Fourth Campus - Chapter 35
"The dormitory gate should be locked by now, how do we get in?" I asked as we walked.
"What do you think is the difference between a policeman and a thief?" Chen Yiming suddenly asked.
I was baffled. He smiled and said, "It's just a different name; the purpose of doing things is different, but the methods are often the same."
We arrived at the dormitory entrance. Chen Yiming took a paperclip out of his pocket, unzipped it, inserted it into the large lock on the iron gate, fiddled with it a few times, and with a "click," the lock popped out, and the gate opened easily.
I returned to that familiar dormitory, but everything inside was completely different. In just a few days, the air was filled with the smell of mildew, and the desk and bed were covered with white sheets.
Chen Yiming paced around the dormitory, then suddenly opened the window, looked down, and asked me, "Is this where Xu Zhifei jumped?"
"Yes, he was completely out of control that day."
Chen Yiming didn't speak, and continued to grope around the room. "Could you turn on the light?" The room was too dark.
"The light? It's been broken for a long time; it seems the wiring is broken. They said they'd have to wait until the holidays to knock down the wall and rewire it."
"No lights? What do you do at night?"
"Light the candles."
Chen Yiming frowned, then asked, "Has the cafeteria been serving mushrooms or anything like that lately?"
"Do you think someone put those hallucinogenic bacteria from the 'forbidden zone' in the food?"
"I'm just speculating."
"That's unlikely. Since I entered the school, the cafeteria has never served mushrooms."
Chen Yiming's brows furrowed again. I suddenly thought of Lin Musen.
"Oh, right, I just remembered something I forgot to tell you that day, and now that I think about it, it seems a little strange."
"Oh? What is it?" Chen Yiming asked.
"Lin Musen came to see me once, and strangely enough, he opened all the windows and told me to keep the room well-ventilated, all very mysteriously."
Chen Yiming rested his chin on his hand, slowly walked to the window, pondered for a moment, and then suddenly asked urgently, "Do you have any leftover candles?"
"There should be. I remember there were several in the drawer of the table."
As soon as I finished speaking, Chen Yiming opened the drawer and started searching. However, he couldn't find a single one.
"No, I remember it being there." I opened the drawer too, but was disappointed again.
"It must have been taken," Chen Yiming said. "It seems the candles are also problematic!" He suddenly lifted the white cloth on the table and started touching the surface.
Soon, his expression became excited. He took out a notebook from his pocket, tore off a piece of paper, took off the keychain from his waist, used the Swiss Army knife on it to scrape some things off the table, and then carefully wrapped them up with the paper.
"What is that?" I asked, puzzled once again.
"Hehe, looks like we're in luck. The person who took the candle forgot about the wax residue on the table."
I truly admire him; professionals are indeed much better and more meticulous than amateurs like us.
"That's enough for today, it's much faster than expected," Chen Yiming said.
"Aren't you going to the forbidden area?" I asked.
"We'll go, but not now. If I'm not mistaken, someone really was pulled down the well by you, and soon there will be reports of disappearances. Then we can go there legitimately. Right now, the most important thing is to get this wax powder tested. If it matches my theory, you'll be able to get out of the mental hospital soon. That will make our investigation much easier."
PART 4.
The next afternoon, Chen Yiming ran into my ward with a happy look on his face.
"You can be discharged now!" That was the first thing he said to me when we met.
"Really?" I almost jumped up. "Are the test results in?"
"Yes, everything is exactly as we expected; N-dimethyltryptamine and its phosphate ester were found in the wax powder."
"What is that?"
"A hallucinogenic drug, with the same ingredients as the anesthetic found in Nami Ikeda's body."
"So, you're saying we were hallucinating because of prolonged use of these candles and the inhalation of hallucinogenic drugs, which is why I ended up like Nami Ikeda, impersonating a ghost to scare people? But how do you explain the terrifying woman I saw before? Was she someone else who inhaled these drugs and was impersonating her?"
"It's not that simple. The hallucinations produced by this drug vary from person to person. We still have a lot of work to do."
"Are we getting any leads on the real culprit now?"
"Indeed, the wild mushrooms in that 'forbidden area' were an important clue. Although you didn't find them due to the season or other reasons, the chemical components found in the candle were indeed extracted from a type of mushroom."
"oh?"
"This is a hallucinogenic mushroom from Mexico, scientifically known as *Psilocybe macrantha*. Its toxicity affects the central nervous system, causing distortions of touch and vision, and can also lead to auditory and gustatory disturbances. I think your recent strange dreams might be caused by it. This fungus could very well be growing in restricted areas on campus. This plant is rare in our country, and it's considered a drug, so its cultivation is prohibited. When you mentioned mushrooms the other day, I suspected it was related to this. What inspired me was a chapter in *Sherlock Holmes*—'The Devil's Footprints'—where criminals also extract powder from hallucinogenic mushrooms and burn it for victims to inhale."
"Why didn't you think of mushrooms when you discovered this substance in Nami Ikeda's body three years ago?" I've also learned to notice certain details.
"As I just said, things aren't that simple. Although we found wax powder containing hallucinogens, that only means it was used on you and Ikeda Nami. This substance wasn't found in the other bodies that died in the forbidden area. Also, the autopsy reports of the morgue caretaker, Old Sun, Lin Duyu, Xu Zhifei, and even Lin Min who committed suicide, didn't show this component. Aside from Lin Min, the other three died from extreme shock, leading to excessive adrenaline secretion causing severe vasoconstriction and myocardial infarction. Therefore, what we found is merely a clue."
The Devil's Umbrella (4) of the Fourth Campus
"I see. It seems there's still a lot of complicated work to be done to find the real culprit. So, what should we do next?"
"I've already had Mo Hui and Wu Jiansheng take Xu Silu to the police station. It's the safest place there. She's an important witness, and we've placed her under 24-hour protection. The next step is to find out where those mushrooms came from through her, and then go with you to the school to check things out and see if anyone else has gone missing."
The case suddenly took a major turn, just like the ancient poem says, "When you think you've reached the end of the road, a new path opens up." I wondered, who brought these devilish umbrellas, and what was their motive? Looking at Chen Yiming beside me, my fighting spirit was rekindled.
The Dawn of the Fourth Campus (1)
PART 1.
Although I had been away from the academy for a few days, when I returned to the campus, I found it strange. Uncomfortable gazes were everywhere, and the summoning ritual hadn't dispelled my fear; instead, it had intensified it. Almost everyone believed I was possessed by an evil spirit and avoided me from afar, even my homeroom teacher, Li Moran.
As Chen Yiming expected, three days later, news spread throughout the school that people had gone missing. Surprisingly, three people were missing this time—Hu Xiaoli, Wang Siyue, and Zhao Jun.
Chen Yiming brought Mo Hui and Wu Jiansheng to the college, and together with me, we applied to the dean for permission to enter the restricted area of the campus.
"Well, I'm worried that opening the door will cause new panic," the dean said, glancing at me. "After Lin Yuan pretended to be a ghost and scared people, panic spread throughout the campus. Many people believe that Lin Yuan is possessed by a ghost."
"This panic will never disappear until the truth is found," Chen Yiming said. "I hope you will cooperate."
The dean had no choice but to call the security department and ask them to open the door.
News of the impending lifting of the "forbidden zone" spread rapidly throughout the academy, and a large crowd gathered outside the iron gate. With a clang, it was opened. Chen Yiming gave the order:
"Wu Jiansheng, you and the security personnel stay here and strictly prohibit anyone from entering. Mo Hui, Lin Yuan, and I will go in. While you're at it, call the bureau and summon our entire team."
"Yes!" Wu Jiansheng saluted respectfully.
"Oh, and also notify the forensic pathologist to come over."
Following the forest path, we entered the restricted area of the campus. The terrain was more complicated than we had imagined; the path frequently forked, winding around and around before eventually returning to the starting point.
"I'm sorry, I really don't remember. I came from the morgue that day," I said.
"It's okay, it's not that complicated. Just pay attention to the surrounding landmarks."
About twenty minutes later, we found the well.
Chen Yiming carefully examined the edge of the well and said, "It seems that your story about pulling someone down the well wasn't an illusion. There are scratch marks on the edge of the well."
Mo Hui found a large rock, took out a bundle of long rope from his bag, tied it to the rock, and threw the end of the rope into the well. After a short while, he pulled the rope up. "The well is 8 meters deep, and it will be difficult to retrieve it," he reported to Chen Yiming.
Chen Yiming frowned and thought for a moment, then said, "Go find a water pump, drain the water, and then retrieve it. Lin Yuan and I will check for any trace of the 'Devil's Umbrella.'"
Near the well, Chen Yiming carefully examined the withered trees, and finally pointed to the trunks and said to me, "See these small holes?"
Sure enough, there were many irregular small holes on the tree trunk.
"These are the traces left by the growth of fungi; there are still some remnants in some places." Chen Yiming took out his Swiss Army knife, scraped off the substance, and wrapped it in paper.
Half an hour later, three water pumps were arranged in a circle around the well and began pumping water. As the water level gradually dropped, a black mass surfaced. Upon closer inspection, it was human hair.
The body was recovered; it was a woman's corpse, dressed in a white dress. Long hair obscured her face, and her body was bloated from being submerged in water.
Chen Yiming put on gloves and brushed aside the corpse's hair, revealing a horrifying face. It was impossible to tell who it was; the face was swollen and the eyes were bulging out of their sockets, as if they were about to burst.
Chen Yiming waved his hand, and several policemen wrapped the body in black plastic bags and lifted it onto a stretcher.
"Let's go first and get these things tested when we get back. We'll only know whose body it is when the test results come out." Chen Yiming pulled me outside.
PART 2.
After examination by the technical department, the substance taken from the tree trunk was indeed a *Psilocybean* mushroom. The identity of the female corpse has not yet been revealed as the head and face need to be reconstructed.
After working for a day and a night, Chen Yiming showed no signs of fatigue as he analyzed the case:
"Those mushrooms, after identification, are Psilocybe nippon from Mexico. It seems someone is cultivating this plant in a restricted area. As for the female corpse in the morgue, the examination confirmed it to be Mengna. Lin Yuan also reported the situation at the clock tower the day after Mengna's death; it seems most likely that Dean Wu moved the body. We should have a serious talk with him."
Dean Wu seemed a little surprised by our late-night visit, and his expression was quite unnatural.
Chen Yiming got straight to the point:
What are your thoughts on the secret passage in the clock tower?
Dean Wu adjusted his glasses and said, "I didn't know there was a secret passage there either. Even the senior professors in the college aren't entirely aware of it. You know, this college was built by the French during the colonial period."
"Hehe, I see. I overlooked that." Chen Yiming didn't press further, but suddenly changed the subject, "What does your college's psychology research association mainly do?"
Dean Wu seemed surprised that Chen Yiming also knew about the Psychological Research Association. He glanced at me with a reproachful look in his eyes, as if blaming me for revealing this matter.
"This...this..." Dean Wu hesitated, reluctant to talk about it.
"What's wrong, Dean Wu? Is there something you're having trouble saying?" Chen Yiming asked.
"No, no, that's not it," Dean Wu quickly corrected himself. "Actually, that research institute is quite ordinary; it mainly provides students with psychological counseling and assistance."
"There's one more thing I wanted to ask," Chen Yiming continued, "I heard that the big clock in your college's clock tower suddenly struck twelve times one night. Is that true?"
"Yes. I've already checked, and someone definitely tampered with that bell. However, there have been too many rumors of ghosts circulating in the academy lately, so to suppress this superstitious belief, I announced that it was just a rat that touched the gears." He glanced at me again.
Chen Yiming then asked, "After the incident, were you and the maintenance personnel among the first to arrive at the scene?"
"Yes."
"Where are the bodies inside?"
"What? A corpse? I didn't see any corpse when I went in."
"And what about the female corpse in freezer number 13 of the morgue? How do you explain that?"
The Dawn of the Fourth Campus (2)
"I really don't know anything about this. If I found a dead body, I would definitely call the police immediately! The morgue's freezer number 13? I have even less idea about that! The academy hasn't asked for any bodies for specimens recently."
"Okay, it's nothing. I just wanted to talk to you. Don't be too nervous. We'll investigate this matter thoroughly."