Chapter 25: Powerless

"I saw the murderer's appearance!"

Zhang Yuanqing's dull eyes regained their liveliness. He immediately turned his head to look at his two colleagues.

As he spoke, he felt a strong sense of fear, the shadow of death lingering in his heart, unable to dissipate for a long time.

The sensation of devouring a spirit was both satisfying and unbearable.

Li Dongze and Guan Ya let out a sigh of relief. The former quickly asked:

"What does he look like? Any distinguishing features?"

As Zhang Yuanqing recalled, he described, "Male, around 30-35 years old, medium to burly build, a half-finger-long scar on his left cheek, sparse eyebrows, fierce eyes..."

Li Dongze listened attentively, mentally sketching the rough outline of the suspect.

The suspect's facial features were quite distinct and highly recognizable.

Once Zhang Yuanqing finished speaking, Guan Ya asked,

"Did he assault the female victim?"

Recalling the final scene before the memory ended, Zhang Yuanqing replied, "He probably did..."

Guan Ya confirmed her suspicion and immediately looked at Li Dongze with a frown, saying,

"Commander, I suspect the murderer has mental issues."

Zhang Yuanqing didn't understand. He thought, Would anyone in their right mind commit such brutal acts?

Li Dongze nodded and said angrily, "That scum deserves to go to hell."

Seeing Zhang Yuanqing's confusion, Commander Li stroked his beard with two fingers and explained,

"Do you remember the punishment mechanism for morality points?"

Zhang Yuanqing nodded.

"The killer murdered Zhao Yingjun's mistress to silence her, which is a rational action. However, assaulting the female victim before killing her would cost him extra morality points."

Li Dongze believed that with this university student's intelligence, he could grasp the idea.

So, he really might be mentally unstable... Zhang Yuanqing understood.

Spiritual Walkers lose morality points when they commit crimes. Anyone in their right mind would avoid triggering penalties. Killing to silence someone is a necessity, but assaulting before killing and losing additional morality points...

There were only two possibilities: either the killer had an abundance of morality points and didn't care, or he was mentally unstable and couldn't suppress his inner beast.

The second possibility seemed far more likely.

The experienced scout Guan Ya, who was usually playful, looked deadly serious. She crossed her arms, one hand supporting her chin, and said,

"Mentally unstable Spiritual Walkers—whether lawful or evil—must be eliminated. Such individuals living in a metropolis are like ticking time bombs."

Even if their morality points dropped below 60, revealing their location to other Spiritual Walkers for a hunt, in the short period before that, a powerful superhuman could cause carnage from one street to the next.

She turned to the only rookie present and warned,

"The Spirit Realm is full of dangers, especially solo realms. The mortality rate is extremely high. Many Walkers, even if they survive their missions, suffer lasting psychological trauma. Over time, their mental state inevitably deteriorates.

"Especially for your class, the Night Wanderers. If you ever feel like something is wrong with your state of mind, notify us immediately. The organization will arrange psychological counseling for you."

Zhang Yuanqing recalled his experiences in the Mountain God Temple and nodded with lingering fear. "I understand..."

"By the way, was any of the suspect's DNA found at the crime scene?" he asked.

Guan Ya shook her head.

Did he take all his offspring with him? Zhang Yuanqing felt a little disappointed. If he had control over the suspect's biological material, the Red Dancing Shoes could help track him down.

At that moment, Li Dongze, deep in thought, asked,

"Did you see anything else in Zhao Yingjun's memory?"

"I did," Zhang Yuanqing had been waiting for this question and quickly responded,

"The killer was interrogating Zhao Yingjun about the whereabouts of the 'Holy Grail' and the 'Register'."

"Holy Grail? Register?"

Guan Ya and Li Dongze exchanged glances, both seeing confusion in each other's eyes.

Li Dongze asked,

"What do these refer to?"

Zhang Yuanqing shook his head. "There's no information about them in the memory."

After a moment of thought, Li Dongze frowned and said,

"This case is more complicated than we thought. Zhao Yingjun was hiding a lot from us."

He patted Zhang Yuanqing's shoulder and praised,

"You did well. You've given us a key clue. Once we arrest or eliminate the suspect, I'll request merit points for you. For now, go with Guan Ya and get a facial composite of the suspect drawn."

"Understood, Commander."

Zhang Yuanqing followed the long-legged scout out of the room.

"Oh, one more thing," Li Dongze called out to Guan Ya, "Get him a formal suit. He should wear proper attire at the office."

Zhang Yuanqing was about to protest that he didn't frequent the office when Guan Ya replied, "Understood."

As they left the morgue, Guan Ya chuckled, "You must wear formal attire at work from now on."

Zhang Yuanqing nodded slightly. "I understand. Big organizations have strict dress codes."

Guan Ya giggled. "No, this has nothing to do with the organization. It's just Commander's preference. He thinks casual clothes aren't elegant enough."

What does elegance have to do with this? Zhang Yuanqing internally ridiculed. But then his gaze swept over Guan Ya's black stockings, short skirt, curvy hips, white shirt, and slim waist. Suddenly, he felt that the commander had a point—one should indeed pursue elegance in life.

As they walked, he checked his attribute panel:

[Name: Primordial Heavenly Lord]

[Race: Human]

[Class: Night Wanderer]

[Level: 1]

[Skills: Night Walk, Spirit Devour, Lunar Essence]

[Experience: 44%]

[Morality: 60 (Initial Value)]

His experience had increased from 42% to 44%. After devouring the spirit, he felt a warm current surge through his body, filling him with comfort, as if his lunar power had grown.

"Guan Ya, I gained two experience points?" Zhang Yuanqing asked excitedly.

Experience represented strength. Even at the same level, a Night Wanderer with 1% experience was vastly weaker than one with 99%.

Guan Ya hesitated for a moment and then said, "Oh, right. Night Wanderers can increase experience by absorbing spirits. But the Night Wanderers of the Taiyi Sect seem to dislike doing this. Every time they help with spirit consultations, they look annoyed and reluctant."

"Why?"

The mixed-race beauty rolled her eyes charmingly. "How would I know? I'm just a powerless scout."

Bullshit. Even a Level 2 scout's basic attributes can crush me. And at Level 4, scouts develop terrifying solo combat capabilities. Their physical attributes must be exceptional.

Zhang Yuanqing was skeptical. "Really powerless?"

Guan Ya's eyes flickered mischievously. She glanced at Zhang Yuanqing's lower body and smiled playfully.

"Haven't tested it. Want to head to the restroom and let big sis practice?"

Zhang Yuanqing countered, "Don't do this. I'm still a kid."

Then he pulled out his phone. "Are you free tonight? I'll book a hotel right now. If you don't mind, you can practice squats too."

"Hahaha! You're hilarious." Guan Ya laughed uncontrollably. "Primordial, you should come to the office more often. With you around, big sis will never be bored again."

…

In the glass building's office, Li Dongze reviewed the materials Guan Ya sent.

He opened the "Kangyang District Spiritual Walker Management Group" and uploaded the suspect's information.

Big Muscles: "Our new Night Wanderer is quite efficient. Already identified the suspect?"

Water Walker: "@Li Dongze, how does it feel to have a Night Wanderer under your command?"

Li Dongze: "Feels pretty good."

Tang Guoqiang sent a red packet.

White Dragon: "Enough showing off. Start deployment. Notify Songhai's Security Bureau to strictly inspect all outbound traffic. Inform all district teams to assist in the manhunt. Let's hope Ou Xiangrong hasn't left Songhai yet."

…