Invincible forensics

Chapter 2: "The Butcher's Knife"

At the break of dawn, Robert Downey rose from his bed. He knew he had to quickly adapt to his new identity and life. The past was sealed, and the blueprint for his future was still waiting to be drawn. Undeniably, Robert was a man with a strong ability to adapt. In one night, he had come to terms with much. Since fate had given him another chance at life, he didn’t want to remain mediocre anymore.

Robert had always believed in one thing: “God gave us one mouth and two hands so we should speak less and do more.” He had always followed this principle in life.

"Robert, up so early? Yesterday you were overheated. Shouldn’t you rest a bit more? There’s porridge on the table, eat up and go to work. I’ve been playing mahjong all night; I’m exhausted." Robert's mother’s faint voice came from the inner room.

Robert simply responded with an "Mm," not saying much. He quickly finished the light porridge, then lit incense for his father’s identity, and left the house.

After taking two bus rides, Robert arrived at his workplace—the B District Police Station of A City. He checked the duty roster and learned that today he was assigned to patrol from C Road to E Road in District B. His partner was none other than Old Toy, one of the officers who had mocked him yesterday.

Old Toy’s full name was Toy Pas. He was about 32 years old, roughly 1.8 meters tall, with a flat-top haircut and a square jaw. He was well-built, and it was rumored that he had trained in bodybuilding before becoming a police officer. The nickname "Old Toy" came from his oddly shaped face—round at the top and pointed at the bottom, with high cheekbones, resembling a “T” letter.

Old Toy was the first officer Robert had met when he joined the police force.

"Ha, is everything okay now, bro? Yesterday we were all worried sick about you. Didn’t know your body was this weak. Today we’re on patrol together, if you need help, just stay behind me," Old Toy said, chuckling, giving Robert a look that seemed to show concern.

Robert forced a smile and didn’t respond, heading straight into the police station.

“Angry, huh?” Old Toy scratched his head in confusion. "I’ve never seen him like this before." In his memory, Robert had always been the type to let things slide, never holding a grudge, even for serious mistakes. Why was he so upset today?

At eight o’clock, the other officers began arriving, including Xu Na (the "beauty" from yesterday), Chris, Lydia Will, and Xu Tao.

Lydia Will was a gentle and well-behaved girl, about 1.65 meters tall with a delicate oval face and short bobbed hair. Her eyebrows arched with a certain sharpness, and she had two shallow dimples on her fair face. When she saw Robert, she deliberately turned her head away, thinking, “Fool, you deserve to have heatstroke.”

Robert had planned to apologize for the previous day’s events, but seeing that Lydia Will was still upset, he swallowed his words and decided to wait until tomorrow to speak.

"Check your gear, we’re heading out!" The last person to enter the office was their squad leader, Huang He, known as “Yellow Shark.” He was known for his strict and harsh nature.

Huang He had little regard for Robert, whom he considered an unambitious young man. He had long wanted to kick Robert out of his squad, but had never found the right opportunity.

Once the equipment checks were done, Robert’s patrol shift began.

Walking aimlessly along C Road, Robert remained silent, which confused Old Toy even more. In the past, even after serious mistakes, Robert had always been magnanimous and quick to forgive. Why was he so upset today? Old Toy felt something was different—Robert had become colder, more withdrawn.

"Hey, you don’t need to act like this. I’ve already apologized. What more do you want?" Old Toy’s patience wore thin. He had always been the dominant one in front of Robert, but today, Robert wasn’t giving him any face, and this ignited a flame of irritation in Old Toy.

Robert turned his head, staring coldly at Old Toy. It was as if a bucket of icy water had been poured over Old Toy’s fire, extinguishing it instantly. He took a step back, unsure of how to react.

“Don’t talk to me about personal matters during work hours,” Robert said indifferently, continuing to walk ahead. Old Toy stood frozen, his palms sweating, realizing that Robert had truly changed, and so quickly.

The sky was overcast, with no sign of daylight. The sun shyly hid behind dark clouds, gradually disappearing. For some reason, Robert’s right eye kept twitching, as though something was about to happen.

As they reached a five-story building near Ai Hua Supermarket, Robert felt parched and decided to buy a bottle of mineral water. He had just stepped through the supermarket door when he heard a loud "bang" from behind him, followed by something heavy falling from a great height. A splatter of something hit him in the back.

Screams erupted all around, and Robert quickly turned around. Not far behind him, a pregnant woman lay on the ground, blood and brain matter splattered everywhere. Old Toy stood frozen beside her, stunned, while pedestrians slowly gathered around the scene.

“What are you standing there for? Lock down the scene, call an ambulance, and notify the nearby officers!” Robert shouted, quickly running back to the woman. Old Toy snapped out of his stupor at Robert’s command.

By the time Robert reached the woman’s side, it was clear she had already died. He crouched down to check her pulse and breath, then opened her eyelids to confirm her death.

The woman’s head had struck the ground hard, causing fatal injury. Her lower body was bleeding, with a mixture of blood and white fluid. Scattered nearby were baby formula and baby clothes.

“Murder?” Robert instinctively looked up at the supermarket building. None of the windows were open, suggesting the woman had likely fallen from the top. Based on Robert’s expert eye, it seemed more likely that she had been murdered.

At that moment, other officers arrived to help Old Toy secure the scene, while the ambulance and homicide team were still on their way.

“Robert, come help! Don’t disturb the body!” Old Toy urgently called out, worried that Robert might make a mistake. Their job was to protect the scene, not examine the body. But Robert furrowed his brows and completely ignored him.

The crowd murmured and whispered, with more customers rushing out of the supermarket, creating chaos.

"The woman’s amniotic sac ruptured! What do we do?!" Robert was now facing a huge psychological dilemma. The woman had likely been in labor and died from the fall. If she was treated with an emergency cesarean within the next 4-5 minutes, the baby could still be saved.

But doing so would give the killer an opportunity to escape, and besides, Robert was a forensic pathologist, not an obstetrician. Without surgical tools, making a mistake would mean the baby would die too.

The situation was growing desperate.

“No, saving the baby comes first. I have to try!” Robert grunted, running into the supermarket. Old Toy couldn’t stop him, no matter how hard he tried.

"Miss, where can I find a scalpel?!" Robert urgently asked a supermarket employee.

The employee, horrified by the scene, stammered, "We… we don’t have scalpel… only kitchen knives… over there!"

Robert rushed to the knife section, finding only fruit knives that were too small. In desperation, he grabbed a kitchen knife and ran back toward the scene.

In the 22nd century, most tasks could be completed with technological devices. But experts had urged people to engage in more physical activities to prevent the degeneration of certain body parts. Robert had lived separately from his parents and occasionally cooked for himself using a kitchen knife.

Though he wasn’t as skilled as a surgeon with a scalpel, he was much more proficient with a kitchen knife than a fruit knife, and his precision wouldn’t be too off.

"Robert, what are you doing? Don’t do something reckless!" Old Toy stared in shock as Robert charged out of the supermarket, holding the kitchen knife.

The baby had less than two minutes left to survive. Ignorant of the urgency, Old Toy tried to stop Robert, but Robert’s patience snapped. He swung Old Toy aside with a kick to the abdomen, sending him flying several meters, then tore off his hat and yelled, “Anyone who tries to stop me, I’ll butcher them!”