Death Notice 2 Destiny

Chapter 1

(Introduction)

The night was dark.

Beneath the secluded bridge arch, the muddy water was stagnant, and all sorts of rotting garbage piled up in the shallows, emitting an unbearable stench. This was a forgotten corner of the bustling city, a place even the most destitute beggar wouldn't want to linger for more than a moment.

For over a decade, they consistently chose to meet in similar settings. The sole reason was that they didn't want to be disturbed by others.

The atmosphere at this meeting was different from any of the previous ones.

The young man's eyes were sparkling; he seemed a little too excited. The older man was trying to calm him down.

“You should go…” he said in an extremely hoarse and indistinct voice, “I have already made everything I wanted to say very clear.”

The moonlight, refracted by the river, flickered dimly, vaguely revealing the speaker's terrifying, mutilated face, like a demon.

After a long silence, the young man finally couldn't help but ask, "Where will we meet next time?"

"Heh." The monster's laughter was equally grating. "Why bother asking? You know there won't be a next time."

A hint of confusion flashed in the young man's eyes. Although he knew this was the inevitable outcome, he still found it difficult to let go when faced with it.

"What are you afraid of? You have become strong enough, you no longer need my guidance."

The young man hesitated for a moment, then said softly, "I can't see the road ahead very clearly."

“I understand how you feel. But you will continue on, it is your destiny—it was decided eighteen years ago.” The monster said slowly, his lips parted crookedly to reveal a set of pale white teeth.

Having said these words, the monster turned and slowly, with difficulty, moved deeper into the riverbed. As he emerged from the bridge arch, the cold moonlight shone down, casting a long, lonely shadow behind him…

October 26, 2002, 9:25 AM.

The ruins of Bifangyuan Hotel on Xingcheng Road.

A long cordon was set up at the explosion site, keeping onlookers outside the circle. They all craned their necks, looking quite like a flock of ducks described by Lu Xun.

At the center of the police cordon lay a scene of ruins. The air still seemed to linger with the smoke and stench of death from the explosion. A dozen firefighters were busy among the rubble, using their booms to clear away pieces of broken stone and brick. Interspersed among their red-clad figures were several men in white uniforms, working in pairs, each carrying a large black plastic bag. The firefighters' work was occasionally interrupted by the men in white, who would then step forward and pluck items from the rubble, stuffing them into their black plastic bags. Their expressions were extremely serious.

At this moment, a commotion would rise among the onlookers. "Tsk tsk, found it again..." similar whispers would be heard excitedly among the crowd. But in reality, because the police cordon was set up long enough, they couldn't see the specific situation at the core of the scene at all.

Those who can truly see the details are not in the crowd.

Near the intersection of Xingcheng Road, there are rows of towering office buildings. The young man was watching everything happening on the ruins through binoculars from one of the high places in the building—the men in white were forensic doctors from the provincial police, and the things they put into black plastic bags were pieces of human remains.

"Teacher..." the young man murmured, his face displaying an indescribable complex expression: besides sadness and reluctance, there was also a deep sense of confusion.

That person is gone; for him, departure may be a relief. But such a sudden departure is perhaps too cruel for a young person. How can the latter find the answers to the mysteries that have troubled him for so many years?

Who am I? Where did I come from?

Besides the teacher, who else can answer this?

"At least I know where to go." The young man put away his binoculars and silently comforted himself.

"You will definitely keep going," the teacher said.

Therefore, he must continue on this path.

3:17 PM.

Wanfeng Hotel, a five-star hotel, boasts a prime location in the provincial capital, with top-notch decor and amenities. The suites are situated at the top of this 36-story building, offering unobstructed panoramic views of the city through expansive floor-to-ceiling windows.

Even in the off-season, the daily rental fee for such a suite can exceed 1,000 yuan.

Wu Yinwu was nearly sixty years old, and this was the first time in his life he had entered such a high-class place. Sitting on the soft leather sofa, he couldn't help but feel flattered. He placed his hands flat on his knees, his back straight, as if afraid that he might break the sofa if he exerted any force.

Besides Wu Yinwu, there were three other young people in the suite, but their behavior was completely different from his. Although they had also arrived in an unfamiliar place, they did not show any restraint. In addition to wandering around the room, they also unscrupulously fiddled with various high-end and luxurious furnishings.

These three young people, two men and one woman, dressed in unusual and strange ways, were clearly "delinquents" among their peers. Perhaps calling them "young people" is an exaggeration; they were actually just sixteen or seventeen-year-old kids.

One of the boys had a large yellow earring hanging from his right ear. He seemed a little tired from spinning around, so he threw himself toward a sofa about two meters away. As he comfortably sank into the soft sofa, the old man not far away was also affected, his originally upright body swaying twice.

"Damn, that was really fun." Yellow Earring chuckled wickedly.

"Be careful," Wu Yinwu said in a low voice, his tone sounding more like a plea than a reprimand.

Yellow Earring ignored the old man's advice, as if the man didn't exist. His attention was now drawn to his companion—a boy with curly hair. The latter had just opened the small refrigerator on the coffee table and seemed to have found something.

"Hey, don't hoard the good stuff! Bring it all out!" Yellow Earring shouted loudly.

Curly pulled his head out of the refrigerator, holding two cans of beer in his hand. He tossed one can to Yellow Earrings, opened the other, and took a satisfying sip.

"Don't take these things randomly, they all cost money." Wu Yinwu's tone was quite helpless, probably knowing that his words wouldn't have any effect.

"Anyway, someone's paying, so what's there to be afraid of?" The girl walked over from another corner of the room. She had a chubby, round face and most of her hair was dyed red.

Curly-haired guy handed the girl his beer: "Want some too?"

"Get lost, who wants your leftovers?" the girl retorted rudely. She rummaged through the refrigerator and pulled out a can of Coke, then asked the old man with a grin, "Teacher Wu, do you want some?"

Wu Yinwu waved his hands repeatedly: "No, no..."

Huang Erhuan sat up from the sofa, put one arm around Wu Yinwu's shoulder, and with the other hand, he held a beer can and brought it to Wu Yinwu's lips, winking and saying, "Come on, have a drink."

Wu Yinwu pushed the other person's hand away, looking a little angry: "What are you doing? I said no."

“She already said she doesn’t want it, there’s no point in forcing her,” Curly teased flippantly, a wicked smile playing on his lips. The other two children quickly grasped the lewd undertone in his words and burst into unrestrained laughter.

Wu Yinwu looked increasingly embarrassed amidst the laughter. "Why isn't that person here yet?" he complained inwardly, feeling utterly humiliated to face these three students alone.

After laughing, the three guys seemed to be considering the same question.

"What happened? Where's the person you asked out to?" Yellow Earrings asked Curly Hair. "You didn't get stood up, did you?"

"Just for such a high-class room, it's impossible! Understand?" Curly-haired man glanced at the other person with disdain, then gulped down a few more mouthfuls of beer.

"But we can't waste time," the girl said, sounding a little annoyed. "I have an appointment to go shopping with someone, so you should hurry up and urge that guy on."

Curly thought for a moment, then took out a phone, found the relevant number, and dialed it. He held the phone to his ear for a moment, then suddenly frowned, looking somewhat puzzled.

"What's wrong?" the girl standing next to him asked.

Curly pulled a finger off the beer can, put it to his lips to shush, and turned his gaze toward the suite door.

The room fell silent for a moment, and then everyone heard the music.

Although it was just a cell phone ringtone, the music was peaceful and melodious, containing a rhythm that lingered in the mind.

The music was coming from outside the half-open door.

The music suddenly stopped. Then the door was slowly pushed open, and a man walked in amidst the surprised gazes of the crowd.

This was a tall man, dressed plainly, with nothing unusual about him except for a pair of inappropriately styled black gloves. What puzzled everyone was that he wore a black hood, like a terrorist from a movie, covering his entire face except for a pair of large, gleaming eyes.

"You...who are you?" Wu Yinwu stood up and asked nervously.

“I’m the one who invited you here,” the man said, slamming the door shut behind him. His voice was deep, but his words were very clear.

Curly-haired guy started showing off his "humor" again: "Hey bro, what's wrong with you? Did a mule kick your face?" Yellow Earring and Red-haired Girl immediately burst into laughter in perfect unison.

The man seemed unmoved by the mockery. He dragged a wooden chair from beside the coffee table, blocking the entrance to the living room, and sat down, his gaze slowly sweeping over the three men and women. His gaze wasn't fierce, but an invisible pressure emanated from it, forcing Curly and the others to quickly quiet down.

Only then did the man speak again: "Sit down properly, everyone."

The man's calm tone carried a commanding air, as if it were a matter of course. It was like a superior officer instructing his subordinates; there was no need for shouting or harsh words, but every word conveyed an unyielding sense of authority.

Wu Yinwu immediately sat back down on the sofa. Although the other boys weren't as obedient as him, they all felt a little uneasy. The girl with the yellow earring and the red-haired girl looked hesitantly at the curly-haired man; it seemed the latter was the key figure among the three of them.

Curly thought for a moment, then decided he couldn't let this go to waste. He raised his chin, snorted, and changed the subject: "We came here on conditions. You'd better fulfill those conditions first."

The man raised his right hand and tucked it together, revealing three red envelopes in his hand: "Take them."

The other party's straightforwardness made Curly hesitate. He paused for a moment before taking two steps forward and accepting the three red envelopes.

"This is yours, this is for that girl, and this is for your other companion." The man distributed the red envelopes one by one, and the corresponding red envelopes were quickly in everyone's hands. Wu Yinwu seemed to have become an outsider, watching the events unfold before him blankly, completely bewildered.

Yellow Earrings opened the red envelope first. Inside was only a thin piece of paper, which was clearly not what he expected. When he saw what was written on the paper, he couldn't help but exclaim, "What the hell is this?!"

Curly also saw his own slip of paper, on which were several lines of very neat Song typeface:

Death sentence notice

Inmate: Xie Guanlong

Crime: Disgracing the teacher and losing the moral compass

Implementation Date: October 26

Executor: Eumenides

"Damn it, are you kidding us?" Curly-haired man angrily crumpled the paper into a ball and threw it at the man.

“No one is playing you.” The man’s tone suddenly turned icy. “You are the sinners chosen by netizens, and I am the executor Eumenides.”

"Who are you trying to fool? I've seen plenty of idiots like you netizens. Damn it, you think you can pretend to be Spider-Man just by wearing a mask? Get lost!" Curly responded with a string of curses.

"What...what's going on?" Seeing the situation was amiss, the old man hurriedly got up and went to the red-haired girl's side to examine the piece of paper in her hand. The piece of paper suddenly began to tremble before his eyes, and the source of the tremor was the red-haired girl's palm. Wu Yinwu turned his gaze to the girl in surprise, only to see that her face had turned deathly pale.

“He’s not an ordinary netizen. He’s Eumenides… Oh my god, he’s Eumenides!” The girl’s voice sounded strange from being too excited.

Yellow Earrings and Curly Hair frowned at the girl, clearly unaware of what was going on.

“He’s a killer, he really does kill people…” The girl grabbed the arm with the yellow earring in terror. “He killed the woman who drove the BMW last week, and online… there are so many people talking about him online!”

The girl's emotions affected her companions, and the two young men also showed signs of hesitation. Because no one spoke, the room fell silent, but this brief silence was soon broken by the man who called himself Eumenides.

"On the 11th of last month, you brazenly insulted Professor Wu Yinwu, who was lecturing in class. Not only that, you also filmed the entire incident with a DV camera and uploaded a five-minute segment to the internet. Despite the overwhelming condemnation, to this day, we still see no remorse from you. What else do you have to say about such a crime?" The man's voice rose from a low tone to a gradually increasing pitch, his anger becoming increasingly palpable.

In the tense atmosphere, everyone began to regret accepting the stranger's invitation so hastily. Yellow Earring leaned closer to Curly and asked guiltily, "What do we do?"

“Let’s go, ignore him,” Curly said through gritted teeth. However, he quickly realized that his idea was not feasible, because the man was sitting at the entrance to the suite’s living room, completely blocking the way to the door. To get out of the room, they would have to jump over him first.

"Get the hell out of my way!" Curly-haired man tried to appear assertive, but his confidence was far too weak in the face of the man.

The man simply said, "Come here." Curly-haired man's body involuntarily trembled.

"No, don't go over there." Wu Yinwu stood between Curly Hair and the man, his head bowed and his expression weak as he said to the man, "They have already apologized to me, please, don't make things difficult for them anymore."

When the video of the insulting teacher was posted online, it immediately sparked outrage among netizens. In the first few days, many people came to the school gate to intercept the students who had acted so recklessly. Under pressure, Curly and the others did apologize to Wu Yinwu. At this moment, Wu Yinwu's plea to "please" clearly implied that he included the man in the category of netizens. However, the severity of the reality far exceeded his expectations.

"An apology?" The man gave a cold laugh. "I was listening outside the door for a long time before I even came in—do you think their apology is meaningful?"

Wu Yinwu grimaced helplessly. Yes, these students had never respected him from the bottom of their hearts; their so-called apology was merely a formality. Just moments before, they had been harassing and insulting him like a toy. But what could he, with his weak constitution, do against such unruly students?

"The crime of insulting one's teacher..." The man's eyes suddenly became unfocused as he spoke, as if he was thinking of other people and things.

He also had his own teacher, the person he was closest to and most respected in his life, who has now left him forever.

The more something is lost, the more precious it becomes. Yet some people not only fail to cherish it, but also leave such precious things on the ground and trample on them at will! Thinking about these things, he could hardly control his emotions.