Imminent

Jinping Special Affairs Center, Operations Department.

The conference room was thick with smoke.

A blond man draped in a red suit leaned at the head of the table. His left eye was covered by an eyepatch engraved with a silver lion's head, while his right eye was dull and lusterless, like a cold abyss.

Seated around the conference table were the key case officers of the Jinping Special Affairs Center's Operations Department.

Department Head Ji Ming was presiding over the special case briefing.

"That concludes the actual progress on the Green-Headed Centipede case. We expect to initiate the hunt in two days!"

"Regarding the latest evidence of the Nautilus appearing in the north, we have completed the handover with our colleagues at the Shen-Guang Branch. We will continue to follow up on the impact of this incident within our jurisdiction..."

Ji Ming listened to the various reports with a calm expression. When he spoke, his words were concise, to the point, and incisive.

It was not until the end of the meeting, when a captain whose jurisdiction bordered Jintian City submitted a draft special case report from Jintian, that a ripple finally stirred in Ji Ming's dead-ash right eye:

"The individual License Holder metamorphosis event, which initially started in the northern pastoral areas, has now seen a new case in Jintian City, the closest city to our own. There are many people involved in this incident. After several rounds of interrogation, our brother department in Jintian suspects that this event is closely related to a certain freedom organization, and they have requested support from the Jinping Branch for the investigation. This is the current chain of evidence..."

On the projection screen, a massive, intricate mind map appeared, accompanied by unsettling photos used as case identifiers.

"Based on the current chain of evidence, this metamorphosis is likely an organized, large-scale, and purposeful infectious event. Although the source is still unclear, based on the timeline of the event's development, infected individuals will soon appear within Jinping City."

The attendees all furrowed their brows upon hearing this.

The atmosphere in the conference room suddenly grew tense: the regional city's feedback on this situation had come a bit late!

Ji Ming listened in silence and immediately issued his deployment: "First, synchronize this case with the Information and Intelligence Department. Compare it with recent abnormal events in the city to see if there is a possibility of merging the cases."

"Yes!"

"Team One and Team Two are responsible for concentrating resources to conduct a city-wide sweep. Those black-market dens we've been monitoring with long-term surveillance can be utilized simultaneously. Use any necessary means; I need all actions of known freedom organizations within Jinping City to be exposed to my sight."

"Understood."

"Received!"

Watching his subordinates leave in a hurry to carry out his orders, Ji Ming took a notebook from his assistant and personally wrote an email to the capital to report the case!

From beginning to end, he did not show any unnecessary emotion regarding the "late report" of the case. He knew very well what his value was at this moment: solving the problem.

Inside a two-bedroom residential apartment.

After Xiao Xuebai proposed a thorough investigation, the atmosphere in the room briefly stagnated.

But the male host of the house reacted immediately: "Ah, sure, of course, no problem!"

He reached out to lead Xiao Xuebai away from the alarm and toward the master bedroom.

Jiang Qian silently put away his Secret-Seeking Notebook.

He had already learned the License Holder IDs of this couple before coming. Having seen them in person, Jiang Qian had already used the notebook to learn the status of their identity cards:

Input: Watch Me Rise to Power

Notebook reply: "A platypus that treasures its feathers excessively."

Input: Toad Wanting to Become a Swan

Notebook reply: "A timid toad."

Both were poisonous card faces.

Combining their various reactions, some shallow speculations quickly took shape in Jiang Qian's mind.

The wife was timid, her face anxious, and her eyes darted around; she seemed filled with guilty apologies.

If she were anxious because she had accidentally triggered the alarm, that would be understandable. But the way her eyes darted around several times during the conversation and her excessive sense of guilt seemed slightly abrupt. This lingering, heavy guilt was clearly not directed at their visit. There was another reason for it.

The husband's initial awkwardness and his subsequent blame and angry scolding of his wife all seemed like he was trying hard to cover something up. Was he covering up his own nervousness or anger? Or the real reason for the alarm being triggered?

Jiang Qian clearly remembered that the moment the husband got angry at his wife was exactly when they were talking about the cause of the false alarm.

There was something wrong with this family!

Those two blocked-off bedrooms were the most suspicious.

The alarm being triggered was not just a simple mistake, as Xiao Xuebai's habitual thinking led her to believe...

Jiang Qian's gaze followed Xiao Xuebai and the male host.

He activated his Spirit Vision, but he was paying attention to the reaction of the hostess beside him.

And the hostess's reaction told him that the master bedroom about to be searched was fine—the problem should be in the second bedroom.

"Please, go ahead and look around."

The male host very considerately helped Xiao Xuebai push open the master bedroom door, which had previously been tightly shut.

He glanced back at Jiang Qian's side, a stiff smile squeezed onto his face.

Jiang Qian instantly became alert: he was about to make a move!

"Senior, this alarm... the cover doesn't seem to be screwed on tight. Should I tighten it for you?"

Jiang Qian's sudden remark made the male host's back stiffen again. In Jiang Qian's Spirit Vision, the muscles in the man's forearm were taut, and a layer of cold sweat had condensed on the back of his neck.

Was this level of tension a sign that he had the heart to silence them... Jiang Qian thought to himself that it was bad.

"It's not tight? Then help me tighten it, and be careful not to trigger it again!"

"Okay."

Jiang Qian then began to operate with his back to the hostess.

Moonlight was already visible outside the window.

"Please relax. I can feel your tension even with my back to you. It's fine; we often encounter this situation at the Security Department. It's nothing new."

"Mm, mm, okay..." the hostess replied absent-mindedly.

In his Spirit Vision, the male host seemed to have abandoned his intention to make a move—the alarm was right next to Jiang Qian's hand, and he didn't dare to act rashly.

He couldn't wait for Xiao Xuebai to check the second bedroom, or there would definitely be a violent conflict. Both of this couple had poisonous card faces. He wasn't sure what evolution stage they were at, but judging by their rank, it shouldn't exceed the second stage. However, the second stage was already capable of producing heteromorphic limbs, and it would be very troublesome if they started fighting... Jiang Qian's movements were slow, but he had already mentally inventoried the worst-case scenarios several times.

By now, Xiao Xuebai had finished checking the master bedroom and was walking toward the second bedroom on her own...

At this moment, the state of the couple suddenly tightened to the extreme!

A violent conflict was almost imminent!

Jiang Qian sighed softly.

He called out: "Senior!"

At that very moment, the hostess behind him and the male host beside Xiao Xuebai both held their breath!

Especially the man, whose hand was already reaching into his pocket; he couldn't help but swallow his saliva, his expression twisted by the struggle.

Xiao Xuebai stopped in her tracks.

Jiang Qian's next sentence followed immediately: "Let me check the next room."

Thanks to:

Book friend 20171216180853940

Ni Kan A Kan Bu Dong

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Zhuang Chun Gui

Yi Yun Yi Yi

Mo Chan

Shuang Fou

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