Chapter 102 The Shadow Changer 5

My idea is simple: to assign thermal markers to everyone currently in that nightclub.

It doesn't have to be everyone. Considering the Shadow Man's severed hand is a rough male hand, we can pre-screen out anyone whose hand shape doesn't meet the criteria. The Shadow Man must be among the remaining people.

Even if his real body isn't in the nightclub right now, it doesn't matter. Since he's always used teleportation to enter and exit the nightclub, there must be a humanoid clone of him inside. My thermal signature can be applied to the clone. As long as he uses teleportation, I'll know who the target is.

However, this method may have a problem.

After listening to my explanation, Zhu Shi raised an objection: "Won't the Shadow Man detect your thermal energy mark? Since the thermal energy mark is essentially a piece of heat, if you rashly attach it to the target, it will be easy for the target to detect it. Anyone would feel something is wrong if there is an abnormal temperature spot on their body."

“I can set the thermal energy signal in the internal organs,” I said. “The internal environment of a person is warm, and it is not as sensitive to subtle temperature changes as the skin, so it will not be detected under normal circumstances.”

"How do you know?" Asa asked curiously. "Have you used it on anyone before?"

"Hmm?" Zhu Shi seemed to realize something.

She glanced at Ma Zao, then at me, her eyes suddenly becoming very sharp.

I quickly changed the subject: "But I still have some concerns about this method. I don't know if it will be detected by someone who possesses strange powers."

“…You’re right.” Zhu Shi let me off the hook for the time being. “If the Shadow Man notices, he might use his teleportation ability to transfer the cause and effect of the thermal energy mark implanted in him to his clone, and then escape without any burden.”

"Wait, did I misunderstand something? Isn't the causal transfer effect of his teleportation ability only triggered passively when he suffers a fatal injury?" I asked immediately.

“You’ve got it right. When he actively activated that ability, it was simply a matter of swapping spatial positions with his clone. But we can’t rule out the possibility that he triggered the passive effect through suicide,” she said.

Although I don't think the Shadow Changer would have thought of this use, such caution is not a bad habit.

However, this is a big problem. Teleportation is an ability with ridiculously strong escape capabilities, and it can also trigger causal transfer effects on its own. Even if we really have a way to find it, we can't prevent it from escaping.

My plan is to try and catch him trying to escape when he activates his ability. If successful, it might even stop the teleportation ability itself. The problem is that that approach is currently just theory, and its success rate is hard to expect before it's put into practice.

I asked Zhu Shi and Ma Zao if they had any way to deal with the teleportation ability.

Ma Zao looked troubled.

Zhu Shi then proposed his own plan: "Actually, I have thought about specific tactics. That is, you first wrap flames around the Shadow Man, and then no matter where the Shadow Man moves, we will be able to track him. And as long as he thinks that he cannot escape our grasp and falls into complete despair, the Seed of Heart will leave his body."

"In that state, he should no longer be able to use his teleportation ability. Then I will interrupt the process of the Seed of the Heart destroying the brain's information, and I can bring his head to Lu Chan intact. The mission will be successful."

"Regardless of whether this approach can truly drive him to despair..." I said, "Even if I can engulf him in flames, can't he simply use his teleportation ability to transfer my flames to his clone?"

“When the teleportation ability is passively triggered, the causal transfer is limited to the causal relationship with his death,” she said. “As long as the person who caused him the fatal injury was not you, but me and Asahi, or as long as you use the ‘flame used to track him’ and the ‘flame used to kill him’ separately, the tracking flame will not be automatically transferred.”

I understood what she meant.

Similarly, if he commits suicide because of my thermal energy signature, the thermal energy signature will be transferred because the thermal energy signature becomes associated with his death.

And as long as he is prevented from committing suicide based on this motive, the thermal signature will not be transferred. This is not difficult for me.

Upon closer examination, this rule was actually foreshadowed earlier. Last night, Asaha severed a hand from the Shadow-Swapping Monster, and after the latter swapped hands with its clone, the severed hand did not disappear as a shadow that made up the clone, but continued to exist as the remaining flesh and blood of the original body. This is because Asaha's act of severing its hand was not sufficiently related to the fatal wound it subsequently suffered.

I've grasped the detailed operating logic of his superpower, and I'm amazed by Zhu Shi's performance.

She actually understood the Shadow Changer's abilities to such an extent that even the Shadow Changer himself might not understand his abilities as well as she did. The power of "Mount Buzhou" is truly beyond imagination.

"Zhu Shi, since you were able to see through the flaws in the Shadow-Switch's ability, are you able to destroy the Shadow-Switch's ability itself?"

I had only asked casually, but to my surprise, Zhu Shi hesitated for a moment.

"Huh? Really?" I exclaimed in surprise.

“It is possible…” she said, “but with my current level, I can only destroy the superpower itself when the other party activates it, and this destruction effect is only temporary.”

"Furthermore, the Shadow Man's ability can only be activated for a split second. It's too difficult for me to time it right now; I can only be 10% sure at most."

"I think this is outrageous enough..." Asahi couldn't help but hide behind me.

Zhu Shi seemed greatly shocked: "Hey, wait a minute! Ma Zao, why are you distancing yourself from me?"

"Putting that aside for now, we do have a way to stop the Shadow Man from escaping, but we haven't found him yet," I said. "Can I implant thermal energy marks on you? You can help me determine whether a Shadow Man can detect the extra thermal energy marks on his body."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Shiqing couldn't help but look at me with the same eyes one would use to judge someone with ulterior motives, and then said, "Alright... let's give it a try."

I tried to place thermal markers on the internal organs of the two people.

Zhu Shiwei paused slightly, then immediately replied, "I can sense the magical fluctuations of the thermal energy mark, so your previous strategy won't work."

“I can’t feel anything.” Ma Zao shook her head instead. “But my opinion can’t be taken as a reference. I’m still in a state of soul damage, and my ability to perceive magical fluctuations is much worse than before.”

"Really..." I appeared disappointed, but inwardly I felt relieved.

Judging from Ma Zao's reaction, it seems that the fact that I had previously placed thermal energy markers inside her body has not been revealed.

"Zhuang Cheng, although you yourself don't let anyone sense the fluctuations of your magic when you use your superpowers, the flames you disperse are different. You need to be careful in the future," Zhu Shi advised.

"Mana fluctuations..."

Lu Youxun had mentioned this term before. As the name suggests, it refers to the effects that occur when using strange powers, which can be perceived by demon hunters like Zhu Shi.

Immediately, I realized a problem: "What about my 'Firefly'? Could the Shadow Changer have already discovered that I let the 'Firefly' into the nightclub?"

“You can rest assured about that. The magical fluctuations emitted by your ‘fireflies’ are extremely subtle. Even I, with my fairly keen senses, have difficulty detecting your ‘fireflies.’ Strange people would probably be even less able to detect them.” She shook her head. “This thermal energy signal is actually quite well hidden. If it hadn’t directly entered my body, I wouldn’t have been able to detect it either.”

I used "Firefly" to eavesdrop on her phone calls before, and she really didn't seem to notice.

However, I've never sensed anything like "magical energy fluctuations" before. Now is not the time to ask for guidance; I'll have to learn from Zhu Shi later how to perceive these so-called magical energy fluctuations.

Let's focus on the immediate problem. Since implanting thermal markers into everyone in the nightclub isn't working, we have to reassemble the previous clues and figure out who the Shadow Changer is.

So, is it really necessary to study the narratives before Chang'an?

Following Ma Zao's hint, our unexpected encounter with Chang'an and the goldfish might very well contain clues that are close enough to the heart of the matter. Could I interpret this as Chang'an's recounting of his experiences with the goldfish containing clues that could lead us to the true form of the Shadow-Switch?

Or is the Shadow Changer a "character" in Chang'an and the Goldfish's experiences?

In that narrated experience, excluding Chang'an and Jinyu, there are three clearly defined characters: Jinyu's father and mother, and the nightclub owner.

Considering the Shadow Man was inside the nightclub, I initially suspected he might be the nightclub owner, but this possibility was ruled out by the man in the black suit. The Shadow Man is the nightclub owner's "collaborator," and since the nightclub owner is a woman, the rough male hand clearly couldn't be hers. Similarly, the goldfish's mother should also be ruled out.

So the only one left is the goldfish's father, who is not only male, but also fits the condition of "frequently visiting that nightclub".

But is it really okay to just randomly select a target by the process of elimination? I know that Asaha's jinx is extremely absurd, but to be able to easily find the key to solve the mystery just by walking around outside is just too ridiculous, isn't it?

If we guess the wrong target, we'll never be able to catch the Shadow Man again. I need more evidence…

I kept pondering the experiences of Chang'an and the goldfish.

Suddenly, I noticed a huge suspicious point.

Why did I overlook this point of doubt before?

While feeling moved, I was certain that I had truly grasped the essence of my goal.

“Goldfish, you said you joined that nightclub because you found out your father frequented it, and you wanted to frame him, right?” I looked at Goldfish. “And after that, the boss just treated you like an ordinary employee and never gave you any special treatment.”

“Yes…” the goldfish asked, puzzled, “Is there a problem with that?”

“It was a masquerade-style nightclub. The patrons all wore hoods, and the staff wore masks. Whether for fun or for privacy, the patrons' true social identities were hidden,” I said. “So how can you be sure that your father was still a guest there after you joined the club?”

(End of this chapter)