Chapter 75: Investigation Team Arrives in Dong Lin City

The night sky over Dong Lin City was coldly torn apart by an all‑black special aircraft.

The plane bore no insignia, no hull number, and even on landing it made no massive engine roar, like a midnight ghost silently slipping onto the military airport's dedicated runway.

The hatch opened.

The first to step out was Qin Zhixia.

She donned a crisp Black Combat Suit that perfectly outlined her tall, dashing figure, her high ponytail fluttering in the wind.

The most eye‑catching thing was the lightweight Exoskeleton on her right knee, shimmering with a faint blue glow, exuding a sci‑fi aesthetic.

Behind her followed three agents of markedly different demeanor.

The man on the left was extremely hulking; even a Tactical Vest could not conceal his terrifying muscles, his hair cut into a very short buzz cut, his expression defiant.

His name was Su Chang, codename "Rock", one of the aces of the Ninth Division, a true soldier king.

The youth on the right was the opposite extreme. He sported a messy, explosive‑style hair, deep‑set eyes, a pallid complexion, as if he hadn't slept for three days and nights.

He hunched his back, hands in his pockets, exuding a gloomy "no strangers allowed" aura. Codename "Ghost", the Investigation Bureau's data‑analysis specialist.

The last was an unremarkable petite woman, trailing the others like a Shadow, with no sense of presence.

On the runway, the heads of Dong Lin City's public security system had already lined up, and the leading City Bureau director rubbed his hands, greeting them with a sycophantic smile.

"Welcome, leaders of the Investigation Bureau, for your guidance. We have already arranged a reception…"

Qin Zhixia didn't look at him at all, walking straight past him, her tone crisp and cold, devoid of any emotion.

"No need. Take us directly to the command center."

The director's smile froze on his face.

Qin Zhixia halted, turned to glance at him, her Crimson Phoenix Eyes sharp enough to pierce a person's heart.

"From now on, I fully assume command of the Dong Lin City 'Smiling Dummy' incident. This is the Highest Authorization signed by Lord Wei."

She waved the electronic seal in her hand.

The pampered local officials collectively fell silent like cicadas at the sight of the crimson‑gold Federation seal.

The temporary command center was set up in the City Bureau building.

Qin Zhixia stood before a massive electronic screen, which scrolled through bizarre missing‑person case files; the primary target was the recently vanished Tong An District Director, Liu Guanglin.

She flipped through the files at breakneck speed, her fingers constantly sliding across the screen.

A few minutes later, she stopped, her gaze fixed on the social background data of several representative missing persons.

Extortionists.

Corrupt officials.

Enforcers of black‑market organizations.

"Interesting."

Qin Zhixia murmured softly.

She turned, facing the three team members behind her, her eyes calm and resolute.

"All the missing persons have clear criminal records, or are suspects in cases."

"The 'Smiling Dummy' rule is not triggered merely by seeing three photos."

"It is selecting targets."

"It only strikes the wicked… perhaps that is another, more core Murder Rule."

The conference room fell silent.

Rock Su Chang crossed his arms, leaned against the wall, a slight curl at his mouth, saying nothing.

Ghost yawned, seeming uninterested in the conclusion.

Qin Zhixia ignored their reactions and issued orders directly.

"Ghost, immediately contact the Federation Cybersecurity Department. I need Highest Authorization to deploy a keyword‑filtering system across the global network, aiming to completely block all image dissemination related to the 'Smiling Dummy' within a day."

"Second, mobilize the city's main server and form a data‑analysis unit. I want you to screen every city resident who, in the past seventy‑two hours, has viewed, searched, or downloaded 'Smiling Dummy' images, then cross‑reference that list in real time with the police's internal suspect database!"

She raised her hand, pointing at the missing persons' photos on the screen.

"I will locate within Dong Lin City every potential target who has seen the images and is tainted with guilt."

"Then subject them to continuous twenty‑four‑hour surveillance and deployment."

"The Smiling Dummy will inevitably strike them, and that will be our window for containment."

As soon as the order was given, a voice full of sarcasm rang out.

"Team Leader Qin, isn't it too troublesome?"

Su Chang straightened, his hulking frame exuding immense pressure.

"We're here to contain the Weird, not to conduct some massive internet sweep. By the time this process finishes, the daylilies will be cold."

He spoke with a face full of contempt.

"The simplest, most direct method is to pull a death‑row inmate from a maximum‑security prison, make him watch the photo three times, toss him as bait, and that damn thing will walk right into the trap. Then we contain it in one stroke, job done, and go home."

Ghost's keyboard clacked away, and he nodded in agreement without looking up.

"The logic may be rough, but Su Chang is right."

He pulled up a set of data and projected it onto the big screen.

"Team Leader Qin, your wide‑net plan would require 73% of the city server's computing power, which would severely impact the entire city's public systems. Moreover, model projections show the probability of successfully pinpointing the next victim won't exceed 60%."

"The bait plan is the cheapest, the fastest‑acting. In terms of efficiency, it's the optimal solution."

Su Chang sized up Qin Zhixia from head to toe, his contempt unmistakable, as if looking at a clueless relative.

"Team Leader Qin, we are the Investigation Bureau's operation unit; we gamble with lives, not paper‑talk in an office. You're a fresh graduate, supposedly without any usable combat specialty…"

"Do you know what front‑line combat is?"

The remark was pure, unabashed provocation.

Qin Zhixia knew this was the first hurdle she had to face.

To change the Investigation Bureau's habit of treating lives as data, she had to start by subduing the unruly "elite" under her command.

It is the necessary path to becoming a "Shepherd".

Her cool gaze swept over Su Chang and Youling.

"Bait plan."

She repeated those four words lightly, yet the temperature in the conference room dropped several degrees.

"The last time we used this 'optimal solution', the Ninth Division lost its top single‑soldier weapon; Mo Zixuan, code‑named 'Feng Quan', died on the spot. The entire capture operation was a total loss."

Su Chang's facial muscles twitched sharply!

Mo Zixuan!

That name hanging over his head, even knowing the person had already died, still gave him chills.

That sense of pressure was already etched into his genes.

Qin Zhixia stepped toward Su Chang, a head shorter than him, yet her aura exerted absolute crushing pressure.

"My appointment comes from Lord Wei."

"My command authority does not require your approval or consent."

Her words were light, yet each carried a thousand pounds of weight:

"Youling, begin data screening immediately; in thirty minutes I want to see the first list of high‑risk targets."

"As for Su Chang: you, gather personnel to ready all containment gear, and be prepared to deploy against the target at any time. This is an order, not a discussion!"

In that instant, an indescribable aura of authority erupted from Qin Zhixia.

It was the steel will forged after twenty‑four hours of being swept by a torrent of resentment in the endless despair of Sequence 002 'Ghost Wall'!

Su Chang and Youling's expressions both changed.

Su Chang clenched his teeth, veins bulging on his forehead, yet he could not utter a single word.

From this woman's eyes he saw no emotion, only absolute calm and unquestionable resolve.

In the end, he and Youling exchanged a reluctant glance, yet still chose to obey.

"Yes!"

The entire command center sprang into high‑speed operation.

Massive data streamed down Youling's screen like a waterfall.

Time passed minute by minute.

Although Su Chang and Youling obeyed the order, the dissent and smug anticipation in their eyes were evident to everyone.

At that moment.

The screen before Youling suddenly shifted from blue to a glaring blood‑red!

A sharp alarm blared.

"Found it!"

Youling sprang up from the chair, staring intently at the screen!

"System locked onto a high‑risk target!"

Qin Zhixia and Su Chang immediately moved to surround it.

On the screen, a photo of a brown‑skinned man was enlarged, with his detailed information beside it.

【Target: Wang Ni】

【Alias: Ni Ge】

【Identity: Regional head of the Black Dragon Society's loan‑shark group, enterprises suspected of violent collection, illegal detention, responsible for at least three deaths.】

Youling's eyes flashed with keen light, "IP address tracking shows target Wang Ni accessed the encrypted image of 'Smiling Dummy' on his private computer for the second time five minutes ago!"