a look. Afterwards, we’ll properly inter the deceased, burning joss paper, ingots, fine liquor, and tall candles for him.” “I’ll worry about the aftermath later. I only want to know exactly how you plan to examine my husband’s body and what conclusion you’ll reach that will make me, and indeed the whole world, believe the outcome.”

Zhou Shun watched the two of them going on and on and took the initiative to intervene. “How about this: let’s go up first. This is a residential area; blocking the entrance up and downstairs like this isn’t ideal.” He then walked to the front and helped guide Zhou Huan toward the third floor.

Because this residential area was older style, mostly two or three-story buildings where the houses were built very close together, Zhou Huan observed the living conditions and concluded they would certainly affect the deceased’s living Yang energy. After all, old buildings always brought more trouble.

Reaching the third floor, the top floor, they passed through a long corridor to the apartment at the very end. The door was open, and two officers stood outside. Zhou Huan, bringing Bingyuan and Tian Xiong, walked straight in. Two forensic examiners were just preparing to start the autopsy, but Zhou Huan stopped them abruptly. “Wait a moment, let me see first.”

When Zhou Huan first entered the door, he couldn't clearly make out the state or appearance of the figure lying on the floor because the grieving woman was right behind him.

“Master Zhou, this is the deceased. Do you wish to observe first, or begin the examination?” Zhou Shun, having been briefed by Wang Xiaohe and Little Li before arriving, had some understanding of Zhou Huan’s procedures.

Zhou Huan looked closely. The corpse was somewhat gruesome. The deceased was wearing only lower body clothing; the undershirt had been ripped to the other side. The entire body was covered in sticky, viscous fluid. Strangely, various parts of the corpse exhibited marks resembling bruises left by physical blows.

Looking at the feet, there were two large, transparent holes in the soles. Based on this alone, any ordinary person would conclude the man had been struck by lightning, and the viscous fluid on his body was proof.

“Master, this fellow seems to have been struck by lightning!” Tian Xiong concluded. Zhou Huan shook his head. “No. He wasn’t killed by lightning. Think again. In this building, at the position where he lies, could lightning fly into the room? Furthermore, think back—has there been any rain or thunder in the city from yesterday until now? No. Therefore, the notion that he was struck by lightning is unlikely.” “Oh, I see now!”

Zhou Huan dared not touch the corpse on the floor; he didn't know the body’s condition yet, so he proceeded cautiously. Zhou Huan pointed at the hair on the corpse. “Look at his hair. It’s not scorched black; it’s quite smooth, looking as if he washed it recently. But look at his complexion and his eyes…”

When Tian Xiong and Shi Bingyuan saw the corpse’s eyes, they instantly froze. To an ordinary person, such a body looked normal—he died from whatever terrible thing happened to him. But a Shou Shi could see clearly at a glance: this corpse had brought about its own death.