Then, Let Them Offer Their Loyalty!

Chapter 37: Is Qin Shuman Dead?

‘So, Qin Shuman’s contact is at least a department head with significant authority in a secret department?’

With this thought, Qiu Tu’s expression grew peculiar. He realized he had underestimated this woman. Originally, he thought she was just a pawn in the larger schemes of a few factions, but it turned out she was more significant than he had imagined.

As for whether Qin Shuman herself was part of the Security Division, Qiu Tu found it highly unlikely. Unless she was Lin Zuo’s superior and personally assigned this task, she wouldn’t have Lin Zuo acting as her intermediary, even if she were also a deputy chief.

Half an hour later.

“Yes, you guessed right. I am Lin Zuo’s superior.”

Qiu Tu looked at Qin Shuman’s stunning face, confused.

He raised his hand to stop her from saying more, looking conflicted. “Wait a moment, let me process this.”

He then recalled the events of the past half-hour.

At the guard unit’s base, he inquired about Cao Dabiao’s whereabouts.

Learning that Cao Dabiao hadn’t returned, he didn’t wait but went directly to find Qin Shuman to probe her background.

Qin Shuman seemed to be waiting for him too, so they hit it off and went back to the bar they had visited the previous night.

Used to bluffing people, Qiu Tu casually mentioned Lin Zuo and then nonchalantly added, “If you want to cooperate with me, there’s no need to send your subordinate to find me.”

“What’s there to hide between us?”

He had only intended to fish for information, but to his surprise, Qin Shuman admitted it directly.

Trying to realign his thoughts, Qiu Tu looked at the beautiful woman before him under the bar’s dim lights, analyzing the possibility of her being Lin Zuo’s superior.

No matter how he thought about it, there were too many holes in the story.

Seeing no logical path, he looked at Qin Shuman with a strange expression, “Are you messing with me?”

Seeing Qiu Tu’s usual composed demeanor crack for the first time, Qin Shuman burst into laughter, her body shaking with mirth.

After calming down, she sighed and said softly, “Honestly, even if you told Lin Zuo everything, he probably wouldn’t believe you.”

Qiu Tu, bewildered, looked at her in confusion.

Qin Shuman suddenly asked, “Qiu Tu, do you remember the question I asked you last night? Do you believe a person can suddenly become someone else?”

Qiu Tu, catching the hidden meaning, narrowed his eyes, “What do you mean? Are you not the original Qin Shuman?”

Qin Shuman nodded.

Leaning against the bar, she looked at Qiu Tu and spoke softly, “You’ve been with Shen Lingshuang these past few days, so you should know about the Cataclysm Awakened, right?”

Qiu Tu nodded.

Qin Shuman took a sip of her drink, “Actually, I am—or rather, I was—one of the Cataclysm Awakened.”

“My original identity was the Security Division’s Investigation Department Chief, codenamed ‘Rain Butterfly.’”

“My Cataclysm Path was ‘Mystery,’ and my ability was ‘Possession Control.’”

“This ability allowed me to remotely control possessed individuals. I could not only communicate telepathically and view their thoughts but also forcibly control their bodies.”

“It’s a very powerful ability.”

“And Qin Shuman, or the original Qin Shuman, was one of those I possessed.”

“She was a kind and lovely girl. Despite her tragic background and her short life as a plaything for powerful men, she was always optimistic and cheerful.”

“Maybe because she was so lonely, she always considered me a friend, even though I wasn’t kind to her. She often chatted with me and sometimes helped me investigate things.”

“Everything was fine until you—or rather, your predecessor—came along.”

“She fell in love with your predecessor at first sight, deeply in love within days.”

Qin Shuman sighed, “I was busy at that time and didn’t possess her, so I didn’t know about their affair.”

"I was truly terrified at the time. It wasn't because I was worried about losing this source of intelligence, but because I knew Yan Chen's character. If he discovered their affair, he would never let them off."

"So I tried my best to persuade her to give up. But she was more determined than ever."

"I still remember what she said to me then."

"She said, 'Sis, I only have five short years in my life. Finding someone I truly like is incredibly difficult. I don't want to look back on my life after I die and only remember being crushed under a man covered in fat.'"

"I didn't know how to dissuade her, so I could only watch helplessly as they walked step by step into the abyss."

"And then, until that day."

Qin Shuman, covering her face with both hands, spoke in agony, "That day, after finishing my official duties, I was worried about her and wanted to check on how she was doing recently."

“When I finally did possess her one day, I found them naked in bed. Her body was alive, but her soul was shattered.”

“I was terrified and tried to escape, but a searing pain shot through my soul, and I lost consciousness.”

“When I woke up, you were suddenly on top of me, pinning me down.”

“I was scared and tried to resist but couldn’t.”

She sighed again, “That’s when I realized I had become ‘her.’”

“I had shifted from a third-person possession to a first-person perspective, from a detachable possession to a ‘permanent possession.’”

“So, not knowing what had happened, I had to pretend to be her.”

“Luckily, I had observed her life and interacted with her frequently. Combined with her body’s residual habits, no one but her close acquaintances could tell the difference.”

“She didn’t have many close acquaintances.”

“Except your predecessor.”

Hearing Qin Shuman’s story, Qiu Tu’s mouth slowly fell open, stunned into silence.

Author's Note

This chapter upload first at NovelBin.Com