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[Magic Apprentice]
Chapter 34 Magic Apprentice
Qingze blinked, and the pure white label on the top of his head in the mirror was still clear and unchanged.
He tried to tilt his head back, and the label moved upwards with him, leaving only the ceiling in his field of vision.
He lowered his head and gazed at himself in the mirror again, where the words "Magic Apprentice" floated steadily.
He was quite certain that the label hadn't been there when he left home that morning.
It seems that the power boost from absorbing multiple red name tags has caused a qualitative change in him, allowing him to reach the power level of a so-called "magic apprentice"?
Following this line of reasoning, he believes that the label on his head will continue to change as his power increases.
This future, full of endless possibilities, filled him with excitement just by imagining it, making him almost want to burst into song.
Qingze quickly washed his face with cold water to perk himself up, and then walked out of the bathroom.
He changed into a clean white tracksuit and decided to go out for a walk with his dog, hoping to find some other colored tags along the way.
However, he did not release the five sparrows from the cage to use the Eye of the Flock.
The usage time of Birds' Eye and Shadow Binding is not calculated independently; both require him to consume mental energy to activate them.
He had been frequently performing shadow jumps, which had greatly depleted his mental energy. If he were to use the Eye of the Birds now, the duration would be greatly shortened, and he would become even more tired. It would be better not to use it at all.
He put a collar on Big Yellow, fastened a leash, and led it away from the apartment.
As the man and dog stepped out of the apartment building, Qingze began to jog, his steps becoming incredibly light, as if all his weight had disappeared and he had become a cloud.
He believed that if he ran at full speed, he could leave Big Yellow far behind in an instant, so far that he wouldn't even see its shadow.
But that inhuman speed is clearly not suitable for displaying in broad daylight.
As usual, he let Big Yellow excitedly run ahead and lead the way, while he followed behind at a leisurely pace.
He jogged along, his eyes scanning the surrounding pedestrians and environment, not missing any possible color tags.
Warm sunlight streamed down from the sky, and the occasional clear chirping of birds could be heard from the bushes along the street.
"How peaceful..."
Just as he was having this thought, a piercing alarm blared, shattering the tranquility of the street.
Qingze turned his head and saw four police cars with flashing red and blue lights speeding past on the road in an orderly fashion.
Has another major case occurred in Tokyo?
A hint of doubt flashed in his eyes.
……
Meanwhile, in the back seat of the lead police car, Kiyoshi Kaneda had his laptop on his lap, intently reviewing the preliminary on-site report that the Kawagoe Police Station had just submitted to the Metropolitan Police Department.
Upon receiving the report mentioning the two key features, "fox mask" and "anti-slip shoe covers," the Metropolitan Police Department immediately realized that this might be related to the previous Sanada family case and transferred the case to Kiyoshi Kaneda.
Looking at the photos and descriptions on the screen, Kiyoshi Kaneda couldn't contain his excitement.
really!
Just as he suspected, there must be an organized criminal group behind "Fox".
According to the on-site investigation report, the courtyard was surrounded by a three-meter-high wall, which was also covered with electrified barbed wire.
Both the front and back doors are equipped with surveillance cameras, but the lenses are always facing outwards.
No intruders were captured in the retrieved surveillance footage.
This is highly likely because the monitoring system was hacked and tampered with.
All the victims were killed with a single, clean, and swift blow.
Information gathered from other believers indicates that the murderer was approximately 1.85 meters tall.
This height data closely matches the description of the murderer who killed Sanada Jiro with his bare hands in the Sanada family.
Could it be the same person?
Kiyoshi Kaneda pondered.
If that's true, it means the other person is not only proficient in hand-to-hand combat, but also a master of swordsmanship.
But what truly convinced Kiyoshi Kaneda that there was a large-scale organization behind it was another detail.
According to believers, the Holy Buddha kept twenty fierce hunting dogs.
Except for the one that was killed by Uesugi Masakazu, the remaining nineteen are all alive.
Furthermore, the forensic report clearly stated that there were no traces of sedative drugs on these hunting dogs, ruling out the possibility of using dog-repellent spray.
No matter how skilled the killer was in swordsmanship, he was still a mortal and could not possibly intimidate so many well-trained hunting dogs with just his so-called "aura".
Therefore, the murderer must possess some kind of cutting-edge technology that has not yet been circulated on the market!
The ability to master and utilize this technology is not something that small-time forces can accomplish; there must be a behemoth standing behind it.
Is it some ambitious domestic conglomerate? Or a foreign conglomerate? Or even a country operating in secret?
Kiyoshi Kaneda felt increasingly alarmed as he thought about it, but an uncontrollable sense of excitement also rose from the bottom of his heart, like a hunting dog that had spotted its prey.
The reason he is so obsessed with detective games is that he enjoys the process of unraveling the mystery step by step and gradually getting closer to the truth.
At that moment, he felt closer than ever before to that mysterious "fox".
……
Kawagoe Police Station, underground morgue.
After a brief introduction between Kiyoshi Kaneda and Seisuke Uesugi, the staff opened nine cold morgues, each containing a body wrapped in a black body bag.
One of them eagerly stepped forward and deftly unzipped the body bag.
A hint of doubt flashed across Uesugi Seisuke's eyes as he sized up the man.
He wasn't wearing a police uniform, but rather a dark blue traditional kendo uniform. He had shoulder-length hair, looked to be in his early thirties, with sharp eyebrows and bright eyes, and exuded a commanding and heroic aura.
“His name is Sasaki Mine,” Kiyoshi Kaneda introduced. “Don’t let his youth fool you; he’s already a Super First-Class Swordsman who has passed the eighth-dan kendo exam.”
I specifically invited him over because I hoped to determine the swordsmanship style used by the killer from the wounds.
"I see."
Uesugi Masasuke suddenly realized.
Sasaki Mine ignored their conversation, his mind completely absorbed in examining the wounds on the nine corpses.
He has an almost obsessive love for kendo, having wielded a bamboo sword since he was six years old, a passion that has lasted for over twenty years.
He believed he had seen all the techniques and styles of Japanese martial arts, and could often see through them and predict his opponent's next move before the battle even began.
But at this moment, he couldn't see anything unusual.
The killer's swordsmanship was too pure.
Each move is extremely simple, or you could say extremely ruthless.
There are no unnecessary fancy moves; the sole purpose is to kill the opponent.
Especially the blow that severed Yoshikawa Masaya's head...
Sasaki Mine reached out, almost obsessively, his fingertips gently tracing the astonishingly smooth neck fracture, and murmured, "Perfect..."
As a master of swordsmanship, he was all too aware of the terrifying power contained behind this strike.
Severing an adult's head with a single blow is far from as easy as it's portrayed in movies or TV shows.
Looking across Japan, there are very few people who can do this.
The report mentions that the killer used a knife with one hand...
Even Sasaki Mine wasn't absolutely certain he could do that.
"Mr. Sasaki, have you made any discoveries?"
Uesugi Masasuke couldn't help but ask.
Sasaki Mine slowly raised his head, his eyes flashing with a complex light, and shook his head, saying, "There is no trace of a fixed school."
The killer was a pure practitioner; his sword was born only for killing.
His tone was filled with undisguised amazement, and an indescribable emotion surged within him.
Sasaki Mine really wanted to have a life-or-death battle with this mysterious slayer.
Let's see who is the greatest swordsman in Japan!
Upon hearing this, Kiyoshi Kaneda trembled slightly, and a bold guess came to his mind.
P.S.: Happy Mid-Autumn Festival everyone! My new book will be on the charts on Monday, so please vote with your monthly tickets!
Chapter 35 The Golden Tag
There is a proverb in the Xia Dynasty that says, "He who wins the hearts of the people wins the world."
So how do we win the hearts and minds of the people in today's world?
Politicians generally employ a strategy of "making empty promises."
During the election campaign, various enticing slogans and promises are offered to different groups in order to win their votes.
This is currently the recognized mainstream way to play.
However, if we turn to history books, there is another, more direct way to win the hearts of the people: punishing the wicked and eliminating evil.
Is the mysterious organization that trains foxes as experts solely for the purpose of upholding justice?
Kiyoshi Kaneda thought that possibility was unlikely and preferred to believe that the organization wanted to artificially create a "hero of justice" in the hearts of the people in this increasingly declining country.
After all, ordinary people wouldn't think of a fox as a murderer.
Because the people the foxes killed were the very people they wanted to die as soon as possible.
If a mysterious organization were to fuel the fire online, promoting the fox's image as a "lone hero," and cleverly introduce ideas that resonate with public sentiment.