13 kilograms.
13,000 grams.
No one knows the weight, size, or even form of the so-called Scarlet Beast.
Chu Zhiyong didn't want to say anything more about it, changed into civilian clothes, and left the unit.
"Shall we go back to our respective units to check on our work environment and accommodations, and then gather together for dinner?" Qin Ci's suggestion was agreed upon by everyone, and they unanimously decided on a buffet restaurant next to the police station for the "gathering."
So, Qin Ci took his newly recruited "apprentices," Zhi Chun, Su Benxin, and Yu Ji, to the Central Hospital.
Zhao Yanbao took Chi Lei and Zhu Haowen to report to the Cocoon Detective Agency.
The remaining police officers were: Ke Xun and Mu Yiran from the Criminal Investigation Department, Lion and Xiao Qinxian from the Forensic Department, and Wei Dong from the Household Registration Department.
At this moment, the five of them looked at the "homeless" Luo Wei with some confusion.
"You were left behind? Why didn't you say anything just now?" Wei Dong even thought about using his position in the Household Registration Department to get his partner a temporary job.
Luo Wei took out his ID, which read "Freelancer" in the work section.
Unlike everyone else's ID, which had a round red stamp reading "Core Police Station of Heart City Central District," Luo Wei's ID had a prominent rectangular stamp with the words "Outside Heart City Area" written in red.
"What does this mean? Why didn't you ask?" Wei Dong
asked anxiously. Luo Wei remained calm: "I did ask, but no one seemed to hear me."
Ke Xun also found it strange. When the old policeman was assigning tasks, he had counted the number of people on his fingers, and although he clearly counted thirteen, he still missed Luo Wei.
Mu Yiran pondered, "It seems that Luo Wei is a special character in this game."
What makes him special is currently impossible to guess, and even Luo Wei himself couldn't say for sure, but his next words weighed heavily on everyone: "Chu Zhiyong didn't tell us whether the so-called Scarlet Beast is inside or outside the city."
"Since our work is all assigned to the city, the Scarlet Beast is naturally within our scope of work," Ke Xun said, looking at his companions. "Even if the beast runs outside the city, there's still you, the freelancer outside the city."
Xiao Qinxian stood to the side, arms crossed, "If this is truly an infinite flow game, then the prey is very likely hidden among us, and possesses a unique hiding characteristic."
This seemed to imply something.
"Suspicion is a major taboo in teamwork," Mu Yiran said without looking at Xiao Qinxian, but his serious tone silenced her. "Everyone, let's go to the dormitory first."
There were three dorm rooms, divided according to department, each with two single beds.
"Dude, you don't mind three people sharing a room, do you?" Wei Dong asked Lion, intending to move a bed to make it a three-person room.
Lion, speaking with a slight foreign accent, said, "Doo-ko-yi, oh, I once camped on the ice field with a herd of snow deer. Compared to that, the environment in Zheli is simply paradise."
Xiao Qinxian secretly twitched her lips; she had just been complaining about how rudimentary the rooms were and how smoky they were.
So, Mu Yiran and Ke Xun, both from the criminal investigation department, shared a room, Xiao Qinxian had her own room, and the other three men shared another.
Ke Xun looked at the police uniform hanging on the dormitory wall, which now had a work badge with his name and a code attached. He tried on the uniform, and it fit perfectly.
Unfortunately, there was no full-length mirror in the room. Ke Xun buttoned up his uniform and examined himself: "This is my first time wearing a police uniform. It's like fulfilling a childhood dream..."
Seeing that Mu Yiran didn't say anything, Ke Xun turned around and found the other man staring at him intently.
"You put it on and let me see." Without waiting for a reply, Ke Xun draped another uniform from the wall over Mu Yiran. Even though it wasn't fully dressed, it instantly added a rare air of heroism, making one's heart skip a beat.
Mu Yiran firmly stopped Ke Xun from continuing to dress him, his voice slightly low and husky, "I have important business to attend to later."
"Self-discipline" had always been one of the qualities that attracted Ke Xun to Mu Yiran. Now, with the other person in a police uniform, his eyes clearly showing desire, yet speaking words of prohibition with an unquestionable tone, his charm was off the charts.
Ke Xun touched his waist, intending to draw a gun to further "coerce" the other person, but unexpectedly, he actually pulled out a handgun. The cold, hard touch instantly alerted him.
Mu Yiran also drew his own gun, examining it carefully: "Fully armed."
"Are you more excited now that you have a gun?" Ke Xun touched the gun, softening the slightly tense atmosphere.
A knock sounded at the door, and then Wei Dong pushed it open, covering his eyes as he went in: "What are you two bad cops doing? I didn't see anything."
Ke Xun stood up: "We have guns, hands up."
Wei Dong's eyes peeked through his wide fingers: "Damn, this is so unfair! Why do you guys have guns while I only have a ballpoint pen! And the ink is almost gone."
Ke Xun then noticed that Wei Dong was also wearing a police uniform: "You look quite like Xiao Zhang."
"Which Xiao Zhang?" Wei Dong was pondering whether it was Jang Dong-gun or Zhang Yixing when he heard the other say: "The one from earlier, the policewoman from the household registration department, her surname is Zhang, right?"
Well, he finally managed to wear a police uniform and ended up looking like a policewoman from the household registration department, that's just ridiculous.
Lion also stood at the door and interjected, "We have an extra white coat and an extra pair of domestic latex powder-free gloves compared to you."
Wei Dong nodded, "You guys are lucky."
After some preparation, everyone changed back into their previous casual clothes, and the group of six went to the self-service restaurant opposite the police station.
"Upon closer analysis, many things here are not set up properly," Luo Wei said, expressing his thoughts, "For example, this police station, the organizational structure is very chaotic, it's hard to tell if it's a police station or a criminal investigation team, and the uniforms and badges are not quite right."
"This is Heart City, it can't be measured by normal standards," Ke Xun said.
This is a painting, all the illogicalities make sense.
Luo Wei recalled the whimsical animation settings in the previous painting, and now this realistic city felt disorienting.
"Oh, I thought I was still in China," Lion looked around the Chinese-style decor of the restaurant, "Oh, I want to eat snail rice noodles with soy milk."
"You have quite the taste," Wei Dong patted his international friend on the shoulder.
A few minutes later, the other two groups arrived. Qin Ci glanced at the cashier: "We don't have cash; everyone only has a card."
Since everyone was in the same boat, they each used their cards to make their purchases.
The cashier swiped Qin Ci's card: "Your card has a 40-purchase limit; you have 39 left."
39 purchases—starting tomorrow morning, that's enough for 13 days if they eat three meals a day.
"Did you notice? There are no price tags here; it's all card-based payment," Sen Nv Chi Lei whispered. "That means after 13 days, once our purchase limit is used up, we'll be completely stuck."
Mu Yiran waited briefly at the cashier, and only after hearing that Luo Wei's spending amount was the same as everyone else's, did he walk towards the dining table.
It was past lunchtime, and there were few people eating. They found the largest round table and sat down to eat and talk.
Although their current situation was somewhat bizarre, these newcomers hadn't yet experienced real danger, so despite their fatigue, they still had a good appetite.
When Xiao Qinxian heard that the hospital's dormitory was a luxury apartment, while the detective agency's dormitory was located on the second floor of a garden villa, she couldn't help but sigh, "Our place is small, gloomy, and has an unpleasant smell."
"We'd better find some clues before dark, even the slightest hint," Qin Ci steered the conversation to the main point.
Although it was often the newcomers who died on the first night, the veteran members didn't want to deduce the rules from death cases.
"Our professional scope is currently very concentrated: police station, hospital, detective agency," Luo Wei said this time. "Obviously, there must be a case happening here, and it's a criminal case involving criminal investigation and forensic medicine."
Everyone thought there was some truth to it, but Xiao Qinxian smiled lightly: "These are just guesses. The task we need to complete has already been clearly defined, which is to find the Scarlet Beast." As she spoke, she turned her gaze to Luo Wei without any politeness. "I didn't understand why the old policeman was so evasive when he spoke to us until I realized that someone wasn't a local. With this person present, some things naturally can't be said outright."
Her words stunned the people outside the police station. Only Zhao Yanbao said: "I went back and checked. Only twelve people have been assigned work. Where is the other one?"
Xiao Qinxian sneered: "I don't understand why these people are covering for him either. His ID shows that he's from out of town. I really don't know which organization he belongs to. What's the point of having an outsider present in our conversation today?"
Luo Wei wasn't angry. Instead, he openly placed his ID on the table for the others to see.
Zhao Yanbao carefully observed, "Outside the Heart City area? Freelancers? Does this mean that once the beasts leave Heart City, we can still hunt them down? Luo Wei is the one with this special identity."
Xiao Qinxian interrupted Zhao Yanbao, "Do you really think the Scarlet Beast is a physical beast like a tiger or leopard? I think this is a game similar to X-Men; we need to find the outcast."
Ke Xun and Wei Dong were both uncomfortable with these words and were about to retort when Zhu Haowen slowly said, "What we can confirm at the moment is that the Scarlet Beast weighs 13 kilograms, which is 26 jin (approximately 18 kg). As this lady said, if this beast is indeed among us, its weight wouldn't be too heavy; it should be the lightest one."
Xiao Qinxian looked down at her thin body and was stunned with anger.
Everyone had different expressions and remained silent, burying their heads in their food.
Finally breaking the silence, Mu Yiran turned his gaze to Su Benxin sitting opposite him: "Mr. Su, do you know anything about the painter Yu Beiguo? There must be a reason why 'The Scarlet Beast' is not for sale in the art museum."
Su Benxin didn't answer immediately, his eyes dimming slightly: "This painter has passed away. 'The Scarlet Beast' was his last work."
"Passed away?"
"Yes, Yu Beiguo took his own life two months ago."