The Mystery of the Inner Demon

Chapter 361 Coordinates
In the dimly lit underground palace, the computer's fluorescent light reflected off Xi He's sinister face. A password error pop-up kept appearing on the screen, making his expression grow increasingly grim. This was his hundredth attempt to crack the password on the USB drive Zhong Xiaoyu had given him; no matter how he tried, it was wrong.

For Xi He, who was in control of everything, the frustration from this small matter was greater than that of ordinary people.

Zhong Xiaoyu's resolute manner in handing over the USB drive to Jiang Tianyi—the Jiang Tianyi she trusted—as if it were her life, aroused his great curiosity.

"Zhong Xiaoyu, what password did you set?" he muttered to himself, not with gritted teeth, but with a slight smile. He was angry, but he liked that there were still unknown aspects of Zhong Xiaoyu, and it was this unknown that fascinated him.

The USB drive sat quietly plugged into the computer, seemingly listening to Xi He's soliloquy as if it were alive.

Meanwhile, at the Nancheng Police Station, several people spontaneously gathered together, each holding a mobile phone.

"What's going on?!" Wu Shanqiu exclaimed.

Qi Fei and Liu Tong both looked astonished.

Their phones kept receiving the same message—a string of numbers—32.050886, 118.840722.

While Liu Tong and Wu Shanqiu were still clueless, Qi Fei had already figured it out: "It's latitude and longitude, it's a coordinate system. Shanqiu, do you remember? Zhong Kui left me a similar code before, and it turned out to be latitude and longitude."

Wu Shanqiu suddenly realized: "Oh! I remember now, that was said a year ago. Could it be Xiao Kui again this time..."

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhong Kui appeared in front of them as if she sensed his presence.

Seeing three pairs of eyes staring at her, Zhong Kui was somewhat confused.

When Qi Fei showed her the string of numbers, she vehemently denied it, then smiled knowingly: "However, there is someone who might know."

As she spoke, a man walked up from behind her. He was a boy with delicate features, wearing a plaid shirt and a gray sweater, looking like a programmer.

Qi Fei felt the face looked familiar, but couldn't quite place where he'd seen it before. Wu Shanqiu, however, seemed to recognize it: "Are you that young man who went with Sha Gou to do live streaming?"

Reminded by Wu Shanqiu, Qi Fei suddenly remembered that last winter, during the murder at Guiyue Apartment, this child was one of the residents and had used the victim's old lady's Wi-Fi: "Are you that nerdy Luo Yang? You were quite sloppy back then, I didn't recognize you so tidy all of a sudden."

"I have to thank Sister Zhong Kui for helping me resolve the issue of my old house. I'm doing quite well now working with Sha Gou, and I've even saved up some money," Luo Yang said.

Zhong Kui showed no empathy for Luo Yang's gratitude, but instead urged, "I didn't bring him here today to chat. This morning I ran into Luo Yang on his way back to Guiyue Apartment, and we had some things going on that didn't add up. He said I asked him to make a transmitter, but I don't remember doing that at all. I suspect it's Zhong Xiaoyu doing something behind my back again."

Qi Fei turned his gaze to Luo Yang.

The young man immediately replied, "Yes, the last time I went back to Guiyue Apartment, I ran into Sister Zhong Kui. She chatted with me for a while and found out that I knew some computer technology, so she asked me to help her make a positioning transmitter."

"Location transmitter?" Qi Fei didn't react for a moment.

"Yes, it's a transmitter that can send messages to a specific location. It's shaped like a USB flash drive. Just plug it into a computer and double-click to activate it. It will automatically send messages to the pre-registered phone numbers," Luo Yang said.

Zhong Kui, standing to the side, gazed intently: "If I remember correctly, Jiang Tianyi, oh, that is, our Xi He, mentioned in Yuanxi that he received a USB drive from Zhong Xiaoyu, but it was password protected, and he couldn't open it. It seems this USB drive is destined to remain unopenable." As Zhong Kui spoke, Qi Fei's eyes widened involuntarily: "Could it be that these coordinates..."

"The coordinates are in Nanling," Liu Tong's voice came through.

The moment the words "Nanling" were uttered, everyone understood what it meant, and the coordinate information continued to be sent to their phones from time to time.

"You mean this transmitter can only be triggered by double-clicking?" Qi Fei asked Luo Yang for confirmation.

“That’s right.” Luo Yang nodded.

"We are still receiving messages, which means the person who triggered the signal is still at the coordinates!" Qi Fei suppressed his rapid breathing. Xi He was there. For the first time, he was not passively found by Xi He, but his location was confirmed.

Without saying a word, he rushed downstairs. Just as he opened the car door to get in, a dark figure darted into the car and squeezed into the back seat before him. Upon closer inspection, it was Rakshasa, staring intently at him with its amber eyes.

Zhong Kui followed and got into the car. As soon as Luocha saw her, he rubbed against her affectionately.

Qi Fei didn't ask any more questions and started the car.

“Once we get there, you and Luosha will stay outside. After all, I am his brother, and he shouldn’t kill me no matter what,” Qi Fei said.

"Do you think blood ties would be a factor in Xi He's world?" Zhong Kui clearly disagreed with his suggestion. "Besides, Luo Sha and I were originally part of Zhong Xiaoyu's plan. I chose to listen to Zhong Xiaoyu this time, and I think she's right."

"What plan?" Qi Fei hadn't expected that Zhong Kui would actually stand on the same side as Zhong Xiaoyu this time.

“She went to see Xihe,” Zhong Kui said. “That’s all I know. Luosha was brought to Nancheng by Granny Meng using my identity.”

"I don't understand, what's the connection between these two things?" Qi Fei said, glancing at the rearview mirror as police cars sped after them.

Zhong Kui also noticed the noisy sirens and said, "If I were you, I would advise Liu Tong not to make such a big fuss. You and I both know how suspicious and cautious Xi He is. He can disappear without a trace at the slightest sign of trouble. This showdown is destined to be between you and me."

The road leading to Nanling has become quiet again.

Qi Fei's car stopped at the entrance of Nanling. The coordinate information suddenly stopped, and Qi Fei's heart jumped into his throat, fearing that the chase would come to nothing.

Following the coordinates, they arrived at the entrance to the Nanling Maze once again.

Xi He has always been here, but has never been found. He is like a ghost of Nancheng, existing beneath the ancient tomb.

Rakshasa hovered at the entrance of the maze, looked up and stared at Zhong Kui for a while. As if they had a telepathic connection, it began to lower its head and sniff around.

Qi Fei didn't understand: "What is it doing?"

“I raised Rakshasa since it was a child. It knows my scent best. The floral fragrance on my body can linger in the environment for many days. Although humans cannot detect it, Rakshasa can still smell my presence. Zhong Xiaoyu used my body to penetrate deep into Nanling, waiting for this day,” Zhong Kui said.