227: Oh? A new clue.

Shen Mingyuan arrived at the key investigation area marked on the map—a patch of abandoned green space located at the edge of the film studio, bordering an old residential area. It was overgrown with weeds, littered with construction debris, and the outline of a river embankment could be seen in the distance.

He raised his left arm and pressed his thumb against the crimson gem at the center of the armband.

A faint light shimmered, and the matte black armor instantly enveloped his body. The sounds and details of the surrounding world flooded in.

He closed his visor, blocking out conventional vision to focus on perceptions that required no light.

Temperature was the first sensation to rush in. The world transformed into a canvas of varying shades of orange-red and dark blue in his "eyes." The ground retained the residual warmth of the day, appearing as large swathes of dark red patches.

In the distance, the outlines of buildings were distinct, with bright clusters of light representing humans flickering behind windows. Nearby in the grass, tiny heat sources from rodents or insects occasionally moved rapidly.

No large areas of abnormal high temperature or heat signatures clearly unnatural for living creatures were detected.

He switched perception modes, opened his visor, and extended his visual range to its limit.

The swaying willow branches on the distant river embankment, the reflections in the windows of buildings on the opposite shore, and even the blurry numbers on vehicle license plates on the road further away all became clearly discernible.

He slowly shifted his gaze, scrutinizing every visible inch of this area like the most precise scanner: overturned trash cans, broken walls, damp puddles... No large nests visible to the naked eye, unnatural holes, or obvious drag marks.

Finally, he slightly adjusted his breathing and triggered another method of detection.

A low-frequency vibration inaudible to ordinary people emanated from his chest, spreading outward in all directions from him.

The "echoes" returning after the sound waves touched objects did not come as sound but directly constructed a three-dimensional, richly detailed structural image in his mind.

He could "see" the depressions in the ground surface, the hollow cavities inside abandoned cement pipes, the tangled tree roots beneath the soil, and even the intricate woven structure of an abandoned bird's nest deep in the grass.

No large underground cavities or complex tunnel structures matching the characteristics of a "Hive" were detected.

Alternating between these several perceptions, he meticulously scanned the area.

The rustling of wind through grass blades, the faint clamor of the city in the distance, the chirping of insects nearby, the scuttling of rats under broken bricks... All these sounds were clearly captured by his armor-enhanced hearing, but among them were no abnormal buzzing of wings or strange noises of struggling creatures.

The preliminary physical investigation yielded no decisive leads. Shen Mingyuan deactivated his transformation, returned to his regular clothes, leaned against a section of broken wall, and frowned slightly.

"Assuming it really is an evolved form of some 'Parasitic Wasp'..."

He muttered to himself, beginning to sort through his known entomological knowledge. "Then, in terms of habits... First, it needs a host. Are humans the target? Or any warm-blooded animal? Based on the case, it targets people.

Second, the method of laying eggs or injecting larvae... Usually through a sting. That neurotoxin could be its saliva or egg case secretion, used to paralyze the host, suppress immune response, and create perceptual blind spots.

Then, the larvae hatch and grow inside the host, feeding on the host's tissues..."

He recalled the gruesome state of that corpse—the abdomen eaten so "clean" from the inside out, with terrifying efficiency.

"This would require an extremely large number of larvae, or... a single larva's feeding speed and conversion efficiency are beyond imagination. Finally, the mature individual bursts out of the body..."

His gaze swept over the wild grassland, the piles of debris, and the distant river channel.

Such an environment would indeed be suitable for insects needing concealed nests, proximity to human activity areas, and a water source.

But if it is a creation of the 'New Federation,' its habits and nest location might defy common sense even more, making it difficult to predict using ordinary insect ecology.

Shen Mingyuan sighed softly. The clues were still too few. A single case was hard to outline the full picture. More importantly... "It seems I've overlooked one direction."

He thought pensively. "The deceased's social connections, recent behavior, whether there was any special contact history... I haven't asked about these in detail."

He immediately returned to the base and retrieved a more detailed file on the deceased. The deceased was named Zhang Jianjun, forty-two years old, a construction worker employed in the supporting project area of the film studio.

The file showed his background was simple, his daily routine relatively fixed, his residence was in the old residential area near the base, preliminary investigation of his social connections showed nothing unusual, and there were no obvious debts or emotional disputes.

He was just the most ordinary migrant worker.

The next day, Shen Mingyuan changed into casual clothes suitable for communication and arrived at the construction site where Zhang Jianjun had worked, under the pretext of "assisting the police in understanding the situation." The atmosphere at the site was somewhat heavy; the coworkers had clearly heard the tragic news.

Shen Mingyuan found a few veteran workers familiar with Zhang Jianjun, offered them cigarettes, and inquired with a sincere tone. Talking about Zhang Jianjun, the men all sighed with regret.

"Jianjun... he was a decent, honest guy, worked hard, never slacked off," a dark-skinned old worker said, smoking and shaking his head with a sigh. "Just had bad luck. How could such a good person run into something like this? Officer, you've got to catch that damn murderer!"

"We'll do our best," Shen Mingyuan said solemnly, not mentioning anything about "parasitic creatures." "Rest assured, we won't let the murderer go unpunished.

Please think again. Was there anything unusual about him recently? Or did he have any unpleasantness with anyone? Even something very minor."

The coworkers looked at each other and shook their heads. One of them thought for a moment and said:

"Unusual... not really. He didn't talk much, just kept his head down and worked. Oh, right..."

He seemed to suddenly remember something. "He used to be quite close with Old Liu; the two often ate together. Pity Old Liu hasn't worked here for a long time."

"Old Liu?" Shen Mingyuan caught this information.

"Yeah, Liu Hongwen. He left about half a year ago," another coworker chimed in. "If not for that incident, he probably wouldn't have left."

"What incident?" Shen Mingyuan pressed, his tone calm but carrying unmistakable attention.

The coworkers' faces showed slightly complex expressions, a mix of taboo and sympathy. The old worker who spoke first lowered his voice a bit:

"Ah, this matter... it's quite tragic to talk about.

Old Liu had a hard life. His wife died during childbirth, leaving him with a son. He raised the boy alone, being both father and mother, treating him like a treasure, afraid he'd fall if held, afraid he'd melt if kept in his mouth, just hoping his son would have a bright future."

He paused, took a drag of his cigarette, then continued:

"Unfortunately, his child... seemed to have been bullied at school, you know... that kind of nasty business in schools.

The kid took it to heart, couldn't bear it... later, he was gone.

After that, Old Liu... it was like half his soul was lost. He lost heart in his work and left on his own not long after, didn't say where he was going.

Sigh... Before, to support his child's education, he was the hardest worker among us."

Shen Mingyuan listened quietly, his gaze focused, committing every detail to memory.

Single father, school bullying, child's death, left over half a year ago... These fragments of information didn't yet show any direct connection to Zhang Jianjun's bizarre death, but any abnormal node appearing in the deceased's social network was worth noting.

"I see..." Shen Mingyuan nodded, his tone gentle and comforting. "Thank you all for telling me this; it's very helpful. If any of you remember any details about Zhang Jianjun or Mr. Liu Hongwen later, please feel free to contact me anytime."

He left his contact information, offered a few more words of comfort to the coworkers, and then left the still bustling and busy construction site. Standing by the dusty roadside, Shen Mingyuan looked at the notes in his hand.

"Liu Hongwen..." he silently repeated the name.

A grieving father who quietly left due to the pain of losing his child—could he be connected to this bizarre case? Was it a coincidence, or a fork in the investigation path that needed careful scrutiny?

He needed to find this Liu Hongwen. At the very least, he needed to know where he went after leaving, and... what he was doing now.