Eating bizarre things in public upgrades my status; the Special Affairs Bureau wants me to join them

[Target consumed: Soft shark]

Status: Adult

[Gained Ability: Mermaid Form]

"Mermaid Form: Moves through water like a mermaid, becomes powerful upon contact with water!"

He Li finished whispering in his mind.

"Mermaid form? It sounds like it should allow you to move and breathe freely in the water like a mermaid, and... your abilities will be slightly enhanced when you're in the water."

"That's good, it makes up for the fact that we're not good at swimming."

Although the shark's abilities are limited, it's good enough for He Li to be able to make up for its shortcomings.

"As long as all the weaknesses are eliminated..."

"Then what can't I do?"

He was thinking about it with great satisfaction.

But not far ahead, an investigator from the Chengdu Special Affairs Bureau approached him with an awkward smile and asked timidly, "Mr. He, do you have a moment to spare right now?"

"Yes!" He Li nodded, snapping out of his daze.

Whether there are any clues in the shark's phone remains to be seen, and Yu Ji will need some time to analyze and crack it.

He really didn't have anything else to do during this time.

As for why the Rongcheng investigator asked him about this?

He Li's reasoning is obvious without even thinking about it.

The Rongcheng Special Bureau was likely observing the situation here and, seeing his performance, wanted to salvage their relationship. Sure enough, when they heard that He Li had some free time…

The investigators looked pleased.

"That would be wonderful! I wonder... if you would do me the honor of visiting our Rongcheng Special Affairs Bureau?"

"Our bureau chief and the heads of each department..."

"Everyone wants to meet you, the genius of Bacheng."

"Of course, since you came all the way from Bacheng and worked tirelessly to solve the case and catch the hidden monster, reducing the possibility of people being harmed in Rongcheng, we should also reward you."

"Look..." the investigator said, his face full of anticipation.

He also came with a mission.

He'll definitely get scolded if he doesn't bring He Li along.

There will be a reward if you can bring it over.

Therefore, he was very much looking forward to it.

Upon hearing this, He Li couldn't help but smile, though the smile carried a hint of amusement.

The other investigators from other areas nearby made no attempt to hide their reactions when they heard these words; some rolled their eyes, others sneered, and shrill whispers rang out among them...

"Listen to what they're saying..."

"They didn't say that during the day."

"I remember during the day, they were very dismissive of He Li, acting like they didn't care about him at all."

"But what about now?"

"Tsk, I realize I misjudged him..."

"So you're eagerly inviting me again?"

"That's right, I heard that He Li's investigation was also blocked by the Rongcheng Special Bureau. It seems that the reason is that Rongcheng is afraid that He Li will steal the credit and will not give him law enforcement power."

"It's just that most of the people at the scene were investigators from Chengdu, so the news didn't spread."

"But this can't be kept secret forever!"

"Really? That's hilarious..."

"Isn't healthy competition based on merit enough?"

"You can't do it yourself, so you won't let others investigate the case?"

"Hmph, the Chengdu Special Affairs Bureau is really something... their arrogance at first followed by their obsequiousness is laughable!"

The investigators from other places weren't going to tolerate the Chengdu Special Bureau's behavior. Besides, they were already annoyed by the neglect they received during the day, so now that they had a chance, they were going to make a big scene.

The Chengdu investigators blushed upon hearing this.

But they had no way to argue.

They could only lower their heads and pretend they hadn't heard.

Hearing these words, He Li smiled knowingly and nodded slightly in agreement.

Let's not talk about anything else for now.

"But since they said they'd give me a reward..."

"Why not take it if it's free!"

As he was thinking this, the Rongcheng investigator across the street saw that He Li agreed and immediately beamed with joy. He quickly told the others to make way for He Li and jogged over to open the car door himself.

He Li waved to Yu Ji and Zhao Hu, who were not far away, signaling them to follow.

They didn't speak to the Chengdu investigators on the way.

They were just discussing the case amongst themselves.

Yu Ji said, "The basic situation regarding the Immortal Shadow Bridge can now be deduced."

"Feng Xu's human skin is specially made."

"There's absolutely no problem with it from the outside."

"It's possible that this is the case even with detectors."

"That's why the Chengdu Special Bureau couldn't find anything. The monster probably used some kind of chemical substance to release onto the water, creating a small-scale toxic fog that affected people..."

"Then they induced nearby tourists to commit suicide."

"Although there aren't many recorded suicides, who knows how many have happened in secret?"

Yu Ji paused at this point.

"The aerosol medication must have been provided by someone else."

"Human skin too, as for that monster..."

Yu Ji suddenly took out two gray jade cards, about the size of bank cards, from his pocket.

"What is this?" He Li asked curiously.

Yu Ji then raised his hand and moved the watch screen in front of He Li. He Li looked over and saw that the screen on the watch was the "Soul Qi" case that had not yet been solved in Rongcheng.

We'll leave the details of the case aside for now.

What caught He Li's attention was that the case page also included pictures and explanations of this type of jade piece.

"Look at the explanation above..."

"This seems to be a special type of jade piece."

"Its function is to absorb the vital energy of the soul, and the vital energy of the soul... is the breath exhaled when a person dies."

Yu Ji was seen swiping through the page as he spoke.

Zhao Hu chimed in, "Speaking of which, I've heard people say before that when a person dies, their weight suddenly drops, supposedly because their soul leaves their body."

"Could it be that this jade piece... contains the souls of those victims or something?"

Yu Ji shook his head upon hearing this.

"Whether it was a soul or not is hard to say, but the Rongcheng Special Bureau has determined that last breath of life..."

"Name it Soul Qi!"

"Then let's go back to the strange thing we were talking about earlier."

"The purpose of those fish monsters is to harm people on the river and then absorb their soul energy with the jade pieces. Such things have also happened in counties or cities near Rongcheng."

He Li narrowed his eyes upon hearing Yu Ji's words.

"Does this look familiar to you?"

"In Ba City, some people use bloodworms to collect spirit blood and then raise bloodworm dragon butterflies."

"What a coincidence, someone in Chengdu is collecting soul essence..."

"And then there's Shang Qiuyun's presence..."

"I feel that our previous guess was correct. The Dragon Worship Society must have also given special monsters to people in other cities, and then had them collect various materials to cultivate them."

"It's possible... that there's a monster in Rongcheng that's no weaker than the Bloodline Dragon Butterfly."

At this point, He Li suddenly remembered the time when the shark was still wearing Feng Xu's human skin...

She mentioned wanting to boost sales figures and such.

So, is "boosting performance" just collecting soul energy?

This Dragon Worship Ceremony... is really interesting.

The work schedule is designed to resemble a regular office job.

As he thought this, Yu Ji and the others nodded in both seriousness and complete agreement. The Rongcheng Special Bureau investigators, who were driving in front, overheard the conversation and looked on with surprise and doubt.

From what He Li and the others are saying...

Are there similar cases involving the soul and qi in Bacheng?

And it has already been solved?

While feeling surprised and suspicious, he glanced at He Li through the rearview mirror and couldn't help but shake his head.

"In Bacheng, there are investigators who are not only powerful but also very resourceful. Of course they can solve cases. In comparison..." He sighed inwardly, thinking of his hometown, Rongcheng.

No, it's incomparable.

He sighed, and the car began to slow down.

Because we are already close to our destination.

He Li and the others also noticed the change in scenery and stopped their discussion, looking out of the car...

The car drove into the underground tunnel next to the artificial lake.

But what followed was not a dark passage.

Buzz! As the car passed through the strange entrance that resembled a body of water, everyone realized that the Special Bureau of Chengdu was actually built in that vast artificial lake.

Furthermore, both moonlight and sunlight can shine through the lake and glass into the Special Affairs Bureau building.

"The environment is nice, but..."

"It's still not as good as our Bacheng."

As the car stopped, Zhao Hu suddenly spoke.

The investigator who opened the car door twitched slightly at the corner of his mouth.

Who doesn't know that their Ba City Special Bureau is an independent space built within the stomach of the Ba Snake?

No other place can compare.

This is no secret.

Why did I even mention it?

The Rongcheng investigator was speechless and somewhat envious, but he didn't show it on his face. He just maintained a professional smile and gestured for them to follow him inside.

When He Li and the others followed them through the gate and into the lobby of the Rongcheng Special Bureau, they discovered...

The higher-ups at the Chengdu Special Affairs Bureau...

It seems everyone's here!

Judging from the scene, He Li felt a sense of déjà vu, like when a senior company leader comes down for an inspection, and the lower-level managers arrange for a large number of employees to warmly welcome him in order to curry favor with the leader.

Although I don't care about this superficial form.

However, to be fair...

That was pretty cool!