The patterns on the hemp rope matched the marks on the victim’s neck, hands, and feet. The murderer was either the old man or his wife. Early in the morning, the police went to the county to find the old man's wife, who was reportedly taking care of their youngest son in the county hospital.

"He wasn't my son. That day, he talked back to me again and threatened to leave home, saying that once he made it big, he would definitely come back to beat me. I got furious and beat him hard with a stick, then strangled him with a rope and hanged him. After he died, I didn't dare tell anyone and told his mother that Cui Yang had committed suicide."

"Why did you hang the weight?"

He was silent for a moment. "The weight can calm the soul. I was afraid his spirit would come back to seek revenge."

When Qin Feng arrived, the interrogation was already over. Captain Zhang from the county police handed Qin Feng the confession. "He confessed to everything."

"Cui Yang wasn't his child?"

"He said he was his wife's child with her ex-husband."

"Has there been a DNA comparison?"

"Not yet. A colleague has already taken the sample back to the county."

Lin Fan pursed her lips. "He might not be telling the truth."

"What?" The investigating officer looked at Lin Fan.

Lin Fan looked up, having just eaten half a steamed bun and feeling choked, her lips dry. She said, "He's not telling the truth."

She saw Cui Yang standing not far away. His face was pale, and he was wearing red clothes, like ancient silk. He stood at a distance, looking at Lin Fan. He said to her, "He used me to refine the soul. He wanted to save his son."

Qin Feng looked at Lin Fan as well. The officer asked, "What do you mean?"

Lin Fan stared at him. Cui Yang kept approaching, sneering. "Do you know what the plaque in his house is for? Soul refining. After seventy-nine days, I will never be reborn. My life force is transferred to his son."

Lin Fan shivered and clenched her fingers. "He wanted Cui Yang's soul. It wasn't a crime of passion but premeditated murder."

If that plaque was for soul refining and life extension, Lin Fan felt a chill down her spine. What was the thing her grandmother worshipped?

Qin Feng grabbed Lin Fan and walked out quickly, saying to the officer, "Interrogate him again. I have something to do."

Behind the police station was a row of evergreens. With no one around, Qin Feng pulled Lin Fan into a corner, frowning and lowering his voice. "Do you know what you just said?"

"I know. I want to go back to the place where the body was found and to Shiliang Village."

"What did you discover?"

Lin Fan stared into Qin Feng's eyes, her face pale. "I just saw Cui Yang. He’s very weak. He said the old man was refining his soul to extend his brother’s life."

Qin Feng frowned. "Superstitious nonsense?"

Lin Fan said nothing, twisting her fingers. "Then why can I see him?"

The two stared at each other for a moment before Qin Feng turned to leave. Lin Fan felt disappointed, not knowing what to do. She felt very uncomfortable and looked down at her toes.

"Come on, let's go." Qin Feng stopped and called to her.

Lin Fan's head snapped up. Qin Feng kicked away a stone at his feet, frowning. "Are we going or not?"

Lin Fan instantly brightened up, quickly running to follow Qin Feng. His steps were brisk. "Is Cui Yang still here?"

"No, he's gone." Qin Feng was still on her side.

Qin Feng got in the car, and Lin Fan hurried to the other side and sat in the passenger seat.

"We need to get gas first, then we'll go."

Lin Fan nodded, looking out the window. There were only two policemen smoking in the yard. Cui Yang had disappeared quickly, appearing for only a short time.

While getting gas, Qin Feng went to the next street and bought freshly made buns for Lin Fan. She was about to say something when Qin Feng handed her a bottle of milk. "Get up earlier next time. It's not like home out here."

Why did Lin Fan feel so awkward hearing that? She had been choked since eating half a steamed bun in the morning. After taking a sip of milk, she ate the bun. "Do you not believe what I said?"

Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

"I just don't believe in extending life by transferring it." Qin Feng turned the car onto the road. "It's too absurd."

"Didn't Zhuge Liang also use lamps and spells to extend his life?" Lin Fan said. "Though he failed, it doesn't deny the existence of life extension techniques."

Qin Feng glanced over. "That's fictional literature."

"Not entirely fictional. Novels are based on reality."

"You talk too much."

Lin Fan opened her mouth, feeling she was being quite silly. She closed her mouth and focused on eating the bun and drinking the milk, not speaking anymore.

Lin Fan had become much more lively and bold since they first met. It was both good and bad.

Qin Feng lowered the car window and tapped the steering wheel. "The weight is used to ward off evil spirits, right?"

"You could say that."

"Then why did it turn into a life-extending tool?"

Lin Fan swallowed the bun and took a sip of milk. "I once read in an old miscellaneous book that the most malicious life-extending technique involves extracting the soul of a living person. The weight can seal and gather the soul. The soul must be complete for it to be refined and used to extend life."

"What book?"

"I saw it a long time ago and forgot the name," Lin Fan said.

She then thought about herself. Ouyang Yu had said she was a life extension. Who extended her life? Her grandmother? What did she use to extend Lin Fan's life for eighteen years? Was it similar to the old man extracting souls?

They soon arrived at the burial site, which was a ridge. From above, it was not visible, but there were signs of a landslide below. Lin Fan tentatively walked down, and Qin Feng grabbed her, "Slow down."

Lin Fan went down the path and saw where the coffin was placed. Although a section had collapsed, the traces of a kiln cave remained. It was a mountaintop with a simple kiln cave made of stones. Lin Fan looked at the surroundings. The place where the coffin was placed should be the highest point.

"Why put it here? The road is bad, the location is poor, and no plants grow around. This should be the worst kind of burial ground."

"Do you understand feng shui?" Qin Feng asked her.

Lin Fan shook her head. "No, I just heard a little about it."

The risk here was too great, so Qin Feng took Lin Fan back and drove towards Shiliang Village. Lin Fan didn't speak all the way, seemingly deep in thought, looking out the window.

She always felt she had been to Shiliang Village, but she couldn't remember. Burying her face in her hands, she felt extremely uncomfortable, indescribably painful. Finally, they arrived. When the car stopped, Lin Fan still had her face buried in her hands.

Qin Feng opened the car window and lit a cigarette. "Lin Fan?"

Lin Fan responded with a muffled sound.

"What's wrong?"

Lin Fan still had her face buried in her hands, her heart aching. "I feel terrible."

Qin Feng extinguished the cigarette, his expression darkening. "Is it the wound hurting or what? Are you cold again?"

Lin Fan looked up, her face full of tears. She looked at Qin Feng, "I don't know. I am in great pain. I've been trapped here for many years, unable to reincarnate."

Qin Feng's expression changed instantly. He grabbed Lin Fan's wrist. "Who are you?"

"You're hurting me."

She wasn't Lin Fan. Who had possessed her?

Qin Feng's gaze darkened. "Who are you?"

She shook her head, tears continuously rolling down her cheeks. "It hurts so much..."

It seemed like her, yet it wasn't. Qin Feng was stunned. Lin Fan broke free from his grip and frantically tried to open the car door but couldn't. Qin Feng grabbed her and drew his gun, pressing it to her forehead. "Get out!"

Qin Feng had never seen a possession and didn't know when Lin Fan had been possessed. He only knew that the person now wasn't Lin Fan, her soul was not hers.

"I'll count to three. If you don't get out, face the consequences."

"Little brother..."

"I don't mind you dying with her. She still has a soul; you will be annihilated."

Lin Fan suddenly went limp, sliding down the seat. Qin Feng saw nothing. He held onto Lin Fan with one hand and kept the gun in the other, his dark eyes staring out the window. "Stay away and don't touch my people."

He pulled Lin Fan into his arms, holding her tightly. After a while, he ran his hand over her face and pressed his palm to the back of her head. He kissed her forehead, his little finger trembling. That definitely wasn't Lin Fan; it couldn't be her. Qin Feng knew Lin Fan too well.

Her body was icy cold. If it weren't for her breathing, Qin Feng would have thought she was dead.

The mountain was silent. She slept the whole time. What was happening to her body? Would she die?

Qin Feng thought fiercely. He wouldn't allow Lin Fan to die. He reclined the passenger seat to let her lie down and turned the car back towards the town. Lin Fan always said this place was strange. Maybe she saw things he couldn't.

Go home. Don't come here again. Everything will be fine back home.

Lin Fan woke up an hour later. She opened her eyes, groggy. "Did I fall asleep? Have we reached Shiliang Village?"

"No," Qin Feng said tersely. "We're going home."

"Why?"

Qin Feng didn't answer, driving down the mountain. They reached the town an hour later.

At the police station courtyard, there was a noisy crowd. Qin Feng stopped the car and got out. Lin Fan had already gotten out from the other side. Qin Feng motioned, "Come here."

Lin Fan looked around. There were many people. She quietly moved closer. "What's going on?"

Qin Feng pulled Lin Fan, holding her hand as they walked into the courtyard.

"You murderer, give me back my son!" A woman was sitting on the ground, crying hysterically.

Lin Fan's head buzzed, her attention entirely on her hand held by Qin Feng. His palm was wide and warm. The heat continuously transmitted from him, leaving Lin Fan unable to think. Why was Qin Feng suddenly holding her hand? Lin Fan was now truly holding hands with a man, her face burning.

Qin Feng bypassed the crowd and entered the office. The forensic doctor and several investigating officers were watching the woman cry. Qin Feng walked over and asked, "What's going on? Who is she?"

"She's Cui Shi's wife, the old man who killed. She was just brought back from the county. She's also a pitiful person. Their younger son was diagnosed with leukemia recently and is not expected to survive. Now her older son was killed by her husband. How desperate must she be?"

Qin Feng squeezed Lin Fan's hand. Earlier, she had said the old man killed Cui Yang to extend the life of his younger son.

"Has Cui Shi confessed again? Why did he kill his older son?"

"He keeps saying it was a crime of passion. He won't say anything more."

"Let them meet."

"Who?"

"Cui Shi and his wife," Qin Feng said. "Our people will watch to prevent any incidents."

"If they meet, won't his wife kill him?"

"We'll play it by ear." Qin Feng let go of Lin Fan's hand, putting one hand in his pocket. "He might tell his real motive for killing to his wife."

"Okay, let's try."

"Disperse the crowd outside." Qin Feng pinched the bridge of his nose. "It's too noisy for an investigation. This isn't a theater."