“But you still insist on committing such heinous acts?”

“The cycle of heaven is unending. The gods use my hand to punish evildoers and eliminate the karmic debts from their past lives. This is not called committing atrocities; this is called acting on behalf of heaven.” William Bolton showed not the slightest shame.

Evelyn Smith let out a cold laugh, thinking that this Thomas Reed really did have a way with words.

Sounds of fighting erupted outside. Evelyn Smith pressed his blade against William Bolton’s neck.

William Bolton whispered, “Not that I’m being talkative, but with all of Thomas Reed’s skills, those few constables alone…”

The door was pushed open. A constable said excitedly, “We caught him—he was no match at all.”

William Bolton’s last glimmer of hope was extinguished.

Thomas Reed was brought in. He hadn’t been beaten much, with only two or three bumps on his head. Seeing the Jinyiwei, he was momentarily stunned. “Why are you arresting me?”

“You are Thomas Reed?” Evelyn Smith sheathed his saber and stepped forward to ask.

“I am. And who might you be?”

“Jinyiwei Northern Branch, Centurion Evelyn Smith.” After a pause, he continued, “Do you remember those children you poisoned? One of them was my son. He’s dead.”

Thomas Reed’s face changed dramatically.

Eight

Evelyn Smith had a rare, restful sleep, but was still startled awake at dawn by urgent knocking.

A constable said in a panic, “Those two have been taken!”

Evelyn Smith was shocked. “Who would dare be so bold? Both Reed and Bolton are major criminals apprehended by the Northern Jinyiwei.”

The constable was equally perplexed. “The ones who took them were also… also Jinyiwei. They said they were officers from the Southern Branch, showed their credentials, and we didn’t dare refuse.”

Nine

No one can break the rules of officialdom. Evelyn Smith waited a full half hour before being granted an audience with Commandant Benjamin Foster.

“What’s going on? Wasn’t I given full authority over the Soul-Losing case? It was hard enough to catch those two major criminals—why were they taken by the Southern Branch? And since when does the Southern Branch handle such matters?”

Benjamin Foster gave a wry smile. “I just found out myself. His Majesty has assigned a trusted eunuch to oversee the Southern Branch, specifically to handle matters of seeking immortals and capturing demons. If the Southern Branch took the prisoners, they must have found a lead.”

“William Bolton is an ignorant fool, and Thomas Reed is a swindler—neither a demon nor an immortal…”

“As far as I know, Thomas Reed took away the child of a fox-spirit.”

Evelyn Smith shook his head angrily. “Child of a fox-spirit? Nonsense! The matron of the He family, Madam Guo, had an affair with her clansman He Sheng, and they conspired for the family fortune. The master of the He family died under suspicious circumstances. The so-called fox-demon child is just a lie fabricated by Thomas Reed. I’ve already obtained confessions and solid evidence.”

“And the baby?”

Evelyn Smith was momentarily speechless. After a while, he said, “Thomas Reed sent the baby away. He refuses to confess, but with torture, he’ll surely tell the truth.”

“Sigh, just leave it to the Southern Branch. If it really has nothing to do with demons or immortals, they’ll return Thomas Reed.”

As the Commandant of the Jinyiwei, who had once shared hardships with the current emperor, Benjamin Foster didn’t seem all that favored anymore. Evelyn Smith didn’t press further, but he did develop a keen interest in the Southern Branch.

Ten

Evelyn Smith never expected that this wait would last five or six years.

In the eighth year of Tianshun, the emperor who had reclaimed the throne died. His temple name was Yingzong. A new emperor ascended, changing the era name to Chenghua. Benjamin Foster was promoted to Vice Commander-in-Chief and finally took charge of the Southern Branch. His very first order was to transfer Evelyn Smith from the Northern to the Southern Branch.

Upon taking office, Evelyn Smith immediately inquired about Thomas Reed’s whereabouts, but no one in the Southern Branch knew the details. They simply delivered a pile of records and told the centurion to search for clues himself.

After spending an entire day reading the documents, Evelyn Smith said nothing, went home to rest, and the staff of the Southern Branch breathed a sigh of relief.

Three days later, Evelyn Smith brought an official order, handwritten by Benjamin Foster, stamped with the Jinyiwei seal, and bearing a few imperial comments. With this, Evelyn Smith was able to enter the Southern Branch’s inner study and freely examine the most confidential files.

The Southern Branch had indeed investigated many cases, often under the name of the Northern Branch. Some of these were cases Evelyn Smith himself had handled over the past few years—he remembered each one clearly.

The Southern Branch was trying to trace the whereabouts of demons and immortals through these mysterious cases, but as Evelyn Smith expected, they found nothing. Still, the writers were clever, always leaving some enigmatic loose end—a wisp of smoke, a flash of white light, a strange sound—always something inexplicable. In one document, the writer even boldly speculated: “Do the gods not wish to be seen by men? Or are men’s hearts not sincere? Heaven’s will is unfathomable.”

Evelyn Smith sneered, wanting to add a few more lines: “It’s one thing for immortals to show their heads but not their tails, but why haven’t we seen even a single demon?”

Two days later, Evelyn Smith finally found the records concerning Thomas Reed in the old files.

The account was very brief—just records of torture and confessions, nothing unexpected. Afterwards, Thomas Reed was imprisoned, and it seemed the Southern Branch didn’t pay him much attention.

Evelyn Smith kept reading. About a year after Thomas Reed was jailed, his name appeared in the records again, even more briefly, usually noting that he was taken out to assist with a case and then returned to prison afterwards.