In the hotel.

Before Zhou Ming knocked on the door, Crow was sitting on the bed reading a book wearing a mask.

Compared to Zhou Ming's own bleak room, the lighting effect in Crow's room was quite good, with more than a dozen candles lit everywhere.

"Oh? You're back. How was the investigation?" Crow didn't even raise his head.

Zhou Ming handed the information he received to the other party.

"Well~ let me see what you did in wasting your time all day." Crow put down the book, took the information and started reading.

He watched for a full ten minutes and finally nodded. For the first time, he did not scold him, but began to analyze it seriously.

"To briefly summarize, this incident is a mixture of cognitive distortions and ordinary disappearances. Some people disappear completely after disappearing, but after some people disappear, although they disappear in the eyes of most people, a small group of people in the town still remain.

They can see those people, and what they see is a very specific and clear "person" that can be accurately recognized."

"In this case, we can divide the missing people into two types. The former are ordinary missing people, and the latter are special missing people who have distorted some people's cognition."

"If we don't think about the small group of people who are crazy, then there is actually no difference between the special missing people and the ordinary missing people. At least the materials that make up their bodies have disappeared without a trace in this small town.

.”

"These two phenomena seem completely different, but they also have the only thing in common: these people all went to the pub before disappearing, although the pub they went to was not the same pub."

"Then, what did you find out from this information?"

After Wu Wu finished summarizing, he tilted his head slightly to look at Zhou Ming, like a teacher who was giving out test questions.

Zhou Ming sat down on a chair next to the bed and fell into deep thought.

Teacher Crow has made an accurate summary of the general situation. As he said, if the cognitive distortions of special missing persons are removed, then special missing persons will be no different from ordinary missing persons.

But even if the special missing persons are treated as ordinary missing persons, this matter is still full of weirdness.

After careful investigation of this small town, Zhou Ming found that the living environment of this small town was very backward. It was far away in the wilderness and had no water and electricity.

In this backward town where defecation relies on traditional wooden toilets, lighting relies on candles, and a large area of ​​the surrounding area is vast sandy land, what should you do if you want to make a person disappear without warning?

If it were Zhou Ming, he would choose kidnapping. Kidnapping is a good way to make a person disappear, but it is not appropriate to use it here.

The activity of kidnapping a person and driving away was too big, and it is impossible for no one to know about it. Moreover, intelligence proves that in several cases of disappearances, no one entered or left the town before and after the incident, so the possibility of kidnapping can be ruled out directly.

sex.

In addition to kidnapping, they can also kill people and bury their bodies.

Although this method sounds simple, it is actually not feasible at all. The geographical situation of this town is not very healthy. The sandy land is so hard that even crops cannot be grown. It would cost a lot of money to dig deep holes in this hard-crust sandy land.

strength.

"No wonder it's a weird incident." Zhou Ming's mind gradually became active.

He didn't realize that he was getting excited, he just felt that various possibilities were popping up in his mind.

Suddenly Zhou Ming remembered a book he had read. In that book, the murderer racked his brains to make the victim disappear completely, and finally solved the problem in the kitchen and dining table.

If the disappearance case in this small town was the same thing, it would be simple and clear, but obviously this incident is very different from the murder case in the novel.

The murderer in the novel has a refrigerator and can drive to far away places to dispose of suspicious kitchen waste, but that doesn't work in this small town. Everyone here doesn't use a refrigerator, and the food will stink after being left out for a while. It's impossible for no one to notice the clues.

.

As for throwing away garbage... According to Zhou Ming's observation, everyone puts it in the trash can. When it is full, it is left at the door and has someone move it outside the town to throw it away. If there are any suspicious items in the trash can, someone will definitely find it.

So the possibility of the missing person becoming food is not high.

It seems that this matter cannot be solved according to conventional thinking. There should be some kind of weirdness in the town that can make people disappear.

Some of these disappeared people have become special cases that can be seen by some people due to their special conditions, and some people have really disappeared.

What is the difference between these two types of missing persons?

"Is your brain down? Or is it deserting?" Crow said.

"I'm wondering what the decisive difference is between ordinary missing people and special missing people." Zhou Ming responded.

Crow flipped through the information again and casually said: "There are no similarities in the physical features of the missing persons. Some are old and some are young, some are male and some are female, some are beautiful and some are ugly, some are outsiders and some are locals.

As for the time intervals between their disappearances, they are not very regular. The shortest interval is one day, and the longest interval is fourteen days.

Special missing persons and ordinary missing persons are randomly distributed among these samples, and no obvious difference can be seen for the time being."

"But there is one family on the missing list that is very unusual." Zhou Ming said.

Crow lowered his head and turned a page: "You are talking about Wang Er's family, right? Yes! It is indeed very strange. The whole family is missing, and there is no witness. Are there any more clues?"

"Everyone in their family is dead. The only people I can ask are neighbors and Wang Er's friends. I asked, but there are no clues worth writing down."

"It's quite careful, but racking your brains on a math problem that's missing a key number will never lead to a correct solution, so let's put it aside for now."

Zhou Ming nodded in agreement with the other party's statement.

This day's work was in vain. The whole day's in-depth investigation not only failed to dispel the fog, but made the fog in front of me even thicker.

The weirdness leaves nothing behind, only a chaotic and illogical reality that seems to prevent human exploration.

"From the perspective of investigation ability, you are qualified, but what will you do next?" Crow asked.

"Since the parties involved do not have the same characteristics, we should start investigating the ordinary people who were affected to see what characteristics they have in common. If we can successfully find the pattern, we may be able to follow the clues to find out the reasons for the strange occurrences," Zhou Ming said.

"Hahaha! What are you talking about? Do you think you're investigating a case?" Crow laughed, "It seems you haven't overcome your extra moral compass yet."

He suddenly raised his finger and pointed at Zhou Ming's eyes, and said slowly: "Remember, the most important thing in dealing with weirdness is efficiency. On this weirdness with only such a small fatality rate, it is not worth wasting too much energy and time.

How to solve the problem with low energy consumption and high efficiency is the key."

"Then what would you normally do?" Zhou Ming asked.

"Most hermits will first convince the boss to close the tavern to see if the weird phenomenon still exists."

Zhou Ming knew that the persuasion in Crow's mouth was definitely not conventional persuasion.

"It would be best if it is solved in this way, but if it is not solved, start with those crazy people. After all, those who can see the missing people are obviously not normal. Just kill them. Wait for those people to be killed.

Clean it up neatly and see if the weirdness disappears."

Crow paused slightly, and after thinking for a moment, he continued: "If it hasn't disappeared yet, then evacuate the people and let them go to other places, then directly contact the relevant departments to level Semir Town, and then record the coordinates to see the strange phenomenon.

Is it still happening?"

Seeing that Zhou Ming was silent, Crow sneered: "What? You can't stand it anymore? If you don't want to be a hermit, just become an analyst."

"No, not really. I think this approach is indeed very efficient, but I don't think it is energy-saving. This approach is too crude and has had a bad impact on a large number of people. It lacks steps to explore other feasible solutions."

"What nonsense are you talking about? Are you still thinking about those half-crazy people?" Crow shook his head helplessly, looking very disappointed.

"Destroying everything related to weirdness can only be regarded as the final step to deal with the aftermath. It is a waste of manpower and material resources as the first choice. It will consume too much both for the relevant departments and the residents of Semir Town."

"Hmph, that's interesting. Are you questioning me? Very good." Crow praised coldly.

But obviously what he really thought was exactly the opposite of what he meant. He was a little angry.

"Then let me hear what you, a genius, are going to do. Don't tell me that you have no ideas at all." Crow's voice deepened.

"Let's do a simple investigation and analysis first to see if there are any other ways." Zhou Ming replied.

Crow put his hands behind his head, leaned on the back of the bed, and put his feet together: "That's it?"

"I still need some time to think."

"You just said that my approach was too rough and direct. Can I understand that if you have no other way to successfully solve this incident, then you can also accept such a rough approach?"

Zhou Ming thought for a moment and nodded gently: "Of course."

Crow clenched his palms while shaking his head. This action gave Zhou Ming a premonition that the other party was about to start again.

Sure enough, when the crow spoke again, it was with a strange and sarcastic tone.

"It's so ordinary, yet so confident... It's so cute. As a reward for your confidence, how about I give you some time to investigate?"

"Really?" Zhou Ming was a little surprised.

In his heart, it is absolutely impossible for a person with Crow's personality to compromise with him. After all, in the eyes of the other party, he is not only a rookie, but also an idiot.

"of course it's true!

but!

If you can't get any results from your investigation, then you'll have to blow up the tavern yourself!

If the weirdness of blowing up the tavern doesn't disappear, then it's up to you to kill those people yourself!

As long as you can achieve this level, I will give you a pass, otherwise! You should just go back to the wall and go to work!"

Crow sat up and spoke louder and louder, his words full of pressure, as if he was forcefully forcing Zhou Ming.

Zhou Ming stared at the other party's dark beak mask, his eyes never wavering.

"What's the time limit?" he asked calmly.

Crow was startled, and his eyes slowly narrowed behind the mask.

"Now the longest interval between strange occurrences is fourteen days. I'll give you a chance to observe, and then give you time to verify the results. Just one month. It will take two observations for me to blow up the tavern and kill the relevant personnel.

Just like you.

If you can't use your method to solve the weirdness within a month, then use my method to solve it."

"Understood."

Zhou Ming nodded lightly, turned around and walked to his room.

Just as he walked to the door, another crow's voice came from behind: "If you need my help, you can tell me. Although this is your own investigation, you still have the right to apply for outside support...Then, let me see

Let’s see if you really have your own opinion, or if you are simply cowardly.”

"Understood."

The door closed, the crow was slightly stunned, and took off his beak mask, revealing a beautiful and cold face.

"Tch! Are today's little brats so arrogant? How dare you talk to me in that tone?"

If Zhou Ming were present, he would definitely be surprised, because regardless of appearance or voice, Wu Wu is definitely a real woman, but she does have a tall figure that only men can have, and her female features are not prominent at all.

Crow stretched out his hand to smooth his burgundy short hair, wiped the sweat from his face, and showed a meaningful smile.

She gave Zhou Ming one month to investigate.

Normally, she would not indulge graduates in this way. After all, those students who have just graduated from school are all arrogant and self-righteous. They think they are confident, but in fact they are just ignorant.

But Zhou Ming is different from other graduates that Crow has seen. He controls his emotions very naturally and his investigation efficiency is very high. It can be seen that he should be a top student in school.

In addition, Zhou Ming's self-confidence is different from other people's self-confidence. The self-confidence of other students comes from their strength, but Zhou Ming's self-confidence seems to be just based on the rational consideration of one thing.

However, it is precisely this that makes Zhou Ming's qualities extraordinary.

It was for this reason that Crow gave Zhou Ming one month.
Chapter completed!