After a busy day with Qi Badao, whose mind was very agile and familiar with the situation in the Underground City, the two of them concluded that these cases were interconnected, orchestrated by someone or some organization, resulting in these deaths under an extremely intense and unknown curse, likely related to a certain cult.

Li Xin speculated that it might be related to the Death Church. This old god held immense power, and its revival caused such a commotion. Since the Death Church had already infiltrated the Canon Law School, it wouldn’t be surprising if it were elsewhere too. If this is related to the resurrection of the Death God, it must be investigated. However, since it involves deities, Li Xin dared not make such a judgment. With the opening of the Life Star, some taboos must also be noted: the stronger the power, the easier it is to be noticed by an even more powerful existence. Having witnessed the Earth Pope’s might, he dared not harbor any illusions, and he was particularly concerned about being marked, uncertain if the deities possessed such capabilities.

Over the weekend, he planned to speak with Kathy to see if she could provide more clues. If it really involved the Death God, specialized departments within the church would take action.

It was very late when he got home. Lin Fei was writing in the living room. Seeing Li Xin return, she smiled, "Xueyin has already gone to sleep. Have you eaten?"

Li Xin nodded, "I’ve eaten a bit, but I’m still a bit hungry."

Lin Fei smiled, "There’s something ready. It’ll be ready in no time with a little warming."

Lin Fei put down her pen and busied herself in the kitchen, bringing the meal to the table quickly. Li Xin had another meal, "Aunt Fei, don’t wait up for me if I come back late in the future."

Lin Fei nodded, "How’s life at the Canon Law School? Are you adjusting well? If you encounter any issues, ask Lu Shuai. He’s clever, and with a friend’s help, you’ll quickly fit in."

"Everything’s set, nothing to get used to. Lu Shuai can work wonders at the tranquil Canon Law School with ease," Li Xin chuckled, "Life at the Canon Law School is quite comfortable, and I even got assigned a private dorm room. The dean thinks highly of me."

"Is it the dean who thinks highly of you or...? You should properly thank Kathy this weekend," Lin Fei rolled her eyes at Li Xin.

"Haha, we’re like family. I’ll cook some nice dishes to please the Little Rich Lady Secretary over the weekend."

Watching Li Xin finish his late-night snack, Lin Fei contently went upstairs to continue her work. The beauty pageant plan was set, and now was the pre-heating phase, to be rolled out step by step. Li Xin returned to his room, lay in bed, and his mind flashed like a rotation beacon through every victim’s situation. These victims... what commonalities did they share?

They were grouped into the same case because their deaths and the means of their killings were similar. From such cases, it either suggests randomness or selectiveness in the crimes. This case seemed more selective, and after half a day of discussion with Qi Badao, they found victims of all genders and ages, Beijing people, and other races, quite different from the Inner Demon’s modus operandi. If you force a commonality, it was their solitary personalities or constrained environments, but why would that make them targets of choice?

For a cult, might choosing such individuals reduce the possibility of being tracked? So far, the investigation hasn’t revealed any direct traces of inclusion in certain sects.

Li Xin rolled the dice: these victims have a common perpetrator.

The dice rotated, and Li Xin was stunned by the result: it was a one.

The dice didn’t spin without reason, indicating a valid conclusion, meaning the killer was different. If it were an ordinary murder case, the methods might resemble one another, but this one clearly wasn’t easy to imitate.

Li Xin felt a headache—was the problem itself problematic, was the killer an organization, but executed by different people?

Suddenly, a revelation came to Li Xin, and he rolled the dice again: these victims have different perpetrators.

Following the initial questioning style, the dice provided an effective conclusion once more: one.

Li Xin’s mind felt muddied—what the hell? Was the dice confused?

He tossed and turned, unable to sleep. Blindly trusting the dice was no better than not having it.

Early in the morning, after breakfast, Li Xin left. Watching him leave made Lin Fei very gratified—this was what a normal young person should be like. How beautiful is the bright and sunny life at the Canon Law School!

After more than half an hour of travel, Li Xin arrived at the telegraph office. The green telegraph office gave him a very cordial feeling. As soon as he entered, a beautiful woman in the green uniform of the telegraph office approached, her hands crossed as she bent over in salute, "Good morning, sir, do you need to send a telegraph?"

"Yes, I’d like to know the cost of sending a telegraph to Hedan."

"Oh, well, for domestic telegrams within the Li Long Kingdom, the base fee is 100 Lira, plus one Lira per word. For international ones, the base fee is 500 Lira, plus two Lira per word. The recipient’s costs depend on the local regulations," the staff member replied with a smile.

Li Xin pursed his lips, looking at his densely noted paper, "Ahem, I understand. I’ll prepare the telegram content and send it next time."

"Alright, sir, we look forward to your next visit." Understanding his embarrassment, the staff member politely bowed.

As Li Xin walked out of the telegraph office, he suddenly felt the place wasn’t as cordial anymore. 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

Originally, he planned to ask Old Fang, the Life Master, and an old-timer in the underworld, might know what’s going on. But one telegram could bankrupt him.

He hailed a carriage back to the Shadow Owl. At the entrance, Meng Po was peacefully knitting, while a child still played dumbly with wooden toys, with an extra wooden horse in the corner. Meng Po seemed surprised to see Li Xin, "Li Yinxiao, so early—aren’t you going to the Canon Law School?"

"How did you know I was going to the Canon Law School?" Li Xin inquired.

Meng Po paused, quickly smiling, "Li Yinxiao, in this business, one has a lot of information. Li Yinxiao has a bright future."

"Do we have a telegraph machine here?" Li Xin asked.

"A telegraph machine? That’s a rare thing, very expensive. For close distances, messengers are used, while long distances require a trip to the telegraph office," Meng Po explained.

"Wouldn’t that easily expose the content?" Li Xin frowned.

"There’s encryption. A certain official of the Church Court invented encryption methods. For more important matters, only the headquarters has a dedicated telegraph machine—upkeep is costly," Meng Po replied with a smile, "Do you need anything? I can send it for you."

Li Xin waved his hand, "No, I was just asking."

Back in the archives room, Li Xin retrieved the files again, hoping to find some clues. Not one perpetrator, nor different perpetrators—surely there must be a perpetrator?

Damn!

If these people weren’t victims, then what were they?

A bit of wild speculation, some time left until the next dice use. Rushing wouldn’t help—if a clear determination could be made, the case would need a redirection in thought.