The man replied to Ye Tiancheng, "No need for formalities, we can communicate more casually."
"Allow me to introduce myself. I am the captain of the investigation team, my surname is Nie, and my given name is Nie Chongyang. I will be responsible for exchanging information with Mr. Ye and cooperating on actions."
"Thank you, Mr. Ye, for agreeing to assist us in our investigation. It's a pleasure to meet you."
Nie Chongyang extended his hand to Ye Tiancheng. Ye Tiancheng reciprocated, and they shook hands. As they released their grip, Nie Chongyang winced for a moment but quickly composed himself, his expression returning to normal.
He had initiated the probing himself and then found himself in a difficult situation. Ye Tiancheng was merely responding in kind, and Nie Chongyang couldn't blame him.
However, after this brief test of Ye Tiancheng, Nie Chongyang felt more at ease about Ye Tiancheng's proposal for cooperation. Ye Tiancheng likely wasn't joining out of arrogance but genuinely possessed some skills and the capability to investigate the matter, so there was no need for excessive worry.
After they shook hands, Ye Tiancheng slightly shifted his body and gestured, "Mr. Nie, please come in."
Nie Chongyang nodded and followed Ye Tiancheng into the house, even closing the door behind him.
As he followed Ye Tiancheng inside, Nie Chongyang remarked, "The security downstairs is very tight. Your bodyguards are indeed very capable. This is excellent; it greatly helps in protecting yourselves."
Ye Tiancheng replied, "I personally don't fear anything, nor do my brothers. The primary reason for deploying these people is to protect the ordinary individuals in the household. Those left behind are women and children; they lack the ability to cope with such situations."
Nie Chongyang nodded, understanding Ye Tiancheng's concerns. If one were powerful enough, there would be little to fear. The worry was when people targeted one's family, and protection was insufficient, leading to regrettable events.
Ye Tiancheng led Nie Chongyang to the living room. After they sat down, Nie Chongyang took out a manila envelope, opened it, and retrieved a stack of printed documents along with some photographs.
Nie Chongyang selected the most recent photograph and placed it before Ye Tiancheng. "Another person was killed yesterday, shortly after Xu Zhaoxing was lost from sight."
"Through surveillance footage and various clues, we've learned that Xu Zhaoxing appeared near the crime scene not long before the incident. However, within an extremely short period, Xu Zhaoxing also left a record of being somewhere thousands of meters away."
"It's like this every time. Xu Zhaoxing is highly suspected, but his movements are incredibly bizarre, which makes the evidence of little help. He can easily evade prosecution."
"We need more useful, irrefutable clues to gather concrete evidence and apprehend him."
As Nie Chongyang narrated, Ye Tiancheng asked, "Xu Zhaoxing, is that the man's name?"
This was the first time Ye Tiancheng had heard the man's name. Due to the rush and the suddenness of events, Ye Tiancheng hadn't had a chance to gather information about the man. He had assumed that the person he was meeting today would bring the man's basic information, so he hadn't felt the need to rush.
Nie Chongyang realized Ye Tiancheng hadn't yet received information about Xu Zhaoxing. He picked up the stack of documents, flipped through them, and pulled out a few pages to hand to Ye Tiancheng.
"Yes, that man's name is Xu Zhaoxing. Here is his personal basic information, and his general background is also recorded. You can take a look."
Ye Tiancheng took the pages and quickly and carefully reviewed them before setting them down.
Nie Chongyang soon handed Ye Tiancheng another document, which roughly detailed the clues suggesting Xu Zhaoxing's potential involvement in the current cases in Lancheng.
After Ye Tiancheng finished reviewing all the documents, he returned them to Nie Chongyang, having memorized them all.
Ye Tiancheng said to Nie Chongyang, "If this were an ordinary murder case, well... by 'ordinary,' I don't mean ordinary in your sense. I mean, if this were committed by an ordinary person, your plan would be fine."
"However, this man named Xu Zhaoxing is a bit special. I didn't know this until he came to scout my place today. But when people like us encounter such individuals, unless our strength is insufficient, we can sense something. This person is difficult to deal with, extremely dangerous."
"Absolutely do not let ordinary people approach or track him. Merely losing him is the least severe consequence. If he were provoked, or if he had other intentions and decided to retaliate against those tracking him, the situation would become very dire."
Nie Chongyang then asked Ye Tiancheng, "Mr. Ye, since we first interacted yesterday, you've repeatedly mentioned that Xu Zhaoxing's situation is special and very dangerous, and that ordinary people cannot handle him."
"What exactly is special about Xu Zhaoxing? Is this specialty related to his ability to appear in two distant locations in a short period?"
"Is it like in some TV shows or movies, where he has some special superpowers?"
Ye Tiancheng thought that ordinary people knowing too much wouldn't be useful. If he described it this way, it would be easier for Nie Chongyang and his team to understand. Ye Tiancheng nodded hesitantly, "If you put it that way, it's acceptable."
"However, it's not that he possesses such abilities himself, but rather that he obtained something, a protective item, so to speak. That item grants him the abilities he now possesses."
"With those abilities, he can commit crimes so recklessly."
Ye Tiancheng paused, pondered for a moment, and then continued to explain to Nie Chongyang, "Actually, I came to Lancheng precisely to investigate the whereabouts of that item."
"However, at the beginning, I had no clues. It wasn't until Xu Zhaoxing actively appeared in my sight, and he broke into my residence with such a flimsy excuse of visiting a friend, and my important family members live here, that I, encountering an unknown person for no clear reason, naturally had to investigate before I could feel at ease."
"It was for this reason that our household bodyguards came into contact with you."
Nie Chongyang nodded. Since they were willing to consider cooperating with Ye Tiancheng, they had certainly investigated Ye Tiancheng's basic information.
Firstly, they confirmed that Ye Tiancheng had only recently arrived in Lancheng and was unlikely to have any connection with Xu Zhaoxing, who grew up in Lancheng. They also looked into the Hou family and learned that Ye Tiancheng was married to Hou Mingzhu, the eldest daughter of the Hou family.
In short, after multi-faceted verification, they confirmed that Ye Tiancheng had only targeted Xu Zhaoxing because Xu Zhaoxing had proactively entered Ye Tiancheng's sight and acted suspiciously. This realization eased their concerns about cooperating with Ye Tiancheng.
However, Nie Chongyang hadn't expected there to be any talk of special abilities or treasures, nor did he expect Ye Tiancheng to bring it up proactively.
Ye Tiancheng chose to proactively inform Nie Chongyang because he didn't want to lie to the authorities. If the authorities had knowledge of such matters and discovered any anomalies, Ye Tiancheng's evasiveness would appear strange and suspicious.
He felt it was acceptable to hide some things, but hiding too much was unnecessary and would make him seem like a villain with ill intentions.
Nie Chongyang was indeed an ordinary person and had no understanding of such special abilities. In Nie Chongyang's mind, these were abilities possessed only by characters in stories. Therefore, regarding Ye Tiancheng's claims, until he saw and confirmed it himself, Nie Chongyang could only believe half of it.
"A treasure? If such a thing truly exists, why would Mr. Ye be willing to bring it up? Mr. Ye stated he possesses the ability to contend with Xu Zhaoxing, who also has such special abilities. Is this because you yourself possess similar abilities?"
Ye Tiancheng glanced at Nie Chongyang and replied, "I do possess some special abilities, but the way I acquired them is different from Xu Zhaoxing. I cultivated them myself."
"As for the matter of the treasure, I am willing to mention it because you are from the authorities, and I do not wish to cause any misunderstandings."
Nie Chongyang thought about it and found it understandable. He then asked Ye Tiancheng, "Can you tell me a bit about that treasure?"
Ye Tiancheng felt there was no problem in explaining, "I can."
"The treasure, to be precise, is a fragment of a treasure. I am acting out of good intentions by dedicating myself to collecting the fragments, not for my own benefit."
"Even with a fragment, as long as the owner discovers its special properties, they can master some special abilities through it. The treasure itself is good, but the user is another matter."
"As for the origin of the treasure, I can only say that it was originally suppressed in a certain place, and later stolen by someone with ill intentions. By the time I investigated the clues, the treasure had already become fragments, and I could only collect them everywhere."
Nie Chongyang found that Ye Tiancheng's account connected with some information he had already learned.
According to the documents, Ye Tiancheng and his entourage had recently come from Huaishi. Huaishi was not where the Hou family was located, and Hou Mingzhu had followed Ye Tiancheng, traveling with him.
Furthermore, the documents indicated that while in Huaishi, Ye Tiancheng had suddenly opened a shop in a commercial district and had deliberately approached the owner of the adjacent flower shop. Later, the flower shop owner seemed to have encountered some terrifying incidents, after which Ye Tiancheng had sent the flower shop owner to the hospital. Not long after, the flower shop owner's problems were resolved.
Looking back now, it was perhaps related to the treasure Ye Tiancheng mentioned and the special abilities he spoke of.
Nie Chongyang listened as Ye Tiancheng continued, "I don't mind telling you that this treasure was originally meant to suppress something in a certain place. I am collecting fragments of the treasure to reassemble it and then re-suppress it."
After this, Ye Tiancheng told Nie Chongyang a place name. Nie Chongyang carefully noted it down and then asked Ye Tiancheng for his opinion, "Mr. Ye, would you mind if I report this information?"
Ye Tiancheng shook his head, "There's nothing to mind. If I minded, I wouldn't have proactively informed you about this matter from the beginning."
Nie Chongyang nodded. Ye Tiancheng's attitude seemed cooperative, but regarding trust and future cooperation, it would still require their verification and investigation. Only after everything was confirmed could Ye Tiancheng truly gain the trust of the authorities.
"Thank you for your cooperation. Shall we proceed to discuss the case?"
Ye Tiancheng readily agreed, "No problem. It's indeed time to talk business. Regarding Xu Zhaoxing, assuming he is the murderer, have you discerned his modus operandi? To stop him from committing further crimes, this information is crucial."