Chapter 96: Chapter 96: The Two-Faced Uncanny Buddha, Homicide? Suicide!

“Should we go down and take a look?” Gu Yu asked, somewhat uncertainly.

Judging by the sound just now, the fall must have been from at least the twentieth floor. Each apartment unit in this complex was roughly four meters high, putting the total height close to one hundred meters. Gu Yu didn’t even need to think to guess what kind of state a body would be in after a free fall from that height.

His sister was so young; could she handle such a bloody scene?

Fortunately, his worries didn’t materialize.

Yao Yao simply shook her head. “No need!”

The police examine corpses to find evidence, but for her, the ones who could truly speak were never the bodies, but the souls within them.

In the past, Yao Yao would have had to set up an altar to summon the spirit, a complex and tedious process. Now, it was much simpler.

With a lift of her small hand, pitch-black Soul-Hooking Chains instantly shot through the door and window, rushing towards the deceased’s body. For someone who had just died, the soul couldn’t leave the body immediately; even transforming into a vengeful ghost required time. Therefore, Yao Yao wasn’t afraid the soul would escape.

However, when the Soul-Hooking Chains returned empty, her round little face showed a rare expression of confusion.

“Can’t find the soul?” Yao Yao murmured to herself. This was the message transmitted back by the chains. As a manifestation of the laws of heaven and earth, it was impossible for them to sense incorrectly.

A corpse without a soul – that was definitely abnormal.

Noticing the change in his sister’s expression, Gu Yu couldn’t help but ask, “Did something go wrong?”

Yao Yao nodded. She tapped her watch, calling her Third Brother and the Special Operations Team, simultaneously sending them the address. This was something her Seventh Brother had taught her, mainly as a way to send them her location in case she got lost.

Yao Yao was very direct. Since she couldn’t hook the ghost’s soul to question it face-to-face, her only option was to call in the professionals. She never tried to show off or overreach; that would just make things too difficult for herself!

Chi Zhong looked on, utterly bewildered, at the brother and sister pair communicating as if in riddles, feeling they were acting rather mysteriously. However, he didn’t dare go down either, terrified of seeing a gruesome, bloody mess.

In this state of suspense, half an hour later, the piercing sound of police sirens echoed from downstairs.

“Third Brother is here!” Yao Yao’s eyes lit up. She happily grabbed her Seventh Brother’s hand and rushed downstairs, looking so cheerful that anyone who didn’t know better might think she was going to receive an award certificate!

The police were swift. By the time Yao Yao found the police cars, the scene had already been cordoned off with police tape. Several forensic examiners in white coats, along with criminal police officers, were gathered around the body, inspecting it. Gu Jinnian was giving instructions to his subordinates.

His gaze flickered towards the small figure suddenly running towards him. He paused for a second, and before he could fully react, she was already right in front of him.

“Third Brother,” Yao Yao called out in her sweet, childlike voice.

A vein throbbed at Gu Jinnian’s temple. He took a deep breath and slowly crouched down. Looking at his rosy-cheeked sister who seemed full of energy, he spoke in a heavy tone, “Oh, Yao Yao, you really know how to add to your Third Brother’s performance record!”

He couldn’t even remember his own expression when he had received his sister’s call. Before, his sister had only dealt with catching ghosts and monsters; now, she was directly creating criminal investigation scenes.

Wasn’t this leap a bit too big?!

Yao Yao tilted her head. “Doesn’t Third Brother like it?”

This question hit Gu Jinnian right where it mattered. A slight smile touched the corners of his lips. He reached out, pinched her plump little cheek, and chuckled, “Of course, I like it.”

His own promotion evaluations depended on his achievements. He usually couldn’t find so many opportunities. Just in the short time his sister had been here, the opportunities she had created surpassed all those he had accumulated over the past two years.

“Then next time, I’ll still look for Third Brother.” Seeing him nod, Yao Yao’s big eyes instantly brightened. She remembered the old Daoist priest saying that ’fertile water doesn’t flow into others’ fields’. So, she would continue to work hard.

Gu Jinnian’s eyes were full of amusement. However, after standing up, he suddenly noticed Gu Yu standing beside Yao Yao. His smile instantly vanished. Frowning, he reprimanded sternly, “Running around everywhere with your sister late at night, is this how you act as an older brother?”

Luckily, Yao Yao was sensible and knew to call him when something happened. This younger brother of his was nearly twenty! How could he be less sensible than his three-and-a-half-year-old sister?

The more he looked, the more infuriating it was!

Gu Yu was dumbfounded: …

Why drag him into it while praising Yao Yao?! What did he mean, he was the one taking her running around wildly?

Was he running around wildly? Absolutely not, okay? He was here to solve a problem; he just had a bit of bad luck, that’s all.

What was even more infuriating was that he couldn’t explain himself. After all, could he tell Gu Jinnian that he had brought Yao Yao here to get a wig? Never mind whether Gu Jinnian would believe him, just seeing his sister secretly pleading with him to keep it quiet with her pitiful expression… Gu Yu would bear this blame no matter what.

Besides, he didn’t particularly like his third brother either. He snorted coldly, adopting an expression that clearly said, “I’m not listening to your crap.”

Gu Jinnian frowned, about to lecture him further, when an officer searching the scene walked over. The officer held a clear plastic bag containing a computer chip recovered from the scene, along with a small wooden carving. He pushed up his glasses and reported the findings from the search.

“Captain Gu, this case… might be a bit complicated.”

“How so?” Hearing the report, Gu Jinnian lost interest in dealing with Gu Yu’s attitude. The homicide case was more important.

The officer paused for a moment, organizing his thoughts, then continued, “Based on many details found on the deceased, it’s highly probable that this was a suicide!”

“The individual was, in all likelihood, a religious believer. This wooden carving should be the object of their worship.” As he spoke, he handed over the transparent plastic bag.

Gu Jinnian could now clearly see the object. It was a two-faced Buddha statue. One face was compassionate and merciful, while the other resembled a green-faced demon. Coupled with the dark, black-iron-like material, it emanated an inexplicably bone-chilling, eerie feeling.

Bringing it closer and opening the bag slightly, the smell of incense and candles instantly wafted out. Considering the victim hadn’t died just moments ago, the statue had likely been exposed to the air for some time. Yet, the scent remained strong. To reach this state, it must have been worshipped daily with incense and candles, the smell permeating the entire statue.

No wonder his subordinate reached this conclusion. After all, who would offer incense to such an object day after day for no reason?

“The forensic team has already taken tissue samples. I believe we’ll be able to confirm the deceased’s identity soon.”

“Until then, these are the only two clues we have. Perhaps we can start with this chip.”

Gu Jinnian was also feeling a headache coming on. A believer, a suicide… based on his years of experience, things were definitely not that simple. Because these kinds of people were often irrational fanatics, prone to extreme actions.

“Go ahead and try to see if you can retrieve any useful information from this first,” Gu Jinnian waved his hand. No matter how troublesome this case was, he had to find a way. The Buddha statue wouldn’t reveal anything immediately, whereas the chip held more research value.

The officer naturally understood this. He nodded, took the items, and went straight to the car to begin his analysis.

Gu Jinnian kept the Buddha statue. He examined it briefly, about to test the material’s durability – after all, how could it survive a fall from the twentieth floor without a scratch?

Just then, a small, childlike voice interjected.

“Third Brother, can you let me see this thing?”

Gu Jinnian looked down and saw his sister looking expectantly at the Buddha statue in his hand. This made him pause. He had been so focused on the case earlier. This statue was too bizarre; perhaps it wasn’t something an ordinary person would possess.

And his sister came from a background in mysticism; maybe she could discern something.

“Of course, you can!”

Without a second thought, he handed the object over.

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