Chapter 54

In reality, many people have experienced betrayal from their close friends, and in the cycle space, it's even more common. Therefore, Ferren is a risk-averse person who constantly examines and adjusts his relationships with those around him. The small mistake of "Zhuang Yueming" raised Ferren's guard to an unprecedented level, and he even took the opportunity to test Li Zekai's attitude when the martial arts enthusiast Zhuang Sheng was being nonsensical.

"Looks like I can give Little Li some trust for the next period of time," Ferren muttered to himself as he drove the Ferrari up the hill. On the way, he called Dai Yan to confirm the location of the body.

Upon arriving at the site, he parked the car, showed his credentials, and entered the restricted area.

The place where the body was found was a small forest. A man who was out walking his dog unexpectedly found the body when his dog was digging and turning over the ground.

Xie Yixin and Dai Yan had already arrived. As Ferren approached them to greet and inquire about the case, Xie Yixin glanced at him and said, "PI Ferren, you're late."

Ferren, blocked by this, replied unhappily, "Am I late? We're not taking attendance today, are we?"

Xie Yixin was taken aback, glared at him, and then ignored him, turning to chat with her colleagues from the forensic team.

Ferren patted Dai Yan and asked in a low voice, "What's wrong with Madam Xie? Did she eat something that upset her?"

Dai Yan smiled ambiguously and said, "Ferren, I'm not quite sure, but I heard from colleagues in other departments that you seem to be dating Dr. Zeng Man from the forensic medicine department. Is that true?"

Ferren rolled his eyes and said loudly, "Who's so gossipy, spreading rumors that damage Dr. Zeng's reputation? There's nothing between us."

At this moment, Shi Yiran, who was responsible for searching the surrounding area, happened to return and chimed in, "Really? Ferren, I heard Dr. Zeng has already moved into your place, and you two seem to be living together."

"Who the hell is spreading such nonsense?!" Ferren firmly denied it. Xie Yixin, who had been listening, immediately walked over and scolded, "We're in the middle of an investigation, what are you gossiping about?"

"Oh, oh!" Dai Yan and the others responded and dispersed.

Ferren followed Xie Yixin to the body and watched the forensic team collect evidence.

"How's it going?" Ferren asked.

The forensic team member, without looking up, said, "The body is highly decomposed, and we can't accurately determine the time of death yet. However, based on the environmental humidity, temperature, and the degree of decomposition, it's been more than a week. The head and the part below the knees have been cut off, and there's no item on the body that can identify the victim."

"What about the cause of death?" Ferren asked again.

"We're not sure yet; we need to take it back to the lab to find out." As he spoke, the forensic team member used tweezers to pick up a pocket from the body.

"Thud!"

A dirty plastic bottle fell out, containing some colorless, viscous liquid, and rolled to Xie Yixin's feet.

The forensic team member didn't pay much attention and said casually, "Could you pick it up?"

Xie Yixin, wearing plastic gloves, didn't mind and bent down to pick up the plastic bottle.

Ferren suddenly shouted, "Wait!"

"What for?" Xie Yixin stopped, and when she wasn't being stubborn, she usually listened to Ferren.

"Do you recognize the material of this bottle?" Ferren asked.

The forensic team member thought Ferren was making a big deal out of nothing, put down his work, and squatted down to examine the bottle from all sides, saying uncertainly, "It should be some kind of special plastic."

"Stay away from that bottle, don't get too close!" Ferren warned. "Have you heard of Teflon?"

The forensic team member was surprised and blurted out its common name, "The King of Plastics!?"

"Yes, this bottle is made of Teflon," Ferren said. "What kind of liquid do you think would be specifically stored in this type of plastic bottle?"

The forensic team member's face turned grim, "Could it be a strong acid?"

"Judging by the viscosity, I suspect it's a super-strong acid," Ferren said, a hint of fear in his eyes.

The forensic team member's face turned even grimmer.

Xie Yixin, sensing something was wrong, straightened up and took a few steps back, asking, "Arlen, what's a super-strong acid?"

"It's an acid stronger than pure sulfuric acid!" Ferren explained simply. "However, from the look of the liquid in the bottle, it's probably not aqua regia but rather a fluorinated acid."

The forensic team member shuddered, finding it hard to believe, "How is that possible? The management of fluorinated super-strong acids in HK is very strict, and they are extremely rare."

Ferren shrugged, "Better safe than sorry. Don't let anyone touch it. Take it back to the lab for testing, and everything will be clear." He said this, but his eyes never left the bottle.

Xie Yixin, not understanding the severity of super-strong acids, tugged at him and said, "What's wrong with you? You seem very tense about that bottle."

Ferren turned his head and glared at Xie Yixin, sneering, "Madam, it seems we can't find any clues for now. We'll have to put this case on hold and wait for the forensic report!" He then turned and walked away.

"Where are you going?"

"Of course, I'm going home. There are no clues right now." Ferren said without looking back.

Xie Yixin, frustrated, said, "No clues? Can't you look for clues in the surrounding area?"

In her view, among her subordinates, Ferren was the laziest, yet he had stumbled upon three major cases in just one week.

"When I arrived, I already checked the surrounding area. It's definitely not the primary crime scene," Ferren said, spreading his hands. "Besides, there was a heavy rain in the hills a week ago, which would have washed away any clues."

This was a straightforward statement, but Xie Yixin didn't like his casual attitude and chased after him, "Can't you check the missing persons reports to see if there's anyone matching the victim's build?"

Ferren dodged the question and asked Xie Yixin, "Sister, the hills are under the Central District Police Station. Why would this case fall to us?"

Xie Yixin, of course, wouldn't admit that she had taken the case to keep Ferren busy and prevent him from spending time with a certain vixen, "Arlen, what do you mean? We are police officers. How can we shirk our duties when we encounter a case? Besides, the Central District Major Crime Unit has three or four ongoing cases, so Inspector Wang assigned this case to us. It's reasonable!"

Ferren rolled his eyes and pulled Xie Yixin to a secluded corner in the forest, "My dear sister, do you know how dangerous this case is?"

"What's so dangerous? It's just a small bottle of acid," Xie Yixin said carelessly, even teasingly, "Since I became a police officer, I've never known what fear is... What, are you, the rising star of the police force, scared?"

"Do you know what that small bottle can do?" Ferren said fiercely, holding up one finger, "One drop, just one drop, and I can guarantee that whoever it splashes on will be unable to take care of themselves for the rest of their life." In fact, he was almost certain that the Teflon bottle contained a fluorinated super-strong acid, possibly even antimony pentafluoride.

Xie Yixin clearly wasn't prepared for this, her mouth wide open, and it took her a while to regain her composure, "It can't be that scary, can it?"

Ferren rolled his eyes again, "Ignorance is bliss. I'll have to educate you on various things when I have the time, or else one mistake could cost a thousand lives!"

Seeing Ferren's expression, Xie Yixin asked uncertainly, "Is it really that scary?"

Ferren took a deep breath and made an OK gesture, "Pure sulfuric acid can cause severe dehydration, you know that, right?"

"Ah? Dehydration, isn't it also burns and disfigurement?" Xie Yixin asked in surprise.

Ferren showed a speechless expression, "Same thing! Listen to me, if it's a fluorinated super-strong acid, its acidity is over a thousand times that of pure sulfuric acid."

"Ah?!" This time, Xie Yixin was truly shocked.

"Moreover, I suspect the victim's head and feet were not simply cut off," Ferren continued. "The killer might have used the super-strong acid to corrode the head and feet before disposing of the body. It's even possible that the killer used the acid to kill the victim."

Xie Yixin was chilled to the bone but saw a hint of schadenfreude in Ferren's eyes, so she forced herself to say, "What? Are you scared?"

"Yes, I am scared, scared that you might get corroded!" Ferren said, pointing to Xie Yixin's prominent chest, and then turned and ran.

"Ferren, I'm going to kill you!"

However, as soon as she chased out of the forest, Xie Yixin had to pretend to be a lady and slow down. Ferren, on the other hand, jumped into the Ferrari, waved his hand, and sped off.

Just as he drove to the foot of the hill, Xie Yixin's call came, "Ferren, you're leaving early. I'll report this to the higher-ups!"

Ferren ignored her, "Whatever!" However, after hanging up, he felt a bit wary about the killer in the hill body case, not because of anything else, but because if the killer had antimony pentafluoride (①), it would be a powerful weapon capable of killing him.

That night, under Li Zekai's guidance, Zhuang Sheng came to Ferren's house. Ferren had Sakura welcome him into the living room and, looking at the bandage on his injured hand, asked, "How's your hand?"

Zhuang Sheng smiled bitterly, "The doctor will arrange for an amputation surgery within three days!"

"Oh? That's good, then. Don't practice martial arts anymore, just be a wealthy man!" Ferren said with a smile.

"Big Brother Ferren..."

Ferren waved his hand to stop him, "No, no, don't call me that! You're Little Li's cousin, but you're probably older than me, right?"

"Big Brother Ferren, my cousin told me your age. We were born in the same year, you in summer and I in winter, so it's appropriate to call you Big Brother." It seemed Zhuang Sheng was determined to get close to Ferren.

Ferren smiled ambiguously, "If you want to be my disciple, then don't get your hand amputated."

"Ah? Big Brother Ferren, does that mean you agree to take me on?"

Ferren smiled insincerely, "Let's see if you can pass the 'no amputation' test first!"

(①: Antimony pentafluoride, highly corrosive, undergoes vigorous hydrolysis, can exist as a solid or a colorless, viscous liquid, and its acidity is 2×10^19 times that of pure sulfuric acid.)

(Kneeling for recommendations, kneeling for collections, all kinds of requests!!)

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