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“Little missy, you’ve got sharp eyes! Those coroners didn’t really believe it at first, but the autopsy results were clear—the victim’s throat still had arm hair left behind,” Uncle Jin said with a nod. “So, this case has gone beyond what regular cops can handle. If we’re going to deal with this, we’ll need to call in a paranormal investigation team from out of town, or the Demon Catching Bureau. But it’s been five years of constantly asking for outside help, and our mayor’s too embarrassed to keep doing that. Since I know you guys, the mayor handed the case over to me, and I’ve brought you in to take a look.”
“What do you two think?” Han Sifan turned to me and Brother Xiang. Brother Xiang frowned and said seriously, “I think it’s more likely some extreme killer. Knocked the victims out, shoved their hands into their throats, and dug out the hearts. You know, a lot of those deranged murderers have a thing for this kind of sick method.”
I shook my head. “Not likely. Maybe it was a vengeful ghost that scared their souls out of their bodies and then dug their hearts out.”
“Idiot.” Han Sifan chuckled, giving us both a look like we were hopeless. “Uncle Jin just said there was arm hair in the throats, right? That means they already did DNA tests. If it were someone else’s hair, would Uncle Jin have called us in? And why would a ghost randomly dig out hearts? I’ve never heard of vengeful ghosts doing that. Plus, take a look at their DNA reports. It’s clear these two weren’t related, and they died two days apart in completely different locations. Am I right that they had no direct connection?”
“Correct,” Uncle Jin confirmed. “One’s from Nanan District, the other from Jiangbei District, and their social circles don’t overlap at all.”
“Well, there you have it. Vengeful ghosts go after grudges. They don’t randomly kill strangers. That rules out ghosts and regular homicide. The only explanation left is that it’s a demon.” Han Sifan finished, then glanced at me. “Didn’t you see a cat demon when Li Shanshan fainted?”
“If it’s a cat demon, it could have used illusions to confuse the victims, making them dig out their own hearts to feed it. That explanation makes perfect sense, doesn’t it?” Han Sifan said with a sly smile.
Brother Xiang, ever the contrarian, grumbled, “Your deduction’s solid, but what if it was a rat demon or a dog demon? Why’re you pinning it on a cat demon?”
Han Sifan clicked her tongue. “Do I need to explain myself to you? If you don’t like it, let’s settle this with a duel.”
Uncle Jin, however, looked impressed. “This little lady makes a lot of sense. So, little lady, do you have any way to track down this cat demon?”
“I can’t find its exact whereabouts. Brother Xiang, how about you?” Han Sifan shook her head and turned to him.
Brother Xiang also shook his head. “I’m not a deity. All I know is it’s a cat demon. Don’t even know if it’s male or female. Just that it’s black. I’m not Black Cat Detective, you know.”
Uncle Jin frowned. “Then how do we deal with it? If this cat demon can kill just with illusions, doesn’t that make it invincible? Who could stop it?”
I nodded in agreement and added, “Yeah, I remember when I encountered that cat demon, it used illusions to escape my attacks. I couldn’t land a hit.”
Han Sifan pointed to the photos of the victims. “No need to worry about that. These two were likely living in such misery they wanted to die. Their minds were foggy all day. Cat demon illusions are strong, but they have limits. They don’t work on mentally sound people. But for those who are already out of it or pessimistic, they work like a charm. That’s why the cat demon only killed these two—it’s because they fit its criteria.”
“Damn, so this thing actually has criteria for its victims?” I shook my head, feeling the world was a dark place. Come to think of it, anyone pulling all-nighters could totally be a target, wandering around half-awake in the wee hours.
Suddenly, I remembered how my mom used to tell me as a kid, “If you don’t sleep, a monster will come eat you.” Back then, I’d laugh it off—what a joke, right? Monsters eating kids who don’t sleep? But now? Man, I feel like I totally missed my mom’s good intentions.
“Here’s the plan, Uncle Jin. If another cat demon murder happens, call us immediately. If we get there not long after the demon leaves, we might be able to track it by its lingering demon energy,” Brother Xiang finally suggested.
Uncle Jin sighed, clearly disappointed but nodded. “As long as we can deal with the demon. I just don’t understand what’s going on these days—so many demons and cults popping up.”
Uncle Jin invited us to stay for lunch, which Jin Xishan cooked, and it was delicious. We avoided mentioning the case during the meal—probably Uncle Jin’s way of sparing Jin Xishan from getting scared.
After lunch, we finally had a chance to relax. Having slogged through classes all week, we weren’t about to waste our one day off.
As we left Uncle Jin’s house, Han Sifan turned to Brother Xiang. “Xiangzi, start calculating where that cat demon is—now.”
“What?” I blinked in confusion. “Didn’t you say it couldn’t be done?”
“Are you dumb?” Brother Xiang rolled his eyes. “I can’t pinpoint the demon’s exact location, but I can figure out where the demon energy is strongest. Then we head to the heaviest spot and search.”
“Then why didn’t you tell Uncle Jin earlier?”
“Wouldn’t it be awkward if I got it wrong? I’m not 100% sure. Anyway, Sis Fan, why are we even bothering with this cat demon?”
“For justice, duh! Geez,” Han Sifan shot us a glare.
The weather was nice that day—sunlight not too harsh, with a light breeze. Brother Xiang led us around, and finally, at the entrance of an internet café near Guanyin Bridge, both he and Han Sifan abruptly stopped. Their heads turned sharply toward the café.
“Xiaohui, get those Liuding Liujia Exorcism Talismans ready. The cat demon’s probably in there,” Han Sifan said with a grin, as though this was going to be fun. She turned to Jin Xishan. “Xishan, stay out here and don’t wander off, got it?”
“Got it.” Jin Xishan took a few steps back, clearly understanding this wasn’t something she could help with.
I quickly pulled out two Liu Ding Liu Jia Talismans I’d prepared earlier. Han Sifan said, “Xiangzi, you stay outside. See if there’s a back door around here. If the cat demon slips out that way, it’ll be a problem.”
“I still don’t get why we’re doing this. What’s the point of picking a fight with this cat demon?” I asked innocently, and Brother Xiang nodded in agreement.
“Because I like it,” Han Sifan replied smugly before striding straight into the café.
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