A single divination predicts life and death; the entire internet begs me to start a live stream.

The moment Lin Wanqing received the photo, her entire demeanor changed.

The slight relaxation that had just occurred after rescuing Zhou Xiaoyu was instantly suppressed.

She handed her phone to the technician next to her.

"Check the number."

"Check the transmitting base station."

"Check the original image information."

"immediately."

The technician took the phone, and his expression changed.

"Yes."

In the photo, the second girl is tied to a chair.

Hands tied behind the back.

His mouth was taped shut.

Her long hair hung down, covering half of her face.

There was blood on his forehead.

The wall behind me was a gray cement wall.

There is a red plastic bucket in the corner.

The ground was damp, and a small patch of water could be seen.

At the very bottom of the photo, there is a line of crooked handwritten text.

Master Chen, please continue the calculation.

Several detectives surrounded them, their faces grim.

The young detective cursed under his breath:

"madman."

Lin Wanqing said coldly:

"Not crazy."

"It's a provocation."

She looked at the underground passage of the old waterworks that had just been sealed off.

Zhou Xiaoyu has been put into an ambulance.

The ambulance left quietly without its siren on.

But now, they have no time to be thankful.

Because a second hostage appeared.

Moreover, the murderer proactively sent her the photos.

This is not fear.

This is a declaration of war.

"Team Leader Lin, the number is a virtual number."

The technician frowned.

"It stopped right after it was sent."

"What about positioning?"

"We're tracking them, but they've used a redirect, so we can only initially focus on the area from the west to the north of the city; the area is too large."

Lin Wan frowned slightly.

"Original photo information?"

"It has been cleared out."

"No location."

"The shooting time shows it was taken ten minutes ago, but it may have been altered."

Lin Wanqing did not swear.

She simply took a deep breath.

Especially in times like these, it's crucial to stay calm and avoid making a rash decision.

The killer wanted them to be in chaos.

She picked up her phone and sent Chen Bufan a message again.

[The second hostage.]

[I'll send you the photo.]

Can I see the location?

In the rented room.

Chen Bufan looked at the photos Lin Wanqing had sent, his finger hovering over the screen.

The live stream chat exploded.

The comments section is full of questions about this.

Is the second hostage real?

Has something happened to Officer Lin?

Why isn't the master speaking?

[Has the killer released more photos?]

[Help! Please don't let anything else happen.]

This person is a total psychopath.

Chen Bufan did not respond to the comments.

He enlarged the photo.

The first thing I noticed was the girl's face.

The lamp of life is still burning.

She's a little better than Zhou Xiaoyu.

But it's not stable either.

She wasn't detained for three days; she must have been recently arrested.

The second thing to look at is the wall.

Ordinary cement wall.

There was no paint.

There are damp marks on the wall, but they are not severe.

It's not the damp, abandoned old waterworks.

It's more like an underground parking garage, a repair shop, or an old warehouse.

The third thing to look at is the red plastic bucket.

There was a little grayish-white powder stuck to the edge of the bucket.

It looks like lime, and also like putty powder.

There are watermarks on the ground.

There are small iron filings at the edges of the watermark.

Chen Bufan's brows furrowed slightly.

The comments section was getting increasingly tense.

Master, can you tell?

Are you still in the north of the city?

Does anyone recognize this wall?

[Relying only on a wall and a bucket, that's too difficult.]

Even the police might not be able to find it immediately.

Chen Bufan's gaze fell on the girl's feet.

A sliver of black wire was visible there.

The outer sheath of the wire is worn.

There was also a small yellow plastic clip on the ground next to it.

He raised his hand and gently pressed down on the copper coin.

The copper coin spun once.

Stop.

Ominous.

It's not a particularly bad omen.

Instead, it was blocked.

It's like looking through a black cloth.

Chen Bufan's eyes darkened slightly.

wrong.

He couldn't see clearly.

The girl's fate was obscured by something.

It wasn't a natural disconnection.

It was someone who covered up his life.

In the live stream, Chen Bufan remained silent for a long time for the first time.

This silence panicked everyone.

[Can't the master tell?]

No way...

The perpetrator was clearly prepared this time.

Don't rush them, don't disturb the master.

Officer Lin is definitely investigating as well.

Chen Bufan picked up his phone and made a voice call to Lin Wanqing.

Lin Wanqing answered almost instantly.

"Did you figure it out?"

Chen Bufan didn't keep anyone in suspense.

"The person is still alive."

Lin Wanqing closed her eyes.

This is the only good news tonight.

"Where is the location?"

Chen Bufan looked at the photo.

"It's not the old water plant."

"It's not a particularly remote place."

There are people around.

Lin Wanqing's eyes flickered.

"Is anyone there?"

"right."

Chen Bufan said:

"The place where she was imprisoned was not in the wilderness."

"There's the sound of an elevator running nearby."

"There's the sound of water flowing through pipes."

"There's also low-frequency vibration."

Lin Wanqing immediately looked at the technician.

"Record."

Chen Bufan continued:

"underground."

"But it's not a basement."

"It's more like an equipment room next to an underground parking lot, or an abandoned repair shop."

Lin Wanqing quickly asked:

"North of the city or west of the city?"

Chen Bufan frowned.

"To the west of the city."

"But it's not complete."

Lin Wanqing noticed the unusualness in those words.

"What do you mean?"

Chen Bufan looked at the girl's chest area in the photo.

The clothes were wrinkled there, and a small section of the edge of the yellow talisman could be vaguely seen.

Very small.

If it weren't for his ability to read fate, he wouldn't have paid any attention.

"There's something on her."

Lin Wanqing's voice turned somber.

"What is it?"

"Life-Protecting Talisman"

Lin Wanqing frowned.

The young detective next to her heard this and couldn't help but glance at her.

If it had happened an hour ago, he would have thought it was absurd.

But now nobody's laughing.

Zhou Xiaoyu was just rescued from the old water plant.

The red rope, the power switch, the back wall, and the water tank on the west side all match up.

They no longer have the right to easily mock Chen Bufan's words.

Lin Wanqing lowered her voice:

"effect?"

Chen Bufan said:

"It's blocking my view."

Although Lin Wanqing's voice couldn't be heard in the live stream, Chen Bufan's expression could be seen.

The comments section gradually quieted down.

Chen Bufan continued:

"The killer doesn't understand this."

"He's just a plumber."

"They know how to connect electricity, how to lay cables, and how to find abandoned locations."

"But the life-protecting talisman is not something he can draw."

Lin Wanqing's eyes turned completely cold.

"You mean, he has someone backing him?"

"right."

Chen Bufan looked at the photo.

"Someone is teaching him."

"Does anyone know that I can read fate lines from photos?"

"So a life-saving talisman was placed on the second hostage beforehand."

"This is not a simple kidnapping."

"It's targeting me."

Lin Wanqing was silent for a second.

She realized this clearly for the first time.

The things Chen Bufan was involved in were probably much deeper than she imagined.

It's not an internet celebrity scamming donations.

It's not a case of a wealthy family fighting over inheritance.

This is not an ordinary missing person case.

From Shen Qingyue to the Wang family, then to Zhao Qiming, and now to the plumber murderer.

It's like there's the same hand standing behind everyone.

That hand is not directly visible.

It only teaches people how to play the game.

Borrowing life, turning disaster into fortune, nurturing luck, trapping the soul, and concealing fate.

Lin Wanqing lowered her voice.

"Mr. Chen."

"We will investigate according to normal criminal investigation procedures."

"But I need you to tell me as much as you can see."

Even incomplete information.

This was the first time she had spoken to Chen Bufan in this tone.

This is not a test.

It's not a doubt.

It's not a top-down verification.

Instead, they truly regarded him as an important part of the operation.

Chen Bufan understood.

He looked at the photo and slowed his speech.

"The wall in the photo is not the wall of the old factory building."

"It is an underground structure built within the last ten years."

"The walls are damp, but there are no mold spots, which means that someone comes and goes regularly."

"There's putty in the red bucket."

There are iron filings on the ground.

"There should be renovations, repairs, or underground shop renovations nearby."

Lin Wanqing quickly gave the order:

"Investigate shopping malls, residential communities, and office buildings in the western part of the city that were built within the last ten years, have underground parking lots, or are currently undergoing maintenance or construction."

"The focus of the inspection will be on underground equipment rooms, maintenance workshops, and abandoned storage rooms."

The technician immediately started typing.

"yes!"

Chen Bufan continued looking at the photos.

Behind the girl's chair, there was a blurry white sign.

Like numbers on a wall.

Only half a letter is visible.

B.

The next number might be 2.

It could also be Z.

Chen Bufan narrowed his eyes.

"There are numbers on the wall."

"B2".

Lin Wanqing immediately asked:

"Basement level two?"

"possible."

Chen Bufan said:

"And red plastic buckets."

"This kind of bucket is not for home use."

"It's commonly used for construction sites and property maintenance."

"There are white characters on the right side of the bucket."

"It should be the two characters 'Hong An'."

The technician suddenly looked up.

"Team Leader Lin, there's a property management company called Hong'an Property in the west of the city."

"The service area includes three shopping malls, two office buildings, and seven residential communities."

Lin Wanqing's eyes lit up.

"Retrieve them all."

Chen Bufan's expression remained serious.

Because the dark aura in the photo is getting thicker.

The girl's lifeline is still alive.

But the talisman is pressing the life line inward.

The longer it drags on, the uglier it will look.

He closed his eyes.

My fingertips pressed against the copper coin.

The copper coin began to spin.

a circle.

Two laps.

Three laps.

The live stream chat was completely silent.

The master is calculating.

You absolutely must find it.

This time it felt harder than the previous ones.

The killer has someone backing them up; that's incredibly cunning.

What is a "life-protecting talisman"?

Is this a way to change one's fate?

The copper coin suddenly stopped.

Chen Bufan suddenly opened his eyes.

A hint of bloodlust appeared in his eyes.

The girl's lifeline in the photo was covered by a cloud of black mist.

He could only see a faint afterimage.

underground garage.

Yellow warning post.

The sound of dripping water.

Someone was pushing a cart past in the distance.

There was also a blue sign.

——Xichen.

Chen Bufan's voice suddenly lowered.

"west Chen".

Lin Wanqing immediately asked:

"Xichen what?"

"I only saw those two words."

The technician searched quickly.

"There is Xichen Square in the west of the city."

"The underground parking garage on level two is currently under renovation."

"The property management company is Hong'an Property Management."

Lin Wanqing immediately stood up.

"Notify nearby police forces."

"Xichen Plaza, basement level 2, all equipment rooms are under lockdown."

"Don't alarm the crowd."

"quick!"

"yes!"

Although no internal police instructions could be heard in the live stream, many local netizens from Haicheng had already started commenting.

[Xichen? Is it Xichen Plaza?]

My home is nearby!

The second basement level of Xichen Plaza is indeed currently under renovation.

Don't go to the scene! Don't cause trouble!

Let the police handle it!

Chen Bufan was about to look again.

But just then, the yellow talisman on the girl's chest in the photo seemed to suddenly light up.

It's not screen glare.

It's a backlash of talismanic energy.

Chen Bufan felt a sudden tightness in his chest.

It felt like someone punched him in the chest from a distance.

He felt a sweet taste in his throat.

next second.

He spat a mouthful of blood directly onto the table.

The live stream chat exploded instantly.

【master!】

Master Chen coughed up blood!

[Holy crap, what's going on?]

[Has it backfired?]

Stop calculating!

Master, don't scare me!

Chen Bufan supported himself on the table with one hand.

His face was pale.

Blood was still dripping from the corner of his mouth.

The old copper coins on the table shook violently.

hum-

hum-

hum-

The yellow booklet that had always been closed suddenly opened by itself.

The pages of the book moved on their own even without wind.

I flipped to a page in the middle.

On the blank paper, it looked as if four words had been written in black blood.

One stroke at a time.

It slowly emerged.

Black Life Covers the Sky

The moment those four words appeared, the lights in the room flickered.

The live stream also started to lag.

Millions of viewers witnessed it firsthand.

Chen Bufan raised his head, his eyes chillingly cold.

He wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and stared at the photo.

His voice was low and hoarse, yet every word was clear and distinct.

"Lin Wanqing".

"quick."

"The people behind him have already made their move."