Chapter Sixty-Nine: A Letter

The information gleaned from the Corpse Touching Technique was clear—being able to extract true qi and skills proved the case was linked to something supernatural.

Fang Mu placed his hand on the woman’s shoulder and noticed it was damp to the touch. Pulling aside her clothing at the shoulder, he saw two pitch-black handprints pressed into the skin. In addition, there were ligature marks around her neck—straight across the front and back.

If the cause of death was strangulation, the pattern of marks on the neck was telling. Marks near the ears on both sides might suggest hanging, but such straight, even marks were far more likely the result of someone strangling her from behind.

The constable crouched down as well, scrutinizing the handprints. Fang Mu asked, “Did the Sun family offend anyone recently?”

The constable shook his head. “No, but quite a few incidents have happened in their household lately. Just yesterday, the master of the house, Sun Chang, suddenly disappeared.”

Disappeared?

Someone vanished before a murder even occurred—clearly, there was more to this.

A woman in green silk stepped out from the crowd, her face heavy with grief. At her side, a young man offered careful support. “May I ask, sirs, have you discovered anything?”

Fang Mu glanced at them. “And you are…?”

The constable explained, “This is Madam Zhao, wife of Sun Chang. Her son, Sun Wei, is supporting her.” He then turned back to Fang Mu. “Brother Fang, have you found anything useful?”

Fang Mu spread his hands. “Aside from the two black handprints on the shoulder and the ligature marks, there’s nothing. You already understand the significance of the marks.”

“Understood.” The constable nodded, then addressed those around him: “Escort them all to the county yamen for further questioning.”

A young woman had died mysteriously, with strange black handprints on her shoulder, and everyone present was from the Sun family. The constable decided it was best to bring them all to the yamen and let the county magistrate decide how to proceed.

Suddenly, Sun Wei, son of the Sun family, knelt down and cried, “We are innocent, sir! The Sun family has always been upright—how could we murder a servant? My mother suffers from a chronic illness and cannot survive the hardships of a jail cell.”

“You won’t be punished for now; you’ll await the magistrate’s decision,” the constable replied, waving his men to escort them all away from the Sun residence.

Fang Mu paid no further attention, instead packing up his belongings and returning his gloves to the wooden case.

“Brother Fang.” After the others had left, the constable lowered his voice. “The magistrate, Lord Wang, wants you to come to the yamen as well.”

“Oh?”

Fang Mu was intrigued. Normally, if the clues were unclear, he would conduct a more thorough autopsy. But from the constable’s tone, it seemed they wanted him at the yamen from the outset.

Glancing around to ensure they were alone, the constable continued, “Actually, the master of the Sun family, Sun Chang, was found yesterday—dead. His body was discovered in the wilderness, so badly mutilated it was barely recognizable. If not for a servant recognizing his jade pendant, he might never have been identified.”

“The new magistrate, Lord Wang, had only just taken office when this happened. He planned to summon the Sun family today to identify the body, but then this tragedy occurred. What a mess…”

Fang Mu shifted his wooden case to avoid bumping anything. “So you want me to examine the corpse?”

“Exactly.” The constable sighed. “Lord Wang is furious. If he fails to handle this case, his career will be in jeopardy.”

“Let’s go, then,” Fang Mu said without hesitation, and left with the constable.

…

At the county yamen, the constable led Fang Mu inside. As soon as they entered the courtyard, the sound of objects being smashed echoed from within.

“Just as I take office, such a disaster occurs! Where’s the coroner? Bring him to me at once!” the magistrate bellowed, his voice resounding through the compound.

Fang Mu frowned, watching a middle-aged man in official robes storm out.

“That’s the new magistrate, Lord Wang,” the constable whispered.

Fang Mu nodded. Compared to Yu Youde, the previous magistrate, this new official seemed far less capable—a pity, since Yu Youde had gone down a dark path.

“You’re the coroner,” Lord Wang said, pointing to the examination room. “Go at once and determine the cause of death.”

Fang Mu glanced at him indifferently. At that look, Lord Wang felt as if struck by lightning, as though a fierce beast had set its sights on him.

Perched on Fang Mu’s shoulder, Ah Bai, the cat, also stared at Lord Wang, licking its lips, eyes gleaming.

Already stunned, Lord Wang collapsed to the ground, stupefied. The look in that cat’s eyes was more terrifying than a tiger’s.

Fang Mu patted Ah Bai, signaling it to look away. The cat nuzzled his neck and let out a soft meow.

Heh, even the most fearsome supernatural beings quailed before its master—how could an ordinary man dare to shout orders? Though it only ate the supernatural and not humans, how could anyone dare command its master?

Were it not for Fang Mu’s presence, it would have torn open his throat to let his blood.

The Devourer of the Supernatural lived on such beings; though Fang Mu’s gentle guidance had made it a domestic helper, its nature remained fierce and violent. For it, the magistrate’s presumption was intolerable, and but for Fang Mu’s restraint, it might have struck out.

Lord Wang climbed to his feet, embarrassed by his outburst, and straightened his robes.

Fang Mu turned to the constable. “Is the body in the examination room? I’ll go take a look.”

With that, he strode inside.

Lord Wang stared after him, dumbfounded. What was going on?

“My lord,” the constable said, dusting Lord Wang off with a wry smile, “this man once bested all the constables and the former magistrate in a fight and faced no consequences. You’re new in office and there’s been so much chaos; I haven’t had a chance to brief you.”

Lord Wang looked at the constable in astonishment, his thoughts a mystery.

…

Fang Mu pushed open the examination room door; before him lay a mangled corpse on a straw mat.

He frowned, stepped forward, and put on his gloves.

The body was clothed in fine silk, a jade pendant at the waist. The exposed skin was riddled with tiny cuts, many with blades of grass embedded in the torn flesh.

Fang Mu thought to himself, “Did he roll down a mountain?”

“Meow!” Ah Bai called out, sensing something.

Realizing the supernatural was involved, Fang Mu reached out with his gloved hand.

A prompt sounded in his mind—

[You have touched an unidentified corpse and gained a trace of true qi.]

[You have touched an unidentified corpse and obtained a clue—a letter.]