Ba ethnic group's bewitching charm - the executioner - Chapter 8
It turns out that beauty has always been inseparable from her, and the man in front of her understands her beauty even better than she does.
Later, she grew to love the feeling of sitting under the flashing lights; each flash seemed to make her even more beautiful. So she stayed, spending every day by this man's side. She knew that only this man could protect her beauty.
But she remained sorrowful, for what she had hoped for had not yet arrived, and she discovered that the man with the camera was ill, very ill. No one could help him, not even a doctor, because he could not possibly let anyone know of his illness. Now, he knew that Yang Mei had discovered his secret, a secret that, though never mentioned, had become a shackle standing between them.
Yang Mei didn't know when it would all end. She even dreamt of Yang Zheng hurting her, but she felt no fear, only a kind of joyful anticipation of the end. When she woke up, the night was still dark. She cried, for herself and for Yang Zheng.
On this afternoon when the police visited, Yang Mei reminisced about the past. She vaguely felt that she should do something to change the status quo. For the past six months, she had simply waited for Yang Zheng to come to her side, or for him to suddenly embrace her. Now, she wanted to take the initiative and fight for her love.
About an hour later, there were some slight noises coming from the stairs. Without turning around, Yang Mei knew that Yang Zheng had returned. By now, Yang Zheng must have regained his composure. He looked like that somewhat unruly artistic young man again.
"If there's nothing else this afternoon, I'd like to head back," Yang Mei said with her back to Yang Zheng.
"It's alright, go ahead and do your thing." Yang Zheng's voice was somewhat hesitant.
"I'm leaving now. Someone's coming to film. Call me."
Yang Mei left slowly. As she crossed the courtyard, she slightly shrugged her shoulders several times, as if she wanted to turn back, but she held back. When she reached the door, she finally turned around and caught a fleeting glimpse of a gaze disappearing by the window. She hesitated for a moment, then continued on her way.
She wanted to give Yang Zheng some time to adjust, like a wild animal healing its wounds, without being disturbed.
Yang Zheng was now the only one left in the old house. He leaned against the wall by the window, motionless for a long time. He knew Yang Mei had discovered his secret, so he hesitated even more. Although he knew he had fallen in love with Yang Mei the moment he saw her, he was afraid—afraid that one day he would wake up from his dream and find the girl sleeping beside him, covered in blood, dead.
He didn't want to hurt her, so he had to keep his distance from her.
He knew he was ill, with a mental illness, and very ill. He was currently taking an imported medication to suppress serum in his blood. However, he discovered that his body had developed antibodies, and the medication was becoming increasingly ineffective. Last night, after seeing the video of the brutal murder online, he was immediately overcome by a burning desire.
—Whether you are a sadist or a victim, it is a temptation.
His body trembled uncontrollably, a symptom of an impending attack. Then he felt a burning sensation all over his body, as if a fireball was burning inside his chest. He knew he had to do something, so he went downstairs, stripped naked, and rushed into the yard.
Snowflakes drifted silently in the darkness. Yang Zheng spread his arms wide, letting his body feel the cold as much as possible. His body wasn't very strong; if there were a light, you could see the numerous knife marks on his chest and thighs. He had inflicted them himself in extreme pain; self-harm was an effective way to suppress his impulses. And tonight, he chose the cold.
The snowflakes were pure, falling on this somewhat ferocious body. The cold seeped into the bones, and in the end, it seemed even the blood would freeze.
Yang Zheng tried to move his stiff legs, but fell heavily to the ground.
He crawled towards the door. He had calmed down, and now he needed warmth. The dim light inside the room became his hope.
He thought he would definitely fall seriously ill, but to his surprise, he woke up the next day feeling unusually energetic. He also didn't expect that after the police left in the afternoon, the demon within him would awaken again.
Now, the old house has fallen silent again, leaving only him and perhaps another person lurking in his heart.
He felt utterly desperate.
He thought about why he had come to this city.
Night fell. Darkness seeped into every corner of the old house.
Yang Zheng was in his bedroom when he saw a group chat message setting. He changed the setting from "Block all messages from this group" to "Receive and notify messages".
The group chat window opens, but it's completely blank; the member list on the right is all grayed out, as if no one is online.
Yang Zheng stood motionless, staring blankly at the empty window.
Two months ago, a friend introduced him to this group. His friend said the group consisted of people like him with unusual fetishes. The group's administrator, known online as "Mask," was unknown to everyone and rarely appeared in the group. He provided a platform for these people with secrets to vent. People exchanged experiences in the group, mostly about ways to satisfy their desires without breaking the law. Among these, virtual sadomasochism was the most popular.
The specific method involves using a webcam to show the person initiating and being abused in a group chat. This can be real or virtual—for example, fantasizing about self-harm while being abused.
Yang Zheng believed he was not simply a sadist or masochist, so he had muted the group's messages for a long time.
Now that he's back, he has a vague premonition that the video he saw online last night is related to this group. Perhaps one of the group members meticulously planned this incident, solely to confront traditional moral values.
Sadism and masochism are illnesses, and people often simply describe them as "abnormal".
People with sadomasochistic tendencies must be extremely careful to hide their secrets in daily life; otherwise, discrimination will become their lifelong enemy. It is undeniable that these individuals can be dangerous to some extent, such as causing death due to mishandling of their sadistic tendencies. However, most sufferers are harmless. Even if they cause harm to themselves or others while using these methods to satisfy their desires, it is always done voluntarily.
Only a very small number of patients, whose desires have not been satisfied for a long time, coupled with their unique personalities and experiences, slowly evolve into murderous killers. Novels and films, to some extent, overemphasize this type of individual.
But it must be acknowledged that such people do exist.
Murder is not the goal of sadists and masochists, but it is the most talked-about topic in this group.
The group is called "Killing Group".
Yang Zheng stayed online invisibly until 8:30, but no one spoke in the group. Feeling a bit hungry, he went out and ate a bowl of beef noodles at a noodle shop in a back alley. When he returned to the old house, the group was already bustling with activity.
The discussion revolved around the torture video that surfaced online last night. Many speculated that the man shared similar fetishes, but had the audacity to post his actions online. The main point of contention was whether the torture in the video was real, and whether the woman was truly murdered.
But no one knows who the masked man is.
Around 10:30, a new line of text suddenly appeared in the chat window:
(2006-01-18 22:34:06) Criminal Officer (710964)
Hello everyone.
Because everyone was discussing it quite enthusiastically, and this line of text appeared so suddenly, and it was only three words long, some people didn't even notice it and continued talking according to their own train of thought. However, some people did see it, including Yang Zheng.
At that moment, Yang Zheng felt his heart race and a thin layer of sweat instantly appeared on his palms and soles.
—Is this person with the online name "Criminal Officer" the same masked man in last night's video?
Chapter 6
The next day, Qin Ge and He Lan waited at the police station for the woman who knew Xu Li. They had agreed to meet at 9 o'clock, but a few minutes before that, He Lan suddenly received a call; the woman said she wasn't coming.
“I know what happened, I’m terrified, I really don’t know who killed Xu Li,” the woman said on the phone. She had obviously seen the video circulating online through some means, and that’s why she was so frightened.