Chapter 278: The Kiss Of Death (1/2)

The document showed no trace of gastric acid corrosion, suggesting that it must have been swallowed by the dead man before the accident. However, the paper was thoroughly soaked so pulling it apart by force was out of the question if we wanted to look at the contents on the document.

”So, the dead man suddenly swallows a piece of paper at such a critical juncture,” surmised Xiaotao. “Could this document be very important?”

”Can we recover it?” I asked.

”We’ll have to send it to the Physical Evidence Identification Center,” Xiaotao frowned. “Though with how soaked it is, it’ll probably take them a few days.”

I found an evidence bag and instructed Dali to send it over to the Physical Evidence Identification Center which was the white building next to the city bureau.

Then, I proceeded to examine the burnt body. The man was close to thirty years old. Although the body had been burnt to this point, the fact that the deceased paid great attention to his appearance before his death was apparent from his neatly trimmed fingernails and sinewy figure that showed muscle symmetry. His toned torso was accompanied by the Adonis belt which could only be achieved by long-term, consistent exercise.

I opened the dead man's mouth and looked inside. There were no traces of ashes in his mouth and nose, indicating that the corpse had been burned after death. His entire body had been charred black and his clothes had melted into his flesh. I leaned in and caught a whiff of gasoline, and then used the Echolocation Rod.

”What have you found?” interrupted Xiaotao.

”The murderer seems to harbor a deep hatred for the deceased. He was stabbed sixteen times in the chest and his internal organs were all smashed.”

”That bad?” Xiaotao asked in disbelief.

I used the tweezers to pick at the wound and pointed with the Echolocation Rod. ”The murderer’s technique isn’t professional as indicated by the angle of the stab wounds. The murderer held the knife upright while a professional would use the opposite direction, pushing the thumb against the end of the hilt which uses the least effort.”

Incineration was the best way to destroy evidence so we couldn’t find the murderer’s fingerprints and hair. I searched carefully for clues and found that the dead man's lips appeared slightly abnormal. After examining them repeatedly for some time, I finally concluded, ”There are bite marks on his lips!”

Xiaotao leaned in and asked, ”Where?”

I pointed with the tweezers, indicating the location on the upper and lower lips which both showed bite marks. It seemed that the murderer had forcefully bitten… no, kissed the dead man!

By the looks of the wound, it was a kiss that contained contradictory emotions, both love and hate. I could almost imagine the scene at the time.

”That’s great!” cried Xiaotao. “I'll ask Xiao Zhou to create a dental model and compare it to the dental records of the suspect. But isn't the deceased a man? Why would two men kiss each other?”

”You’re not a fan of Yi Xi, are you?” I laughed.

Xiaotao shook her head, “No, why?”

”I was afraid you might hit me if I tell you the rumors I heard,” I said, lowering my voice mysteriously. I heard that Yi Xi might be gay.”

Xiaotao stared in wide-eyed shock. ”Really?!”

”You don't normally pay attention to entertainment news, do you?” I chuckled. “This sort of gossip has been published several times but his agency has refuted the rumors each time so Yi Xi's sexual orientation has remained a mystery.”

”The man does have an effeminate temperament,” said Xiaotao. “That was the first impression he gave me.”

The murder seemed connected to love and hatred. I was suddenly struck by a thought and immediately checked the dead man’s lower body. Although I might have predicted it, I was shocked to see that the dead man was missing a penis.

I asked Xiaotao for some rubbing alcohol and wet the area, carefully lifting the clothes attached to it. The sight that greeted my eyes had me drawing a sharp intake of breath.

The victim's penis had been removed from the base where a bite mark was clearly visible. I checked the wound and confirmed that it was bitten off after death.

Xiaotao couldn’t help but purse her lips. ”It looks like the murderer hated the deceased. Killing the man wasn’t enough! The murderer even bit off his penis!”