Old Wu, who had followed them over, received a message through his earpiece. He approached Wei Cangyue. "We found the body of that Middle-Stage First-Rank Martial Artist."
"Oh? Take me there."
Lan Shengxue had wanted to follow them and see what was going on, but considering Lan Xinyu's young age and the terrible fright she had suffered, she could only take Lan Xinyu home first.
Before long, Wei Cangyue arrived beside Bing 78's body and began a meticulous examination.
"Huh? That doesn't make sense." Wei Cangyue rubbed his chin, his brows tightly furrowed.
Puzzled, Old Wu asked, "What is it? What's wrong?"
Wei Cangyue did not answer immediately. Instead, he inspected the scene carefully once more, then frowned even more deeply.
"There are no other wounds on this body. The only wound is the fatal one on the left side of his chest. But look at that knocked-down streetlight pole, and these scrape marks on the ground. They were clearly left because his opponent was no match for the criminal. Didn't you tell me earlier that the person who killed this criminal was an expert? If they could kill him in one move, how could the criminal have beaten them so badly that they couldn't fight back?"
Old Wu thought for a moment and replied, "Could those marks have been left when Jiang Fan fought the criminal? Earlier, I saw that Jiang Fan seemed to be injured and was covered in blood. Maybe the expert arrived afterward and killed the criminal in one move?"
Wei Cangyue said, "How is that possible? How strong is Jiang Fan? And how strong was this criminal? One is an early-stage martial apprentice, and the other was a Middle-Stage First-Rank Martial Artist. With such an enormous gap in strength, there's no way Jiang Fan could have exchanged blows with the criminal and survived. Besides, judging by the surrounding marks, this criminal seems to have sent his opponent hurtling back over a dozen meters with a single strike. Do you think Jiang Fan could withstand that? And that streetlight pole-do you think Jiang Fan could still be alive after being sent flying and knocking it down? Although I don't know how Jiang Fan got injured, the person who exchanged blows with this criminal just now absolutely could not have been Jiang Fan."
After hearing Wei Cangyue's analysis, Old Wu realized his theory had been far too much of an Arabian Nights tale.
Wei Cangyue noticed the blood beside the streetlight pole, and his eyes immediately lit up. He instructed Old Wu, "Collect a blood sample and compare the DNA."
"All right."
"And that Jiang Fan... that kid is definitely hiding something..." Wei Cangyue muttered to himself.
"Right, I noticed the other criminals all had weapons. As their leader, this man couldn't have been unarmed, but I don't see a weapon anywhere nearby."
Old Wu said, "The criminal's weapon is currently with Jiang Fan."
"Oh? Perfect. Contact Jiang Fan and have him hand over the weapon," Wei Cangyue said.
Old Wu looked somewhat troubled. "He seized it himself. Wouldn't that be a bit inappropriate?"
After all, if Jiang Fan had not discovered the hideout and contacted them in time, his daughter Wu Yun would likely have faced more peril than fortune.
Wei Cangyue thought for a moment. "Tell him this: have him hand it over temporarily, and once the case is closed, we'll return it to him. Also, have Jiang Fan come along tomorrow. I have questions for him."
"All right, I'll contact him later."
After Jiang Fan returned home, he eagerly opened the system panel.
Four system notifications had sounded in his mind earlier.
The first had come when he killed Ding 123, awarding him 30 points.
The second had come when he killed Bing 78, awarding him 35 points.
The third had come when he killed Ding 3, awarding him 30 points.
The fourth had been for rescuing the children, 33 in all, awarding him a total of 990 points.
The system panel opened.
Points: 10088 Qi and blood: 86N (+) Psychic power: 2183P (+) Lottery: 100 points per draw
At the sight, Jiang Fan's eyes suddenly lit up.
"Did the system upgrade?"
[Yes, Master. The system upgraded when your points reached 10000.]
So that was it.
Jiang Fan's attention settled on the lottery entry. He asked, "Are the odds of winning high?"
[Whether they're high or low depends entirely on your own ability.]
Jiang Fan wasted no more words on the system and exchanged his points for one draw.
The next second, a lottery wheel popped up on the panel.
He clicked [Start draw].
A cheerful sound effect soon played.
A system notification followed.
[Ding! Congratulations, Master! You won one Qi and Blood Fruit.]
Puzzled, Jiang Fan asked, "What's the difference between this Qi and Blood Fruit and a Qi and Blood Raw Stone?"
[There's a huge difference. A Qi and Blood Raw Stone is most effective the first time you absorb one, with increasingly meager results afterward. But each Qi and Blood Fruit you consume increases your qi and blood by 5N, and after you consume it, your physical fitness changes along with it.]
Hearing this, Jiang Fan grew excited.
Originally, when he exchanged points for qi and blood, he had needed to strengthen his body through exercise just to exchange for that pitiful little bit of qi and blood. But the Qi and Blood Fruit ignored the requirement for physical strength, letting him increase it however he wanted. It could even improve his physical fitness along the way, which amounted to skipping the exercise process.
Delighted by this pleasant surprise, Jiang Fan immediately consumed the Qi and Blood Fruit.
Less than a breath after consuming it, his entire body filled with an indescribable sense of comfort and strength.
Jiang Fan glanced at the panel.
Points: 9988 Qi and blood: 91N (+) Psychic power: 2183P (+) Lottery: 100 points per draw
Smiling, Jiang Fan looked at the qi and blood entry and drew again.
As the pointer on the lottery wheel stopped, the cheerful sound effect played again.
[Ding! Congratulations, Master! You won another Qi and Blood Fruit. You're really lucky, Master.]
The smile on Jiang Fan's face bloomed even wider.
After decisively consuming the Qi and Blood Fruit, his qi and blood increased by another 5N.
Keep drawing!
[Ding! Congratulations, Master! You won yet another Qi and Blood Fruit. Your luck defies the heavens, Master!]
Again!
[Ding! Congratulations, Master! You won yet another Qi and Blood Fruit, again. Your luck is simply off the charts, Master!]
Keep going!
[Ding...] [Ding...]
On the seventh draw, the system played the mournful wailing of a suona.
[Ding, you didn't win anything. My condolences, Master.]
The corner of Jiang Fan's mouth twitched. What kind of thing was that to say?
"One more time."
[Ding, you didn't win anything again. Don't cry, Master. Hugs.]
Jiang Fan: "..."
Jiang Fan decided to stop. He felt that a person only had a certain amount of good luck, so he planned to cut his losses in time.
Otherwise, he would end up like a gambler who squandered his entire fortune, winning at first but then greedily refusing to stop, only to ultimately suffer a crushing loss.
He opened the system panel again.
Points: 9388 Qi and blood: 116N (+) Psychic power: 2183P (+) Lottery: 100 points per draw
His qi and blood had shot up to 116N in one go. He was currently at the level of a middle-stage martial apprentice, just 14N away from becoming a late-stage martial apprentice.
With just four more draws, he could reach the late-stage martial apprentice level.
To be honest, Jiang Fan did not plan to advance that quickly. He needed to let his body adapt to the sudden surge in qi and blood first. Although the Qi and Blood Fruit had no side effects, increasing his strength too quickly could very well leave his foundation unstable.
He had thought it through. Once this whole affair was completely over, he would find a studio and take on some missions to gain practical combat experience, rather than letting himself become a showy shell with nothing but qi and blood.
His thoughts shifted, and Jiang Fan turned his attention to the psychic power entry.
Now that his qi and blood had risen to 116N, he should be able to exchange for a corresponding amount of psychic power as well.