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墨書 Inktalez
The detectives of the Technical Team had been busy all night. Aside from seeing the number of people on those pages continuously increasing, there was no other change. The last interface was still counting down, and at that moment, the countdown showed only sixty-six hours remaining.
At this time, almost everyone had thick dark circles under their eyes, bloodshot and weary.
Jiang He said to Old Shao, "Since yesterday, in just one day, the number has surged to fifty thousand. By the time we reached the last page, a total of four thousand people had entered it. Although the last page does not display the number of entrants, a simple estimate suggests there should be at least a thousand people."
"And this is just the final group. In reality, for the earlier fifty thousand, the Criminal Consultant must have some use for them. Each person is wearing the same mask and dressed in identical clothing. Even if the Criminal Consultant only instructed them to wander around in these outfits, our police force has less than three days to find one person among fifty thousand. This is incredibly difficult."
Old Shao spoke up, "Regardless, we need to let them go first, especially around large squares and busy shopping areas where foot traffic is highest. If the Criminal Consultant intends to do something, this is the best place for it and also where escape would be easiest. We don't know how many citizens of Dragon City have seen this Criminal Consultant's video so far, but I estimate at least one-third."
"So when you act, you must remain calm and avoid causing panic among the crowd." Old Shao spread out a map of Dragon City and outlined patrol targets by area. The five members of the task force were assigned to patrol Cultural Square, the largest square in Dragon City.
Cultural Square is located in the city center of Dragon City and serves as its landmark square. Nearby department stores and shopping centers cater to various consumer needs, while several large supermarkets compete with each other in close proximity. The surrounding entertainment venues and food stalls offer a wide variety of options.
Especially with the New Year approaching, shoppers were bustling about, and many families were out enjoying leisure activities.
Standing in the square, they looked at the dense crowd filling it to capacity—people were jostling shoulder to shoulder without end. It seemed that combined with those on nearby streets, the foot traffic had easily surpassed two hundred thousand in a short time.
Jiang He suddenly spoke up, "If a few bombs were to appear in this square right now amidst such a crowd, it would turn into a hell on earth."
"Exactly," Old Shao pointed out some Special Police officers present and said, "Although there are police on site, facing such a massive crowd, if panic were to erupt—even without bombs—the resulting stampede would lead to consequences we cannot afford."
Old Shao addressed everyone: "So my intention along with the director's is clear: we absolutely cannot allow such severe consequences to occur. Only after ensuring that can we discuss capturing the Criminal Consultant."
Just as Old Shao finished speaking, Jiang He said, "Look towards three o'clock."
Upon hearing Jiang He's words, everyone turned their gaze toward that direction. Through gaps in the crowd, they caught sight of a dark figure on the southwest side of the square. Following the flow of people forward and peering through openings in the throng, they finally understood what Jiang He had seen.
It was a person—a figure cloaked in black wearing a criminal mask.
“Criminal Consultant,” Yuan Jun whispered, “How did I see him here? I’m going to catch this pervert right away.”
Jiang He and Old Shao said in unison, “This is not the real Criminal Consultant.”
Jiang He exchanged glances with Old Shao, then spoke up, “Just by his height, we can rule that out. I’m ninety percent sure this person is a middle school student.”
“Let’s go take a look,” Old Shao said, glancing at Yuan Jun. “Try not to alert too many people.”
Yuan Jun nodded and made his way through the crowd towards the so-called “Criminal Consultant,” with Old Shao and Jiang He following behind. Old Shao remarked, “From now on, we’re going to see more and more people like this. Once they put on these clothes, it’s like there’s a trendy term among you young people—what was it again?”
Old Shao looked at Jiang He, who then glanced at Xu Yiman, who in turn looked back at Jiang He.
“I don’t know,” Jiang He replied.
“I don’t know either,” Xu Yiman added.
At that moment, Guan Deng, who had been glued to his computer nearby, suddenly chimed in with a single word: “sp.”
Meanwhile, Yuan Jun had already caught hold of the person referred to as “sp.”
When Yuan Jun dragged the so-called “Criminal Consultant” into a secluded alley, the young man was nearly in tears. His voice trembled as he spoke; it turned out this middle school student had mistaken Yuan Jun for a street thug.
By the time Old Shao and the others arrived, Yuan Jun had already removed the mask from the boy's face along with his cloak and gloves.
Jiang He asked, “Where did you get this outfit?”
The middle school student looked timidly at the group and weakly replied, “I bought this outfit online. Please don’t hit me! I heard from my classmates that you could get a set like this for just one dollar. We thought it was pretty cool. It’s not just me; several of my classmates bought one too.”
Old Shao rubbed his temples, trying not to let fatigue overwhelm him. "Do you know what this outfit means?"
The middle school student glanced at the others, seemingly hesitant, before finally managing to say, "So, do you want me to know, or do you not want me to know?"
Yuan Jun snapped back, "Listen here, if you know, just say it. Stop talking like a slick-tongued middle schooler."
Startled by Yuan Jun's harsh tone, the student quickly replied, "Actually, we all know. This... this is the outfit and mask of the Criminal Consultant, right? I once received a WeChat video about it. I heard he’s a hero who despises evil and kills those who deserve it."
Upon hearing this, Old Shao felt a wave of melancholy wash over him. He realized that any further explanation would be futile. He finally understood what Wei Demian had said to him before his death: "We are not here to do anything; we are merely planting a seed in people's hearts. What happens next is no longer our concern."
It seemed that seed had already been sown.
But what Old Shao couldn't comprehend was why the Criminal Consultant would kill innocent people if he truly wanted to be seen as a hero in people's hearts. With his abilities, he could easily find those who truly deserved punishment. Why did he choose this path?
Old Shao sighed lightly. "So why are you wearing this outfit today? Did someone notify you, or did you choose to wear it yourself?"
The middle school student replied, "I just wanted to try it on because I think it looks pretty cool. A lot of boys in my class have it. We agreed to wear these outfits and hang out at the square today. I didn’t know why you guys stopped me."
Old Shao studied the student for a moment before asking, "Where did you agree to meet?"
The student nodded. "At the steps of that cinema west of the Cultural Center."
Old Shao instructed, "Then take us there. Yuan Jun, notify the nearby police officers to accompany us."
Yuan Jun nodded in agreement.
"You guys are police?" The middle school student suddenly grew bold. "You should have said so earlier! I thought you were trying to rob me. I'm not afraid of police; if you dare do anything to me, I'll report you! Even if I hit you, you can't hit back."
Yuan Jun slapped the middle school student on the head. "Go ahead and complain, why don't you? Your attitude changed pretty quickly, huh? You think the police are here to serve the people, so you can bully them?"
"Get out of here and find your classmates," Yuan Jun said, kicking the student in the rear.
At that moment, the middle school student finally settled down.
With the help of nearby officers, they quickly confiscated the student's clothes and mask.
Old Shao looked at the few sets of clothing they had seized and said, "After all this time, we've only confiscated a few sets. With fifty thousand people, if they all showed up wearing these outfits in this square, when do you think we would ever find this Criminal Consultant?"
"Even if we searched one by one like finding fifty thousand pigs, it would take days," Yuan Jun replied.
"That's just confusing the issue," Jiang He suddenly spoke up. "I know what the Criminal Consultant is trying to do. He gave so many people masks and cloaks to create confusion. When everyone is dressed alike, the Criminal Consultant will definitely hide among them. We need to find the place where he is most likely to appear."
As soon as Jiang He finished speaking, a melodious bell rang out from the square.
Everyone looked up to see two tall Bell Towers on either side of the square, their large bells ringing with a resounding "dong dong dong."
These two Bell Towers were iconic structures of Dragon City. Since the day Dragon City was established over seventy years ago, these towers had stood tall. The clock on the Bell Tower continued to tick, seemingly never stopping.
Twelve chimes.
It was twelve o'clock.
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