In the stifling crematorium.
Three Calamity Corpses are stacked up, melting in the flames like a small mound of dirt.
The crackling sound is from the body fat sputtering under the high temperature.
One—two—three—four... The elongated beat comes from beside the furnace, where Feng Mu is awkwardly moving in position…
Facing the melting Calamity Corpses' faces directly, performing the Body Forging Exercise at half speed, it looks a bit strange, seeming quite disrespectful to the dead, doesn't it~
Wang Jian sat at the doorway smoking in shock, internally complaining: "Yesterday was practicing Basic Boxing, today is doing Body Forging Exercise. Is Feng Mu out of his mind?"
"Is it because he dropped out and can't take the citizen exam, too stimulated?"
Wang Jian wanted to persuade Feng Mu to stop several times, since he's not taking the citizen exam, what's the point of practicing?
But he didn't dare to advise, fearing it might provoke Feng Mu and worsen his condition.
"Ah, he's really bad at this."
After watching for a while, Wang Jian looked away, forming a clear understanding of Feng Mu's root bone.
His muscles and bones were stiff, his movements sluggish, apart from some brute strength, there was nothing worthy of praise.
"How about after work today, taking Feng Mu to the black market to unwind, and change his mindset?"
Wang Jian was quite loyal, unable to bear seeing a classmate repeatedly doing Body Forging Exercise in the crematorium, which was a bit creepy.
Wang Jian would never admit he was afraid that if Feng Mu performed a few more sets, the Calamity Corpses might not resist coming out of the furnace to sway with him.
After all, those who could transform into Calamity Corpses had remarkable Martial Arts Cultivation and were very enthusiastic about it in their lifetime. Otherwise, they wouldn't have qualified to walk the wicked path, would they?
Unfortunately, the three Calamity Corpses from the morning didn't yield anything.
Going to shop at the black market empty-handed just wouldn't look good.
Feng Mu really wanted to visit the black market, but he wasn't in a hurry and politely declined during lunch.
"I only have one Black Core, can't sell or buy anything, going there would just be for experience. For now, leveling up is what's most important."
Feng Mu knew to distinguish between priorities.
In the afternoon, four more Calamity Corpses and a normal female corpse arrived.
One Calamity Corpse yielded a Black Core, which by order, made its way to Feng Mu, so he got two Black Cores in his pocket.
Equivalent to taking a solid step forward in a long march, quite commendable.
The female corpse was a normal person but died under unusual circumstances because half of her neck was stabbed to pieces, her eyes remained open, not closed in death.
Seeing Feng Mu finally stop his Body Forging Exercise, Wang Jian let out a slight breath of relief, smiling: "What, didn't expect we'd cremated normal corpses here too?"
Feng Mu quietly shifted his gaze, although he had only met her once, he recognized the deceased; she was Wang Wei's mother.
Wang Wei was smashed to death by Zheng Hang.
Wang Wei's mother was stabbed to death.
Within just a week, both died unnaturally, to be reunited underground.
Feng Mu displayed no emotion on his face, following Wang Jian's words, he asked: "Hmm, don't we only cremate Calamity Corpses? Where did this come from?"
Wang Jian pouted: "Regulations state we only handle Calamity Corpses, but in practice, everyone knows."
Wang Jian didn't like handling human corpses because they didn't yield Black Cores nor extra pay, essentially working for nothing, so he was somewhat rough, carrying the corpse and tossing it into the incinerator.
Feng Mu lent a hand, hearing Wang Jian casually say: "It was brought away by a Patrol Office car, heard she was stabbed to death in the hospital last night."
Feng Mu responded with a sound, igniting the switch.
Fiery snakes burst out from the iron plate holes, indiscriminately devouring any corpse presented to them.
Feng Mu had burned Calamity Corpses several times before, but this was the first time burning a human corpse.
Not counting the time with Zheng Hang, that time only a pile of bones was left, not much to witness in the flames.
Feng Mu watched for a moment and noticed the difference between the two.
Calamity Corpses had harder bones and thicker flesh, sparking while burning, as unruly as their sinister appearances, needing constant attention and turning; otherwise, they wouldn't be thoroughly cremated.
Human corpses were different, bones were softer, flesh looser, in the fire, you watched as their skin would slough, becoming deformed, turning into sludge, the whole process eerily silent.
Feng Mu reflected inwardly: "Calamity Corpses were destined to draw attention from birth, whereas most people never made a sound in the world from birth to death, like mutes."
Wang Jian didn't consider himself a mute, so he told Feng Mu: "Next time when incinerating a human, keep the fire on low, humans burn easily."
Feng Mu looked over doubtfully, his eyes seemed to ask, are you saving on fuel for the establishment?
Wang Jian reacted as if to an idiot: "Too much fire, and it's unbearably hot."
"You make a good point."
Feng Mu replied offhandedly, then froze, he didn't feel hot at all.
Soon, Feng Mu realized: "Because of the coolness from the bones, I can resist high temperatures, is this yet another hidden perk from the [Iron Eater]?"
The ashes of Calamity Corpses needed to be boxed for further processing.
Human ashes weren't that troublesome; Wang Jian found a basin and casually dispersed them into the air, in no time, they blew away leaving no trace.
Wang Jian lit a cigarette, nonchalantly explaining: "Corpses sent to the incinerator are all Blank People without kin, scattered anywhere, nobody cares. Otherwise, they should be sent to the funeral home."
Feng Mu understood this principle too, if he hadn't activated the system, his life's ending would be scattered into the air.
He nodded with understanding, collecting his wild thoughts and continued immersing himself in the Body Forging Exercise.
Wang Jian was rather speechless, originally wanting a classmate to accompany him to work, during corpse burning they could chat to relieve boredom, but ended up watching him perform Body Forging Exercises all day.
Why on earth,
What's the point.
Feng Mu performed the Body Forging Exercise seven times in an afternoon, each session averaging 23 minutes.
Wang Jian smoked seven cigarettes in an afternoon, each one spaced 23 minutes apart on average.
Both exhaustedly bid each other goodbye after work at seven, one physically tired, the other mentally drained.
Feng Mu cycled quickly, during which he passed by 47 Academy right as school was dismissed, intentionally slowing his pace, eyes and ears on alert.
Those gang thugs with papers from the morning were still there.
"Your name is Zhang Cheng, right?"
"I am, what's it to you?"
"Where were you after school on March 15th?"
"What do you mean?"
"Answer the question, no need for nonsense."
The thug with a face full of flesh corresponded the photo on paper with a student, rudely asking questions.
Feng Mu dared not linger too long, fearing unnecessary attention.
He made out a few questions from a distance, pedaled away quickly.
Feng Mu thought to himself: "March 15th was when my system activated, and also the time of Wang Wei and Zheng Hang's deaths."
"Cyan Wolf Gang is investigating from the time of the crime!" Feng Mu's brow furrowed into a figure eight, "A gang conducting inquiries and investigations, seeming more professional than the Patrol Office, is there any law left?"
Feng Mu noted a detail: "Those thugs weren't questioning every student or teacher, indicating they weren't blindly fishing, but selectively targeting."
Clearly, the Cyan Wolf Gang had narrowed down their suspect range.
In Feng Mu's forecast, this was the worst-case scenario.
Feng Mu took a deep breath, his thoughts spinning wildly: "Don't panic, they've only narrowed the range without pinpointing me, besides, I may not even be within their suspect range."
Feng Mu felt he left no trace at the crime scene, but as a first-time perpetrator, his confidence wasn't too high either.
Moreover, he had set up the scene to deceive the Patrol Office, and indeed, he had succeeded in deceiving them.
The problem is, the current opponent is Cyan Wolf Gang. Tactics that worked on the Patrol Office, will they work on Cyan Wolf Gang too?
Not that a street gang knows investigation better than the Patrol Office, but the former's methods were harder to predict, making the situation more dangerous.
At least, to ordinary people, gang means were more terrifying than official channels, and counter-investigation efforts were greatly diminished.
"I can only blame myself for having watched 3000 episodes of Conan instead of 3000 episodes of gangster shows, damn it!"
Locking his bicycle in the stairway, as Feng Mu climbed the steps, a shadow of determination flashed across his eyes.