Chapter 038 Cult Simulator

To explain this problem clearly, let's go back to before Yu Xi met him, or even further back to when Ji Xu changed into the clothes prepared by Wang Gu. The bookshelf slid back to its original position, and there was only one person left in the lounge. Ji Xu half-crouched and dug out the pattern on the floor. This was actually a mechanism embedded in the ground for camouflage.

He gripped the handle tightly and suddenly opened it with force! The secret door opened to the limit with a clang. Ji Xu jumped to the warehouse downstairs, holding on to the ground. The air was stuffy and damp. There were few people coming and going in the warehouse. Even Lin Muqing rarely glanced at him. Ji Xu walked out of the door calmly and took the elevator to Building 2.

The first thing he said when they met was straight to the point: "Tell me the murderer's information and follow me."

Nie Zhuang subconsciously lowered his hat, stood up cautiously and retreated to the window: "Who are you?"

"The one who has been in contact with you." Ji Xu drew a C in the air smoothly. Nie Zhuang's eyes widened, his face flushed, and he ran behind Ji Xu with trembling hands and feet.

They left the church safely. Nie Zhuang stared at Ji Xu's back in a trance. He was clearly breathing, but he couldn't feel the oxygen flowing into his lungs. On the road, Nie Zhuang cried and laughed while gasping for air until a gloved hand pressed against his mouth and nose, and a familiar voice instructed him: "Exhale."

Nie Zhuang followed suit subconsciously.

After adjusting his breathing, Ji Xu withdrew his hand. He considerately went to the roadside to call a taxi, giving Nie Zhuang enough time alone. Until the car stopped outside the door, Nie Zhuang took out the key and pushed open the dusty door, revealing a corner of the curtain of the brutal incident.

Nie Zhuang's breathing stagnated, and he was forced to pull back to the original memory. His brain was covered with a thick layer of glass, his thoughts were empty, and he didn't even know what he said. "Actually, I thought you would wear a mask."

Ji Xu came to the wall, walked around the dining table, and naturally continued: "At least ten people in the church know what I look like."

"Oh, oh, I see." He forced a smile, but in fact he was so absent-minded that the sentences just floated out of his brain, and his speech was incoherent. "Officer Yu said he would help me find the murderer. He lives next door. My parents like him very much because he makes them feel safe. My children sometimes lie on the wall between the two houses and dare not come down. My wife laughs below..."

Ji Xu listened and searched, he walked into the kitchen, this place has not been destroyed by the murderer, the original stew soup is still sitting on the gas stove, will never be cooked again, there is only a spatula thrown in the corner and a little bit of dried soup on the floor. Nie Zhuang licked his lips, the scene brought back his emotions, he finally realized that he was talking nonsense, gradually getting lower and lower.

He tried his best to force out a smile, "Sorry to bother you."

Ji Xu stepped out with the shovel in his hand and said calmly to Nie Zhuang, "I guess you didn't hear me just now, so I'll say it again. Many people in the church have seen my face, but no one would recognize me when I walk on the street. You might as well guess why."

"They don't want to talk?"

Ji Xu laughed: "Half right. The other reason is that they can't share it anymore."

"I don't think you killed them." Nie Zhuang didn't fall into the trap. It was too obvious. So obvious that he suspected Ji Xu was testing whether his IQ had returned to normal. He whispered, "So you were arrested by the Administration?"

Ji Xu restrained his expression and said, "Yes, this is my guarantee. You will get the ending you deserve."

Although he was clearly told that he would go to jail in a few days, Nie Zhuang felt relieved as if a heavy burden had been lifted off his shoulders. He sensed an unspoken and implicit promise in Ji Xu's joking words. Bai Dao's identity was elusive, and he used his identity to make a deal with him. There were only two possible outcomes: if Nie Zhuang failed to kill his enemy, Ji Xu would let someone who knew who he was wander around.

Nie Zhuang suddenly felt the urge to think and speak. He finally stopped looking like a zombie. "Then you are at a disadvantage, aren't you?"

What if someone is unwilling to surrender after killing their enemy? Everyone has a subconscious desire to survive. Before revenge is complete, everyone feels that they are willing to pay the price to let their enemy die. When the Administration's car comes rushing over with the alarm sounded, the revived desire to survive drives them to flee.

By that time, they were willing to pay any price to escape, such as using Bai Dao's identity to threaten Ji Xu.

Ji Xu glanced at him.

"Do I care?" The food on the table had long been taken away. Ji Xu could only guess what happened from the clues. He said without raising his head, "I have asked you to listen to your inner thoughts. Naturally, I will do what I want to do instead of what I should do."

Nie Zhuang looked at him in surprise: "You——"

"Is it hard to understand? Of course I think highly of you. You are the believers I personally selected. Not everyone deserves my help." Ji Xu seemed to know what he would ask next, and continued to urge him impatiently, "Although I don't care about the name of Baizhao, it is not a cheap commodity. Those who put it on the other side of the scale must be recognized by me. Come and help me now, I need to put something."

Nie Zhuang came over in a daze to help him make room. He watched Ji Xu put things out one by one, bloody clothes, a small piece of plate debris, a shovel, and even a strip of cloth to simply measure the length of the footprints.

Ji Xu pointed at the first piece of clothing in order, and then pointed at his injury.

"See the blood shape and spatter on it? Anyway, let me skip the story. He is right-handed, but the strength of his two hands is uneven. His left hand is stronger."

Seeing Nie Zhuang nod silently, Ji Xu moved on to the second broken plate. "The murderer was fully armed, and he didn't get any scratches even when he fell into the tableware. It's summer now, and it's hot and humid in Huzhong City with little rain and little wind. An ordinary person would sweat profusely within ten minutes, and might even get heatstroke if they wrapped themselves up for too long. Let me ask you, did you see any sweat stains on his cloth when you were fighting with him?"

Nie Zhuang shook his head.

"Okay, let's take a look at the next one. Thanks to his habit, I can be more sure—" Ji Xu turned his head suddenly, feeling someone was peeping at him.

He seemed to have become the subject of the observer effect. Anyone who saw him would be able to notice it. The vague premonition made Ji Xu's expression cold. He pulled out a pitch-black dagger, made some knife flowers with his fingertips, and slowly pushed the door open with his palm wrapped through the glove on the blade.

Unfriendly peeping eyes were gradually approaching. As they walked out the door, they repeated what they had just said without thinking, pretending nothing had happened. Then they saw Yu Xi outside, who was shocked and put his hand on the door.

Then it was now, Ji Xu continued the unfinished topic: "I guess the murderer picked up the spatula. The bowl, basin and soup spoon were right next to him, but he picked up the cooking tools. I know some chefs have the habit of picking up a small piece of food to observe its quality... Never mind, we're in the restaurant now, so I'll skip the rest."

Nie Zhuang was no longer used to laughing, and his expression was weird, but Ji Xu knew that he was really laughing. He subconsciously reflected on what was strange about his own words. Isn't it the same for everyone?

I can't figure it out.

He said nonchalantly, "The fourth one is the murderer's footprint. The path he took was left on the grass. The Administration must have figured it out based on the length of the footprint, the distance between his steps, and the angle of force. He is a chef, a middle-aged male, 187cm tall and weighing about 86kg. He has excellent physical strength and some knowledge of fighting."

Nie Zhuang seemed to be laughing and crying, overwhelmed with sorrow: "No wonder, no wonder his left hand is so strong."

The chef uses his dominant hand to cook and season, and the other hand is responsible for manipulating the wok, which develops a rather strange strength. The murderer is not afraid of heat, because he often stays near the fire, and fire and knives are tools he is good at, and how to make the knife cut into the meat is his handy skill.

The waiter came in, confused by the two people sitting and crying in the room. He served the dishes and ran away quickly, not forgetting to close the door. The room became quiet again. The rising hot mist blurred his eyes, and his memory went back to that day. Gradually, Nie Zhuang could no longer suppress the impulse that gushed out of his heart. He seemed to be reborn, his face flushed, and he began to eagerly look forward to revenge in the same way.

This anticipation filled him with fear and chills.

Ji Xu seemed to know what he was thinking.

"Don't be afraid."

He whispered, "The voice of passion is stronger than the voice of reason, Nie Zhuang, use it as your motivation. Anger is an impulse of the soul. Now, I want to ask you, do you remember the conversation I had with the waiter when I first entered the restaurant?"

Of course Nie Zhuang remembered. He thought Ji Xu was just chatting casually, but he didn't expect him to be waiting here.

He licked his lips, his eyes bright, his heart pounding as he unraveled the mystery: "The restaurant closed at 10, and the murderer broke into my house at 10:26. During the days I was in the hospital, the administration told me that no suspicious vehicles were found, which means the murderer came on foot. Considering that he needed a place to change clothes, this means that his home and mine are no more than 20 minutes away."

Ji Xu folded his hands and supported his chin, his eyes were relieved, and he deliberately asked: "Why didn't he bring the clothes to the kitchen?"

Nie Zhuang was stunned for half a second. He had never thought about this question. After careful consideration, he answered seriously: "I didn't smell any smoke when I was fighting him."

Ji Xu smiled, this time more obviously, with a smile full of heartfelt congratulations. He slipped the dagger out of his sleeve and quietly pushed it over: "This is your gift, I wish you a new life."

…

Nie Zhuang left, and Ji Xu had his last meal by himself. He sat here screening the citizens' information. As the leader of a religion, even if Nie Zhuang held a magnet, he would not be able to fish for the needle in the haystack. He had to give his believers one last help.

The information was filtered out and the sequence was set to be automatically sent out in three days. If Nie Zhuang could succeed, he would cancel the sending and throw the email into the trash. Nie Zhuang would never know that someone was still paying attention to his difficulties in secret.

Ji Xu leaned back in his chair, his thoughts drifting away.

I don’t know how long it took, but Wang Gu sent a message.

"——Director Lin knows that Nie Zhuang has reappeared. Does he need the church to help him cover his tracks?"

Ji Xu finally came back to his senses. Wang Gu took the opportunity to send him a message while Lin Muqing was contacting other police officers. Time was tight, so Ji Xu replied quickly: "Help him. I'll wait for you in the lounge during dinner time. This happened suddenly, and Lin Muqing will definitely suspect that the church was involved. Try to delay his interrogation until the evening and wait for me to return."