Chapter 40 Yes, I Killed Him

Huang Zhaoyan’s exclamation caused everyone to look at Fu Qian with entirely different eyes.

Didn't you say you hadn't found anything? Could it be that you just slacked off and ran straight over here?

"I did indeed slack off and come straight over; such futile efforts are better left to others."

Facing the numerous questioning gazes, Fu Qian remained calm and composed, utterly free of any psychological burden.

Seeing Huang Zhaoyan run over amidst everyone's expectant stares:

"Where is it?"

Li Weixuan still possessed the bearing of a general, his tone carrying only a hint of excitement.

"Over there, it'll take about fifteen minutes."

Huang Zhaoyan pointed back over his shoulder.

"I found a corpse."

……

A corpse?

Including Li Weixuan, everyone's eyes dimmed once more, their morale dropping by another 99 points.

Huang Zhaoyan had yet to realize the misunderstanding caused by his previous words.

"A very bizarre corpse. I think you should go take a look."

True to his word, he didn't report me, and didn't even look me in the eye from start to finish.

Fu Qian sighed inwardly. There's no need to look so guilty!

"Then let's go take a look."

Li Weixuan took a breath and urged the sitting group of people to get up.

Making a discovery was always a good thing, as it at least provided a starting point for clues.

When the group finally arrived, they stared blankly at the assassin's corpse for a long time.

For no other reason than that it was simply too bizarre.

The assassin's corpse was twisted to an even greater degree than before, its two arms almost completely detached, connected only by the faintest thread of flesh and sinew.

Ugh!

Fu Qian heard someone retching again.

"It certainly is strange. He should have died not long ago, yet the state of the corpse is so unnatural. Could it be related to the special environment in here?"

Li Weixuan frowned, equally unable to comprehend the scene before him.

Then, a thought suddenly struck him, and he turned sharply toward Fu Qian.

"On your way here, did you not encounter this corpse?"

Fu Qian glanced at Huang Zhaoyan, who instinctively averted his gaze.

"Of course I did."

He nodded, causing the entire group to look startled.

"Then why didn't I hear you mention it?"

"Is there anything worth mentioning about that?"

Fu Qian looked surprised, wearing an expression that suggested the others were making too much of a fuss.

"The person was killed by me, after all."

Indeed, no matter how one looked at it, it was just a strange corpse and not an exit—wait a minute, what did you just say?!

Everyone was startled, staring at Fu Qian in disbelief.

"You said... you killed him?"

Even Li Weixuan let out an involuntary gasp, his composure breaking.

"Yeah. When I was out scouting earlier, I was attacked by this guy, so I just killed him along the way."

Fu Qian's tone was as casual as if he had casually tossed away some trash on his way to buy groceries.

"To clarify, that guy threw the first punch; I was acting entirely in self-defense."

"Do you know who he was?"

"No idea."

Fu Qian shook his head, noticing Huang Zhaoyan heave a sigh of relief.

"He just stalked me for a bit before suddenly jumping out to declare he was going to kill me, and even told me to run fast."

"He told you he was going to kill you, and also told you to run fast?"

"Yeah! He even reminded me to release the arrow-bell and call for reinforcements."

……

Li Weixuan’s gaze turned sharp.

To want to kill someone, yet simultaneously remind the target to seek rescue.

The preceding actions could somehow be explained, but this one made no sense at all.

Li Weixuan subconsciously swept a glance behind him, realizing the matter was far from simple.

He was not a martial arts fanatic lacking in worldly wisdom; almost instantly, a myriad of possibilities crossed his mind.

The assassin's true target must have been someone else, and targeting Fu Qian was merely a diversion.

Someone actually dared to pull such a stunt during an exploration led by him—did they really think his temper was too good?

He must get to the bottom of this once they got out; otherwise, where would the academy's prestige stand?

"Check the items on him."

Li Weixuan gave the order, then cast a deep look at Fu Qian.

"Don't worry, once we get out, I will give you an explanation."

This student might harbor many secrets, but no one would tell such a boring lie just to take the blame for murder upon themselves.

"It's fine, this guy was awfully weak anyway."

Fu Qian maintained an utterly nonchalant expression.

"That being the case, his time of death must be very recent."

Li Weixuan’s attention returned to the corpse.

"Then for him to end up like this is quite bizarre."

"Indeed it is very strange. I actually already have a guess regarding this, and Student Ji Liushuang and I happened to share some thoughts on it."

Fu Qian adopted a tone that suggested prior tacit understanding with Ji Liushuang.

He certainly didn't want every single theory to originate from him, as that would look far too suspicious.

Having just exchanged words with Ji Liushuang, having the academy's favored disciple step up to endorse his claims couldn't be more appropriate.

Ji Liushuang was frowning in deep thought at that moment; hearing Fu Qian call her name, a flash of surprise crossed her eyes.

"Liushuang, do you have any insights on this?"

Fu Qian's words caught Li Weixuan somewhat off guard.

"I do have a few guesses. It feels as though it's connected to this place."

Although she found it slightly strange that Fu Qian was pushing her into the spotlight, Ji Liushuang still nodded and voiced her deduction.

"Think about it carefully. Ever since we entered this place, we haven't seen a single living creature. The only corpse is the assassin who followed us in. For a place you can enter but cannot leave, isn't that a bit too eerie?"

"And from the time we entered until now, we've encountered two kinds of monsters: one made of black hair, and another consisting of limbs forming a giant hand. Both are intimately connected to the human body.

So, I was thinking, could there be a possibility that all creatures who break in here are subjected to some special force within the ruins? After death, their corpses converge in a peculiar manner and transform into those things?"

This...

Ji Liushuang's words instantly provoked a strong reaction, causing considerable agitation among the crowd.

"If that's really true, could this place actually be alive?"

"Will we be digested by this bizarre method after we die?"

"Not only can we not get out, but we'll end up turning into those hand-monsters?"

"That's just disgusting!"

……

Seeing the chaos erupt, Li Weixuan raised a hand to signal everyone to calm down.

Frowning deeply, if this were true, this place was truly malevolent.

"Personally, I think this is a good thing."

A good thing?

The entire assembly was shocked, even Ji Liushuang staring at Fu Qian with undisguised horror.

How on earth could this be a good thing? To satisfy your bizarre morbid desires?

Fu Qian pointed at the corpse on the ground.

"Have you ever considered what the missing parts on his body signify?"

What do they signify?

Aside from being creepy and bloody, what else could they signify?

"Up until now, we've seen hair and arms, but we haven't seen any blood..."

Fu Qian ticked off points on his fingers.

"This indicates..."

He pointed deeper into the ruins.

"Deep inside the ruins, there is a special destination where these things end up."

"Regardless of what form they exist in, and however perilous it might be, it's still better than being trapped in a dead end here."

"So, I think we should go further inside and take a look."