Nightmare Light

Chapter 271 Case Meeting
An hour later, at the police station.

No matter when you come, the police station is always in a state of chaos.

Domestic gossip, theft and robbery, traffic and public security;
Fighting, gambling, fraud, and supernatural phenomena;

And some people want to get their cats spayed/neutered... but they've come to the wrong place.

Lin Wang looked at the busy crowd in the Public Security Bureau and felt a sense of emotion.

The last time he came here, he was still a newbie who had just entered this other world and knew nothing.

Nowadays, several immortals live under his tree fern.

Lin Wang shook his head, banishing the small sentiment in his heart, and together with Tian Taozi, turned the corner and went upstairs, heading straight for Jiang Shanjun's office.

"Chief Jiang! Lin Wang and I are here!" Tian Taozi knocked on the door a few times, and after hearing "Come in" from inside, she pushed the door open and entered the house.

Lin Wang glanced at Tian Taozi with some curiosity: "I didn't expect that you would actually knock on the door so obediently... I thought you would just push the door open and barge in."

Tian Taozi's face was bitter: "I was indeed like that before, but one time, when I came in, I saw Jiang Tou'er fighting with a piece of clothing. I pushed the door open and startled her. She subconsciously waved her hand, and then I knew nothing more... I woke up in the hospital later—with four broken ribs."

"Fighting with a piece of clothing?" Lin Wang was taken aback.

His first thought was: Did I get some gossip?

The female section chief's cold voice rang out: "That was evidence left at the scene of an unusual incident. I didn't expect it to suddenly jump up and attack people... Peach, what you just said could easily lead to misunderstandings."

When I saw Jiang Shanjun again, she hadn't changed much. She was still so thin that her cheeks were sunken. Her hair was casually tied in a braid, and she looked gaunt and aloof.

But Lin Wang noticed that she had deliberately applied a very thick layer of makeup to her face, especially around her eyes.

Lin Wang's heart skipped a beat: She hasn't been sleeping well lately...? Is it because of this case?
However, Jiang Shanjun clearly didn't explain to the two why she was putting on makeup. She simply nodded slightly as a greeting: "You're here?"

Tian Taozi stuck out her tongue and put the packed food box on the table with a grin: "Boss Jiang, it's still warm, like it just died."

Lin Wang's face twitched: "...How did you even grow up with that mouth of yours?"

Jiang Shanjun had already taken out her chopsticks, but after Tian Taozi finished speaking, her chopsticks froze in mid-air for a full seven or eight seconds.

The female section chief sighed softly, put down her chopsticks, and stood up: "Come with me, let's talk about the case first."

"..."

"Chief Jiang, what about this fish..."

"Don't talk."

……

The three walked to a conference room not far away, where an unfamiliar sheriff was in charge of operating the computer projector.

On the conference room screen, a large amount of data, maps, and surveillance footage quickly appeared.

"This is Tang Shengcheng, showing the distribution of blood-related cases recently."

Jiang Shanjun held up a laser pointer and shone it on the screen: "Blood banks in two hospitals were robbed, residents in seven or eight places suddenly developed anemia, and there were more than a dozen cases of cats and dogs dying from being sucked blood..."

The laser pointer swept across the screen, shining on several random spots around Tang Shengcheng. Lin Wang looked around but found no trace of the "array".

Cats and dogs are being sucked blood...

Lin Wang remembered the fish he had just seen.

He asked Jiang Shanjun, "You said that some residents are anemic, but not dead?"

Jiang Shanjun nodded: "Yes, they were all sudden and bizarre cases of anemia, but the people didn't die."

Are there any abnormal infections?

Jiang Shanjun thought for a moment and shook his head: "No, these people have some complications, such as fever, poisoning, diarrhea, etc... but it is not an abnormal infection."

It's a bit like malaria...

Lin Wang thought to himself.

Tian Taozi said, "Boss Jiang! Today at the grilled fish shop, the owner said that several of their fish had also dried up!" Jiang Shanjun frowned: "The Public Security Bureau has received more than a dozen cases of cats and dogs turning into mummies... and the number is still increasing."

Lin Wang tapped the table lightly, pondering, "Let's assume that sucking cat and dog blood and sucking human blood are from the same source... Why did the cats and dogs die, but the people didn't?"

"Could it be like our Chief Jiang? A lack of appetite?" Tian Taozi guessed.

A laser pointer struck her precisely on the head, and the female sheriff cried out in pain, clutching her head.

(Just this expression)

After thinking for a moment, Lin Wang tapped the table: "Are there any patients who haven't been discharged yet? I need to go check on them."

Jiang Shanjun said, "Most patients with anemia are discharged on the same day...but we have the records here."

She nodded to the sheriff operating the computer, who then switched to several videos.

Lin Wang saw that most of the anemic patients in the video had sunken and withered faces, and pale complexions, but because of the fever, their cheeks also had an unhealthy flush.

After watching a few videos, Lin Wang suddenly pointed at the screen and asked, "Is this a Lushan person?"

In the scene, a somewhat familiar face appeared—Lin Wang had seen this man from Lushan before when he was at the Lushan Villa.

“Yes, several of these people with anemia are from Lushan.” Jiang Shanjun nodded. “But the Public Security Bureau has conducted several searches in the surrounding area and has not found any suspicious persons—the city defense troops have also searched the area.”

Lin Wang nodded and continued watching the videos.

Apart from a few Lushan people who appeared multiple times in the footage, Lin Wang noticed that most of the others were middle-aged or elderly people who looked quite healthy.

Why are there always people like this...?

What common characteristics do they share?
Lin Wang pondered.

Suddenly, he noticed a detail in one of the images.

"Pause."

The sheriff paused the video feed, and Lin Wang took the laser pointer from Tian Taozi and pointed it at the screen: "What's that red dot on this person's neck?"

"It's nothing, right? It's just a mole, or maybe a bite from some insect?" Tian Taozi said.

Lin Wang frowned, feeling that he had overlooked something.

He nodded to the sheriff: "Brother, could you please replay all the videos of these patients... But that's too much trouble, just play them all at once."

He paused, then added, "Also, open the photos of those cats and dogs on the screen."

The sheriff glanced at Jiang Shanjun, who nodded in agreement. He then sent all the videos and pictures onto the big screen at once.

The others were dazzled by the sights, but Lin Wang remained silent and focused on the screen, not uttering a word.

A few minutes later, he pointed to several of the images with a laser pointer: "Zoom in on these images and replay them."

The sheriff carried out the operation.

This time, the image on the screen was magnified considerably, and the group was finally able to see the content clearly.

"First scene, pause."

"Third scene... Pause."

The sheriff followed the instructions, and soon all the images were paused.

Lin Wang got up, walked to the large screen, and pointed at certain locations on the bodies of several patients on the screen with a laser pointer.

“These people…and these dead cats and dogs, all have these little red dots on them.”

Tian Taozi's eyes widened: "Wow..."

Jiang Shanjun slowly stood up.

(End of this chapter)