“I’m Qian Wang, a Level Two user. Previously, I was investigating the disappearance of Zhang Haixiang, responsible for gathering information on his social connections before his disappearance. Last night, around 22:00, I was temporarily reassigned to check the logic factors at the affiliated hospital. It’s been over an hour now,” the dark-skinned team member raised his wrist and glanced at his watch, “I was assigned to check the logic factors in the hospital garden.”
As soon as he finished speaking, the female team member beside him said, “I’m Sun Ling, also a Level Two user. Like Qian Wang, I was involved in the Zhang Haixiang case…”
The two quickly introduced their situations.
Presenting all their details at once, they efficiently saved time, allowing everyone to understand their “special circumstances” quickly.
Almost immediately, Jiang Wentao noticed, “Both of you were assigned to check the hospital garden, without entering the hospital building?!”
However, before he could finish his sentence, the Mediterranean team member brought by the two small team members interjected, “It’s not related to the hospital building.” Gesturing, he brought over another female team member, “Jiang-Ge, Xu Wei was also assigned to check the garden. She has never entered the hospital building, but logic factors were detected on her!”
Xiao Jinyu narrowed his eyes, remaining silent, and raised his hand directly.
Activate the Fourth Perspective!
His gaze swiftly swept over Qian Wang, Sun Ling, and Xu Wei.
Just as the old team member said, there was no trace of logic factors on Qian Wang and Sun Ling. But on Xu Wei’s body, logic factors were flashing rapidly like neon lights, emitting a cold glow in the darkness.
Xiao Jinyu looked at the bewildered female team member, “Is your work area closer to the hospital building compared to theirs?”
Suddenly questioned, the girl named Xu Wei paused for a moment. But she quickly responded, looking at Xiao Jinyu, shaking her head, “No. The area I was responsible for checking is the southeast corner of the hospital, while Ling Ling, she was responsible for circling around the perimeter of the hospital building.”
Three team members who had never entered the hospital building, with Xu Wei being closer to the building, didn’t enter the logic chain, while those farther from the building were caught in it.
So “entering the building” is definitely not the “cause” of this logic chain.
The situation plunged into tension once again.
If “entering the building” isn’t the cause, then why don’t Qian Wang and Sun Ling have logic factors? What makes them special and able to avoid being drawn into this mysterious logic chain?
Initially, when Xiao Jinyu discovered the two team members who weren’t drawn into the logic chain, he thought that perhaps the cause of this logic chain was the hospital building. It might not be necessary to enter, but just getting close enough would pull them in.
However, now, the appearance of new team members refuted this speculation.
Entering the hospital building and not entering…
What’s the difference?
Is the difference not the building itself?
In the chilling night breeze, the distant sound of church bells rang out.
The distant, tranquil sound of the bells made Xiao Jinyu pause abruptly, and he instinctively looked westward.
Jiang Wentao also followed the sound and looked into the distance. After a moment, he said hoarsely, “It’s quite a coincidence. I didn’t even notice, but this hospital is also in the Huangpu District, quite close to the Astor Church sponsored by the Howard family. That bell tower is from the church. At one o’clock, it’ll chime on the dot.”
“Indeed, it’s one o’clock,” a gentle, smiling male voice rang out.
Everyone turned to look.
Jiang Wentao said, “Dr. Xu.”
Xu Siqing slipped his hands into the pockets of his white coat and smiled, “The mission of the research institute is complete. Next is up to the Extermination Squad. Except for this temporary situation, the institute never participates in field missions. But if there are any new discoveries, Jiang Wentao, send them to the First Laboratory at any time.”
“Understood!”
On the quiet and deserted street, with leaves rustling in the wind, dozens of researchers in protective suits had already packed up their equipment, ready to return to the research institute.
Just as they had arrived, thirteen black iron boxes were neatly arranged on the ground.
Xu Siqing was about to leave when he suddenly stopped.
The gentle-looking man turned around, his gaze briefly falling on Jiang Wentao, Zhao Hen, and Xiao Jinyu, before finally glancing at the two team members without logic factors. After a moment, he smiled, “The difference between entering the hospital building and not entering may not just lie in the action of ‘entering the building.’ What exactly happened when this action occurred. Besides ‘entering the building’ and ‘not entering the building,’ what other differences are there…” His voice trailed off slightly, and he gave a subtle glance at the young man with a cold demeanor.
“Users must keep thinking.”
Xu Siqing smiled, “I’ll take my leave first.”
With a slight nod of his head, the man didn’t hesitate to turn around and stride away.
Everyone watched as over twenty researchers, carrying equipment boxes of various sizes, followed Xu Siqing towards the subway entrance.
The biting chill of the winter night felt like needles against their foreheads. After a while, Xiao Jinyu withdrew his gaze and suddenly said, “He’s not a user.” His voice was calm but certain.
Jiang Wentao paused, “Yes, Dr. Xu is not a user. It seems that there are only three researchers in Haidu Logic Research Institute who are users. Awakening the logic chain requires talent, after all. Looking at the whole of Haidu, there are only over twenty thousand users.”
Xiao Jinyu nodded gently, then looked at Jiang Wentao, “Conducting controlled variable experiments is the most appropriate approach now.”
Jiang Wentao’s expression darkened, but he showed no surprise. He nodded, “That’s what I was thinking too.”
After the words were spoken, this composed and calm third-level user turned his head towards the two young team members. He first exchanged glances with the Mediterranean Sea team member before making up his mind and saying to the two team members, “Since the captain and vice-captain are not here, I will temporarily assume the role of leader of our team. Qian Wang, Sun Ling, both of you awakened your logic skills last year and joined our team in the middle of this year…”
“Brother Jiang, you don’t need to say more. Both of us didn’t expect to avoid this logic chain when we took the detectors into the hospital.”
“That’s right. Qian Wang and I both thought we would definitely enter the logic chain. Not entering was never within our expectations.”
Jiang Wentao was taken aback.
Qian Wang continued, “Before Sun Ling, Li Ge, and I came here, we had discussed that if we could find out the cause of this logic chain through Sun Ling and me, we would do anything. Anyway, I never expected to avoid this logic chain.”
Sun Ling also nodded straightforwardly, “Yes, so are we supposed to try entering the hospital now? I’m ready for it.”
…
Xiao Jinyu and Jiang Wentao’s plan, of course, was to conduct experiments on these two team members.
Just as the two of them mentioned, when the members of the Haidu Extermination Squad received this task and took over the logic factor detectors from Jiang Wentao, they never thought they could evade this logic chain.
The moment they stepped into the hospital, everyone was mentally prepared.
Entering the logic chain was considered inevitable.
Not being captured was even better; they could serve as experimental subjects to test the cause of entering the logic chain.
And the first experiment was the singular action of “entering the hospital building.”
Although the third team member claimed that she had never entered the building but was still captured by the logic chain, the prevailing situation now was that all other individuals captured by the logic chain had indeed entered the building. She was the only exception. Therefore, it was currently impossible to rule out whether the presence of logic factors on her was an isolated case.
Qian Wang volunteered himself, taking the initiative before his female teammate, to be the first to participate in the experiment.
This coal-like young man showed no signs of fear on his face. He stood under the three-tiered steps outside the lobby of the hospital’s first floor, rubbing his hands together, and turned back to ask, “Brother Jiang, should I just walk straight in?”
Jiang Wentao looked towards Xiao Jinyu.
Xiao Jinyu said, “Slow down your walking speed and enter at the slowest pace possible.”
“Got it!”
The surroundings were pitch black in the dead of night as a tall and thin young man stood in front of the cold hospital building. Through the eight floor-to-ceiling glass doors, only an empty lobby on the first floor could be seen. The bright and glaring lights illuminated outward, casting a white path.
Qian Wang took a deep breath, feeling something intense throbbing in his chest.
Then, he took a step forward.
At a pace of almost one step every thirty seconds, he moved extremely slowly.
Behind him, Xiao Jinyu remained calm and composed. He subtly raised his hand, lightly brushing his fingertips against his eyelids.
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.
The fourth perspective, activated!
Ktf kbgiv lcrajcais aegcfv ugfslrt-ktlaf.
Hljc Qjcu rabbv klat tlr yjmx ragjluta, iloalcu bcf ifu tlut lc atf jlg vef ab atf ribk qjmf gfdelgfv. Pa ibbxfv mbwlmji, jxlc ab j gbbrafg rajcvlcu bc bcf ifu, jr tf ugjvejiis jqqgbjmtfv atf tbrqlaji yelivlcu rafq ys rafq. Pa abbx tlw atgff wlceafr pera ab gfjmt atf atgff-alfgfv rafqr bo atf tbrqlaji.
The ground floor lobby of the hospital was not on the same level as the ground, so he had to ascend three steps to enter the building.
Qian Wang lifted his foot and landed it with a soft thud on the first marble step of the staircase.
The intense and high-intensity sprinting naturally causes physical strain on the body’s organs, leading to unbearable pain. But now, Qian Wang realized that even exercising at an extremely slow pace could be equally excruciating!
Taking thirty seconds to make a single step, Qian Wang’s mind grew restless. However, he suppressed the urge to take two or three steps at once and instead took one slow step at a time, slowly ascending the second step of the staircase.
The young team member’s back trembled slightly due to the extremely slow pace, his muscles tensed to their limits.
In the dark night, a pair of clear and calm eyes silently watched him.
As he prepared to move his second foot onto the third step, suddenly, in the grey-black world, a colorful dot appeared abruptly, hovering near Qian Wang’s ear. Xiao Jinyu froze suddenly, shouting loudly, “Don’t move!”
Qian Wang immediately stiffened his body, one foot on the higher step and the other suspended between two steps, awkwardly frozen in place.
Zhao Hen asked, “What’s wrong? Have logic factors appeared?”
Jiang Wentao was also shocked, quickly grabbing the detection device and aiming it at Qian Wang.
After a few seconds…
Jiang Wentao exclaimed, “It indeed has!”
Upon finishing his words, he looked surprised and turned to glance at the hospital gate, still about five or six meters away from Qian Wang. Then he looked up at the canopy above Qian Wang’s head. Suddenly, his eyes lit up, “Look, Qian Wang has just reached the area under the hospital’s canopy! He indeed did not enter the hospital building, but he has stepped into the canopy’s range. Perhaps for this logic chain, there’s no need to enter the building at all. Just stepping into the canopy’s range counts as ‘entering the building’?”
Xiao Jinyu remained silent, confirming repeatedly as he watched logic factors appearing one after another around Qian Wang.
Now he was completely sure that this team member had been captured by the mysterious logic chain.
As he was about to speak, Xiao Jinyu closed the fourth perspective. But before he could say anything, a clear female voice sounded, “That’s not it. Brother Jiang, I have also entered the logic chain. But I can guarantee that I haven’t stepped into the canopy’s range. The closest I’ve been to this building was in that corner.” Xu Wei pointed towards the south part of the hospital garden. “I was standing on that gravel path, about seven to eight meters away from this building.”
Jiang Wentao was stunned, looking puzzled at his teammate.
Xiao Jinyu also remained composed, gazing at this female team member.
Now, all exceptions came from this female team member!
Without her presence, “entering the hospital building” would be the most obvious “cause.” But she denied this answer. At the same time, she also denied any possibility related to the “hospital building.”
As long as it was an action this female team member hadn’t done, it couldn’t be the “cause” of the mysterious logic chain.
Xiao Jinyu and the others naturally didn’t delve into the personal information of these three team members because none of them had any special characteristics in their personal backgrounds.
For example, Qian Wang is 25 years old, Sun Ling is 24 years old, and Xu Wei is 26 years old.
For example, Qian Wang has short hair, Sun Ling has long hair, and Xu Wei also has short hair.
Another example is that Qian Wang has a girlfriend, while Sun Ling and Xu Wei are single…
Etc, etc.
But regardless of how many special personal details they have, at this moment, behind them in this hospital building, there are thousands of patients, family members, and medical staff. These thousands of people form an extremely large sample, encompassing all the special personal details of the three of them.
All of these thousands of people have been captured by the logic chain, so these so-called personal features have no significance.
—This logic chain does not distinguish between objects at all. As long as they are humans, they can enter its causal chain!
So, what exactly is the cause to enter the logic chain?
Suddenly, a rapid alert tone sounded from the phone. Jiang Wentao opened his phone, and his expression became serious: “The method of finding the owner of the logic chain through the user ID and love-related methods seems to have failed. The User Committee has screened all known level-five users, and in the end, they only found one anonymous level-five user whose ID is related to love.” He paused for a moment and sighed, “Her ID is Cupid.”
Xiao Jinyu frowned.
Zhao Hen asked, “Cupid?”
Jiang Wentao nodded and said, “Yes, Cupid. She is a level-five user in the capital city. Among the 36 known anonymous level-five users, her ID is the only one related to love. However, the Capital User Committee is very certain that she cannot be the owner of this mysterious logic chain. Because… she has never been to Haidu!”
The distance between the capital and Haidu is over a thousand kilometers.
A user who has never visited Haidu indeed cannot have set up a logic chain trap in the hospitals of Haidu.
However…
Xiao Jinyu interjected, “Is the official statement so certain that she has never secretly come to Haidu?”
Jiang Wentao looked at him and said helplessly, “My reaction was the same as yours. I also questioned the Capital User Committee, but they gave me a very confident answer, stating that this answer was confirmed by Colonel Su. Right now, Colonel Su is at the Capital User Committee!”
Xiao Jinyu was stunned.
Zhao Hen also widened his eyes in surprise and said, “Colonel Su?! Wait, wasn’t Colonel Su still in Haidu yesterday afternoon? How did he get to the capital in just a few hours?”
Jiang Wentao smiled bitterly and said, “I don’t know either, but Colonel Su also provided evidence for Cupid, confirming that she cannot be the owner of this mysterious logic chain.”
“It’s not because she hasn’t been to Haidu.”
Both Jiang Wentao and Zhao Hen looked at the young man who spoke up.
Xiao Jinyu raised his eyes and said calmly, “Even if it’s official, they cannot guarantee whether an anonymous level-five user has secretly visited any city. But they are so sure because they are not concerned about whether Cupid has been to Haidu or not; they have focused on Cupid’s logic factors.”
“Cupid does not have enough logic factors to easily capture thousands of people into her logic chain.”
“So, she definitely isn’t the mastermind behind this mysterious logic chain.”
Jiang Wentao suddenly realized, “I understand now. They are all very sure that Cupid is not the culprit because they know that Cupid cannot capture so many innocents. And the reason they don’t reveal the real cause is to protect Cupid’s privacy regarding her logic chain.”
Although they don’t know exactly what Cupid’s logic chain cause is, since Colonel Su is so sure…
Xiao Jinyu couldn’t help but imagine a pair of cold and deep eyes, along with that low, firm voice.
『Keep thinking.』
…
Xiao Jinyu closed his eyes and mentally crossed out the name “Cupid.”
Cupid is not the culprit, so the connection between “1314” and love can be disregarded.
Perhaps the culprit’s user ID does have something to do with love, but neither 004 nor the User Committee can find out his true identity. So, this avenue of finding the culprit has been abandoned.
Entering the building is not the cause of the logic chain.
Being close to the building is definitely not either.
The stairs are irrelevant; stepping on them is absolutely not the cause of the logic chain.
Then what could it be?
It’s not gender, not age, not marital status, not physical health, not height or weight…
It also has no relation to whether one has a logic skill or not.
What else could it be?!
『What exactly happens when the action of ‘entering the building’ occurs?』
The man’s casually smiling words suddenly rang in Xiao Jinyu’s ears, making him start. He tilted his head up to look at the young team member who was still halfway up the stairs between the second and third levels.
He lowered his head, then raised it again.
Lowered, then raised.
…
After repeating this twice, the young man’s lips twitched.
After a moment.
Xiao Jinyu: “… Aren’t you tired, Qian Wang?”
It was then that Jiang Wentao remembered, “Oh right, Qian Wang, you can put your foot down now. Oops, I totally forgot.”
The team member who stood like a rooster for ten minutes: “……???”
“I thought you were observing me seriously, but it turns out you just plain forgot about me!”
Qian Wang remained silent, tears streaming down his face.
…
Qian Wang frowned, feeling aggrieved as he put his foot down and descended the three steps. At this moment, he wasn’t scared or worried about entering an unknown logic skill; he just felt bitter that he stood alone in the cold wind for ten minutes, yet no one noticed him!
Several team members immediately rushed over.
Sun Ling was also prepared. The female team member walked to the spot where Qian Wang had been standing just now on the steps and asked, “Brother Jiang, should I stand here and walk forward like Qian Wang did?”
Jiang Wentao shook his head and said, “Let’s not rush. Hold on, Sun Ling, let’s discuss first.”
Zhao Hen also chimed in, “Right, we need to discuss first. Otherwise, blindly repeating the experiment would just be a waste of time.”
The group gathered together.
Jiang Wentao sighed, “All the hypotheses I proposed were denied because of Xiao Wei’s presence. It’s so strange; how could she enter the logic skill? She never even got close to this building!”
Zhao Hen pondered, “Is there a possibility that Xiao Wei is just a special case? Maybe she has logic factors that are different from everyone else. It’s even possible that her logic factors existed before today?”
Jiang Wentao looked surprised, “That possibility is quite significant! If we exclude Xiao Wei, then all the methods we just discussed would actually make sense!”
Zhao Hen asked, “Xiao Jinyu, what are you thinking?”
Jiang Wentao also turned to the young man beside him.
Under the dim moonlight, the cold young man lowered his eyes slightly, deep in thought. Suddenly hearing Zhao Hen calling him, Xiao Jinyu’s eyelashes trembled as he raised his eyes. “I’m thinking, what exactly happens when one enters the building?”
“Is this what Dr. Xu said before leaving?” Jiang Wentao pondered, “Entering the building, stepping into this structure. Entering into a certain range?”
Zhao Hen also thought for a moment. “He must have climbed the steps, with both feet stepping on the stairs?”
Xiao Jinyu remained silent, narrowing his eyes as he turned back and looked up again towards the spot where Qian Wang had been standing for the ten minutes.
After a while, Xiao Jinyu said, “It’s none of those. When the action of entering the building happens, something else also occurs…
“Qian Wang’s body leaves the horizontal ground plane!”
In fact, no matter where the investigation took place in the hospital garden, it was only a horizontal displacement. However, everyone who entered the hospital building had to undergo a vertical displacement! Because the building itself is three steps higher than the ground level!”
As he finished speaking, Xiao Jinyu took long strides to stand in front of the third female team member and asked, “When you were detecting logic factors, did you perform any jumping or crouching actions?”
The team member didn’t react at first, but soon she remembered and said, “…Yes! When I was checking for logic factors at the southeast corner of the garden against the wall, there was a small hole on the ground near the wall. I crouched down to dig inside to make sure there were no contaminants or special items. Eventually, it turned out to be just a regular mouse hole.”
Jiang Wentao exclaimed in surprise, “Then she also had a vertical displacement!”
The female team member was puzzled, “Jiang-Ge, what do you mean by vertical displacement? Have you found the cause of this logic chain?”
A group of team members immediately gathered around.
“Jiang-Ge, have you found out how to enter the logic chain?”
“What is it? Does vertical displacement mean we have to jump higher?”
Xiao Jinyu’s brain worked rapidly, his eyes flickering as numerous clues converged into a river at this moment.
Entering the hospital area is the foundation of entering the logic chain.
Within the hospital area, performing a vertical displacement is the second necessary condition.
… No, that’s not it.
It’s not just about performing a vertical displacement, but performing a complete three-dimensional displacement!
Combining both horizontal and vertical displacements together becomes the cause of entering this logic chain!
At this point, Qian Wang asked in confusion, “Jiang Ge, what are the standards for vertical displacement? I also bent down to detect logic factors after entering the hospital, but I wasn’t captured by the logic chain before.”
“You were captured when you stepped onto the third step just now,” Xiao Jinyu suddenly spoke up, drawing everyone’s attention, “So, perhaps the standard is based on the body’s center of gravity as a single point, with a vertical displacement equal to the height of three steps!” After saying this, he looked at Jiang Wentao, “The second experiment can begin now that we have the height standard.”
Jiang Wentao quickly grasped Xiao Jinyu’s words, his eyes lighting up, “We can start. And this time, we won’t perform an upward displacement.”
Xiao Jinyu looked at him in surprise, then smiled.
Jiang Wentao also smiled and said, “Digging! We dig downwards! The third step is about fifty to sixty centimeters high, so let’s dig a hole about half a meter deep!”
***
Just a hole half a meter deep.
Zhao Hen didn’t use any tools. He shouted angrily and punched towards the hospital flowerbed.
The next moment, soil splashed everywhere. He pulled out his arm covered in dirt and punched again. Soon, a hole half a meter deep appeared.
Sun Ling had already learned about the possible cause of this unknown logic chain from Jiang Wentao. She was fully prepared and stood in front of the small pit.
“Jiang-Ge, I’m going in.”
Without hesitation, the woman stepped into the pit.
Xiao Jinyu widened his eyes, staring at the female team member in the pit. When a colorful light spot flashed out from the woman’s hair, Xiao Jinyu paused for a moment, then smiled, “Indeed, it’s a three-dimensional displacement.”
Jiang Wentao also looked at the readings on the detector, his fists clenched, “It’s vertical displacement indeed!”
Finally, they found the cause of this logic chain!
Jiang Wentao’s face showed excitement, “Great! Maybe his user ID has nothing to do with love, but now we have found his cause. User IDs are usually related to the cause and effect of logic chains! Now I can contact the committee and find similar level-five users with such logic chains.”
“Vertical displacement… the fast speed…” Zhao Hen murmured softly, his thick eyebrows furrowing tighter. He opened his mouth wide, showing an expression of disbelief.
Xiao Jinyu noticed his unusual expression first, “What’s wrong, Zhao Hen? Did you remember something?”
Zhao Hen’s expression became stranger, “Vertical displacement and the fast speed… I thought of a user! It happened a year and a half ago when I was still a level-three user. At that time, the captain took me on a business trip to Haidu, and we entered Pollution Zone 18.”
Jiang Wentao exclaimed, “You actually went into Zone 18?”
Zhao Hen scratched his head. “I’ve been in there, but I was just a small fry then. The team leaders, along with Captain Luo Sheng, were the main forces. At that time, the out-of-control logic skill was extremely powerful. In just one day, it caused contamination in over sixty people, including ten users. So, the Haidu Extermination Squad asked us from Haidu to help capture them. As a precaution, they also issued tasks, inviting level three or higher users from Haidu to support.”
“Our team leaders, who were level four or five users, were responsible for finding that out-of-control logic skill. And we, as level three users, were there to exterminate the contaminants.”
“I remember there were five level three users who took on the task, including one bald guy. I don’t know what his logic skill was called, but his ability was that as long as we could use any long-range weapon to blast a contaminant into the air, he could instantly arrive next to that contaminant and destroy it!”
Jiang Wentao exclaimed urgently, “That’s it. Blasting into the air, that’s vertical displacement. Instantly arriving next to the contaminant, that’s extreme speed!”
“But he was just a level three user. I don’t know who he is, but our team leaders, and your Captain Luo, must know. If he took on the task, he must have left his user ID!”
Time was of the essence, so they each contacted their respective team leaders.
Luo Sheng was on her way to the Zhongdu underground train station, escorting a faceless man suspected to be Zhang Haixiang, planning to take the first train back to Haidu. When she received Jiang Wentao’s call, she was momentarily surprised, then asked her deputy beside her, “Do you remember?”
Xu Qi hesitated, “Um…”
The plain-faced youth honestly replied, “I don’t remember.”
Luo Sheng said, “Contact the User Committee. They manage the task acceptance status of users. The tasks from a year and a half ago might still have archived data.”
Jiang Wentao nodded regretfully. Just as he hung up the phone, he heard Zhao Hen exclaiming beside him, “Captain, do you actually remember?”
Xiao Jinyu’s heart tightened, looking at Zhao Hen.
The burly man nodded repeatedly. “Yes, what’s his ID… and he’s already a level five user?! Yes, yes, that’s who we need to find! Captain, what’s his name?”
A few seconds later…
Zhao Hen raised his head, his gaze icy. “The captain said he’s currently an anonymous level five user. Rank unknown, user ID is…
“Relativity!”
***
Winter night.
The soft moonlight slowly descended, covering the desolate and abandoned land, with shops on both sides of the street covered in dust.
On the desolate and narrow road, the once iconic plane trees of Haidu were now reduced to withered trunks, bare and curled in the dry, cracked soil.
A tall and muscular bald man with his hands in his pockets hummed a tuneless melody, striding eastward with confident steps.
His gait was casual, his demeanor relaxed.
After leaving the contaminated area, the bald man checked his phone.
1:49 a.m.
“Not bad, reaching Haidu Affiliated Hospital right around 2 a.m.”
He grinned, a hoarse chuckle escaping his lips. The heavy laugh seemed to be stuck in his throat, making a creaking sound.
On the deserted late-night streets, he was the only one walking at a steady pace.
If there were pedestrians on the road at this moment, they would have noticed that with each step he took, it seemed as if he teleported forward half a meter. His speed increased gradually, despite his seemingly slow walk.
Approaching a crossroads, the bald man glanced up and could already see the top floor of the hospital in the distance.
The traffic light turned red, but the bald man seemed unfazed and continued to walk forward without stopping.
Suddenly, he halted in his tracks.
The cold and merciless gaze slowly lifted again, turning towards the building obscured by the night, faintly visible in the darkness.
The next moment, the bald man didn’t hesitate; he turned and ran!
Meanwhile, ten seconds earlier, Xiao Jinyu, Zhao Hen, Jiang Wentao, and others rushed out of the hospital in unison.
Xiao Jinyu activated the fourth perspective. In the black and white world, the thousands of colorful dots gathered at the hospital seemed like a crowded torrent, inexplicably surging towards the southwest direction of the hospital!
The three chased after them, and Xiao Jinyu focused his gaze again. “These logic factors seem to be heading towards their owner, trying to return to the assailant’s body. So, the place they are rushing towards should be where the culprit is! Right now, it’s that direction!”
“Got it!”
The group chased after them once again.
Little did they know, at this moment, the bald man they were chasing was also running desperately. As he ran, he cursed, “Damn it, who discovered my logic chain? How could anyone find out! The detector can’t detect me at all! Damn, is it the Water Punishment chasing me? Damn it, I can’t shake them off…”
The bald man had noticed the anomaly in the hospital at the first opportunity. As a level five user, he sensed users in the hospital with lower levels than him, and there wasn’t just one!
This was also an oversight by Jiang Wentao; he never imagined that the assailant would visit the hospital every day and coincidentally encounter them!
After the bald man turned to escape, most of the logic factors that caught his scent and chased after him lost their direction and returned to the hospital. A small portion had already begun to move from the logic chain’s cause towards the logic chain’s effect.
They had to return to the bald man’s body.
This was an already established logic chain, irreversible and unstoppable.
Xiao Jinyu and the others chased after these remaining logic factors, guided by the fourth perspective, relentlessly pursuing them.
***
On the opposite side of the Huangpu River, in the 19th pollution zone.
Amidst the abandoned skyscrapers, the cruel and cold moonlight reflected off the smooth glass surfaces, casting a layer of pale light on the ground.
The moonlight, devoid of warmth, illuminated a suitcase on the ground and also revealed a hand reaching towards the suitcase.
It was a slender and lean hand, with distinct joints and a slight bulge of the ulna at the wrist. The moonlight enveloped it, making it impossible to discern whose hand it belonged to, so clear and pale it seemed.
“Click—”
He unlocked the suitcase.
After a creaking sound, the man opened the suitcase, revealing a boy folded inside, breathless.
A hint of surprise flickered in his eyes, but quickly, his brow relaxed, and he chuckled, “Ah, dead.”
He reached out to check the boy’s breathing and then felt for his pulse at the neck. His boss-like demeanor carried a deep meaning in his smile, but instead of closing the suitcase and leaving, he propped his chin with one hand, lowered his eyes, and stared fixedly at the lifeless Piggy Shampoo inside the box.
And so, he silently watched for a full ten minutes without any movement.
The body inside the suitcase naturally didn’t wake up because of this.
Finally, the patience in his light-colored eyes gradually dissipated. With a slight movement of his fingers, a syringe glinting with a cold light suddenly appeared between his fingers. Just as he was about to inject the needle into the boy’s body, his movement halted abruptly, and he looked across the Huangpu River.
After a long while.
“The downside of letting the authorities know about identities is playing out in real-time. We talked about being careful recently, didn’t we…
“Heh.”
With a contemptuous chuckle, the man clapped his hands and suddenly stood up.
“I’m leaving now. Your logic skill is really useless. Stay alive and well.”
His clear voice lingered in the cold winter air, but the man’s figure had already disappeared in a flash.
In the desolate and uninhabited pollution zone, there was only an open suitcase left, abandoned between the buildings.
Five minutes later.
Suddenly, the fingers of the body inside the suitcase moved slightly.
my head hurts trying to understand everything that’s going on…
piggy shampoo ur alive!!!
Thanks for the chapter! Is piggy shampoo alive? Or is it like Xiao Jinyu’s mom? Can’t wait to find out!
Thank you for the update ❤️💯
Poor Piggy! May you be rescued soon!
Go go xiao Jinyu capture that culprit and give him some bearing so that he knows how it feels to get beaten and would not do it again like he did it with piggy shampoo
Oh my dear piggy shampoo please stay alive I still believe that you are xiao Jinyu brother