394. The Child Next Door

"What's up?"

Lu Ban and Xiya perked up their ears to listen to the gossip.

Xiya didn't notice that another donut was inexplicably missing from her bag.

"An urban legend."

Trist seemed to know, and he spread his hands to explain.

"Legend has it that in the slums of the Ruined City capital, you might sometimes encounter a woman at night. If you kindly take her in, or if you harbor any ill intentions and try to abduct her, you will most likely meet with misfortune and be found dead in some sewer the next day, in a gruesome manner. There are many such legends, and different regions have different versions. They are all meant to scare children into going to sleep and not to go out at night."

"I see."

Lu Ban expressed his understanding.

"So, we have similar rumors where I'm from. They say if you don't sleep at night, the Night King of the forest will kidnap you, fry you in sizzling oil, add salt and pepper, stir-fry until golden brown on both sides, and then add chili peppers and dried salted fish."

As Xiya talked, it turned into a recipe for a late-night snack.

"Please stop, friend."

Trist interrupted Xiya's recipe.

What is the Night King?

Lu Ban asked curiously.

"It's a legend from our area. It's said that hundreds of years ago, a monster that defeated the Winter Wolf and ruled the night was used to scare children who didn't want to sleep."

Xiya said earnestly.

"."

Lu Ban thought for a moment and realized that the person who defeated the Winter Wolf was none other than himself.

Unexpectedly, his deeds from back then have been passed down and even evolved, turning him into the great demon king who stops children from crying at night?

I wonder how Xiya would react if she knew that she was the Night King.

Lu Ban thought it would be better to talk about how to add chili peppers and salted fish.

"The salted fish needs to be soaked in water first, and then... what I mean is, so this rumor is just a rumor, nothing strange?"

"Who knows? Several people die in Black Street every day. Sometimes, to cover up crimes, it's easy to make up some simple and useful urban legends to take the blame."

Trist wanted to take out her pipe, but after thinking about where she was, she put it back.

"However, this person must have indeed seen at least one woman before he died."

Lu Ban nodded.

How did you know?

Xiya reached into the paper bag, only to find that the donuts were gone. She was slightly confused, but still crumpled the paper bag into a ball and stuffed it into her pocket.

"He smelled of perfume. Look, his internal organs have been preserved so well, along with the surrounding scents, all stuffed into the glass."

Lu Ban's [True Sight] gave him more clues.

Were any of his patients female that day?

"Probably not."

Trist shook his head.

"A bartender from the Black Street who broke his leg while drunk, and a factory worker who developed lung disease from prolonged exposure to exhaust fumes—these were the two patients he encountered that afternoon."

"Aren't there any injured prostitutes or women who have to work for their families coming to the clinic?"

Lu Ban asked.

"No."

Trist closed the notebook.

"Take another look at these internal organs and see if there are any other clues."

"Looking at this can have quite serious effects on your health. How can you bear to make me see it?"

"Of all the people here, you are the least qualified to say that."

Trist couldn't resist taking out his pipe, striking a match, and lighting the tobacco. He took a deep drag, letting the slightly pungent aroma fill his lungs, bringing a hallucinogenic sensation that soothed his nerves. He glanced again at the corpse with the Glass Flower blooming on it. In the past, Trist might have already lost his senses and had various stress reactions, but now, he could stand in front of the corpse and chat and laugh.

All these changes originated from the Silent Land.

As he tackled more and more missions in the Ruined City, Trist began to have a premonition that the pollution this world was receiving was gradually overflowing, breaking through the things that had originally bound them.

Perhaps one day, the dream created by the author of the Gudu will become a real reality, and monsters will roam the streets of the Ruined City.

"Hmm, what is this place?"

Lu Ban took another careful look and noticed that there seemed to be a little color on the parts of the internal organs that were close to the skin.

The color is usually not obvious; it can only be seen clearly in the dark, illuminated by Trist's match.

"It's probably dye. There are often stains like this at the factory. The factory has been very busy lately, and many people have fallen ill. Dr. House sometimes helps some of the sick."

Trist also leaned over to take a look.

"This must have been brought by a worker from that factory?"

Xiya felt that the corpse blooming with Glass Flower was eerie, and more like an outpouring of some kind of emotion.

Because of the Affliction and surprise on Dr. House's face, he must have suffered quite a bit.

There are many types of murder, and Xiya herself has killed quite a few people.

Simple killing is merely killing a person; killing is a means, a process to achieve other ends.

The perpetrator of this "Glass Flower" clearly intended to kill, and he killed Dr. House in this way to inflict torture and suffering.

Does he have any enemies?

Xiya asked, and then pulled out a bag of cookies from a gap in her armor; she had secretly hidden them.

Crunch, crunch—

The sound of chewing biscuits echoed in the morgue, causing considerable discomfort to the stomachs.

"I'll have one too."

Lu Ban reached out and took the cookie from Xiya. Just as he was about to eat it, he realized that the cookie in his palm was gone.

"Dr. House has almost no enemies. He's a good neighbor to everyone. After graduating from medical school, he worked as a doctor in a hospital for a while before starting his own clinic. He charges low fees and helps the poor. Perhaps some of his colleagues don't like him?"

Trist explained, then added a sentence.

"Of course, it's not that good people won't die and bad people will definitely die. He might have other dark sides behind the scenes, or he might have offended someone he shouldn't have. In the Ruined City, that's normal."

"We can go to his clinic and then ask the supplier."

"This is what the great detective of the Ruined City said again."

"No problem."

The three thanked the staff and left the funeral home. Not far from the funeral home, just one block past the teahouse where Lu Ban and Trist met, was Dr. House's clinic.

This area is closed off and guarded by police; ordinary people are not allowed to enter.

It was already afternoon, the sunlight was becoming ambiguous, setting in the west, languid, and the clinic was also becoming dim.

Upon entering the clinic, Lu Ban smelled a strong odor of disinfectant.

He saw that the clinic's beds were cordoned off, which was where Dr. House's body had been found.