"No victims found?"
"Correct."
"And no reports filed?"
"None."
"Then how do you know people are missing?"
Captain Zhang looked at the two security officers before him with a look of astonishment.
These two were newcomers who had just joined the Security Bureau, reportedly graduates from a prestigious university in Central City.
They had only been there for a few days, yet they had already strained their relationships with their colleagues.
Many in the Security Bureau were saying these two were extremely well-connected—that they were just here for field experience before being transferred out to become bureau chiefs elsewhere.
Others said they were actually part of Su Baadao's faction, here to ride his coattails and get transferred to a major city together; it was much faster than trying to test their way up on their own.
There were many rumors, but the core idea was the same.
These two were here through the back door!
Although Captain Zhang didn't say it out loud, he felt the same way.
After all, the Security Bureau had just suffered a major incident, and then two people were parachuted in from Central City. Who knew what their background was?
"Data and surveillance!"
The new security officers were two young men. One was tall and thin, wearing gold-rimmed glasses.
He casually picked up a tablet and opened a file.
"After arriving in Meng City, I created a big data analysis app."
"It contains all the data for Meng City over the last twenty years—everything from urban construction to the cost of daily necessities."
"For example, look here."
He pointed to a data point on the screen.
"This is Qilong District. There are about thirteen thousand permanent residents here. Data on departures and new arrivals are all recorded."
"The resources these people consume daily are almost constant. Of course, we can't rule out hoarding habits."
"But while food and consumables can be hoarded, domestic waste and sewage cannot."
"Through big data analysis, we discovered an anomaly in the data for this residential area."
He used both hands to zoom in on an image of Qilong District and located several buildings.
"With no changes in the number of residents, the consumption and waste production in this building are decreasing."
"Based on the data analysis, we've concluded that roughly six to eight people are missing from here."
"Furthermore, we reviewed the surrounding surveillance footage and found several individuals who returned home and never appeared again."
"Judging by their usual purchasing habits, the food in their homes should only last two days at most, yet they haven't stepped out for five or six days."
"So, we had the property management check. The units were empty; these people had vanished into thin air."
Captain Zhang rubbed the bridge of his nose, feeling a headache coming on.
"So you're saying that despite no one reporting a crime, you've concluded people are missing based on data analysis from an app you made?"
"Yes!"
Both nodded simultaneously. Captain Zhang's head wasn't just aching; even his teeth felt a bit sore from the stress.
"I know your hearts are in the right place, and inventing something like this is impressive. I support that."
"But you know the situation at the Security Bureau. We just had that major incident, and we lost many colleagues."
"Missing persons cases like this are often the most time-consuming. We really don't have the spare manpower to handle it right now."
"The two of us are enough!"
The two stood up and saluted Captain Zhang.
"Captain, we came down here to work!"
"According to our big data analysis, as many as thirty people have gone missing in the last five days!"
"We have reason to suspect this is the work of a cult or a criminal gang!"
Captain Zhang sighed again.
"Thirty people. Do you realize what thirty people means?"
"If one person goes missing and no one reports it, maybe they live alone and no one noticed."
"If two people go missing and no one reports it, that's also understandable."
"But three, four, ten, twenty... and still no reports? Do you think that's possible?"
The young man stiffened his neck and replied.
"Why not? Captain, you know as well as I do that many transcendent items have bizarre abilities. Maybe this is the power of a transcendent item?"
Captain Zhang didn't want to argue further. He took out his phone.
"You two want to take charge of this case? Fine. Give me a deadline. A deadline to solve it."
"Seven days!"
The one in gold-rimmed glasses had great confidence in his app. He pushed up his glasses and decisively gave a date.
"Fine, seven days it is!"
Captain Zhang tapped away on his phone for a moment, then showed the screen to the two.
"I've assigned you two to an independent team. I've officially logged the case; for now, we'll call it the Qilong District Disappearances."
"I'll assign you a car. For any other equipment or expenses, you'll have to fill out a request form for the Bureau Chief's approval."
"Seven days!"
"If you solve the case within seven days, I'll recommend your app to the Bureau Chief."
"But if you fail..."
Captain Zhang glanced at them, then pointed toward the southeast corner.
"You'll spend a month walking a beat."
"Yes, sir!"
"Yes, sir!"
The two saluted Captain Zhang and marched out with their chests puffed out, as if the criminals had already surrendered.
Captain Zhang waited until they disappeared before shaking his head.
Originally, he had wanted to make them clean toilets for a month, but thinking about their likely backgrounds, the words on the tip of his tongue changed to patrol duty.
At the end of the day, he was just a small fry; he couldn't afford to offend these privileged princelings.
...
"Wang Bin, where do we start? Head straight to Qilong District?"
"Yeah. I've already mapped out their movement routes. Four of them didn't go missing from their own homes."
"Those are our leads. We can start there."
"Got it. Buckle up!"
The sturdier young man was named Li Qing. Both he and Wang Bin were from Central City.
In fact, the guesses within the Security Bureau were correct; they were indeed here to pad their resumes, and they had indeed come to join Su Baadao's camp.
Although Su Baadao was only the top official in Meng City—a far cry from Central City—his mentor was a genuine heavyweight there!
Out of respect for his mentor, many people were willing to bet on Su Baadao's future.
For instance, even though Wang Bin and Li Qing were the rising stars of their respective families, they still had to travel thousands of miles to hitch a ride on Su Baadao's coattails.
After all, 'Top Scholars' weren't that rare, but a Top Scholar with a background that reached the heavens certainly was.
The two drove straight to Qilong District. Upon arrival, Wang Bin began calibrating the app and simulating the routes.
"Back at the bureau, there were a few things I didn't tell Captain Zhang."
"I found that at least half of the missing people are suspicious."
"Most of them have no fixed residence and don't seem to work, yet their lifestyles are extremely stable."
"But looking at their living conditions and habits, they don't seem like carefree rich kids. Instead, they look more like shady operators—the type who can go three years without a job and then live off one big score for the next three."
Li Qing's eyes lit up.
"Not bad, kid. No wonder you were so confident about the seven-day deadline. You had it all figured out."
Wang Bin pushed up his glasses confidently.
"Let's show these Meng City country bumpkins what an overwhelming advantage looks like!"
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