Otherworldly Affairs Office

Upon hearing Captain Fan's narration, and recalling the scene at the crime scene, imagining someone gnawing on a heart, Pei Yan felt a wave of nausea and disgust towards Song Mingyuan.

"He eats human flesh?" Although Ye Jiumu appeared more composed than Pei Yan, he still looked pale and incredulous as he asked.

"It's a possibility. The heart organs of all three victims had considerable portions missing, and there were no remnants of those parts at the scene. Moreover, the wounds on the hearts were covered with a multitude of bite marks. What puzzles the forensic pathologist is that a normal human's chewing capability shouldn't be able to damage a heart to that extent," Captain Fan replied while leading the team further inside.

Ye Jiumu and Pei Yan said no more, silently following Captain Fan into the city bureau's surveillance room. After asking all the staff to leave, Ye Jiumu shut the door and turned to Pei Yan, saying, "You heard him just now, this person is insane! He's extremely dangerous, and we cannot let him roam freely in society. Use your ability to find him quickly!"

Pei Yan nodded in agreement, casting a glance at the photo of Song Mingyuan placed aside. He removed his disguise and eye patch, revealing the Mechanical Eye, placing his hands on the control panel. All the surveillance screens flickered and then began moving rapidly. Pei Yan remained expressionless as countless electronic details flooded his brain; the system within him quickly analyzing information for him.

In less than three minutes, Pei Yan lifted his hands, looking at the surveillance video in doubt, unable to believe what he saw. He placed his hands back on the panel, and two minutes later, he withdrew his ability, turning to Ye Jiumu and saying, "He went to Jiayuan District!"

"Jiayuan District?" Ye Jiumu was initially stunned, then remembered their mission and asked incredulously, "You mean?"

"Yes, it's that family," Pei Yan replied resolutely.

"Are you sure? How long has he been there, and is he still there now?" Ye Jiumu pursued further questions while taking out his phone to call Hu Wenjun.

"The school surveillance footage didn't capture when he left, but he should have bought a bottle of drink from a 24-hour convenience store at three in the morning." As Pei Yan said this, he waved a hand, and surveillance footage of a convenience store appeared. Ye Jiumu pretended to report on the phone while his eyes remained glued to the screen.

The screen showed Song Mingyuan from the photo: tall, thin, neatly dressed, entering the convenience store from the street corner. After only a few minutes, he came out holding a bottle of drink, sipping it at the street corner. More provocatively, he apparently noticed the surveillance equipment at the corner and waved, taking off his hat as if in challenge.

Seeing his face without any anxiety or guilt, but rather a smug, boasting smile, and then recalling his possible actions, Ye Jiumu felt a twinge of fear.

After ending the call, Ye Jiumu continued to watch the screen and asked, "What happened next?"

"He then went to an internet café Fashion City to browse the web until seven, had breakfast at a street stall, and then took a cab to Jiayuan District, entering the building where we previously carried out the mission and hasn't left since." Pei Yan said, sliding his finger over images of Song Mingyuan's progress, fixing on him exiting the elevator.

"It's now eight-thirty, meaning he's been at that house for over an hour. Pei Yan, Captain Hu has already led a team to the scene, let's get moving as well!" Ye Jiumu nodded at the time on his phone and said through gritted teeth.

"Alright!"

The two exited the surveillance room and explained the situation to Captain Fan waiting outside the door. While astonished at how quickly they reviewed the surveillance to find the suspect's trail, Captain Fan decisively ordered surrounding police to hurry to Jiayuan District and then hurriedly led them out of the office building.

The party sped to Jiayuan District in a police car, coincidentally meeting Hu Wenjun and others who had just arrived. Captain Fan immediately deployed perimeter security, while Hu Wenjun led the group upstairs stealthily to the floor below the incident scene.

"Wang Wenze, can you confirm if Song Mingyuan is still in the apartment?" Hu Wenjun asked, peering at the twelfth-floor occupant's window from around the corner.

Before Wang Wenze could speak, Pei Yan interjected, "Captain, leave it to me, I have a way!"

Hu Wenjun turned to look at Pei Yan, nodding to him. Taking advantage of the empty surroundings, Pei Yan mechanized his right hand. Subsequently, more than a dozen mechanical flies flew out from his palm, circling them once before heading upwards.

"Check your phones, I will share the visuals with you." Pei Yan said, using his mind to control the mechanical flies with a finger resting on his temple.

Everyone immediately took out their phones, and indeed, a shaky image appeared on their screens. Shortly, these flies reached their destination, slipping through a gap in the occupant's window.

However, the scene that greeted them made everyone present hang their heads and sigh.

"Damn it!" Pei Yan spat a swear word through gritted teeth. The once warm and cozy room they occupied for over an hour was now gone, replaced by chaos akin to a burglar's sweep of the living room. Most heart-wrenching and infuriating were the two male bodies, one old, one young, lying in the doorway and on the living room sofa, their condition unknown. Three remaining females — old, middle-aged, and young — had their mouths taped, bound to chairs, unable to move.

With the mechanical flies delving deeper, they finally found their target: Song Mingyuan. At that moment, he was excitedly staying in the bathroom where Ye Jiumu and Pei Yan had previously repaired the dimensional rift, excitedly tapping on the nearly healed fissure, gradually expanding it.

As a precaution, Pei Yan's mechanical flies dared not delve further, halting in a hidden corner. Pei Yan lowered his arms and angrily said, "What the hell does this lunatic want to do?"

"Either he wants to absorb energy or intends to travel to a different dimension! As an awakened superhuman, he is very sensitive to the source wave fluctuations in the air. Evidently, he sensed the fluctuations here not long ago and wants to use it to fulfill his objectives," Hu Wenjun said, watching the bound little girl on the screen, pursing his lips nervously.

"What will he do there? One month there equals a day here, and they can't cultivate their Cultivation Technique, accelerating death?" Pei Yan looked at Song Mingyuan on the screen as if he were an idiot.

"He doesn't know that. Having gained great power, he wants to venture to another world to pursue a higher level of breakthrough. Our ancestors have committed such foolish acts before. Right now, it doesn't matter if he's an idiot; rescuing the hostages is paramount, and thankfully, his awakened level isn't high."

Hu Wenjun paused at this point, turned to Wang Wenze, tilting his head towards him, understanding the captain's intent, Wang Wenze stretched out his hands, colorful liquids pouring from both arms, crawling up the wall.

"Pei Yan, keep constant surveillance while we go up."

"Understood!"