Hearing Bai Yuling mention that mysterious woman with black hair, Ji Zige knew exactly who she was referring to and fell into thought.
After a moment, she looked up and asked Bai Yuling, “Director Bai, do you think there’s a chance that this mysterious, beautiful woman with black hair and the man in the suit who’s been creating superhumans all over Fangfeng City could be the same person?”
Upon hearing this, Bai Yuling thought for a moment before replying, “We can’t rule out that possibility.”
“Oh, and about that Han Xiaohu I defeated this morning, the one you arrested—is he like the other superhumans you’ve caught? Did he also receive his powers from that suit-wearing man who appeared out of nowhere?” Ji Zige asked, thinking back to Han Xiaohu, whom she had defeated earlier at the Daheng Real Estate headquarters.
Bai Yuling, knowing her colleagues in interrogation had already extracted everything Han Xiaohu knew, answered, “That’s correct. That individual, Han Xiaohu, also became a superhuman after being granted powers by the man in the suit.”
Hearing this confirmation that Han Xiaohu was another person transformed by the suit-wearing man, memories of prior events flooded back to Ji Zige. She couldn’t help but ponder inwardly, Why is that man in the suit giving ordinary people these powers? Isn’t he afraid they’ll fail to advance properly and turn into monsters that could attack him? Or is he just supremely confident that those he empowers won’t become monsters? But where does that confidence come from?
Just as these thoughts swirled in her mind, she suddenly recalled the power that had manifested on the monsterized Liu Deli yesterday—the power that could reanimate long-buried corpses, turning them into monsters equivalent to one-star superhumans. A rather unsettling conjecture began to form in her mind.
She promptly looked up at Bai Yuling and asked, “Director Bai, have you conducted thorough examinations of the supernatural power signatures on the superhumans you’ve recently arrested, the ones created by the man in the suit?”
Although unsure why Ji Zige was asking this, Bai Yuling, out of respect, replied earnestly, “Ms. Ji Zige, of course we have conducted thorough examinations of the power signatures of these superhumans created by the suit-wearing man. But why do you ask?”
After Bai Yuling answered and posed her own question, Ji Zige didn’t hesitate. She quickly shared all the information she had gathered and the conjecture she had formed based on it.
Upon hearingJi Zige’s information and the resulting hypothesis, Bai Yuling’s face noticeably paled. If this conjecture proved true, it would spell disaster for Fangfeng City.
After her complexion regained a bit of color, Bai Yuling hurriedly said to Ji Zige, “Ms. Ji Zige, this conjecture you’ve presented, regardless of whether it ultimately proves correct, holds immense value. For me, for the rest of the Bureau, and for all the citizens of Fangfeng City. I must offer you my sincere thanks.”
“It’s nothing, really,” Ji Zige replied with a smile. “I simply pieced together the information I had and offered my own deduction. I’m just glad you’re considering it.”
Hearing her words, a faint smile touched Bai Yuling’s lips, but it was soon replaced by a troubled expression. It seemed she felt Ji Zige might have a better solution for their current predicament, so she continued, “Ms. Ji Zige, I will instruct the inspection department to intensify their monitoring of the arrested superhumans to prevent any future loss of control or transformation into monsters. However, regarding actually finding the man in the suit… I wonder if you have any ideas I could consider?”
Pondering Bai Yuling’s question, Ji Zige fell into thought once more. Finally, she spoke up, “If it’s just about general ideas, I do have one ready-made approach that might help you, Director Bai.”
“Oh? What sort of ready-made approach? Please, explain it to me in detail,” Bai Yuling pressed, her interest piqued as she had been hoping for just such input from Ji Zige.
Seeing Bai Yuling’s keen interest, Ji Zige saw no reason to hold back and quickly outlined her idea.
After listening, Bai Yuling couldn’t hide her surprise. She looked at Ji Zige and said, “Ms. Ji Zige, so the ‘ready-made approach’ you’re referring to is… baiting the target into a sting operation?”
“Yes, exactly. My idea is a sting operation,” Ji Zige confirmed with a nod, looking directly at Bai Yuling. “While I can’t guarantee it will lure out the big fish hiding in the shadows, given our current situation, it’s probably the best approach I can think of.”
After hearing Ji Zige out, Bai Yuling sank into brief contemplation. Before long, realizing Ji Zige was right, she looked up and said, “Hmm, you’re correct. A sting operation is likely the only viable strategy we have right now to try. The only question is whether our ‘big fish,’ the man in the suit, will take the bait.”
Sensing the concern in Bai Yuling’s tone, Ji Zige reassured her, “Don’t worry, Director Bai. As long as the bait we use is enticing enough, we won’t have to worry about that big fish not biting.”
“‘Bait enticing enough’… Yes, I think I understand what you mean,” Bai Yuling said, her expression shifting to one of dawning comprehension as she grasped the analogy of bait and fish. Her mind might not be the quickest, but she was getting the gist.
Seeing that Bai Yuling understood her suggested approach, Ji Zige smiled and continued, “I’m glad you see my point, Director Bai.”
After discussing the strategy, Bai Yuling and Ji Zige exchanged a few more words on other matters. Then, conscious that as a clone she shouldn’t linger too long, Ji Zige said her goodbyes to Bai Yuling and departed from the Fangfeng City Special Affairs Bureau headquarters.