Chapter 62: Incidents and Deception

At the same moment the prompt sound rang out...

Zhou You clutched his lower abdomen; a powerful sense of Hunger surged up like a flame, sweeping through his internal organs.

A violent, cramping pain struck, and he subconsciously opened his mouth to inhale sharply.

In the blink of an eye, the human skin on the ground vanished without a trace, leaving only a pool of blood and filth.

The next moment, Zhou You's palm tore open violently, and a human face emerged.

"Name: Zhou You.

Strength: 25.

Speed: 25.

Defense: 25.

Experience Points: 398.

Occupation: Martial Arts Apprentice.

Level: Initial Jinli Level.

Skills: Yufa Hand lv10 (Completed), Fuhu Fist lv13, Basic Lightness Skill lv2/lv?, Yanxing Quan lv11.

Ultimate Moves: Wind-Chasing Triple Technique lv0, Tiger Aura lv1.

Talent: Hunger

Armory: Void Face (Flesh Magic Treasure) — Change appearance, false identity.

Trial Project 1 (Two-Star): Break through the Qi-Blood barrier and become an Inner Court Disciple of the Jian Xiong Martial Arts Hall.

Trial Project 2 (Four-Star): Perfect the Basic Lightness Skill."

This human face had its eyes tightly shut, its shrunken features lifelike, as if it might open its eyes and wake up at any moment.

Zhou You instantly understood how to use this face, "Void Face, transform for me."

The next moment, the flesh in his palm writhed in intense pain, and the features underwent subtle changes.

Finally, that face opened its eyes; it was none other than the one who died at Zhou You's hands... Lu Zhigang.

Zhou You met those vacant eyes and laughed heartily, "Wonderful, wonderful, truly wonderful."

He stretched his palm and wiped his face; his entire body's skin, flesh, and bones crackled and popped, and in the blink of an eye, his height, skin tone, and even his hair and eyebrows had turned into another person's.

Zhou You was gone from the spot, and in his place stood... Lu Zhigang.

"Interesting, interesting, to be able to drop a treasure chest after killing a Void Charm, too interesting!"

'Lu Zhigang' spoke, his voice also exactly the same as the original.

The Void Face is a Flesh Magic Treasure that integrates into the flesh, allowing one to change their physical appearance and completely become another identity.

Zhou You initially thought it was just a simple mask, but after experiencing it himself, he discovered it completely transformed everything from his looks to his voice.

Even if Lu Zhigang's closest friends and family were face-to-face with him, they could only say something felt off, but they couldn't pick out a single flaw.

Because the Flesh Magic Treasure from the Void Charm contained the power of creation, truly turning Zhou You into Lu Zhigang.

"This Void Face is truly evil; it only allows me to transform into someone I have killed with my own hands."

Zhou You understood the rules for using the Void Face and couldn't help but shake his head.

He turned and threw a punch; his sharp claws tore through the air, emitting a shrill whistle.

Yanxing Quan, authentic Yanxing Quan, at the Jinli Level, with perfect mastery.

Wearing Lu Zhigang's face and using this set of Yanxing Quan, who would dare to doubt he wasn't Lu Zhigang?

Zhou You laughed; with this second identity, doing things in the future would be much more convenient.

At the very least, he would never again have to take advantage of the night to hide his identity to get things done, like when he killed Tu Laosan.

"Snore!"

Suddenly, the snoring of Zhou Laodie next door stopped, and then his mother's muttering followed.

Oh no, Father is getting up for the night; I cannot make any noise to startle him.

Zhou You sat back on the bed, looking at the mess all around, and couldn't help but smile bitterly.

I'll have to clean this up until dawn, won't I?

Just as dawn broke, Zhou You was woken up, groggy, by the commotion outside.

His entire body's muscles and bones were sore and numb—the aftereffects of intense activity—and his waist ached as if it were about to break.

He packed up the damaged items in the room, along with the Void Charm's filthy blood, and threw them into the dry well in Tianjing Fang.

After tossing and turning all night, it was almost dawn by the time he returned home.

"You'er, get up quickly; something has happened at Mou Laoyao's place next door."

Zhou You lazily threw on his clothes and got up; he naturally knew something had happened, as no one knew the inside story better than him.

However, what child doesn't play dumb in front of their parents?

"What happened? Did his wife run off in the middle of the night?"

Zhou You walked out of the room and found his father was also home, "Father, didn't you go to work?"

"There's been a homicide next door."

Zhou Laodie pulled his wife and Zhou You back, "Everyone step back, don't get contaminated by anything unclean."

The authorities had already arrived; it was Constable Liu, Li Guafu's lover, who was holding his waist-saber and smiling apologetically at a few people while saying something.

"City Gate Guard!"

Zhou You recognized at a glance that those men were dressed as City Gate Guards.

A group of people surrounded the entrance to Mou Laoyao's home, and suddenly, the wailing of an old man rang out.

"My son, my wife, they're all dead, all dead."

It was Mou Laoyao's voice; the old guy was lucky he hadn't died.

The neighbors were all crowded around, whispering to each other and discussing something in secret.

"I heard his new bride is a bandit; last night during the wedding night, she pulled a knife from under her red skirt and killed Mou Xiaoli."

"Mou Xiaoli's mother couldn't escape either; her head was sliced off with one blade, it was too tragic."

"I told you, one shouldn't be greedy for a bargain; when taking a wife, one should find someone from nearby, someone whose roots are known. Look at the refugee Mou Laome found; it's quite possible she's a bandit queen in disguise from some mountain stronghold."

Why was Mou Laoyao unharmed?

Last night, he still had a few bags of wedding eggs that hadn't been delivered, and being unwilling to waste them, he insisted on carrying the eggs through the night to visit a few distant relatives he barely knew, knocking on doors one by one to exchange the eggs for red envelopes.

He returned fully loaded after dawn, but when no one answered his knocking, he had just stepped over the threshold when he smelled a thick, bloody stench.

"When he looked, his son and wife were both dead, their hearts and livers gouged out; it was miserable."

"This must have been done by the mountain bandits; that bunch of bandit kings likes to use human hearts to accompany their wine."

The neighbors talked with increasing excitement, exchanging information with one another, completely ignoring that Mou Laoyao's wailing was growing louder and louder.

"Stop crying, the masters are calling you over for questioning!"

Constable Liu stepped forward and slapped Mou Laoyao across the face, and the old man held his breath, not daring to cry anymore.

He was dragged before the City Gate Guards, answering one question at a time, not daring to pause, while Constable Liu stood by, glaring like a tiger, ready to deliver a heavy slap at the slightest sign of trouble.

After the few City Gate Guards finished their questioning, they handed the matter over to Constable Liu and left one after another.

Constables carried out two corpses one after another, foul-smelling, filthy blood seeping through the white cloth, emitting a stench that made everyone avoid them.

The neighbors were scared ashen-faced, turning around one by one to retreat.

"Official, the people are dead, is there no explanation?"

Mou Laoyao's face was streaked with tears as he grabbed the hem of Constable Liu's robe and begged.

The response he received was a blow to the face with a scabbard, and Mou Laoyao stumbled and fell to the ground, his forehead, mouth, and nose covered in blood.

"What kind of status do the masters have? It is a blessing that they asked you questions; you still want an explanation?"

Constable Liu kicked Mou Laoyao over, brushed off his robe with disdain, and turned to see Zhou You standing not far away, immediately putting on a smiling face.

"Young Master Zhou, did you sleep well last night?"

"It was terribly noisy in the first half of the night; the wild dogs were making a ruckus, but later the sounds gradually died away, and everyone was so exhausted by the noise that they slept very soundly." Zhou You asked in return, "What happened? I heard it was bandits robbing and killing for money."

"The masters of the City Gate Guard have settled the case, saying it was bandits breaking into a house to rob and kill."

There was deep meaning in Constable Liu's words, revealing two pieces of information.

First, this matter was not under his jurisdiction, but under the City Gate Guard.

Second, robbing and killing for money was an excuse used to cover up the truth of the murder case.

Zhou You understood clearly; in all likelihood, the authorities had already discovered that this matter was the work of a Void Phantom.

However, in order not to cause panic among the residents, the final conclusion was that bandits had committed the murder.