City of Sinister Fog (The Black Death) Chapter 122: The Homicide Case

The deceased was a male, between twenty and twenty-five years old. He carried a laptop, wore a plaid shirt, suffered from hair loss, and had coffee stains on his collar... He was a frequent night owl with poor aesthetic sense, a heavy computer user, and nearsighted.

He was most likely a programmer.

There was no bleeding on the corpse, nor were there any obvious signs of physical trauma. Excluding the influence of special abilities, it was either sudden death or poisoning.

Ke Wenbei was analyzing the body when his cousin hoisted him up by the collar. "Don't get so close. Don't you know how to preserve a crime scene? This is an adult's time to deduce."

*You—you have no idea how to deduce anything!* Ke Wenbei had the urge to beat his cousin senseless and then apply for the cleanup detail, but he held back in the end.

"The omnipotent Wu Hui, someone died over there, come take a look!" The second oldest of the dorm group wasn't actually that arrogant; he couldn't deduce, but he knew how to cling to someone capable.

Ke Wenbei, still being held by his cousin, gritted his teeth. Through his own observations, however, he had basically confirmed that the victim was poisoned. The toxin was in his thermos. Of the two companions nearby, the one on the left was the killer.

The motive, however, remained to be investigated.

Wu Hui, summoned by the second oldest, did not seem particularly motivated. Once Li Xiaoyue released his arm, he immediately ignored the surrounding situation again. He walked to the corpse, scanned it, and then looked at the only person present who was a mix of excitement and panic.

Wasn't the killer obvious?

As for the motive, it was completely irrelevant. Wu Hui had no interest in bothering with it.

This approach was correct.

Because at this very moment, in this city, the motive for a crime could very well be nothing more than a series of trivial, unremarkable matters. After breathing in the black mist, it was as if everyone had developed an antisocial personality.

Irritable, lacking empathy, with morality seeming to melt away.

This city was severely ill.

"The killer is you!"

Wu Hui turned his head to see the second oldest in a state of being controlled, with Ke Wenbei sitting not far away, eyes closed.

The second oldest began to recount his "deductions" to the killer. The onlookers scattered, and the killer, just like in a cliché mystery story, demanded evidence.

"The evidence is the coffee powder on your cuff. You gave him poisoned coffee, which he then brewed in his thermos. But the residue remained on your sleeve. Coincidentally, there is the same powder in your jacket pocket."

Ke Wenbei finished the performance through his cousin, and the killer confessed. It seemed everything was over. The restaurant manager came over to waive their bill. Once the control was broken, the second oldest looked confused about what had just happened.

Li Xiaoyue wanted to say something but hesitated; she felt a very strange sense of déjà vu regarding this scene.

Then she saw the second oldest, who had clearly been controlled while delivering the deduction, strutting toward his cousin to show off the power of an adult.

It was only Ke Wenbei’s good upbringing that kept him from beating the man up.

Wu Hui watched as Ke Wenbei’s state slowly shifted from anger to calm, clearly having suppressed his impulse once again.

It felt like the second oldest would eventually get a beating, but it likely wouldn't be fatal, so Wu Hui didn't intervene. To be honest, this dead man was not the first one Wu Hui and the others had encountered today.

Yet everyone acted with cold indifference. Even Li Xiaoyue hadn't used this as an excuse to cling to him for very long.

Something was wrong. Very wrong.

But it was impossible to articulate exactly what.

Wu Hui’s gaze met Ren Yin’s, and it was like looking into a mirror. His expression shifted slightly, as both clearly realized something at the same time.

"Xiaoyue, apply a psychological suggestion to me." The two spoke in unison, leaving themselves and Li Xiaoyue stunned. One hand subconsciously wrapped around Wu Hui’s arm.

Having broken free from the unknown influence once more, Wu Hui grabbed Li Xiaoyue. "Don't let go."

Li Xiaoyue heard the seriousness in his tone and, instead of feeling shy, called her sister over to cling to Wu Hui as well. Under the double suggestion, Wu Hui was temporarily free from the influence.

"This city... has been used as the playing field for a game." After about two minutes of thought, Wu Hui concluded, "And this game is highly likely of the 'Black Death' type. Prepare to leave. Get out of here. Ke Wenbei! Take your cousin."

To an outsider, his words would sound like nonsense. But Ke Wenbei, possessing ten points of intelligence as a player, reacted immediately and activated his control skill on his cousin.

"Wang Xiaodie, buy tickets. Leave the city as fast as possible," Wu Hui commanded.

"Huh? Alright." Wang Xiaodie looked dazed, seemingly completely unaware of what had happened. However, bound by the contract, she still complied with Wu Hui's order. "It's no good, there are no tickets left."

Wu Hui looked at her phone and saw a mass of black mist.

It looked like a demonic face laughing at him.

If one had not realized the truth, one could still leave. But once you noticed it, you were already a participant in the game—unable to enter, unable to leave.

Just like Iron Hand, the super-player from the Inquisition who was isolated outside.

And the many other players, including them.

"Keep holding on, don't let go," Wu Hui said to the twins, while he began to think of other countermeasures.

Wait, if this were truly a game, I couldn't have woken up on my own. How could the seal of a Demon God be broken by the meager wits of a low-level player?

Could it be that another Demon God was helping me? Or helping everyone in this city?

Could it be the Playwright? It was the most likely candidate. If someone found a way to break the seal and save the city, that was definitely the kind of plot it favored. Perhaps it would be even more pleased if the savior sacrificed themselves while saving the city.

But one couldn't pin all their hopes on a Demon God. We have to find a way to save ourselves.

"Prepare to leave. Let's go back to our house first," Wu Hui said. "Ke Wenbei, bring your cousin. Xiaoyue, hypnotize the others so they ignore us."

"When did you realize I was a player? My performance clearly had no flaws," Ke Wenbei asked, curious about that detail.

Wu Hui didn't answer him. The group walked together toward the villa they had rented temporarily.

Wu Hui knew quite a bit about the Black Death.

Putting aside the apocalyptic disaster encountered in the Beast Seal world, there were plenty of records regarding the Black Death on Earth. Wu Tong had shown him files with low security clearance within the Butterfly Organization.

Even the smallest incident had resulted in dozens of deaths. That was only because the Inquisition had managed to kill the player running the Black Death game in time.

The most severe incident had been orchestrated by a Level 12 player at the top of the wanted list, causing over two million casualties. The event was eventually disguised as a plague outbreak, but in reality, someone had been playing the Black Death game.

A game that shrouded an entire city and affected hundreds of thousands of people could not possibly have a low difficulty level.

Even if they weren't top-tier players, at least mid-level players of level six or seven must be involved. It was impossible to deal with this on their own. They would try to find a vehicle later; if they still couldn't leave, they would have to contact the Inquisition and the local branch of the Butterfly Organization.