Qingyang County yamen, mortuary.
Bright lights illuminated the room.
Old Xing put down the scalpel in his hand, wanting to wipe away the sweat on his forehead, only to find his hands covered in blood. He had to awkwardly rub his shoulder to clean them.
"How is it?" Lin Ji asked.
"The internal organs are intact, just like the previous assessment. There are no external or internal injuries," Old Xing replied, organizing the process of dissection. "However, the blood in the deceased's body has turned into a paste, confirming that they have been dead for over a day. Additionally, the muscles around the heart are stiff, which is quite peculiar."
Lin Ji looked towards Guo Yi and Ling Yin beside him.
Lu Cong was sent to find Zhou Qian and might not return for a while. After all, that brat Zhou Qian owned at least a dozen properties in Qingyang County, each housing a woman. Who knows whose bed he would be sharing tonight.
"What do you think?" Lin Ji inquired.
Ling Yin bit her lip tightly, her face slightly pale. She had killed people and ghosts before, but this scene of dissection was a first for her.
When Old Xing started cutting, she already wanted to leave, but Guo Yi forcibly kept her in place.
Seeing Ling Yin's silence, Lin Ji turned to Guo Yi.
"A stiff heart, blood turned into paste, yet still able to move normally, even Song Dadi didn't realize his wife was already dead. This is the method of refining zombies," Guo Yi explained.
"You mean zombies?"
"Yes, the method of refining living people into zombies involves a process of turning them into living dead. The malevolent aura on the body can also attest to this."
"So, it's the work of humans, not demons or evil spirits lurking in the dark?"
Guo Yi chuckled bitterly.
"Such actions are no different from those of evil spirits."
After hearing Guo Yi's explanation, Lin Ji personally inspected various parts of the body.
Although Old Xing was experienced, he was not a cultivator, and his knowledge was limited.
Some eerie aspects required the use of spiritual eyes.
What he had seen at the Song residence was not clear. Now, in the mortuary, Lin Ji opened his spiritual eyes, examined for a moment, and suddenly noticed a gathering of malevolent aura behind the deceased.
The gathering was extremely faint, barely noticeable without careful examination.
"If I hadn't learned the Six Senses Returning to Origin Technique, I'm afraid I wouldn't have noticed this difference," Lin Ji thought to himself.
Turning the body to its side and removing the clothing, a square-shaped green tattoo caught Lin Ji's eye.
"Old Xing, didn't you notice this tattoo earlier?"
"It's just a tattoo. I checked it and found nothing unusual," Old Xing replied.
Old Xing's inability to notice was not surprising. Even Guo Yi failed to see the gathering malevolent aura.
But the malevolent aura was indeed emanating slowly from this tattoo.
Lin Ji turned to Guo Yi, wanting to hear his opinion.
However, when he looked back, he found Guo Yi's expression extremely grim, staring fixedly at the tattoo with an incredulous look in his eyes.
"Senior Brother?" Ling Yin also noticed Guo Yi's abnormality.
"That tattoo."
"You recognize the tattoo?" Lin Ji hurriedly asked.
"Qingcheng Sect, Malevolent Aura Talisman!"
"It's a talisman from the Qingcheng Sect?" Ling Yin was surprised. "Why haven't I heard of it?"
"You're only at the second realm. Malevolent Aura Talismans are against the natural order. Only after reaching the third realm will the masters select individuals with pure hearts to teach them."
"What's different about the Malevolent Aura Talisman?" Lin Ji inquired.
Guo Yi fell silent for a moment before saying, "The method I mentioned earlier, refining living people into zombies, relies on this Malevolent Aura Talisman."
Upon hearing this, Lin Ji narrowed his eyes and scrutinized Guo Yi for a long time.
It wasn't until Guo Yi felt a chill down his spine that Lin Ji finally stopped.
"Lin Head, you're not suspecting me, are you?"
"Of course not. I know who you are, Old Guo. I just find it surprising that the Qingcheng Sect, which appears so upright, has such sinister methods."
Guo Yi couldn't find it amusing.
The Qingcheng Sect was indeed righteous and had a good reputation in Liangzhou.
At this moment, someone was using their sect's methods to harm others, and ultimately, the blame would fall on the Qingcheng Sect.
This tarnishing of their reputation was something Guo Yi had to address.
"We must get to the bottom of this. We need to find out who is using the Qingcheng Sect's methods to harm people," Guo Yi asserted firmly.
Ling Yin also nodded in agreement.
"It's not that simple. Besides these clues, there are no other leads," Lin Ji sighed. "We'll have to put this matter on hold for now. We'll inform the Song family and assure them that we are working on the case."
What good would it do to know that someone from the Qingcheng Sect was responsible?
With hundreds of years of heritage, how many disciples had the Qingcheng Sect produced? Who knows if someone leaked their teachings outside?
This matter was untraceable because there was no starting point.
Moreover, to investigate further, they would have to visit the Qingcheng Sect.
The Qingcheng Sect was a renowned sect in Liangzhou. Would they allow a mere county yamen official to go through their disciple records and interrogate their elders?
Upon hearing Lin Ji's words, Guo Yi and Ling Yin's faces showed some discomfort, but they did not argue further.
Guo Yi was reasonable. After his initial outburst, he realized the difficulty of the situation.
Ling Yin, on the other hand, was simply afraid of being embarrassed by Lin Ji again.
But she also felt a sense of injustice.
"If only that person would commit another crime, at least it would prove that they didn't just kill and run, making it easier to investigate," Ling Yin remarked.
Lin Ji narrowed his eyes, glancing at Ling Yin.
"Well said." With that, Lin Ji left without looking back.
Ling Yin sensed that Lin Ji seemed a bit angry but didn't understand why.
"Senior Brother, what's wrong with him? Wasn't what I said correct?" Ling Yin asked.
Guo Yi also didn't know how to explain.
"You're right. Indeed, if there were more crimes, there would be more clues. But..."
"But?"
"Let it go. You'll understand in the future." Guo Yi shook his head, choosing not to elaborate further.
However, he sighed inwardly.
"I hope you truly understand."
"Heh, truly a genius nurtured by the sect since childhood." Lin Ji's face bore a mocking expression as he walked home with his sword in hand.
"Just a second realm cultivator, a naive little girl who can speak so callously about disregarding human life. People like her, once their cultivation advances, are likely to become arrogant figures."
Lin Ji knew that Ling Yin's words were unintentional.
But precisely because they were unintentional, he found them ironic.
Ling Yin wasn't a bad person, that much Lin Ji knew.
But no matter how kind and innocent one was, being raised in places like sects and noble families could instill that superior attitude.
"The world is already so difficult, why don't these people understand?" Lin Ji sighed inwardly. "Cultivators also come from ordinary people."
It wasn't that Lin Ji had exceptionally high moral standards; he simply felt that one shouldn't disregard the lives of ordinary people for the sake of achieving goals. Perhaps this was the value system he had inherited from the world he transmigrated into.
Lin Ji remembered the Taoist he had beheaded earlier, the words of that Taoist still echoing in his ears. A scornful smile crept onto his face.
"Just a few ordinary deaths, he has a clear conscience."
"Haha."
(End of Chapter)