Weimar Zaha's Transmigration

The torrential rain fell like a string of pearls torn loose by the heavens, pounding the forensic department's investigation vehicle from Nancheng Public Security Bureau. The splashes mingled with the glow of the streetlights, smearing the windows with a blurred, surreal shimmer. Wei Maerzhaha sat in the passenger seat, unconsciously rubbing the scalpel sheath in the pocket of his white coat. It had been a gift from the old department chief when he joined the force, made of titanium alloy and polished to a soft sheen. A line of tiny characters was engraved inside: “As a speaker for the dead, bear the responsibility of heaven and earth.”

“Brother Wei, there's something strange about this crime scene.” Lin Shutong, a young crime scene technician who had transferred here six months ago, was at the wheel. Her grip tightened as the windshield wipers thrashed back and forth, still unable to keep up with the downpour. “The local station called. The victim died in a building slated for demolition in the old town. The doors and windows were locked from the inside, and there are no external injuries. But the forensic examiner's initial assessment is that it looks like... something was drained out of them?”

Wei Maerzhaha said nothing. He only reached up to press the bridge of his gold-rimmed glasses. At thirty-five, he was the chief forensic pathologist in the technical department of Nancheng Public Security Bureau, just one step away from becoming department chief. If he could crack this case, his promotion at the end of the year would be all but assured. In his thirteen years as a forensic pathologist, he had seen plenty of bizarre cases: people dissolved down to their skeletons by strong acid yet left standing upright, and people who had “drowned” in sealed rooms. But this was the first time he had heard a death described as having “something drained out.”

The investigation vehicle stopped in front of the condemned building. The police cordon was already in place, and several officers in raincoats were standing guard at the entrance. When they saw Wei Maer Zha