Amidst the intertwining branches and leaves of the suburban forest, sunlight filtered sparsely, casting the area in a dim and tranquil ambiance.
Jiang BaiMian and Shang JianYao did not rush into the depths. Instead, they went to the spot where Bai Chen and Long YueHong had previously parked and taken cover, using it as the center to meticulously search the surroundings.
During this process, they both produced flashlights and snapped off branches, using them to part the grass and look for traces.
Jiang BaiMian remained relatively relaxed, and while searching diligently, she chuckled and said:
"Those who often hunt in the forest will use a slender stick or branch to hit the grass and bushes ahead, just like we're doing now. The purpose is to scare away any potentially hidden poisonous snakes or insects, so we don't accidentally step on them and get bitten."
"Why scare them away? If you frighten them out, you can catch them for food." Shang JianYao, who was monitoring the surroundings, expressed his disapproval of such waste.
Jiang BaiMian nodded slightly:
"When humans are extremely hungry, they're capable of anything, and they have ideas and tools. I've always said that, except for a few mutated monster populations, the most dangerous creatures in the Ashlands are humans, well, 'Higher Mindless' are also considered humans."
As she spoke, she suddenly squatted down, shining her flashlight on the ground ahead.
"There are footprints, as expected." Jiang BaiMian said calmly.
Then, she reminded Shang JianYao:
"Be careful when you come over, don't destroy any other traces, and don't relax your observation of the surroundings."
Shang JianYao immediately slowed his pace, moving closer to Jiang BaiMian little by little.
Jiang BaiMian turned her head and estimated:
"The distance to Xiao Bai and the others is about five meters. Xiao Bai's related memories were indeed tampered with or blurred.
"It seems that, compared to 'Wildgrass City,' the real 'Father's' abilities haven't improved that much. There shouldn't have been a qualitative breakthrough yet, and he hasn't entered the 'Mind Corridor.'
"Ah, I didn't remind Xiao Bai and Xiao Hong to aim their guns and warn anyone who enters a ten-meter range not to get any closer. I also didn't expect the real 'Father' to target us so much. He doesn't need to personally dig the traps for the capture operation itself."
Shang JianYao approached Jiang BaiMian, squatted down, and said with a smile:
"I think you underestimate Xiao Bai too much."
Jiang BaiMian glanced at him sideways:
"Do you mean that Xiao Bai, who knows that the real 'Father' needs to get closer to 'hypnotize' or 'tamper with memories,' wouldn't let anyone enter her ten-meter range? The reason she didn't warn them with her gun at the time was because she was affected by something else?"
Speaking of this, Jiang BaiMian suddenly understood:
"The real 'Father' chasing the rabbit that they saw was actually an illusion, just like what we encountered before.
"And the real 'Father' took this opportunity to quietly sneak up beside them. When the illusion ended, he 'hypnotized' them. Right, that's how Xu LiYan was 'hypnotized' in the first place. Well, since the interval between the illusion and reality was too short, and Xiao Bai and Xiao Hong were also affected, there was some blurring in their memories, so they mixed up the hunter and the 'hypnosis,' establishing a causal relationship.
"No wonder Xiao Bai said that the hunter was about ten meters away from them, or even further. She should have been prepared to warn the hunter with her gun if he got closer, so her impression of that aspect isn't so blurred."
Jiang BaiMian suddenly gritted her teeth:
"The real 'Father' is indeed cunning.
"I just hope he uses this trick to deal with me!"
In that kind of illusion, the real "Father" seemed to be able to hide his human consciousness or use other methods to deceive the Awakened present—Nether Nun Chan Master hadn't noticed it at the time, but Jiang BaiMian believed that the real "Father," who certainly didn't study science or pursue cutting-edge technology, probably wouldn't bother covering up his bioelectrical signals.
At that time, Jiang BaiMian would give him a surprise, letting him know what "blind sniping" was.
Shang JianYao didn't respond to Jiang BaiMian and suddenly sighed:
"I still wanted to see the real 'Father' catch rabbits..."
Jiang BaiMian imagined that scene and felt it was quite strange:
A well-known villain known for his cunning and planning, painstakingly catching rabbits in the forest.
It was laughable no matter how she thought about it.
"Check the traces!" Jiang BaiMian stopped her thoughts from wandering.
She aimed the flashlight at the footprints again, briefly measuring them, and then vaguely estimated:
"The traces are relatively fresh...height between 1.75 meters and 1.80 meters...male...relatively light weight, should be lighter than me. The specifics need to be calculated based on the soil conditions. We'll have to get Ge Lao to come later, and extract micro-clues, take photos and archive them...the front of the foot is heavier than the back of the foot, the walking posture is relatively forward...the pattern on the sole of the shoe is not certain whether it belongs to the common type in First City, the wear is relatively serious..."
Jiang BaiMian then aimed the flashlight at a distance, looking for the second footprint.
Due to the frequent rain in spring, the soil in the forest was relatively soft and rotten. She and Shang JianYao quickly found a series of footprints—footprints that were approaching the original location of Bai Chen and Long YueHong.
After Jiang BaiMian put the trajectory into her auxiliary chip, she frowned slightly:
"The real 'Father' walks a bit strangely, but it doesn't seem like he's drunk."
Normally, as long as a person isn't blindfolded, their progress will inevitably maintain a roughly consistent state, and they will only adjust their direction when they need to turn.
But the footprints on the ground sometimes leaned to the left, sometimes to the right, sometimes deep, sometimes shallow, giving people a feeling of slightly staggering.
If this change was significant, it could be explained as the real "Father" avoiding Bai Chen and Long YueHong's attention or being drunk, but the deviation of all the footprints was quite small.
Shang JianYao nodded seriously:
"It seems that he is also a dance enthusiast, or likes to hop around."
A picture immediately flashed in Jiang BaiMian's mind, almost impossible to shake off.
It was the scene of the real "Father" and Shang JianYao dancing "Little Apple" together.
At this time, Shang JianYao added:
"Or his body is weak."
Jiang BaiMian's eyes lit up:
"Combining this with the fact that he is underweight, I suspect that the real 'Father's' physical condition is not good.
"His three abilities are 'hypnosis,' 'memory tampering,' and the one related to illusions, none of which involve physical health, so either the price he paid is related to this, or he is inherently weak.
"Hmm...I remember that one of the costs in the 'Last Man' domain is 'sleep disorder'...could the real 'Father' have this? Don't you think these footprints look like they were left by someone who isn't very awake and is walking unsteadily?"
Clap clap clap, Shang JianYao applauded.
"And what are the characteristics of long-term sleep disorders? Relatively heavy dark circles under the eyes, a fairly tired state, a rather haggard complexion, and a dependence on things that can stimulate the mind..." Jiang BaiMian became more and more excited as she spoke.
Shang JianYao was equally excited:
"I have a picture in my head."
Jiang BaiMian fixed these footprints and led Shang JianYao deeper into the forest.
Along the way, there were situations where footprints were destroyed or not left behind, but after enlarging the search area, the two still found new traces and tracked them all the way.
After a long time, Jiang BaiMian and Shang JianYao walked out of the forest and came to the other side.
This was also a rammed earth road, with vehicles coming and going from time to time.
The two searched around for a while, but because the traces were too severely damaged, they couldn't find where the footprints disappeared.
However, Shang JianYao still picked up something.
It was a cigarette butt covered in dirt.
"Combining the fact that cigarettes can be refreshing and the real 'Father' is suspected of having sleep disorders, it is likely that he left this behind. We'll have someone do an inspection later." Jiang BaiMian put on gloves and put the cigarette butt into a small bag that originally contained medicine.
And at the place where the cigarette butt was found, there were traces of wheels rolling over it.
"It looks like a modified off-road vehicle, heavier than normal," Jiang BaiMian estimated.
The two searched for a long time, but there were no further gains, so they returned to the place where the jeep and gray off-road vehicle were parked, and had Ge NaWa extract the clues and take photos of the scene.
After finishing all this, the "Old Task Force" members drove back to First City.
As a precaution, they didn't return to the rented house on Iron Medal Street in the Green Olive District, but stayed in the safe house in the Red Giant Wolf District.
"Whew, tomorrow morning, contact Zhao ZhengQi to see what reward we can get." Jiang BaiMian threw herself into the easy chair.
Long YueHong said hesitantly:
"Will he not give us as much as we want? After all, we didn't do anything later, and that sentence about the manor at the beginning doesn't count as a promise."
"And, and he has now established contact with General Focas."
"Then we can demand our salary with weapons." Shang JianYao said eagerly.
Jiang BaiMian smiled and said:
"But the risks we take are not small either. We almost died at the hands of the real 'Father.' I think he should be able to understand our hard work, and at least give us a manor.
"Well, I will also imply to him that we will continue this matter until we solve the real 'Father.' He certainly doesn't want this person to be alive either. Although a manor will be very painful for the Zhao family, it won't be to the point of hurting their foundations."
Long YueHong blurted out in surprise:
"We still have to investigate the 'Anti-Intellect Church' and solve the real 'Father'?"
Jiang BaiMian sat up straight:
"This is not a question of whether we want to solve the real 'Father,' but whether he will continue to retaliate against us.
"With such a time bomb hidden around us, we can't do anything in peace. Even if he doesn't show up in person, when we find a chance to approach the two targets, he can suddenly shout out and make us directly doomed."
Speaking of this, Jiang BaiMian showed a warm smile:
"And, I've always been saying that I'm very petty!"
Clap clap clap, Shang JianYao's applause never arrived late.
Jiang BaiMian turned to Bai Chen and Ge NaWa:
"But try to maintain a good distance from General Focas's side, and at most get some interrogation results through Zhao ZhengQi or Xu LiYan. We don't have the ability to interfere in First City's internal struggles, unless the company personally takes action."
After speaking, she clapped her hands lightly and said with a smile:
"Xiao Hong and Xiao Bai, quickly rest and let your emotional state fully recover. The three of us will study the extracted clues and put together a basic Ashlands language textbook."
Before Long YueHong and Bai Chen could respond, Shang JianYao had "hesitantly" asked:
"Then, will we still attend the celebration banquet?"