Divine Oracle [Transmigration] (ORACLE)
On the other side, after all projections were transmitted, Yu Yiming and Tian Li began investigating the deceased's former residence.
"This apartment is strange. With the living room as the dividing line, the master bedroom, balcony, and bathroom on the left side of the living room are very clean, with items neatly arranged—someone must have been regularly cleaning and organizing them. Meanwhile, the living room, the side bedroom on the right, and the kitchen are as messy as a garbage dump. The side bedroom has poor lighting and feels cramped. The kitchen... tsk, it's really quite disgusting. The grease stains look like they haven't been scrubbed for centuries, and there's mold growing in all four bowls left on the counter. And—damn it, it's all cockroaches!"
Song Si said, "Xiao Li is here, watch your language."
"Okay," Yu Yiming obediently corrected himself, "Sorry, Mr. Cockroach, for disturbing your rest."
Tian Li peeked in from the living room: "Close the door quickly! That just makes it even more disgusting!"
Yu Yiming returned to the living room and started sifting through the pile of garbage with Tian Li: "There are five instant noodle cups on the table. Based on the degree of mold growth, they're probably from about 7 days, 5 days, 4 days, 3 days, and 2 days ago respectively. The most recent cup still has half a marinated egg and a piece of sausage in it, suggesting Hong Yi still had a decent appetite before leaving for M City."
The camera gave a close-up of the living room.
"No television," Yu Yiming said with some regret. "Are there still people who don't watch TV these days?"
Song Si said, "Go check the clean bedroom, the one with the balcony."
Yu Yiming returned to the bedroom and aimed the camera at the bookshelf.
Most of the bookshelf was filled with comic books, with the remaining half consisting of novels. Yu Yiming searched from top to bottom, opened every drawer under the bookshelf, and rummaged through the bedroom for over ten minutes before finally sighing: "No router, no computer, no backup phone, not even a network cable port installed. Did I come here for nothing?"
Song Si said, "There's still the balcony."
Yu Yiming gave up looking for electronic devices and walked out to the balcony.
The balcony wasn't used for drying clothes or growing flowers—at first glance, it was completely empty with nothing at all. Yu Yiming said, "The balcony is empty. My thinking has become too digitally fixated. I just feel something's strange but can't pinpoint what exactly. Xiao Si, any thoughts?"
Song Si said, "Check the guardrail."
Yu Yiming patted the metal mesh inside the security window, making a series of clanging sounds: "Why would the deceased install metal mesh inside the security window? To prevent theft?"
Song Si didn't answer but instead asked: "Are there any sharp objects in the house? Like fruit knives, scissors, that kind of thing."
"Wait a moment," he said, "let's confirm again."
After a moment, Yu Yiming made a surprised sound: "Strange, there really aren't any sharp objects at all. What did they use for cooking or cutting fruit?"
Song Si then asked Tian Li at the kitchen entrance: "Is it pipeline gas or an induction cooker?"
"Induction cooker," Tian Li said.
Song Si zoomed in on the holographic image: "What's wrapped around the four corners of the table? Are those anti-collision foam pads?"
"Yes, yes," Tian Li said, "My mom put these in my younger brother's room too~"
Song Si redirected his gaze to the iron mesh on the balcony and voiced his speculation: "The deceased was a leukemia patient with clear signs of depression and social withdrawal, preferring dark, cramped, and confined spaces like the side bedroom. At the same time, he was intensely cautious about his life, fearing any sharp objects that could cause bleeding. He kept no knives at home, padded all furniture corners, and sought psychological security through these measures."
"However, based on the state of his home, we need to analyze this with the possibility of dissociative identity disorder. Beyond the primary personality described, let’s hypothesize a secondary personality—one that preferred clean, tidy, and well-lit living spaces, maintained certain hobbies, and held a detached view of life and death. This secondary personality may have engaged in risky activities on the balcony…"
Yu Yiming immediately recalled yesterday’s tragedy: "Could he have attempted to jump from his own home?"
"That’s possible," Song Si replied. "The edges of the iron mesh also count as sharp objects. If nothing had happened on the balcony, the primary personality wouldn’t have risked installing it. Yiming, take another look at that iron mesh—something about it feels off to me."
As Yu Yiming left the side bedroom to return to the balcony, the AI intelligently zoomed in on surrounding objects with his movement. Song Si’s eyes swept over the wardrobe and suddenly caught sight of something. "Wait," he said.
"Open the wardrobe," Song Si stared at the partially ajar door. "Is there a set of dark blue loungewear inside?"
Yu Yiming pushed the wardrobe door open. Inside, clothes were piled haphazardly, all crumpled, with a set of dark blue loungewear on top—apparently discarded hastily before going out.
Then Song Si remembered.
He had seen it—in the deceased’s projected obsession!
His heartbeat quickened as he rapidly replayed the eerie and horrifying projection in his mind: Hong Yi, wearing loungewear, pressed against the guardrail on the rooftop, while another version of himself dragged an axe and severed his head…
While trying to escape, he had even rattled the rooftop guardrail behind him—also made of iron mesh!
Instantly, Song Si understood why the balcony’s iron mesh had felt unsettling.
He had a theory.
When he and Chu Mingyi witnessed that projection on the rooftop, they had assumed the scene took place there, as it was the direct location of death.
But now it seemed—Hong Yi had been wearing loungewear in the obsession, meaning the scene likely occurred on this very balcony with the iron mesh.
In the projected fragment, the deceased had briefly cried for help. If Song Si’s theory was correct, then at that moment, the person he pleaded with was standing right in the bedroom!
Song Si said, "Yesterday, Chu Mingyi and I captured the deceased’s thought particles. I suspect the content occurred on this balcony. I’m transmitting the data to you—replay it on-site."
He sent the data to Yu Yiming, and the deceased’s final residual phantom began to take shape on the balcony.
A young man in loungewear, afflicted with terminal illness and autism, reappeared. This time, he was pressed against the balcony’s iron mesh, trapped with no retreat, clutching his head tightly as he let out terrified, desperate screams.
Yu Yiming startled and instinctively stepped back.
"Save me!" Hong Yi stared fixedly in Yu Yiming’s direction, his face contorted and grotesque in the sunlight. "Save me!!"
Yu Yiming and Tian Li on the scene got goosebumps from the eerie scenario, neither speaking as they quietly watched the replay of the deceased's most terrifying moments before death.
When they had watched from the mall rooftop yesterday, the playback had a faint echo, which felt oddly mismatched with the empty rooftop. Now, in the deceased's residence, everything aligned perfectly.
It was as if they had found the right puzzle pieces.
Song Si slowly took a deep breath, replayed the footage, and paused it at the segment where Hong Yi was pleading for help.
Entering Yu Yiming's area of expertise, he asked, "Can you make anything out?"
Yu Yiming circled the holographic projection twice, then stepped back into the bedroom, scrutinizing it carefully before speaking. "Judging by the shadow angles, this scene likely occurred between 1:00 PM and 2:30 PM. The victim was crouching when he called for help, with normal pupil focus, looking straight ahead. But when the other version of himself dragging an axe appeared, his pupils were unfocused, no longer able to concentrate.
"I believe he was self-aware when he pleaded for help. Directly in front of him, someone else was also crouching, at eye level with him. After his pleas went unanswered, his mind shattered, leading to the subsequent hallucinations."
As he spoke, Yu Yiming took a few steps back, maintaining about five meters from the projection, and crouched down.
"Right about here."
A voice suddenly came from behind Song Si: "Check the surveillance footage at the entrance of Hong Yi's residential complex and question his neighbors one by one—see if anyone heard screams or noticed strangers entering Hong Yi's home recently."
Song Si turned to see Chu Mingyi, who had woken up at some point, his hair disheveled and dark circles under his eyes, one hand rubbing his neck as if he had a stiff neck.
Before finishing his sentence, Chu Mingyi drank the water from Song Si's cup and added, "Judging by the state of the living room and side bedroom, Hong Yi had severe depressive tendencies. The fact that he used public transport to go to a crowded protest site suggests this scene happened not long ago."
Yu Yiming and Tian Li: "Copy that."
Song Si glanced at the cup on his desk—now empty.
Chu Mingyi walked over to him, carefully observing the projected scene of the deceased's home.
Song Si nonchalantly stepped away and refilled his cup with water.
It wasn't until Yu Yiming and Tian Li had collected all the necessary information and left Hong Yi's home that Chu Mingyi finally moved, turning to Song Si with a questioning tone: "Five o'clock??"
Song Si, feeling guilty, was about to slip away: "I wasn't fully awake this morning either, misread it—it was actually seven o'clock."
Chu Mingyi said, "Then why didn't you wake me?"
Song Si put on an innocent smile, trying to brush it off. Just then, Tian Li, who was about to retrieve the surveillance footage, chimed in over the third division's channel: "Mingyi-ge, that's not right! Sisi told us today that staying up late is terrible for your health. No matter how fit you are, you shouldn't mess up your sleep schedule. No matter how busy work gets, you need to ensure proper rest!"
Chu Mingyi raised an eyebrow, looking at Song Si. "Your Sisi-ge stayed up until 1:30 AM last night reviewing surveillance footage, so tired he fell asleep at his desk and even drooled."
Tian Li: "Holy crap!"
Yu Yiming: "...I want to see."
Song Si took off his headset, picked up his cup: Time to make a quick exit.
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