You went on a blind date and presented an A-level wanted criminal as a meeting gift?

The night wind was cold, but it couldn't extinguish the flames burning in Lin Chen's eyes.

He stood at the back door of the restaurant, and the aura he exuded made Su Qingge, who caught up with him, feel a chill run down her spine.

That wasn't his usual laziness, nor was it his composure when facing ruthless bandits.

Rather, it is an absolute zero that arises when a hunter is provoked by its own kind, and is utterly enraged.

"I'll remember him."

Lin Chen turned around, his face completely expressionless, his calmness terrifying.

He can't escape.

Back at the municipal bureau, the ashtrays in the technical section were piled up like a small mountain. The sounds of keyboards being typed and coffee machines humming together, and no one noticed that it was already broad daylight outside the window.

With Lin Chen's brain, which had been enhanced by the system to the point of being comparable to a high-definition video recorder, a murderer portrait with precision down to every single hair and every wrinkle quickly took shape in the technician's hands.

That refined-looking face, with its gold-rimmed glasses, was entered into the national population information database.

A few seconds later, the matching results popped up.

On the screen, an ID photo perfectly overlapped with Lin Chen's memory.

Zhang Yan.

Male, 35 years old.

Associate Professor of the Department of Chemistry at Jiangcheng University, a PhD graduate from overseas, a recognized academic genius in the field, has published numerous papers in top international journals and enjoys an excellent reputation.

Inside the meeting room, all the police officers who saw the document gasped in shock.

A promising top scholar turned out to be a ruthless and deranged serial killer?

The contrast is chilling.

"etc!"

A sharp-eyed technician suddenly exclaimed, pointing to a line of small print on the document.

"Professor Zhang Yan is also a specially appointed visiting professor at the Affiliated High School of Jiangcheng City. He goes there every Wednesday afternoon to give a public chemistry lesson..."

Jiangcheng No.1 Middle School!

Su Qingge's phoenix eyes narrowed sharply, and she subconsciously looked at Lin Chen.

Isn't that the school where her best friend Su Ke'er teaches?

"Check his real-time location and class schedule immediately!"

Su Qingge made a quick decision and gave orders to the technicians.

Without uttering a single word, Lin Chen grabbed his coat from the back of the chair and strode out.

"Walk!"

……

Two o'clock in the afternoon.

Jiangcheng University, large lecture hall.

Intelligence indicates that Zhang Yan has a public lecture scheduled at the university's main campus this afternoon.

The classroom, which can hold 300 people, was packed to capacity, with people even standing in the aisles.

On the podium, a refined-looking man in a white shirt is giving a lively and interesting open chemistry lesson.

It was Zhang Yan.

"Chemistry is the art of change, the poetry of fire."

His voice was gentle and magnetic, and he was holding a beaker, conducting an experiment on "flame color change".

As different metal salts were added, the flame of the alcohol lamp in his hands changed colors—red, orange, yellow, green, cyan, blue, and purple—like a dazzling rainbow, eliciting gasps and exclamations of admiration from the students below the stage.

He was like an elegant magician, turning dry chemical formulas into the most magnificent stage performance.

Just then.

"Squeak—"

The door at the back of the classroom was gently pushed open.

Lin Chen and Su Qingge entered quietly, one after the other.

Their appearance did not attract much attention.

Except for one person.

Sitting in the back corner, Su Ke'er, who was idly resting her chin on her hand, suddenly lit up her big, watery eyes the moment she saw Lin Chen!

Brother Lin Chen!

She was about to shout out in surprise when Lin Chen stopped her with a "shush" gesture.

Su Ke'er immediately understood and nodded obediently, but her eyes seemed to be glued to Lin Chen, unable to look away.

Su Qingge, who was standing next to her, took in the whole scene. Her fingers, gripping her phone, tightened slightly without her noticing.

On the podium.

Zhang Yan seemed to have eyes in the back of his head.

He still smiled at all the students, but his eyes, hidden behind his gold-rimmed glasses, caught a sharp glimpse of the two uninvited guests at the back door.

A barely perceptible, playful smile curved the corners of his mouth.

coming.

It was even faster than he had imagined.

"Today's experiment requires a brave student to come up and assist me."

Zhang Yan's gaze slowly swept across the entire venue, passing over countless arms raised high in excitement.

Finally, the focus settled on the man lounging against the wall in the last row of the classroom.

He pushed up his glasses, revealing a perfect, kind smile.

"Sir who is late, I see you've been standing at the back, you must be very interested in my experiment."

"How about you become my assistant?"

Swish!

All eyes of the more than two hundred students in the room were focused on Lin Chen.

Su Ke'er covered her mouth, her eyes sparkling with admiration. She thought Lin Chen was so handsome even when he was called out by name.

Su Qingge's heart suddenly jumped into her throat!

She saw in Zhang Yan's eyes that it was not an invitation at all.

It's a declaration of war!

Under the spotlight.

Lin Chen twitched the corners of his mouth, revealing a lazy smile.

He strode forward, unhurriedly walking step by step towards the stage that belonged to the devil, amidst countless curious, scrutinizing, and amazed gazes.

On the wide lectern.

Lin Chen and Zhang Yan stood two meters apart, gazing at each other from a distance.

A lazy and casual student, like an auditor who has wandered into a class by mistake.

An elegant and composed demeanor is the mark of an academic king who commands the room.

It was as if invisible sparks were crackling in the air.

The students in the audience felt that the atmosphere was a bit strange, but they couldn't quite put their finger on it.

Only Su Qingge clenched her fists nervously, her palms already beaded with sweat.

"Sir, what's your name?"

Zhang Yan smiled and broke the silence first.

"My surname is Lin."

Lin Chen responded calmly.

"Mr. Lin."

Zhang Yan picked up a test tube containing a clear liquid and handed it to Lin Chen, his eyes behind his glasses gleaming with a playful and inquisitive light.

"Next, we're going to conduct an interesting experiment."

"Please pour this liquid into the beaker in front of you."

He paused, his voice still gentle, but the deeper meaning in his words was like a poisoned dagger.

"Be careful, some things may look like harmless water, but once they encounter the right temperature, they can turn into a fire that devours everything."

He glanced meaningfully at Lin Chen, his smile widening.

"Like some people, they appear to be the elite who maintain order."

"In reality, they are nothing more than worker ants whose hands and feet are bound by rules, and who can only crawl on the ground."

The words fell.

A burst of good-natured laughter came from the audience.

The students all thought that this was Professor Zhang's unique and humorous teaching style, using witty metaphors to liven up the classroom atmosphere.

However, Su Qingge's expression instantly turned cold!

This is blatant provocation!

He was mocking Lin Chen and the entire police force in front of everyone!

Su Ke'er also sensed something was wrong, her smile froze, and she looked at Lin Chen on the stage with worry.

Faced with these hurtful words, Lin Chen remained expressionless.

He took the test tube as if he were just an ordinary teaching assistant.

He walked to the lab bench, just as he was about to pour the liquid into the beaker.

"oops!"

Lin Chen seemed to trip over something, his body staggered, and the test tube in his hand tilted sharply!

"Splash—"

Most of the tube of clear liquid spilled precisely onto the latest Apple laptop that Zhang Yan had placed on the lab table!

zizi...

The liquid made a slight sound when it came into contact with the scalding hot machine body.

"I'm so sorry, Professor Zhang! I really didn't mean to!"

Lin Chen immediately steadied himself, a simple yet guilty smile on his face, and hurriedly pulled a pack of tissues from his pocket.

"Let me wipe it for you!"

He apologized repeatedly while pulling out tissues and quickly and haphazardly wiping the keyboard area of ​​the laptop with his palm.

However, from an angle where no one can see it.

His fingers, which seemed to be pressing randomly, were moving across the keyboard at a speed beyond human limits, leaving afterimages.

[God-level hacking skills activated!]

Lines of dark blue code, invisible to the naked eye, flashed wildly through Lin Chen's mind.

Implantation.

camouflage.

lurking.

The whole process took less than three seconds!

A perfect, top-tier Trojan program, undetectable by any antivirus software, has silently taken root deep within this computer.

"That's enough!"

A low growl, barely containing suppressed anger, rang out.

Zhang Yan snatched his computer from Lin Chen's hand, and for the first time, a crack appeared on that usually gentle smile.

His eyes were as sinister as a venomous snake lurking in the abyss!

The murderous intent that was revealed in that instant sent a chill down the spines of the students in the front row.

But that sinister aura lasted for less than a second.

Zhang Yan took a deep breath, and when he raised his head again, his face had regained its elegant demeanor.

He even waved his hand magnanimously at Lin Chen.

"It's alright, Mr. Lin, it's just a minor accident. We can just buy a new computer if it breaks."

He adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses and smiled like a magnanimous saint.

"You can go and rest now. I can handle the rest of the experiments myself."

Lin Chen scratched his head, looking embarrassed that he had "messed things up," and stepped down from the podium amidst the sympathetic gazes of the crowd.

As he brushed past Su Qingge, he whispered something in a voice only the two of them could hear.

"The internet connection has been closed."

……

After the open class ended.

Su Qingge, armed with a search warrant, conducted a surprise search of Zhang Yan's office and private laboratory under the pretext of "assisting in the investigation."

The result, however, greatly disappointed all the police officers.

Nothing was gained!

Zhang Yan's laboratory is a model of effective management of all hazardous chemicals.

Each bottle of reagent has an entry and exit record accurate to the milligram, which is exactly the same as the data in the ledger.

white phosphorus?

Carbon disulfide?

Records show that these drugs had been handed over to a professional organization for destruction six months ago in accordance with regulations, with complete and impeccable procedures.

He even has a perfect alibi.

At the time of both incidents, he was either teaching students or attending academic conferences, and hundreds of people could testify for him.

Faced with police questioning, Zhang Yan remained calm and composed, answering fluently and flawlessly.

"Officer Su, if there's nothing else, I have an important international video conference tonight."

Zhang Yan glanced at the Patek Philippe on his wrist, smiled, and dismissed him.

He looked like an innocent, law-abiding citizen who had been implicated.

Su Qingge led her team back empty-handed, her face extremely grim.