Although Liangjiang Commandery was located in the south, the season had already entered the twelfth lunar month. Cold snow drifted into Jiangnan, dusting both banks like falling pear blossoms. Overnight, a thin layer of snow blanketed the entire commandery.
"Not bad. I've already grasped one hundred and sixty strands of Literary Qi. This Sea of Consciousness is truly a sharp weapon."
Zeng Anmin stepped out of the dormitory provided by the academy. A smile lingered at the corners of his eyes as his gaze fell upon the thin snow. This was one of the few pieces of good news he'd received over the past two days at the academy.
He only needed to gather another five hundred and forty strands of Literary Qi to condense the Vast Righteous Qi within his Sea of Consciousness, allowing him to advance to the Seventh Grade Purple Mansion Realm of the Confucian Dao. In this Immortal World, that would finally give him a solid foundation to stand upon.
Furthermore, as an added bonus, the progress of his Martial Arts Realm was also extremely gratifying. After just one night, he faintly felt as though he could already open a Dantian in his abdomen.
For breakfast, he polished off three wheat flatbreads, two steamed buns, and two bowls of soup. Stretching lazily, Zeng Anmin looked at Qi Dachun, who was still gorging himself, and said, "Take your time eating. I'm heading to class."
"Mmh, okay..." Qi Dachun stuffed a large flatbread into his mouth and went right back to stuffing his face.
Upon arriving at the classroom, Zeng Anmin took his seat and quietly read his book. After reading for a while, however, the Tutor still hadn't arrived. The time for class had clearly passed.
Fully immersed in his studies, Zeng Anmin didn't think much of it. A moment later, he finally heard the Tutor's voice call out from outside. "Wenhua, come here for a moment."
Zeng Anmin looked up. The person called was Zhang Lun's desk mate. Strangely enough, Zhang Lun was also missing from his seat. Since both were day students, they had been seated together. Zeng Anmin frowned slightly. He wondered if something had happened at Brother Tongyu's home today.
He didn't dwell on it and lowered his head to continue reading. Shortly after, the student named Wenhua returned, his face deathly pale. Seeing this, Zeng Anmin asked in confusion, "What's wrong? Why did the Tutor call you out just now?"
The student flinched violently. Upon seeing Zeng Anmin, he slowly let out a breath and pursed his lips. "Zhang Lun is dead...
"His corpse is outside the academy gates. They're waiting for people from the Observation Department to come and investigate."
Wenhua's face grew even paler as he spoke. The sudden and unprovoked death of a companion he had just walked home with yesterday left him caught completely off guard and consumed by lingering fear.
As soon as the words left his mouth, a dead silence fell over the entire classroom. Zeng Anmin froze, the book trembling in his grip. He stared fixedly at Wenhua, asking word by word, "Zhang. Lun. Is. Dead?"
Although he had only known Zhang Lun for two days, they had spoken at length, and Zeng Anmin already considered him a friend. Hearing the sudden news of his death gave him a profound, surreal sense of disbelief. He stared at Wenhua. "Where's the body?"
"The Tutor is guarding the scene with some people. It's just a short distance from the academy gates... Where are you going?!"
Before Wenhua could even finish, Zeng Anmin shot up from his seat and strode toward the classroom door.
In a dense forest just outside the gates of Shuidu Academy.
Wang Daoyuan's face was dark. He took a deep breath, his thick fingers gripping the hilt of the saber at his waist. Over the past two days, the looks his colleagues gave him had grated on his every nerve. Not long ago, he had backed the wrong faction and become the biggest joke in the entire Government Office. Now, he had been demoted to an ordinary Red-clothed Guards Patrol Captain within the Observation Department. The title sounded impressive, but in reality, it was just a lowly clerk position that not even a dog would covet.
To make matters worse, just after he finished morning roll call at the Government Office and was about to head back to his room to rest, his subordinates informed him of a murder at the gates of Shuidu Academy. Riding over as fast as he could, his brow twitched slightly the moment he saw the stark naked corpse lying on the white snow.
A student of Shuidu Academy.
This was undoubtedly a major case in Liangjiang Commandery. If he mishandled it, he would likely be stripped of his position on the spot. However, the scene before him was simply too bizarre. For a student to be murdered and then stripped naked as a form of humiliation... just how deep was this grudge? In an instant, his train of thought crystallized.
"Wang Buwei, do you have any leads?" Beside him, the academy's Tutor looked at Wang Daoyuan, his expression grave and mournful as he asked the question in a heavy voice.
Wang Daoyuan looked up. Upon meeting the Tutor's gaze, he subconsciously lowered his shoulders and mused, "It should be a crime of passion or a vendetta. Stripping the victim naked after killing him... unless there was a deep-seated grudge, the culprit wouldn't have gone to such unnecessary lengths."
"Mhm." A sharp glint flashed in the Tutor's eyes. He looked up toward the distance and said, "For now, we should investigate who Zhang Lun has had conflicts with recently, or who he has been in contact with."
"Right," Wang Daoyuan nodded slowly.
Just then, a grating voice suddenly interrupted them.
"It wasn't a vendetta, and the killer is a complete idiot."
His face devoid of expression, Zeng Anmin slowly walked over from the academy gates to join the group. Everyone frowned at his words and turned toward the source of the voice. Wang Daoyuan jolted the moment he saw Zeng Anmin. He instinctively wanted to call out "Young Master Zeng," but upon meeting Zeng Anmin's piercingly stern gaze, he immediately snapped his mouth shut.
"Zeng Anmin?" The Tutor's gaze darkened instantly. He wondered why this kid he had just punished yesterday was so eager to stick his neck out again today. "Why aren't you in the classroom studying? What are you doing here?" he demanded, his voice incredibly stern.
Zeng Anmin turned a deaf ear to the Tutor. He stared at the naked corpse lying in the snow. Zhang Lun's body was already frozen stiff, his hands still tightly clutching two familiar steamed buns.
Zeng Anmin's lips pressed into a thin line. The friend who had happily chatted with him about life just yesterday was now gone forever. He crouched down and carefully examined the corpse before him. Looking at the wide, unresigned eyes on Zhang Lun's face, he sighed deeply in his heart. "Rest in peace, Brother Tongyu. I, Anmin, will definitely bring your killer to justice!"
"If it wasn't a vendetta, then what is it, in your opinion?" Wang Daoyuan's attitude was extremely respectful as he looked at Zeng Anmin carefully and asked.
The Tutor frowned at the sight of this. Why was Wang Buwei acting so uncharacteristically deferential?
Zeng Anmin shot Wang Daoyuan a faint, half-smiling glance. He slowly stood up, pointing to the mottled bloodstains on the thin layer of snow. "There's a lot of blood, consistent with a slit throat.
"Therefore, this is the primary crime scene."
With that, he slowly circled the body. His gaze was sharp as a torch, fixed intently on the corpse. "There are no signs of a struggle. The victim was killed in a single strike."
He slowly raised his head. "In other words, the killer's strength and speed far exceeded the victim's.
"Furthermore, aside from the victim's footprints, there are no others present at the scene.
"Treading on snow without leaving a trace...
"To accomplish this, the killer must be a graded Martial Artist at the very least.
"They seemed to be acting carefully to avoid leaving footprints or other clues, but in reality, they've practically handed me their profile on a silver platter."
A glint of ruthlessness flashed across Zeng Anmin's face as he spoke.
Hmm?!
Hearing his words, everyone jolted and looked up. His deduction had instantly untangled their messy train of thought! These details seemed obvious now, but without a meticulous examination of the scene, it would have been impossible to analyze the situation so clearly.
"Setting aside how Zhang Lun could have possibly provoked a graded Martial Artist," Zeng Anmin continued without missing a beat, pointing at the ground. "If this was a vendetta, a Martial Artist dealing with a defenseless scholar would have certainly played a game of cat-and-mouse, humiliating him before dealing the final blow.
"That would have inevitably left signs of a struggle. But look—it snowed lightly last night, yet the ground is completely undisturbed.
"Furthermore, the victim's pupils are slightly contracted, and his eyes are wide open, indicating that he was struck when he least expected it."
Zeng Anmin slowly stood up, turning his gaze toward Wang Daoyuan and the Tutor. "Therefore, stripping the body was just a crude ploy to muddy the waters.
"He did this to conceal his true motive!"
"What motive?" Wang Daoyuan asked instinctively.
"Zhang Lun's valuables!" Zeng Anmin replied coldly.
A long silence fell over the group.
"Absurd!" the Tutor's voice suddenly broke the quiet. He glared at Zeng Anmin sternly and pointed out the glaring logical flaw in his deduction. "If it is as you say, why would a dignified, graded Martial Artist ever covet the belongings of a commoner like Zhang Lun?!"
Unfazed, Zeng Anmin let out a faint chuckle. "..."