377: Chapter 375 Oh, fishing.

Thirty minutes later.

An investigator in uniform walked over, holding a tablet, and nodded toward Lu Jianchuan.

"The results are in."

Lu Jianchuan took the tablet and scanned its contents. Shen Mingyuan leaned in, and the two looked together.

According to witness statements and backend records, apart from those two individuals, the other circus employees had no connection to the New Federation. Most were newly hired in the past few months—animal trainers, laborers, ticket sellers—all recruited through normal channels with clean backgrounds, knowing nothing. Those two were responsible for managing the animals, especially the Black Bears, and usually kept to themselves.

As for those Black Bears, they 'moved in' with the circus three months ago. No one knew where they came from, and no one asked.

Lu Jianchuan handed the tablet back to the investigator.

"Understood, thank you."

The investigator nodded and turned to leave.

Lu Jianchuan and Shen Mingyuan stood in place, silent for a few seconds.

Shen Mingyuan spoke first: "Another dead end."

"Mm."

"Those two are already dead. We can't get anything out of them."

Lu Jianchuan looked at the circus tent cordoned off by caution tape in the distance and softly exhaled.

"The New Federation..." he said, "that bunch."

Shen Mingyuan didn't reply. He leaned against a nearby shipping container, staring at the ground as if thinking about something.

After a while, he suddenly spoke:

"But what I'm really curious about is—their purpose for being here."

Lu Jianchuan tilted his head to look at him: "Didn't we already say? To find Qing Lian. That newly evolved animal, they want to recruit her."

"Is that so?" Shen Mingyuan lifted his head, his gaze falling on Lu Jianchuan's face. "If only it were that simple."

He paused.

"But how did they find her?"

Lu Jianchuan was taken aback.

Shen Mingyuan continued: "Qing Lian evolved only a few days ago, barely showed her face—and she was already found. That's too unreasonable. How did they do it? Is something tipping them off?"

Lu Jianchuan was silent for a few seconds.

"Could it be other animals?" he said. "Like birds, constantly flying over the city, keeping watch for them."

Shen Mingyuan shook his head.

"It's possible," he said. "But think about it, have we ever encountered anything strange like that normally? Even before, we never saw any bird specifically watching us."

He paused, his gaze drifting further away.

"There must be something. What could it be?"

Lu Jianchuan suddenly spoke, a hint of jest in his tone.

"It can't be that there's some extreme animal rights group among us humans, can it? Like the kind Wei Ziqing and I ran into when we went to find Chen Changqing—people who specifically work for animals."

After saying this, he looked at Shen Mingyuan.

Shen Mingyuan was also looking at him.

Their eyes met.

Seeing that look in Shen Mingyuan's eyes, Lu Jianchuan was momentarily stunned.

"It can't be, right?" he said, the playfulness in his tone fading a little. "You really suspect that?"

Shen Mingyuan didn't speak, but that look remained.

Lu Jianchuan was silent for two seconds, then was the first to look away.

"There can't really be people..." He paused, considered various human possibilities, and finally softly clicked his tongue. "The world is vast, full of wonders."

He raised a hand to his forehead, a touch of helplessness in his voice.

"It can't be, right? There can't really still be this kind of—animal protection organization, specifically informing the New Federation? They just report evolved animals as soon as they see them, letting the New Federation collect them?"

Shen Mingyuan didn't answer, but the silence itself was an answer.

Lu Jianchuan lowered his hand, looked at the circus tent already cordoned off by caution tape in the distance, and let out a long sigh.

"...Alright."

He turned his head to look at Shen Mingyuan.

"Seems our investigation direction lately needs to shift this way."

"It's too late now," Shen Mingyuan glanced at his phone. "Let's head back first."

Lu Jianchuan nodded, pulled out his phone and swiped a couple of times, then suddenly frowned.

"Okay, but I need to get a refund for the tickets first." He muttered while operating his phone. "Damn it, this circus's tickets are really expensive. Even with the group discount saving nearly a hundred, it's still so pricey. I must get this refund through—"

He tapped the screen, then froze.

"What does it mean... refund failed?"

He tapped again.

Still failed.

"Bastards." He stuffed the phone back in his pocket, his face darkening for a moment, then took a deep breath. "Let's go, let's go, we'll deal with it back home."

When the two returned to Wei Ziqing, he was already able to walk a few steps slowly while leaning against the wall. Seeing them return, Wei Ziqing looked up.

"How did it go?"

Lu Jianchuan briefly recounted the circus situation. After listening, Wei Ziqing was silent for a few seconds, then looked at Long Qingyun standing nearby.

"That area is a bit dangerous," he said. "We'll arrange a safer place for you to stay. Pack your things and take Qing Lian there."

Long Qingyun was momentarily stunned, then nodded.

"Okay, I understand." He paused. "I'll prepare to move."

Qing Lian stood behind him, not making a sound, just taking another half-step closer to his side.

The three left the residential area and each returned to their dorms.

Shen Mingyuan closed the door, sat down at his desk, and turned on his computer.

He first logged into his newly created alt account—the avatar was a hand-drawn cartoon animal, the nickname was "Star Guardian." Then he started posting things online.

[Saw animals locked in cages at the circus today. Humans are truly terrifying.]

Posted in the comments section of an animal video.

[Animals are so adorable, why are they locked up to perform? Humans are truly terrifying.]

Posted on his new account's feed.

[If possible, I truly wish humans would disappear from Earth and return the world to the animals.]

Posted another one.

[Every time I see news about animal abuse, I ask: What right do humans have to rule the Earth?]

Posted another.

After posting, he leaned back in his chair, staring at the screen.

The comments section quickly became lively.

"Are you out of your mind?"

"Anti-human, huh? Reported."

"Where did this lunatic come from..."

"Suggest seeing a psychologist."

Shen Mingyuan read through them one by one, his expression unchanged.

Then a message notification lit up.

[New Friend Request: You think so too?]

He clicked accept.

The other side quickly sent a message:

[Do you also think humans shouldn't exist?]

Shen Mingyuan stared at the screen, his fingers pausing on the keyboard, then started typing.

[Yeah. Humans are too selfish, only harming animals. It would be great if animals could Dominate the world.]

The other side replied instantly:

[You think that too?]

[That's great. I always thought I was the only one who felt this way.]

[Did you know, some animals are already resisting. They're much smarter than humans imagine.]

Shen Mingyuan stared at that line, his eyelid twitching.

He slowly typed a reply:

[Really? They... are resisting?]