Chapter 359: The Tenth Live Stream

Listening to the doctors and nurses chatting outside the morgue, I assumed the victim had been bitten to death. But after seeing the corpse for myself, I realized that while the bite marks covered her vitals, they weren't the direct cause of death.

"I noticed that too. We'll have to wait for the forensic examiner's lab results." Tie Ningxiang ordered a few detectives to take the body back, and I didn't try to stop them. My earlier examination might have looked like I was checking the cause of death, but I had actually been searching the victim. I hadn't found a single thing connecting her to the Underworld Live Show.

"This woman worked in a specialized trade, and from the looks of it, her life was pretty miserable. She doesn't strike me as an Underworld Live Show Streamer." The victim was entirely ordinary, lacking any traits that might draw suspicion. I was fifty percent sure she had nothing to do with the Underworld Live Show.

Once the body was taken away, Wu Meng noticed me still lingering at the crime scene. Struck by a thought, he called out, "Gao Jian, on the way here you mentioned there might be more than one victim. Should we search this entire underground morgue?"

"A morgue is an unusual place, so I can't guarantee my hunch is right." Shaking my head, I kept pacing around the room where the dead woman had been found. Under my Judging Eye, not a single trace would be missed.

Giving Wu Meng a casual reply, I took my flashlight and ventured deeper into the morgue. As my gaze swept the room, something suddenly glinted beneath one of the beds.

'What is that?' Keeping my expression neutral, I scooped the object up from under the bed while no one was watching. Pinching it between my fingers, I stole a glance. 'A Brooch—a plum blossom-shaped Brooch!'

A massive wave crashed through my mind. Suppressing my excitement, I flipped the Brooch over to reveal a pinhole camera lens embedded dead center. 'This can't be a coincidence. This is the Underworld Live Show's streaming gear!'

For the very first time, I had solid proof that other live show streamers existed besides me. Although this person had only left behind an inconspicuous Brooch, it was a crucial step forward for me. 'It seems that cry for help over the phone wasn't a scam after all. That streamer really was in trouble at the time.'

I didn't blame myself for standing on the sidelines back then. In a game of life and death, every decision could be fatal; choosing the safest path was only natural.

'They didn't even have time to retrieve their Underworld Live Show streaming gear. They probably met with an accident.' I estimated a thirty percent chance that the other streamer had been killed by the Fox Immortal Corpse. There was a sixty percent chance they had paid a heavy price in a mutually destructive clash and barely managed to escape. The final ten percent was the possibility that the streamer had actually managed to kill the fox immortal.

Regardless of which of the three scenarios was true, it was good news for me. The Fox Immortal Corpse had taken a "special liking" to me and would definitely come knocking on my door sooner or later. The more its strength was whittled down, the happier I would be.

'Assuming that streamer isn't dead, they'll likely reach out to me for help again during their next stream. Looks like I need to plan ahead.'

Rubbing the tip of my nose, I casually slipped the Brooch into my pocket. "Senior, I haven't found anything here. We can go."

I followed Tie Ningxiang back to the Municipal Sub-bureau. By evening, the dead woman's identity was finally confirmed. She had been a masseuse at a suburban foot spa who took a private job a few days ago, only to vanish without a trace.

The forensic examiner had also determined her cause of death: massive blood loss leading to sudden cardiac arrest.

When the forensic examiner cut open the victim's chest, they were stunned to discover that her heart had shrunk by half, its surface entirely shriveled and covered in wrinkles.

This case was going to keep Tie Ningxiang busy for a long while. I didn't bother her, simply urging her to be extremely careful and handing her a few Peace Talismans before I left the Municipal Sub-bureau.

'The Fox Immortal Corpse has already made its move. Daoist Priest Xianqing said this corpse has developed intelligence and needs a massive amount of essence blood to restore its body to peak condition. This case is likely just the beginning of a series of murders. Tie Ningxiang is in for a major headache.'

Back on Ting Tang Road, the shop felt empty without Bai Qi and Wang Yu around. 'Come to think of it, my little shop hasn't seen a normal customer in a month. If I hadn't become an Underworld Live Show Streamer, I probably would have had to close down by now.'

I locked up the shop early and sat cross-legged inside to cultivate. The Yin-Yang Ghost Art circulated through my body automatically without requiring any conscious effort on my part, leaving me free to focus entirely on practicing the Profound Truth Mental Method. 'If I ever manage to cultivate the Profound Truth Mental Method to its peak, I'd like to see if those ox-nosed Daoists from the Miaozhen temple still dare to threaten to sever my meridians!'

Entering the state of Sitting in Forgetfulness, time flew by in cultivation. Before I knew it, the day of my tenth live stream had arrived.

During the day, I paid a visit to the Jingying Sanatorium to check on Bai Qi and Wang Yu. Even though Huang Boyuan had hired the best psychologists, Wang Yu's condition hadn't improved in the slightest.

Congenital autism couldn't be rushed. I chatted briefly with the doctor before leaving, my mind at ease.

Sitting in my shop, I thought about what I needed to prepare for the tenth stream. Truth be told, I never felt fully confident going into these broadcasts.

During the ninth stream, I had run into a Ghost Mother. An entity of that caliber was far beyond my ability to handle; even armed with an Upper Vehicle Talisman, I lacked the strength to fight back.

Formal streams were vastly more difficult than assessment streams. There was no telling what bizarre things I might face. In many cases, survival didn't just depend on strength—it also relied on luck.

I tallied up my points and flipped through the Underworld Live Show's store catalog once more. The items inside were incredibly tempting, but most of them wouldn't offer me any direct help.

'Forget it, stop overthinking.' I sorted my streaming gear and talismans into distinct categories. 'Great Divine Mantra of the Big Dipper, Suppression Talisman, Yin-Yang Ghost Art... a business card?'

Seeing the card in my hand suddenly reminded me of the promise I had made to Du Yu. In exchange for him defending my innocence in court, I was supposed to take him along on a live stream.

'I still don't even know if I'll survive this tenth stream. Bringing him along might actually add a layer of safety. But the Underworld Live Show strictly forbids any living person from accompanying a streamer. If I want to bypass that rule, I'll need to plan this carefully.' After hesitating for a moment, I pulled out my phone and called Du Yu.

"I'll be at your shop in thirty minutes!" Du Yu's response was crisp and decisive, perfectly matching his courtroom style.

Twenty-nine minutes and fifty-something seconds later, an understated black sedan pulled up in front of my shop. Du Yu stepped out of the car in a sharp suit, wearing a confident smile.

"You timed that perfectly, didn't you?" I welcomed Du Yu inside, then reached back to lock the door and draw the curtains.

"Are we doing the broadcast tonight?" Standing in the room, Du Yu sounded faintly excited.

I nodded. To be perfectly honest, I still couldn't figure out exactly why Du Yu was so dead set on joining me for a stream.

I swept him up and down with my Judging Eye. Only after confirming he wasn't carrying any wiretaps or anything else out of the ordinary did I finally speak. "That's right, tonight. But before we go live, I need to lay down a few rules."

"Go ahead." Du Yu maintained his smile, seemingly already mentally prepared for this.

"First, this stays strictly between the two of us. Do not tell anyone else before the broadcast begins. It's also best if you don't carry any audio or video recording devices."

"Second, I cannot be accompanied by any living thing before I arrive at the streaming location. Sometime after eight o'clock tonight, I'll send you an address. You just need to head there directly on your own."

"Third, the streams I host are incredibly dangerous. One wrong move and you will die. You need to be mentally prepared."

"Not a problem. I've watched so many of your streams; I understand all of this." Du Yu looked completely unbothered, as if what was deadly to me was just a minor inconvenience to him.

I couldn't read his true intentions from his expression. Taking a deep breath, I laid out my final requirement. "Fourth, I have no idea what we'll run into tonight, but I hope that, at least during this stream, you can completely trust me, and vice versa. Only with absolute mutual trust can we increase our odds of surviving this stream!"

"Absolute trust?" The perpetual smile on Du Yu's face froze for a few seconds. It was as if a memory deeply buried in his mind had suddenly surfaced. His face twitched slightly as the smile slowly faded away. "I agree, but only for this once."

Seeing the shift in Du Yu's expression gave me a strange sense of relief. I lit a cheap cigarette and clamped it between my lips. "Once the tenth stream starts, you'll realize that this is one of the best decisions you've made in the first half of your life."