Chapter 99 - 99 97 A Good Place to Kill

Words : 2063 Updated : Sep 12th, 2025

99: Chapter 97: A Good Place to Kill 99: Chapter 97: A Good Place to Kill Mount Wulong. The mountain is tall, vast, and covers a large area. Exiting the highway of Liyuan City, without entering the urban area and circling the city for dozens of kilometers, one could see the massive Mount Wulong lying on the horizon, stretching so far that one cannot see the end. In fact, it really is impossible to see the end. The expansive Mount Wulong crosses several cities and even provincial boundaries, with the most central part being made up of primeval forest structure designated as a large natural reserve. Conversely, the main peak of Mount Wulong is a 5A tourist attraction of Liyuan City, with temples built on the mountaintop and holiday villas at the foot of the mountain. Close to the suburbs, there are some farms offering countryside experiences. And the majority of human activity areas stop there. Liu Jinghui drove his beat-up Great Wall pickup directly to a village at the foot of the mountain, then parked the vehicle in the yard of a countryside inn. Jiang Yuan sat in the car until he felt dizzy, growing more and more doubtful about Liu Jinghui’s reliability. But by now, it was evening, and it felt like there was no chance to leave even if one wanted to. The countryside inn chosen by Liu Jinghui was in a secluded corner of the village. Once it got dark, it truly was like a chessboard sky with a hook-like moon, resting your head on the Milky Way as you dream, listening to the chorus of frogs from all directions. Where light reached, one could see the red bricks and green tiles, refreshing and pleasing to the eye. Looking further away into the darkness, it was pitch black, and you couldn’t even spot a dead person on the wall. There were no other guests at the countryside inn, and the owner and his wife arranged rooms for both of them before heading off to rest. “Let’s sleep first, we’ll talk about anything else tomorrow,” Liu Jinghui said, having driven for an entire day, his eyes so tired they could barely stay open. Jiang Yuan just managed to ask in a low voice, “Did you bring a gun?” “Didn’t bring one, it’s not necessary.” Liu Jinghui pulled something out from behind him, handed it to Jiang Yuan, and said, “Take this for self-defense.” “This... a sprayer? Why didn’t you give me a wolf-repellent spray.” Jiang Yuan took the item Liu Jinghui handed over and nearly chuckled when he saw it. A small black canister, clearly labeled “Tear Gas Sprayer,” was indeed a police-issue spray. “You have to buy the wolf spray yourself. This one is powerful,” Liu Jinghui showed his own sprayer to Jiang Yuan, saying, “When we enter the mountains tomorrow, what use will our small police pistols have? Batons and such also won’t have room to be wielded, this is far more useful. If you encounter a bear, spray it in the face; it might even work.” “If a bear gets close enough to my face and I whip out a can of pepper spray, I really am...” Jiang Yuan sighed, feeling emotionally drained, he waved his hand and went back to his room to sleep. At this point, there was no need to argue about weapons anymore. The next day. At the break of dawn, the crowing of a rooster woke Jiang Yuan up. Jiang Yuan dressed neatly and went outside to see, and in the glow of dawn, a red-crowned, colorful-feathered big rooster, stood on the red brick roof of a chicken coop, proudly crowing to the sky: “Dog brother, dog brother...” The countryside inn owner also got up and stood in the courtyard, punching towards the direction of the rising sun. Jiang Yuan looked at the owner, then at the rooster, and asked, “Is that rooster edible?” The owner slowly stopped his punches, hesitated for a few seconds, and said, “It’s raised to be eaten, but this chicken is over two years old, too big, you guys won’t be able to finish it... ” “That’s the one. We’ll eat it together,” Jiang Yuan didn’t ask for the price, just gestured with his hand and said, “Get it ready now, we’re in a hurry to leave later.” “Alright, I’ll call my wife to start the fire and boil some water,” the owner said, intentionally taking a detour to the chicken coop, not even glancing in the big rooster’s direction as he caught the wing of the frantically flapping rooster. The big rooster struggled in panic while the owner clasped his hands together, muttering under his breath, “Chick chick don’t blame me, you are but a meal for the farming folk...” By the time Liu Jinghui woke up, the chicken was already stewed. “Oh, chicken for breakfast. It’s a bit tough, though,” Liu Jinghui woke up to the aroma of the stewed chicken, in a good mood. Jiang Yuan sat at the small table, seemingly oblivious to Liu Jinghui, staring at the pot of stewed chicken as if he hadn’t heard him speak. The owner glanced at Jiang Yuan cautiously, feeling a murderous aura all over him, then whispered to Liu Jinghui, “This is the rooster that crowed this morning. Your friend saw it when he woke up and asked me to kill it and cook it.” Liu Jinghui was startled for a moment, suddenly beginning to understand his boss’s mood. ... After the meal, the two men made some preparations and waited for two guides to arrive before starting their journey into the mountain. Seeing locals leading the way and others helping to carry luggage, Jiang Yuan felt a bit more at ease. While walking, he said, “I thought that when the Provincial Department got involved, they would at least call on the local county bureau or something like a police station. Are we really just conducting our own investigation?” “The Wu Long Wildman case has been launched three times,” Liu Jinghui replied while walking. “The last time I initiated it, over 20 people went into the mountains, but their efficiency was low, and they caused irreversible damage to the crime scene. Besides, outside the mountains is the local police station, and inside the mountains is the forestry police—it’s quite complicated.” Jiang Yuan remained silent. He had just visited the Provincial Department and knew that it was rare for them to handle cases alone. Most of the time, if the Provincial Department wanted to show concern, they would send a couple of police officers to the local area, much like Liu Jinghui’s last case with Tan Yong. If necessary, they could directly take over the local criminal police team. This time, Liu Jinghui had asked Jiang Yuan for assistance, and though he said it was the two of them, from the Provincial Department’s perspective, it was as if he was handling the case independently. Liu Jinghui, with his delicate understanding, quickly grasped what Jiang Yuan was thinking and said, “This case is famous because both the victim and the person who discovered the body have a certain social influence. The victim was a columnist using the pen name Li Sanqiu, who specialized in writing about life in deep mountains, expeditions, and reclusion.” Seeing that Jiang Yuan was unaware, Liu Jinghui continued, “The hiker who discovered his body is from Changyang City, a... should be called a camping intermediary, or an outdoor equipment retailer, I guess. He often organizes outdoor activities and has created and joined many groups. After accidentally discovering the body, he posted a lot about the ‘Wu Long Wildman’ case, sharing many posts and photos, attracting attention nationwide.” “That would bring a lot of curious people just to take a look,” Jiang Yuan immediately realized, fearful that the state of the crime scene was probably not good. “Yes,” Liu Jinghui sighed. “Initially, the preservation conditions for a body and crime scene in the wilderness are poor. After being subjected to public spectating, conducting a second, third examination of the crime scene made things even worse. And unfortunately, the initial examination of the crime scene was conducted by the local police station, and the work was done very shoddily...” Jiang Yuan twitched his mouth involuntarily and admitted, “I thought you didn’t care about evidence.” “Even deduction needs some basis,” Liu Jinghui guessed Jiang Yuan’s opinion of him and seemed unconcerned as he continued, “Anyway, after the case escalated, it got the attention of the Provincial Department, who later dispatched a more capable team. Eventually, it was confirmed that the victim was Li Sanqiu, and it had nothing to do with wildmen. But by that time, the hikers and wildman enthusiasts no longer believed in the official report. Instead, it attracted the attention of Li Sanqiu’s readers and the cultural media.” Walking on a narrow path that could only fit one person, Jiang Yuan gasped for breath and asked, “So, what are you hoping I can find?” “Fingerprints would be best,” Liu Jinghui chuckled. “I know you’re also very good at investigating crime scenes. Once, by revisiting an old crime scene, you cracked a homicide case. If you can re-investigate and find any clues, that’d be great. If not, we’ll settle for any trace evidence we can use.” “Hmm... well, I’ll give it a try when we get there,” Jiang Yuan complied. The skills Liu Jinghui mentioned were exactly what he was good at. To be honest, Jiang Yuan did not dislike using these skills to solve cases. Liu Jinghui nodded and stopped talking to save energy. 200 meters above the village in elevation, they entered the depths of the primeval forest. Here the trees grew tall and thick, with vines intertwined and dense, deep grass and other unknown plants trying to fill every remaining space. The barely existent path was also mostly covered, forcing the guides to wield machetes to make their way. Insects, snakes, and other creatures unloved by humans were everywhere, quickly becoming bearable. Despite the difficult path, the area they walked through could hardly be called a virgin forest; it was a secondary forest that had regrown after logging decades earlier, evident from the dominant tree species in the vicinity. Jiang Yuan observed quietly while deep in thought. Investigating a crime scene in the wilderness is vastly different from a city. In an urban setting, a drop of blood spilled can be accurately analyzed even after ten years. But in the wilderness, bloodstains can disappear within just ten days to half a month. Earthworms, ants, microbes, and various other creatures both familiar and alien to humans would emerge, say a quick “Good job, boss,” and then be gone. Similarly, technological methods like DNA testing are difficult to apply here—a deposit of semen on the ground wouldn’t last much longer than its expiration date. Only traditional items like cigarette butts and syringes, preferred by clumsy thieves, retain a shred of value. In cities where dealing with bodies can be very difficult, bodies in the wilderness do not last very long either. Wild boars, bears, and microbes can easily consume a corpse until nothing is left. In the wild, burial actually helps preserve a body. In this place, a missing person is truly lost, and luck is the only thing that may bring them back. Even discovering a body is a matter of luck. Like with this Wu Long Wildman case—if a hiker hadn’t happened to go up the mountain, ventured deep into Li Sanqiu’s remote dwelling, and decided to rest there for two days, the body might have never been found. Thinking of this, Jiang Yuan looked ahead at Liu Jinghui. The man likely had similar doubts and perhaps was even considering the possibility of finding more bodies. Just as a tiger that easily captures a human will include humans in its diet and attempt to eat more of them, or a shark that has tasted human flesh will do the same, a person who has killed easily and without punishment will add humans to their list without any taboo. Mount Wulong was indeed an ideal place for murder.

Chapter 99 - 99 97 A Good Place to Kill

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