Cao Gongzi: Second Brother, aren't you aware of your own behavior

Cao Cheng's method was less like hypnosis and more akin to the illusions of the fantasy realm.

Soul-Severing Incense!

A type of mind-altering incense that induces hallucinations.

When he realized hypnosis would be necessary, Cao Cheng recalled this item he had previously unboxed.

On the way to the detention center, he retrieved a tiny sliver of it from his spatial storage—a wisp so thin it needed to be lit and inhaled to take effect.

Cao Cheng inserted it directly into a cigarette.

A length no longer than a fingernail.

Such a minuscule amount wouldn’t produce overwhelming mind control.

But combined with hypnotic suggestion techniques, it could easily drag anyone into another "world."

Calling it a "world" was generous—it was more like a self-perceived safe space.

Here, logic and morality held no weight.

Questions would be answered without resistance.

No matter how cunning or psychologically trained you were, you’d still fall for it like a fool.

No amount of guardedness could withstand even this tiny pinch of Soul-Severing Incense.

……

Cao Cheng watched Guo Yi, whose emotions were spiraling out of control, his face twisted in fury.

Where was the refined, gentle demeanor from before?

Now, he grew increasingly volatile.

Second Sister stepped up beside Cao Cheng and snapped, "Behave yourself."

The Young Girl had also moved behind him.

But Cao Cheng just smirked. "Seems I was right. That 697 on the college entrance exam must’ve been Guo Yu’s score. You, Guo Yi? Your first try barely scraped past 200, didn’t it? What makes you think you deserve that prestigious university?"

"Ah—!" Guo Yi roared.

Just moments ago, Cao Cheng had been flattering him, buttering him up—only to suddenly mock him.

And not just anywhere, but right at his deepest insecurity.

He had tried so hard.

Studied relentlessly.

But he simply wasn’t cut out for it.

It wasn’t about intelligence—some people just weren’t wired for rote memorization and dry academic drudgery.

This was his pain.

Just as Second Sister was about to call for backup to restrain him—

Suddenly…

Guo Yi went eerily still.

He sat back in his chair, locking eyes with Cao Cheng.

His entire aura shifted.

If before he had been refined-turned-raging, now he was ice-cold—his gaze devoid of any emotion.

The Young Girl flinched.

That stare was terrifying.

A single glance made her feel like prey under a starving wolf’s gaze, seconds from having her throat torn out.

But she was still an officer.

Swallowing her fear, she stiffened her neck and glared back, as if daring him.

Still, she was just a rookie—barely out of training.

Had she even passed probation yet?

Second Sister frowned, noticing the change in Guo Yi’s demeanor, though she didn’t dwell on it.

She assumed he had simply cooled down, shedding his earlier gentleness.

Until—

Cao Cheng spoke.

A single sentence that sent chills down both women’s spines.

"You’re Guo Yu."

Guo Yi narrowed his eyes, cold glints flashing in them. "Who are you?"

"I’m your damn daddy," Cao Cheng replied with utter sincerity.

"……"

Guo Yi’s expression shattered—gone was the cold detachment, replaced by unbridled fury. "You motherf—!"

Cao Cheng chuckled. "Alright, alright, quit whining. Let me make this clear—in our village, whether you’ve got split personalities or not, murder is murder. Whether it’s the ‘you’ that split off or your so-called brother Guo Yi, a bullet’s waiting for you either way."

[Ding~ Negative Emotion 10,0002]

Cao Cheng continued, "Did you really think you were some genius? Just because Guo Yi said you were smart, you actually believed it? You two brothers are hilarious—one thinks the other’s a prodigy, and the other actually buys into it…"

"What kind of ‘genius’ only dares to target chickens? That’s not genius—that’s just pathetic."

[Ding~ Negative Emotion 20,0002]

"If you’d at least killed a man, I’d give you some credit. But no—every victim was a woman, and every time, it was a sneak attack. You’re weak, Guo Yu."

[Ding~~]

He might’ve been an ordinary person.

But his fate was anything but ordinary.

This case was destined to explode.

Because this would go down as China’s first-ever "schizophrenic serial massacre case"!

There had been a landmark mental health case before.

But in terms of sheer scale and shock value, nothing came close to this.

Eight years of killings.

A top-tier college entrance score.

A teacher by profession.

Schizophrenia.

Chickens.

A serial slaughter spree…

Every element combined made this the ultimate precedent—a case that would be referenced for decades.

So,

The system deemed this man a "notorious" figure.

And the rewards it doled out were staggering.

"Guo Yu, I’ll humor you and treat you as a person. But let’s be real—you’re just a thought. You don’t even have your own body. How much of a ‘genius’ can you really be?"

[Ding~]

"Don’t glare at me like that. I don’t wear red, and you can’t beat me, little prodigy."

[Ding~]

Cao Cheng kept needling him.

Every word triggered explosive emotional spikes.

Second Sister was stunned.

What the hell was Lao Wu doing?

Is this also part of the interrogation?

Second Sister didn’t dare to interrupt, but she couldn’t shake the feeling that Lao Wu was deliberately provoking the other person.

She wasn’t sure if her intuition was right.

But one thing was certain—the other person was genuinely furious.

Second Sister could now see clearly that the person in front of her seemed entirely different from the one earlier.

Cao Cheng had even mentioned dissociative identity disorder.

Suddenly, it all made sense.

She had only ever seen this kind of thing in movies—never imagined it could happen in real life.

A few minutes.

Just a few short minutes.

Guo Yu let out a sharp cry before collapsing onto the interrogation chair, passing out.

His brain had suffered damage, leaving him unconscious.

Cao Cheng cursed inwardly.

Damn it.

Little genius… you’re way too fragile.

It’s only been a few minutes, and I’ve barely collected 300,000.

Well.

It’s a lot, but also not that much.

It’s rare to catch someone so explosive and famous, yet it ended in just minutes.

What a waste.

Cao Cheng even considered asking if he could take Guo Yi away and lock him up somewhere, just to mess with him whenever he felt like it.

That way, it’d be like developing a hit game.

As long as they didn’t die from anger, there’d be an endless supply of emotional outbursts to harvest.

……

Second Sister stepped forward and checked Guo Yi’s pulse, relieved to confirm he wasn’t dead.

She was genuinely afraid Lao Wu might’ve accidentally killed him.

Cao Cheng sighed and stood up. “Boring. I’ll come back to check on him another time. What are you all standing around for? Go find the body and the murder weapon already.”

Second Sister was stunned. “Are we sure it’s dissociative identity disorder?”

“Does it matter?” Cao Cheng shot back.

Second Sister blinked—she supposed it didn’t.

Then she asked, “Did you hypnotize him earlier?”

“Yeah,” Cao Cheng nodded.

Second Sister gave him a long look before instructing the Young Girl to turn off the camera. She then pulled Cao Cheng out of the interrogation room.

Once outside, she lowered her voice. “Have you ever hypnotized me before?”

“……”

Cao Cheng gave her a sidelong glance.

He immediately understood what she was thinking.

She must’ve been spooked by how easily he could hypnotize someone—just a casual conversation was enough to make them spill everything.

Second Sister then thought about her own relationship with Cao Cheng. If she hadn’t been hypnotized, why else would she have thrown herself at him like a moth to flame?

It was a reasonable suspicion.

After all, who wouldn’t be afraid after seeing his methods?

But Cao Cheng just chuckled. “You’d know if you were hypnotized. Take Guo Yi—the moment he woke up, he realized what had happened. Have you ever felt that way?”

Second Sister thought for a moment before shaking her head.

Cao Cheng said, “Relax, I’m not that shameless. Besides, you’re the one obsessed with limited-edition dresses. What’s that got to do with me?”

Don’t blame me for your own bad habits.

“……”

Second Sister flushed and pinched his arm hard.

Cao Cheng dodged and smirked. “Don’t forget what you promised me. Once this is wrapped up, I’m leaving.”

As he turned to go, Second Sister called out, “Wait for me.”

“Nah. I’ve been falsely accused. I need to go drink my sorrows away,” Cao Cheng said without looking back.

Second Sister pursed her lips awkwardly.

Looking back, she realized she’d overreacted.

But she’d been so convinced of Cao Cheng’s hypnotic prowess—far beyond that girl from the Shen family—that it had genuinely scared her.

Now, she felt a little guilty.

It was a lack of trust.

Sigh.

She’d have to make it up to him later.

For now, she shook her head and focused on handling the case. The rest could wait until tonight.

……

Half an hour later.

The bureau’s higher-ups were stunned.

When Second Sister returned with the recording, they immediately gathered in the large conference room.

The interrogation footage played.

At first, nothing seemed shocking—just standard interrogation techniques. Anyone in their line of work could easily discern Cao Cheng’s approach.

But then…

Things took a strange turn.

The moment Cao Cheng asked, “After your father passed, you started killing?”

Several veteran officers and leaders shook their heads—that was way too soon to drop such a question.

But the next second, Guo Yi replied, “I didn’t kill anyone. My brother did.”

Gasps filled the room.

From then on, it was a rapid-fire Q&A—every question answered without hesitation.

Director Zhang, the highest-ranking official in the room, turned to Second Sister. “Little Ren, was he already under hypnosis here?”

Second Sister nodded. “Yes, Director Zhang.”

The man in the white shirt had caught on.

The others finally realized—he’d been hypnotized?

No one had noticed.

The conversation had flowed so naturally, with no obvious triggers.

When had it even started?

Well.

Maybe it didn’t matter.

What mattered was the chilling revelation that followed.

Dissociative identity disorder.

A full-blown split personality.

Honestly, none of them were strangers to this. Many “clever” suspects tried to play the insanity card, using psychiatric diagnoses to evade legal consequences.

In many crime dramas, screenwriters love using this type of suspect because it creates perfect plot twists.

Yet in reality, such cases are extremely rare.

At the very least, this is the first time anyone has encountered a suspect capable of splitting into an entirely new personality—truly unprecedented to witness firsthand.

Everyone present was sharp as a tack.

They all understood: this case had just escalated into something massive.

It was guaranteed to reach the highest echelons of attention.

This would become the defining case among defining cases.

From now on, any similar trials or investigations would inevitably reference its verdict as precedent.

And every person in that room would bask in the reflected glory.

Moreover, with this case now solved, the victims could finally rest in peace—the killer would claim no more lives.

Just moments ago, word came from X Village: they’d located the air-raid shelter, along with the bodies and murder weapon inside.

All the pieces had fallen into place.