Chapter 91 - 90: How Can a Group of Strangers Be So Uniformly Wicked

Xu Huo left, but not completely. He first made a trip to the office.

The office wasn’t crowded; most people were out dealing with cases.

With practiced ease, Xu Huo walked to the desk Linlan City had reserved for him.

He opened his computer, typed in his password, and launched the browser with swift efficiency.

Then, he logged into [Terminus Novels] and accessed his author account.

Before long, in the drafts section, he clicked the word ’Publish’.

The next second, he fired off several drafted Chapters.

It was 2003, a period when web novels were starting to boom. Major web novel sites competed for traffic and began throwing money to poach authors.

This meant that while Terminus Novels didn’t have nearly as many readers as it did in his previous life, it wasn’t completely drowned out by the sea of other novel websites.

With people, a reputation naturally followed.

Or in other words, fame.

Setting aside his reputation in the police world, Xu Huo’s fame as an author was quite good at this point in time.

Well, his writing style was one-of-a-kind, and his descriptions always left people scratching their heads.

And for that very reason, he had a small, dedicated following waiting for his updates.

Seeing the new Chapters, their eyes lit up, and they immediately flooded in.

「Half an hour later...」

In the Chapter comments.

[XixiBuXixi: ? Seriously, bastard author, do you even know what you’re writing?]

[DeathByPomegranateSkirt: Write something good, I’m begging you, please write something good!]

[Mechanic: I’m so fucking triggered, guys, I’m really losing it! Why the hell did that guy kill himself?! Shouldn’t it have been death sentence reduced to life, life reduced to a fixed term, sentence reduced further, and then he gets out of prison for a happy ending with her!?]

[Mechanic: Damn author, you motherfucker, what the hell are you writing?! Why the fuck did he commit suicide?! I was already picturing the scene where they get out and just smile at each other!]

[Mechanic: I don’t want to see them together in the fucking morgue!]

[CallMeHerMajestyTheQueen: Guys, stop fighting. Actually, they didn’t die and weren’t abducted. The girl found a great job after graduation, the guy’s career took off, they were deeply in love, brought their parents to the city, grew old together, and had two kids, a boy and a girl. The one who actually died... was me.]

[GonnaTakeYourKidneys: Bastard author, where are you?! Where the fuck are you!?]

...

Looking at these comments, Xu Huo’s face broke into a benevolent smile.

"Ah, that’s better."

It was the so-called Law of Conservation of Smiles: joy and sorrow don’t disappear, they simply transfer from one person to another.

Those few words from Zhang Liang had made him uncomfortable.

So he came to his readers to borrow some smiles.

However, just as he was about to close the tab, he glanced at the main review section...

[ShadowOfADreamPianoPiece: This novel is so good! The warm family atmosphere, the satisfying power-fantasy pacing, every character gets a great ending. It’s so good!!!]

[BookLover20...7372: Not bad. It vividly portrays the truth, goodness, and beauty of human nature. Perfectly suited for our beautiful and harmonious society. It’ll leave you feeling gentle all day!]

[ReadingSmileyTiger: Such a heartwarming story needs more Chapters. I’m so engrossed I can’t even eat.]

[BoredFoxReading: The stories inside are very heartwarming. I’ve been savoring the aftertaste all day!]

[...]

Xu Huo: ?

Xu Huo froze, a few question marks popping up in his head. He subconsciously checked if he had clicked on the wrong review section.

"No, this is right. This is my book."

"Wait, hold on... What the hell is this?"

Xu Huo carefully thought back on what he’d written, but he couldn’t recall a single thing that remotely matched these descriptions.

’Is this really my book!?’

Until he saw a new comment...

[Little Bookworm: Is this review section for real? It feels so weird!]

[ChaChaCha replied to Little Bookworm: It’s all true, bro. Trust me, it’s super wholesome. Just read it!]

Xu Huo went to the bathroom.

A moment later, when he returned and refreshed the page, a new reply had appeared in the review section.

[Little Bookworm replied to ChaChaCha: Fuck you! You’re a real piece of shit, goddamn. How can you be such a fucking bastard...]

A furious tirade appeared.

But not long after, the comment was deleted by the user.

[Little Bookworm: Great book. Love to read it. It is indeed wholesome. Anyone who hasn’t read it should check it out. It’s very heartwarming and joyful!]

Xu Huo: ?

Xu Huo opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but nothing came out. He scratched his head.

Sometimes, a group of strangers who have never met or spoken to each other can inexplicably band together to be evil...

Xu Huo silently moved his mouse and pinned the comment from his author dashboard, while simultaneously condemning it in his heart.

’So evil!’

’I should do that too.’

’No, it’s not evil. It’s just abiding by the Law of Conservation of Emotions, borrowing a few smiles.’

Xu Huo thought to himself.

Just as he was thoroughly enjoying himself, a voice suddenly sounded in his ear.

[Ding! Congratulations, Host, for scripting the ’Ghost Well’ plot. Calculating reward.]

[Calculating reward...]

[This scripted plot achieved an immersion level of 86%. You have received the reward: ’Joy Eye’.]

[Joy Eye: When you use this Skill, your vision will become incomparably clear. No evil can escape your watchful eyes, and clues hidden in the details will become exceptionally conspicuous...]

[Note: You can use it to curb the growth of evil, or you can use it to create a breeding ground for crime.]

[Note: A great criminal mastermind starts with small things, like, peeking at people while they bathe...]

"It affects the senses!?"

Xu Huo’s eyebrow twitched. He narrowed his eyes, looking at the skill panel that appeared before him with a pleasant surprise.

Police officers loved sensory skills like this. Take his sense of smell, for example. Xu Huo alone compensated for the lack of police dogs in both Jiangsan City and Linlan City.

If an ordinary person had this skill, they would instantly become a treasured asset to the police!

And now... he had a second one!?

"Joy Eye!"

With a thought, Xu Huo’s eyes seemed to be veiled in a layer of golden light. Everything before him became incredibly clear.

He focused his gaze slightly, and it was as if he had zoomed in. All sorts of nooks and crannies appeared before him like carrots on a cutting board, ready to be examined however he pleased.

The police have three sources of information: the crime scene, interviews, and deduction.

And information from the scene can only be obtained through investigation!

Investigation these days is all about using your eyes. This meant... he could capture any clue at a crime scene.

"Tsk, I really hit the jackpot."

Xu Huo clicked his tongue in amazement.

A moment later, he looked at his current status panel.

[Host: Xu Huo]

[Age: 23]

[Learned Skills: Killing Skill Level 5, Firearms Level 5, Parkour Level 5, Black Dragon Eighteen Hands Level 5, Boxing Level 5...]

(Note: Max level is Level 5)

[Scripted Plots: ’Modern Jesus’, ’Flesh Processing Plant’, ’Night of the Soul’s Return’, ’Hell on Earth’, ’Ghost Well’]

[Buffs: Wang Die’s Scent, Fountain of Thoughts, Skin Painting Technique, Inciting Artist, Joy Eye]

He closed the status panel.

Xu Huo liked a few more comments, then logged off and headed out.

Today was October 31st.

The seventh day since the case wrapped up.

The case itself wasn’t complicated. The reason it was taking so long to conclude, and why there were still so few people in the office, was because of the bodies.

There were too many bodies, and retrieving them was extremely difficult.

Progress on the bodies in the well had only sped up in the last two days. After all, with the case solved, they were no longer needed for information, so their methods became a bit rougher—though not too rough; they were still relatively careful.

On top of that, only one person could go down the well at a time, and the conditions below were too harsh to work in.

Even now, the work at the "corpse well" wasn’t completely finished.

And then there was the matter of finding the families, which was even more difficult. The bodies were so decomposed that their faces were unrecognizable, making identity confirmation from records impossible. Even if their family members were standing right there, they probably wouldn’t recognize them. Confirming identities was hopeless; all they could do was try their best.

Mm.

This was also Li Jianye’s responsibility.

Nowadays, whenever the old man got tired, he’d curse out Xu Huo to get a boost of energy. It had become a habit; he’d even curse subconsciously when he got tired from walking.

Xu Huo felt indignant and wronged, but he couldn’t very well show it in front of the old man.

He was afraid of getting yelled at.

Just as he stepped out of the office.

He had intended to go to Wang Hu’s area to see what was going on, but as he got closer, he discovered...

"Huh?"

Xu Huo paused, looking at Qian Hua, Wang Hu, and Li Jianye standing before him. He raised an eyebrow.

"Captain Li, Captain Qian, why haven’t you left yet?"

Li Jianye’s workload was truly massive—so massive that even Qian Hua gasped when he saw it. He had gathered a bunch of people, including himself, to help, and even then they were exhausted.

This was also the reason why the man was constantly cursing Xu Huo.

The old man was an absolute alpha. Even if Wang Hu and Zhang Jian were here ordering him around, Li Jianye would probably curse them out all the same!

Li Jianye’s face darkened at the question, but he didn’t pay it much mind.

"What were you doing over there, kid? What took you so long?"

Li Jianye glanced toward the office and raised an eyebrow.

He had been planning to ask the kid for some ideas, but he hadn’t expected him to be gone for so long.

Just as Xu Huo was about to speak, Wang Hu quickly asked another question.

"Is it confidential?"

Xu Huo shook his head. "Not confidential."

The Special Fifth Bureau contract used his real name; there was no confidentiality clause.

He could even write about the Ghost Well case and publish it.

As long as the officials didn’t make a statement, this amount of information was no big deal.

The things that really needed to be taken seriously were the cases of a very special nature—the very reason the Special Fifth Bureau was established.

"It was nothing much. I just met someone who claimed to be a team leader from the Special Fifth Bureau,"

Xu Huo said after a moment of thought.

The Special Fifth Bureau itself wasn’t a secret; what needed to be kept confidential were its internal files and personnel.

It needed a certain deterrent effect, and complete secrecy would undermine that.

So, he could talk about it.

"The Special Fifth Bureau!?"

Wang Hu was stunned, then his brows furrowed.

"Those petty Plague Gods!?"

Li Jianye sucked in a sharp breath, his pupils constricting.

The name of this unit was all too familiar!

Anyone who spent enough time with the city bureau leadership would hear this name sooner or later.

But, for them to actually show up in person...

It felt surreal.

"What did they want with you!?"

Li Jianye couldn’t help but worry.

"Were they hostile? Are they going to take you away!?" Wang Hu asked, frowning.

"Not at all."

Xu Huo shook his head, thought for a moment, and said:

"They had me sign a contract."

"A contract?" Li Jianye was confused. ’The Special Fifth Bureau proactively seeks people out to sign contracts?’

"What kind of contract?"

"A consultant contract."

Xu Huo replied, "A special consultant for the Special Fifth Bureau."

Li Jianye let out a sigh of relief.

"I was wondering what it could be. A consultant... a consultant... huh?"

"A consultant!?"

In a sudden moment of realization,

everyone at the scene was stunned. They looked up at Xu Huo in disbelief.

"A consultant for the Special Fifth Bureau!?"

"Yeah, just signed it. The base salary is a full four thousand," Xu Huo said.

As his words fell,

the scene fell silent. Not a single person spoke. The quiet was so profound it was deathly still as they all stared blankly at Xu Huo.

Until...

A voice shattered the silence.

"Director Zhang! Quick, get Director Zhang!"

"Goddammit, you kid, goddammit, you really goddamn... I fucking..."

"Director Chu, Chu Linhai... yes, Director Chu, tell Director Chu!"

The news was like a bomb, exploding in everyone’s ears with a deafening BOOM.

The Special Fifth Bureau... had a consultant.

And he was one of their own!!!

"Damn it, kid, have you notified Director Chu yet?"

"Haven’t told him yet."

"Make the call!"

Li Jianye’s face was flushed an unnatural shade of red as he said excitedly:

"Call Director Chu right now!"

"A consultant for the Special Fifth Bureau... kid, you’ve really fucking made it!"

"Get Director Chu!!!"