Chapter Six: Suspicion

  The body has been taken away, and the poor lovers were carried by their grieving relatives onto a hearse. Yang Hao and his two companions arrived at the conference room of the municipal police bureau, where a special task force was set up to tackle this case. There were nearly 10 people present, all of whom were elite individuals with both intelligence and experience, but at this moment, every single one of them had furrowed brows, including the current director.

  “…….”

  "Speaking of which... it's a waste that you're all called elites. How come you've all become mute now? Huang Kai, you're in charge of this case, why don't you speak up and share your thoughts?"

  The director seemed to have lost his temper and shouted out loud, this oppressive silence was naturally making the officials present more and more unable to hold back.

  "Hmm... I think this case is more heinous than the 5.12 serial murder case, but what's different is that the criminal target doesn't seem to be specific to gender, ethnicity, or occupation. It seems like it was done on a whim. And judging from the crime scene, the location of the murder is actually on a tourist beach. This is completely different from the usual secluded locations chosen by criminals. I have to say, this perpetrator's audacity is unmatched. Moreover, since the incident occurred on the beach, with fine sand all around, footprints, signs of struggle, and tire tracks were all blown away by the wind. This indeed increases the difficulty. However, one thing that can be confirmed is that these two people were definitely killed by him."

  Huang Kai was forced to speak out some of his own judgments, and the people around him also began to discuss in a low voice.

  "This case is indeed heinous. The cruelty of the crime is almost beyond human capability. Does anyone have anything to add?" Yang Hao heard the director say this and suddenly had an idea flash through his mind, but he swallowed it back and didn't speak up, quietly listening to everyone's discussion.

  "Director, I've made some inquiries about the victims' families and their relationships with those around them. The deceased male and female were both from out of town, students at XXX University, and were in a romantic relationship. Their interpersonal relationships were very simple, and they had almost no social background. However, after investigating their residence and campus, it was found that these two individuals were morally upright and academically excellent, with exemplary behavior, and were widely praised by those who knew them. Therefore, the possibility of a revenge killing can be ruled out." Guo Zhi stood up and reported his investigation results.

  "What does this mean?????"

  "I think it can be said that the murderer's killing was not based on money or emotional entanglements, but rather, looking at the case and comparing it to the 5.12 criminal, there are some similarities in that they were driven by a desire for release and had a sadistic psychology of abnormality. However, their target was unclear, meaning anyone, whether male or female, social figures or students, could become victims."

  The speaker was another officer nicknamed "Terminator", named Shen Zhenyu, who was famous for his quick and efficient handling of cases and meticulous analysis of the situation. Almost no case had been left unsolved from his hands. Therefore, he and Huang Kai were known as the youngest crime fighters in DL city.

  "This case is too... too terrifying... it's just that, I suppose" A soft and delicate female voice emerged.

  Rumble... rumble... The sky suddenly burst open with a flash of lightning, and the thunder rumbled over, causing Yang Hao's heart to beat violently as well... Everyone in the house was shocked by the thunderclap. The person who said this was a female forensic doctor who had just been transferred, reportedly a Ph.D. in medicine from Tsinghua University's Department of Forensic Medicine. Yang Hao felt an inexplicable sense of unease after hearing her words and the previous thunder, causing his heart to beat violently... "A-Hao, what are you thinking? Say something!" Huang Kai wiped his face with his hand and tried to calm down.

  "I... I have an idea, but I don't know if I should say it..."

  Everyone's eyes were on him, "Speak... no need to be reserved, say whatever comes to mind", the director also took a sip of water, waiting for Yang Hao's response, hoping to gain something from it.

  "I... I said something I shouldn't have said, I think this is not something a human would do"

  "What?????"

  "What did he just say? Is it humanly possible?"

  "Is that right? Who did it?"

  Everyone below was shocked by Yang Hao's words, and the discussion grew louder and louder.

  "It's not something a human can do... You continue..."

  "Firstly, the deaths of the two individuals were extremely brutal... When people are frightened or encounter danger, they will react with resistance, especially when subjected to intense pain, and won't just be slaughtered without a fight. However, when I examined the bodies, I found that neither of the victims showed any signs of being restrained, indicating that they remained free until their death and were not hindered in their movements. Secondly, there were no bruises or blood clots on the victims' bodies, suggesting that no one had forcibly held down their limbs. Additionally, their internal organs were all normal, with no signs of poisoning.

  Yang Hao finished speaking and glanced at the female forensic doctor. Seeing Yang Hao's gaze, the female doctor nodded in agreement, confirming that what he said was true. Everyone looked at Yang Hao with expectation, including Director Lao."

  Yang Hao swallowed his saliva and said in a low voice that was squeezed out from his throat...

  "So... what exactly is the reason that makes this man and woman endure endless fear and heart-wrenching pain, motionless and without any resistance, being tortured to death? Yang Hao said up to this point, his eyes drifted towards the window. Looking at the dark clouds filling the sky, it seemed as if he felt the arrival of a storm. Everyone was affected by what he said, even the old police officer with 10 years of experience on the force couldn't help but get goosebumps."

  "Hmm... let's continue then." The director relaxed his clenched fists and said as calmly as possible.

  "It's gone... That's all I've got to say..." At the most critical moment, Yang Hao reserved his words again, after all, he was a people's police officer. He couldn't just blurt out: "I suspect they were killed by ghosts?"

  Everyone present actually understands what Yang Hao wants to say, but also for this reason, it's not good to ask more questions. Director sees that Yang Hao has some reservations, so he assigns tasks, letting Huang Kai lead a team to investigate all the information of criminals with neurological diseases and go to the hospital to verify their recent situation. Shen Zhenyu is assigned to meet with famous people in the medical field to investigate some problems related to human physiology. After everyone leaves, Yang Hao is left behind.

  The director pulled out a pack of "Yuxi" cigarettes and handed one to Yang Hao, who lit up and took two strong puffs. Yang Hao also accepted the cigarette and started smoking, completely forgetting about quitting. This wasn't because of social obligations, but because the matter was too sensitive and unsettling. Sometimes, tobacco has an irreplaceable effect on calming one's nerves. Those who have been police officers must have experienced this - when they're at a loss, smoking a few cigarettes can help their thoughts come together, which is the soothing effect of tobacco.

  "Yang Hao, who do you think is behind this case?"

  "I still don't know now..."

  "Since you said it's not done by humans, there must be a reason, what is it?"

  "You won't believe it even if I tell you..."

  "You haven't said anything, how did you know I didn't believe?"

  The director's expression told Yang Hao that he was not joking, on the contrary, his serious expression made Yang Hao feel that this matter could not be hidden, so he brought up the matter of seeing a person's handprint under the strange car chassis. After finishing speaking, Yang Hao lowered his head and smoked. He knew the director would not believe him, and might even scold him, but after waiting for a long time, the director did not speak, instead becoming more serious in thought. Outside the window, small raindrops had started falling, and dull thunder rumbled from time to time.

  "Yang Hao, this matter has shocked the provincial capital and even the central government. It has also been listed as a top-secret file. Since you have the ability to find clues, I can only make a detailed confession to you."

  The director finished speaking, extinguished the cigarette butt, and took out a yellow file from the table. Seeing only two characters written in the corner, it was clear that this was not something ordinary people or even civil servants could see.

  "Take a look first, and then I'll explain it to you in detail." Yang Hao took over the file and opened it... The contents inside were messy and confusing... But one eye-catching title caught Yang Hao's attention: August 14th, 2008, No. 13 Demolition Area, No. 7 Ruins - Top Secret. Coincidentally, this was the day Yang Hao captured Zeng Qiang and faked his own death in the haunted house. So Yang Hao carefully read through the contents and found out that the government had already known about the problems with this building and had taken measures to deal with it. Everything was supposed to be safe and sound, but it was ruined by Yang Hao and his team. The person guarding this residence was a special-grade official appointed by the central government. However, he happened to be absent at the time of Yang Hao's incident. It was this person who returned to the scene that day, discovered something unusual, and reported it to his superiors. After that, a secret meeting was held to discuss the situation, and it was confirmed that Yang Hao had indeed been to the scene that day and had gotten into trouble. Therefore, the higher-ups were trying to investigate the clues, which is why they kept urging the director to find Yang Hao's body. But who would have thought that Yang Hao didn't actually die? The current director has a good relationship with Yang Hao's father and originally wanted Yang Hao to recover and live a stable life. However, due to a series of unfortunate events, he stumbled upon this case again and discovered the key point. So, under duress, he presented this top-secret file on the table.

  "Who is guarding this building?" Yang Hao closed the file and asked.

  "He has gone to the central area for a meeting and will be back in a few days. At that time, you can meet him."

  "Now that the government has found problems with the building, why don't they demolish it?"

  "After all, the building is a historical evidence of Japan's invasion of China during World War II, and the government was forced to keep it under pressure."

  "Alas... this is really troublesome...” Yang Hao couldn't help but sigh, after all, it was him who encountered such a thing, if it were someone else, they would probably have already been in the underworld preparing to drink Meng Po's soup by now.

  "Yang Hao, this case can't be revealed to anyone except you and me. You can only investigate secretly, I will apply for support from above and assign special personnel to assist you. After all, the government does not allow panic, ordinary people have been living in peace for so many years, they firmly believe in science and oppose superstition. If we suddenly say that ghosts appear, think about the consequences? As for the municipal bureau's people, I will arrange for them to run some wrong routes, after investigating without result, they will put this case on file as an unsolved case and seal it permanently."

  "Oh... alright. I'll keep the organization's secrets safe. I really hope that guard comes back soon, I'm afraid I won't be able to handle it by myself."

  "I won't let you take risks again, rest assured." The director nodded in satisfaction after Yang Hao agreed to keep the secret, then gestured for Yang Hao to leave, and sat back in his office chair, closing his eyes...

  Yang Hao walked out of the police station and stood at the entrance, looking at the light rain outside. He thought to himself that he hoped such a tragic case would not happen again. Just as Yang Hao was lost in thought, a strange yet familiar voice floated over from behind him, "Yang Hao..." Yang Hao turned around to look for the source of the sound and saw a girl wearing a white short-sleeved shirt with a ponytail standing behind him. It was none other than the female forensic doctor who had attended the meeting together.

  "You are..."

  "Oh... sorry, I forgot to introduce myself, my name is Han Yunxue. I'm the new forensic doctor who just transferred to our bureau. We met today." She smiled slightly, bringing a ray of sunshine to this gloomy weather. Actually, Han Yunxue wasn't exactly new either, she had been working at the bureau for more than two weeks already. It's just that Yang Hao was out running cases and had faked his own death, so he didn't have much impression of this pretty girl who wasn't exactly new. During the meeting, everyone's mind was preoccupied with the case, their faces were all gloomy, Yang Hao didn't pay attention, but now it seems, this girl gave him a pretty good feeling, better than when she wore her white coat.

  "Hmm...do you need something from me?"

  "It's actually nothing much, I heard you're quite busy, so I took this opportunity to get to know you a bit, do you have some free time later? Want to grab a coffee and sit down for a bit? Consider it making friends?" Han Yunxue said with an expectant face, completely unaware that these words should be spoken by a man, but facing Yang Hao's cold and handsome face, plus his background, she had already gotten herself confused.

  "Really... I'm so sorry, there's something else at home... maybe some other time?", Yang Hao replied tentatively, but Han Yunxue's expectant expression was immediately frozen.

  "Let's get together another day and I'll invite you to dinner with my friends, we can have a good chat then and formally become friends." Yang Hao added somewhat embarrassedly.

  "Alright, you go ahead and get busy." Han Yunxue nodded slightly disappointedly, and Yang Hao chatted with her for a few more sentences before driving away... Han Yunxue stood in place, feeling a bit disappointed but also secretly pleased. After all, they already had an agreement, it was just a matter of time. Thinking this, she smiled to herself and turned back into the police station.

  Yang Hao was driving on the road in the evening of a rainy night. He was thinking about these things in his mind, and the government seemed to be a bit too lax? If they had discovered the problem, they should have completely sealed off that area... How could they find someone who was derelict in their duty to take care of it??? Fortunately, the ones involved were himself and a damned criminal. If it were an ordinary citizen, what would the outcome be??? Thinking about this, his car had already arrived at his home's entrance. As soon as Yang Hao entered the house, his mother had already prepared dinner for him. Yang Hao temporarily put aside these annoying things and happily finished eating with his parents. He claimed he was a bit tired and went to sleep first. Then he returned to his room, locked the door, and adjusted his breath according to the method his father taught him... At this time, he couldn't care about the things his old man had entrusted to him. His mind was all thinking about how to find clues. After operating for a while, Yang Hao successfully left his body, then picked up the Tongyou Command Token in his hand. Suddenly, a white light appeared before his eyes, followed by a flash of black and white light. Yang Hao once again arrived at another space's, Yin Du Ghost City.