"Just based on the fact that the victim's skull was struck multiple times, it doesn't necessarily prove that the murderer couldn't be an adult male, right? What if the murderer killed out of anger? If it's just to vent anger, then hitting a few more times seems normal to me," Xiao Li questioned, rubbing his chin after hearing Xu Mo's analysis.
He thought Xu Mo's judgment was clearly too idealistic.
In previous cases, victims being stabbed multiple times were common. Aiming for a spot where one stab could kill, yet insisting on stabbing ten or even twenty times... wasn't that just to vent anger?
So in his view, the murderer repeatedly striking the victim's skull could also be to vent anger, not because of insufficient strength to kill with one blow.
Xu Mo glanced at Xiao Li.
"I still maintain my previous view; the murderer definitely isn't an adult male. The murder weapon in this case is a hammer. If an adult male wanted to vent anger, he would definitely use a lot of force. If that were the case, the victim's skull would probably be smashed to pieces."
Hearing this, Xiao Li was slightly stunned.
Xu Mo seemed to make sense...
If an adult male wanted to vent anger by smashing the victim's skull with a hammer, what would the skull look like? It would probably be unrecognizable!
But soon, he thought of another possibility: "What if the murderer deliberately controlled his strength? He didn't use his full strength when killing, aiming to mislead us into thinking the murderer isn't an adult male."
"That's possible..." Xu Mo nodded. "But this possibility assumes the murderer is a habitual offender, someone who has killed more than once. Otherwise, he wouldn't be able to maintain his sanity while killing. If it's the first time, he would be nervous and scared, leading to excessive force, using all his strength to ensure the victim is dead. There wouldn't be any time to control his strength, would there?"
Xiao Li thought for a moment, then nodded, "Makes sense!"
After a brief examination of the body, Xu Mo stood up and removed his gloves.
"That's all we can deduce from the body. Let's find eyewitnesses and residents nearby to see if we can get any other clues."
At this point, Xu Mo already had a suspect in mind.
Of course, it was just a suspicion, and he would need more time to confirm it.
"Alright," Xiao Li nodded. Unconsciously, he had started following Xu Mo's train of thought.
Outside the police tape, there were already many onlookers.
These days, people want to see all kinds of excitement, even murder cases. But luckily, they were kept at bay by the police tape and officers. Otherwise, if these onlookers saw the dismembered body parts clearly, they might be scared into fainting, let alone watching the excitement.
"Did someone die? Who died?"
"I don't know, I just got here."
"I know, I know. It was Old Mrs. Chen. She was killed and then thrown into the trash."
"Old Mrs. Chen? You mean that Old Mrs. Chen?"
"No, not that Old Mrs. Chen, the other Old Mrs. Chen!"
"Oh, so it's that Old Mrs. Chen!"
"...
Listening to the discussions of the onlookers, the police officers beside them were confused: "???"
Which one is it?
Which one?
At that moment, Xu Mo and his team walked out from behind the police tape and found the old lady who had called the police.
"Auntie, can I ask you a few questions?" Xu Mo smiled and said.
The old lady nodded blankly, indicating it was okay.
"When did you find the body parts in the trash? Were there other people around when you found them?"
The old lady blurted out: "Just now. I was originally looking through the trash for recyclables to collect and sell, and then I found that bag... I realized something was wrong and called the police. There was only me at that time."
"Do you know the deceased?"
"Yes."
"Do you know if anyone in this area had a grudge against the deceased?"
"No," the old lady shook her head without hesitation.
"Can you tell us what you used to do for a living?" Xu Mo suddenly asked a question unrelated to the case.
As a result, all the police officers around Xu Mo looked at him in unison, their faces full of confusion.
The witness's job, does it have any connection to the case? There's no relation at all!
The old lady was also a bit puzzled, but she still answered Xu Mo's question.
"I used to work in a knitting factory, but later, as I got older, my eyes couldn't handle it, so I quit. Now I just pick up recyclables to sell."
Hearing this, Xu Mo couldn't help but sigh. The warm smile on his face earlier disappeared completely, and his tone turned cold: "One last question, why did you kill her?"
All the police officers: "???"
Is this old lady the murderer? Isn't she the one who found the body?
How did Xu Mo suddenly ask someone why they killed? What basis did he have for this? From the previous questions?
It doesn't make sense!
From the previous questions, they didn't feel the old lady had any issues. Instead, they felt Xu Mo's questions were problematic.
While investigating, he suddenly asked about someone's previous job. This move was quite puzzling, and his thinking was too erratic!
However, after hearing Xu Mo's words, the old lady, who had been very calm, suddenly changed her expression, becoming flustered, even stuttering: "I, I didn't kill her. She wasn't killed by me. I just happened to find her body. This has nothing to do with me."
In the eyes of the other police officers, the old lady's flustered expression was a reaction to being scared by Xu Mo.
After all, who asks a witness why they killed someone like that?
Asking a witness why they killed someone? How could any witness not be afraid?
Not only did the local Hang City police officers find Xu Mo's questioning method unacceptable, but even his colleague Chen Ke felt it was too much.
He quickly walked up to Xu Mo, tugged at his clothes, and whispered, "Don't mess around, look how scared the auntie is. You might scare her to death."
But Chen Ke's concern was clearly unnecessary.
This old lady could remain calm upon seeing dismembered body parts. Would she be scared just because of Xu Mo's question?
In other words, her flustered expression wasn't because Xu Mo scared her; it was because she had something to hide!
ap a wealthy young lady? Or else I'll be eliminated by the system? Ye Feng, who awakened the Kidnapper System, originally wanted to live a peaceful life but never imagined he would become a kidnapper of young women. However, after some time, he discovered that all the girls the system ordered him to kidnap were far from ordinary. "Big brother Ye Feng~ You've kidnapped my heart, and now you're not allowed to leave me ever again~" "Ye Feng~ You kidnapped me back then, now it's my turn to capture you♡" "Little Feng, you're mine! You can only be mine!" "Ye Feng, none of them deserve you. Only I love you the most♡" ... This is madness, they've all gone mad! Wait, what? Why are all the girls I kidnapped yanderes?!
ions, keeping it grounded and realistic】 After quitting his job, office worker Su Yang accidentally binds with the "Enjoy Life System." As the name suggests, simply by indulging in life's pleasures, he can earn random rewards from the system—no need to spend money on beautiful women or grovel before anyone. Just enjoy, and the money follows, making it all about effortless fun. The system comes with a scanning feature, allowing him to establish a favorability bond with women rated 85 points or above. Every 20-point increase in favorability unlocks additional rewards. After suffering through over twenty years of hardship, Su Yang trembles with excitement, his dull eyes suddenly gleaming with newfound hope. "Enjoy life? How hard could that be?"
uld barely embark on the path to immortality. Just as he was on the verge of death, his golden finger awakened. No matter whether it was poison, drained blood and vital energy, diminished lifespan, or any other physical debuff caused by paying a price—once midnight passed, everything would be refreshed. From then on, whenever someone asked what kind of person Chu Ran was, the answer was simple: Forbidden arts that other cultivators dared not learn? Chu Ran would learn them. Prices that even demonic cultivators dared not pay? Chu Ran would pay them. Lifespan that even righteous cultivators dared not burn? Chu Ran would burn it. All the blood essence in his body? Take it. Want both his hands and feet? He would cut them off and send them to you. You say he’s finished? He wasn’t built to sit idle. You think he’s gone mad? No—he was simply waiting for midnight. From that day onward, Chu Ran would respect neither Heaven nor Earth, bow to neither gods nor ghosts. He had only one wish: For midnight to arrive a little sooner.
e, Immortal Body, Transmigration, System, Progression Fantasy, Academy Setting, Third-Person Perspective. Alternate Title: Transmigrating into a High Martial World and Reading Live Comments. Bad news: I transmigrated. This is a terrifying high-martial world, and my original, pathetically weak body fell into a coma and never woke up. Good news: I got a Popularity Points system upon arrival. I can see live comments and even create an unkillable alternate identity. Starting out, the alternate identity has all stats at 1. The system tells me that to grow stronger, I must participate in the plot, gain popularity points to allocate stats and grow stronger, and ultimately awaken my original body. And so, carrying my original body on my back, I officially entered Huaqing Academy, where the story's protagonist resides. From that moment on, Chen Guan kicked the original plot to pieces. Live Comments: [Doesn't anyone find this mysterious coffin guy creepy? He can summon indescribable grey misty hands.] [Is this guy a hero or a villain? What kind of onion became a spirit?] [By the way, does anyone know who's in the coffin? Shouldn't the debt for saving his life be repaid by now?] [According to unofficial histories, the person in the coffin was Chen Guan's first love. Their love was once passionate and earth-shattering, but they were separated by life and death due to worldly circumstances. What a star-crossed pair.] ... Years later, the world knew of a demon god born from a coffin, shrouded in grey mist, impossible to gaze upon directly. His foremost divine emissary often wielded a scythe, reaping lives like the god of death. As war approached, facing former friends and a boundless sea of enemies, Chen Guan merely raised his scythe. "Would you like to dance as well?"
