Chapter 62: The Murder Case

After finishing his rounds, Yang Fan returned to his dormitory. The moment he opened the door, he sensed something was amiss.

“Evil energy…”

His expression grew solemn as he swept his gaze across the room, searching for the source of the sinister presence. A chill crept through the air, as if a cold wind had swept through, leaving the room frigid. As a cultivator, Yang Fan was highly sensitive to all forms of energy. He activated his spiritual power, closed the door, and began to search the room meticulously.

Despite his efforts, he found nothing unusual.

“Could it be…”

A thought struck him, and he took out the Spirit-Sealing Talisman, his brow furrowing. “This talisman was found below—was it suppressing some evil entity?” The answer dawned upon him: by removing the talisman, he had inadvertently released whatever had been imprisoned beneath.

Determined, Yang Fan descended once more into the underground passage, returning to the spot where he had discovered the Spirit-Sealing Talisman. He was now certain—the malevolent force had escaped from here.

He scooped up a handful of earth and immediately felt a biting cold. “It’s already escaped, but what exactly is this evil thing?” Yang Fan’s frown deepened.

He continued to dig, descending another twenty meters, until he sensed a fluctuation of spiritual energy. There must be spirit stones down here, he thought.

After digging over fifty meters further, he finally uncovered a large pile of spirit stones. “All of them are depleted… Could the Spirit-Sealing Talisman have absorbed all their energy?” Disappointment filled him as he gazed at the useless stones.

Reflecting on the talisman, Yang Fan realized the spirit stones here had been used to fuel its power. Yet he still sensed lingering spiritual energy, indicating that some stones remained. Guided by this energy, he kept digging and eventually discovered a spirit vein below. However, the energy within had been nearly exhausted.

Yang Fan felt a pang of regret. “Since there’s still some spiritual energy left, I shouldn’t waste it.” He sat cross-legged and began to absorb the lingering energy with a cultivation technique.

The intact spirit stones were gone, but the last vestiges of the spirit vein gathered toward him as he meditated. When he finally ceased, the vein was drained dry.

“Phew, at least I’ve advanced to the middle stage of Qi Refinement.” Yang Fan opened his eyes, satisfied despite everything.

Had the spirit vein been intact, he was confident he could have reached the Saint Realm. To a cultivator, a single spirit vein was an enormous treasure.

Now that his goal had been achieved, Yang Fan saw no reason to remain. It was time to leave River City. But before departing, he needed to fill in the underground passage.

When he emerged, it was already eleven in the morning. At that moment, someone knocked on his door.

“Yang Jian, something big’s happened! You’re still sleeping?” The voice of Scarface rang out from outside.

Yang Fan hurried to open the door. “What happened?” he asked, puzzled.

“Last night, ten female students in the girls’ dorm were killed. It was gruesome—absolutely terrifying!” Scarface’s face was pale with horror.

Recalling the scene of the four girls’ tragic deaths, Scarface shuddered.

“Ten girls killed?” Yang Fan’s brows knitted together. He had been cultivating last night and was unaware of the events outside.

“Yeah, there are only eleven girls in that dorm—only one survived. Isn’t that strange?” Scarface said, fear etched across his face.

An entire dorm of eleven girls, ten dead, one left alive—it was bizarre. Was the survivor simply lucky?

“Where are the bodies?” Yang Fan asked.

“They’re still in the girls’ dorm, waiting for the police to arrive,” Scarface replied.

Since the bodies were still on campus, Yang Fan resolved to investigate. Scarface, too frightened, refused to accompany him.

The girls’ dormitory had been cordoned off; all students had been evacuated.

At Room 302, Yang Fan felt a blast of cold, evil energy at the threshold—the same presence from his own room. “It’s that entity,” he thought.

Inside, ten bodies lay side by side on the beds, each shrouded in white sheets. Yang Fan approached one, lifted the cloth, and frowned. “The body is shriveled and drained of all yin energy. It seems both yin and life force have been absorbed.”

He understood at once what had happened to the victims—and the motivation of the killer.

Examining each body in turn, he found the same: every victim had their yin energy drained.

“Perhaps it’s a wraith,” Yang Fan mused, stroking his chin. “If it is, then to me, it’s a great tonic—absorbing it would enhance my soul power.”

With that thought, Yang Fan made up his mind. He would capture this wraith and absorb its soul energy. Such power would greatly aid him.

At that moment, footsteps sounded outside the dorm, and three police officers entered. One of them, Li Xin, fixed her gaze on Yang Fan.

“What are you doing here?” she asked sharply.

“I’m just security,” Yang Fan replied.

Seeing his security uniform, Li Xin had no further questions.

“Take the bodies away,” Li Xin ordered the two officers behind her. “Let the coroner examine them.”

“These students were killed by having their life force absorbed by a wraith. The coroner won’t find anything,” Yang Fan told Li Xin.

She turned to him and sneered. “Stop spouting nonsense. I don’t believe in ghosts and spirits—this isn’t a movie set.”

As a police officer, Li Xin relied on science, not superstition.

“There really are such things as wraiths in this world,” Yang Fan said calmly.

“Stop spreading rumors, or I’ll take you in for questioning,” Li Xin warned, shooting him a glare.

Yang Fan knew words alone would not convince her of the supernatural origins of the crime.

“If you don’t believe me, someone else will die tonight,” he stated with certainty.

Li Xin narrowed her eyes, her sharp gaze boring into him, trying to see through him. She didn’t believe the killer was a ghost, but the mention of another death unsettled her.

“How would you know that?” she demanded. “Unless you’re the killer yourself.”

Yang Fan could only shake his head in exasperation. “I’m not the killer. The real killer is a wraith. Don’t make accusations without evidence.”

Li Xin scoffed and said, “If the killer’s really a wraith, then prove it.”

“Very well. If you’re brave enough, patrol the girls’ dormitory tonight with me,” Yang Fan replied with a smile.

“Hmph, you think I’m afraid of you? If there’s no such thing as a wraith, I won’t let you off so easily,” Li Xin retorted.

“Don’t worry—you won’t be disappointed,” Yang Fan said confidently.