Solving the case: Combining the police dog's olfactory genes at the beginning

"After all, the lighter is mine."

He walked to Luo Fei's campfire, his shadow stretched long and short by the firelight.

Luo Fei was skewering rabbit meat on a branch and roasting it over the fire. The grease dripped into the fire, making a sizzling sound, and the aroma wafted straight into people's noses.

"That... Luo Fei"

Wang Feifei rubbed her hands together.

"Can I borrow a light?"

Luo Fei didn't even look up.

"No."

"why?"

"We're not a team."

Luo Fei rotated the branch to ensure the rabbit meat was heated evenly.

"We're competitors now, why should I lend you money?"

Wang Feifei became anxious.

"Brother, I gave you the lighter!"

Luo Fei finally raised his head, the firelight dancing in his eyes.

That's just how I am.

He spoke in a calm tone, yet it sent a chill down Wang Feifei's spine.

Wang Feifei stood there, unsure whether to stay or leave.

He glanced furtively at the golden-brown roasted rabbit meat, then looked back at his team. Zhou Xiaobei was trembling with his arms crossed, Wu Peixiong was futilely rubbing two sticks together trying to start a fire, and Chen Yifan was staring at them with a gloomy face.

"actually."

Wang Feifei lowered her voice.

"I can join you."

Luo Fei paused for a moment, his eyes gleaming.

This was the moment he had been waiting for.

"Have you figured it out?"

Luo Fei tore off a small piece of rabbit meat and handed it over.

"Following me is much better than following Chen Yifan; at least you won't go hungry."

Wang Feifei took the rabbit meat and scalded it, shuffling it between her hands.

"But Brother Chen, he..."

"shush"

Luo Fei suddenly raised his index finger.

"listen."

The buzzing of a drone could be heard outside the cave, gradually fading away into the distance.

Luo Fei gave a knowing smile.

"The surveillance has been removed; now it's time to do whatever you want."

He deliberately raised his voice.

"Oh dear, what happened to this lighter?"

He threw the Zippo on the ground, the metal casing striking the stone wall with a crisp sound.

The four people opposite all looked up at the same time.

The cave was cold and damp. Chen Yifan rubbed his stiff fingers, staring at the blackened tree branch in front of him, his forehead already covered in fine beads of sweat.

"Damn it, why is this thing so difficult to handle!"

He shook his aching arms, his voice tinged with anxiety.

Wu Peixiong squatted to the side, his eyes wide open like copper bells.

"Brother Fan, you've been rubbing for over ten minutes, and you haven't even seen a spark."

"Would you like to try it?"

Chen Yifan shoved the wooden stick into Wu Peixiong's hand with a bad attitude.

"Easier said than done."

Wu Peixiong took the wooden stick, his thick arm muscles tensed, and he began to rub it vigorously.

However, his movements were too rough, and the wooden stick flew out with a "whoosh" and hit the cave wall with a crisp sound.

"Hold!"

Wu Peixiong cursed and quickly ran to pick it up.

Wang Feifei chuckled.

"Big Bear, are you trying to start a fire by rubbing sticks together or throwing a javelin?"

"proceed if you can!"

Wu Peixiong retorted, his face flushed.

Wang Feifei shrugged and took the wooden stick.

His fingers were so nimble they seemed to be unlocking a lock, and he was indeed much faster than the previous two, but after a few minutes, he could only shake his head helplessly.

"No, this thing doesn't require fast hands, it requires skill."

Zhou Xiaobei was panting heavily after only a few minutes of trying, and beads of sweat slid down his face.

"I'll give up if I can't take it."

Su Muchen leaned against the cave wall, observing coldly, showing no intention of participating at all.

Yuan Bingyan squatted down, her slender fingers touching the grooves on the branch, her brows furrowing slightly.

"The temperature is not high enough; it's far from being hot enough to start a fire."

Undeterred, Chen Yifan took the stick again and continued trying.

His movements became slower and slower, the muscles in his arms were trembling, and sweat had soaked through the back of his clothes.

He persevered for another ten minutes before finally collapsing to the ground, gasping for breath.

"Damn it. This is impossible."

"Tsk tsk tsk"

A frivolous laugh came from across the way.

Luo Fei leaned against the stone wall, a mocking smile on his lips.

"Are you giving up now?"

Chen Yifan looked up and glared at him.

"Stop talking nonsense, come and try if you dare!"

Luo Fei slowly stood up and patted the dust off his pants.

"What if I succeed?"

"what!"

Chen Yifan seemed to have heard a joke.

"If you can successfully start a fire by rubbing sticks together, I'll call you 'Grandpa' in front of everyone!"

Luo Fei narrowed his eyes and revealed a meaningful smile.

"That's what you said."

He walked back to his spot and took out a homemade wood drill from his backpack. It was a straight wooden stick, sharpened at the top, with a rounded stone embedded at the bottom as a bearing.

He clamped his legs around a flat wooden board with grooves already carved into it.

"Next, it's time to witness the miracle."

Luo Fei's voice carried a hint of mockery.

Before anyone could react, Luo Fei's hands had already started moving.

The speed was astonishing, leaving almost a blur in the air.

The drill bit spun rapidly in his palm, making a buzzing sound, like a small electric motor.

"Fuck."

Wang Feifei's eyes widened.

"That hand speed... I can't even pick locks that fast."

Chen Yifan's jaw almost dropped to the ground, and his mouth was so wide open that an egg could fit inside.

Yuan Bingyan rubbed her eyes, wondering if she was hallucinating.

Even more shockingly, in less than a minute, wisps of smoke began to rise from the grooves in the wooden board that Luo Fei was holding between his legs.

"It's smoking!"

Zhou Xiaobei exclaimed in surprise, and everyone immediately surrounded him.

Luo Fei stopped what he was doing, took out a small knife from his waist, carefully picked out some black wood shavings, and poured them onto the prepared tinder.

He bent down and blew gently.
"call"

The tinder first emitted a wisp of white smoke, then with a "poof" sound, an orange-red flame shot out and instantly burst into flames.

"Success!"

The crowd cheered.

Luo Fei, however, remained calm, as if it were nothing more than a piece of cake.

He placed the lit tinder into the prepared fire, and soon the roaring flames illuminated the entire cave.

"Luo Fei is awesome!"

Wu Peixiong gave a thumbs up.

Luo Fei simply smiled, shielding himself from most of the firelight with his body, and enjoying the warmth by himself.

Everyone then realized that the fire had nothing to do with them.

Zhou Xiaobei rubbed his hands together, then hesitated before speaking.

"Um... could Luo Fei..."

"No."

Luo Fei interrupted him without even looking up.

Zhou Xiaobei recalled his previous experience of being refused when he asked Luo Fei to borrow a lighter, so he had no choice but to awkwardly back down.

Seeing this, Chen Yifan forced himself to comfort everyone.

"It's okay, we can stay warm by squeezing in together."

The group returned to the opposite corner, but the temperature inside the cave was getting lower and lower.

A cold wind blew in from the cave entrance, and everyone shivered, their teeth chattering.

On the other hand, Luo Fei looked quite content, even deliberately moving the fire to a corner to completely block out the flames.

"Damn it, this kid did it on purpose, didn't he?"

Wu Peixiong cursed in a low voice.

Chen Yifan's stomach rumbled, reminding him that he hadn't eaten in a long time.

He searched through his backpack and found only a toad he had caught that morning.

Looks like this is all we'll have to eat tonight.

Chen Yifan smiled wryly and pulled out the ugly creature. "Ugh."

Yuan Bingyan immediately covered her mouth.

"Raw?"

"if not?"

Chen Yifan helplessly shrugged.

"We're not popular."

He gritted his teeth and began processing the toad, peeling it, cutting it into pieces, and distributing a small piece to each person.

Everyone looked at the sticky raw meat in their hands, and their faces showed disgust.

Just then, an enticing aroma of roasted meat wafted over.

Everyone turned to look and saw that Luo Fei had set up a simple grill at some point. Flames licked the rabbit meat, and the grease dripped into the fire, making a sizzling sound.

Luo Fei slowly rotated the branch, ensuring that every inch of rabbit meat was heated evenly.

The aroma wafted through the cold night, making the people opposite swallow hard.

"Rabbit meat tastes best when roasted."

Luo Fei deliberately raised his voice, but his eyes glanced at Chen Yifan and his group across from him, who were gnawing on raw toad meat.

Chen Yifan had already bitten half of the toad leg in his hand. Upon hearing this, his Adam's apple bobbed with difficulty.

He forced himself to endure the nausea and took another bite; the raw, fishy taste of the meat spread through his mouth.

"Luo Fei!"

Chen Yifan suddenly stood up, his finger trembling as he pointed at the opposite side.

"Stop putting on this pretentious act and trying to sway us!"

Luo Fei stood up calmly, his smile tinged with a hint of mockery in the firelight.

"Brother, have you forgotten something?"

He paused deliberately.

"Didn't you say that if I successfully started a fire, you would call me 'Grandpa' in front of everyone?"

The area around the campfire fell silent, with only the crackling of the burning firewood remaining.

All eyes were on Chen Yifan.

Chen Yifan's face flushed red.

He did say that, but it was just to provoke Luo Fei. He didn't expect that the other party would actually succeed in starting a fire with his bare hands on the deserted island.

"I"

Chen Yifan's lips trembled, and his eyes darted away.

"What? Is Captain Chen going back on his word?"

Luo Fei raised an eyebrow.

"Everyone heard that."

Zhou Xiaobei shrank his neck and muttered to himself.

"Indeed. I did say that."

Chen Yifan glared at Zhou Xiaobei, who immediately fell silent.

His fists were clenched so tightly they turned white, and he squeezed out two words through gritted teeth.

"Master."

"What? I can't hear you."

Luo Fei put his hand to his ear and leaned forward exaggeratedly.

"Master!"

Chen Yifan practically roared it out, his voice echoing through the valley.

After shouting, he immediately sat down, grabbed the remaining toad meat, stuffed it into his mouth, and chewed it vigorously, as if he wanted to chew up and swallow all the humiliation.

Su Muchen frowned deeply as he looked at the toad meat in his hand.

He took a small bite carefully, immediately showing a pained expression, but still forced himself to swallow it.

"team leader."

Zhou Xiaobei handed over his toad meat.

"I...I really can't eat anymore."

Wang Feifei and the other two teammates followed suit.

"Captain, you can have ours too."

Chen Yifan's face turned ashen as he grabbed the toad meat and stuffed it into his pocket.

"Okay, I'll have it as a midnight snack."

His voice was filled with suppressed anger.

On Luo Fei's side, the rabbit meat was already roasted to a golden brown and crispy perfection.

He tore off a rabbit leg, took a slow bite, and deliberately let out a satisfied sigh.

"Mmm, crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, cooked just right."

Zhou Xiaobei stared intently at the rabbit leg, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down.

He subtly shifted his position, moving a little closer to Luo Fei.

"Xiao Bei!"

Chen Yifan shouted sternly.

"Sit back down!"

Zhou Xiaobei shrank back as if she had been electrocuted, lowering her head and not daring to look Chen Yifan in the eye.

Upon seeing this, Luo Fei's lips curled into a smile.

He waved the remaining half of the rabbit in his hand.

"Oh dear, we can't finish it all, it's such a waste to throw it away."

He deliberately looked at Zhou Xiaobei.

Anyone want some?

Zhou Xiaobei suddenly looked up, her eyes filled with longing, but then she lowered her head again and shook her head.

"what about you?"

Luo Fei looked around.

"You don't want to eat?"

Yuan Bingyan pursed her lips and turned her face away.

Su Muchen's stomach growled, but he still shook his head firmly.

"Ok."

Luo Fei shrugged, got up, walked to the edge of the cliff, and made a move to throw the rabbit meat off.

"Don't!"

Zhou Xiaobei almost jumped up, but immediately sat back down.

"I mean, wasting food is bad."

Luo Fei laughed loudly, and with a flick of his wrist, the rabbit meat traced an arc and disappeared into the darkness below the cliff.

Zhou Xiaobei's shoulders slumped, his eyes filled with disappointment.

A night breeze began to rise, and the temperature dropped sharply.

Chen Yifan's team members huddled together for warmth, their teeth chattering.

On Luo Fei's side, the campfire roared, warm and bright.

Luo Fei glanced at the trembling crowd and sighed dramatically.

"Fine, I'll take pity on you and let you come and warm yourselves by the fire."

He raised his wrist to check his watch.

"But it will only last ten minutes."

"Really?"

Zhou Xiaobei was the first to jump up, but then hesitated and looked at Chen Yifan.

"There are 9 minutes and 57 seconds left."

Luo Fei stared at his watch and said.

These words were like a pardon; everyone except Chen Yifan rushed towards the fire.

Yuan Bingyan's lips were turning purple from the cold, and she didn't care about being reserved anymore, so she ran over.

Su Muchen hesitated for a moment, but ultimately followed.

"It's so warm."

Zhou Xiaobei rubbed his hands together, and color finally returned to his face.

In the firelight, Yuan Bingyan's fair face was flushed, and there were still wet tears on her eyelashes.

She glanced at Luo Fei furtively, then quickly lowered her head again.

Chen Yifan stood there all alone, shivering in the cold wind.

His gaze shifted between the fire and the darkness, his mind in turmoil.

"What? Captain Chen disdains to accept my charity?"

Luo Fei challenged.

"I"

Chen Yifan clenched his fist and then relaxed it.

"unnecessary!"

"Have some backbone."

Luo Fei gave a thumbs up.

"Then you can continue standing there."

Ten minutes passed quickly.

Luo Fei clapped his hands.

"Time's up, please return to your positions."

Taking advantage of a moment when no one was looking, Wang Feifei secretly broke off a branch with a flame still burning on it. Just as she was about to hide it, Luo Fei grabbed her wrist.

"brother."

Luo Fei gave a half-smile.

"You can come and have fun, but you can't just take things from the host's house, can you?"

Wang Feifei smiled awkwardly and put the branch back into the fire.

"I...I just want to do some research."

Luo Fei didn't expose him, but just glanced at his watch.

“It’s already 10 p.m. If you hold on for another eight or nine hours, it should be dawn.”

He spoke casually, yet everyone's expression changed.

Zhou Xiaobei let out a wail. (End of Chapter)