Chapter 87 The Inkstone Makes Great Contributions

Could it be that Su Xiaonuan herself, or the seemingly ordinary black cat beside her, possesses some kind of detective ability that is incomprehensible to ordinary people and is almost "genius-like"?

At this moment, in Zhao Liyue's mind, Su Xiaonuan's image instantly changed from an ordinary girl with "superb cooking skills, some fighting skills, and bizarrely good luck" to a "deeply hidden, perhaps special talent or background-brilliant detective girl".

In her gaze towards Su Xiaonuan, a light unconsciously appeared, a mixture of inquiry and subtle admiration that she herself was unaware of.

If that's the case, then Su Xiaonuan's value will far exceed her imagination.

Su Xiaonuan was completely focused on the inkstone and did not notice the turmoil in Zhao Liyue's heart.

Seeing Zhao Liyue stop, she assumed she had some doubts and immediately turned around, her face unusually serious and earnest: "Sister Yue, I know this seems unbelievable. But please believe me, following the inkstone, it might lead us to the overlooked clues left by the murderer!"

Zhao Liyue took a deep breath, suppressing the shock in her heart, and nodded heavily without any hesitation: "Okay, I believe you!"

No matter how many secrets Su Xiaonuan has, at least so far, every "abnormal" behavior of hers has ultimately pointed to the truth and justice.

That's enough.

As a police officer, catching the real culprit and upholding justice are the highest principles; however bizarre the process may be, it is secondary.

Receiving an affirmative response, Su Xiaonuan nodded with satisfaction and turned to continue following Yantai's footsteps.

After sniffing the ground carefully for a while, the inkstone suddenly raised its head, its golden pupils sharply locking onto a certain direction. It turned its head and gave Su Xiaonuan a short and powerful "meow!" The sound was much more urgent than before, carrying a clear guiding meaning. Then it took four steps and began to move quickly along the edge of the warning line.

Its route was strange; it didn't lead directly to the core body dumping site in the central lake area, but instead ran along the left side of the cordon, almost touching the edge of the cordon, traversing a long distance and avoiding the areas that the police were focusing on investigating.

It appears to be tracking an extremely faint, almost imperceptible odor trail that closely matches the possible paths the killer took to enter and leave the scene, yet cleverly avoids conventional investigative approaches.

Su Xiaonuan and Zhao Liyue followed closely behind it without saying a word, passing through sparse woods with tattered warning tape, and around messy rocks that might hide footprints.

Both were agile and moved with light steps, making almost no extra sound.

Zhao Liyue remained constantly vigilant about her surroundings to ensure her safety.

Finally, after leaving the cordon and walking for about five or six minutes, the inkstone stopped in front of a stone arch bridge spanning a nearly dry, pebble-strewn stream in a secluded, undeveloped area.

The bridge looks quite old; it's made of rough bluestone and covered with dark green vines and mottled moss, giving it an ancient and desolate appearance.

Due to neglect, the weeds under the bridge grew exceptionally lush, almost as tall as a person, densely intertwined, forming a natural barrier that perfectly concealed the view inside the bridge arch.

Unless someone deliberately clears the way, no one would notice what's happening under the bridge.

The inkstone paced back and forth at the bridgehead, anxiously scratching at the ground with its paws, meowing at the dense grass with a strong sense of unease and a clear warning.

Su Xiaonuan and Zhao Liyue exchanged a glance, both seeing solemnity and a hint of excitement in each other's eyes.

The two remained silent in tacit agreement. Zhao Liyue stepped forward first. As a well-trained police officer, she moved cautiously and professionally, carefully parting the layers of thorny weeds to avoid disturbing any possible traces.

As the view expanded, the situation inside the bridge arch gradually came into view.

Both of them were startled at the same time!

Beneath this bridge arch lies a hidden world! Although extremely simple, it is clear that someone had stayed here and made some arrangements.

The ground was relatively flat, as if it had been cleared by someone; in the corner there were some relatively dry haystacks, with a tattered dark canvas on top, which had obviously served as a temporary "bed";

There was a small open space nearby, with some burnt ashes and a few pieces of charred charcoal on the ground. Although it had been deliberately cleaned up and covered with soil, the outline of the campfire could still be seen.

Zhao Liyue immediately reached out to stop Su Xiaonuan, who was about to step forward. She herself moved like a cheetah, walking lightly and carefully inside, each step landing on solid ground to avoid stepping on any possible trace evidence.

She crouched down, put on the evidence-gathering gloves she carried with her, gently picked up a bit of ash from the ground with her fingers, sniffed it lightly, and then carefully observed the color, texture, and distribution of the ash.

“The ash cooled completely, leaving very little residue. It was handled very cleanly, with almost no unburnt fragments to be found. However, judging from the hardened layer formed by the contact between the ash edges and the damp soil, as well as the state of the surrounding moss—which had withered and then regenerated after being baked—” Zhao Liyue lowered her voice and quickly made a preliminary judgment based on her rich experience, “this temporary foothold has been abandoned for at least five days, possibly longer. The other party left very calmly, having ample time to clean up the site.”

Her sharp gaze, like a searchlight, carefully scanned every corner of the bridge archway—the rock walls, the ground, the overhead arch… Aside from these basic traces of life, she found no other items that could directly identify the suspect, such as cigarette butts, food packaging, or fingerprints.

The other party was clearly very cautious and had a strong awareness of counter-surveillance.

The trail seems to have gone cold again here.

This is just an abandoned hideout where the users cannot be traced.

Just as Zhao Liyue frowned slightly and Su Xiaonuan was also somewhat disappointed, the inkstone that had been quietly following Su Xiaonuan's feet suddenly emitted a rapid and continuous "meow" sound!

It no longer looked at the ground, but instead raised its little head and paced restlessly in place, its golden pupils fixed on the top of the bridge arch, the belly of the stone bridge, where the light was relatively dim and covered with dust and cobwebs.

Su Xiaonuan subconsciously followed its gaze and looked up—

Upon seeing this, she was immediately horrified, gasped, and felt a chill creep up her spine!

"Sister Yue! Look up!" she hurriedly whispered, her voice trembling slightly as she reminded Zhao Liyue.