novelbin Chapter 557 - 541: Still Short of Unleashing the Base Vehicle...
Chapter 557 - 541: Still Short of Unleashing the Base Vehicle...
In the depths of Feng Mu’s heart, a grand wish was quietly growing:
"One day, I must let the fresh air of the prison replace the stench of the entire Lower City..."
At the same time, a prompt suddenly appeared on his retina:
[Second Prison (partially unlockable)]
[Current control completeness has increased to 83%!!!]
[Please keep up the good work!!]
At this moment, it was really hard to tell if the system was encouraging Feng Mu to keep pushing forward at this critical juncture, to quickly increase the level of control to unlock the base vehicle;
or if it was, in some other way, urging him to realize his grand wish soon.
Feng Mu couldn’t tell. He simply narrowed his pupils, tightly locking his gaze on the progress bar showing 83%.
"I remember when I just unlocked the base vehicle, the control level of the Second Prison was 72%. Now, after a few days, has it risen to 80%?"
As Feng Mu focused his gaze, a string of hidden logs gradually unfolded:
[Explosion occurred, Qian Huan fell into a coma, 72%→74%]
[Wang Cong met with Lu Chenjia, gained partial support, 74%→76%]
[Two prison chiefs died, 76%→77%]
[Helped Li Hanyu acquire a crucial chip, 77→78%]
[You gained Li Hanyu’s full support at this stage, 78%→83%]
"The backend records don’t lie, validating that my every move at this stage is correct, and my assumptions are correct, and the system’s assessments are extremely comprehensive and intelligent..."
For Feng Mu, deploying the base vehicle is undoubtedly of paramount importance at this stage, far more significant than leveling up or enhancing battle power.
And the feedback from the backend at this moment was like a powerful stimulant, proving that Feng Mu’s actions weren’t in vain, giving him more confidence in controlling the Second Prison and making optimal plans easier.
"The system’s judgment is comprehensive, consistent with my expectations. It seems that I don’t even need to become the prison director, as long as I can completely control the Second Prison in practice, progress can reach 100%!"
Feng Mu pondered intensely, his eyes growing brighter:
"Especially the last feedback, gaining Li Hanyu’s full support, which directly boosted progress by 5%, was beyond my expectations?"
"It seems that in the forthcoming situation, Li Hanyu may play an even stronger supportive role than I anticipated!"
"Prison Director Qian’s mother is extraordinary indeed!"
Feng Mu gently removed his glasses and slowly wiped the lenses, mumbling to himself:
"Just 17% left, and the base vehicle can be fully deployed..."
......
Li Shang had just come out of the hospital, reeking of disinfectant, and hurriedly made his way back to the Patrol Office.
He had barely settled into his chair when his cell phone on the desk rang, like a death knell.
Li Shang instinctively grabbed the receiver, and Hou Wendong’s voice came through, relaying an address.
Li Shang loudly replied into the phone:
"Please rest assured, Secretary Hou, I’ll lead the team to survey the scene immediately."
After hanging up, Li Shang rubbed his tired and swollen brow, feeling as if the nonstop work might just kill him.
"Just because I’m a Detective, every case is thrown at me. Is this reasonable? Who the hell becomes a Detective to constantly solve cases? Damn it!"
Despite his complaints, Li Shang still gathered a team of constables.
A team of constables rushed out of the Patrol Office, got in the car, and sped off towards the xxx district.
The cityscape outside the car window quickly receded, and at a certain moment, the taillights in Upper City flashed on in unison, illuminating the night sky in an instant.
In one second, night turned to day—a spectacle that always stood as Lower City’s greatest scene.
Li Shang cared not to admire it, lost in deep thoughts in his mind:
"Why are there endlessly unsolved murder cases? It must be because prisons are insufficient, leaving too many villains roaming free outside!"
"If we could set a KPI for prisons, requiring a full quota of criminals caught each month, wouldn’t there be no more unsolvable cases?"
"Zone 9’s security rate could see a significant improvement!"
Dawn broke, and the newly built district, sparsely inhabited, lay quiet like a ghost town.
Li Shang got out of the car with his team, briskly heading towards the crime scene.
Hou Wendong arrived belatedly. He stood at the bottom of the building, gazing upward for a moment. Once assured of its safety, he took the elevator up.
He couldn’t afford not to be cautious—recently, he seemed cursed, bringing calamity wherever he went.
He needed an exorcism to drive away the bad luck.
A soft "ding——" and the elevator door opened.
Two Chief Constables stood at the entrance, looking serious.
The crime scene had been cordoned off with police tape, with the forensic team busily inspecting the corridor.
"Any findings?" Hou Wendong walked over to one of the forensic personnel and asked.
"Secretary Hou, we detected gunpowder traces, but no bullets. The bullets were likely taken by the killer." The forensic personnel answered.
Hou Wendong frowned and, without saying a word, walked straight into the house.
Inside, Li Shang was meticulously examining the two corpses.
Seeing Hou Wendong approach, he stood up and reported:
"Secretary Hou, our preliminary assessment is that the two were ambushed by the killer in the corridor, subdued, and then dragged inside to the sofa.
The door lock shows signs of forced entry, and the killer brutally tortured and interrogated them, breaking all their joints before finally killing them."
Hou Wendong’s eyes came to rest on the two entwined bodies; their heads had been deliberately arranged to face each other closely, with twisted expressions forever etched on their contorted faces.
Hou Wendong winced involuntarily, turning his gaze away.
Li Shang continued:
"However, the two were tight-lipped, likely not revealing what the killer wanted, so the killer tore out their tongues in frustration."
Hou Wendong nodded and knowingly asked, "Have we identified the killer?"
Li Shang had a suspect in mind, and he believed Hou Wendong did too.
Taking a deep breath, he maintained a professional demeanor and responsibly said:
"The scene was handled very cleanly, leaving almost no clues. Based on the residue at the scene, we can’t confirm the identity of the killer; however, from the footprints, the killer wasn’t alone."
The killer’s identity couldn’t be deduced from the scene alone, but if looking beyond the scene, the killer was naturally... Feng Mu?!!
Hou Wendong noticed Li Shang’s evasion but didn’t press further; after a few seconds of pondering, he said, "Alright, take the bodies back to the Patrol Office."
Li Shang nodded in agreement and softly asked, "Should we cremate them?"
Hou Wendong shook his head: "No rush, let’s keep them until the case is closed."
Li Shang found it hard to gauge Hou Wendong’s intentions, so wisely refrained from probing further.
He then reached into his pocket, pulled out a slip of paper, and handed it to Hou Wendong, saying:
"This was found on the victim’s body."
Hou Wendong squinted slightly, reached out to take the slip.
It had an address on it, and upon closer inspection, it was the crime scene’s address.
Clutching the slip, Hou Wendong made no stay longer, turned, and left the room, heading down to the car, and dialed a number....