"No! This is not the Hawthorne effect, but the Lazarus reflex. For the deceased, declared brain dead but whose bodies are still kept functional by a ventilator, if oxygen supply is sufficient and the nervous system is undamaged or not severely injured, when an electrode stimulates a certain part of the spine, approximately 13% of corpses will raise their hands and cross them over their chests. This phenomenon is called the Lazarus reflex and is an unconditioned reflex. The important condition to distinguish between the Hawthorne effect and the Lazarus reflex is whether the person is alive or dead."
After my explanation, everyone finally understood. Then I rapidly dissected the deceased's body, separated and weighed each organ on an electronic scale. Afterwards, I asked Zhang Keying and Xie Chuchu to help me draw blood and collect urine samples.
Next, I used the 304 fingerprint detector to take the deceased's fingerprints. Fortunately, this female corpse was still quite intact. Even though she was in advanced decomposition, her body was not damaged. Besides, we had already "drained the water" from the corpse after it was brought back.
This action had to be done carefully, otherwise, the corpse might burst from the internal green gas during the process. At that point, even sterile suits and goggles wouldn't protect against the erosion of such toxic gas.
After the basic procedure was completed, and areas like under the fingernails were checked, we discovered something was stuffed into the deceased's right thumb. I carefully extracted it with tweezers. This material was very adhesive; otherwise, the plastic would have washed away when the body was in the water.
I meticulously compared it with several similar materials and conducted numerous experiments. It was then that I discovered it came from the plastic commonly used by some plastics factories. Furthermore, after the technical team recreated its pattern, it was found to be the head of a bat.
"Interesting, but how could something like this end up under the deceased's fingernail? Unless the vampire murderer was caught by her!!" I said sternly, attempting to find other DNA on the plastic. However, this would take time. Xie Chuchu mentioned that the fabric had been soaked in water for quite some time, damaging some of the tissue, but it could be restored with current technology.
I temporarily handed the bat head to her and then began examining the deceased's lungs myself. This person's lungs were exceptionally clean, showing no signs of smoking. They likely also engaged in regular aerobic exercise, as I found their alveoli to be more utilized than others. Another possibility is someone who sings or plays a musical instrument, both of which require a certain level of stamina and necessitate superior vocal cords and lung capacity compared to the average person. Otherwise, a concert would leave them exhausted in less than 20 minutes, which would significantly impact their work.
I once had a very talented friend who sang well, but he neglected this aspect of training and later had to change his profession. I felt immense regret for him at the time.
Additionally, the deceased's stomach contents contained a significant amount of seaweed, which she had swallowed after entering the water. Due to the prolonged period, it had rotted in her stomach, causing several large perforations. Numerous transparent worms crawled out as I opened the stomach sac. Fortunately, Zhang Keying was quick-witted and immediately sprayed insecticide; otherwise, I probably would have been infested by these disgusting creatures.
We extracted some stomach fluid, measured rectal and liver temperatures, and then examined the pupils and corneas, etc. We determined the time of death to be 31 days and 9 hours, with an error of less than 30 minutes. This time perfectly matched the time Huang Yuancai took her away. The murderer was undoubtedly him. The cause of death was finally determined to be severe blood loss leading to cerebral hypoxia. This means Song Wantong was still alive during the altercation in the car.
Now, the problem arises: we found traces of another person on Song Wantong, meaning the bloodsucking was done by someone else.
We are not looking for the person involved in the dispute, but the bloodsucker. Bloodsucking was the true cause of Song Wantong's death. Besides, Huang Yuancai is dead, so finding him is useless.
Based on the roads near Wangyue Lake, we began to intensely search for suspicious individuals. This period of time was around the time Song Wantong fell into the water. Utilizing surveillance footage from the sky net, nearby convenience stores, supermarkets, and repair shops, and with He Xin's efforts, we finally identified three suspicious individuals who were indeed in the vicinity of Wangyue Lake at that time.
"Bring these three people back immediately and interrogate them separately!" I commanded.
"Received!" Xia Hou and others responded in unison.
After everyone departed, I looked at Liu Yuning, who had been silent. Although she couldn't speak, she squeezed my hand tightly and nodded, to which I reciprocated with a nod.
I said to her, "Don't worry, I won't let this killer go unpunished."
Liu Yuning suddenly took a pen and wrote on a piece of paper: "The killer should have porphyria!"
"Yes, Yuning, I think so too. This guy probably thinks he's a vampire."
Speaking of which, I recalled Du Ling'er from before. She was also a porphyria patient. Could the killer be someone related to her?
At this moment, Liu Yuning wrote on the paper again: "Investigate the hospitals. Anyone with porphyria is now a suspect!"
I snapped my fingers, thinking this was a good plan. Porphyria should be rare. As long as we find a few porphyria patients and screen them, we should be able to find the killer.
"Yuning, you truly are my silent strategist!!"
After praising her, I squeezed her shoulder tightly and hugged her. She kissed me on the cheek.
I called Xiao Yuande and asked him to bring some people to investigate the hospitals. He readily agreed.
Then, I myself, along with Yuning and a few police officers, set out.
When we were at the Central Hospital, we asked several doctors who all said they hadn't admitted any porphyria patients. We then went to other hospitals until we reached West District Hospital. There, a doctor surnamed Huang told me, "We do indeed have 2 patients with porphyria. They were transferred from a nursing home; both are elderly men!"
"Elderly men? Where are they now?" I asked.
Dr. Huang showed us to the rooms of the two patients. When I saw the first old man, I noticed he was incredibly emaciated, his skin astonishingly pale, his lips bloodless, and his dark circles very prominent.
It seemed the illness had tormented him severely. We approached the old man and observed him; he clearly didn't have the physical capacity to commit a crime.
We then went to observe the other old man. Unexpectedly, his condition was even more severe. He looked as if he was on his last breath. Looking at him, I couldn't help but ask, "Dr. Huang, are they close to death?"