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Chapter 861: Midnight Tracking
In the midnight jungle, a Wild Rabbit nestled in a pit, heard rustling sounds, and immediately tensed its Nerves. Its red eyes peered over the Wild Grass covering the Cave Entrance, staring at the Shrubbery not far away.
In front of the Shrubbery, a gray-black Snake flicked its Snake Tongue, slithering rapidly through the Grass Leaf in an 'S' shape. Smooth Scales brushed against the Grass Leaf, making slight, continuous sounds. Its dark Snake eyes reflected a cold Light in the Moonlight, flashing before the Wild Rabbit's eyes.
The Wild Rabbit remained vigilant for a while. After confirming that the Snake was just passing by, it squatted down, curled into a ball, and closed its eyes to doze off.
Soon, there were slight sounds again near the Shrubbery, one after another, like the sound of Wood brushing against Grass Leaf.
The Wild Rabbit woke up again, concentrating on listening to the Movement, staring intently at the Shrubbery.
This time, it was a Human who came, wearing dark robes that it rarely saw on the Villager in the Village. This Human also had a tranquil Aura different from those People or Wild Beast, an Aura that could make it forget Fear and unease.
The Human held a faint blue Radiance in their Hand, faintly illuminating the Road ahead of their Foot. Footsteps calmly and gently bypassed the Shrubbery. The Wooden Strip on the bottom of the wooden Shoes brushed against Grass Leaf, making a slight rustling sound, and soon faded into the distance.
The Wild Rabbit tilted its Head and Looked at that Figure, but still did not poke its Head out of the Grass to Look.
The Night Jungle is Unsafe.
...
Chi Feichei tracked along the Trace all the way.
Wearing a Yukata and Wooden Clogs while Tracking was a bit Weird and inconvenient for Activity. The trailing corners of the Yukata easily caught on Things, and the Shoes also easily made Sound. But whether it was Suitable for Tracking depended on the Environment and individual Physical Fitness.
The Soil in the Jungle was soft, and the Ground was covered with Wild Grass. Under Circumstances where one's Footstep could be very light, choosing Wooden Clogs with Wooden Strip soles had a smaller friction surface than sports shoes, and the Sound produced would naturally be smaller. Moreover, Wooden Clogs would not leave a circular shape. Even if Trace of being pressed was found on the Grass, that kind of Trace pressed flat horizontally would be difficult to associate with Footprint.
The Key was that the Villager in this Village would not wear this kind of inconvenient Shoes for Activity. In this way, it was possible to distinguish his Footprint from other People's Footprint, so as not to mess up his own and The Other Party's Footprint after walking around twice.
Wearing a Yukata was to destroy 'Information'.
Correct, the corners of the Yukata easily brushed against Grass Leaf, but that's exactly what he wanted.
In the City, for House Search, you needed to wear neat Clothes and try not to leave Trace Indoors. But in the Jungle, in addition to Human, there were also many Small Animals active.
As Long As you avoided getting the Fabric String of the Yukata caught by Thorns and other Plants, occasionally brushing against Grass Leaf was also okay. That would only erase his 'Information' as a Human, making it impossible to distinguish whether the Trace was left by Animal or Human.
As For the inconvenience of Activity, with his Physical Fitness, there was no need to worry about not being able to Handle Danger. Even if wearing Yukata and Wooden Clogs, he dared to guarantee that he could win against any young adult in Fifteen Night Village with one Hand. In addition, having Black Plate as a medium- and long-range Attack Weapon, that little inconvenience would not cause any Impact.
And he chose Glow Stick instead of Flashlight Just Because the Light of Flashlight in the Jungle was too conspicuous, easily discovered, Ambush, Sneak Attack by People.
Using Glow Stick was not eye-catching, and that little Light was also enough to illuminate some Corners that Moonlight could not find. Cooperating with tonight's Moonlight, it was Sufficient for him to Tracking.
The Other Party did not Seemingly to be a Careful Person, leaving So Many Trace, and also very obvious.
From the Trace, it could be Seen that it was a Human with a height of 173-178 and a Body Weight around 70Kg. These could be estimated As Long As you found continuous Footprint, judged whether it was running or walking, and then calculated based on the distance between Footprint and the depth of Footprint.
Of course, specific calculation also needed to add factors such as the softness of the Ground, which would be more Complex.
After The Other Party threw them off, they ran and walked quickly for a while, and then started walking normally again. The Footprint in this section was no longer circular, but much more complete. You could See that The Other Party wore Straw Sandals, and you could also distinguish the Footprint of the left and Right Foot from the sole.
The Right Hand Footprint was a little bigger and deeper than the left Hand Footprint, Mean that person's dominant Hand was the Right Hand.
The size of Human's Hand and Foot was Actually different. The dominant Hand was on that side, and the Hand and Foot on that side would be larger.
He was an exception.
After the last time the Arm Strength was improved, his left and Right Hand became equally flexible. The Palm size measured by the Machine was also not bad at all, and along with that, the size and depth of the Footprint also slowly became consistent...
Chi Feichei Suddenly Stop Walking, picked up a Feather beside the Footprint, Looked, and continued to Tracking forward.
The Other Party Indeed draped Feather.
The Feather he picked up Should be the Tail Feather of a Light-vented Bulbul. Judging from the root, it was pulled out after death, at least more than a month ago.
The Scratch Mark between the Footprint and the Shrubbery was intermittent, leading all the way to a Small Square.
Saying it was a Small Square, it was Actually a relatively flat Grassland. Sacrifice Tree and God-Dwelling Tree were placed in the Grassland, some distance from other Tree.
There were many such Small Square, distributed in the Jungle on both sides of the Road entering the Village. After he arrived at the Village, he had seen eleven.
The Villager Should have their own Number for these Sacrifice Tree and Small Square, For Example, in the Letter that the Culprit left for Wakura Yoichi, mentioned 'Second Offering'.
Here was not close to the Main Road, Should be the most remote 'Offering Platform'. Moreover, in the Place near the Jungle, there was also a Stone Monument placed obliquely and hidden in the Wild Grass. Bouquet was placed in front of the Stone Monument.
Chi Feichei Step Forward and Looked.
A line of Character was engraved on the Stone Monument: Konno Machiko.
Below were small horizontal Date Characters, and at the end there was a Character 'Erected'. Although there was no Photo, but combined with the Bouquet, this was someone's Tombstone. Judging by the Name, it was Female.
Tombstone that could be left Beside the Sacrifice Tree was not simple, Moreover, the Monster's Trace also reached the front of the Tombstone and stayed. The Bouquet Should be left by the Monster.
The color choice of the Bouquet was White, Representing Sacrifice and Mourning. The Flower were Wildflower in the Jungle, tied up with Vine, not much Information.
Chi Feichei took out a Handkerchief, wrapped the root of the Bouquet and picked up the Flower, Looked at the broken point, held back the Idea of finding Tool to collect Fingerprint, and observed the pinch marks at the broken point.
Collecting Fingerprint was not very useful. People just offered a Bouquet, it could not Mean anything. But the Flower was not cut off with a Knife, but pinched off with the Strength of Hand and Fingernails, then it was possible to obtain Information such as the shape of The Other Party's Fingernails.
Chi Feichei put down the Bouquet, Looked at the Footprint Beside the Stone Monument again, and already had the Answer in his Heart.
Tushi Yicheng, that Police Officer.
The Activity Method of People who had received Formal Training would have some gap with Ordinary Person. So Many Footprint provided Information, Sufficient for him to Judgment that it was a Footprint of a Person who had received Formal Training.
Of course, this did not Mean that The Other Party must be Police Officer. It was also Possible to be Mercenary, Soldier, even People who had only participated in Training Camp or received Intensive Training of Physical Fitness.
What made him Confirm Identity was the Fingernails mark.
Human's Fingernails would also have differences, Just that kind of difference was not as big and as easy to compare as Fingerprint.
Tushi Yicheng's Right Hand Thumb Fingernails had a Dent in the middle, and the length and width were also consistent with the broken point at the root of one of the Flower.
That Fellow had wandered in front of them too many times, it was difficult for him not to notice.
Moreover, Tushi Yicheng's height, Body Shape, and dominant Hand were also consistent with the Information he Inferred from the Footprint.
There was also a strange round White Frost Trace at the lower corner of the Stone Monument, not sweat, but Tears. Plus the Bouquet offered in front of the Stone Monument, he was more inclined to the latter.
Then, Murder Motive was to Revenge for this 'Konno Machiko'?
Inferring from Age, Konno Machiko was buried more than twenty years ago. At that time Tushi Yicheng was only four or five years old. If you wanted to Say Relationship, it was Possible to be an elder in the Home, even Tushi Yicheng's Mother.
Chi Feichei pondered, went to below the Sacrifice Tree, Looked up and Saw God-Dwelling Tree and Large Round Stone in a straight line with the Sacrifice Tree, and then went to the God-Dwelling Tree again, and lifted it with his Hand A Bit.
There were Large Round Log as thick as an Adult's waist, but the Body Weight was very light, Should be internally hollowed out.
After lifting the God-Dwelling Tree A Bit, you could See that there was an Iron object like a Bird's beak in the middle of the God-Dwelling Tree. The middle of the Bird's beak was a hollow Hole.
There was a deep Pit on the Ground opposite, just enough to fit the Bird's beak in. Standing next to it, you could feel the Cold Wind blowing out of the Pit.
And both ends of the God-Dwelling Tree and the Base on which both ends were placed were connected by Hinge.
Chi Feichei turned his Head and Looked at the Sacrifice Tree directly behind his Back, squatted down and picked up a Stone, and threw it towards the Pit emitting Cold Air on the Ground.
The Stone thrown to the Pit did not fall, but was directly blown away by the Airflow blowing up from below.
In this way, the Culprit's Method of committing the crime was also Perfect.
Conan once raised a Question: If the Culprit was using the Air Pressure Burst caused by the Reservoir and Underground Cave to Murder, why didn't they See the Hole that lifted People up? And how did the Culprit accurately make the Deceased be Impalement by Branch?
If you added God-Dwelling Tree, these two Problem could be Solved.
As Long As you let the Deceased hug or lie on the God-Dwelling Tree, use a remote Switch to open the Reservoir Gate, let the Water of the Reservoir pour into the Underground Cave. Even no need to release all the Water from the Reservoir, the Gate only needed to be opened for a few seconds when a loud and sharp Sound rings out. The Water pouring into the Underground Cave would make the originally high Air Pressure rise again. Air was compressed and would rush upwards towards the Hole below the God-Dwelling Tree. The Airflow that Burst in that Moment would make the God-Dwelling Tree pop up like a cork from a champagne bottle, and the Deceased would also be hit by the God-Dwelling Tree and Impalement by the sharp Branch of the Sacrifice Tree in a straight line.
Afterwards, God-Dwelling Tree would hit the Round Stone and be pulled back by the Hinge again. Due To the short Time the Reservoir Gate was opened and the Water pouring in was not the Water of the entire Reservoir, after the previous Airflow Burst, the God-Dwelling Tree would not be pushed up by the Airflow again, and everything would return to its original state.
Under the Cover-up of loud and sharp Sound, the Movement here would also be Cover-up.
Even if the Deceased who was thrown towards the Branch and became Corpse, probably did not Understand how he died until death.
Wakura Yoichi had Injury on his Head, Should be knocked unconscious and placed on the God-Dwelling Tree. As For Shirafuji Yasumi...
He remembered that Time, People who came with him were all trying to hug the God-Dwelling Tree Prayer. Afterwards Fukuura Reiji and the Villager had a Conflict, Tushi Yicheng Step Forward to stop them, and as a result, he was surrounded by the Villager being pushed and shoved.
Very Possible at that Time, Shirafuji Yasumi was just hugging the God-Dwelling Tree, and the Reservoir Gate Switch that Tushi Yicheng put in his Pocket was accidentally touched in the crowd, so Shirafuji Yasumi became an unlucky person who was accidentally killed by the Mechanism.
Chi Feichei put the God-Dwelling Tree back to its original Place, Get Up and continued to Tracking the Trace on the Ground.
He still needed to Confirm again whether the Culprit was Tushi Yicheng.
Although pretending to be Birdman and running to Wakura Family to scare People, Say Threat Words, and offered Bouquet in front of the mysterious Tombstone, this did not Mean that Tushi Yicheng must be the Culprit, can only be said that he was currently the biggest Suspicion...
(End of Chapter)
In the midnight jungle, a Wild Rabbit nestled in a pit, heard rustling sounds, and immediately tensed its Nerves. Its red eyes peered over the Wild Grass covering the Cave Entrance, staring at the Shrubbery not far away.
In front of the Shrubbery, a gray-black Snake flicked its Snake Tongue, slithering rapidly through the Grass Leaf in an 'S' shape. Smooth Scales brushed against the Grass Leaf, making slight, continuous sounds. Its dark Snake eyes reflected a cold Light in the Moonlight, flashing before the Wild Rabbit's eyes.
The Wild Rabbit remained vigilant for a while. After confirming that the Snake was just passing by, it squatted down, curled into a ball, and closed its eyes to doze off.
Soon, there were slight sounds again near the Shrubbery, one after another, like the sound of Wood brushing against Grass Leaf.
The Wild Rabbit woke up again, concentrating on listening to the Movement, staring intently at the Shrubbery.
This time, it was a Human who came, wearing dark robes that it rarely saw on the Villager in the Village. This Human also had a tranquil Aura different from those People or Wild Beast, an Aura that could make it forget Fear and unease.
The Human held a faint blue Radiance in their Hand, faintly illuminating the Road ahead of their Foot. Footsteps calmly and gently bypassed the Shrubbery. The Wooden Strip on the bottom of the wooden Shoes brushed against Grass Leaf, making a slight rustling sound, and soon faded into the distance.
The Wild Rabbit tilted its Head and Looked at that Figure, but still did not poke its Head out of the Grass to Look.
The Night Jungle is Unsafe.
...
Chi Feichei tracked along the Trace all the way.
Wearing a Yukata and Wooden Clogs while Tracking was a bit Weird and inconvenient for Activity. The trailing corners of the Yukata easily caught on Things, and the Shoes also easily made Sound. But whether it was Suitable for Tracking depended on the Environment and individual Physical Fitness.
The Soil in the Jungle was soft, and the Ground was covered with Wild Grass. Under Circumstances where one's Footstep could be very light, choosing Wooden Clogs with Wooden Strip soles had a smaller friction surface than sports shoes, and the Sound produced would naturally be smaller. Moreover, Wooden Clogs would not leave a circular shape. Even if Trace of being pressed was found on the Grass, that kind of Trace pressed flat horizontally would be difficult to associate with Footprint.
The Key was that the Villager in this Village would not wear this kind of inconvenient Shoes for Activity. In this way, it was possible to distinguish his Footprint from other People's Footprint, so as not to mess up his own and The Other Party's Footprint after walking around twice.
Wearing a Yukata was to destroy 'Information'.
Correct, the corners of the Yukata easily brushed against Grass Leaf, but that's exactly what he wanted.
In the City, for House Search, you needed to wear neat Clothes and try not to leave Trace Indoors. But in the Jungle, in addition to Human, there were also many Small Animals active.
As Long As you avoided getting the Fabric String of the Yukata caught by Thorns and other Plants, occasionally brushing against Grass Leaf was also okay. That would only erase his 'Information' as a Human, making it impossible to distinguish whether the Trace was left by Animal or Human.
As For the inconvenience of Activity, with his Physical Fitness, there was no need to worry about not being able to Handle Danger. Even if wearing Yukata and Wooden Clogs, he dared to guarantee that he could win against any young adult in Fifteen Night Village with one Hand. In addition, having Black Plate as a medium- and long-range Attack Weapon, that little inconvenience would not cause any Impact.
And he chose Glow Stick instead of Flashlight Just Because the Light of Flashlight in the Jungle was too conspicuous, easily discovered, Ambush, Sneak Attack by People.
Using Glow Stick was not eye-catching, and that little Light was also enough to illuminate some Corners that Moonlight could not find. Cooperating with tonight's Moonlight, it was Sufficient for him to Tracking.
The Other Party did not Seemingly to be a Careful Person, leaving So Many Trace, and also very obvious.
From the Trace, it could be Seen that it was a Human with a height of 173-178 and a Body Weight around 70Kg. These could be estimated As Long As you found continuous Footprint, judged whether it was running or walking, and then calculated based on the distance between Footprint and the depth of Footprint.
Of course, specific calculation also needed to add factors such as the softness of the Ground, which would be more Complex.
After The Other Party threw them off, they ran and walked quickly for a while, and then started walking normally again. The Footprint in this section was no longer circular, but much more complete. You could See that The Other Party wore Straw Sandals, and you could also distinguish the Footprint of the left and Right Foot from the sole.
The Right Hand Footprint was a little bigger and deeper than the left Hand Footprint, Mean that person's dominant Hand was the Right Hand.
The size of Human's Hand and Foot was Actually different. The dominant Hand was on that side, and the Hand and Foot on that side would be larger.
He was an exception.
After the last time the Arm Strength was improved, his left and Right Hand became equally flexible. The Palm size measured by the Machine was also not bad at all, and along with that, the size and depth of the Footprint also slowly became consistent...
Chi Feichei Suddenly Stop Walking, picked up a Feather beside the Footprint, Looked, and continued to Tracking forward.
The Other Party Indeed draped Feather.
The Feather he picked up Should be the Tail Feather of a Light-vented Bulbul. Judging from the root, it was pulled out after death, at least more than a month ago.
The Scratch Mark between the Footprint and the Shrubbery was intermittent, leading all the way to a Small Square.
Saying it was a Small Square, it was Actually a relatively flat Grassland. Sacrifice Tree and God-Dwelling Tree were placed in the Grassland, some distance from other Tree.
There were many such Small Square, distributed in the Jungle on both sides of the Road entering the Village. After he arrived at the Village, he had seen eleven.
The Villager Should have their own Number for these Sacrifice Tree and Small Square, For Example, in the Letter that the Culprit left for Wakura Yoichi, mentioned 'Second Offering'.
Here was not close to the Main Road, Should be the most remote 'Offering Platform'. Moreover, in the Place near the Jungle, there was also a Stone Monument placed obliquely and hidden in the Wild Grass. Bouquet was placed in front of the Stone Monument.
Chi Feichei Step Forward and Looked.
A line of Character was engraved on the Stone Monument: Konno Machiko.
Below were small horizontal Date Characters, and at the end there was a Character 'Erected'. Although there was no Photo, but combined with the Bouquet, this was someone's Tombstone. Judging by the Name, it was Female.
Tombstone that could be left Beside the Sacrifice Tree was not simple, Moreover, the Monster's Trace also reached the front of the Tombstone and stayed. The Bouquet Should be left by the Monster.
The color choice of the Bouquet was White, Representing Sacrifice and Mourning. The Flower were Wildflower in the Jungle, tied up with Vine, not much Information.
Chi Feichei took out a Handkerchief, wrapped the root of the Bouquet and picked up the Flower, Looked at the broken point, held back the Idea of finding Tool to collect Fingerprint, and observed the pinch marks at the broken point.
Collecting Fingerprint was not very useful. People just offered a Bouquet, it could not Mean anything. But the Flower was not cut off with a Knife, but pinched off with the Strength of Hand and Fingernails, then it was possible to obtain Information such as the shape of The Other Party's Fingernails.
Chi Feichei put down the Bouquet, Looked at the Footprint Beside the Stone Monument again, and already had the Answer in his Heart.
Tushi Yicheng, that Police Officer.
The Activity Method of People who had received Formal Training would have some gap with Ordinary Person. So Many Footprint provided Information, Sufficient for him to Judgment that it was a Footprint of a Person who had received Formal Training.
Of course, this did not Mean that The Other Party must be Police Officer. It was also Possible to be Mercenary, Soldier, even People who had only participated in Training Camp or received Intensive Training of Physical Fitness.
What made him Confirm Identity was the Fingernails mark.
Human's Fingernails would also have differences, Just that kind of difference was not as big and as easy to compare as Fingerprint.
Tushi Yicheng's Right Hand Thumb Fingernails had a Dent in the middle, and the length and width were also consistent with the broken point at the root of one of the Flower.
That Fellow had wandered in front of them too many times, it was difficult for him not to notice.
Moreover, Tushi Yicheng's height, Body Shape, and dominant Hand were also consistent with the Information he Inferred from the Footprint.
There was also a strange round White Frost Trace at the lower corner of the Stone Monument, not sweat, but Tears. Plus the Bouquet offered in front of the Stone Monument, he was more inclined to the latter.
Then, Murder Motive was to Revenge for this 'Konno Machiko'?
Inferring from Age, Konno Machiko was buried more than twenty years ago. At that time Tushi Yicheng was only four or five years old. If you wanted to Say Relationship, it was Possible to be an elder in the Home, even Tushi Yicheng's Mother.
Chi Feichei pondered, went to below the Sacrifice Tree, Looked up and Saw God-Dwelling Tree and Large Round Stone in a straight line with the Sacrifice Tree, and then went to the God-Dwelling Tree again, and lifted it with his Hand A Bit.
There were Large Round Log as thick as an Adult's waist, but the Body Weight was very light, Should be internally hollowed out.
After lifting the God-Dwelling Tree A Bit, you could See that there was an Iron object like a Bird's beak in the middle of the God-Dwelling Tree. The middle of the Bird's beak was a hollow Hole.
There was a deep Pit on the Ground opposite, just enough to fit the Bird's beak in. Standing next to it, you could feel the Cold Wind blowing out of the Pit.
And both ends of the God-Dwelling Tree and the Base on which both ends were placed were connected by Hinge.
Chi Feichei turned his Head and Looked at the Sacrifice Tree directly behind his Back, squatted down and picked up a Stone, and threw it towards the Pit emitting Cold Air on the Ground.
The Stone thrown to the Pit did not fall, but was directly blown away by the Airflow blowing up from below.
In this way, the Culprit's Method of committing the crime was also Perfect.
Conan once raised a Question: If the Culprit was using the Air Pressure Burst caused by the Reservoir and Underground Cave to Murder, why didn't they See the Hole that lifted People up? And how did the Culprit accurately make the Deceased be Impalement by Branch?
If you added God-Dwelling Tree, these two Problem could be Solved.
As Long As you let the Deceased hug or lie on the God-Dwelling Tree, use a remote Switch to open the Reservoir Gate, let the Water of the Reservoir pour into the Underground Cave. Even no need to release all the Water from the Reservoir, the Gate only needed to be opened for a few seconds when a loud and sharp Sound rings out. The Water pouring into the Underground Cave would make the originally high Air Pressure rise again. Air was compressed and would rush upwards towards the Hole below the God-Dwelling Tree. The Airflow that Burst in that Moment would make the God-Dwelling Tree pop up like a cork from a champagne bottle, and the Deceased would also be hit by the God-Dwelling Tree and Impalement by the sharp Branch of the Sacrifice Tree in a straight line.
Afterwards, God-Dwelling Tree would hit the Round Stone and be pulled back by the Hinge again. Due To the short Time the Reservoir Gate was opened and the Water pouring in was not the Water of the entire Reservoir, after the previous Airflow Burst, the God-Dwelling Tree would not be pushed up by the Airflow again, and everything would return to its original state.
Under the Cover-up of loud and sharp Sound, the Movement here would also be Cover-up.
Even if the Deceased who was thrown towards the Branch and became Corpse, probably did not Understand how he died until death.
Wakura Yoichi had Injury on his Head, Should be knocked unconscious and placed on the God-Dwelling Tree. As For Shirafuji Yasumi...
He remembered that Time, People who came with him were all trying to hug the God-Dwelling Tree Prayer. Afterwards Fukuura Reiji and the Villager had a Conflict, Tushi Yicheng Step Forward to stop them, and as a result, he was surrounded by the Villager being pushed and shoved.
Very Possible at that Time, Shirafuji Yasumi was just hugging the God-Dwelling Tree, and the Reservoir Gate Switch that Tushi Yicheng put in his Pocket was accidentally touched in the crowd, so Shirafuji Yasumi became an unlucky person who was accidentally killed by the Mechanism.
Chi Feichei put the God-Dwelling Tree back to its original Place, Get Up and continued to Tracking the Trace on the Ground.
He still needed to Confirm again whether the Culprit was Tushi Yicheng.
Although pretending to be Birdman and running to Wakura Family to scare People, Say Threat Words, and offered Bouquet in front of the mysterious Tombstone, this did not Mean that Tushi Yicheng must be the Culprit, can only be said that he was currently the biggest Suspicion...
(End of Chapter)
