Chapter Sixty-Six: The Mysterious Incident at the Academy

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For reasons he could not explain, Li Zisheng led Baliang toward the area surrounding the academy. The two proceeded with great caution. Although Yuecheng now resembled a ghost town, it was still an enormous city. After an incident of such magnitude, the upper levels of the Tang court could not possibly fail to notice. All Li Zisheng needed was to familiarize himself with the place before those authorities sent people to investigate.

After slowly making his way toward the academy, Li Zisheng did not enter immediately. In particular, when he reached the gate, he noticed that this was the only place where he could not smell much blood. The atmosphere of the academy remained just as it had been before.

Li Zisheng began surveying the surroundings and gradually noticed the changes around him. Most strikingly, the academy gate was completely spotless, without even a trace of dust. By all rights, Yuecheng should have been desolate at this time. With the streets abandoned and the wind sweeping through them, it was difficult to understand how the entrance to the academy could remain so immaculate. What, exactly, had happened here?

Li Zisheng and Baliang pushed open the academy gate. After waiting for a moment, they gently eased it open and entered.

The academy consisted of nine pavilions, ten towers, and three rows of dormitories, all arranged in an orderly yet pleasing manner.

When Li Zisheng had first entered Lingzhou Academy, he had already taken note of its layout. The design had clearly been subjected to extremely strict consideration, particularly with regard to geomancy and the flow of auspicious energy.

Now, with not a single person in sight, the grounds seemed all the more vast and unnerving.

Baliang stayed close behind Li Zisheng. Li Zisheng possessed no more than the body of an eight-year-old child, yet behind him followed the fully grown Baliang, whose face was filled with terror.

Li Zisheng could not help sneering inwardly at the sight.

“Young Master, this place is truly terrifying. We should hide back in the underground passage. There is still plenty of food down there—enough to last us several more days. By then, someone will surely discover that something is wrong with Yuecheng and come to rescue us.”

Baliang continued to stare around in horror.

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It was not that Li Zisheng had never considered what Baliang suggested.

However, if they suddenly left Yuecheng—and managed to get out alive—they would certainly attract the attention of whoever had orchestrated everything behind the scenes. That person would regard them as survivors who had slipped through the net. In the end, neither he nor Baliang would likely meet a pleasant fate. That much was obvious without further thought.

The instant the idea arose, Li Zisheng dismissed it completely. It would be better to take advantage of this opportunity to investigate the place thoroughly and discover what secrets the academy concealed. He clearly remembered his mentor, Cheng Zhongliang, telling him to come as soon as possible to Lingzhou Academy to study.

Yet Yuecheng was now utterly deserted, and an event of such magnitude had taken place here. Its consequences would surely shake the heavens and earth. If he waited until later to return, reaching this place again would be far more difficult.

The most dangerous place was often the safest.

This had always been one of Li Zisheng’s guiding principles. While the academy remained empty, he could investigate its secrets at leisure. Once someone began examining what had happened in Yuecheng, he would never again have such an opportunity. Even with Governor Zhang’s protection, he would find it difficult to interfere. After all, the matter had already become earth-shattering. Every person in Yuecheng had vanished, and even the soldiers stationed in the Lingzhou military camp outside the city had disappeared during those five days.

Yet judging from the extent of the destruction and the overwhelming stench of blood, it was clear that a violent struggle had taken place here.

As he studied the surrounding scene, Li Zisheng grew increasingly cautious. The academy was extraordinarily strange. He had already walked through Yuecheng’s large and small streets, and almost every corner bore signs of fierce conflict. Even in places where no battle had occurred, there was at least some minor damage.

Yet the Lingzhou Academy had not been damaged in the slightest. Everything looked exactly as it had when he first came here. It was deeply peculiar.

Could it be that none of the killers had entered the academy? But why would they have entered every other place and left this one alone? The more he thought about it, the more suspicious the matter became.

Li Zisheng continued studying the scene, but the farther he went, the stranger everything seemed. Perhaps the people in the academy had left early, and those who had ravaged Yuecheng had never come here seeking revenge. Even so, the academy was far too clean. Every corner, every narrow recess, looked as though it had just been swept and wiped. Not a speck of dust could be found.

Most importantly, the floors throughout the nine pavilions and ten towers were damp, as though someone had only just finished cleaning them. The crucial point was that Li Zisheng had lingered outside the academy for a long time and had not seen a single person enter or leave.

Although everything before him was astonishingly clean, the place lacked all vitality. Indeed, the deathly stillness within the academy seemed far heavier than that outside Yuecheng. The sensation was so oppressive that the academy felt like a natural burial ground.

And the deeper they went, the worse it became.

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“Young Master! Young Master, look!”

Baliang had hidden behind Li Zisheng like a frightened young girl. He stared at the scene before them in utter panic.

Li Zisheng focused his eyes. He did not recognize the person before him, but one thing was unmistakable: the man’s head had been severed, leaving only the body, which sat inside Appreciation Pavilion.

What drew Li Zisheng’s attention most, however, was that although the corpse had been decapitated, its body remained unnaturally upright. More astonishing still, there was almost no blood around it—not the slightest trace of a bloody odor.

What troubled Li Zisheng most was that there was not a single insect or blowfly anywhere near the corpse. At first glance, the scene seemed merely strange. The longer he looked, the more terrifying it became.

The corpse showed no sign of decomposition. The exposed skin bore no trace of lividity. It looked almost like a living person, and the sight was horrifying.

Li Zisheng had seen corpses before, yet even he felt sick now. He dry-heaved repeatedly, though he soon managed to compose himself. Baliang, however, stood nearby with his face as white as death.

Li Zisheng stepped into the pavilion and carefully examined the area around the corpse. Everything was unnaturally clean. There was no foreign matter, no unusual odor.

He knew that corpses could be preserved in many ways, but most methods were essentially the same: they involved applying substances to prevent decay and decomposition. Such substances, however, invariably carried a strong and pungent smell.

Yet this corpse had virtually no odor at all.

That was the first strange thing.

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