Chapter 278: A Rigid, Upright Corpse—K’s Ruthlessness

“We found her!”

It instantly stirred excitement among everyone present.

The worries that had been weighing on their hearts were lifted, at least in part.

Because as long as they could track down Demon Witch’s whereabouts, with her lackluster and unprofessional counter-reconnaissance ability, it wouldn’t be difficult to dig her out.

Unlike Butcher or Ghost.

Even after locating them, there was always the concern that they might have already relocated, or worse, that the whole thing was just a deliberate smokescreen.

But Demon Witch? She didn’t have that kind of skill.

The petty cunning and so-called intuition she prided herself on as a middle-aged woman were utterly insignificant in the eyes of the police.

…

At that moment.

After hearing what Wang Qi said,

Lin Tian stood up without hesitation, then turned to the Traffic Police Captain beside him and gave a signal.

“Captain Cheng.”

“Please escort Ms. Xu home. Make sure she arrives safely.”

“The rest of you, move out immediately. We must apprehend Demon Witch tonight. We cannot allow her to remain at large.”

Then,

Lin Tian turned to Xu Yilin, who looked completely bewildered, and offered her a gentle smile as he continued.

“Ms. Xu.”

“Thank you very much for your cooperation. You’ve been a great help to the police.”

“If there are any follow-up matters, please don’t hesitate to contact the Luan County Police. I hope today’s questioning hasn’t caused you any distress.”

With that,

Lin Tian’s expression turned sharp, his eyes gleaming with the authority of a seasoned detective. He raised his hand and barked,

“Let’s move!”

…

11 p.m.

Several police vehicles sped out of the Luan County Traffic Police Department’s parking lot.

In the lead car, Wang Qi was driving at top speed toward the suspected hideout of Demon Witch, speaking as he went.

“Chief Lin.”

“Right after we got Xu Yilin’s latest selfie, I had the major Criminal Investigation Technology Sections in Jinling City help with screening and comparison.”

“Almost immediately, we found a woman near the Greenwich Community on Sky Eye surveillance who looked nearly identical to the one in Xu Yilin’s selfie—an older single woman.”

“Of course, Xu Yilin did mention earlier that her outfit was this year’s most popular style, so clothing alone doesn’t prove anything.”

“But the key point is… when we traced the suspect’s movements, we discovered she wasn’t originally in Luan County. She arrived this afternoon by bus from Jinling.”

“That alone significantly raises her level of suspicion.”

“Moreover, officers from the Criminal Investigation Technology Section enhanced and analyzed the Sky Eye footage and found that this woman’s behavior didn’t match her supposed age or identity.”

“For example, while walking, she suddenly spat into the roadside greenery due to a sore throat—something quite out of character for a well-mannered older single woman.”

“Also, her fingers were notably rough, with no nail polish, and her nails were trimmed extremely short.”

“She walked at a brisk pace, almost as if she were trying to avoid something.”

“Most importantly… facial recognition confirmed that her identity in our internal police database is—Lan Guifen.”

“Other than purchasing a single apartment in Unit 2306 of Building 2 in Greenwich Community two years ago, she has no other traceable social activity.”

“That’s clearly inconsistent with the lifestyle of a modern single woman.”

“If it were just one or two oddities, I might not be so sure. But with so many flaws and inconsistencies all pointing to her…”

“There’s little doubt. She’s almost certainly the fugitive Demon Witch.”

“She gave up on K’s plan to flee the province, instead using the Skin Mask provided by Dai Qiangwei, mimicking Xu Yilin’s outfit, and relying on her so-called middle-aged woman’s street smarts to try and escape our pursuit.”

After hearing Wang Qi’s report,

Lin Tian also reviewed the internal platform’s shared clues and data. After a few seconds of serious thought, he narrowed his eyes and said,

“It’s enough to make a solid identification.”

“According to our standard criminal investigation principle—the 80% rule—”

“If 80% of a suspect’s details and circumstances match our deductions, we can basically confirm them as the perpetrator.”

“And in this case, it’s nearly a perfect match.”

“Demon Witch may not be as slippery or cautious as the others, but the longer she’s free, the more unpredictable things become. Only by capturing her can we truly rest easy.”

“Besides, although we’ve formed a preliminary judgment about the real killer of the boy in red, we still need Demon Witch to confirm it.”

“Let’s move quickly.”

Inside the speeding police cars, everyone felt a mix of excitement and anticipation.

After all this time searching, Demon Witch was now hiding in a high-end residential complex they had just uncovered. There was a real chance they could catch her tonight.

And once they had her, a middle-aged woman like her might just spill everything under a simple interrogation.

…

Twenty minutes later.

The convoy of police cars arrived at Greenwich Community.

No negotiations were needed. The security guards at the gate, seeing the swarm of detectives, didn’t even dare to ask questions.

They passed through without obstruction.

One of the guards even offered directions, and the group quickly made their way to the door of Unit 2306 in Building 2.

Just as they lowered their footsteps, preparing to breach the door at the right moment,

They suddenly noticed—

The door wasn’t fully closed. It had been left slightly ajar on purpose. But because the lock was set deep inside, it looked shut at first glance.

This odd detail immediately triggered a possibility in Lin Tian’s mind.

Without hesitation, he stepped forward and gave the door a firm pull. As expected, the door, already ajar, swung open.

From where they stood, they could see straight into the living room of the single apartment. It was sparsely furnished—no signs of daily life, let alone the belongings of an older single woman.

At that moment,

Lin Tian’s heart sank. He quickly stepped inside, searching for any trace of Demon Witch.

Liu Yang, following close behind, couldn’t help but curse under his breath.

“Goddammit!”

“Don’t tell me Demon Witch slipped away again. Why are all the members of this organization so damn cautious and good at running…”

But before he could finish,

Lin Tian, already deeper inside the apartment, cut him off. His voice was low and heavy, clearly suppressing a surge of anger.

“Chief Liu, Demon Witch didn’t run.”

“But the outcome… might be worse than we imagined.”

As his words fell,

Everyone followed Lin Tian into the bedroom.

And what they saw was… a stiff, upright corpse hanging in front of the curtains.