Chapter 102: Personal Search

Xiao Yu stared intently at the surveillance footage, focusing on the person disposing of the body.

Although the video was blurry, it was still clear that the person’s skin was very pale. He wasn’t an Asian!

Grandi?

The Caucasian suspect?

He retrieved the hotel surveillance footage to compare the height and build. Confirmed, it was indeed the foreign suspect, Grandi.

The footage showed Grandi quickly leaving the scene with the suitcase after disposing of the body. 

From his arrival, surveying the environment, to disposing of the body and leaving, there was no hesitation.

Xiao Yu took a deep breath.

It seemed like Grandi had done this before. He was too skilled.

Four lives?

Two prison guards, Yu Hongmei, and Lu Jia…

Xiao Yu’s mind buzzed. But he found a clue.

There weren’t many surveillance cameras in the residential area, but there were plenty outside.

At 3 AM, no vehicles entered or exited.

Grandi appeared in the video frame carrying a suitcase with a corpse inside?

What did this imply?

He came on foot.

A corpse weighing over 143 pounds was very heavy. Even if the suitcase had wheels, it would still be too heavy to carry far on foot.

This meant their hideout was in this area, right?

Xiao Yu smiled, a cold smile.

Numerous police officers, armed police, and SWAT teams sealed off the area. They began a thorough search of three residential complexes.

The search lasted an entire day. Although they didn’t find the suspects, they discovered something suspicious in a nearby supermarket.

Someone had purchased a large quantity of food and water. Enough to sustain four or five people for a month.

What kind of person buys so much food and water in a supermarket?

Even recluses wouldn’t dare to do something like this.

The supermarket had surveillance, and the suspect deliberately avoided the camera angles.  But he couldn’t fake his build. 

It was still the Caucasian, Grandi.

‘It seems like you were hiding here,’ Xiao Yu smiled coldly. ‘Be confident, remove the “seems like”!’

National security personnel arrived, but Wang Dong wasn’t among them.

Five people came, led by a middle-aged man with a stern, cold expression. He extended his hand to Xiao Yu with a smile, “You must be Xiao Yu. I’ve heard a lot about you.”

The fact that a national security officer had heard of him made Xiao Yu’s scalp tingle. He shook the man’s hand, adopting a humble posture, “Hello.”

He was scared.  Anyone on the national security’s radar would be.

“Shao Jiafu, from National Security Team Four,” he got straight to the point, “I need all the information you have.”

With the national security big shots taking over, Xiao Yu felt relieved. All fear stemmed from insufficient firepower. Now that his backup had arrived…

An hour later, Shao Jiafu finished reviewing all the information. He made a phone call, and Xiao Yu overheard him using national security channels to check the international identities of ‘Joey’ and ‘Grandi.’

‘National security really is impressive,’ Xiao Yu thought enviously. 

Ordinary police couldn’t do this. They often struggled to understand even domestic cases, let alone international ones.

Another hour passed.

Shao Jiafu put down his phone, looked at Xiao Yu, and gave his verdict, “Spies.”

Although he had suspected it, Xiao Yu’s heart still skipped a beat.  The system’s prediction was indeed reliable. 

The fifteen-day deadline was truly daunting.

Reflecting on the previous cases with new drugs, five lives were lost, which was already excessive. 

Compared to spies… everything paled in comparison.

“They’re likely commercial or privately hired spies,” Shao Jiafu said coldly. “Are you certain they’re in the sealed-off area?”

“Not certain,” Xiao Yu shook his head. 

Who could be sure about such things?

Shao Jiafu gestured to the four team members, sending them to check the sealed-off area. Three hours later, the four national security officers returned, shaking their heads.

“Their methods are crude, but their ability to hide is quite good,” Shao Jiafu said, looked at Xiao Yu and smiled, “Wang Dong spoke highly of you.”

“Huh?” Xiao Yu blinked, “What did Brother Wang say about me?”

“He said…” Shao Jiafu said solemnly, “You’re very formidable.”

Xiao Yu, (￣ □ ￣ )

‘Me… formidable? Did Wang Dong misunderstand the meaning of formidable?’

“No more nonsense,” Shao Jiafu said, staring directly at Xiao Yu with a strange expression, “Before coming to Bencheng, Wang Dong told me to find you if we encounter difficulties.”

‘Find me for what? I’m a police officer, not a deity. Why are you guys from national security always like this? Not hiding the fact that you see me as a tool!’

Internally grumbling, Xiao Yu felt quite frustrated. 

Four days had already passed since the incident, nearly five. There were only two days left until the deadline set by the higher-ups to solve the case. And ten days left until the system’s task deadline.

There really wasn’t much time.

Xiao Yu walked into the sealed-off area.

Looking at the three residential complexes before him, he wondered, where could they be hiding?

House-to-house searches by the police were inevitable. 

If no one was home, they would find a professional locksmith to check.

During these critical times, they could only apologize and promise to compensate for any damages.

But a hundred police officers and two hundred armed police searched for an entire day and found nothing. If they were hiding here, it was indeed baffling.

Activating the three system skills—Falcon’s Eye, Monarch Botherfly’s Nose, and Moth’s Ear—Xiao Yu decided to conduct the search personally.

A standard residential area typically had 6 to 10 buildings. 

One building, two buildings, three buildings…

Xiao Yu finished searching eleven buildings, barely half of the total. He was exhausted. He grabbed a quick bite of takeout and continued his search. Finally, he reached the fourteenth building, Building 113.

Hmm?

Xiao Yu’s eyes suddenly lit up. He caught a few faint scents.

Though faint, he could still distinguish them.

Found it.

Standing in front of the elevator, Xiao Yu’s eyes were fixed on the elevator door.

Ding.

The elevator door opened, and he walked in. The scent remained faint, barely there.

The residential building had eight floors. On each floor, Xiao Yu stepped out to sniff around.

But, from the first floor to the eighth floor, he couldn’t detect those scents.

How was that possible?

Standing in the elevator, Xiao Yu was puzzled. He could smell the scents in the hallway and inside the elevator, but not on any of the floors.

Was he seeing things?

Or had they deliberately entered this building to leave traces and mislead?

Xiao Yu couldn’t figure it out. He must have overlooked something.

The next day, he re-searched the remaining dozen buildings.

In the end, Xiao Yu stood in front of Building 113 again.

‘You’re hiding in this building, aren’t you?’