Chapter 226

It was late at night, and the broken neon lights outside the floor-to-ceiling windows of the Aiqinghai Bookstore were still flickering, vaguely illuminating the rain-stained walls.

Qi Fei walked toward the store manager called "Sword Bearer" and compared him with the ID card he had handed over: "Dongfang Tian, right? We questioned everyone separately, and only you had an unaccounted-for whereabouts around April 11th. The bookstore was closed during that time. Do you mind telling me where you went?"

Dongfang Tian adjusted his tortoiseshell glasses: "I went traveling, alone."

When he said "alone," Qi Fei's brow couldn't help but furrow: "In other words, no one can prove where you went?"

"But you said the person who died was a web writer, and I am a bookstore owner. Do you understand what that means? Let alone a web writer, I have never even read a web novel, so how could I kill anyone?"

This person spoke in a pedantic way, truly like an old-fashioned bookworm.

"We heard that you fought with a group member before. Do you mind telling me the reason?" Qi Fei continued to ask.

"You mean with Jie Ke?" Unexpectedly, Dongfang Tian had no intention of hiding it. "I only fought with this person, but I was not wrong. This has nothing to do with the murder case you are investigating, right?"

Qi Fei had a noncommittal expression.

Dongfang Tian frowned slightly: "I just felt that person crossed the line. Passion and hallucination are two different things. Other than that, I have nothing to say." As he spoke, he stubbornly turned his head away and pressed his lips together.

"Hmm? You said that person's name is Jie Ke?" Zhong Kui suddenly seemed very interested in this name.

"Captain Jie Ke, from Pirates of the Caribbean..." Dongfang Tian didn't know why his eyes dodged, avoiding Zhong Kui's burning gaze.

"Does Pirates of the Caribbean count as sci-fi?" Zhong Kui asked mischievously. "You really are a terrible liar."

"No matter which Jie Ke it is, it has nothing to do with what you are asking! Are you police or gossip reporters?!" Dongfang Tian's temper was indeed not small.

"Hmm~ my dear, I think the questioning can end here for today." Zhong Kui suddenly turned to Qi Fei and said in a sweet voice, "Let's have Xiao You, oh, Yianduo, and the Sword Bearer accompany us back."

As if she had stayed in this sci-fi-themed masquerade party for too long, Zhong Kui's tone of voice was tinged with a hint of theatricality.

When she mentioned "Yianduo," she specifically glanced at Dongfang Tian. His chestnut-colored hair was messily scattered on his forehead and trembling slightly. Clearly, he had been poked in a sensitive nerve by Zhong Kui's words, and the mystery behind this was known only to him and Zhong Kui.

Outside the bookstore, rain fell in the pitch-black night, wet and damp, giving off a smell mixed with moss and cement.

Zhong Kui did not speak after leaving the bookstore.

Until the five of them squeezed into the car.

The car door slammed shut with a "bang." Wu Shanqiu accompanied You He and Dongfang Tian in the back seat of the car.

Zhong Kui sat in the passenger seat, looking through the rearview mirror at You He, who was huddled in the corner of the car. He was leaning his head against the car window glass, listless and dejected.

"You are worried that after today, those people will no longer accept you." Zhong Kui broke the silence.

You He realized he was being observed and hurriedly straightened up, denying it: "No, no."

"Or perhaps it's the Sword Bearer who reminds you of Jie Ke." Zhong Kui continued as if casually. This sentence, however, was like an electric shock, making You He, who had barely managed to brace himself, tremble all over. He suddenly raised his eyes to look at Zhong Kui in the rearview mirror.

Zhong Kui looked playfully at his eyes, which were like those of a frightened deer: "Truly pitiful to behold."

Wu Shanqiu, sitting next to You He, smelled the scent of gossip: "What kind of riddle are you two playing?"

Zhong Kui didn't rush to answer, but looked at Qi Fei, who was driving: "It seems some people really didn't read the Cyber Killer's masterpiece carefully."

"Hmm? I read it carefully, word for word."

"'Your loneliness hurts me more than death.' This is what the protagonist Ha Ke Ni Si said to his virtual lover Qiong Si in Neuromancer's novel. Neuromancer, Ha Ke Ni Si, Qiong Si—he thought these names were obscure enough, and he thought the restrained, cold language style was obscure enough. His anger, I can understand now.

Why did this web novel, which was neither a bestseller nor critically acclaimed, incite such great hatred from the author after being reported by Hao Weiwei as AI-generated?" Zhong Kui said, suddenly exhaling softly. "I said this trip to Baicheng would go smoothly. So quickly, we found you, You He."

"I don't understand what you are talking about?" You He's thin left hand gripped the car door tightly, nervous yet stubborn.

"You should go read that novel—'After the Consciousness Anchor Fails, I Rebirth into the Third Dimension.' In the eyes of ordinary people, this novel is as heartless as an AI, but perhaps only you can understand the emotions within it." Zhong Kui continued, while continuing to watch You He in the mirror with her clear eyes that saw through everything. He was now as terrified as a small animal caught in her trap. "Before, you could say you had no idea what happened in that world of web novels that was different from your own world, but now that I have announced the protagonist's name from this novel, you must have already felt a strong resonance."

Zhong Kui said, shifting her gaze to the face of Dongfang Tian, who was also silent: "I don't know what role you played in this. Originally, besides you, no one would have discovered the connection between the names of these two people. After all, in your group, there are many book fans, but few who watch the show.

Unfortunately, I like to exhaust all knowledge when doing my homework.

So, I watched that sci-fi show." Speaking of this, she couldn't help but pause triumphantly, as if to enjoy the surprised expression on Dongfang Tian's face at this moment, before saying the name of the show word by word: "Torchwood, a sci-fi TV series from decades ago. Jie Ke Ha Ke Ni Si, Ianto Qiong Si—a touching love story between an immortal time traveler and a mortal. More importantly..."

"Enough!" Dongfang Tian finally exploded, shouting to interrupt Zhong Kui's words. "No matter what, Ianto is innocent! He doesn't know about the things between me and Jie Ke!"

"This, what are you talking about? It sounds like the relationships are a bit messy!" Wu Shanqiu was confused listening from the side.

Only Zhong Kui knew clearly in her heart, and she said unhurriedly: "Of course, Ianto is always innocent, but Jie Ke is already killing people. So, Sword Bearer, now you can no longer keep the secret about you and Jie Ke. Jie Ke used the pseudonym Neuromancer and wrote a web novel with him and Ianto as the protagonists. Now, he has killed another web writer."