Soon, the support team stationed around the perimeter sent people in as well.
They all wore thickened protective suits and glass masks as they made their way to the wild lake.
Two long boxes with three layers of glass protection were carried over. Qin Ran's and Cui Wang's bodies were placed into the two boxes separately, then covered with another layer of black cloth. They looked just like two crystal coffins.
Almost no one spoke during the process.
Because no matter who they were, none of them could explain the bizarre situation before them.
After the two bodies had been contained, they sent more people into the bottom of the lake, all carrying the detection instruments the investigation team had used earlier. They probed the area inch by inch with extreme care, seemingly checking whether any mental residue remained there.
Cheng Hui and the two members of his investigation team also put on glass helmets. After several support-team members in white coats conducted an initial interview and assessment, they were told to remain where they were temporarily and rest without coming into contact with anyone.
Apparently, they had to undergo a series of examinations and mental evaluations to ensure that they had not suffered genuine contamination.
Meanwhile, Lu Xin wrapped himself in a thick blanket and sat by the lake like a victim, watching obediently.
The sound of helicopter rotors turning filled the air, and two beams of light shone down from above.
Chen Jing stepped out of the cabin in a military uniform. She wore a pair of black sunglasses and high military boots, which sank into the mud as she walked straight to Lu Xin. "In any case, this cleanup mission has been completed."
She paused slightly, then deliberately added, "I'll apply for a special bonus for you."
A warm current rose in Lu Xin's heart.
However, the doubts in his mind still lingered. He asked, "Then, about this matter..."
"Specialists will analyze and investigate it."
Chen Jing glanced toward the crystal coffins, which the staff were loading into a vehicle, then said, "In the incidents involving mental pollution that we handle, we often encounter things that seem nearly impossible to explain. However, as long as we seize some clues and conduct detailed investigations and research, most of them eventually reveal their underlying logic... I believe this time will be no exception."
Listening to her, Lu Xin inexplicably felt more at ease, and much of the gloom in his heart dissipated.
"In fact, as things stand, we aren't completely without clues."
Chen Jing suddenly said, "I just heard the investigation team's report on the whole incident. You heard the fish talking?"
Lu Xin froze slightly, recalling the insane scene of every fish shouting, "Qin Ran, you harmed me! A life for a life!"
His throat tightened slightly, and he nodded.
"Fish can't talk."
Chen Jing said, "I didn't hear anything like that over the channel either, so it should have been an illusion caused by your exposure to the Pollution Source. But this is still a very good point of entry. For example, those fish were shouting, 'Qin Ran must pay with his life...'"
"Then which Qin Ran is the one who needs to pay with his life?"
"..."
"This..."
Chen Jing's words made Lu Xin's scalp prickle.
He seemed to understand something, yet he could not truly grasp it.
"Let's go."
Chen Jing stepped aside and said to Lu Xin, "There's still some work to do."
"Okay!"
Lu Xin obediently stood up and followed her forward.
Chen Jing did not lead Lu Xin toward the helicopter, which disappointed him a little. He had rather wanted to ride in one at least once.
When they reached the perimeter cordon, Chen Jing had someone bring over a vehicle. She and Lu Xin then drove straight toward the city center. Before long, they arrived at an old but sturdy building. Lu Xin looked up and saw people in blue-green uniforms entering and leaving. Only then did he realize that they had arrived at the Satellite City Guard Department building.
Chen Jing entered with practiced familiarity, then took the elevator to the seventh floor. She first led Lu Xin to an empty conference room and said, "Rest here for a while. I have a few minor things to deal with, then I'll come back to talk with you."
Lu Xin obediently sat down and watched Chen Jing walk out in clicking leather boots.
The conference room seemed to have been prepared in advance. Both inside and outside, it was exceptionally quiet; not even passersby could be seen. A cup of coffee, several pieces of chocolate, and a dish of colorful candies had been placed on the table.
Seeing that no one was around, Lu Xin secretly picked up the coffee and took a sip. He found it somewhat bitter and not as good as the instant coffee he usually drank in the office. So he dropped several of the square sugar cubes around the cup into it, then squeezed in the packets of creamer as well. After that, the flavor was much better, barely comparable to what he usually drank at the office.
He had once heard the Director of the office say that coffee, tea, and sugar were all precious things nowadays—outsiders could forget about even thinking of them.
He was not interested in the chocolate or candy, but Sister curiously took a bite.
"I really like these..."
She delightedly hugged all the chocolate and candy to her chest.
"Then eat them all!"
Lu Xin smiled at Sister, extremely grateful for her performance that day.
"Okay, I'll eat them all!" Sister was never the least bit polite with him.
While Lu Xin sat in the office waiting, Chen Jing had already arranged the other work.
This included sending a vehicle escorted by a fully armed squad and a Mental Mutant to transport the two tempered-glass coffins to the Special Research Institute; having a fully armed team detain everyone from Sifang Company for surprise interrogations; and gathering as many people as possible to collect all activity records and intelligence related to Qin Ran and Cui Wang.
The earliest thing to emerge was a report.
It was an analysis of some residual tissue collected by the investigation team from the place where Cui Wang's body had been dumped.
The test results contained only one line: The tissue was confirmed to match Qin Ran (Pollution Source 041 at the bottom of the lake).
When Chen Jing entered the conference room carrying the documents, the dish was already empty. Lu Xin was gathering the wrappers and scraps from the table. When he saw Chen Jing come in, he stood there awkwardly with a handful of candy wrappers, unsure where to throw them.
Chen Jing took the wrappers from his hand and threw them into the trash can outside.
She also silently noted in her mind: "A sweet tooth... or a sweet tooth caused by using his ability?"
"The investigation has been completed."
After sitting down, Chen Jing took out a newly printed document and said to Lu Xin, "No residual mental power was detected in the lake. In other words, this mental pollution incident, codenamed 041, can be declared successfully cleared."
"Although there are still some other points of doubt, at least no one else will suffer harm for the time being."
"..."
Lu Xin quickly nodded. "That's great."
Chen Jing could tell that Lu Xin was genuinely happy, which gave her a strange feeling.
Especially when the calm Lu Xin now overlapped with the Lu Xin who had dealt with that Super Level 1 Mental Monster.
She even felt as if the one who had split apart was herself...
"The research and deeper investigation of Pollution Source 041 will be handled by someone else."
She thought this as she crossed her hands and rested her chin on them. Her eyes, somewhat deeper and narrower than those of ordinary people, focused seriously on Lu Xin. "What we need to do now is discuss and review this cleanup operation. Normally, when dealing with a Pollution Source, we look for its logic chain and core key. Only after finding these two things can we clear the Pollution Source at the lowest possible cost. But this time, we didn't truly find either of them..."
She paused slightly, then said, "Yet we still solved it."
"So..."
"Do you have some hidden ability?"
"Otherwise, how could you have single-handedly dealt with a Pollution Source whose mental level was close to two hundred units?"
Before you continue