"This was definitely the work of some demon!"
"Shopkeeper Wang was such a good man. How did he end up being targeted by Li Gui?"
"I heard that Shopkeeper Wang once prescribed an abortion remedy for a courtesan, but he miscalculated the dosage and ended up killing her. The wronged spirit must have come back to claim his life."
Early in the morning, outside an apothecary by the roadside, a crowd stood behind the cordon formed by the constables, gossiping animatedly.
Just then, a palm as large as a cattail fan shoved through the crowd, forcing its way inside.
The people pushed aside were furious and about to start cursing, but when they saw the iron-tower-like figure, they immediately shut their mouths.
The man stood nearly two meters tall. His gray-blue official uniform was stretched taut over his muscles, while his long hair hung loosely over his shoulders like a lion's mane.
A ridiculously long saber was strapped to his back. With every step he took, the ground seemed to tremble.
The constables, who had been standing there in all sorts of crooked poses, immediately straightened when they saw him and shouted, "Greetings, Constable Kong!"
Kong Wu nodded casually and walked inside.
A young constable hurried over and began reporting the situation.
"The victim was the shopkeeper of the Wang Family Apothecary. Last night, a petty thief climbed over the wall into the back courtyard, hoping to sneak some money from the counter. Instead, he discovered Shopkeeper Wang's corpse. He cried out in fright, and our brothers making their rounds heard him."
"Following your usual rules, no one went near the body. Only a few nimble-footed brothers entered the apothecary to inspect it. They found that all the doors and windows had been locked from the inside."
Kong Wu nodded and looked at the shattered door panel. Seeing this, the young constable explained, "The brothers on patrol last night broke it down in their haste. They said they rammed it several times but couldn't open it, so they had to hack through the door panel with their sabers."
"Other than that, the apothecary's back door was pried open by that petty thief."
At this point, the young constable swallowed and said in a low voice, "Constable Kong, could it really have been some unclean thing? A living person couldn't kill someone and then lock the door from the outside, could he?"
That's only because you've never watched Conan. This is obviously a locked-room murder.
Kong Wu glanced at him and thought to himself.
After transmigrating to this world over a year ago, he had learned from others that mysterious forces such as ghosts, demons, and monsters truly existed.
For a time, he had believed that so-called demons, ghosts, and monsters were merely assumptions made by the ancients to explain phenomena beyond their understanding.
If it weren't for...
Kong Wu shook his head and pulled his thoughts back.
Although supernatural beings exceeding ordinary human abilities did indeed exist in this world, he did not believe that demons or monsters were responsible for this case.
There had previously been a serial dismemberment case in the county. They had even concluded that some man-eating demon was responsible, simply because every victim had been missing a portion of their flesh.
And what was the result? In the end, relying on my exquisite reasoning ability, I discovered that every one of those cases had been committed by a deranged butcher.
Kong Wu reckoned that this case had been committed by a human as well.
The only difference was that the method was rather sophisticated.
He looked at the corpse on the ground. Its eyes bulged out, its mouth hung wide open, and a purplish-blue handprint was visible around its neck.
Seeing the thoughtful look on Kong Wu's face, the young constable could not help but breathe a sigh of relief.
All the constables present knew that Constable Kong was not only exceptionally strong, but also skilled at solving cases.
There had been countless unsolved cases in the county that no one could crack. As long as Constable Kong took charge, however, he was sure to solve them.
Because of his outstanding abilities, he had become the constable of Qingshan County within a year. There had even been rumors recently that the magistrate intended to recommend him to the higher authorities for the position of secretary.
Thus, with Kong Wu taking charge, the young constable believed this case would soon be solved.
Sure enough, Kong Wu pondered for a while before suddenly looking toward the crowd of onlookers.
He slowly turned his head from left to right, carefully studying everyone. Then, he suddenly stopped.
Next, he strode forward, extended his thick arm, and yanked a man out of the crowd that was constantly retreating.
The man was dragged by his collar before Kong Wu. He looked up at the broad man with thick brows and large eyes and stammered, "Constable Kong, what are you..."
Kong Wu said nothing. He simply grabbed the man by the collar and lifted him into the air.
The man's feet left the ground, and he struggled frantically while shouting at the top of his lungs, but Kong Wu did not so much as flinch. He carried him straight into the apothecary's back courtyard.
The surrounding commoners watched in terror, yet none dared open their mouths to stop him.
The constables, however, seemed accustomed to this. Instead, they relaxed at Kong Wu's actions. A few had even begun discussing in low voices where they would go to drink and gamble after their shift.
Not long after Kong Wu entered the courtyard with the man, muffled impacts striking flesh and chilling screams came from within.
Before half an incense stick had burned, Kong Wu walked out, blood still staining his fists.
The young constable deftly handed him a towel. Kong Wu took it, wiped the blood from his fists, and said casually, "All right, he confessed. He did it! Take him back and interrogate him properly."
"Constable Kong solves cases like a god!"
The surrounding constables shouted in unison.
The commoners nearby stared at the scene with their mouths agape and shuddered as one.
Thank heavens he didn't catch me...
"How can they treat human lives like weeds? Doesn't the magistrate care?"
Someone sighed quietly.
"Care about what? Officials protecting officials?"
A man let out a cold laugh and said, "I heard Constable Kong realized the magistrate was desperate to solve cases, so every time, he would simply arrest someone at random and convict them. Old Man Liu once died at home in the eastern part of the city, and this man immediately arrested Old Man Liu's twenty-year-old young wife, insisting that she had killed him."
"That's not all. I heard Fatty Bai from the butcher shop was falsely accused of being a serial killer just because the meat he sold Constable Kong was short by weight. He's already been executed."
"And Steward Liu from Hexi Village. Kong Wu broke both his legs with his own hands and pinned last year's granary fire on him."
"I heard that when he went up the mountain for a stroll, he ran into a tiger. He beat it until it could speak like a human and confess that it was just a big tabby cat..."
A crowd of people spoke in low voices about the vicious Kong Wu, lamenting the decline of public morals and the hardships of the people.
Meanwhile, Kong Wu left the crowd and walked steadily down the street, as imposing as a great bear.
In his eyes, a box floated above the head of every passerby.
Li Ergou Lifespan: 59 Strength: 1.2 Skills: None First impression of you: Fear (That fist of his probably wouldn't just kill me with a single punch.) Sun Mazi Lifespan: 43 Strength: 0.8 Skills: None First impression of you: Disgust (So this is King Yama Kong, the man who treats human lives like weeds. He looks vicious at first glance.) Jiang Zihong Lifespan: 78 Strength: 1 Skills: None First impression of you: Contempt (He's covered in muscle, but what a vulgar brute!)
That was why Kong Wu had identified the culprit immediately.
Because at the time, the following had been displayed above that person's head:
Zhang Chao Lifespan: 45 Strength: 1.2 Skills: None First impression of you: Smug (Do you really think a muscle-bound lout like him can see through my exquisite method?)
Before you continue