Mastering the Sword Manual, sweeping across the globe

He sat up abruptly, quickly operated the computer, and simultaneously pulled up video clips from both perspective three (intersection camera, recording the young man returning) and perspective two (road surveillance, recording the young man chasing the car away).

He stared intently at the timestamp:

Perspective 2 (Chasing the car away): The young man's figure appears at the edge of the surveillance camera on the eastbound road: 20:07:30.

The figure left the surveillance range (heading towards the intersection): 20:07:35.

He looked directly at the more precise time from viewpoint three (the intersection camera):

The car disappeared after turning: 20:07:58.

The young man turned at 20:08:12.

Time difference: 14 seconds.

Distance covered: The straight-line distance from the bus stop to the intersection is approximately 400 meters.

...The young man caught up with the car that had started accelerating earlier, in about 14 seconds, at a distance of about 400 meters.

14 seconds? ??

Zhao Jianguo subconsciously took out his phone and opened the search interface.

The world record for the men's 400-meter sprint was set by South African track and field athlete Wade van Niekerk in the men's 400-meter final at the Rio Olympics in Brazil.

Time taken: 43.03 seconds.

15 are destined to be unable to coexist.

Such a strange situation must be reported immediately.

Zhao Jianguo reached for his phone.

Attention everyone!

Right then, a serious voice suddenly rang out at the office door.

Zhao Jianguo suddenly turned around.

There were three people standing at the door.

He recognized the man in the middle; he was Zhou Zhenhua, the deputy commissioner in charge of criminal investigation and disciplinary matters in the third shift.

Zhou Ju's expression was solemn, devoid of any of his usual affability, and his gaze swept over everyone in the room like that of a hawk.

To his left was a middle-aged bureaucrat dressed in a crisp uniform, with epaulets indicating a high rank, but whose face was completely unfamiliar, and whose eyes were as sharp as knives.

On the right is the head constable on duty for tonight, whose face is filled with bewilderment and a hint of tension that is hard to detect.

"Stop everything immediately!"

"Keep the current screen on the work computer and prohibit any closing, switching, or copying actions!"

"All personal mobile phones, tablets, and other electronic communication devices must be switched off immediately and handed over here!"

Vice Envoy Zhou's voice wasn't loud, but it instantly silenced the noisy reception hall. His words were clear and distinct, carrying an iron-like commanding tone:

"Everyone, remain silent in your positions. No talking or leaving without permission. Await further instructions!"

This formation...

Zhao Jianguo felt a chill run down his spine, then suddenly realized.

Yes, by the time the surveillance anomaly was discovered, or even earlier, when those reports of inhuman and bizarre on-site traces—the twisted car door, the chain twisted shut by brute force—were circulating through the internal system, it had probably already triggered a higher-level alarm.

With so many professional eyes—the Investigation Division, the Forensic Science Research Institute, the Forensic Pathologists, the Command Center—how could those technocrats who need to write professional reports and are even more sensitive to abnormal data not notice the problems they themselves can see?

If you think of something to report, other people's processes might start faster and at a higher level.

I just didn't expect the reaction to be so swift, so...decisive.

Sun Haoran and his two henchmen were clearly taken aback by the sudden turn of events; their faces showed less confusion and more an instinctive fear.

They looked at each other, then quickly lowered their heads, obediently took out their phones, turned them off, silently got up and placed them on the table that Vice Envoy Zhou pointed to, then returned to their original positions, standing straight with their eyes downcast.

The rumored swift and decisive internal investigation has actually been carried out in this way? But I... haven't done anything wrong? Or rather, am I, at my level, worthy of such a large-scale mobilization?

The air in the office seemed to freeze, with only the low hum of the machines and the suppressed breathing of the people inside.

Time passed second by second, each second stretching out endlessly.

About five or six minutes later, the walkie-talkie on Zhou Zhenhua, the deputy criminal investigator, rang.

He turned to the side, walked outside the door and whispered a few words, then turned back and glanced at Zhao Jianguo's group.

"Now, everyone, follow me."

No explanation, no extra words.

Zhao Jianguo and the others silently followed and walked out of the Baojia Office gate.

In the yard, three black SUVs and a van with dark tinted windows, obscuring the interior, were already parked. Their engines were all idling, quiet yet poised to go.

Zhao Jianguo was directed to sit in the back of the middle SUV, while Sun Haoran and his accomplices were separated and placed in the other two vehicles.

As they boarded the van, Zhao Jianguo caught a glimpse of Wang Defa and the other passersby being "accompanied" by several strangers, who were also dressed in uniforms but had a cold and aloof demeanor, as they were half-helped and half-invited onto the van.

Everyone's actions exuded an air of efficiency and isolation.

The car drove silently out of the Baojia office compound and disappeared into the city night.

The direction of the journey clearly deviated from the bustling urban area.

The scenery outside the car window gradually changed from familiar streets and brightly lit business districts to sparse streetlights, large tracts of undeveloped wasteland, and the outlines of scattered factories in the distance.

The atmosphere inside the car was extremely oppressive. Apart from the driver, there was a passenger in the front seat and another person sitting next to Zhao Jianguo. They remained silent the entire time, standing ramrod straight with their eyes fixed straight ahead, as if they had no desire to communicate and had eliminated any possibility of communication.

Zhao Jianguo could only watch the increasingly unfamiliar scenery rushing past the window, his doubts and sense of unease deepening like the night outside.

About forty minutes later, the convoy turned off the main road and onto a paved side road with no streetlights and only headlights for illumination. On both sides were towering walls covered with vines.

After driving for a few more minutes, a tightly closed, heavy black metal gate appeared ahead. There were no signs or markings on the side of the gate, only a hidden camera above it that slightly turned its angle as the vehicle approached.

The gate slid open silently, and the convoy drove in.

Inside is a rather large courtyard. The architectural style is the square and regular style that was popular more than ten years ago. The walls are thick, and there are not many windows, which are rather small. Most of them are covered with curtains.

The courtyard was beautifully landscaped with tall trees, but the shadows at night added to its solemnity and seclusion.

Several low-rise buildings are scattered around, with only a few windows letting in light.

Some vehicles were parked in the open space; they were all ordinary models, but their license plates were all different.

Zhao Jianguo was taken off the car and into one of the most inconspicuous four-story buildings.

The entrance is a heavy glass door that requires internal authorization to open.

Inside, there was a simple, almost empty hall with cool white lighting and a floor so shiny it was like a mirror.

Several staff members in dark uniforms with calm expressions were already waiting there. They quickly and orderly took over Zhao Jianguo and the others, without any unnecessary greetings or questions, and simply gestured for them to follow.

Walking through a long corridor with closed doors on both sides, the air was filled with a faint smell of disinfectant and a faint background noise unique to air conditioning.

It was unusually quiet here; the sound of footsteps echoed clearly in the corridor.

Finally, Zhao Jianguo was led into a room that resembled a small conference room.

The room was small, with a rectangular table in the middle, a few chairs, and light gray walls without any decoration, except for a rather inconspicuous camera in the corner.

A staff member gestured for him to sit down, then silently withdrew and gently closed the door.

Zhao Jianguo was the only one left in the room.

He sat on the hard chair, staring at the blank wall opposite him, listening to his own heartbeat quickening. For the first time, he clearly realized that the "street assault" case he had taken on today might have drawn him into a vortex that he could not understand at all and that was far beyond his authority.

About two minutes later, the door was silently pushed open, two people walked in, and then closed the door tightly behind them.

Both men were around forty years old, dressed in well-tailored dark casual wear, but their steady gait and precise control of their limbs revealed the marks of long-term rigorous training.

The one walking in front was slightly taller, with strong facial features, as if he had been repeatedly polished by wind and frost and something heavy. His eyes were so sharp that they seemed to pierce through all disguises and nail directly into the depths of people's hearts.

He had little expression, but that seriousness wasn't a deliberately put-together face; rather, it was more like a deep-seated, tacit understanding of the inherent cruelty of the world.

The man behind him was slightly shorter, but equally capable. His gaze swept across the room with an almost instinctive sense of assessment, as if he had already incorporated the room's structure, Zhao Jianguo's posture, and even his breathing rhythm into his analysis the moment he entered.

They share a common trait: a sharp edge that is stripped of superfluous emotions and focused solely on purpose and efficiency, even carrying an air of being somewhat out of place in the everyday world.

Zhao Jianguo has met many capable colleagues, but these two are clearly on different levels in terms of certain rules.

The tall man sat down opposite Zhao Jianguo, while the short man stood by the table, relaxed yet ready to unleash his power at any moment.

Without any pleasantries, the tall man got straight to the point:

"Comrade Zhao Jianguo, you are the direct case handler and the first person in charge of the on-site response to today's 'Dongfeng Lane illegal detention and injury case' and the subsequent 'Xiangyang Road bus stop injury case'."

"You reacted very quickly from the on-site traces to the monitoring analysis, and you were also very alert to anomalies, which bought us time."

He paused, his gaze landing squarely on Zhao Jianguo's face, without any attempt to elicit his opinion: "Based on your performance on the spot and the initial assessment, the higher-ups believe that it is necessary for you to understand some of the core information and to be included in the special task force's collaborative system as a frontline intelligence node."

Zhao Jianguo was startled.

"Superior authorities," "special task force," "collaboration system"... these words combined carry significant weight.

The tall man didn't need his response: "First of all, let me make it clear to you that the information you are about to encounter, and the targets we are about to face, are highly uncertain, unusual, and potentially dangerous, and clearly go beyond the scope of conventional criminal offenses."

The short man standing to the side operated the miniature controller in his hand, and the blank wall opposite Zhao Jianguo immediately lit up.

The screen rapidly switches between scenes, accompanied by brief text annotations:

Scene 1 (Dongfeng Lane area): Shows the young people's movement path, mostly within blind spots of municipal surveillance or alleyways of old residential areas. The few times they were exposed (such as approaching the dog or leaving the alleyway entrance) were brief and purposeful. Note: The movement path planning shows that they have a considerable understanding of the surveillance distribution or an instinctive avoidance of it, demonstrating a high degree of stealth awareness.

Scene 2 (timeline spliced ​​from multiple shots): From discovering the dog threatening the little girl, to killing it, going upstairs, throwing the dog's carcass, locking the girl up, and leaving, the entire process was extremely short, with almost no pauses or redundancies in the transitions between actions. Note: The behavioral chain is extremely simple, the decision-making is decisive, the execution is efficient, and there are no redundant actions or emotional delays.

Scene 3 (details of the bus stop case): The young man noticed the splashing water on the opposite side of the road → immediately turned to give chase → precisely chose a secluded intersection to intercept → opened the car door with his bare hands → took the person back → implemented "punishment". Each step was clean and efficient. Note: The observation-decision-action chain is extremely short, the logical objective is clear, and irrelevant interference is ignored throughout.

Scene 4 (close-up comparison): After kicking the Rottweiler to death, the young man briefly points out a direction to the crying, grateful little girl before his attention returns to the dog owner; when punishing the driver at the bus stop, he ignores the fear or satisfaction of passersby and leaves immediately afterward. Note: There is a lack of interest in or emotional response to the usual social feedback (gratitude, admiration, fear) after "acting out of justice"; the purpose is purely focused on the "disposal" itself.

The image finally freezes on a screenshot of the young man's calm and composed profile, wearing black-rimmed glasses.

The tall man's voice rang out again:

Several key characteristics can be outlined from these behavioral patterns:

"First, he is highly stealthy and adept at utilizing context; he can quickly identify and exploit blind spots and weaknesses in the environment."

"Second, it has a strong sense of logic and purpose. The actions always revolve around a core objective, with clear steps and almost no digressions."

"Third, emotional detachment and efficient execution: He demonstrated extraordinary composure, was unaffected by external feedback, and pursued the goal with minimal cost."

"The problem is..."

The tall man stared intently at Zhao Jianguo and uttered the most crucial and chilling deduction:

"A being with such observation, judgment, and execution abilities could not possibly be unaware that, within the current social framework, his physical strength and speed of movement—even without being so extraordinary, even if he only demonstrated a level close to the limits of a normal person—would allow him to easily obtain unimaginable resources, status, and even privileges in our country."

His words were resolute, carrying a chilling insight into the essence of things:

"However, he chose the exact opposite path: to conceal his identity and intervene in and brutally deal with street disputes in the most direct, violent, and, from a social benefit perspective, the least efficient way."

“He evaded surveillance, destroyed clues, and deliberately went against the entire social supervision system and rule system.”

"So……"

"The only explanation is that, due to some internal factor or external rule constraint, the suspect was quite aware that he was incompatible with the current Da Yang system and was destined not to coexist!"

16. Mmm, very sweet.

As Zhao Jianguo was filled with shock and disbelief in the cold conference room, Zhang Qiliang had already passed Shuxianglou and headed towards his dormitory.

In the afternoon, after kindly demonstrating the proper way to raise a dog to the lady who was walking her dog off-leash, the familiar warmth brought a considerable boost, and Zhang Qiliang's physical condition jumped from 1.9 times the initial standard to 2.3 times.

Half an hour ago, after providing free vision correction to the driver who splashed water on his car, the warm current appeared again. This time, Zhang Qiliang's physical fitness level changed from 2.3 to... 2.31.

Minimal.

Why is this so?

Why is the effect of the latter only a fraction of that of the former when both are public science popularization activities?

This problem is not complicated.

As he strolled slowly back to the hotel, a night breeze blew, and Zhang Qiliang suddenly understood.

The idea of ​​having clear thoughts is a purely idealistic concept.

It measures not objective results, nor entirely external feedback, but rather the degree of "true joy" of "myself in the present moment."

When Zhang Qiliang was just an ordinary office worker with physical fitness at the same level as the average person, spitting on and scratching the SUV blocking the door was his "limit" at the time. He risked being discovered, scolded, and even losing money by doing such things.