Chapter 47

A tunnel is a structure built underground, underwater, or through mountains, used for laying railways and roads for motor vehicles. Since the construction of tunnels on steam-powered railways began in Britain in 1826, it has been nearly two hundred years.

In the suburbs of Donghai City, about dozens of kilometers away, a mountain tunnel project contracted by China Railway Second Bureau is under construction.

This tunnel, which will penetrate the entire mountain, is 1,750 meters long. Once completed, it is expected to reduce the travel distance by hundreds of kilometers, and has received strong support from the municipal government.

At this moment, the tunnel project is almost complete, and it is estimated that in a little over a month, a ceremony can be held to celebrate the successful completion of the project.

Wang Qicheng put on his safety helmet, said hello to his coworkers who were eating, and walked into the tunnel alone. As he walked, he shone his flashlight around, and if he found anything substandard or inappropriate, he would call the responsible person to criticize them personally.

His strictness was well-known, and many of his coworkers called him "Tiger Wang" behind his back. He didn't mind; safety must be strictly enforced in production work, or it would be too late to regret once an accident happened.

There is no medicine for regret in this world, so only by being as strict as possible can accidents be avoided. Wang Qicheng, who has worked in this industry for over a decade, understands this better than anyone.

The pressure of working in this industry is something outsiders can't understand. The danger and hardship are secondary; the most pitiful thing is that they have to work away from home for long periods, with little time to spend with their families. Wang Qicheng feels the most apologetic and sad about his wife and children. There have been many times when he has made promises and then broken them, causing his wife and children to feel disappointed and hurt.

Fortunately, in a few years, Wang Qicheng will retire, and then he will have plenty of time to be with his wife and children.

Old people tend to daydream. Wang Qicheng shook his head to clear his thoughts and began to inspect carefully.

"Bang... bang... bang..."

A strange noise suddenly came from ahead. Wang Qicheng frowned and walked over.

"Huh, nothing here?"

He thought someone or something might have been damaged, but when he walked over, there was nothing unusual in the range of his flashlight.

"Bang..."

"Who's there?"

The strange sound suddenly shifted, and Wang Qicheng felt something was off.

His shout seemed to disturb the source of the sound, which suddenly disappeared, and the tunnel returned to complete silence.

"Was it a rat?"

There are various animals in the mountains, and it could be that a small animal had crawled into the tunnel unnoticed. This was unavoidable.

Seeing that the sound had disappeared, Wang Qicheng didn't pay much attention and prepared to continue forward.

"Huh, what's this?"

Suddenly, a few drops of liquid fell on his face. Wang Qicheng touched them, and the flashlight's light shone on his hand, making him very surprised.

"What is this?"

It was black and viscous, looking like asphalt at first glance, but it had no smell and didn't seem to be asphalt. The key question was, how could such a strange liquid fall from the ceiling?

Wang Qicheng looked up, and as the flashlight's light shone, a large amount of black, viscous liquid fell from above, landing on his face.

"Ugh..."

Covered by the viscous liquid, the feeling of suffocation was unbearable. Wang Qicheng immediately fell to the ground, using his hands to wipe the liquid off his face.

"Glug glug..."

The black, viscous liquid bubbled as if it had consciousness and life, and suddenly it seeped into Wang Qicheng's nose and mouth. In a few seconds, the liquid on his face disappeared completely.

"Huff huff."

Wang Qicheng panted heavily, not knowing what had just happened. Before he could react, his pupils dilated, and he let out a painful groan.

In the next moment, Wang Qicheng's face swelled like a balloon, rapidly inflating. His mouth, nose, and eyes bulged out, looking extremely terrifying.

"Bang!"

When a balloon inflates to its limit, it bursts. The same happened to Wang Qicheng's face, which exploded with a loud sound, splattering blood and flesh everywhere, leaving only a horribly damaged, almost hollow head.

In just ten seconds, a life was taken. After the bizarre scene, the black, viscous liquid slowly flowed out from the cracked spine, quickly spreading and disappearing into the darkness.

Half an hour later, several police cars arrived, stopping outside the yellow tape.

Liu Zhongyi and Wang Xinhua got out of one of the cars, and a police officer who had been waiting for a long time hurried over.

"Captain Liu."

The officer saluted Liu Zhongyi and apologized, "This case is a bit complicated, and it has interrupted Captain Liu's vacation..."

"Let's not talk about that. Ruid, how's the situation?"

Entering the taped-off area, Li Ruid followed Liu Zhongyi and replied, "The technical team and the forensic experts are on the scene. According to the statements we've gathered, the victim is 53 years old, named Wang Qicheng, and he was the supervisor here..."

The three entered the tunnel, which was brightly lit by searchlights, allowing them to see the busy police officers about 200 meters away.

"Interviews with people related to the case are ongoing, and we'll have more detailed information soon."

Li Ruid answered Liu Zhongyi as they walked.

"Was the victim alone at the scene?"

Wang Xinhua suddenly interrupted Li Ruid.

Li Ruid, not annoyed by the interruption, looked at Wang Xinhua and said, "So far, it appears that the victim was alone, and there are no signs of anyone else."

"Then why do you think it's a homicide?"

"Look at the scene, and you'll understand."

Li Ruid didn't directly answer Wang Xinhua's question, but when they reached the scene, even the experienced Liu Zhongyi's face changed, let alone the 27- or 28-year-old Wang Xinhua, who almost vomited.

As a proud detective, it would be embarrassing to vomit at the sight of a crime scene. Wang Xinhua forced himself to hold back, and when he looked at Li Ruid, he saw that Li Ruid was avoiding looking at the body.

No wonder Li Ruid said to look at the scene. The condition of the body was so gruesome that it was hard to believe it was a suicide or an accident.

What kind of suicide or accident would cause a face to explode, leaving the brain in a mess?

The bizarre scene was enough to chill the heart of any police officer who saw it, let alone an ordinary person, who would be haunted by it for life.

It was clear that the technical police were still investigating the scene. Two officers were taking photos of the location, the overall scene, the center of the scene, and the details.

Two other officers, wearing gloves, were carefully analyzing the causes of various traces without touching any objects or traces, using technical methods.

The three stood aside, silently watching the forensic team work. Wang Xinhua, trying to suppress his nausea, watched as the forensic team collected samples from the body, placed them in a water-free polyethylene container, sealed them, and labeled them with the sample name, source, quantity, time, and collector.

"What are they doing?"

Wang Xinhua asked, frowning.

Liu Zhongyi remained silent, but Li Ruid explained, "They are conducting a toxicology test. Later, in the lab, they will use spectrophotometry and chromatography to identify and determine if there are any toxins."

"Ah."

What you learn from books is not as good as what you learn in practice. Wang Xinhua learned something new.

"Let's go out first."

Staying here wasn't going to help. Liu Zhongyi waved for the two to follow him out.