Chapter 14: The Tentacled Detective

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The next morning.
Pale sunlight spilled over the courtyard streets as the White Dragon sang a long, lingering tune across the sky. The vegetable market buzzed with noise; vendors leaned forward during bargaining, eager to bask in the rare sunshine.
Clear skies were a rarity in Huilong City, and two consecutive days of sunlight were even more uncommon, seldom seen within a year and a half. Over these days, many from the Bize District flocked to the courtyard to pass time, with a few daring enough to venture up to the workshop district for a dose of sunlight. The meat sellers were delighted to see such lively activity. No matter where people went, they needed to eat; bustling business at the eateries meant more profits for those selling meat.
“Hey, young man, buy some duck or goose? Just slaughtered this morning, fresh as can be.”
A young man in a green coat was carefully picking through the goods. “Got any beef or lamb?”
The butcher scowled. “Look at you, all shabby—go buy it in your dreams!”
“Just craving a bit, no harm in asking,” the young man smiled. “Half a duck, chopped into pieces. No head.”
“All right!” The butcher’s mood flipped instantly, and he busied himself wielding his cleaver. His knife skills were excellent, and he had plenty of strength; within thirty seconds, the duck was chopped, and he shook the pieces into a bag and packed it up without wasting a moment. While cutting, the annoying customer continued to chatter, “Boss, I’m from the lower district. How’s the security around here lately?”
“Only a bit better than the swamp,” the butcher said without looking up. “Don’t talk about far away—those random murders from a few years back, no news yet. The poor fellows who lost their wives stopped crying recently; the cops are useless.”
Unusually talkative, he couldn’t help mocking the uselessness of the Resurrection Squad. The customer grabbed the duck and turned to leave, but the butcher suddenly became irritated: “Hey! You dropped something!”
“Wait a moment.”
The would-be escapee rummaged inside his coat and pulled out a strange long box. Opening it, a thin, sharp blade gleamed coldly.
A boning knife.
The butcher’s heart skipped a beat, his gaze locked on the blade. The man set the knife calmly on the vegetable stand; his left arm was a silver tentacle.
“Very careless,” Chu Hengkong said. “You’ve dropped the knife you once used to kill.”
The butcher still held his cleaver tightly, but when he tried to lift it, his wrist stiffened. Chu Hengkong’s right hand morphed into a claw and struck his neck with lightning speed, flipping the butcher like a fish!

[Boning Knife]
[Rating: Unremarkable]
[Thoughts: Fa Kana Tanzi loved the thrill of killing. Nearly caught once, he dared not take risks again and vented his desire by slashing poultry.]

·

Two days later, Old Bear Bar.
Bang! Bang bang!
The sound of breaking bottles filled the air as shards of glass scattered and cheap liquor flowed like sewage. Thugs cursed foully and brandished knives, but the helmeted squad members held them firmly on the ground. The bar owner behind the counter was furious and indignant: “Is there any justice?! Smashing up my place for no reason, you’re violating citizens’ rights! I’m going to court!”
Not one squad member responded. The temporary commander stood in the doorway with his back to the light, his gaze as if watching a poor actor’s performance. A black glow flickered at his fingertips, and a strangely shaped dart pierced the bar owner’s collar, pinning him to the wall. The owner’s eyes widened as he recognized the dart’s design, and he suddenly went limp.
“Making money off robbery and murder, now you want to see who sues whom?”

[Dart]
[Rating: Unremarkable]
[Thoughts: The owner of Old Bear Bar was once a professional dart performer. After a night performing at a wealthy household, he planned to steal their fortune.]

·

One week later, Lotus Pedestrian Street.

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“Stop! Hands up!” The helmeted men surrounded an innocent citizen.
“Ah! Why?!” the man screamed, but the cold muzzle pressed against his head!
Huilong Up... what a blatant abuse of power. Even the Resurrection Squad had become rats and snakes. Yet the crowd parted, suspicious eyes instead focusing on the harmless citizen. Behind the squad stood the man with silver tentacles. With a curl of his tentacle, he peeled the man’s face off like a mask. Beneath was a purple-skinned inhuman visage—an alien form!
“Impossible...” the purple-skinned alien gaped. “This was made in the Black Workshop...”
“Masks don’t fool people forever,” Chu Hengkong said, holding another mask in his hand. “Take him away.”
“Yes, Detective!”

[Mask-Type Basic Relic – Disguise]
[Rating: Low-tier]
[Thoughts: Kong Xuan·3·Karl bought two masks from the Black Workshop. One to frame others during crimes, the other to impersonate wealthy deceased victims.]

·

Two weeks later, Resurrection Squad Headquarters, lounge.
A stack of a dozen or so copies of the “Tuanmiao Daily” piled high on the square table, the front pages all splashed with a certain someone’s full-color photo. Jie An casually picked up a few and read aloud with modulation: “New recruit solves five-year cold case, the market’s meat seller turns out to be a murderer! Three major cases solved in one week! Young squad member cracks theft mystery! Fugitive hiding in the swamp for four years caught—Detective Hengkong triumphant again...”
He set the papers down and took a sip of tea. “Just reading the headlines makes my mouth dry. Who bought the latest edition this morning?”
“Brother Jie, I’ve got it!” a crew-cut squad member raised his hand excitedly. “‘Tentacle Detective’s 30 Cases Grand Slam, Justice Will Prevail!’”
“Detective Chu is amazing!” “Huilong City’s god detective, damn!” “Stop fooling us, Chu. You’re a killer, weren’t you a detective before?”
The lounge erupted in applause. This time no one teased; everyone sincerely admired him. Since Chu Hengkong joined the squad three weeks ago, everyone had witnessed his astonishing efficiency.
His case-solving was nothing short of miraculous. He’d stand in the evidence room for a few minutes, glance through files, and immediately pinpoint the culprit. More than that, by visiting crime scenes, he could almost perfectly reconstruct escape routes and hiding places, as if he had personally committed the crimes himself!
Perhaps he truly had...
Everyone tacitly ignored the source of his experience and praised the detective’s cunning. It had been a long time since the squad was this joyful. Even those biased against Chu were secretly glad. As long as he solved cases, he was the rightful great detective.
Chu Hengkong flipped through unsolved case files on the sofa, embarrassed by the praise. “I’m just using relics to check data. I don’t know much about solving crimes myself.”
“Look at that breathing! The only relic you can use is your unique ability, right? Everyone agrees?”
Ji Huaisu entered with two cups of iced lemon tea. The squad nodded in agreement. She handed a cup to Chu Hengkong and whispered, “Still reading files during lunch break? So dedicated.”
“There’s one missing case left. I’ll finish it today.”
Without waiting, Ji Huaisu snatched the file. “Give me that case. Go get some rest, great detective. After eighteen days of intense investigations, your tentacles are turning into silver worms.”
Chu’s tentacles looked limp and dry, like they hadn’t had water in ten days. He quickly straightened them. “Been writing too much these past two days...”
Ji Huaisu put one hand on her hip. “That’s why you rest. Old cases won’t run away in a day or two, right?”
“Thanks for your concern, captain,” Chu said, taking the hint. “I’ll take half a day off today. Hope everyone understands.”
The tentacle detective left the lounge. Soon, the rest of the squad returned to their dorms, exhausted from days of running all over town with Chu.
Jie An carefully folded the newspapers and placed them in chronological order inside the corner “Honor Room” cabinet. Ji Huaisu raised an eyebrow. “So, cook, what do you think?”
“Oh! What time is it? I gotta rush to deliver medicine to the city lord...” Jie An hurried out.
“Don’t take it personally if I’m blunt,” Ji Huaisu said without looking at him. “He’s already done so much. For thirty cases, we have to show some results. Otherwise, it’s unfair.”

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Jie An stopped at the door, silent for a moment. “You’re thinking too simply. If the city lord hadn’t revealed his skills, he wouldn’t work so hard.”
Ji Huaisu retorted, “He’s been here less than a month. Working hard, not for profit—then for feelings?”
“That’s why we can’t rush. He’s a killer!” Jie An emphasized. “A desperate man who licks blood for profit is never trustworthy. He stays because he’s satisfied with our offer, but if the Black Workshop or the club offers more, he’ll switch sides in a heartbeat.”
“Then an utterly stingy boss only pushes people to quit, right?” Ji Huaisu sneered.
Jie An was momentarily speechless. Ji Huaisu softened her tone. “Cook, think carefully—no one joins the squad just to fight evil without eyeing fame or gain. I’ve watched him for over half a month. Chu Hengkong isn’t a saint, but he’s loyal. People like him are the easiest to deal with. If you treat him well, he won’t harm you.”
“Loyal, huh, girl,” Jie An mumbled, turning his head to dodge Ji Huaisu’s fierce glare. He rifled through documents and pulled out a file from earlier this year.
“Too much,” Ji Huaisu recognized the file.
“Not enough,” Jie An said calmly. “Isn’t this an extraordinary time? Extraordinary times call for special measures. Since you all don’t want to wait long, let’s use one case to see if he’s the man we need.”

·

Chu Hengkong enjoyed a rare lazy morning.
The past three weeks had been intense. After hard work, sufficient rest was a responsibility to himself. After getting up, he did some shadowboxing but didn’t rush to breakfast. Instead, he sat at his desk, flipping through the Silver-Eyed Tome page by page.
Having discovered the book’s true ability, he decided without hesitation to share the information with Ji Huaisu and the others. The book would surely be frequently used for relic appraisal in the future; hiding it was pointless. What if sudden clues were needed at a crime scene? Would he carry the book and evidence saying, “Hold on, I’m going to the restroom”?
In the underworld, trust and loyalty mattered most. Hiding petty things made brothers skeptical. Being straightforward might invite ridicule for lack of guile, but even enemies would respect you. Chu Hengkong didn’t consider himself very clever. He’d rather spend time figuring out how to use the book than scheming how to hide it.
Over these three weeks, he had basically mastered the appraisal mechanism. The book was picky—only relics could be appraised. If the relic wasn’t at least “Unremarkable” grade, the book showed nothing—like his dead phone, which had no inscriptions.
Multiple cases confirmed the book’s records were mostly accurate. The “Thoughts” section sometimes twisted in wording but always offered intelligence about the relic’s original owner. Through these appraisals, Chu had gradually understood the city’s situation. His earlier guesses were spot-on: the city’s state was dismal from every angle...
This was the perfect stage for him to shine!
Chu closed the book, donned his coat, and leapt through the window. Using his tentacles, he hooked the railing outside the rooftop and swung out. Any protrusion inside or outside the building could serve as a temporary grasp for his tentacles. He swung all the way to the third-floor window of the cafeteria. Jie An frowned behind the counter. “If you don’t use the front door soon, I’ll post a sign on the window: ‘Reserved for Wild Pigeon and Detective Chu.’”
“Sounds like there are pigeons in the city,” Chu yawned. “One bowl of plain congee with fried dough sticks, please.”
“The cheapest again? Great detective, can’t you be a bit less stingy?” Jie An sighed helplessly.
Chu wanted to eat better food, but truly had no spare money. For three weeks, he’d been tangled up with old cases, unable to catch any wanted criminals. He chose flexible pay: no arrests, no crime syndicate takedowns, no bonus beads. Without the cafeteria’s three-tier employee welfare, he’d have starved long ago...
“Don’t remind me. The only cold drink I had this week was the lemon tea Ji Huaisu bought me,” Chu sighed. “By the way, where’s my partner?”
Jie An turned, ladling congee. “She’s on a business trip to the workshop today. Says you’ve done three weeks; maybe you can try working solo.”
“I see.” Chu paused. “Got any fresh work today?”
“Absolutely excellent job, guaranteed to net a first-class relic!” Jie An set down the bowl and mysteriously handed over a talisman.
The talisman was about palm-sized, with red inscriptions shaped like ancient bells and cauldrons, flowing seamlessly. It looked exactly like a prop from old zombie movies. Chu stared at it for two seconds, then met Jie An’s mischievous grin.
“Comrade killer, ever done ghost exorcism before?”