American Zombie Detective

"Detective Qin, this is an anonymous call," Detective Carter replied immediately.

"About a month ago, the call wasn't to 911, but to our headquarters. The other person spoke very quickly and only said two sentences: 'You've made a huge mistake. No one can escape the seventh day after death. What's this about the seventh day after death, the vengeful ghosts coming back to haunt you?' Then they hung up. We traced it back to a phone booth on the street, but we couldn't find anything there."

He paused, a hint of lingering fear in his eyes:

"At the time, we thought it was a prank and didn't pay much attention. But... considering the subsequent deaths, we realized that the phone call might have been a warning to us."

"It seems the person who called the police knows something," Qin Jin nodded, and then gave Deputy Chief John, Detective Carter, and David a brief explanation:

"However, this case is somewhat different from the murder committed on the seventh day after death."

Qin Jin briefly recounted what he knew:

The seventh day after death is a traditional Chinese custom in Eastern culture, where the deceased is welcomed back home. This night is also called the Night of Returning Soul or the Night of Returning Evil, meaning that the soul of the deceased will return home on this day.

The night of the return of the soul has two main purposes. First, it is a time for the deceased to visit their relatives and bid farewell to the world.

Secondly, whenever they pass a landmark in the mortal world, the accompanying underworld officials will use the Whip of Forgetfulness to lash them, erasing their memory of that place. This is also known in folk tradition as picking up footprints.

Once the footprints are collected, there is no lingering attachment in the mortal world—that's the meaning.

The seventh day after death is considered a sign that the deceased has entered the underworld and successfully reincarnated. Many people will sprinkle lime, flour, or charcoal ash at the deceased's former residence to see if the deceased has returned by looking at the footprints. If not, the deceased may become a wandering ghost or even a vengeful spirit.

At this time, if the family does not prepare offerings for the deceased, leaving them to depart hungry; or if someone curses the deceased, angering their spirit; or if meat from cattle, horses, or dogs is offered, it will also anger the ghost…

There are many taboos, and if these taboos are broken, the spirits of the deceased may become vengeful ghosts and murderers to vent their anger.

However, the killings were so regular, one every seven days, which was different from what Qin Jin knew. If this were to happen, unless every family successfully angered the spirits of the dead on the seventh day after their death, the probability of that was... too small, right?

Although John and the other two were still confused by Qin Jin's explanation, it did demonstrate Qin Jin's formidable abilities.

After all, Dongda University's culture is profound and extensive, and Qin Jin spoke with great confidence and clarity, which naturally elevated his image. The three of them looked at him differently.

After saying this, Qin Jin inquired in detail about the specifics of the case.

"When we realized the circumstances of the deaths were unusual, we went back to trace them and found the earliest victim," Carter said, pointing to a photo posted on the whiteboard:

"The first three victims all lived in the Rand Park community, were classmates at the same private high school, had a good relationship, and came from the upper class in our city."

Qin Jin's gaze swept over the photo; the three boys had bright smiles, one of whom had obvious Chinese features.

"The first one to get into trouble was Adams," Carter said, pointing to one of the photos.

"About three months ago, he suffered a sudden myocardial infarction and died very suddenly. The hospital confirmed the cause of death, but his family is skeptical about his myocardial infarction because this disease... has never been detected before."

"That night, seven days later," Carter's tone turned heavy.

"His good friend Mike went missing late at night. His family woke up in the middle of the night and found him missing from his room. They eventually found his body in the swimming pool in their backyard. The forensic examination determined it to be drowning, with no signs of struggle. The timing is too coincidental."

Carter pointed to Lin Hao's photo and continued:

"At this point, Lin Hao's mental state deteriorated. He locked himself in his room, screaming hysterically and repeatedly muttering incomprehensible words, but..."

Carter shook his head and said with a wry smile, "Lin Hao's nanny didn't understand Chinese, and his father wasn't home, so nobody knows what he said at the time. Seven days later, late one night, Lin Hao hanged himself in his room, the doors and windows intact."

Qin Jin picked up the tea that Officer David had brought him and took a small sip.

"Okay, continue."

"Later, people kept dying in the community, but they were mostly accidents or illnesses, and nobody paid attention until we received this call, which made us realize there was a problem!"

Carter pointed to the subsequent photos on the whiteboard, featuring men and women of varying ages:

"For the next seven days, someone will die in the Rand Park community or the adjacent Oak Ridge community, always in the middle of the night or early morning... We've lost 11 people so far, and we have no idea how to stop it!"

"Eleven people died before you concluded it was a supernatural phenomenon?" Qin Jin raised his eyes.

"No, we were pretty much certain of it after receiving the call," Detective Carter said with a wry smile, his eyes filled with exhaustion.

"But you know, Detective Qin, we're just ordinary people. We can handle other things, but this... we really can't do it."

Deputy Director John added from the side, "We contacted the FBI, and they sent in agents from Fox, but they found nothing, and then..." He shrugged.

"I heard there was some case in Los Angeles about the resurrection of the Five Elements Demons, and they took the opportunity to slip away." The words revealed considerable dissatisfaction with the FBI.

Qin Jin was speechless. So that's why the FBI agents were so aggressive when he met them in the Santa Monica Mountains. They must have been humiliated here. No wonder they were all acting like they were on steroids.

Seeing the expectant looks in the eyes of the people in front of him, Qin Jin made his own judgment:

"As I just said, this case is quite different from the murder on the seventh day after the death of a deceased person, and the reason is very simple..."

"If it really was the spirit of the first victim, Adams, returning on the seventh day after his death to seek revenge, then why was it his good friend Mike who died? On the seventh day after death, the spirit should logically return home to visit relatives and fulfill its wishes, so why would it seek revenge on a friend? Did they have some deep-seated hatred between them?"

"The same goes for Mike's seventh day memorial service. Why would he come and kill Lin Hao? It doesn't make any sense!"

This is the core paradox.

Qin Jin couldn't understand it, and Deputy Director John and Detective Carter were even more baffled, shaking their heads in confusion.

"However, based on the description, two points can be confirmed," Qin Jin began to assign tasks:

"The cause is definitely with these three people, so please contact their teachers and classmates tonight and visit them in person. Do not make phone calls. The main thing is to observe if anyone is behaving abnormally and make a note of them."

Deputy Director John immediately replied, "Okay, I'll organize a team right away and check everyone tonight."

"Secondly, try to find the person who made the call. If there are no surveillance cameras in that area, then check the other surveillance cameras on this street. Based on walking speed, calculate who might be the person. Also, measure the distance and see if any vehicles are moving at an unusual speed between two surveillance cameras..."

He glanced at Detective Carter: "This matter must be completed before noon tomorrow."

Carter glanced helplessly at Deputy Director John, his face full of worry. This workload was simply too great, and it was indeed difficult to handle.

"Finally, Director John," Qin Jin said, turning to his deputy, and stated his request:

"Tomorrow morning, I need to visit the earliest and latest deceased. I hope you can send someone to contact them in advance. As for now—"

Qin Jin stood up and shook his head:

"Alessa and I are really tired today and need to rest, you see..."

"Okay, no problem! David, you take Detective Qin and the others to the Hilton Hotel. I've already made the arrangements; they can just register at the front desk."

Qin Jin bid farewell to the police station and moved into a luxury suite specially arranged for him and Alessa.

It's not that Qin Jin is putting on airs; he just hasn't slept since yesterday and is genuinely exhausted. More importantly—

We're going to the deceased's house to investigate tomorrow. If Alessa doesn't get a proper rest, it will definitely affect her perception. So, she needs to sleep now!