Chapter 121

Two minutes later, their car stopped in the parking lot. Song Wen was the first to rush out of the car, followed by the others getting out one after another.

In an instant, everyone saw the young girl lying in the parking lot. Shocked into silence, they pondered countless possibilities. Now, the worst had come true: under the scrutiny of the police investigation, another murder had occurred so quickly, and a new victim had appeared. The killer was even more brutal than they had anticipated.

Although Zhuang Yi had analyzed many cases and perpetrators before, this was his first time at a crime scene. He felt his hands and feet go cold, his whole body weak. He loosened his tie, too afraid to approach, and watched the busy police officers. He stood defeated by the car door, softly murmuring, “How could this happen…”

Song Wen’s eyes were already red. Ignoring the pouring rain soaking his clothes, he rushed forward and touched the girl’s body. Due to being soaked in the rain, her body had already started to cool down. Like the previous bodies, her stockings were missing.

However, unlike the previous female corpses they had found, there was still a hint of warmth on this body, indicating that she hadn’t been dead for long.

Compared to the previous victims, this one was younger, still a blossoming young girl. She was covered with a piece of clothing over her face, already soaked. Lifting it revealed her closed eyes. There were red marks on her neck, and her makeup had smudged due to the rain. If it weren’t for her pale face, she would have looked like she was merely sleeping.

This should have been the best time of her life, yet she lay in the cold rain, in this desolate parking lot…

Song Wen reached out and felt the girl’s neck, then moved to check her pulse under her nose…

“Is she still alive?” Tian Ming exclaimed, also coming over to feel the girl’s pulse.

In the icy rain, the slender wrist felt no pulse. Tian Ming then checked her chest, but felt no heartbeat. “Captain Song, she’s… she should be dead!”

However, Song Wen ignored him. Suddenly, he did something unexpected to everyone. He knelt down, bowed his head, and began performing CPR on the girl.

Tian Ming was a bit startled by Song Wen’s actions, wondering if the case had driven him crazy. He also feared that the rain was too loud for Song Wen to hear clearly. He reached out to pull Song Wen back, “Captain Song, Captain Song, don’t do this… we’re just a bit late, the forensic examiner will be here soon…”

In his eyes, the girl was already dead, and there was no way to save her. Song Wen’s refusal to accept her death was abnormal.

But Song Wen didn’t have time for anything else. With his eyes bloodshot, he pushed Tian Ming away, “Don’t touch me!”

Tian Ming was startled by him, so he could only stand up, organize the others to contact the forensic examiner and evidence personnel, report to Commissioner Gu, and protect the scene. He felt that neither stopping Song Wen nor helping him was the right choice. He felt a surge of frustration, unable to vent it anywhere, and wiped the cold rain off his face. “Damn it, this son of a bitch! When I find him! I’ll make sure he rots in hell!”

They were so many, giving their all, yet the killer still succeeded.

The police were in the light, while the killer lurked in the shadows. Like a cunning and ferocious beast.

Zhuang Yi had made a mistake in analysis. Regardless of whether there were one or two perpetrators, he felt no guilt…

The killer even gloated over his own cruelty, taunting the police, displaying the departed lives as his masterpieces…

This was an outright demon.

Utterly depraved!

The whole scene, only Lu Siyu had brought an umbrella from the police station. He had just come out of the car when Song Wen rushed out.

Lu Siyu hesitated for a moment, observed the surroundings, then walked towards the center of the parking lot.

The young girl lay quietly on the ground, while Song Wen knelt beside her.

In the pouring rain, Song Wen still seemed like a madman, stubbornly performing CPR on the girl. He tried to rid his mind of distractions, silently counting, one, two, three, four… The police station had already disseminated the essentials of CPR; he followed them meticulously, not daring to make a mistake.

Having seen too much darkness, the more it was, the less he wanted to lose the last glimmer of hope.

In the pitch-black night, with the rain incessant, drenching him cold, his heart sank to the bottom. If… if they had persisted in searching for a few more minutes tonight, if they could have come a few minutes earlier, if…

But there were no ifs.

He didn’t want to accept this reality, so he had to give it his all. Just now, when he felt the girl’s pulse, he felt an extremely faint beat…

But that beat was too weak, so weak that it seemed it could stop at any moment.

As time passed, Song Wen even began to doubt whether that slight pulsation had been his imagination.

“Stay alive… please… please stay alive…” He silently prayed.

CPR actually required physical strength. Under mechanical movement, Song Wen entered a somewhat numb state due to lack of oxygen.

All around was darkness, the rain was deafening, then ringing in his ears. He could only hear his own heartbeat.

In distress and despair, he felt he was about to give up.

Song Wen knew giving up was too easy. All he had to do was stop, but… he didn’t want to give up, even if there was the slightest glimmer of hope, even if that hope was so faint…

Suddenly, the rain seemed to stop, and a beam of light broke through the darkness and shone over.

During a pause in his compressions, Song Wen glanced up and saw that Lu Siyu had silently knelt beside him, illuminating him with his phone flashlight. He didn’t care about the wound on his leg, his expensive pants and shoes were all soaked in water.

Lu Siyu’s bangs were soaked with rainwater, the icy water streaming down his fair, handsome face. The umbrella was completely covering him and the young girl.

As time ticked away, just when Song Wen felt he was at his limit, the girl beneath him moved slightly. It was an extremely small movement, seemingly just a bounce due to the compression, but Song Wen felt it. Gritting his teeth, he continued to persevere. Half a minute later, the girl’s body moved again. This time, Song Wen was sure he hadn’t been mistaken!

Tian Ming originally thought Song Wen had gone crazy, unwilling to accept the truth, doing futile work on the girl’s body. He wanted to come over again to persuade Song Wen to give up. Unexpectedly, as he approached, he saw the girl’s eyelashes flutter. He quickly turned around and shouted loudly, “She’s alive! The victim is alive! F*cking call 120!”

Under the continuous compressions, the young girl finally regained consciousness. She coughed lightly, opened her mouth, and fluttered her eyelashes.

In that moment, Song Wen’s heart suddenly warmed. He held the girl’s hand, feeling the faint life within her. Her pulse gradually became clearer, and he lowered his head, softly saying, “It’s okay…”

In the face of life, all of Song Wen’s persistence just now had meaning.

Lu Siyu watched beside him and said, “Captain Song, fortunately…” Even his usually calm voice trembled with excitement. He felt a hint of warmth and emotion in his otherwise cold heart.

Although there was another victim, fortunately, they had arrived in time. Fortunately, Song Wen noticed the girl’s condition. Fortunately, he persisted just now and didn’t give up…

Fortunately, this victim was still alive…

Shortly after, Fu Linjiang, accompanied by the evidence personnel still at the bureau, arrived first. Lin Xiuran was resting tonight; they had already called him, and he would rush over from home later.

An ambulance arrived swiftly from a nearby hospital. In the pouring rain, ambulances and police cars quickly filled the small parking lot. In the darkness of the night, figures moved about, creating a clamor. Evidence personnel, doctors, and police officers all performed their duties in haste.

All righteousness was fighting against that evil.

The victim had just awakened and was still very weak, but her consciousness had returned. To prevent secondary injuries, medical personnel lifted her onto a stretcher and placed her on the ambulance bed.

As she was being placed in the vehicle, the girl suddenly grabbed Song Wen’s arm. Her throat was injured, so speaking was difficult, but through her weak voice and discernible lip movements, Song Wen understood her words: “Will you catch the culprit?”

Song Wen looked at the girl. Her words made him feel a bit uneasy, his nose tingling. He gritted his teeth, unable to say a word, and could only solemnly nod.

“She may have gone into shock from being strangled just now. Fortunately, your CPR was done in time; otherwise, the outcome might have been much worse…” The medical staff urgently measured the girl’s vital signs, putting an oxygen mask on her face.

Lu Siyu stood by with an umbrella, looking at the girl’s rain-soaked makeup. Suddenly, he thought of something and asked her, “Can you tell me? How many people did you encounter tonight?”

The girl blinked and extended one finger toward him.

Unlike Zhuang Yi’s previous speculation and the testimony of the previous eyewitness, the perpetrator she saw was only one person.

Lu Siyu frowned for a moment, then relaxed. The question he had been pondering was suddenly resolved.

He pulled the blanket over the girl, covering her properly. “Thank you, we’ll catch him,” he said.

Song Wen turned back and called out to Fu Linjiang, who was busy in the crowd, “Linjiang, accompany her to the hospital, and make sure there are no mistakes.”

At this point, they must ensure the girl’s safety, requiring a careful, patient, and reliable caregiver.

Fu Linjiang nodded and reassured the girl, “We’ve informed your family, and they’ll be at the hospital with you soon.” He then boarded the ambulance, which quickly drove off toward the nearby hospital.