“Cause of death is clear: a blade-type weapon — likely a dagger — severed the carotid artery of the neck, causing death by blood loss.” Yan Qing indicated the victim’s neck with a pair of hemostatic forceps. “The severed ends of the cervical arteries, veins, and trachea are clean and even, indicating the weapon was extremely sharp. The killer struck swiftly, cleanly, and decisively.”

Yan Qing continued: “The joint between the fourth and fifth cervical vertebrae has been disarticulated, with the connecting ligaments severed. The killer not only moved with speed and precision, but was also familiar with the structure of the human body — capable of using a single dagger to sever the victim’s head entirely.”

Shi Ting pinched his chin and considered for a moment. “This technique — does it resemble the work of a professional killer?”

“Even if not a professional killer, this was someone with serious combat training.” Yan Qing looked at him. “Director Shi could do it as well, couldn’t you?”

“Probably, yes.” The structure connecting the head to the body is complex. That the killer could sever the head so cleanly and without any sign of panic indicated this was no ordinary person.

“Time of death?”

E’Yuan answered from beside them: “Between three and five o’clock in the afternoon.”

“Between three and five, no one at the dance hall reported seeing the victim. The floor supervisor assumed the victim had been sleeping in her own room and gone to the dressing room alone shortly before five.” Shi Ting looked toward the motionless, headless body. “The victim’s private dressing room was the first room in the corridor on the second floor, while the communal dressing room was at the far end. Since the communal dressing room only had two makeup artists assigned to it, the other dancers all had to queue there from around three in the afternoon. At that time, the victim had not yet appeared, so it was quite natural that no one saw her.”

E’Yuan said: “The killer left no trace at the scene — or rather, this body tells us very little.”

“Not necessarily.” A flicker of light passed through Yan Qing’s eyes. “There is one thing we overlooked.”

“Something we overlooked? We’ve gone over this body top to bottom, inside and out. What else could there be?” E’Yuan was puzzled.

“E’Yuan, turn the body over.”

E’Yuan did so, flipping the body face-down with its back exposed. Once the back was visible, the dried blood script stood starkly against the skin — a string of eerie numbers, chilling and grotesque.

Yan Qing pointed toward the numbers with her hemostatic forceps. “Look at what instrument was used to carve these numbers.”

E’Yuan picked up a magnifying glass and examined them closely. “It doesn’t look like a dagger — the wound edges are uneven, and the wound walls aren’t smooth enough.”

“Correct, it’s not a dagger.” Yan Qing said. “I believe the instrument used for the carving was sharp, but not particularly keen-edged. Based on the neatness of the lettering, the user was extremely comfortable with this tool — the way one would be with a pen.”

“Like a pen? What could that be?” E’Yuan knitted his brow and looked to Shi Ting for an answer.

Shi Ting listened to Yan Qing’s analysis and could not immediately identify what sort of tool it might be. After all, there was no shortage of sharp, pen-like instruments.

“Let me examine the other two bodies first.” Yan Qing said.

E’Yuan glanced at his watch. “They should be fully thawed by now.”

The condition of the other two bodies was essentially consistent with Bao Bao’s. Based on the method of killing, it was fairly certain that a single perpetrator was responsible for all three.

Yan Qing focused her examination on the numbers carved into the backs of the two bodies. As she had expected, all three sets of numbers had been made with the same tool — which ruled out the possibility that the killer had improvised with materials found at the scene.

“E’Yuan, make a rubbing of these inscriptions. The handwriting is also valuable evidence for identifying the killer.”

Since every person’s handwriting has its own unique characteristics, and no two people write in exactly the same way, in modern forensics there were even dedicated handwriting analysis departments. Identifying the killer through handwriting analysis was therefore another viable avenue.

E’Yuan immediately fetched the necessary materials and carefully made rubbings of the numbers.

“Prepare yourselves — we’ll be having a meeting in the main hall shortly.” Shi Ting glanced at his watch. “It’s getting late.”

By the time Yan Qing and E’Yuan arrived at the main hall, the conference table in the corner was already filled with people.

“Everyone is here.” Shi Ting gestured for Yan Qing to take the seat beside him. “Zheng Yun, please begin with an overview of the three victims.”

“Of course.” Zheng Yun picked up the file in his hand, stood, and affixed a photograph to the small blackboard. “This is the first victim — Xiu Xiu, a singer at the Red Fan Dance Hall. Xiu Xiu was a vocalist there who had at one point been famous throughout all of Shun Cheng for her rendition of ‘Lonely Little Town.’ About a year ago, Xiu Xiu was the crown jewel of the Red Fan Dance Hall — but in March of this year, another singer arrived at the hall who showed signs of surpassing her. Xiu Xiu’s time of death was the 3rd of June, at her rented residence, between seven and nine o’clock in the evening. The first person to find her was the Red Fan Dance Hall’s manager, who came to her home after she failed to show up for work and discovered she had been murdered.”

“The second victim — A Ce from the Great Prosperity Dance Hall.” Zheng Yun affixed A Ce’s photograph next to Xiu Xiu’s. “Like Xiu Xiu, A Ce was the star of the Great Prosperity Dance Hall. Her time of death was between three and six in the afternoon on the 6th of June, at the dance hall’s rehearsal room. The first person to discover her body was the cleaning worker at the Great Prosperity Dance Hall.”

“The third victim — Bao Bao, who was killed today, the 8th of June.”

Once Bao Bao’s photograph was placed on the board, Yan Qing could not help but feel a pang of sorrow. All three victims were young women in the prime of their lives, with striking looks and graceful figures, none more than about twenty years old. At such a flourishing age, they had ended up separated from their heads, dying without being able to close their eyes.

“Is there any connection between these three people?” Shi Ting asked.

Zheng Yun shook his head. “I looked into it. Other than the fact that all three were dancers or singers at entertainment halls, there is no definitive link between them. They did not know one another, and the three halls are located in different parts of Shun Cheng, with no overlapping clientele.”

“Could the killer simply be selecting targets at random?” one of the officers raised the question.

“That possibility cannot be ruled out,” Zheng Yun replied. “But it is also possible that the connection between them is simply hidden — not easily apparent. Further investigation is needed.”

Shi Ting gave a nod. “Zheng Yun, continue leading the team in investigating the social connections of the three victims. Focus on finding any link between the three. A killer doesn’t act without motive.”