As I picked up the scalpel, my wrist trembled. Noticing my unease, Xie Chuchu said, "Senior, hang in there!"
"I just need to calm myself!" If Li Fan hadn't said so much to me just now, I probably wouldn't be this nervous. I don't know why, but I suddenly thought of his sister's situation. Li Fan's past experiences touched me, reminding me of my grandfather's situation.
Actually, my grandfather didn't die a natural death. When he had his accident, I was still studying in college. My parents, who were once police officers, both died during a drug bust, leaving my grandfather to take care of me.
I grew up with my grandfather, relying on each other. He taught me a lot about forensic and coroner knowledge for autopsies. I had memorized his book, "The Secret Manual Bridging Coroners and Modern Forensics," by heart.
I remember that year it was particularly cold; it even snowed in Guangdong. I was in my dorm, reading a forensic book, when suddenly a text message arrived.
"Come back quickly! Otherwise, it will be too late!"
At first, when I saw the message, I thought it was a mistake. I ignored it and continued studying. But then, the message was sent again. No matter what I did, the message page kept scrolling, with countless identical messages flooding my phone.
Grandfather had always said that if something seems strange, there's usually a hidden reason. I immediately called the number, but no one answered. Instead, another message repeated: "Come back quickly! Otherwise, it will be too late!"
My mind was in chaos. Come back? Back where? Could it be my home?
Although I wasn't sure, I feared something serious might happen, so I left the dormitory immediately and took the high-speed train back to Zhongshan.
Our family used to live in a traditional courtyard house, the same one I live in now.
As soon as I opened the door upon returning home, I smelled a strong scent of blood in the house. My heart sank. I rushed inside, straight to the main hall of the building.
My sense of smell was particularly keen then because our He family possesses a special ability to train their sense of smell, known as "Canine Scent." To hone this nose, Grandfather had made me consume countless traditional Chinese medicines, which eventually trained my nose to its current state.
Following the scent of blood, I found a place, but Grandfather wasn't home. However, a box lay quietly on the dining table.
With a heavy heart, I opened the box. Inside, I found a bleeding thumb, and below it, a note: "Polaris Dawn, punishing evil and delivering justice."
Looking at the thumb, I knew it was Grandfather's. I was heartbroken and furious, but I had no idea where he had gone. I ran out of the courtyard house, searching everywhere. However, I could use the "Canine Scent" ability to track him based on the smell of blood from the finger.
Soon, I found myself near a dilapidated villa. I stopped and looked up at the roof. To my horror, I saw Grandfather hanging beneath a golden gourd on the villa's rooftop!
His body hung straight down, his head was missing, and his limbs had been severed. Yet, his clothes remained unchanged – the gray jacket he usually wore.
Crying out, I ran upstairs. When I reached the rooftop and was about to touch his body, someone suddenly grabbed me from behind: "Descendant of the He family, greetings!"
"Who are you?" I asked anxiously.
"I am the one who killed your grandfather! Do you believe me?" The person's voice was chillingly cold, as if it came from hell.
He extended a twisted, decaying hand and gripped my shoulder with one hand. I was completely immobilized.
From behind, this person seemed to be a head taller than me, powerfully built. However, his skin appeared to be rotting, and he wore a long, trailing black trench coat. His teeth constantly ground against each other, a habit that seemed to cause him discomfort if he didn't do it for even a second.
"You scoundrel! Give me back my grandfather's life!"
"Haha, not just your grandfather. We were also responsible for killing your parents during that drug bust!"
"You? Who exactly are you?"
"An evil organization capable of destroying the entire world!"
"Nonsense! Stop trying to scare me. You should surrender immediately!"
"Heh heh, surrender. We, descendants of the He family, do not surrender. I won't kill you today, but you must find a way to get your grandfather's body down. I'll give you 10 minutes!"
As soon as he finished speaking, he vanished. I looked back but couldn't find any trace of him. He was like a shadow from a nightmare, darting past me in the dark abyss, appearing in the depths of this dark, narrow villa, his evil blood-red eyes peeking at me from some crevice.
The 10-minute countdown began immediately. I heard a distant countdown sound.
I became instantly tense because I had a premonition that he could indeed kill me without a trace.
I went behind my grandfather's body and saw that he was bound by countless chains. Removing him would be difficult, as I had no tools. If I called the police, it would probably be too late.
Besides, if I called the police, the person hiding in the depths would surely kill me directly.
Hesitating, I suddenly noticed something hidden in a nearby cabinet. I quickly opened a drawer and found a claw hammer. I snatched it up and immediately began smashing at the chains binding my grandfather's body!
With a series of banging sounds, several chains were broken. I quickly carried my grandfather's body back into the house. As soon as I laid down the headless corpse, the time was up. Everything became quiet, and the person had vanished without a trace. For a moment, I thought I was dreaming. Holding my grandfather's body, I wept uncontrollably for a long time before finally realizing I should call the police.
Later, the forensic examination stated that my grandfather died from decapitation. However, I had observed the muscle contraction around his neck and realized that his head was severed after death.
This meant there was an error in the forensic report. But I was young then and had no authority to interfere with the case. My grandfather died like that. After some time, when I finally graduated, Director Huang found me. He expressed his condolences regarding my grandfather's case. Knowing I had inherited his profession, he immediately asked me to assist the police department.
I knew the police needed the help of our He family. My parents were gone, and my grandfather was gone. I had to continue serving the police force.