Chapter 43: A Homicide Incident

Chapter 43: A Homicide Incident

By the time Chen Shouyi returned, military police were already patrolling the streets.

He saw many hoodlums taking advantage of the chaos to loot and vandalize, only to be swiftly tackled by officers and handcuffed without resistance.

As part of the state’s enforcement apparatus, the military police system placed great emphasis on recruiting Martial Artist Apprentices from society.

Many civil service positions within the police force required applicants to at least be Martial Artist Apprentices.

Enlisting in the military would grant one the rank of warrant officer from the start.

Moreover, many public institutions and state-owned enterprises prioritized hiring such individuals.

After all, even a mere Martial Artist Apprentice was akin to a killing machine compared to ordinary civilians. If such power were misused, it could severely destabilize society—a force the state naturally wouldn’t leave unchecked.

In fact, even if one chose not to join any organization, simply registering as a Martial Artist Apprentice automatically enrolled them in their local militia.

Take his younger sister Chen Xingyue, for example—she was now a nominal member of their district armed forces department’s militia.

Of course, this militia status was largely symbolic.

Under normal circumstances, there were no obligations to fulfill—life went on as usual. But if severe unrest broke out locally, such as barbarian incursions, they would be called upon to assist in maintaining order or even take to the battlefield.

Naturally, by that point, the situation would already be dire.

……

Pedestrians hurried along the streets, their faces tense with unease.

Traffic remained at a standstill, with no sign of movement. Many drivers had simply abandoned their cars and walked home.

When Chen Shouyi returned to the hotel, he found the hallway still crowded. For most, it clearly wasn’t yet time to sleep.

"I went to take a look—it was horrible. The victim was stabbed over a dozen times, and blood was everywhere."

"With the power out, the surveillance cameras aren’t working. Who knows if they’ll catch the killer?"

"Knowing someone died here gives me the creeps. If it weren’t for the blackout making it hard to find another hotel, I’d leave."

"Same. I’ll probably have nightmares tonight!"

As Chen Shouyi walked down the hallway, he overheard the murmurs. His expression shifted in surprise.

No wonder he had caught a faint whiff of blood on his way back.

"Excuse me, what are you all talking about? Did someone die here?" Chen Shouyi couldn’t help but ask a young man near his room.

"You didn’t see it?"

"I just got back from outside," Chen Shouyi explained.

From the other guests’ accounts, he learned that a murder had occurred while he was away.

The victim had also been staying on this floor, not far from Chen Shouyi’s room.

After the blackout, the man had been chatting in the hallway when an argument broke out for some reason. It escalated into a fight, and in the heat of the moment, the assailant pulled out a knife. Realizing the gravity of his actions, the killer fled immediately.

By the time the police arrived, the body had long gone cold.

Darkness had a way of amplifying the evil in people’s hearts, emboldening them to act recklessly—what some called "seeing red."

Chen Shouyi could only sigh at the pointlessness of the death, though he felt little else.

He had no connection to the victim—not even an acquaintance.

As for the death of a person here, it barely registered in Chen Shouyi's mind, especially after having just killed over a dozen barbarians earlier that day.

He stepped inside the room and closed the door behind him. Then, he released Shell Woman and placed her on the pillow beside him.

This time, she was genuinely angry, turning her head away and refusing to acknowledge him.

Normally, Chen Shouyi would have turned on the TV or placated her with glass beads. But today, he simply wasn’t in the mood.

He turned on his phone’s flashlight, lay back on the bed, and didn’t feel like moving at all.

Too much had happened today, leaving him utterly exhausted.

Shell Woman, after sulking for a long while with no reaction from Chen Shouyi, finally couldn’t take it anymore.

She stood up, glanced at the reclining Chen Shouyi, and had an idea. Grabbing the edge of his clothes, she flipped onto his chest.

Deliberately bouncing up and down a few times, she shouted, "Bei Qi! I want Bei Qi!"

The modifier before "giant" was definitely not a compliment—most likely something like "evil" or "despicable."

Chen Shouyi lazily glanced at the increasingly bold Shell Woman and said, "No Bei Qi today."

"Why not?" she persisted.

"Even Bei Qi needs rest. It’s tired too," Chen Shouyi replied casually, making up an excuse.

Shell Woman looked at him skeptically.

"How long does it need to rest? A few sunrises and sunsets?"

"I don’t know."

As he spoke, Chen Shouyi’s mood grew heavier.

He could only hope that tomorrow would be better.

Seemingly affected by the somber atmosphere, Shell Woman quieted down. She blinked at Chen Shouyi and asked, "Giant, are you unhappy?"

Chen Shouyi gave a slight nod, not feeling like talking.

"Then I’ll dance for you!"

With that, she began flailing her arms and legs.

Chen Shouyi quickly found himself laughing. Her dance had little grace—it was more like wild, erratic movements, resembling some kind of ritual rather than an actual dance.

Where had she even learned this?

Come to think of it, this was only the second time he’d seen her dance.

The first time was right after he caught her, when she inexplicably started dancing.

Back then, glowing specks had swirled around her, nearly fooling him into thinking it was something mystical.

Seeing Chen Shouyi laugh, Shell Woman danced even more vigorously.

At first, Chen Shouyi watched with relaxed amusement, enjoying the exotic display. But as he kept watching, his expression gradually turned serious.

As she danced, an eerie, mysterious atmosphere seemed to descend.

A thought struck him, and he suddenly turned off his phone’s flashlight.

The next moment, he saw faint, flickering points of light appear around Shell Woman—sometimes brightening, sometimes vanishing.

It carried an almost magical air.

Of course, compared to the first time she danced, when the glowing specks had been visible even in broad daylight, these were so dim they were barely noticeable.

Only in the pitch-black room could they be faintly seen.

But this was Earth.

Even though the mysterious energy field had begun to seep into this world, its concentration remained pitifully low.

This much was evident from the fact that his Natural Healing ability hadn’t manifested at all.

Yet even in such an environment, she could still exhibit some supernatural abilities, though they were so faint they might as well not exist.

"Where did you learn this?" Chen Shouyi couldn’t help but ask.

"I was born with it!" Shell Woman stopped, her tiny face brimming with pride.

Chen Shouyi was skeptical.

But upon closer thought, Shell Woman truly was quite mysterious.

He was no longer the naive newcomer to the Otherworld’s island, clinging to the childish notion that supernatural creatures were everywhere.

In reality, supernatural abilities were not common even in the Otherworld.

At the very least, most of the barbarians he had encountered possessed no supernatural abilities—or if they did, they died before ever using them.

The only one with supernatural abilities was Shell Woman.

For instance, she could fly, though not very fast—slower than a housefly.

She could effortlessly locate gold grains buried in the sand, as if she already knew where they were.

Moreover, her vision was astonishingly sharp. Even in heavy rain, she could easily spot how many barbarians were on a canoe hundreds or even thousands of meters away.

If not for her minuscule size, it might have been him who was captured back then, not her.

With this realization, Chen Shouyi’s anticipation surged, and he quickly asked, "What’s the purpose of this dance?"

"Don’t you think it’s pretty?" Shell Woman replied with a silly, innocent expression.

Pretty? Did that put food on the table?

"Go to sleep!" Chen Shouyi snapped, exasperated by her vanity.