Like a Furnace

Lead clouds blanketed the sky, the north wind howled, and wild snow flew in a frenzy.

Gao Wu cautiously pointed his sword at Zhang Hao's back. He knew very well that his backhand slash had struck Zhang Hao. By all reason, Zhang Hao should have been dead.

Yet seeing Zhang Hao like this, he did not dare let down his guard.

Zhang Hao noticed something was wrong with his body. In terror, he tried to raise a hand to inspect his wound, but the moment his hand moved, his body suddenly split apart.

A line of blood burst along his chest and neck. Zhang Hao's head, along with half a shoulder, slid down that bloody line, and his body split cleanly into two.

The power bestowed by the Evil God was formidable. Zhang Hao had somehow not died from such an injury. Terror covered his face as his mouth shouted something, but he could not make a sound.

The sight made Gao Wu's scalp prickle. He often fought others in the ring, but this was his first real battle with a sword, his first time killing someone.

It was not that Gao Wu regretted killing Zhang Hao. Zhang Hao had wanted to kill him, so he had been forced to fight back.

Zhang Hao was also a Demon God Believer. That fact alone meant he deserved to die!

He was a good person. Cutting down evil was exactly what a good person ought to do!

It was just that Zhang Hao's condition was too strange, too frightening.

He tentatively asked, "Zhang... Brother Li Zao, are you all right?"

Brother Zhang, who had split into "Li" and "Zao," did not respond to Gao Wu's concern. His two halves twitched for a moment before quickly falling silent.

Only blood continued to gurgle out, mixing with the ice and snow on the ground and leaving behind broad stains of filthy red...

Holding his sword, Gao Wu's mind was in chaos as well.

No matter how justified the reason, killing was killing! It was bound to bring all kinds of trouble.

Gao Wu looked up at the drone circling overhead. Whenever he practiced swordsmanship, he sent out the drone to record footage for Shen Yue to edit into videos.

Zhang Hao had not been right in the head and had clearly failed to notice the drone circling above him. With that footage, it should not have been difficult for Gao Wu to clear himself under normal circumstances.

The problem was that the situation was anything but normal. Zhang Hao was obviously a Demonic Cultist, and who knew how many accomplices stood behind him.

December was abnormally cold, and it was snowing. No one would be coming up the mountain these next few days. If he disposed of the body, it probably would not be discovered anytime soon.

But he had been in the right to begin with. If he did that, he would turn himself into a criminal. Once the matter came to light, he would be in deep trouble.

His mind was somewhat muddled, so Gao Wu simply began silently reciting the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Incantation. The Azure Dragon formed from spiritual light coiled and danced, rapidly restoring his body to peak condition and completely calming him down.

Gao Wu inspected his sword. There was only a tiny nick in the blade. It truly was a fine sword.

He sheathed the sword first, then retrieved the drone and transferred the video from its storage to his phone.

Fortunately, there was still a bit of signal on the mountaintop. Gao Wu moved the video files to his personal cloud drive and sent a backup to his own email.

Only after finishing all that did Gao Wu call Song Mingyue.

The call was answered quickly, and Song Mingyue's cool voice came through the receiver. "Hello..."

"Something happened."

After more than a month together, Gao Wu had become extremely familiar with Song Mingyue's personality and trusted her greatly.

After all, Song Mingyue believed their friendship was worth hundreds of billions. She had not merely said so—she had invested in him by any means necessary, without counting the cost. She had even placed her life in his hands.

After Gao Wu told her what had happened, Song Mingyue was silent for a while before saying, "Send me the video first, then delete our chat records. Call the police five minutes later. I'll contact someone to handle this."

After a pause, she comforted Gao Wu again. "Nothing will happen. Remember, no matter what kind of official questioning or interrogation you face, stay silent as much as possible. The more you say, the more mistakes you make."

"I understand."

Gao Wu sent the video to Song Mingyue through Feixin, then deleted their communications records from that day.

Next, Gao Wu called the old man. The call was answered quickly as well.

Shang Hongyi had always risen early. When he suddenly received Gao Wu's call, the old man knew something was wrong. After Gao Wu explained what had happened, the old man became anxious too.

"Call the police first. Remember, once you get to the Public Security Bureau, do not talk nonsense." Shang Hongyi knew the character of those people at the Public Security Bureau. Even if Gao Wu had done nothing wrong, it would be easy for him to fall into the traps hidden in their words.

"I'll find someone to deal with it. Don't panic. It's nothing major." Shang Hongyi quickly calmed down. He still had quite a few friends in the military. He could always find someone willing to help.

Gao Wu was not in the wrong in this matter. As long as no one stirred up trouble behind the scenes, Gao Wu would soon be able to extricate himself. If it was handled well, he might even receive a commendation. But Demonic Cultists were dangerous, so there was no need for any commendation...

Gao Wu did not send the video to the old man. It was not that he did not trust him; the old man was simply too old-fashioned and did not even use a smartphone.

The old man did not normally even go online. There was nowhere to send the video even if Gao Wu wanted to.

The Public Security Bureau responded quickly. Half an hour later, more than a dozen inspectors had arrived at the summit of Bailong Mountain. Their leader was a female Level Three Inspector in her forties, dressed in a dark green regulation wool coat.

Her cheekbones were high, her eyes narrow and long, and the gaze she turned on Gao Wu was cold and sinister.

The scene was rather gruesome. The inspectors all cautiously aimed their guns at Gao Wu.

Gao Wu swept his gaze across the group. With his current physique, he should have been able to withstand small-caliber handgun fire.

But the Level Three female inspector had a lean, capable build and a deep, restrained aura. She was clearly a Warrior, far beyond his match.

He cooperated with the inspectors' orders, setting down his sword and allowing them to put handcuffs on him...

The inspectors took photographs and measurements, busying themselves for over an hour before the female inspector, Han Juan, finally brought Gao Wu back to the Dongshan District Public Security Bureau.

Han Juan did not rush to interrogate Gao Wu. She and several subordinates watched him from the room beside the interrogation room.

Through the one-way glass and several cameras at the front and back, they could clearly observe the slightest shifts in Gao Wu's expression and every movement of his body.

There was only a table and chairs in the interrogation room, nothing else. The one-way glass and heavy door made the room feel somewhat oppressive.

Gao Wu knew they had to be monitoring him. His phone and other belongings had been taken away, and sitting there doing nothing felt extremely awkward.

He simply closed his eyes and silently recited the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Incantation. His mind quickly settled into calmness...

Han Juan watched from outside for quite a while, but Gao Wu had closed his eyes and relaxed as if asleep. This greatly surprised the inspectors.

He had killed someone and been locked in an interrogation room, yet this boy was far too calm! Calm to an abnormal degree!

"There's something wrong with this kid."

Han Juan flipped through the file that had just been brought over. "He and the deceased belonged to the same martial arts hall. There should have been a grudge between them."

One inspector said quietly, "Two female corpses were found in the deceased's home. Their deaths were gruesome, and an Evil God statue was also found. The deceased was likely a Demonic Cultist and directly connected to several recent disappearance cases."

Another inspector said, "Judging from the footage stored in Gao Wu's action camera, Zhang Hao attacked him first. This should have nothing to do with Gao Wu."

"This is a major case. How can we jump to conclusions so easily?" Han Juan shot the inspector a cold glance. "Can you guarantee that Gao Wu has no problems?"

The inspector hurriedly lowered his head, not daring to even breathe loudly.

Han Juan snorted and gave the order. "Bring back all the upper ranks of Tielong Martial Arts Hall. Every one of them is a major suspect."

"Tie Dalong is an Intermediate Warrior. He won't be easy to deal with. What if he's a Demonic Cultist..." One inspector looked uneasy. If an Intermediate Warrior turned hostile and started fighting, it would be terrifying.

"Notify headquarters and ask them to send experts to assist us," Han Juan said.

"Shouldn't we notify the Supervisory Bureau?" an inspector asked cautiously.

Normally, matters involving the Demonic Cult, Evil Gods, and Warriors had to be handed over to the Supervisory Bureau.

"How can a major case like this be handed over to another department?" Han Juan snapped.

So many people had recently gone missing that the state headquarters had already been alerted. Such a huge case was the perfect chance for her to distinguish herself. How could she possibly transfer it to someone else?

Pushing open the interrogation room door, Han Juan sat across from Gao Wu. She lightly placed the file in her hand on the table. "Gao Wu, right? We've investigated. You knew the deceased..."

Remembering what Song Minghua and the old man had told him, Gao Wu did not speak. He merely looked silently at Han Juan.

Han Juan spoke for a while without receiving any response from Gao Wu, and her expression grew stern. "Gao Wu, your situation is very serious. From the scene, it's obvious that you committed deliberate murder!"

Han Juan was somewhat disappointed. Gao Wu's face showed neither fear nor unease, neither irritation nor impatience. This boy even possessed a tranquility like still water.

That was rather abnormal. It did not fit the traits of a young man, nor did it fit the personality Gao Wu had displayed in the past.

After considering it, she softened her expression. "I've read your file. You're a good kid, and I believe you did not deliberately kill Zhang Hao.

"We can help establish this as negligent homicide. Given your age and a voluntary confession, at most you'll receive a suspended sentence..."

Gao Wu had awakened Past-Life Wisdom. With his future life at stake, he could not blindly trust anyone.

He still had the video evidence, and Song Mingyue and the old man were working for him outside. There was no need for him to rush into finding a way out.

He tested the waters. "The video recorded by my action camera is enough to prove my innocence."

Han Juan's face abruptly darkened. "Gao Wu, that video cannot prove anything. Deliberate murder alone can put you behind bars for the rest of your life! Think it through!"