Transform into a human

"What did you say?!" Bryce's expression changed drastically.

"Chief Superintendent?"

"It's nothing...it was just a bit too sudden."

Qingyan still had that same smiling expression:

"A conviction for murdering a police superintendent would certainly mean certain death, yet Yue Lai chose to turn himself in... Could it be someone else?"

Bryce shook her head: "It's just the suspect's tactics."

"He also called in a lot of media. Originally, those reporters were rushing to the university town like crazy because of the Zhenhai Sword incident, but because of the lockdown and the quick resolution, they didn't get anything. Now that there's this Yue Lai incident... there will probably be a lot of resistance in public opinion."

"Can't public opinion be controlled?"

Qingyan said tactfully, "Most of the reporters are from the capital planet, and they won't leave until they've gained something."

Bryce's worst fears have come true. The window of opportunity left for him to act is very short, and now he can only wait for the big shot to promise him help.

"Let's go take a look."

……

……

The entrance to the university town branch of the police headquarters was completely surrounded by people.

"Mr. Yue Lai, why did you attack and kill a respected police superintendent at the police headquarters?"

"Mr. Yue, rumors have it that you have a blood feud with the police..."

"Would you be interested in granting us a special interview with the New Federation?"

"Mr. Yue..."

"Everyone, make way!"

Several police officers struggled to push aside the reporters who had gathered around them, intending to handcuff Yue Lai behind his back with specially made tear stone handcuffs, but before they could do so, Yue Lai raised a pen above his head.

"Ladies and gentlemen, do you know why I'm so fixated on this pen? It holds a great secret—key evidence of police misconduct twenty years ago!"

"They're trying to silence us now!"

The reporters were immediately abuzz; regardless of whether it was true or not, the incident itself was incredibly newsworthy!

To the residents of other planets in the Federation, the police headquarters, which requires legitimate reasons and strict vetting for entry and exit, is mostly isolated from mainstream society, making it mysterious and intriguing, especially given the weight of this topic...

Bryce, who had rushed over from afar, was already experiencing a headache...

He ordered his men, "That pen is key evidence, seize it!"

Unexpectedly, Yue Lai shouted loudly:

"Gentlemen, I stole the pen at the Star Harbor branch to investigate a 20-year-old unsolved case."

"This pen was a commemorative edition launched by Ma Liang Pen Industry twenty years ago. Its crystal nib could store a large amount of information, but it was turned into a fake under the police's custody. I can't help but ask, what exactly was stored in the real pen that made them so eager to destroy it!"

There are even details about the case and past wrongful convictions! The addition of reasoning elements to the report will increase its popularity exponentially, because conspiracy theorists and old men on the street corner can all showcase their talents!

The cameras focused on the pen in Yue Lai's hand, which put the police officers in a dilemma—they couldn't just take it away, nor could they leave it behind.

Bryce glanced coldly to the side, while the accompanying superintendent roared angrily at the officers:

"What are you standing there for? Detain him according to procedure!"

In a distant coffee shop, Yue Hao and Xia Du witnessed the entire farce.

Xia Du said speechlessly:

"What are you doing? Once the pen has passed through the hands of an outsider, the police have plenty of reasons to deny it and will definitely not admit that the pen is the original evidence."

"Of course I know that, but I'm a little worried that I'm being watched, just to avoid suddenly dying one day," Cavendish placed a tray of black tea in front of the two ladies. "Your tea is served."

Yue Hao didn't take the red tea. Instead, she reached out and tugged at Cavendish's cheek, clicking her tongue in amazement, "So alike! Even if you tried to touch it yourself, you couldn't tell the difference."

Xia Du looked at Yue Lai and asked curiously:

"By the way, how did you convince a eccentric genius to switch identities with you?"

That's right, the "Yue Lai" in front of the police station is the real Cavendish. Bryce, who had already been holding the "silk" in his hands, was also kept in the dark. The masked man's methods were so powerful that he could even transfer the causal threads!

"I told him that it was a waste of his talents for a master of skin painting, one of the Thirty-Six Extraordinary Warriors, to work as a skin maker in a small research institute."

"It's that simple?"

"More or less."

Three days ago, Li Gang had just used the Zhenhai Sword to quell the historical ocean. After Yue Hao re-established contact, he introduced Cavendish to Yue Lai, the owner of the Windmill Town Heritage Search Agency.

"Windmill Town?"

Cavendish's face stiffened:

"What happened to the promise of being renowned throughout Andromeda?!"

He'd rather stay at the research institute than join such a tiny firm!

"Uh..." Yue Lai scratched his head sheepishly, "Although in terms of size there is a huge gap compared to big agencies like 'Mirror Flower' and 'Water Moon,' in terms of reputation in certain areas... we're actually about the same."

"Having lived for thousands of years, I still have quite a few friends, although I don't remember most of them..."

"No need for further explanation," Cavendish immediately took a step back. "I won't report you. Let's just pretend we never met and leave it to fate!"

Yue Lai suddenly asked, "Do you know Arian?"

Cavendish paused for a moment: "It's that Arian from Sosa? Of course I know him!"

The Sosa are a sub-human race that was deeply involved in human expansionist wars. After the wars, they established their own nation, and Arian was their high priest, comparable to the imperial advisor of the empire in the past.

Yue Lai nodded: "Arian can be said to be the most powerful of the Skin Painters, do you know why?"

Cavendish subtly withdrew his steps slightly: "Why?"

"The primary duty of the High Priest of the Sosa is to play the role of a god. After the death of the monarch, the High Priest will use the skills of a skin-changing artist to transform himself into the appearance of the monarch, symbolizing the spirit of the deceased in heaven, and issue a 'three-day edict' to the subjects. During these three days, the High Priest is another monarch, ruling a star field."

"It is 'belief' that makes him strong."

Cavendish closed the distance again:

"Could you elaborate?"

"In some ways, a master of deception is similar to a conman. Although the former has no distinction of realm, only the depth of their skills, both rely on 'deceiving people' to improve themselves. However, the latter can deceive in all aspects, while the former can only work on their 'face'."

"But this time I can give you a chance to fool the entire central star system."

"Impersonate me and turn yourself in."

"I knew you were up to no good!" Cavendish took another step back, angrily saying, "Even if you want to improve your cultivation, you have to stay alive first!"

Yue Lai took out his pen and recounted the whole story: "If you want to change the status quo, you have to take a gamble, right? If I can solve the case, you will not only have fooled everyone through the media, but you will also gain unprecedented fame."

Yue Hao watched this scene with a smile. Watching his older brother fool people was always very stress-relieving. These humans are so stupid!

Cavendish thought for a long time, then gritted his teeth: "How can I believe what you say?"

Yue Lai rolled up his sleeves and exerted force, his muscles instantly swelling and turning red—a hallmark of a newborn calf.

"See? We innocent people don't lie!"

Yue Lai's face was full of sincerity.

Cavendish then lowered his guard, after all, it's better to guard against innocent people than treacherous ones.

"But something still feels off..."

Taking advantage of the situation, Yue Lai played his last card: "Our firm has a long-term cooperative relationship with Ariane. We can go to the Sosa system together and have the opportunity to learn from each other in person."

Yes, there is a "chance," but it didn't specify how big the chance is.

But Cavendish, already in a daze, didn't notice and grabbed Yue Lai's hand:

"What are you waiting for, boss? I'll go to jail for you!"

Xia Du was stunned after hearing this. These swindlers deserve to die!

……

……

Meanwhile, in a high-security police prison.

Downton walked into the interrogation room trembling. The arrogance he had shown when "matching" the police had vanished. He had thought he would at most be charged with obstructing official business, but he never expected to face "humane destruction."

Downton?

This interrogation was completely different from the previous ones. The Chain Crystal Network was cut off, and even the lights in the interrogation room were extremely dim. The person who came was wearing a baseball cap and was not in uniform. His face was completely covered by darkness, and it was impossible to tell whether he was male or female just by listening to his voice.

"Yes, it's me..."

"Do you know what crime you've committed?"

"Officer, I've really been fooled! I thought it was a man's path, who...who would have thought it was a barbarian!"

These two approaches are indeed very similar in the early stages.

Many young people, due to their limited understanding of the path to becoming a capable person, are lured onto the path of barbarians by some illegal organizations. Because of the Federation's zero-tolerance attitude towards barbarians, they are forced to join illegal organizations and become their hired thugs.

As for Downton Abbey... it's hard to say whether they knew or not.

"Do you want to live?"

"Yes, of course I want to!"

"You and Kerr will be transferred to another prison; a big shot doesn't want to see your fellow inmates again."

Downton finally understood: he was being asked to kill someone! He was just racing a boat, how could he be so unlucky!

"But I'm still going to die after that..."

"That's why I sent your best friend with you."

"W-what do you mean?"

"Kerr's crime is minor. We will arrange for a skin-changing artist so that you can come out wearing his face."

"Nakerta..."

"There always has to be some sacrifice, doesn't there?"

Downton recalled his past with Kerr. Because of his older brother, he hadn't received much attention from his parents since childhood. It was Kerr, the bodyguard's son, who always played with him.

Although he always finds that guy a bit annoying for his silly appearance, if someone asks him, "Do you have any childhood friends?" the first person he probably thinks of is Kerr.

Even their cultivation methods were obtained from the same black market merchant. One is a scumbag, and the other is a barbarian. They sound like a perfect match, don't they?

As for the Federation's ban, just pretend it doesn't exist as long as you don't get caught. They say the barbarian is the strongest among the twelve capable men! My brother, that so-called gentleman, isn't even worthy of carrying his shoes!

He can't afford to lose anymore.

If it were his own brother who had to be sacrificed, he would not hesitate; but if it were Kerr...

Seeing Downton hesitate, the other party suddenly said:

"Do you know where that black market merchant came from?"

Downton looked up abruptly, his eyes widening in disbelief, followed by a surge of fury that seemed ready to devour someone.

"It was sponsored by your brother. If you can meet that important person's demands, the police can open an investigation into this matter."

Downton Abbey suddenly fell silent:

"Okay, it's a deal."

……

……

The next day, Yue Hao, as an agent of the Investigation Bureau, went to Principal Tang Xiao for an open and frank talk. Xia Du went to various places to gather his old subordinates, while Mo returned to the museum to participate in the reconstruction work—she was still a prisoner in name only.

Yue Lai, wearing Cavendish's face, was drinking tea in a coffee shop, while his thoughts wandered through the Chain Crystal Network.

The account under federal supervision is that of citizen "Yue Lai," while his preferred six-digit account is essentially unrestricted by anyone. He came to the library to look up information.

The library is merely a physical representation of data in Penglai; a more accurate description would be a database. Yue Lai, leveraging his high-level access in Penglai, easily ascended to the upper levels of the Tower of Babel.

But while he had the authority, accessing special information required paying the "Great Library." Luckily, he had shamefully borrowed some money from Xia Du beforehand, otherwise he wouldn't even be able to afford coffee now...

"High Priest Sosa's reward seems quite generous. I've already agreed to Cavendish's request. Next commission..."

He suddenly remembered Ji Yungui. The old man seemed to have left something unsaid in his words, and he had agreed to take on the old man's request.

"Forget it, I'll go to Sosa for the next commission. It's a long-term project anyway. The Jinghua group has been busy for almost a year and hasn't gotten any results."

Yue Lai did not lie to Cavendish. Theoretically, they really did have a cooperative relationship with Ariane, because Ariane was an agency that issued commissions to the entire Andromeda region for the search for lost artifacts...

He gently pulled a thick, metal-bound book from the bookshelf, opened the high-quality pages, and saw the account balance halved in the blink of an eye. Yue Lai's eyes twitched slightly.

The cover prominently displayed the question: "What do you want to know?"

A fifth-grade cultural relic, a large library.

Rule 1: No noise is allowed inside the venue.

Yue Lai traced a line with his finger: "The truth behind the murder of Esfri, Victor Casti, 20 years ago."

The cloud-like writing on the cover slowly faded away. Yue Lai turned to the second page, and the clouds reappeared, forming the writing:

"The Stardust Children will return home with the remains of the gods. And the scales of the abyss have tilted for the feast of shadows."

"The remains of a god... are actually related to the Tearstone."

Seeing the numbers on the account almost reach zero, Yue Lai suppressed an indescribable heartache and wrote again with his finger:

Who is the shadow?

He turned the page; the book was blank.

"So rich...?"

The second rule of the Great Library: Knowledge has a price.

The Great Library’s biggest revenue comes from its ability to erase information; if someone doesn’t want their affairs to be known by others, they have to pay a high price.

The erasure of information is hierarchical. You can choose to erase only level four, then those with level four or higher permissions can still see it. Yue Lai's permissions... are the highest level nine.

This in itself represents a certain message.

"How could an ordinary murderer have such financial resources? It seems there's more to the story... He's most likely a major conglomerate. All we need to do is investigate Mr. Casti, Tearstone, and the conglomerate."

He put the heavy books back on the shelf and turned to leave the large library.

A ripple seemed to brush past, as if to erase Yue Lai's memory from just now.

The third rule of the Great Library: Don't get carried away by success.

That's right. Even if you pay such a high price, you will have your memories of this period erased, leaving only a certain "impression," such as a feeling of goodwill towards someone, or a trace of malice.

Time began to rewind in parts, but this great power seemed to ignore Yue Lai, passing by him without leaving a trace.

The ways of the world, the way of passing through time.

When Yue Lai opened his eyes again in the coffee shop, it was enough for him to know that fate had quietly changed.

A stranger suddenly walked into the café and headed straight for the Cavendish.

"Master Odysseus?"

"It's me, and who are you?"

"I am from Taiyang Group, and I have a favor to ask of you, teacher."