Chapter 88 Key Clues
Upon hearing the sound, Zhao Liyue immediately looked up. When she saw the scene on the bridge arch, her pupils contracted sharply, and her face showed extreme shock and a strange expression. Her hand holding the phone tightened involuntarily!
On the gray-brown stone bridge arch covered with moss and stains, a shocking pattern was drawn with some kind of dark red, dried and solidified liquid—a distorted, ominous red full moon!
The "red moon" was not painted delicately; in fact, it was rather rough and wild. The brushstrokes carried a sense of venting force, and the edges showed irregular splatter and flow marks, like bloodstains that had dried naturally.
What's even more unsettling is that, as the liquid depicting the crimson moon flowed downwards and solidified, it coincidentally formed a string of clearly legible numbers—
88.09.09.00
This string of numbers, like some kind of evil code, or a death countdown, is silently engraved under the blood moon, exuding a suffocating eeriness and ominous aura.
The number is a deeper color than the surrounding "moon," as if it contains more "pigment."
"Is this...blood?" Su Xiaonuan's voice was a little dry, and her throat felt tight.
The dark red color, the strange pattern, and the combination of numbers made her feel extremely uncomfortable.
Zhao Liyue nodded solemnly, her eyes cold: "Very likely. We need to take it back for testing to determine whether it's human or animal blood, and the specific blood type."
Both she and Su Xiaonuan stared intently at the string of numbers, their brains racing as they tried to decipher its meaning.
Is it a date?
September 9, 1988?
Or is it some kind of geographical coordinate?
Or is it some kind of special code or ritual number for the murderer?
For a moment, I was completely clueless.
But both of them firmly imprinted the string of numbers and the blood moon pattern in their minds without hesitation, as this was definitely key information for the case!
Zhao Liyue became even more alert and carefully examined the area around the bridge arch, including the piles of dry grass and the remnants of ashes. She even used her phone's flashlight to carefully shine on the cracks in the rock wall, trying to find more clues such as fingerprints, hair, and clothing fibers, but to no avail.
The other party was clearly very cautious, leaving almost no personal biometric information.
"The situation here must be immediately reported to the task force," Zhao Liyue said in a deep voice, her tone more serious than ever before.
She took out her phone, switched to professional mode, turned off the flash to avoid destroying potential evidence, and took high-definition photos of the overall environment inside the bridge arch, the ashes and "bed" on the ground, and the eerie blood moon and numbers overhead. She also recorded a short video to explain the situation at the scene.
After collecting the evidence, the two prepared to leave and report this important discovery, which could be the murderer's hideout and the site of the "ritual" preparation.
However, just as they turned around and were about to step out of the weeds, Su Xiaonuan's peripheral vision keenly caught a glimpse of a small, inconspicuous corner of a large rock smoothed by the water flowing by the dry riverbed not far away. Behind it, a small corner of brown cloth, similar in color to the surrounding soil, seemed to be peeking out.
Only a tiny bit of the fabric was visible, and if it weren't for her amazing observation skills, it would have been almost completely overlooked.
"Wait!" Su Xiaonuan immediately called out and grabbed Zhao Liyue's arm.
Zhao Liyue stopped and looked in the direction Su Xiaonuan was pointing, but initially did not notice anything unusual.
The inkstone seemed to sense something again, and it suddenly arched its body in that direction, its fur standing on end slightly, and it made a low, warning "woof" sound in its throat, its tail standing straight up like a flagpole full of vigilance.
With the inkstone's clear warning, Zhao Liyue finally saw that small corner of fabric.
The two exchanged a glance and both saw the wariness in each other's eyes.
Su Xiaonuan did not touch it rashly.
She casually broke off a relatively sturdy, clean branch from the side and carefully brushed away the dead leaves, broken twigs, and loose soil covering the fabric. Her movements were gentle and steady, so as not to damage any trace evidence that might be attached to the clothing.
As the covering was cleared away, a brown men's jacket that had been deliberately discarded and half-buried in the silt on the riverbank gradually came into view!
The clothes looked like common workwear, somewhat old, covered in mud and stains, but their discovery at this time, in this place, and especially next to the underpass where the murderer might be hiding, seemed extremely suspicious!
"Is it the deceased's? Or... did the murderer deliberately replace the discarded one to escape tracking?" Su Xiaonuan's heart raced as she asked in a low voice.
If it belongs to the murderer, it is very likely to contain crucial evidence, such as bloodstains, skin flakes, sweat, or trace fibers that are associated with other parts of the scene.
Looking at Su Xiaonuan's keen observation skills, which were comparable to or even surpassed those of professional criminal police officers, Zhao Liyue once again sighed inwardly.
This girl was born for criminal investigation!
She immediately stepped forward, and without touching the clothing directly with her hands, she took out a new evidence bag and tweezers from the inside pocket of her leather jacket. Together with Su Xiaonuan, she carefully cleaned the jacket completely out of the mud, then gently shook off the large clumps of mud and placed it neatly into a large evidence bag.
"The cuffs, front, pockets, and lining of the clothes may need to be examined in detail to see if any skin flakes, hair, fibers, or trace evidence such as soil or pollen that do not belong here can be extracted," Zhao Liyue muttered to herself as she operated the equipment, already planning the testing process after sending the samples back to the laboratory.
All the clues found—environmental photos and videos of abandoned hideouts, close-ups of blood moon patterns and numbers, the extraction process and photos of the suspicious jacket—were packaged together with detailed GPS location information.
Zhao Liyue quickly sent the information through an internal encrypted channel to the head of the task force in charge of the "Full Moon Murders" serial case, along with a brief explanation of the situation, emphasizing the randomness of the discovery process and the importance of the clues.
After doing all this, the two quietly left the stone bridge.
After leaving the stone bridge that concealed a strange secret, Su Xiaonuan and Zhao Liyue did not linger and went straight home.
Throughout the journey, the carriage was unusually quiet, with only the steady hum of the engine.
Su Xiaonuan secretly glanced at Zhao Liyue, who was driving calmly and focused on the road, and felt a little uneasy.
She knew very well that her actions today—bringing the inkstone straight to the "heart of the matter" and finding what might be the murderer's hiding place and the "ritual" markers—were far too outrageous and full of inexplicable doubts.
Although Zhao Liyue never asked a question or even gave her a questioning look, Su Xiaonuan knew with her toes that this meticulous former special police officer must have been filled with questions and was probably conjuring up eight hundred bizarre guesses about her identity.
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