Records

Tianhai City Serial Jumping Case

Evidence: interview records, body camera footage

Number of people who jumped: 7

Date of first recorded case: July 15

Recently, multiple cases of people jumping to their deaths had been discovered across Tianhai City. The locations of all the jumps were different.

Investigations by the Public Security Bureau revealed that all the people who jumped shared the following characteristics:

1. In the seven days before their deaths, all of them had large sums of unexplained money deposited into their accounts.

2. According to surveillance footage from the scenes, all the victims had landed feet first when they fell, and all had died between 11 p.m. and 3 a.m.

3. All the victims' faces were intact, but their appearance was drastically different from that in recent photos, showing severe signs of aging.

Jucai District, Jucai Street, Tianhai City.

A Public Security Bureau patrol car was parked in the residential complex. Two officers got out.

They entered the stairwell and went to the door of Apartment 703. One of them raised a hand and knocked.

It wasn't long before the door opened. A pale young man with a dazed expression appeared in the doorway.

After glancing at the uniforms of the two officers, he invited them inside.

Seated on the sofa, one of the officers began speaking.

"Hello, Mr. Chen. We're with the Jucai Street Public Security Bureau. We have some questions about the case of your friend, Duan Yitian, who fell to his death. We'd like you to help with our investigation."

"Oh! Sure, sure!" The man nodded, then pointed at a device on their shoulders that was flashing red.

He asked, "What's that?"

"It's a body camera. The footage is only used as evidence and won't be used for anything else. Please don't worry, Mr. Chen."

"I see... Sorry, this is my first time dealing with something like this. I'm a little nervous!"

"That's all right, Mr. Chen. Can we continue?"

"Yes!"

"Good."

"We found Duan Yitian's personal phone on him. His contacts showed that you, Mr. Chen, were the last person he contacted before his death."

"We also checked Duan Yitian's messages and found that he went out with you the night he jumped."

"We'd like to ask why Duan Yitian contacted you after you parted ways and before he jumped. What exactly did he tell you on the phone?"

"Officer, I don't know if you'll believe me, but there are... things in this world that aren't of this world..."

"Things that aren't of this world? Do you mean that before he died, Duan Yitian told you someone was following him?"

"Yes! No, that's not right... No!"

"Mr. Chen, try to relax. Take your time."

"Okay... okay."

"Gulp..."

"That day, Duan Yitian did tell me on the phone that something was following him. But he said the thing following him wasn't human... It wasn't human... It... it was... a ghost..."

"A ghost? Please go on, Mr. Chen."

"Okay... okay! You're officers, so you should be able to find out that Duan Yitian suddenly won a prize a week before his death, right?"

"Won a prize? Are you saying the large sum that suddenly appeared in Duan Yitian's account came from a prize?

But from what we've found, there wasn't a single prize anywhere in Jiuzhou with an amount matching that sum."

"You definitely won't find anything, because that money didn't come from a living person. It was... whew... it was Life-Reaping Money from a ghost... whew"

"Life-Reaping Money? What exactly happened that day? Please tell us the truth, Mr. Chen."

"That day, Duan Yitian suddenly messaged us, saying he'd struck it rich and wanted to take us out. We agreed and went with him.

I noticed Duan Yitian had aged a lot, but he didn't mention it, and we didn't feel comfortable asking.

We ate at a hotel first, then went to a KTV to sing, and finally went to a Foot Massage Parlor.

We didn't do anything... anything inappropriate. We went to a regular Foot Massage Parlor, the kind where they just give you a foot massage."

"Understood. Please continue."

While we were getting foot massages, we noticed something seemed off about Duan Yitian.

He kept hitting himself on the head from time to time. He was usually a mild-mannered person, but that day, for no reason, he made the new girl giving him a foot massage cry.

After we finished, we went our separate ways outside the Foot Massage Parlor. Since Duan Yitian and I were headed in the same direction, he gave me a ride for part of the way.

In the car, he seemed really strange. He kept insisting that there was no such thing as a free lunch, telling me to keep my feet on the ground and not buy lottery tickets or anything like that..."

"What happened after that?"

"Not long after I got home, Duan Yitian called me.

I clearly remember how panicked he sounded. I could tell he was terrified.

He seemed to be running from something. I think he was climbing the stairs, because I could clearly hear his footsteps and his ragged breathing.

He kept muttering...

It's here... It's been following me the whole time. It's right behind me. There's no such thing as a free lunch. I didn't win a prize; I got money in exchange for my life..."

"Following him? Money in exchange for his life? Mr. Chen, are you saying someone paid an assassin to kill Duan Yitian? But why would that person give Duan Yitian so much money?"

"No! You don't understand. That thing... it isn't human... It's a ghost...

The ghost offered that money in exchange for his life. The moment he started spending it, he'd already agreed to sell his life...

He sold the years he had left. He only had seven days to live. When the time was up, it would come to collect what it had bought...

Hahaha... Duan Yitian is dead. I'm going to die too... Hahaha..."

"Mr. Chen, please calm down! Please calm down!"

"Hahaha... Come on! Come take my life! You don't have to wait another three days. I can hand over my life early... Hahaha..."

"Ah! Mmph!"

"I'm sorry, Mr. Chen. Given your current mental state, we have to restrain you for your own safety."

"Hahaha... It's no use... That thing isn't human... No matter what you do, I'll still be dead in three days... Hahaha..."

"Grandpa! Your grandson's calling!"

"Grandpa! Your grandson's calling!"

"..."

Around noon.

After a night of cultivation, Lu Siye had just crawled out of bed and was washing his face when he got a call.

He picked up his phone. The caller was Zheng Hai, whom he'd met twice before. They'd exchanged numbers while staying in the rooms next door to each other.

He quickly dried his hands and answered.

Before Lu Siye could say anything, Zheng Hai's grave voice came through.

"Little Lu Comrade, something's happened. I need your help over here!"