20 – Within the Sоurсе оf Dаrknеss, Аll the World’s Еvils Dwеll
Раng Qiu didn’t undеrstand what theу wеre saуing, but it could rесоgnizе its оwn nаme.
Раng Qiu wаs рuzzled: “Mеow meow meоw??”
It susрeсtеd thеу wеre sауing bаd things about thе littlе kitten.
Shеng Chuyang bеcаme even mоre sеlf-assurеd: “Sеe, Pаng Qiu itself admitted it likеs mе.”
Раng Qiu: “Meоw?” Is thеrе sоme misunderstаnding?
Thе steak wаs alreаdy donе.
Bo Chеnjing sеrvеd a рiеce of stеak аnd hаnded it to hеr.
“Wow, it smells sо goоd!” Shеng Сhuyаng immediatеly beаmеd with jоy, her attention instantly divertеd.
Вo Chenjing’s eхрression softеnеd as he handed her a set of knife and fork.
The two of them headed to the dining room one after the other.
As soon as Sheng Chuyang sat down, she grabbed her fork, speared the entire steak, and started gnawing on it.
After a few bites, she casually looked up and noticed Bo Chenjing was leisurely cutting his steak with a knife.
It was an ordinary action, yet exceptionally pleasing to the eye.
Sheng Chuyang silently put down the steak in her hand and picked up the knife, imitating Bo Chenjing’s way of cutting steak.
Handling a knife was no challenge for her.
However, her first cut was too forceful.
The knife sliced cleanly through the beef, clinking loudly against the plate with a crisp, sharp sound.
“Clink!”
Pang Qiu, who had been dozing by the table with its eyes closed, was startled and jumped up from the floor.
Bo Chenjing also looked up at her.
She had already started on her second cut.
It was the first time he had seen someone cut steak like an emotionless butcher.
He weighed his words before speaking: “Steak doesn’t necessarily have to be cut to eat.”
The emotionless butcher Sheng Chuyang looked up and glanced at the evenly cut pieces of meat on his plate.
The expression on her face translated to: Then why are you cutting it?
Bo Chenjing pressed his lips together and set the knife aside.
Satisfied, Sheng Chuyang speared the steak and went back to gnawing on it directly.
…
After finishing her steak, Sheng Chuyang returned to her home next door.
This villa was the residence of the original owner’s mother before her marriage.
It had been uninhabited for years and was maintained by dedicated staff.
The house was clean, with all the necessary furniture for daily living.
Sheng Chuyang opened the safe she had brought from the Sheng family.
Whatever was stored in the safe must be extremely important.
Sure enough, inside were the original owner’s mother’s belongings and some valuables, as well as… Jiang Songran’s diary??
The diary had yellowed with age, exuding a strong sense of the past.
Upon opening it, the first thing she saw was the crooked, childish handwriting of an elementary school student, with many characters missing their radicals.
The character for “palace” took up three lines, with the “roof” radical and the two “mouth” components below each occupying a separate line.
Sheng Chuyang: “…” Calling it elementary school handwriting was already flattering Jiang Songran.
She placed the diary back in the safe and crawled into the cabinet to sleep.
…
Midnight.
The person Old Master Jiang had sent to pick up Sheng Chuyang appeared punctually at the villa’s entrance.
The driver was Jiang Fan, who had picked up Sheng Chuyang for the banquet last time. Jiang Songran had also come along.
“Miss Sheng, please get in the car.” This time, Jiang Fan’s attitude was much more respectful.
Next door, Bo Chenjing’s house showed no light, with doors and windows tightly shut.
As they passed his house, Sheng Chuyang looked through the car window at a certain window on the second floor.
If she remembered correctly, that was Bo Chenjing’s study.
Soon, the car drove off into the vast night.
The previously closed window was pushed open.
Pang Qiu jumped onto the windowsill with a “thump,” looking in the direction Sheng Chuyang had left. It turned its head and meowed at Bo Chenjing, who had walked to the window: “Meow—”
Bo Chenjing spoke leisurely: “Don’t think everyone who’s active at night is the same as you.”
Pang Qiu: “Meow!”Sheng Chuyang and her group arrived at the morgue without any hindrance.
Old Master Jiang had arranged everything meticulously; she didn’t encounter any other humans along the way.
At the entrance of the morgue, Jiang Fan spoke up to remind Sheng Chuyang, “Miss Sheng, the corpse is in an extremely gruesome state…”
Sheng Chuyang pushed the door open and went straight in.
Jiang Fan was stunned.
Seeing this, Jiang Songran gritted his teeth and mustered the courage to follow her inside.
Jiang Fan quickly followed suit, stepping forward to pull open the drawer of the corpse refrigeration unit. He dragged the body out and placed it on the dissection table.
Sheng Chuyang found him too slow and directly reached out to unzip the body bag.
The corpse was frozen stiff as stone, its surface covered in a thin layer of frost. The body was emaciated, reduced to nothing but a thin layer of skin, with the shape of a skull imprinted on its face.
The body had been dissected before, and the Y-shaped incision from the autopsy had been stitched up.
Sheng Chuyang carefully examined the corpse, her expression calm and serious, as if what lay before her wasn’t a desiccated body.
Jiang Songran had initially been somewhat afraid, but seeing Sheng Chuyang’s composed demeanor, his mind inexplicably steadied, and he boldly stepped closer.
“Pass me the scissors,” Sheng Chuyang extended her hand, signaling Jiang Songran to hand her the scissors from the nearby instrument tray.
Jiang Songran obediently complied. “What are you going to do?”
Sheng Chuyang didn’t answer, instead directly cutting open the stitches on the corpse.
Instantly, a foul stench assaulted their senses.
Jiang Fan and Jiang Songran both covered their mouths, turning away as they retched.
Sheng Chuyang remained unfazed as she peeled back the skin.
Beneath the abdominal wall, there were no recognizable organs—only a large, foul-smelling mass of black ice.
At the same time, the Crimson Moon Necklace around Sheng Chuyang’s neck began to tremble violently, as if sensing something.
The Crimson Moon Necklace was born from the Source of Darkness and possessed a keen spiritual nature. Whenever it sensed something originating from the same source, it would react.
Within the Source of Darkness dwelled all the evils of the world.
The ignorant worshipped these evils, allowing them to transform into demons.
Thus, Demons were born, feeding on all the sins of the world and gathering countless Followers.
The war five hundred years ago was incited by a Demon and its Followers.
The Demon’s Followers were nearly wiped out in that conflict. After the humans and the Blood Clan called a truce, the Demon vanished without a trace.
Sheng Chuyang reached out and pressed her hand against the agitated Crimson Moon Necklace, a faint smile curling at the corner of her lips as she whispered to soothe it, “Don’t be impatient. Since it has reemerged, there will surely be a chance to face it.”
All records related to Demons described how powerful they were.
But just how powerful were they?
She was looking forward to finding out.
Sheng Chuyang turned her head and looked at Jiang Songran, who was pale and weak from retching. “Once you’re done vomiting, get me a bag.”
“I’ll go get it,” Jiang Fan said, his face equally pale.
As soon as he finished speaking, Jiang Fan’s phone rang.
“What…? Alright, I understand.” After hanging up, Jiang Fan looked at Sheng Chuyang. “Miss Sheng, are you finished? This case has been temporarily handed over to a special department. They’ve arranged for someone to come and transfer the body, and they’ll be here soon.”
Sheng Chuyang narrowed her eyes slightly. “What special department?”
Jiang Fan’s expression turned serious. “I’m not entirely sure myself. This special department is extremely mysterious, with many privileges. Ordinary people can’t afford to cross them.”
The implication was that even the Jiang family couldn’t afford to provoke them.
Sheng Chuyang pondered for a moment. “Alright then.”
She turned and walked out.
“No need to see me off.”
As she spoke, she headed toward the other end of the corridor.
In the blink of an eye, she vanished.
Both Jiang Fan and Jiang Songran were left with expressions of shock and fear.Meanwhile, Sheng Chuyang hadn’t walked far before catching the familiar scent.