“C1804 Zhang Haixiang has escaped from prison.” Su Jiuzhou said coldly as he hung up the phone.
Xiao Jinyu was slightly taken aback for a moment, but then he recalled the name Zhang Haixiang from his memory.
Two weeks ago, Xiao Jinyu had just awakened his logic skill. Due to his special Fourth Perspective, which allows him to see logic factors, Wang Tao sent Zhao Hen to accompany him on a special trip to Haidu City to assist in investigating the cause of Meat King’s death.
It was then that Xiao Jinyu captured Zhang Haixiang, nicknamed “Wind Blowing Fart,” in the restroom of the last coffee shop Meat King visited. He even nearly lost his life to this man.
Back then, Zhang Haixiang’s logic ranking was C1779, which placed him 1779th in the C-tier ranking for level two users. He has since dropped to 1804th.
Now, the Haidu Logic Research Institute reports—
Zhang Haixiang has broken out of prison.
Xiao Jinyu, with a composed expression, asked, “Wasn’t he supposed to be executed?”
Apart from Meat King, Zhang Haixiang also killed his companion “Beauty’s Fragrant Scarf” and many other users who approached him to purchase pollutants privately.
Such a prolific killer; when Xu Qi initially captured him, it was said that Zhang Haixiang was doomed.
Su Jiuzhou turned to look at him, saying, “The execution was scheduled for today.”
Xiao Jinyu quickly realized the implication.
The timeline was too short.
In reality, a regular murder case would take at least a year and a half for trial alone. Then there would be additional time before the execution. It’s only been seventeen days since Zhang Haixiang was arrested for killing Meat King. The fact that he was set to be executed today was likely due to his heinous crimes and the under-the-table influence from Luo Sheng.
Xiao Jinyu pondered for a moment.
“Are we sure he escaped from prison and wasn’t… silently killed?”
At Xiao Jinyu’s words, Zhao Hen was momentarily stunned. He then understood. Given that Zhang Haixiang, a serial killer who had taken out numerous users, would be held in a highly secure underground prison, even without Luo Sheng’s influence, Haidu City would have had him under tight watch. Did he truly escape, or was he quietly eliminated?
“That’s a very plausible hypothesis.” Zhao Hen nodded in agreement, looking at Xiao Jinyu, “I know of two Logic Chains that can cause instantaneous death and make the victim disappear. One of them is our captain’s. But I’m unaware of any Logic Chain that can make a living person vanish under heavy surveillance, let alone steal the Trial Court…”
Su Jiuzhou interrupted, “We’ll know the result in three days.”
Everyone paused.
Indeed, in three days they would know whether Zhang Haixiang truly escaped or was killed by some mysterious Logic Chain in prison.
When a user dies, after three days, their data will be cleared by the Grow Some Brains APP, and their name will vanish from the rankings.
Xiao Jinyu’s eyes shifted slightly.
Perhaps they don’t need to wait three days; he might get the answer immediately. The moment Meat King died, 004 knew instantly. 004 can detect a user’s death without any delay; it just doesn’t update the Grow Some Brains APP immediately.
Maybe he should inquire with 004.
The unexpected event in Haidu City currently seemed more urgent than the newly discovered pollutant. Soon, Su Jiuzhou left for Haidu City.
The Zhongdu Extermination Team remained at Kangxin High School, continuing to dig out the pollutant ivy and sending it to the Logic Research Institute.
The team members worked with utmost urgency. It took an entire day for the excavators to dismantle the five-story building.
As the sun set, the last light of the day shone on the ruins.
Xiao Jinyu’s gaze fleetingly passed over the colorful shards of stained glass scattered among the rubble.
Shards of colorful mosaic glass littered the ground like tiny mineral crystals, and he watched silently for a long while.
A pat on the shoulder snapped him out of his reverie. He turned to see the burly man smiling, “Step back, Xiao Jinyu. Put on another layer of protective suit. We’re about to extract it in its entirety.”
“Alright.”
Moving far to a safe distance, Xiao Jinyu watched as ten excavators simultaneously dug through the rubble. They intended to uncover the building’s foundation and extract the root of the ivy that had penetrated it.
Initially, when Xiao Jinyu took on the task related to Kangxin High School, it was also to investigate its predecessor: the Kangde Orphanage.
His mother had adopted him from the Kangde Orphanage when he was just two years old. Xiao Jinyu had no memory of it, and he understood why his mother never mentioned he came from an orphanage and even made up a story about a deceased father.
Parents wouldn’t want their young child to know they were abandoned.
But now, he was sure.
He remembered that stained glass window and the wall covered in ivy.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
Turns out, he truly once lived in the Kangde Orphanage.
…
“Eewyif—”
Ktf ulujcalm fzmjnjabg nlmlberis veu atgbeut atf rbli, jcv jr vera jcv rjcv oifk fnfgsktfgf, atf gfwcjcar bo atf rwjii yelivlcu kfgf delmxis mifjgfv jkjs. Ktf obecvjalbc wjvf bo raffi, mbcmgfaf, jcv rbli rbbc gfnfjifv larfio. Ktf afjw wfwyfgr kfgf erlcu atf ibulm mtjlc ab ygfjx jqjga atf raegvs raffi klatlc atf obecvjalbc ktlif rlweiajcfberis bqfgjalcu atf fzmjnjabg ab qert atfrf gfwcjcar jrlvf.
The last ray of sunset glow disappeared into the earth.
It was 1 AM.
The entire ivy had finally been completely dug up, its sprawling roots enveloped by the heavy soil. The huge clump of soil entwined by its roots alone had a diameter of fifteen meters and a height of ten meters.
The specially designed gigantic isolation cage from the Logic Research Institute had already been delivered to the school. The team members, dressed in five layers of protective clothing, worked together to move the ivy, along with the clump of soil, into the cage.
Throughout this entire process, the ivy didn’t make a sound. It seemed to be staring calmly and indifferently at the humans and their actions.
Next came the transportation issue. The iron cage containing the ivy was massive and it was simply impossible to transport it to the research institute by land transportation means. It also couldn’t be dismantled, as the soil clumps wrapping around the ivy played a crucial role in isolating contamination.
Fortunately, the Logic Research Institute had already thought of a solution.
Four transport helicopters slowly descended upon Kangxin Middle School, and the team members hooked the specially made chains from the helicopters to the isolation cage. Upon Zhao Hen’s command, all four helicopters took off simultaneously. The massive and heavy black box emitted a buzzing vibration and trembled slightly as it lifted off the ground.
A helpless sigh came from inside the box.
“Haaaah!”
Xiao Jinyu: “…”
To be honest, who would have thought that one day plants could also take to the skies?
The ivy probably sighed out all the frustrations of its life within a short span of twenty-four hours.
A few minutes later, the helicopters left with the black box containing the ivy. At the same time, all eight team members also boarded the helicopters. They needed to constantly monitor the ivy’s movements to prevent this mysterious and powerful contaminant from suddenly becoming violent and attacking humans.
“We need to wait another five minutes.”
Xiao Jinyu turned his head.
Zhao Hen stood on the ruins of Kangxin Middle School, his gaze firmly fixed on the giant black box in the night sky.
“After five minutes, this ivy will be delivered to the Logic Research Institute, and only then can we truly be at ease.”
Xiao Jinyu nodded silently. He looked at Zhao Hen’s tense and serious expression, thought for a moment, and then seemingly casually asked, “What is the Trial Court?”
Zhao Hen was taken aback. He turned to look at Xiao Jinyu.
The young man’s expression was calm, without too much emotion, just pure curiosity.
Zhao Hen answered, “The Trial Court is a special court for sanctioning and judging users. I’ve never seen it with my own eyes. The crimes committed by users are always different from those of ordinary people. Users possess various unique logic skills, and the kinds of crimes these logic skills can create are beyond anyone’s imagination.”
He paused for a moment, recalling, “I remember that the Trial Court in the capital was activated once two years ago. It was to sanction a Level Five user who was accused of treason and collusion with the enemy.”
Xiao Jinyu frowned in thought and asked, “What’s the difference between this and a regular court? Is it just that the subject of the trial has changed from an ordinary person to a user?”
Xiao Jinyu naturally knew that the answer couldn’t possibly be this simple. He intentionally asked this question to probe into the capabilities of Su Jiuzhou.
One is the Spear of Judgment; the other is the Trial Court.
The Trial Court in Haidu City was stolen, and Su Jiuzhou’s logic chain almost collapsed.
Clearly, there must be an inseparable connection between the two.
However, as soon as Xiao Jinyu asked this question, Zhao Hen’s expression drastically changed. The dark-skinned man with thick eyebrows and big eyes moved his lips slightly, his eyes showing a trembling fear. He looked up at Xiao Jinyu, hesitated for a moment, and then said in a low voice, “If we just wanted to kill a user, there are many ways. If we can catch him, we can kill him. But…”
Zhao Hen paused, his eyes filled with complexity, “The Trial Court… can strip a person of their logic chain.”
Xiao Jinyu froze.
***
Four armed transport helicopters flew in the mid-air of Zhongdu city, together holding up a huge black box, which inevitably attracted attention.
In just five minutes, countless citizens were awakened by the piercing noise of the helicopters and headed to their balconies to purview the situation. Following, they saw the huge box suspended in mid-air.
“What is that!”
“Oh my god, helicopter transportation, what is this for?”
“What’s going on, what is that sound… Oh shit!!!”
More and more people took to the streets, gathered on balconies, and watched the scene of the helicopter transporting the iron box. Some even took photos and videos and uploaded them to the internet.
The cleanup team had long known that it was impossible to keep the transportation of ivy a secret. The size of ivy was simply too huge, and it was hidden in the densely populated area of Zhongdu City, and could not be transported in parts. It was inevitable that the public would spread the news, but they did not know what was being transported in the box, and they could find a reason to inform the public later.
The ivy had only been transported halfway when Zhao Hen received a call from Wang Tao. Looking at the flashing name on the phone screen, Zhao Hen answered the call, happily saying, “Captain, you’re awake!” After a moment, his expression gradually became serious. “Hmm… okay, I understand… Yes, Captain, leave it to me.”
After hanging up, Zhao Hen immediately called several team members.
“The captain speculated that there must be users hiding in the crowd during the transportation of ivy, observing the situation. They must be able to guess that this is a contaminant. To prevent anyone with malicious intent, we must find all the onlookers, investigate their identities, and see if they have any criminal records!”
“Yes!”
The cleanup team got to work once again.
At this point, Xiao Jingyu’s task was completely finished, only needing to wait for Su Jiuzhou to give him his reward.
He turned around and was about to leave when Zhao Hen suddenly called to stop him, “By the way, Xiao Jingyu. The captain said on the phone that the people from Haidu City might come to find you again in the next few days.”
He stopped in his tracks and turned back, understanding after a moment of thought, “Is it about Zhang Haixiang?”
Zhao Hen nodded, “Yes. Zhang Haixiang was also captured by you, so you have a very close relationship with him.”
Xiao Jingyu: “…”
Do you call the relationship between the victim and the murderer close?!
But he was indeed almost killed by Zhang Haixiang, so it could be considered a life-and-death relationship…
Realizing that his wording was not quite right, Zhao Hen scratched his head, “Users mostly don’t have many friends, and Zhang Haixiang is the same, a loner. You are really one of his closest acquaintances.”
Xiao Jingyu: “…”
That explanation was definitely not needed!
While talking, Zhao Hen suddenly changed his expression, “Hmm?” He looked up.
Xiao Jingyu followed his gaze. He saw a short-haired woman in a lead-gray coat standing on the rooftop of a shopping mall across from the school, carefully observing the situation in the school with binoculars.
Realizing that she had been discovered, the woman immediately left.
Zhao Hen withdrew his gaze, recognizing the other party, “B857, ID ‘Halloween’. I’ve met her in the contaminated area before, she’s clean, has no criminal record, probably just curious.” He paused for a moment, then said, “You should go home early. There should be many users flocking to Kangxin Middle School. They must have all noticed that Kangxin Middle School is where the helicopters took off from.”
“Hmm.”
Thinking is lonely.
Users also hide from the public.
Xiao Jingyu did not plan to get to know too many users.
The cold and harsh winter wind blew up the light scarf around the young man’s neck. Xiao Jingyu walked out of the school gate, his figure quickly disappearing into the extreme night of winter.
***
In Haidu City, at the First Affiliated Hospital of the Medical University, Department of Oncology.
There was a ward housing three individuals.
In the dimly lit room, the hoarse coughing of a woman kept echoing, followed by the dull and painful groans of the man in the next bed.
The family members of the two patients hurriedly turned on the small light, one giving the patient water, and the other gently patting the patient’s back.
The family member of the patient in the third bed was also quickly awakened.
Cancer is like this, tormenting the patient at every moment.
The family member accompanying the patient in the third bed, a middle-aged man, was taking care of his wife and had poured her a cup of water. After ensuring that his wife was fine, he kindly asked about the family members of the other two beds, especially the young boy who looked to be in his teens.
“Xiao-Si, is your mom okay?”
The family member at another bed, who had been tending to his father in pain and gasping for breath, and had just seen his father fall back to sleep, also raised his head and asked, “Do you need any help, Xiao-Si?”
The family member here for the patient in the middle bed was a small and frail boy. He looked quite thin and withered, with a small and skinny face, making his eyes appear even larger. The families at the neighboring beds both knew that the boy was called Xiao-Si. His father had passed away early, and his mother was suffering from lung cancer. It was he who singlehandedly took care of her day and night in the hospital, tirelessly running around.
He was only fifteen years old.
The boy fed his mother some water and observed her pale face. He reached out to touch her forehead.
Confirmed that there was no fever.
He then pushed the hair blocking her eyes to the side.
Only then did the boy raise his head, “It’s okay, it’s the same as usual. Thank you, Uncle Wang and Uncle Li.”
“We haven’t been of much help, what’s there to thank us for?” one man responded.
“That’s right. If there’s anything we can help with, just let us know. It’s really not easy for you being so young,” the other added.
The boy bowed his head again, not speaking.
After checking the thermos, he realized that there wasn’t much hot water left. The boy put on a worn, yellowish, patched thin cotton-padded jacket and went out of the ward with the thermos.
Just before he left the room, the two men who had already woken up started to chat. They talked about their own family situations, as well as the patients’ surgeries and recovery.
“It’s really great that so many good doctors suddenly came to the hospital. If it wasn’t for the big doctor from the capital personally performing surgery on my wife, she definitely wouldn’t have made it!” one man exclaimed.
“My dad too. Back in our hometown, they all said my dad was beyond help. I didn’t expect that he would actually have a chance to recover now,” the other man shared.
As they reached this point in their conversation, both of them fell silent, involuntarily glancing at the boy preparing to fetch water.
In the Oncology Department, Room 815, only the boy’s mother’s surgical condition was not ideal. After all, it was late-stage lung cancer, and perhaps even the best doctor in the nation couldn’t save her.
“Wow, what’s this news? A huge black box appeared in the sky above Zhongdu City?”
“What’s that? I’ll take a look…”
“Ah? Four helicopters transporting a black box, in the middle of the night, isn’t this disturbing the people?”
The door of the ward slowly closed behind him.
The boy looked at the ground, carrying a water bottle, and silently walked to the end of the corridor to the boiling water room.
Turning a corner, he entered the hot water room, swiped his water card, and watched as boiling water was poured into the water bottle. The boy was looking down and scrolling through his phone.
Zhongdu City, mysterious black box… It seems to be a new pollutant.
“Beep–”
The water dispenser filled up an entire bottle with hot water and automatically emitted a notification sound
The boy picked up the water card in the slot, pinched the wooden stopper, and prepared to cover it. Suddenly, he paused and slowly raised his head.
A faint footsteps came from the quiet and dim corridor of the hospital.
The footsteps got closer and closer.
Finally, they stopped at the door of the hot water room.
『Logic skills attract each other.』
The boy calmly continued to cover the water bottle, as if he hadn’t noticed the person standing at the door. It wasn’t until a hoarse and restrained male voice sounded behind him that he reacted.
“Piggy shampoo?”
He turned around abruptly.
The tall man stood against the light at the door of the hot water room. His huge figure almost enveloped the thin boy in his huge shadow. He stood high above, gradually, he tilted his head, his deep and dark eyes quietly fixed on the boy.
After a long while.
He smiled.
“Piggy shampoo, the more hair the target has, the stronger the effect of the logic skill…
“Tell me, when you meet someone like me who has no hair…
“What will your logic skill do?”
T/N: Fill out this quick poll.
Thank you for the update ❤️💯
Ahhhh thanks for the chapter!!!
Thank you so much whitedove for the chapter I hope you continuously share new chapters. 😊
Thank you for the chapters! ❤❤❤
Thanks for the chaper!
Piggy shampoo is still only 15? Poor child T-T. Alas If I were to transmigrate into world like these, my 20 years old ass would be the first to die. I wont even have time to feel sorry for a child XD
Okay, Zhao Hen becoming increasingly sus in the past chapters. Why would he be so sure that Halloween is clean? Thus, he had decimated MC’s thought for a further inquiry…
And why would he act so fearful towards the trial court? Didn’t it said that for most user think having a logic skill was not particularly a blessing to them? Why would someone be so unwilling and fearful towards the act of removing a logic chain? Unless yknow… they are evil and power hungry…