CHAPTER 60: CHAPTER 30: THE GAME OF ASYMMETRIC INFORMATION

This person walked out of the house, and outsiders wouldn’t be surprised, thinking she was a companion who came with Zhao Huai Zhen.

But Zhao Huai Zhen was quite surprised, as he had come alone, rented this small courtyard, and ordered a whole roasted lamb. There had been no one else in the room earlier, so how did someone suddenly appear out of nowhere?

Once he saw clearly who it was, he quickly reacted and smiled, standing up to say, "Sister Lin, what brings you here?"

Sister Lin sat down directly and said, "I came for the same reason you did. Aren’t you afraid of overstuffing yourself, eating an entire roasted lamb alone?"

Zhao Huai Zhen felt a bit embarrassed and said, "I came today to ask this Junior Brother Peng some things... This is Peng Xian, Fellow Daoist Peng from the Xingshen Sect."

Then he introduced to Peng Xian, "This is Elder Lin Qingshuang from the Observing Body Sect, the highly respected Sister Lin... Please sit for a moment, I’ll go fetch some extra cutlery."

Lin Qingshuang is a sorcerer from the Observing Body Sect, a Tier Three physician. Though she’s over sixty years old, her cultivation in the Observing Body Skill excels at health maintenance, making her appear younger than Zhao Hai Zhen, who’s almost forty.

Tier One Observing Body Skill, known as "Diagnoser."

Tier Two Observing Body Skill, commonly known as "Acupuncturist."

Tier Three Observing Body Skill, self-titled "Physician."

Tier Four Observing Body Skill, playfully called "Doctor."

Tier Five Observing Body Skill, known as "Healer."

Tier Six Observing Body Skill, respectfully called "Physician."

Although Lin Qingshuang is only a Tier Three sorcerer, she is genuinely a senior in the Observing Body Sect. Her Dao companion was also a sorcerer in the Observing Body Sect but passed away due to an accident early on.

After her Dao companion’s death, Lin Qingshuang became somewhat disheartened, not paying much attention to sect matters. She opened a pharmacy in her hometown, Hengzhou, and spends her days there, hoping to break through to Tier Four cultivation in her lifetime and become a true cultivator.

Lin Qingshuang has no children or nephews, but her Dao companion took a disciple before passing, who also bore the surname Lin, named Lin Hua Lei. Lin Hua Lei is now a Tier Two Acupuncturist, very devoted to his master, to the point of moving to Hengzhou to live nearby for ease of care.

Even though Lin Qingshuang is not involved in sect matters, her cultivation might not be high, nor her standing, but her potential influence is significant. Some of the current elders and stewards in the Observing Body Sect were her fellow disciples back in the day.

Strictly speaking, Zhao Huai Zhen should call her Master Aunt. However, in modern society, non-disciples of the same sect are not so rigorous with titles in ordinary situations.

Zhao Huai Zhen calls her Sister Lin partly to curry favor, as he certainly wouldn’t have the face to call her Little Sister Lin.

Originally in a bad mood, Zhao Huai Zhen was displaying some airs today. When Peng Xian arrived, there was only one set of cutlery in front of Zhao, and he hadn’t even asked for another, so that’s why Lin Qingshuang made that jibe about eating alone.

Yet, no matter how much airs Zhao Hai Zhen puts on, he couldn’t afford to do so in front of Lin Qingshuang. He immediately went himself to fetch two more sets of cutlery, providing one for Peng Xian as well.

Peng Xian didn’t know Lin Qingshuang, but he’d heard of her. Feeling quite uneasy, because he had impersonated an Observing Body Sect disciple and even took on a disciple to teach the Observing Body Skill, subconsciously he didn’t want to interact much with the sect’s sorcerers.

But it was inappropriate to leave, so Peng Xian had to express his long admiration and sat respectfully.

Once Zhao Huai Zhen settled back in, he asked, "I came here to investigate the matter of Liang Kai. Does Sister Lin know something about it?"

Lin Qingshuang’s face was like frost, her eyes a bit red: "I recently heard some tragic news; my disciple Lin Hua Lei was found dead, his body washed ashore on the eastern beach of Chong Guang Island. I personally went to inspect; he seemed to have been murdered seven days ago, stabbed in the back..."

Peng Xian couldn’t get a word in, but his head buzzed, and he felt uncomfortable between the stool and seat, as if he couldn’t sit still because the situation seemed to be escalating and becoming more complicated.

Chong Guang Island is located at the mouth of the Great River, about three hundred kilometers downstream from Qi Yuan. It’s a large island formed from silt and sand, with its eastern swamp now designated as a nature reserve, inhabited by various bird species.

The eastern beach of Chong Guang Island is also known as a bird-watching spot, attracting many tourists daily to observe a variety of birds, and many bring equipment for shooting photos.

Lin Hua Lei’s body was discovered by a bird photographer, who immediately reported it to the police.

After the police confirmed the deceased’s identity, they contacted his relatives and friends. The Observing Body Sect was promptly informed, and a steward was dispatched, with Lin Qingshuang naturally going as well.

They managed to examine the body, determining that he died last Saturday. The cause of death was falling into the river after a backstab; it was thought he tried to escape into the Great River but unfortunately didn’t survive, his body carried downstream by the current.

Lin Hua Lei had a great relationship with his master; he would tell her almost everything. Hengzhou is next to Qi Yuan, and recently, he had heard rumors and went to Qi Yuan to seek the Hidden Moth.

Lin Qingshuang once advised him not to get involved, saying, "Hidden Moth is Hidden Moth. Why seize someone’s opportunity?" Lin Hua Lei said he just wanted to try his methods, and whether successful or not didn’t matter, only treating it as an experience.

Like Qian Guran, Lin Hua Lei also targeted He Kao, secretly replacing He Kao’s Beast Claw Pendant.

Interestingly, he was discovered secretly by Qian Guran. He was the second one to switch the Beast Claw after Qian Guran, once residing in Sesame Apartment, building 911.

Actually, all who had ever switched the Beast Claw, Old Qian discovered them. Including himself, there were six people in total.

After succeeding, Lin Hua Lei had a video call with Lin Qingshuang, explaining the clues found in investigating the Hidden Moth and suspected that He Kao’s pendant was the Hidden Moth Object, which he already switched hands, but he didn’t know how to use it.

Lin Hua Lei, like Qian Guran, after obtaining the pendant was blindly tinkering with it, believing there might be some ritual or special method to activate it, or needed long-term wear for spiritual communication... or perhaps he was simply mistaken.

Lin Hua Lei showed the pendant to his master’s wife in the video. He had studied it for a long time without any clue and wanted to consult Lin Qingshuang.

In the video, Lin Qingshuang could not perceive any mystery either and just said that if it was useless, then it was not a Hidden Moth object, and it would be best to return it to the owner.

Lin Hua Lei said there was no need to return it because if it wasn’t a Hidden Moth object, he had already switched it with a fake one, which looks the same to ordinary people; if it was a Hidden Moth object, it would likely still get taken away even if returned, as other people were also targeting He Kao.

At that moment, Lin Qingshuang felt something was amiss and asked Lin Hua Lei if his switching of the Beast Claw had been detected.

Lin Hua Lei replied that he had encountered the Alchemy Sect disciple Liang Kai at the Sesame Apartment. Liang Kai was also keeping an eye on He Kao, so he might have discovered it or might not have, since Lin Hua Lei believed he executed it very covertly.

Lin Hua Lei stayed back at Qi Yuan without leaving, likely intending to secretly observe He Kao’s response to see if he realized the pendant had been switched. If He Kao was truly a Hidden Moth, he would certainly try to use the pendant, and then he might discover how to use it.

Regrettably, Lin Hua Lei did not find anything, but last week abruptly lost contact, only to hear the news of his assassination.

Lin Hua Lei might have encountered other sorcerers, but he only mentioned Liang Kai’s name, maybe because he only knew Liang Kai. Liang Kai was known for his wide social connections and arrogance in the Wan Zhongle Sect.

Lin Hua Lei was assassinated last Saturday, while Liang Kai had an incident on Monday morning. Considering the timeline, Liang Kai could very well be a suspect. Regardless of whether the murderer was Liang Kai, in Lin Qingshuang’s view, Liang Kai was the prime suspect.

Zhao Hai Zhen listened with sweat breaking out on his forehead. Elder Lin clearly suspected Liang Kai of murder and robbery. Even Zhao couldn’t confidently assert his junior brother was innocent.

After pondering for a while, he carefully organized his words and said, "Elder Lin, are you suggesting that my junior brother Liang assassinated your disciple? You have no evidence, and moreover, my junior brother is dead; there’s no way to ask about the situation."

At this moment, he dared not call her sister anymore and addressed her honestly as ’Elder’.

Lin Qingshuang: "A living person must be seen alive, and a dead person must be seen deceased! I heard the police classify it as missing. How dare you conclude Liang Kai is dead? Do you really wish he were dead so there’d be no proof?"

Zhao Hai Zhen waved his hands repeatedly: "No, no, no, that’s not what I meant, please don’t misunderstand! My master just speculated that Junior Brother Liang is likely in grave danger, and I genuinely wish he is still alive.

The matter concerning my junior brother could be inferred as the work of a Hidden Moth. Is it possible that your disciple and my junior brother were both harmed by the same person? To uncover your disciple’s murderer, we need to find the Hidden Moth that harmed my junior brother first."

Lin Qingshuang: "I don’t care about any Hidden Moth or Hidden Moth objects. My apprentice shouldn’t have had such greed, costing him his life. Today, I only wish to identify who harmed him, and I’ll not rest until the truth is revealed!"

Currently, these are the precise clues they hold——

Firstly, He Kao is not the Hidden Moth; even if he once was, he lost the Hidden Moth object. Today’s Hidden Moth is another person.

Secondly, Liang Kai went missing, presumably taken by a Hidden Moth. This Hidden Moth is not He Kao; he might have just acquired the Hidden Moth object and learned how to use it.

Thirdly, before his death, Lin Hua Lei swapped an item from He Kao’s belongings, a Beast Claw pendant. He assumed it was a Hidden Moth object, but did not know how to use it and might have been mistaken.

Fourthly, Lin Hua Lei once encountered Liang Kai at the Sesame Apartment, and Liang Kai was also secretly watching He Kao. Liang Kai might have discovered the pendant switch.

Lin Qingshuang speculated that Liang Kai perceived Lin Hua Lei’s swapping of the Beast Claw as the Hidden Moth object and thus murdered Lin Hua Lei. Liang Kai then found the claw useless and broke into He Kao’s room with a gun, forcing him to reveal how to use it.

Despite lacking evidence, Lin Qingshuang suspected the armed intruder that night was Liang Kai since the incident occurred early Sunday morning, right after Lin Hua Lei’s murder.

As a result, He Kao called the police, making the incident well-known, infuriating the actual Hidden Moth. The Hidden Moth acted against Liang Kai, leaving him missing, life or death unknown.

Unfortunately, these are all Lin Qingshuang’s speculations without solid proof.

After analyzing, Zhao Hai Zhen pondered: "Elder Lin, judging from your words, have you concluded that He Kao is not the Hidden Moth, and not that he lost the Hidden Moth object but was never the Hidden Moth?

However, you should know, his father’s name was Zhou Du, and he should have been the Hidden Moth."

Lin Qingshuang barely glanced diagonally: "His father died in prison, how old was he then? He had no chance to pass on the Hidden Moth object to him!

Furthermore, twenty years have passed since Zhou Du’s death. During these years, the Hidden Moth object might have changed hands, and the current Hidden Moth may no longer be related to him.

Look, he’s still wearing a Beast Claw pendant. It should have been switched — clearly a recent item, but he remains oblivious as if nothing has changed. Do you think he is the Hidden Moth, and that thing is the Hidden Moth object?"

Zhao Hai Zhen: "Indeed, it doesn’t seem so, yet such speculation persists, and outsiders don’t want to miss a chance. As a matter of fact, Elder, in seeking your disciple’s matter, a clue does exist.

Your disciple swapped the pendant of that person, but my junior brother’s relics didn’t reveal such a pendant.

The missing pendant itself is a clue; whoever has it might be the murderer of your disciple or even the murderer of my junior brother."

Just then, someone called loudly from the opposite side: "President Peng, the first lamb is cooked. Aren’t you coming to eat?"

The slightly hesitant Peng Xian was startled, and hurriedly replied, "You guys eat first; I’ll stay with my friends a bit longer."

At this point, Lin Qingshuang turned her head and asked, "President Peng, I also heard what you just said. You’ve already set up here, should be aware of more situations. Isn’t there anything you can tell me?"

Peng Xian secretly thought trouble was coming. Clearly, suspicion had arisen in such asking, making him a suspect, as his thoughts raced, he quickly answered: "Actually, there’s one very suspicious person, his name is Qian Guran..."

**