Chapter 43: Cultural Tourism Bureau Logistics Department

In the early morning, the C City Major Crimes Unit's conference room was shrouded in smoke yet brightly lit.

The dozen‑plus officers dispatched that night sat around the circular table, watching the looping footage on the screen, all in a daze, even ignoring the cigarette that burned their fingers.

The screen showed the clearest footage captured by the body cam when they rushed onto the rooftop.

In the footage, a blood‑splattered man in ancient garb stood at the presumed blast centre; his features were indistinct, but after angrily scanning the surroundings he conjured a mask and placed it on his face, then leapt dozens of metres amid the gunfire onto another roof, vanishing from view.

The clip lasted only a few dozen seconds, yet it was slowed frame‑by‑frame for over an hour, and everyone remained frozen in their current posture, staring dazed for more than an hour, unable to accept reality.

"Any results from the Trace Identification Section or the forensic team?"

At the head of the table, a police officer with blood‑shot eyes and a cigarette between his lips broke the silence with the question.

"No. The site appears to have undergone an extremely powerful explosion; the ground melted, no bloodstains were found, nor any explosive residue. Collecting evidence is very difficult," a nearby officer said hesitantly.

"Just as expected," the cigarette‑holding officer sighed.

He is Song Bingyuan, who once crossed paths with Chen Shicheng on the road, and serves as the Major Crimes Unit captain in charge of the ancient‑costume serial murder case.

At this moment Song Bingyuan showed nothing but fatigue on the surface, but that was merely a tactic to steady morale; inside, a tempest had already been raging.

As a staunch materialist, seeing something that defied all logic for the first time dealt a severe blow to his worldview, which is now in the process of being reshaped.

"Has the world finally gone crazy into the shape the youths hoped for?"

Watching the ancient‑clad silhouette hop to another roof as if leaping squares, Song Bingyuan felt his head about to split.

Through various clues in the dozen cases over the past three years, they concluded that a person was committing serial murders without choice; he had taken that as gospel and pursued the investigation accordingly.

Only now did he realize that they had been wrong from the start!

Of course they couldn't be blamed; no one could have imagined that beneath the tranquil world lay an extraordinary hidden realm, that urban‑ability novels were actually true—could this be their autobiography? "Click."

While the conference room remained silent, the main door was suddenly pushed open and seven people in administrative jackets filed in.

"What are you doing? Don't you know a meeting is in progress!" Song Bingyuan's expression soured as he hurriedly unplugged the projector and shut off the screen.

The leading young man, a bit overbearing, gave the screen a half‑smile, pulled a credential from his rear pocket, waved it before everyone, and announced, "We are from the relevant department; from now on, we are taking over the ancient‑costume serial murder case."

The room remained smoky, and the man's movements were too swift for anyone else to see clearly; only Song Bingyuan, standing at the front, caught a glimpse of the text on the credential—Cultural Tourism Bureau Logistics Department? "You… are crazy?"

Honestly, this was the first time in his life he had seen a cultural department storm a Beijing police precinct to seize a case!

Song Bingyuan's already irritated mood snapped into outright agitation: "The suspect's identity hasn't been confirmed, we haven't issued any assistance request, yet you jump straight into cross‑jurisdiction enforcement? Moreover, this overstep is extreme—I have never heard of the Cultural Tourism Department intervening in police investigations!"

"Exactly, what are you joking about? A case the Major Crimes Unit has no leads on, and your cultural department just says 'we'll take it'—do you even have enforcement authority?" several young officers added indignantly.

"You don't need to worry about enforcement authority," the young man said, glancing at his watch. "If your director is the type who gets things done, then very soon..."

"Ring—"

Before he could finish, the ringtone cut him off. Seeing Song Bingyuan hesitating whether to answer, he tilted his head casually, "Answer it; it should be your director." He gave his teammates a calming gesture, hurried to the side, and answered, "Director?"

"Little Song, the Cultural Tourism Bureau is here; have your people fully cooperate with them."

"What? Director, we—"

"Obey the order; I'll explain the specifics later. For now, follow their demands immediately."

"Yes!"

Seeing Song Bingyuan's helpless yet obliged demeanor, the young man gave a silent smile and gestured to his companions.

The administrative‑jacketed group stormed into the conference room, sat down, and the leading youth re‑plugged the projector and began replaying the footage repeatedly.

The brief video replayed once in a flash; the youth grabbed the remote, paused repeatedly on several key frames, then looked at the others, "Give me your conclusions."

"He's not ordinary," the nearby administrative‑jacketed officer frowned, his complexion unusually grim.

"Equipment that can stop bullets, an unknown skill that can incinerate an entire rooftop, a leap of dozens of metres—his level is at least ten, maybe higher," another analyst said.

"Given the shoulder and facial wounds, there should be at least one other player of comparable level on site," another added, causing the administrative‑jacketed staff to look displeased.

"What about the other surveillance?" the leading youth asked.

"None. There was never any camera on the rooftop, and the street‑level footage is even less likely—none of these players are low‑profile; they don't travel normally," he replied.

"Sure enough, a little power and they start showing off."

The leading youth scoffed, rose, walked to Song Bingyuan, glanced at his disgruntled teammates, and said, "You involved parties will be temporarily transferred to the Cultural Tourism Bureau Logistics Department; the paperwork will be handed to you by your director later."

"What?"

"That's overbearing!"

"You have no authority to do this!"

The Major Crimes officers erupted into chaotic protest.

But Song Bingyuan quickly halted them; he hadn't forgotten the director's instruction to have his team fully cooperate, and the other party had said the transfer paperwork would be issued later, making protest futile.

"We will fully cooperate with your work, but we hope the subsequent transfer documents are all compliant and cause no issues,"

After briefly calming his team's nerves, Song Bingyuan's face darkened as he said, "Also, as support staff, I want us to share intelligence; I need the full details on that individual's situation."

"No problem."

The leading youth fetched another administrative‑jacketed officer to brief Song Bingyuan and his worldview‑shaken detectives, then resumed poring over all the case files of the C City ancient‑costume serial murder case.

(End of Chapter)