Era of Magic and Martial Arts-Chapter 264 - 248: Wanting It Both Ways, Insatiable Greed

"This gift is simply unbelievable. Feng Mu truly put so much thought into it for me!"

Qin Liang's voice was filled with emotion. He had lived for decades, his hair had thinned, his teeth had darkened, yet he had never encountered such a genuinely sincere person wanting to befriend him.

Truly, he felt suffocated by an overwhelming sense of friendship.

"I once promised Feng Mu that if he died, I would write a beautiful autopsy report for him, but I could never fulfill it."

"Yet, Feng Mu returned the favor by giving me a beautiful, precisely tailored body, with not a single visible stitch."

"I... feel unworthy of it."

Qin Liang was moved to tears. Originally, he was a bit hesitant between Feng Mu and the prison warden, not sure which side he should lean toward, but now, he understood.

If he even tilted a centimeter toward Qian Huan, it would be a desecration of this friendship.

"There's nothing more to say. I must stake my life to be friends with Feng Mu, witnessed by Tian Tao."

Tears of emotion flowed from Qin Liang's eyes as he carefully returned the weighed heart, liver, spleen, lungs, and kidneys to Tian Tao's body, as if completing a sacred ritual.

Zhou Hu barged in unceremoniously, causing Qin Liang's hand to shake. The heart slipped and dropped, cracking a corner.

"Has the autopsy report come out? What's the real cause of Tian Tao's death?"

Zhou Hu's voice was cold, his gaze fixed on the bloodied organs in the chest cavity, showing visible disgust on his face.

He was not a forensic expert; he couldn't appreciate the subtle beauty of death.

To him, these organs were just a nauseating pile of messy flesh that made him sick.

Qin Liang frowned deeply, pained by his gift being chipped. He shot an annoyed look at Zhou Hu and said coldly, "Myocardial infarction."

Zhou Hu's eyes lit up and he repeated, "Myocardial infarction, isn't that the same reason as the sudden death of the previous warden?!!"

Qin Liang grunted, really disinclined to exchange more words with Zhou Hu.

Zhou Hu completely ignored this, only letting out a cynical chuckle: "Well, well, it's happening again, huh."

Zhou Hu slapped Qin Liang on the shoulder hard, praising, "Well done. Later, draft a detailed autopsy report and send it to my office."

After Zhou Hu left, Qin Liang sat there quietly, not rushing to write the autopsy report.

First, he went to the sink, carefully washed his hands, then took out his phone to send a message to his new friend.

—Feng Mu, I really like the gift you sent me. It deeply touched me. Under the witness of this gift, we are bound to become friends who exchange sincerity with sincerity.

—However, I must apologize to you. Zhou Hu accidentally damaged a corner of the gift, but I will do everything in my power to carefully restore it to its original state.

Good friendships need to be nurtured carefully, like taking care of a perfect body, not letting it get blemished, and if it does, one must apologize sincerely, never hiding anything from friends, so as not to taint honesty.

Qin Liang's actions were impeccable at this point; his sincerity and attention demonstrated his respect and cherishment for this new friendship.

Then, his new friend replied, bringing warm comfort:

—Don't worry about it. It's just a gift. If it's damaged, I'll just send another one later.

Qin Liang's fingers paused slightly over the screen. He truly didn't mean to ask for gifts. He was not that greedy. It was just that his new friend's deep and sincere friendship made his heart feel warm.

"I feel unworthy of this, so I must think of a way to give Feng Mu a gift in return in the future, but I wonder, what would he like?" Qin Liang thought to himself.

Meanwhile, Qin Liang's hands didn't stop; he continued meticulously handling Tian Tao's remains, stitching them up carefully, and then gently placing them into the freezer.

Since the Second Prison's restructuring, the freezer hadn't been used; all bodies went directly to incineration.

Tian Tao probably hadn't expected such unusual care after his death, his smiling face seemed even more radiant after freezing.

....

Inside the warden's office.

After replying to Qin Liang's message with a calm face, Feng Mu put the phone back in his pocket and sat quietly on the couch.

Behind the three-layered explosion-proof glass, Qian Huan had just finished a phone call, looking rather serious, though it was unclear how much of that seriousness was genuine or part of an act.

Even with Feng Mu's keen insight, it was difficult to accurately discern the truth and falsehood behind Qian Huan's expression.

Unlike Chang Wei or Zhou Hu, the warden Qian Huan's skill level was evidently much higher. At least the [Mask] on his face had long since fused with his skin, bones, and marrow.

Feng Mu narrowed his eyes, for the first time, considering if he should prioritize upgrading [Blood Bar Deceit Eye].

Perhaps, once [Blood Bar Deceit Eye] was upgraded, it could reveal more than just health-related information?

Qian Huan [271/271]

The blood bar above the warden's head was ordinary, and Feng Mu calmly looked away, then inadvertently shifted his gaze to another figure standing in the corner.

The person, about 1.9 meters tall, was thin like a tall, bare winter branch, blending with the surrounding air, easily overlooked if not intentionally observed.

Shi Wuming [1544/1544]

"A new face, with a blood bar even thicker than that of Calamity Corpse-transformed Wang Cong."

Feng Mu glanced at him briefly, confirming he hadn't seen this face before, forming a preliminary guess in his mind.

"His demeanor doesn't suggest he's a prison guard, likely sent by Celestial Light Capital or the Bright Group as Qian Huan's bodyguard, probably a charm from Qian Huan's mother Li Hanyu to protect her son, huh—"

Feng Mu thought to himself, having correctly guessed the situation, "Just a slightly inauspicious name, might not live long."

In Feng Mu's subsequent plans, Qian Huan was needed at the forefront to shield him from wind and rain. Qian Huan's combat power was as mediocre as his health bar, but that didn't matter. All Feng Mu needed was the convenience brought by Qian Huan's identity and background.

As an exchange, he and his arranged people would act as knives under Qian Huan's control, serving him and working for him.

So, as a knife, he could allow his "master" to have another knife but would never want his "master" to be clad in armor as well.

One can't have both armor and a knife; that would be a bit too greedy, and not good, definitely not good!