Chapter 119 The Strange Case of Stealing Chickens

Chen Mu and Qi Huan were both shocked upon hearing this.

Clerk Hu and his party, along with the remains of the murdered courtesan Yan Hong, had actually disappeared together? And this was at a heavily guarded crime scene?

"We are going to Yiqing Courtyard immediately!"

The two made an immediate decision, and this time, no one dared to stop them.

When they arrived at Yiqing Courtyard, the place was already shrouded in an eerie atmosphere.

The doors were wide open, and inside, it was deathly silent. Many yamen runners and bold townspeople surrounded the entrance, but no one dared to step inside easily.

Xu Changze also arrived quickly, his expression gloomy; he held both the grief and indignation of losing his subordinates and the shock and anger at the situation spiraling out of control.

"Lord Xu, the situation is critical. It is suspected that a Prodigy is wreaking havoc and has harmed government officials. My subordinates and I must enter immediately to investigate."

Qi Huan frowned, his Killing Intent palpable, as if he would fight for his life if Xu Changze were to block them again.

Xu Changze readily let them pass, waving his hand.

"Go ahead, be careful. If there is anything unusual, withdraw immediately."

The two did not hesitate any longer and stepped into Yiqing Courtyard. The first-floor lobby was empty, with tables and chairs neatly arranged as if nothing had happened. Following the messy footprints and the pungent smell of blood, they arrived at the private room on the second floor.

This was Yan Hong's room. On the bed, the bedding was in disarray, and dark brown bloodstains had soaked through the sheets, vaguely forming a human silhouette, but the corpse that should have been lying there was nowhere to be seen.

Torn fragments of clothing were scattered on the floor, the dressing table was overturned, and the rouge box was smashed to pieces.

Qi Huan suppressed his nausea and inspected carefully, while Chen Mu crouched by the bed, reached out to touch the edge of the bloodstain with his finger, and then leaned in to smell it.

"The bloodstains are very fresh; the time of death is no more than three hours ago, but this amount of blood…"

"Something is wrong. They said Yan Hong's heart was cut open and removed, but if that were the case, why are there no blood splatter marks around? It looks more like…"

"More like what?"

Qi Huan leaned in and also observed the bloodstains.

"It looks more like most of the blood had already been drained or consumed by something before the corpse was moved."

Qi Huan frowned slightly. Just then, a yamen runner reported that a large pool of blood had also been discovered in the backyard.

The two immediately stood up and went to the backyard, but the scene before them made even the two, who were accustomed to carnage, feel a chill.

There was a large pool of blood on the ground in the backyard, very deep in color. But apart from that, there was nothing.

There were no corpses, no severed limbs, not even clear signs of a struggle; there was only a pool of glaring blood, and the amount of blood clearly exceeded that of one person—this must be where Clerk Hu and his party were attacked.

"This is truly hellish."

Qi Huan cursed under his breath.

"Where are the people? Even if it's a Prodigy, there should be some traces of entry and exit, and it should leave something behind. With so many people, how could they disappear into thin air without leaving even a scrap of skin, fur, or clothing?"

Chen Mu scanned the entire courtyard, pushing his perception to the limit, but apart from the smell of blood, he truly did not detect any obvious remaining Demonic Qi.

But everything was too clean—so clean that it sent a chill down one's spine.

"To be able to devour so many people in such a short time without leaving even a corpse behind, this thing is either desperate to increase its power, or its strength is so formidable that it doesn't care about being hunted by the Demon Suppression Division at all."

"But without even a claw print left behind, I fear someone cleaned up the scene before we arrived."

Chen Mu's voice turned cold.

"Or perhaps, this scene was staged from the very beginning."

Xu Changze also walked in with his men at this moment, looking at the pool of blood with an appropriately pained expression.

"This is truly lawless! What a rampant Prodigy, to dare to harm government officials and destroy the bodies!"

He then turned to Chen Mu and Qi Huan.

"The two of you have seen it too; this case is no longer an ordinary homicide. It must be the work of a powerful Prodigy, and I intend to…"

Before Xu Changze could finish his sentence, a burst of hurried footsteps and shouting suddenly came from outside the door.

A man of medium build, despite the obstruction of the yamen runners, forced his way in. He was the very townsman who had been most enthusiastic at the street corner debating whether it was a fox demon or a dog demon.

"Officers! Officers!"

The man was panting heavily, but when he saw Chen Mu and Qi Huan, his eyes lit up.

"Two officers, I've finally found you."

The man had a very loud voice, carrying the typical bluntness and arrogance of a farmer.

Xu Changze frowned and was about to scold him, but the townsman had already rushed up to Chen Mu, grabbing his hand with an anxious expression.

Chen Mu did not pull away, only asking.

"Speak slowly, what is it?"

The man slapped his thigh, looking incredibly annoyed.

"I am Li Daniu from the east end of town! Didn't I just tell you this morning? The blacksmith Li's chickens were all stolen overnight. Just now, when I got home, I checked, and two of my own laying hens are missing. There's blood on the ground, and yellow fur too!"

"I heard you were investigating a case here, so I came over. Officers, you must do something about this demon!"

Chen Mu was slightly stunned upon hearing this and turned to look at Qi Huan.

Something had just happened here at Yiqing Courtyard, and the thing stealing chickens had appeared again over there?

Qi Huan frowned slightly.

"Li Daniu, we are currently investigating a homicide case. This matter of your lost chickens…"

Upon hearing this, Li Daniu's bull-like eyes widened.

"A homicide is a big deal, but my lost chickens aren't?"

"That demon steals chickens today, and tomorrow it might dare to bite people. Besides, who knows if the ones who bit people to death at Yiqing Courtyard aren't in the same group as the chicken thief?"

"Officers, aren't you here to investigate demons? Go to my place and take a look; the clues are right there!"

As he spoke, his eyes subconsciously glanced at Chen Mu, clearly feeling that among them, Chen Mu was the one who could make the decisions.

In that expression, there wasn't much respect for the government officials, but rather a sense of righteousness, as if to say, 'I provided the clue, so you should go investigate immediately.'

Chen Mu looked at him for a moment and suddenly said.

"Have you been watching us?"

Li Daniu was taken aback, then patted his chest.

"What's wrong with that? High-ranking officials and ghost-slaying heroes have come to town, what's wrong with me taking a few extra looks? My chickens were truly harmed!"

Chen Mu did not reply further and turned to Xu Changze, who was standing to the side with an unpleasant expression.

"Lord Xu, since a citizen has reported a case and it may be related to a demon, I believe we should go and investigate. As for Yiqing Courtyard, I ask that you send more men to temporarily seal it off and not let unauthorized persons disturb the scene."

Xu Changze's expression shifted; he clearly did not want Chen Mu to leave his sight, but the other party had spoken flawlessly, so after a moment of contemplation, he finally nodded.

"Very well. I will return to the office to mobilize more men. Chief Chen, Officer Qi, you must be careful. If you find anything, report back immediately."

"Yes."

Chen Mu acknowledged, and then he and Qi Huan quickly left with Li Daniu.

Li Daniu's house was in the east of Qinglin Town, a reasonably tidy courtyard with three main rooms, a chicken coop, and a small vegetable patch. It looked like he was fairly well-off, which was no wonder he had such confidence in his words and actions.

The chicken coop was enclosed by a bamboo fence; at this moment, the fence door was crooked, and a few chicken feathers and blackened blood spots were scattered on the ground. Li Daniu pointed to the corner of the fence.

"Officers, look, right there, another tuft of yellow fur!"

Qi Huan stepped forward and picked up the tuft of fur; it was light yellow, fine, and soft. He rubbed it between his fingers and then smelled it.

"It is indeed animal fur, but it doesn't look like fox fur, nor is it entirely dog fur. It's a bit strange."

Chen Mu crouched down to observe carefully; besides the bloodstains and chicken feathers, there were also a few blurry claw prints.

"Li Daniu, did anyone in your house hear any commotion?"