Main storyline: As young criminal profiler Lin Mo investigates a series of gruesome murders, he discovers a puppeteer known as “Dark Pupil” is behind them. In the end, he learns that the mastermind is none other than his adoptive father and mentor, Qin Ru, a leading psychology expert at the police bureau. Lin Mo must then make the ultimate choice when confronted with the darkness within himself.
**Beginning (Prologue–Chapter 6):**
During the “Wedding Night Suffocation Case” on a rainy night, Lin Mo’s keen profiling skills help him identify and arrest Wang Qiang, a warehouse manager. The bizarre ritualistic details at the crime scene, Wang Qiang’s remark “He was right” when confessing, and a mysterious “eye-shaped symbol” in his book lead to a taunting anonymous letter, revealing the existence of “Dark Pupil.” Meanwhile, the “Bleached Organs Case” takes place, with a completely different method.
**Development (Chapters 7–18):**
Lin Mo solves the “Bleached Organs Case,” in which surgeon Li Zhenhua, blackmailed and incited by the dark web, murders in the name of “purification,” and the “Livestream Kidnapping Case,” in which unemployed young man Zhang Wei is manipulated into becoming the “Judge Clown.” The cases are very different in style, yet both show signs of having been “shaped.” Li Zhenhua hints at a “higher will,” while Zhang Wei’s accomplice reveals a “crime script.” Together, these clues point to an online “mentor.” Lin Mo confirms the pattern behind “Dark Pupil’s” manipulation, and his mental state teeters on the brink of collapse.
**Climax (Chapters 19–27):**
Zhou Fan, a down-and-out genius sculptor and the perpetrator of the “Living Sculpture Case,” openly taunts Lin Mo. When captured, he identifies Lin Mo as “the mentor’s creation.” Data on his computer reveals the in-depth process by which “Dark Pupil” cultivates its targets. An insider at the police bureau leaks information
