Chapter 20: Let Me Use Your Eyes

Public security officers are quite different from law-abiding detectives.

Public security officers often spread their wings on the edge of the law; picking locks and breaking in is commonplace, and they aren't constrained by so many frameworks.

In other words, Jiang Xia thought, if Amuro Tooru truly wanted to investigate, it would be impossible for him not to find something when facing an ordinary murder case.

...

Although Amuro Tooru’s foundation was that of a public security officer and his outward persona was that of a ruthless Organization big shot who wouldn't bother with ordinary murders...

At the same time, he did indeed carry the title of "detective."

And Jiang Xia felt that in this world, anyone with even a slight "detective buff"—as long as you nudged them toward the edge of a case...

They would involve themselves, working tirelessly to investigate and find the truth... making things very easy for you.

...

Thinking of this, Jiang Xia leaned closer to the photos and detailed the case to Amuro Tooru.

Then, he began to hint: "If you know for a fact that someone committed a murder, and you've even guessed the general process of how they did it, but there is no physical evidence, what should you do?"

Amuro Tooru casually picked up a photo to examine it. "When something truly happens, the traces are hard to erase completely. Since you can deduce the MO, then follow the suspect's movements at the time, speculate on their thoughts, simulate their behavior, and reconstruct their actions... to find the traces of that event within them."

Jiang Xia: "..." It seemed Amuro Tooru had no intention of getting involved.

Jiang Xia continued to hint with great patience: "What if you still can't find anything?"

"Then don't look for it." Amuro Tooru tossed the photo onto the table and said indifferently, "Not every case can be solved."

He, Furuya Rei, was a professional undercover agent.

Every identity had a corresponding personality.

—Furuya Rei was Furuya Rei, Amuro Tooru was Amuro Tooru, and Bourbon was Bourbon.

They were different.

Facing Jiang Xia, an Organization member, Amuro Tooru spent a fraction of a second selecting a persona. He felt that the "Bourbon" identity was the most appropriate.

However, after speaking, Amuro Tooru gave Jiang Xia a slightly surprised look.

He hadn't expected Jiang Xia to be so obsessed with solving cases.

...

Previously, after agreeing to let Jiang Xia work part-time, Amuro Tooru had pulled relevant intelligence on Jiang Xia from various red and black channels.

He discovered that Jiang Xia's experiences were indeed not much different from what he had claimed.

The psychological issues were real, with medical records to prove it; Sherry wasn't making a big deal out of nothing.

Additionally, there was another surprising point—a year ago, after being discharged from the hospital and returning to school, Jiang Xia's grades began a steady, balanced climb.

Eventually, they reached the top and never came down. Whether it was quizzes, midterms, or finals, every single subject was a perfect score.

Amuro Tooru fell into silence while staring at that stack of bug-like transcripts.

It was then that he suddenly realized he seemed to have picked up a talent.

...

Although he was still slightly inferior to those geniuses who graduated with doctorates in their teens, like Sherry...

But if he kept this up, it would be only natural for Jiang Xia to graduate from a top university and contribute to society.

And talents should belong to the nation.

What kind of logic was it to let him stay in the Black Organization to shine?

Thinking of this, Amuro Tooru fell into brief contemplation

The defensive forces around Sherry were too heavy; she was hard to recruit.

But Jiang Xia was an orphan with no one to look after him.

Moreover, from what he could see currently, Jiang Xia didn't have much sense of belonging to the Organization; he was only staying there temporarily because he had nowhere else to go, acting as an emotionless task machine.

At this thought, Amuro Tooru tapped the photo with his fingertip and said with feigned disdain

"Why think so much? There's no commission fee anyway. You might as well throw the clues you've gathered to the police and let them find the evidence themselves—those tax thieves have eaten so much of the taxpayers' money, they ought to do some work."

He was subtly expressing one theme: if you have trouble, go to the police.

Amuro Tooru felt that at Jiang Xia's age, his values were very easily influenced.

As long as this report to the police was successful and Jiang Xia tasted the sweetness of it, remembering "go to the police when something happens," would he fear not becoming close to the police once similar things happened repeatedly?

Jiang Xia gave Amuro Tooru a surprised look, making a mental note: *Daily insults directed at me: 1/1.*

At the same time, looking at it from a God's eye view, he pondered Amuro Tooru's intention and suddenly had a flash of inspiration, vaguely understanding his purpose.

With that thought.

Jiang Xia shifted his tone, putting on the same disdainful face as Amuro Tooru

"True. Although the police certainly won't find any results, at least it'll cause them some trouble, letting them feel the frustration of having a villain right in front of them but being unable to catch them."

Amuro Tooru's eyelid twitched almost imperceptibly.

...He actually dared to look down on the police.

However, one couldn't entirely blame Jiang Xia.

These views were surely indoctrinated by the Organization.

The wicked Black Organization does nothing but bad things all day, poisoning the next generation.

Sooner or later, this pile of hazards to the nation's future must be uprooted...

However, no matter what Amuro Tooru thought in his heart, on the surface, while others were cursing the police, he could only maintain a smile.

Under Amuro Tooru's non-committal gaze, Jiang Xia walked to the table, gathered the photos, and headed out. He prepared to adopt Amuro Tooru's suggestion—to report it to the police.

...

After confirming Jiang Xia had left, Amuro Tooru walked to the door and clicked the lock shut.

Then, he took out his phone and sent the case details Jiang Xia had mentioned to his subordinates. He instructed them that once they received the clues submitted by Jiang Xia, they were to coordinate with the police force in Gunma Prefecture—the location where the body was found—to investigate the case, all without exposing themselves.

...It was time to boost the credibility of the police in front of the next generation of the Black Organization, to lead the youth toward the light.

...

The email was sent successfully quite quickly.

The subordinates also replied "Received" rapidly.

Amuro Tooru put his phone away with satisfaction.

However, the memory of Jiang Xia's disdain when mentioning the police flashed through his mind, causing his footsteps to pause slightly on his way home.

In reality, although he disliked people cursing the police, Amuro Tooru knew well that his colleagues were sometimes quite unreliable...

After a moment of hesitation, Amuro Tooru decided to make the trip himself; Gunma Prefecture wasn't far, after all.

The first time was very important.

Judging from Jiang Xia's attitude just now, he had very little trust in the police's capability.

If this report failed, Jiang Xia would certainly never try a second time.

Since he didn't have anything urgent to do these few days anyway, he would treat it as a diversion...

With these thoughts, Amuro Tooru locked the agency door and headed straight for the parking lot.

...

As soon as Jiang Xia stepped out of the street corner, the Metropolitan Police Department was right across from him.

After submitting the relevant materials, Jiang Xia did not return to the agency immediately.

He was afraid of disturbing Amuro Tooru while he was coordinating his "tools."

So, Jiang Xia went for a stroll nearby, intending to leave enough time for Amuro Tooru to make several phone calls.

...

On his way, as he passed a certain spot, the ghost infant that had been perched on his shoulder suddenly sat upright and poked him excitedly.

Jiang Xia froze. Following the ghost infant's direction, he saw an old, weathered building.

Looking closely, the peeling sign at the entrance read—*Chusei Art Gallery*.

...A gallery?

Jiang Xia: "..." Such places were indeed high-incidence areas for crimes.

And judging from the ghost infant's reaction, the case in the gallery was likely still in progress. There was definitely murderous intent or a ghost inside; it wouldn't be a waste to visit.

Thinking of this, Jiang Xia rubbed the reporting ghost infant a couple of times, feeling somewhat moved.

Life really did get easier after equipping the detective buff.

It wasn't in vain that he had been running around so busily for so long.

Soon, Jiang Xia pivoted his feet and walked toward the art gallery as if nothing were wrong, like an ordinary tourist who had a sudden whim to increase his literary cultivation.

...

The gallery was on the verge of closing, and there were very few tourists.

Jiang Xia knocked on the ticket booth window, startling the attendant who was secretly looking in a mirror, and bought a ticket.

He stopped in the first-floor lobby and looked at the floor plan.

Then, following the ghost infant's direction, he walked toward the target location.

...

The first floor of the gallery was divided into several large zones—the Sky Hall, the Ocean Hall, the Land Hall...

And there was also a "Hell Hall."

Recalling the layout, Jiang Xia walked through the empty, silent corridors and arrived at the entrance of the "Hell Hall."

...

Unlike the other halls, the lights were not turned on in the Hell Hall.

Near the entrance, one could barely see using the light from the corridor. Further in, it was pitch black.

Jiang Xia: "..." No matter how much they themed it around "Hell," it shouldn't be so dark that they didn't even turn on the lights—suspicious, very suspicious.

...In other words, there really were ghosts to be picked up here.

At this thought, Jiang Xia's eyes brightened almost imperceptibly, and he walked into the hall with anticipation.

...

It was very dark in the Hell Hall, and Jiang Xia hadn't brought a flashlight. But there was no need.

—He let the ghost infant float in front of his eyes, and the man and the ghost gently touched eyes.

In the next second, in Jiang Xia's vision, the dark hall suddenly became clear.

—He had borrowed the ghost infant's night vision.

...

In the world of mediums, ghost infants could be considered treasures. Once a contract was signed, they could interact with the medium in many ways.

Such as borrowing vision just now.

Furthermore, besides transferring the ghost infant's night vision to himself...

Jiang Xia could actually do the reverse—transfer his own vision to the ghost infant.

Then he could let the stealthy ghost float into various dangerous places to spy on information.

Similarly, hearing, smell, taste, strength... all could be transferred.

However, the latter required cautious use.

Because in the early stages, this type of skill had a significant flaw.

—After transferring the medium's vision or hearing to the ghost, the original body would lose those corresponding abilities.

One would have to wait until the later stages, when the possessed ghosts gradually leveled up, to be able to strengthen the ghosts and puppets without transferring one's own abilities.

...

For the current Jiang Xia, the most critical thing was solving the problem of food and shelter for himself and the ghosts.

There was still a long way to go before he could level up the ghost infant.

But fortunately, as a medium who hadn't touched a ghost in over a year, Jiang Xia's mindset was very peaceful.

—He already had a ghost.

How far could it be from giving the ghost a star upgrade?

Moreover, this world was relatively peaceful; even with only the most basic ghosts, it was barely enough to get by.

The situation was already much better than when he first arrived a year ago.

A qualified medium must learn to be content. Then, grow quietly and pick up all the ghosts...

(End of Chapter)