Chapter 965: The Murderer's Diary

Chen Shi took down the photos on the wall one by one. Most of them had been crossed out, and only four or five were still alive.

The people who were killed were the same people Chen Shi had seen in the files, but he still had a question. "Zhou Tiannan isn’t one of them."

Tao Yueyue looked at the stack of “Life Functions”. "There’s nothing in these either. Either Zhou Tiannan was a special case, or he was killed by someone else... Uncle Chen, isn’t the stench in this place a bit abnormal?"

Indeed, the unit was filled with a mysterious stench, but there weren't any piles of garbage on the floor. Chen Shi sniffed and found the source of the stench. He pushed open the bedroom door. There was only a steel wire bed and a clothes rack. There were only three or four pieces of clothing hanging on it, which showed that Lu Dahai lived a very frugal life.

On the left side of the door stood a cabinet. It was very old and the paint was peeling off.

On the floor next to the cabinet were some white plastic bottles with a pungent smell coming from them, as if they had been filled with some kind of chemical agent.

Chen Shi opened the door of the cabinet and his pupils contracted subconsciously. Inside lay a corpse decayed to the point where you could see its bones. Judging from the ragged clothing, jewelry and long hair, it should have been a woman. Other than the stench of her body, there was also a smell of chemicals lingering on her.

"It seems that Lu Dahai had bought the chemicals himself and slowly melted down this corpse into bare bones..."

"Uncle Chen, there’s a security camera in the corner!"

Chen Shi turned his head to look, and muttered under his breath. There was a security camera placed above the curtain rod, and its flashing red light proved that it was in operation. He was so focused on looking for the source of the stench that he had overlooked it.

Chen Shi walked over and tugged the curtain to shake it down. He unplugged the cord and found that it led to an open laptop in a cardboard box next to it. The video signal had already been transmitted to a social networking account. They most likely had been discovered by Lu Dahai.

"Take all these things away!" Chen Shi instructed.

"What about the dead person in the cabinet?"

"I don't care about that. I will get the others to come and sort it out..."

They found a bag and placed all those photos, documents, as well as the laptop inside. They immediately left with the bag to go and look for Lin Dongxue.

Lin Dongxue was still sitting inside the realtor’s lobby when she saw the two hurrying over. "I thought you guys would have searched for a while longer!"

"The situation has changed. We may have alerted the enemy. I will notify the bureau to track Lu Dahai’s mobile phone signal."

Tao Yueyue said with an exaggerated expression, "He is the pusher, and we found the ‘Life Functions’ in his house."

Lin Dongxue opened her mouth in surprise. "The two cases really are connected!"

Chen Shi was on the phone while beckoning them to go with him. When they got to the car parked nearby, Chen Shi said, "Let's go back to the bureau first."

"What if Lu Dahai returns here?" Lin Dongxue was worried.

"I don't think it’s very likely that he will come back."

"Anyway, there’s still a possibility. I'll stay here to keep watch!"

Chen Shi was uneasy about letting her stay behind alone. Lin Dongxue said, "It's okay, I brought my gun. As soon as you find Lu Dahai’s trail, I will go over and meet you immediately."

"Alright, be careful by yourself!"

Chen Shi hurried back to the bureau with Tao Yueyue. Tao Yueyue took out the contents of the bag on the way to have a look. She found that there was a notebook inside. She opened it and said in surprise, "It’s the murderer's diary."

"Read it for me."

"There’s a lot written here. I’ll choose some passages to read out... ‘On March 18th, my sentence came to an end. I returned to Long'an. I wanted to go to the noodle restaurant I often used to visit but found that it had already moved. I went to look for a friend and found out that he had been hacked to death during a fight. Standing on a familiar yet unfamiliar street, I felt at a loss...' I’ll stop reading this part. It's all irrelevant. The next passage..."

“‘April 26th. I ushered in my new life. He did not look at my past with contempt like others. He said that I have my shining points. He showed me my Life Function and made me realize my value again.’”

“‘May 2nd. This was the first time I carried out a mission. I was very nervous. I felt a deep sense of guilt when I watched that person get caught under the wheels of a truck. The observer came to me and enlightened me. He said to me that all of this had value. We are not the same as those criminals. They are committing evil for their own selfish ends, and we are conducting a noble mission to purify the city! I will work hard to complete it. Next time, I will do even better.’”

“‘June 12th. This was the fourth person I killed. I was at peace. The police never thought that these people who died in car accidents could have been murdered. Of course they couldn’t think of it, because they are just law enforcement officers who maintain secular social order. They don’t understand Life Functions, and they don’t understand the meaning of all this!’”

“‘June 19th. It was the fifth person. My work performance is getting better and better. The observer gave me an allowance. This is not a reward. We are not in an employer-employee relationship. I believe in him and venerate him, and he recognizes me and depends on me. Sitting alone in a quiet room, I can see a beam of light. It comes from my innermost heart. I am no longer that hopeless bastard of the past. I silently guard the city, even if I am misunderstood, this feeling is like that of being a martyr.’”

“‘July 23rd. I met Juan. She made my lonely life a bit more colorful. I cherish every minute and every moment I spend with her. I don't care if she’s a married woman, and she doesn't look at my poverty in contempt… Will she come to the convenience store today? I miss her so much.’”

"This passage has no date... ‘I can't believe it! The observer sent me a Life Function, and that person is Juan! I went to the observer's company to look for him and begged him to revoke his order, but he said no. Juan’s turning point had been brought forward because of my intervention. I asked him why it matters? Someone will die anyway. The observer said that it’s our mission to prevent it from happening. When I got home, I drank a lot of alcohol, and felt completely disheartened. I thought of running away with Juan so that her turning point wouldn’t be triggered, but I can't do it, not only because I’m poor, but also because I don't have the courage. The observer has said that all fate is predestined, and no one can resist it.’"

“‘August 16th. I told Juan about all of this. She was shocked by my murders. I told her frankly that I killed people but I also saved more people. She called me a lunatic! Am I crazy? No, she wasn’t willing to listen carefully to my explanation! I couldn't let Juan go to the police. I stopped her and she called for help. I was so angry that I strangled Juan by the neck. When I let go, Juan had already stopped breathing. I cried for a long time. Facing her body, I…’ What disgusting shit. I won’t read this paragraph... ‘I dreamed of her again at night. I want to say, “I’m sorry, Juan. You don’t understand me. I can only eliminate you. This is your destiny, don't blame me!”’”