: Deducing the Process from the Answer

Qin Jin sighed inwardly, stood up slouchingly, and first showed weakness to everyone—

When you're new to a place, it's always good to be humble to get along with others. Besides, showing weakness isn't a bad thing; at least it will save you a lot of trouble later on, preventing all the problems from falling on your shoulders.

"Thank you for your trust, supervisor and everyone! As a Chinese person, I do have a good understanding of Eastern folk customs and taboos, but that's all I can do. Solving the case really depends on everyone. As for me, I'm afraid I can only provide some information."

These words were like a breeze, dispelling the subtle hostility that had arisen in the office due to the arrival of the newcomer. Team Leader Will smiled slightly, thinking that this kid was not bad, sensible and perceptive. The tense atmosphere immediately eased.

"Okay, we can talk about these things later. Let's talk about the case first."

Frank didn't have much patience for these things, raised his hand to stop Qin Jin from continuing, and went straight to the point:

"What did you figure out?"

Qin Jin picked up the file and began to explain step by step according to his own ideas:

"Actually, the third victim in this series of cases lived right behind my house. Detective Davis even visited my house at the time..."

"You never said we'd become colleagues!" Davis joked, a rare occurrence for him. "If I'd known, I should have dragged you along to check out the site."

A burst of good-natured laughter erupted in the office. Qin Jin shrugged, giving a "It's my fault, isn't it?" smile, before continuing:

"...Just like I told the detective back then, what exactly is this paper figure?"

He picked up a screenshot from the surveillance footage and showed it to everyone:

"Based on the surveillance footage, we can now roughly confirm that this paper figure is not a paper cutout or cardboard figure, but a 'paper effigy,' which is called 'Zha Cai' in Dongfangye!"

The office quieted down as people began to listen to his explanation:

"In Eastern, especially Chinese, funeral customs typically involve burning paper effigies as 'servants' or 'maids' for the deceased, intended to serve their souls in the underworld and ensure their comfort there. The more exquisite the effigies, the more sincere the intention."

The office fell silent, everyone captivated by the strange, exotic customs. But then, Qin Jin abruptly changed the subject, and his narration became increasingly bizarre:

"But considering the deceased's report and the circumstances they mentioned, including the colors and decorations of the paper offerings, I thought of a more ancient and cruel possibility—human sacrifice, or ghost marriage!"

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the surprised and uncertain faces of the crowd:

"Among some extremely dark and long-abandoned customs, there exists a practice of 'marrying' male victims who died young or were unmarried. This is not as simple as making a paper effigy. It requires... finding a woman whose birth chart is compatible with the deceased's, killing her in an extremely painful manner, writing her birth date on the paper effigy, and burying it with the deceased."

"According to taboo customs, once they reach the underworld, which is what we call hell or heaven, they will become husband and wife and live there!"

A collective gasp filled the office.

Frank's brow furrowed, Team Leader Will turned pale, and Davis muttered a curse.

This cold, bloody custom, which treats human life as worthless, is challenging their understanding of modern society governed by the rule of law.

"But!" Qin Jin's voice suddenly rose, having told the truth, he began to guide the conversation according to his own line of thought:

"If that's the case, then the whole thing doesn't make sense..."

He took out three photos and showed them to the crowd: "Look, the ways these three victims died are vastly different: crushed by a sculpture, burned to death, and had their throats slit... This strikes me as odd, because if it really was a supernatural phenomenon that killed them, why would the methods of death be so different?"

His gaze swept over everyone in the office, then he strode to the whiteboard and wrote five large Chinese characters—

Metal, wood, water, fire, earth! Then connect them with lines to form a circle.

Then, the three photos were pasted next to the characters for "gold," "fire," and "earth."

"These three methods of death seem to correspond to three of the Five Elements, and there are no repetitions or exceptions!"

Qin Jin's gaze sharpened, as if he were truly analyzing a complex puzzle:

"I suspect this isn't a supernatural phenomenon at all, but rather someone is using this folk taboo as a smokescreen to actually carry out a premeditated 'Five Elements Murder'!"

"The Five Elements?" Frank frowned, and the other agents also frowned; the term seemed somewhat unfamiliar to them.

"Yes, the Five Elements—metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. These are the basic elements that constitute the world in ancient Eastern philosophy, and they are mutually generating and mutually restraining."

Qin Jin explained, his tone resolute:

"The fact that the killer chose different methods of murder, deliberately corresponding to different elements of the Five Elements, is no coincidence. Their purpose is most likely to complete some extremely evil secret ritual! The ultimate goal of such a ritual often points to... immortality, a curse, or some kind of evil sacrifice!"

This conclusion was like a boulder thrown into calm water! The office erupted in chaos!

"The Five Elements Ritual? Immortality?"

Team Leader Will muttered to himself, his eyes filled with disbelief, yet it seemed logically plausible.

"I knew it! Ordinary serial killers aren't this cunning!" Agent Thomson slammed his hand on the table and immediately began discussing with the agent next to him.

For the first time, Supervisor Frank's gaze towards Qin Jin carried a genuine scrutiny.

This explanation perfectly connects the bizarre appearance with the underlying motives, allowing them to find a scientifically reasonable starting point in this bizarre and intractable case.

At least, writing in the report that it was some kind of evil priest or religious killer is easier for superiors to accept than killing with paper dolls, and it is also more appropriate to explain to the public.

A bright light flashed in his eyes, as if the gloom that had plagued him for days had been torn open. He patted Qin Jin's shoulder heavily:

"Well done! I knew Logan made the right recommendation!"

He waved his hand and pointed at Will:

"Will! Now you know what to do, right?"

"I plan to have Qin Jin, Davis, and Thomson work together to investigate from a folklore perspective, visiting Chinese communities to look for clues," Will already had a plan in mind:

"I led my team to continue with the original steps, to refine the social relationships of the three deceased, and to find a breakthrough..."

"Supervisor Frank, Team Leader Will!"

Qin Jin quickly spoke up, expressing his complete lack of interest in such matters:

"I've read the case file, but there are still some parts I don't quite understand. What do you think...? How about we have Detective Davis and his team conduct the interviews? I need to double-check the information in the file. I'll contact them when I have any news. What do you think?"

Frank looked at Qin Jin as a rising star in crime-solving, and his "rigorous" and "responsible" attitude impressed him greatly.

He waved his hand readily: "Alright! We'll do it your way! Take the case file with you and study it carefully—" He then looked at Detective Davis:

"Davis, you guys go to the Chinese community first. Qin will let you know if there's any news."

"Roger!" Detective Davis responded immediately.

Under the complex yet slightly admiring gazes of the crowd, Qin Jin left the police station carrying a large stack of photocopied files.

"We've managed to fool them... for now."

He started the car, the engine emitting a deep roar. "Time is of the essence, I need to go and talk to the person in charge."