Then, Let Them Offer Their Loyalty!

Chapter 88: Cataclysmic Artifact: Cursed Printer

Noticing Qiu Tu's stunned expression, Qin Shuman turned around, shut the door behind her, and looked down at her new body with curiosity. She then asked, "What's wrong? You know Xiaowan?"

Qiu Tu's expression was a mix of awkwardness and surprise. "Not exactly. It's just... I saw her this morning."

Qiu Tu then addressed the body that Qin Shuman was currently possessing. "I wasn't wrong, was I? Assistant Su Xiaowan."

Indeed, standing before Qiu Tu was the same beautiful assistant who had stopped his car that morning, sent by Tang Feifei to recruit him.

As the realization sank in, Qiu Tu couldn't help but marvel at the Security Division's power. Not only had they placed a spy close to Yan Chen, the Director of the Investigation Department, but they had also managed to infiltrate Tang Feifei's inner circle with a spy who was none other than her personal assistant.

With such deeply embedded agents, how much could the Investigation Department really keep hidden from the Security Division?

While Qiu Tu was lost in thought, Qin Shuman, now in Su Xiaowan's body, seemed to have had a brief internal conversation with the original Su Xiaowan. After understanding the details of the morning's encounter between Su Xiaowan and Qiu Tu, Qin Shuman laughed and said, "You two really have a fate together, huh?"

"How about I introduce her to you?" Qin Shuman teased, throwing a playful wink at Qiu Tu. "Let me tell you, Xiaowan is very cute~"

Qiu Tu could only manage a wry smile, trying to keep his thoughts in check. The contrast between the unfamiliar appearance of Su Xiaowan and the familiar playful demeanor of Qin Shuman struck a chord with him. It reminded him of a hypothetical question he once saw online: "If your girlfriend and her best friend swapped bodies, who would you choose?"

Faced with this situation, Qiu Tu could only think, "I love the soul of my Rain Butterfly; as for the body, it doesn't matter at all. No, really, it doesn't matter (wipes drool)!"

Of course, such thoughts could never be voiced out loud. Despite the playful banter running through his mind, Qiu Tu kept a straight face and said with a resigned smile, "Please, stop teasing. We don't want to scare Assistant Su."

Qin Shuman chuckled and finally stopped teasing him. While Qiu Tu couldn't hear Su Xiaowan's inner thoughts, Qin Shuman could. When she had flirted with Qiu Tu, Su Xiaowan's panicked screams had nearly pierced the heavens!

Returning to a more serious tone, Qin Shuman approached Qiu Tu and placed a slender finger gently on his forehead. Instantly, Qiu Tu heard a second woman's voice in his mind.

Startled, Qiu Tu looked at Qin Shuman, who explained, "This is soul communication. It allows you to hear both my voice and Xiaowan's."

"But this communication only works at a short distance—within two meters."

Qin Shuman then gave a brief explanation of Su Xiaowan's background. "Xiaowan was one of the first spies I trained after arriving in New Realm City. Although her abilities are average, she has a natural affinity that makes people instinctively trust her, making her an ideal spy."

"After her training, I placed her in the Investigation Department, where she infiltrated Tang Feifei's inner circle as her personal assistant."

Upon hearing this, Su Xiaowan added from within the body, "But... I'm not as competent as Chief Rain Butterfly. When she's not around, I often mess things up."

"Because of that, Director Tang gave me a nickname: 'Half-Asleep Assistant Su.' It means that my work performance is inconsistent, as if sometimes I'm awake, and sometimes I'm not."

Hearing this, Qiu Tu couldn't help but chuckle at the nickname, finding it both fitting and amusing. He never imagined that Tang Feifei had such a side to her.

After explaining Su Xiaowan's identity, Qin Shuman continued, "I brought her here tonight for two reasons. First, I wanted to introduce you two. In case of emergencies, you can help each other out."

"Second, I believe Xiaowan's identity might be of help to you. As Tang Feifei's assistant, she can act as a bridge between you and Tang Feifei, giving you more leeway within the Investigation Department."

Qin Shuman paused, then smiled softly. "However, it seems you had already thought of this, and you've been laying the groundwork yourself. I guess my efforts were unnecessary."

Qiu Tu chuckled and didn't deny it. "I've been cornered, so I had to think of ways to use the relationships with the directors to my advantage."

"But with Assistant Su's help, my confidence in my plan has gone from 70% to 100%."

Qin Shuman smiled at his words, and they exchanged a knowing glance.

However, Su Xiaowan, who clearly didn't understand what they were discussing, voiced her confusion from within the body. "Huh? Did Director Tang come here because of Chief Qiu? But that doesn't make sense. Chief Qiu and Director Tang haven't had any contact. How did he manage that? And what exactly is Chief Qiu planning?"

Hearing Su Xiaowan's bewildered questions, both Qiu Tu and Qin Shuman found it hard to suppress their laughter. However, they didn't explain anything to her and instead moved on to discussing the important matters at hand.

Qin Shuman asked, "Have the results of Yin Caimei's autopsy come out?"

Qiu Tu nodded and handed the autopsy report to Qin Shuman. "The coroner found significant narrowing of the coronary arteries, with over 50% narrowing in some areas, along with atherosclerotic plaque formation, myocardial interstitial edema, and wavy myocardial fiber changes, leading to a conclusion of sudden cardiac death."

After carefully reviewing the report, Qin Shuman nodded in agreement. "Indeed, sudden death cannot be ruled out."

Qiu Tu and Qin Shuman were still in the independent morgue, standing over Yin Caimei's corpse. Qin Shuman had just finished her detailed examination of the body, and her expression was thoughtful as she spoke to Qiu Tu. "Many cataclysmic abilities or artifacts can cause similar effects," she explained. "In fact, most cataclysmic beings, when killing someone, will disguise the cause of death as sudden cardiac arrest. It’s a common tactic because simply erasing the soul without any physical cause would draw the Security Division's attention too quickly."

Qiu Tu nodded in agreement. What she was saying made perfect sense. It was a method that could avoid leaving obvious clues, which might lead to further investigation.

Qin Shuman then asked, "Did you manage to obtain the artifact for detecting cataclysmic forces?"

Qiu Tu confirmed with a nod, pulling out the black box Jia Shu had given him. Carefully opening it, white mist began to drift out from the inside, creating an eerie atmosphere in the small room. Qiu Tu gently waved the mist away with his hand and retrieved a black leather-bound notebook from the box.

The notebook was no ordinary item. Its craftsmanship was exquisite, and wisps of white mist seemed to seep out from between its pages. The black leather cover had a strange, wet texture that added an unsettling beauty to the object.

Qin Shuman glanced at the notebook and identified it immediately, "The Mist Index Book. Not bad—it should be sufficient."

With that, she gestured for Qiu Tu to put the notebook away and said, "Let's check Yin Caimei's body now."

They moved over to Yin Caimei's corpse, which lay silently in the morgue. The body, having been through an autopsy and left for a day, was beginning to emit a faint smell of decay. However, as professionals, the smell didn’t bother them.

After locking the morgue door, Qin Shuman donned rubber gloves and meticulously examined Yin Caimei's body. When she finished, her face showed a deep, thoughtful expression. She then turned to Qiu Tu and instructed him to take out the Mist Index Book.

Qiu Tu complied, handing the notebook to Qin Shuman. She took it and skillfully traced a few symbols on the cover, causing the notebook to open on its own. Instantly, thick white mist began pouring out of the artifact, rapidly spreading to every corner of the morgue.

As the mist filled the room, the environment around them began to shift subtly. The physical world seemed to blur and lose definition, as if they were gradually being pulled into a spiritual dimension.

Qiu Tu, recognizing the sensation from his own experiences with cataclysmic abilities, noticed that the surroundings resembled the state he entered when using his powers: the outlines of objects faded, and the material world seemed to dissolve, revealing the world of the mind.

At the same time, he heard Qin Shuman's reassuring voice in his ear, "Don't be afraid. This is the immaterial world I told you about before."

"In every space, every corner of the material world, even in the air, countless active particles are present."

"These mental traces can’t be detected in the material world. Only by transcending it and entering the spiritual dimension can these remnants be observed."

As Qin Shuman explained, a ghostly image of Yin Caimei's body began to emerge from the white mist. This spiritual projection of her form appeared translucent, with a distinct black shadow visible within her chest.

Qiu Tu moved closer to examine the shadow and found that it was located precisely over Yin Caimei's left breast.

"Is that... a Resentment Curse?" Qin Shuman's voice carried a tone of surprise and suspicion.

Qiu Tu, intrigued, asked, "What exactly is a Resentment Curse?"

Qin Shuman paused for a moment before responding, "It's said that among anti-government forces, there's a cataclysmic artifact known as the Cursed Printer."

"This artifact can use ink tainted by cataclysmic beings and special paper from the immaterial world to print books that have the power to distort reality."

"These books look like any other, but they contain various curses."

"Resentment Curse is one such curse. Anyone who reads one of these cursed books can be targeted by the book’s creator, who can impose a curse of resentment upon the reader, leading to physical decay, deterioration, and even death."

As Qiu Tu listened to Qin Shuman's explanation, a sudden realization struck him. The information felt eerily familiar. After a brief moment of reflection, a flash of understanding crossed his mind, and he remembered the book he had seen earlier: Brave New World.

Qin Shuman seemed to have made the same connection. When their eyes met, both were filled with shock and disbelief​.

Author's Note