Monsters Die When Killed-Chapter 43 - 22: Anyway, I’m a Superpower User

Zhengyi Academy was one of the seventy-two A Class Academies in the country.

Zhengyi Academy had consistently ranked among the top three throughout its history. The current Daoist Saint of the Thirty-Six Saints Central Committee was from this very academy—in fact, one could say the vast majority of Daoist Saints throughout history had hailed from it.

Across Zhengguo, there were seventy-two A Class Academies and one hundred and eight B Class Academies. The former held twenty to twenty-four Holy Seats, while the latter held ten to twelve. In addition to these one hundred and eighty academies, there were also three hundred and sixty specialized academies. If an exceptionally brilliant individual emerged from one of them, they too could obtain a Holy Seat and join the Thirty-Six Saints Central Committee to preside over national affairs.

Of course, the "Thirty-Six Saints" was generally a symbolic number. In some eras, talent was scarce, and not all Holy Seats were filled. In others, geniuses appeared in droves, and the number of seats had even doubled—but thirty-six remained the baseline, regardless of any fluctuations.

Some time ago, a massive Spiritual Qi Burst on the border between the Shan Country and Zhengguo was confirmed by numerous related organizations worldwide to be the aftershock of a failed ’Celestial Calamity-class Void Orbit’. Although it failed, it was also seen as a prelude to the true beginning of the Spiritual Energy Revival. After all, if the Spiritual Qi concentration were still the same as it had been a few years ago, such an Orbit would have failed long before it could induce any Celestial Changes.

To cope with the coming great changes, the major academies with Saint Dao lineages all dispatched their elite higher-ups to assist various regions in suppressing potential Demon Fiend troubles. Zhang Fucheng, who held the modern title of professor, was a High-level Mage who had mastered the Five Thunders Righteous Method even before the Spiritual Energy Revival. A True Talisman cast by him was potent enough to force ninety-nine percent of all Demon Fiends and monsters in the world to reveal their true forms—but this time, it had failed. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

"Interesting, very interesting."

Beyond his doubt and worry, there was also the excitement of being challenged. The middle-aged professor stroked his beard, his eyes flashing with a desire to take on the challenge. "No wonder the Celestial Masters often say that ten years of harsh training can’t compare to a single real-world trial. The academy’s assessments certainly don’t offer strange Demon Fiends like this for me to hunt."

There was no time to waste. Since the remains offered no clues, he would go to the scene.

At that very moment, not far from one of the crime scenes, a certain teenager who had been worrying about his future image pricked up his ears. He looked up and saw the distinctive lights of a police car.

’Police cars are here... I guess that’s a wrap.’

’Whatever my image becomes in the future, the present is the present.’

Besides the issue with the police cars, the sky was beginning to lighten. It was five in the morning, and more people were starting to appear on the streets. Su Zhou decided to quit while he was ahead. He immediately sped off, sneaking back to his residential complex. Then, like a gecko on a wall, he easily scrambled up the side of the building, avoiding the security camera’s line of sight, and climbed back onto his balcony.

This was also part of his plan. Su Zhou had already tested it at home and at the gym. His fingers could easily support his own body weight; with a bit of force, he could even tear through wooden planks and gouge marks into stone. The walls of the building weren’t perfectly smooth, so with just a little effort, he could climb even faster and more steadily than a gecko.

For a Transcendent, the most obvious change was having more ’choices’. Many paths that ordinary people couldn’t take, conventional limits they subconsciously avoided, were all new options for a Transcendent.

And Su Zhou thoroughly enjoyed this fact.

Back home, Su Zhou picked up his phone and started to sum up the pros and cons of his mission while cooking in the kitchen. ’First of all, I have to admit I’m still too young and a bit naive. Forget the black Night Travel Clothes; when I’m wandering around outside, I should at least wear a mask and a hood. What if someone accidentally sees me?’

’As for the five Spiritual Energy Fragments containing the grievances of different Resentful Spirits, I can just find a glass jar, cap it, and seal it with some Holy Water. Once I’ve collected a full jar, I can probably use an Orbit to melt them down into Spirit Water and give the Wisdom Tree an extra meal.’

As for the other miscellaneous items, like the mask for his Night Travel Clothes, Su Zhou planned to ask Shao Qiming to help him buy them. It wasn’t that he didn’t have the money. The main reason, Su Zhou had figured, was that ’it would be suspicious for an ordinary person like me to suddenly buy things like Gold, Silver, and Gemstones. Qiming must have thought of that when he offered to help me buy them.’

’And whether it’s the Night Travel Clothes or anything else, if I were to buy these sensitive items myself, the Patrol could definitely trace them. But they might not be able to trace Shao Qiming’s channels.’

’After all, with so many people in my family having been members of the Patrol for so many years, even if I’m not a genius, I was at least able to study hard enough to get into a top-tier high school.’

After he finished cooking, Su Zhou chewed on a chicken breast cutlet while sending Shao Qiming a nearly coded message composed of abstract slang, various emoji, and scattered words. "I want to cosplay the Shadow Man from that detective series. Need to buy some black clothes and a mask. You know what I mean."

It was only five-thirty in the morning. Who knew if Shao Qiming hadn’t slept or had just woken up, but as soon as Su Zhou sent the message, the other side immediately showed: [I Get It All! is typing...]

As a side note, Shao Qiming’s usual online ID was [I Get It All!]. Su Zhou’s was [What Do You Get?], and Shao Shuangyue’s ID when they gamed together was [He Gets It, Ask Him!].

[I Get It All!]: OK. Understood. Wait for my good news!

[What Do You Get?]: My man! We’re still good, right? (two-headed ogre emoji)

[I Get It All!]: Of course! (two-headed ogre emoji)

With that matter settled, Su Zhou really had nothing else to do. He already had a weapon and had tested his lethality against Extraordinary Creatures. For the advancement Orbit of his Wisdom Fruit, everything was ready. All that was left was to find an Evil Demon, then cut it down and kill it.

But that was the problem—where was the Evil Demon?

Normally, this would have been a question requiring some thought. Fortunately, while Su Zhou might be average in other respects, his memory for things he wanted to remember was excellent. He walked over to the living room table and snatched up the ’Diagram of Victim Murder Locations’ that his father, Su Beiluo, had left for him when he returned to the country.

When Su Zhou had just returned home, Su Beiluo’s professional habits had kicked in mid-conversation, and he had drawn out the locations where the murder victims had been found, even including detailed markings and analysis.

Although Su’s Mother, Ning Shiyu, had interrupted Su Beiluo just as he was about to continue analyzing the case details and suspicious points, what he’d provided was enough.

[Victim 1 Location: Chigu Beach, Riverfront Square District. Time: Around 2:00 AM. Victim was returning from a late-night party, intoxicated. Cause of Death: Massive abdominal hemorrhage, some internal organs missing, thigh muscle cut, marks from a sharp weapon present.]

[Victim 2 Location: Vicinity of Jiangxin Amusement Park. Time: 12:17 AM. Victim went into the water to play and suddenly vanished without a sound. Body was discovered the next day at noon on a different part of the shore. Cause of Death: Legs missing, marks from a sharp weapon present. Cuts to internal organs, fat, and intestines.]

[Victim 3 Location: Edge of Fuhe River North Road. Time: Around 11:00 PM. Due to missing head and no identification, victim’s identity is unknown. Cause of Death: Decapitation, marks from a sharp weapon present.]

"Huh, they were all by the river?"

With a single glance, Su Zhou could see that all three victims had been attacked by the river—or more accurately, in the woods by the river, which happened to be a similar location to where he had hunted the Resentful Spirits yesterday.

’That area has no surveillance cameras and few people at night. If something unexpected happened, escaping into the river would be an effective way to evade pursuit... It’s not that strange when I think about it.’

"Wait, the Ganjiang River, Jiangxin, the Fuhe River... Isn’t this operational range way too big?!"

But when Su Zhou looked closer, he understood why his father was so puzzled. From the south of the Fuhe River all the way to the north of the Ganjiang River, such a vast operational range made it incredibly difficult to pinpoint the perpetrator’s location. The suspected area included both Hongcheng Old City and the Chigu Beach New District, which were teeming with people. If the killer was hiding there, it would be impossible to find them!

"Where am I even supposed to start looking?"

Su Zhou used a map app on his phone to roughly outline the suspect area. He immediately began to chew his thumbnail in frustration. But before he could bite down, Yara suddenly interjected, "Perhaps it’s because of the law enforcement mindset you’ve been exposed to since you were a child. You seem to have fallen into the trap of ’human’ thinking."

"Who told you the culprit has to be human? That it has to live in the city?"

"Su Zhou, look. All three incidents happened by the river—doesn’t that give you any ideas?"

It was a true wake-up call.

Su Zhou was instantly enlightened. "An aquatic Demon?!"

"No, no! I can’t be so rash!" But Su Zhou quickly rejected that oversimplified idea. Perhaps the Su Family’s investigative blood was awakening within him. He narrowed his eyes and began to meticulously reason through the details of the case. ’It could also be a land-based creature that can traverse water—but what exactly...’

Less than ten seconds later, Su Zhou cheerfully gave up thinking. "Forget it, I can’t figure it out. Yara, let’s go check out the crime scenes right now!"

The son of the Su Family, having just abandoned his family’s legacy, felt not a shred of shame. In fact, he sounded quite self-righteous.

"I’m a Superpower User anyway! It’d be stupid not to use my Spiritual Vision!"