Chapter 68

"The cave has no smart devices and can also block signals to some extent, making it very suitable for hiding from investigations. The incense burner and photos commemorating Meng Shi in the ice locker indicate that the cave's owner had a close relationship with the deceased. Considering all this, the person hiding in the underground drainage system is very likely to be Meng Changxi."

Lixue's analysis excited all the police officers. Currently, all the police in Xinhu were secretly investigating Meng Changxi, but they had no leads. If they could find Meng Changxi first, it would be a great achievement.

Putting on gloves, Lixue gently removed Han Fei's photo: "This photo was taken in the past few days, so the fingerprints should be relatively clear. Also, quickly compare the buildings and angles in the photo, and immediately check the surveillance footage of the relevant areas."

"Wait a moment." After removing the photo, Han Fei noticed that there were five words written on the back of his photo—The Last Path.

"Am I Meng Changxi's last path? What does he mean by that?"

Upon discovering the words on the back of the photo, Lixue also removed the photos of He Shouye and Meng Chang'an.

He Shouye's photo was covered with gruesome bloodstains, while Meng Chang'an's photo had a time written on the back.

"Isn't this today?"

Looking at the time on the back of Meng Chang'an's photo, Lixue was the first to realize something was wrong. She quickly flipped through the stack of documents and soon found something special.

"Input-type identity information card? Blueprint of the Everlife Pharmaceutical branch building? Map of the main venue of the Xinhu International Plaza?" After finding these items, Lixue immediately searched on her phone: "At 1:30 PM today, the Xinhu International Plaza will host a promotional event for a large-scale game. Everlife Pharmaceutical and Deep Space Technology have been hyping it up for three weeks, and they will launch the latest space sleep game pod."

"If the owner of this cave is indeed Meng Changxi, does his familiarity with the layout of the game promotion venue mean he plans to go there personally? The smart city district of Xinhu is different from the old city district; there are surveillance cameras almost every dozen steps, and the city's central brain constantly monitors all abnormalities. The probability of him being discovered is very high!"

"Meng Changxi wouldn't take such a big risk just for a game. He must have a compelling reason to go." Han Fei also searched on his phone and quickly found the reason: "The latest game pod being launched by the game company this afternoon is a joint development by Deep Space Technology and Everlife Pharmaceutical. A senior executive from Everlife Pharmaceutical will also be present."

He showed the information on his phone to the surrounding police: "Among the representatives from Everlife Pharmaceutical attending the event is Meng Chang'an!"

"Meng Changxi wants to kill Meng Chang'an?!" The two new police officers felt this was no small matter. They prepared to report to their superiors immediately. If a senior executive from Everlife Pharmaceutical were killed at the venue, the consequences would be unimaginable.

"Calm down!" Lixue scanned the documents in the cave: "At first, I didn't fully believe what Han Fei said, but various pieces of evidence suggest that Meng Changxi is the murderer. However, after seeing this cave, I feel that things are not that simple. Would a murderer spend ten years collecting clues bit by bit? Only someone seeking the truth would do that."

"Meng Changxi is a very smart person, extremely patient and resilient. Such a person wouldn't suddenly make such an impulsive decision unless something had triggered him." Han Fei looked at the surrounding police officers.

"Late last night, the bureau received an anonymous tip, providing irrefutable evidence that Meng Changxi is the murderer in the ice locker case." One of the police officers hesitated for a while before speaking to Lixue and Han Fei.

"Irrefutable evidence?" Lixue was surprised: "Why didn't I know about it?"

"You have always suggested to your teacher to control Meng Chang'an and be cautious with Meng Changxi, which goes against our overall investigation direction." The police officer shook his head: "Last night, we received some video footage showing Meng Changxi burying various animal corpses in the past, including dismembered birds, stray cats, and stray dogs. Just looking at those mutilated corpses, you can feel how twisted this person is. Of course, just animal corpses wouldn't be enough for a city-wide search. The most important part is the last segment of the video, which shows Meng Changxi preparing to bury a human corpse."

Another of Lixue's former colleagues added: "Evidence is more important than subjective assumptions. After the bureau received the irrefutable evidence, they immediately intensified the search for Meng Changxi and began using the latest technology for screening. He must have sensed the danger and realized he couldn't hide anymore, so he decided to take the risk."

"Is the video real?"

"Technical analysis confirmed that the video is real."

Upon receiving the definitive response, Lixue looked at Han Fei. She had initially trusted Han Fei's words and suggested to her teacher. But in the face of irrefutable evidence, she began to waver.

"There's a problem!" Han Fei remained firm: "Did the video you saw only show the process of burying animals? Did it show the process of torturing animals?"

"Even if the torture of animals wasn't captured, the fact that he intended to bury a human corpse is enough for us to arrest him." The police officer's argument was reasonable and irrefutable.

But just as everyone was convinced that Meng Changxi was the murderer, Han Fei clenched his teeth. He remembered what Meng Shi had told him: as Meng Chang'an's behavior became increasingly疯狂, his brothers began to intervene.

Han Fei clearly remembered what the old man had said. At the time, Meng Changshou, who was already working, found a psychologist for Meng Chang'an, and the second brother, Meng Changxi, helped his younger brother clean up after him.

This meant that all the animal corpses Meng Changxi buried were killed by Meng Chang'an. What was even more disgusting was that Meng Chang'an, knowing this, secretly filmed Meng Changxi burying the animal corpses.

At such a young age, he knew how to use his brother's love to shift the blame onto him.

Compared to the handsome Meng Chang'an, Meng Changxi, with a birthmark on his face, gave a much worse first impression.

From the moment Meng Chang'an started chasing butterflies, he might have already seen Meng Changxi as his scapegoat.

Thinking about this, Han Fei also understood something else.

Meng Shi was the one who knew the three brothers best, so she had to die.

"The initial clues found in Meng Changxi's home were likely left there deliberately by Meng Chang'an. This demon had planned everything from the beginning. He always held Meng Changxi's weaknesses over him and would hand over the evidence if things went wrong."

The most irrefutable part was that the evidence was indeed real.

Meng Changxi was guilty, but the truly unforgivable sin was committed by Meng Chang'an.

"Look at this!" A detective found a hand-drawn map in the corner of the documents, marking the locations of most of the surveillance cameras in the International Plaza and planning a relatively safe route.

"The input-type identity information card is specifically prepared for disabled people, such as citizens with facial disfigurements who cannot be identified by facial recognition, and blind people who cannot be identified by iris scans. We don't know where Meng Changxi got his identity card from, but if the card is problematic, the system will issue a warning in five minutes at most!"

"That means he will have only five minutes to complete the murder after entering the venue."

"From a time perspective, the route he planned can be described as perfect."

Knowing the specific action plan, the two detectives immediately took action.

Looking at the murder route, Han Fei did not leave. He put himself in the other person's shoes and thought that if he were to do such a thing, he would destroy the route after memorizing it, not keep it.

"It feels like Meng Changxi deliberately left these things behind. He might have been prepared for this place to be discovered. If that's the case, the place he's going to can't be any of the addresses in the documents."

"Additionally, Meng Chang'an publicly announced the information and high-profilely attended the new product promotion. He knew that the police investigation would put a lot of pressure on Meng Changxi, as if deliberately luring him to kill him."

"These two brothers are not fools; they can probably guess each other's thoughts. However, Meng Chang'an is using an overt strategy. If Meng Changxi doesn't kill him, he might lose his last chance. In this situation, what can Meng Changxi do to break the deadlock?"

Thinking about this, Han Fei looked at his own photo again.

"Why did Meng Changxi write 'The Last Path' on the back of my photo?"

"Could he be coming to find me?"