Era of Magic and Martial Arts

Chapter 544 - 528: Who Did Something So Bad?!!

"The first point is that the silver needle lodged in your eye, Madam, has a slight bend at one-third from the tip. It’s precisely this bend that caused the needle to change its trajectory upon entering your eyeball and hit the corner of your eye instead of piercing straight through your brain."

Li Shang paused for a moment, then hurriedly added:

"Of course, we must thank the culprit’s blunder that allowed Madam to continue sitting here with us."

Li Hanyu glanced at the needle with lingering fear, realizing more vividly that she indeed had a brush with death, almost stepping with half a foot into the other world.

Li Hanyu gritted her teeth, choosing to ignore the disrespect in Li Shang’s words, and said coldly:

"Continue."

Li Shang nodded and picked up a row of needles from the tray.

These silver needles were given to Li Bashan by Feng Mu when breaking out through the window. Li Bashan had discarded them against the wall, and Li Shang had people retrieve them one by one.

He now held the row of silver needles between his fingers, explaining:

"The murderer used this row of silver needles as a saw to gradually cut through Shi Wuming’s rib. The evidence lies in the sawtooth-like marks left on his rib and the nearly identical wear on these needle tips."

Seeing everyone display a look of sudden realization, Li Shang felt an unprecedented sense of satisfaction.

Solving a case openly and honestly with one’s own skills as a detective turned out to be exceedingly exhilarating.

He raised his second finger:

"The second fatal mistake was that the murderer overestimated his own strength. He couldn’t defeat Li Bashan and got his face slapped, thereby exposing his disguise."

Li Shang raised his third finger:

"The third fatal mistake was that although the murderer killed Shi Wuming to silence him, he only ensured Shi Wuming couldn’t speak but forgot to take Shi Wuming’s eyes."

Li Shang retrieved two cold eyeballs from a tray, with the tiny USB interface at the back of the electronic eyes glistening coldly, as if silently mocking.

Confidently, Li Shang said:

"The murderer thought that making Shi Wuming permanently shut up was the end of it, but he overlooked one thing: Shi Wuming’s eyes could still speak for him."

As Li Shang spoke, he handed the tray to Li Hanyu and explained:

"Madam, you might want to see for yourself what these eyes, incapable of lying, have captured in their deadly footage."

Li Hanyu took the eyeballs, her breathing quickening a bit.

Glancing at everyone in the room, Li Hanyu didn’t rush to play the footage but instead asked:

"Does Captain Li have any questions for them?"

Li Shang shook his head.

Li Hanyu unceremoniously said:

"Alright, no need for you all here. Captain Li and Secretary Hou, you both stay. Everyone else, leave."

The people in the hospital exchanged glances and quickly exited.

Li Bashan wasn’t really curious, but since Li Hanyu asked him to stay, he stayed, found a spot by the wall, crossed his burly arms, and his gaze began to unfocus.

Hong Ya’s eyes, however, lit up as she quietly slipped behind Li Hanyu like a sneaky little fox, her pigtails bouncing joyfully.

She propped her hands on the back of the sofa, securing the best viewing spot first.

Seeing unrelated people leave, Li Shang then fetched the notebook from the table.

Receiving the computer, Li Hanyu casually asked:

"Did Captain Li intentionally let those in the hospital hear your reasoning?"

Li Shang nodded slightly, a glint flashing in his eyes: "Just in case."

He explained in a lowered voice:

"If these electronic eyes didn’t capture anything significant, at least it would give the murderer the impression that we have crucial evidence; the doctors present were ready-made messengers."

Li Hanyu nodded, increasingly appreciating Li Shang’s capability.

The title of Detective is indeed well-deserved.

Hou Wendong frowned slightly and asked, "Since the murderer came to kill and silence, how could they forget to take these eyes?"

Li Shang had some doubts himself but didn’t admit it, instead confidently saying:

"There could be many reasons: either the murderer was too foolish, or they didn’t know Shi Wuming or the modifications well enough. But most likely, the order they received was merely to silence—they weren’t instructed to take Shi Wuming’s eyes."

"The murderer was rather rigid, mechanically executing the silencing task throughout. Taking the heart was because, without the heart’s power, the modification would surely die, and they could take it back as proof of completing the murder."

"They could have taken the head too, but it’s too large to carry easily."

Li Shang, with clear reasoning and well-founded arguments, articulated his views, which indeed closely approached the truth of the matter.

The individuals behind the scenes indeed hadn’t instructed the murderer to take the eyes, only specifically asking for Shi Wuming’s heart, and the murderer executed this rigidly without a hint of flexibility.

Hou Wendong and Li Hanyu were immediately convinced by Li Shang; the latter now seemed enveloped in the aura of a detective, and until this aura shattered, they had no reason not to believe the detective’s deduction.

Li Shang inhaled deeply and continued to summarize:

"In summary, the murderer’s purpose on this trip was to kill and silence, and to frame Feng Mu by the way."

"He deliberately looked up in the elevator, allowing the surveillance to capture his face fully—all to set up Feng Mu."

"Had that needle not bent just right, Madam, you probably wouldn’t have been able to cry out a word before... the murderer naturally wouldn’t have been exposed."

"In such a scenario, by now, the murderer would have successfully completed the mission according to plan and strolled out of the hospital."

"The outcome of this case would be that Feng Mu became the murderer, with irrefutable evidence, leaving him unable to explain himself—either he’d flee in guilt or be captured and killed."

As Li Shang spoke, his gaze briefly lingered on Hong Ya.

That look seemed to say:

"Remember to tell your little apprentice, that this friend of mine, saved his life today!"

Hong Ya, being clever, didn’t know Li Shang but felt a faint warmth in his gaze.

Immediately, she widened her eyes, her small face filled with cold killing intent:

"Whoever it is, how wicked to frame my little apprentice?"

Li Shang actually had a prepared answer in mind, responding calmly:

"There are three possibilities here.

The first, the murderer is a randomly chosen scapegoat, but this possibility is very small;"

"The second possibility, from what I know, Feng Mu is very loyal to Prison Director Qian, and this involves some power struggle in the Second Prison, with Feng Mu’s presence getting in their way;"

"The third possibility is that there’s personal vendetta or a conflict of interest between the murderer or the people behind the murderer and Feng Mu.

They want to take advantage of this incident to also remove Feng Mu.’

Li Shang paused slightly and then provided his detective’s judgment:

"Personally, I believe the second and third possibilities are the most likely, perhaps even overlapping."