The Mystery of the Inner Demon

Chapter 353 The Goddess's Duty

“It’s a very simple reason,” Jiang Tianyi continued. “There’s another thing. I was there when Xi He detonated the pinball machine under the Yuanxi Bridge. If I hadn’t been able to avoid it, I would have died too. You and I both know that Xi He wouldn’t do something so risky.”

“He never cares about the lives of his followers, so killing you wouldn’t require any special consideration,” Zhong Kui said indifferently.

“There’s another point. Last time I came to Yuanxi, it was Liu Tong who asked me to come. It wasn’t my own initiative. If I were to help Xihe, I couldn’t have predicted that Liu Tong would make such an arrangement, unless you even doubt Liu Tong.” As he spoke, he looked sincerely into Zhong Kui’s eyes: “I believe you can see whether I’m lying or not. I don’t want us to fall into the trap of proving ourselves.”

Zhong Kui remained silent, intently observing Jiang Tianyi's expression.

Jiang Tianyi did not avoid her gaze, and after a while said softly, "The fact that we haven't reached a conclusion after so long speaks volumes, doesn't it? I believe that with your abilities, you can usually find the flaws in micro-expressions in less than a minute."

Zhong Kui's tense posture relaxed: "Well, even the most capable person can't overcome the subconscious control of their body's reactions. You can't."

Jiang Tianyi didn't feel joy at being exonerated. Instead, he sighed and said, "There's something I want to say, but I don't want my guess to be right. What I want to say is that there weren't four of us in our group at the time, but five."

As soon as he finished speaking, Qi Fei, who had been silent all along, blurted out, "Zhong Xiaoyu." This name had been haunting his mind like a ghost lately, so much so that he immediately thought of it when Jiang Tianyi prompted him. He hadn't expected things to take this turn. Zhong Xiaoyu, Xi He's mortal enemy, now seemed more and more like Xi He's accomplice. Thinking of this, he couldn't help but murmur, "Perhaps the answer isn't in Yuanxi, but in Baicheng ten years ago."

A sound like the howl of a ferocious beast echoed from the depths of the culvert, followed by a gust of cold wind that made the bright lights flicker violently. Zhong Kui said in a sinister tone, "It seems the wronged spirits of Baicheng are calling you."
-
The villa at No. 3 Crescent Moon Hill in Baicheng no longer exists. However, because the case remains unsolved and the case was so tragic and sensational, no one has taken over the land, and even the surrounding neighbors have moved away.

A massacre killed the Zhong family of four, and also destroyed the former wealth and tranquility of Crescent Moon Mountain.

It didn't snow in Baicheng, only intermittent freezing rain caused the roads to freeze over, and it was impossible to clear the ice completely.

The road to Crescent Moon Mountain was no longer accessible by car, so the group had to walk into the mountain.

Qi Fei stayed close to Zhong Kui the whole time, not knowing when Zhong Xiaoyu would wake up from this revisit to her old haunts.

The garden, once meticulously tended by the gardener, is now wild and blends into the mountains. You have to push aside the rampant weeds to find the rusty doorplate that reads "No. 3 Crescent Mountain".

The fire consumed all the blood and sin, leaving only the remains of the buildings to mourn silently.

Zhong Kui entered this place carrying the body of an old friend, and his face showed little emotion.

Perhaps it was Zhong Xiaoyu's way of portraying her; in all of this White City, she was merely a cold-blooded bystander.

“January 7th,” Zhong Kui said. “Today happens to be the day the crime occurred.”

"What a coincidence!" Wu Shanqiu couldn't help but say. "It's as if fate brought us back here."

Jiang Tianyi seemed to see something and walked in one direction to a remaining windowsill. He reached out and touched the cool surface, where faint traces of carved patterns were still visible. He said emotionally, "These are irises. When we were in school together, Xiaoyu often mentioned this place. She said her father knew she liked irises, so he decorated many corners of the house with iris symbols. She said she liked irises because in ancient Greek mythology, they symbolized the goddess Iris. Iris was the goddess of the rainbow, the messenger of the gods on earth, responsible for communicating between the divine and human realms. She said she hoped to be Iris on earth, able to uphold the will of the gods and lead those trapped in suffering towards freedom and light. The Xiaoyu I know is noble and selfless."

"Oh!" Wu Shanqiu suddenly realized, "No wonder she gave origami irises to the recovered patients; it was to bless them as they emerge from the shadows."

"Ha, hypocritical," Zhong Kui said disdainfully from the side.

Jiang Tianyi turned to look at Zhong Kui, not blaming her for her disdain, but instead saying with pity, "Alas, you seem to be the bitter fruit of her disillusionment, rebelling against everything she believed in. I really want to know, what exactly happened to her that caused such a big change?"

As they were talking, the sound of footsteps mixed with the sound of breaking ice came from not far away. The four of them looked around warily and saw a woman carrying a bouquet of flowers walking towards them from a distance.

In the bleak season, she wore a black coat, and the bouquet of blue-purple flowers in her hand looked particularly vibrant.

The woman looked to be around forty years old, wearing frameless glasses, with shoulder-length short hair, and exuding a strong scholarly air.

She wasn't surprised to see four people around her until Zhong Kui revealed her face from behind Qi Fei.

The flowers in the woman's hand fell to the ground with a "thud," and her face turned deathly pale.

Zhong Kui immediately sensed something was wrong and walked up to her, asking, "Do you know me?"

"Xiaoyu, so you're still alive?" The woman tried to touch Zhong Kui, her hand trembling in mid-air, too afraid to make a move.

This intense affection suggests that their relationship is more than just a simple acquaintance.

"I'm perfectly fine, who are you?" Zhong Kui's indifference undoubtedly poured cold water on the woman's agitated emotions.

Seeing that the two were confused, Qi Fei quickly stepped forward, pulled Zhong Kui away, and showed his identification to the woman: "We are from the Nancheng Criminal Police Brigade, here to investigate Zhong Xiaoyu's case from ten years ago."

"She is Xiao Yu!" The woman's gaze never left Zhong Kui; she was still in shock.

"She is not Zhong Xiaoyu. I will explain this to you later. May I ask who you are?"

“I am Professor Zhong’s student, Lü Dandan. Today is the anniversary of his death, and I come here every year…” Lü Dandan said, involuntarily looking at Zhong Kui, “She is clearly Xiaoyu, it can’t be…”

“Irises?” Zhong Kui picked up the bouquet that Lü Dandan had dropped and recognized the type of flower at a glance. “It’s not easy to find this kind of flower this season.” As she spoke, she looked sharply at Lü Dandan. “You know Zhong Xiaoyu very well. It seems that your relationship with the Zhong family is not just as simple as Zhong Huaiting’s student.”