Chapter 5 | Sequence: Sacrifice

Wei Baixiang finally stepped into the mortuary.

After all, he had come here specifically to examine the bodies, and all victims of violent deaths had to be stored in the mortuary. This was a rule established by the authorities.

It was said that in earlier times, bodies of those who died violently were extremely prone to corpse transformation, which was why they had to be sent to the mortuary for official disposal.

The moment Wei Baixiang entered the mortuary, the sensation of being watched intensified, and his skin broke out in a dense layer of goosebumps.

“Sir.”

Xiao Zhe also stepped out, his attitude respectful.

“Take me to see the body.”

Wei Baixiang didn't want to stay here a moment longer. He planned to finish the examination and then immediately seek out Lord Mei to take his leave.

“Yes, sir.”

Xiao Zhe complied, taking out his notebook and leading the way.

When Mr. Xu’s body was rolled out, Wei Baixiang’s eyes instinctively narrowed.

Seeing one of his own kind flayed until only the skin remained was a truly shocking sight.

He steadied his breathing and went straight to the examination.

This was one of a Coroner’s special abilities: immunity to all corpse poison.

Yin Yang and Xiao Zhe didn't have such an ability; they had to wear special gloves during examinations to prevent being contaminated by the corpse poison.

He only needed a few glances to reach a conclusion.

“There are cauterization marks on the wounds. There is residual transcendent power.”

“The killer is a transcendent.”

“Hmm?”

Xiao Zhe looked surprised upon hearing this, a reaction that made Wei Baixiang frown.

“What is it?”

“Ahem, nothing. It’s just that your deduction, Mr. Wei, is exactly the same as Yin Yang’s.”

“Is that so?”

This time, it was Wei Baixiang’s turn to be surprised. He didn't stand on ceremony, stepping forward to take the notebook from Xiao Zhe. When he saw Yin Yang’s description of the body, he couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.

“How did you determine that the opponent used transcendent power? Have you seen such a transcendent in action?”

Yin Yang looked perfectly harmless as he spoke.

“No. If you look at the records, I wrote that the tools were heated, and I suspected the involvement of transcendent power.”

“Actually, at first, I thought the killer might have used heated blades to flay the skin.”

“But later, I noticed that the burn marks were almost identical.”

“If a blade was being heated, the heat would dissipate over time. The burn marks should have become progressively lighter.”

Hearing this, Wei Baixiang looked at Yin Yang with a newfound sense of respect.

“What else did you find?”

Xiao Zhe immediately flipped the page, revealing Yin Yang’s analysis from the previous night.

After Wei Baixiang read through it, the admiration in his eyes became even more apparent.

“Your analysis matches mine, with only one difference.”

He pointed to the phrase 'post-mortem flaying' on the report.

“He was flayed alive. The indentation on the heart is from a talisman used to suppress corpse energy.”

Xiao Zhe didn't quite understand, but Yin Yang understood instantly.

Coroners were not afraid of corpse poison, but their bodies contained a significant amount of corpse energy.

To a certain extent, a Coroner was like a living corpse.

Therefore, a talisman meant to suppress a corpse would be equally effective against a Coroner!

If someone had heavily injured Old Xu and then used such a talisman to suppress him, they could indeed have flayed him while he was still conscious.

Seeing that Yin Yang understood so quickly, Wei Baixiang made no effort to hide his admiration.

“You are quite good. How long have you been an apprentice here?”

“Nearly two years, sir.”

“If you are willing, I can recommend you to be my apprentice in Mangyang City. I promise that within six months, you will receive a Corpse Bearer promotion potion.”

Xiao Zhe’s eyes lit up, and he nudged Yin Yang’s shoulder, wishing he could accept on Yin Yang’s behalf.

Yin Yang, however, shook his head with a bitter smile.

“Thank you for your appreciation, sir, but I have a reason why I must stay here.”

Wei Baixiang gave Yin Yang a deep, meaningful look. Seeing this, Yin Yang became even more certain that the man’s earlier words had been a test.

“I’ll take this report with me. If you change your mind, you can come find me in Mangyang City at any time.”

He walked away under their gaze until his figure disappeared completely. Only then did Xiao Zhe speak up helplessly.

“I see it now. You never had any intention of becoming a Corpse Bearer.”

...

At the Command Center.

Lord Mei looked at the report in his hand and said, “A transcendent? Can we track the residual transcendent power?”

“If we had a Clerk or a Constable here, it might be possible.”

Lord Mei frowned at this.

A Constable was Sequence 8 of the Ward Guard pathway, while Sequence 7 was a Clerk.

This was one of the three major official pathways.

Currently, the Director of the Wangduan City Security Bureau was a Clerk.

However, the two of them didn't get along. Lord Mei had seized the man’s authority as soon as he took office.

To expect the man to help him now was nothing short of a pipe dream.

“Is there no other way?”

“There are a few other pathways that could work, but they would be hard to find here in Wangduan City.”

Lord Mei’s frown deepened. He thought to himself that Wangduan City truly was an ill-omened place.

Before he took office, he had heard that eight or ten people died here every month.

After all, this place had a unique location and was filled with all sorts of people; a few deaths were only to be expected.

But at the time, Lord Mei hadn't cared much.

Because for this assignment, he had brought twenty Axemen, three Executioners, and one Imperial Guard!

These corresponded to Sequence 9, Sequence 8, and Sequence 7 of their respective pathway.

Wangduan City was just a small border city. If it weren't for its unique location, it wouldn't even be an exaggeration to call it a mere county.

In such a small place, what could possibly go wrong with such a team under his command?

That was why he had seized power from the Security Bureau Director upon his arrival—he wanted to claim all the credit for himself!

This was crucial for his future promotion!

In the Scholar pathway, one had to serve as an official starting from the rank of Juren!

This was their only way to advance!

From that point on, they needed to accumulate a reputation and a record of achievements, as this directly affected their success at Sequence 5!

Because of this, the Scholar pathway was arguably the most unique of the three major official pathways.

Seeing Lord Mei’s expression, Wei Baixiang roughly guessed his predicament.

After all, almost all Juren who became officials were the same, wishing they could hoard every scrap of credit for themselves.

“If it were a specialized Ward Guard, we could also try that.”

Seeing that Lord Mei still didn't speak, Wei Baixiang understood that the Lord probably couldn't mobilize a single person from the Security Bureau.

“If you need it, I am on good terms with a Constable in Mangyang City. His abilities are quite strong, but...”

Wei Baixiang hesitated. Lord Mei was already feeling frustrated and said, “Speak plainly. No one can eavesdrop here.”

“He is also a member of the Security Bureau.”

To a clever person, a hint was enough. Since the person was also a member of the Security Bureau, theoretically, getting him to help would require the approval of the Wangduan City Security Bureau Director. That was the official process.