Monsters Die When Killed-Chapter 55 - 31: The End of Day 5

"Whoa!"

"It’s huge! How did this bug get so big?"

"Incredible. Where would a bug this big even get its oxygen? Wait, is it even a bug? Its limbs look kind of like wood."

After the Wood Centipede’s body—battered and broken by a certain righteous young man who had removed its spiritual nexus, then had its Spiritual Energy sealed by Professor Zhang Fucheng of Zhengyi Academy using the Seven-Star Nail Secret Ceremony—was delivered to the Hongcheng Academy First Affiliated Hospital, it was met with the inhumane fate of being gawked at by a crowd.

"It’s actually a rare live specimen! Well, I’ll be. We finally got a live one!"

"To be precise, it’s not quite dead yet... But whatever. Not quite dead is still not dead, right?"

Aside from the physicians invited to participate in this Extraordinary Creature research for the first time, most of the middle-aged and elderly professors, who had long since dissected some lower-level Extraordinary Creatures, weren’t surprised. They even started cracking jokes, despite the fact that this gigantic, bizarre centipede far surpassed any creature they had ever dissected before.

"Shiyu, what do you make of this creature?"

A white-haired female professor stood on the high platform flanking the sterile room. She chuckled as she looked at the enormous Monster before her, then turned her head toward Ning Shiyu, whose brow was slightly furrowed in thought. In a low voice, she said, "It’s alright, just say what’s on your mind. Boldly hypothesize, carefully verify. That’s the way."

"...It feels a bit like the Demons from myths and legends."

Ning Shiyu had a rather straightforward and decisive personality—otherwise, she wouldn’t have raised a son like Su Zhou. She glanced at the Wood Centipede being submerged in ice water by handlers in the central recess of the oversized sterile room and said softly, "I’m no entomologist, but I can tell this thing isn’t a normal creature... How should I put this, Professor Li? I think it’s more like some kind of bizarre plant just wearing a bug’s skin."

This was also the opinion of the vast majority of physicians present.

"That’s right. It is indeed a Demon, and it’s also the subject we will be dissecting shortly."

Professor Li, who seemed to have been briefed in advance, smiled faintly. Her face was covered in wrinkles, but the excitement of a researcher was clearly visible. "Later, professors of entomology and botany from other Academies will be flying in from all over Hongzhou, and even from across the country, to study this precious research material together."

"’Extraordinary Biology’—this is the research field that the national medical system will be heavily prioritizing with its resources in the future."

"Professor Li, this... Thank you so much!" Ning Shiyu finally understood the significance of being brought into this research. She was deeply moved. This was equivalent to being pulled out of the original General Surgery System and entering a new system with a boundless future, as a pioneer!

"No need for thanks. It’s our duty as old-timers to support the younger generation."

Waving her hand dismissively, the elderly Professor Li narrowed her eyes, staring at the Wood Centipede whose limbs were still twitching from time to time. She said lightly, "Besides, at a time like this, holding back and delaying progress would just be shooting ourselves in the foot, wouldn’t it? Look at this astonishing Life Force. If it could be harnessed by humanity... this is power enough to drive countless people across the world into a frenzy!"

’Spiritual Energy Revival... Heh. I just hope not too many things revive along with it.’

A dissection isn’t as simple as picking a spot and making a cut—not even amputations are done that way. To perform a research-oriented tissue dissection while ensuring the integrity of all major parts, they first needed to scan and understand the massive Monster’s structure. Only then could they map out a dissection plan, aiming for the masterful precision of the legendary butcher Pao Ding, separating the giant centipede’s various layers of tissues, organs, and special structures piece by piece.

Only by doing so could they clearly understand the physiological structure of these so-called ’Demons’ and figure out what kind of creatures they truly were.

’So Demon Fiends really do exist...’

But at this moment, the professional Physician Ning Shiyu wasn’t entirely lost in the awe of witnessing the birth of a new system. She simply sighed to herself. ’I wonder how happy that silly son of mine will be when he finds out... or will he be scared?’

’—Haha, no way. How could he possibly be scared?’

Meanwhile, in a police car not far from the hospital, Zhang Fucheng—who had exhausted a great deal of effort using a Secret Technique to maintain the Wood Centipede’s corpse in a state of ’near death, yet not dead’—was deep in thought with his eyes closed, recalling the analysis from the criminal investigation inspectors at the police department.

"Based on identification of the remains, the five bodies discovered in the sewer correspond to five missing persons from the last three months. They were likely originally inside the Black Moss sacs but were removed by an ’unknown Transcendent’... And right after this unknown Transcendent arranged the bodies, he or she engaged the Wood Centipede in battle."

This was the conclusion from an Inspector Su. After carefully studying the list of everyone who had gone missing in Hongcheng over the past three months, he proposed a bold theory: "Professor, in the major 719 serial murder case created by the Wood Centipede, the earliest victim appeared on June 11th. That victim was one of the missing persons."

"But after examination, we discovered that one of the victims originally attributed to this case—the male victim found at the ’edge of Fuhe River North Road’ who died from a missing head—doesn’t seem to have been killed by the Wood Centipede. All victims killed by the Wood Centipede were missing their livers and gallbladders, whereas this victim, aside from his missing head, was otherwise completely intact."

If that was the case, the conclusion was obvious.

—The killer was someone else.

Originally, Inspector Su just wanted to see if Zhang Fucheng could use a Magic Technique to trace the killer’s identity, or at least find some clue. And Professor Zhang himself didn’t mind trying—they were both subordinate units of the Zhengguo Government, after all. There was no need to be so rigid. Moreover, the Academy wanted him to demonstrate his Magical Power and gradually begin disclosing information related to the Extraordinary.

But strangely, the tracing failed yet again.

’Sigh, my Talismanic Techniques were clearly acknowledged by the Celestial Master... I really am the top-performing, most powerful senior brother of my generation!’

To be honest, the frowning Zhang Fucheng didn’t much want to recall his own embarrassment at that moment. But failure had its purpose. At the very least, he now knew that besides the Wood Centipede, there were other powerful Demon Fiends lurking in Hongcheng.

In addition to continuing the hunt for this new Demon Fiend, there was also the ’unnamed Transcendent’ to find. The higher-ups at Zhengyi Academy had even issued a special directive, as several professors believed this person might have obtained a lost part of the Academy’s own historical Inheritance.

This theory was quite reasonable. After all, for an ordinary person without an Inheritance, the methods to advance to the Extraordinary realm from scratch were far too dangerous and primitive, and wouldn’t result in much combat power. Since the ’unnamed Transcendent’ was able to kill the Wood Centipede, they must possess an Inheritance Secret Technique.

—A new Evil Demon, an unknown Transcendent, and doubt in his own Magic Techniques.

Several matters piled up in Professor Zhang’s mind, causing him to let out a long sigh in the police car.

"Suppressing Demons and Evils... the burden is heavy, and the road is long..."

But Su Zhou, having just finished cooking another pot of Centipede Egg Soup, was oblivious to the thoughts of his parents and a certain Daoist.

He tasted the soup, and after confirming the heat was just right, he turned off the stove with satisfaction and took out four large thermoses.

’Sigh, to prevent anyone from realizing this stuff is Centipede Eggs, I even chopped them up and added yam and pork ribs... Although the medicinal properties won’t be reduced, the flavor isn’t as pure and ethereal. It’s just simply delicious now.’

Dividing the soup into four portions, leaving two for his parents and preparing to take two to Shao Qiming’s family, Su Zhou muttered to himself with some regret, "My cooking skills still can’t be considered masterful."

"No, the very fact that you know how to cook so well is what surprises me."

Yara, now awake, watched Su Zhou expertly don an apron and start cleaning the kitchen, scrubbing plates and washing bowls. The feeling was like watching a T-Rex sing a lullaby—a profound sense of dissonance. "You must have had it tough all these years by yourself... to have honed so many extra life skills."

"What nonsense are you talking about?" Su Zhou turned to the Snake Spirit with a puzzled look and retorted, "Of course it was tough. When your parents come home for one day every ten days or half a month, and even on a normal day they’re not back until nine at night, how could you not learn to cook and clean?"

"Alright, it’s about time to go."

After tidying everything up at home, Su Zhou left two thermoses of soup on the table with a note. He also left a message for his parents on WeChat, reminding them to come back and get the soup. He picked up his phone again and started dialing.

"My friend, are you ready?"

As he spoke, Su Zhou gathered all the preparatory materials, then headed out the door humming a little tune. "I’m all set!" 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

"I’ve been ready for a while."

On the other end of the line, Shao Qiming’s voice held a gentle laugh. "We can start anytime."

July 28, 2014, 4:15 PM.

Exactly five days since Su Zhou’s encounter with the Mysterious Organization and his pact with Yara.

His ceremony for the Perfection advancement was about to begin!