Chapter 167 : Codename Pale Giant
Chapter 167: Codename Pale Giant
“Pale Giant?”
Upon suddenly hearing that name, Han Su’s expression turned solemn.
No wonder this investigator codenamed Aries was so tense upon seeing him appear.
No wonder, even in such a situation, Miss Ai insisted he come and intervene in this task.
Everything had its traces.
Han Su had previously held little interest in reopening the kidnapping case, but from the very first moment he became an investigator, Miss Ai had specially reminded him about this authority he now held.
She valued it greatly, and Zhang Chiguo valued it even more. All these years, what they wanted was to get the kidnapping case refiled. Even if Han Su did not understand the full meaning behind it, he had already etched this matter deeply into his heart.
Something this important—who would have thought the evidence would arrive like this?
Seeing Han Su’s expression, Li Yiting promptly reached into a hidden compartment under the coffee table they sat at, pulled out a document, and slid it in front of Han Su, lowering his voice: “The moment this Aries investigator came to me, the first thing he asked was for me to seal off all information.”
“But fortunately, I kept this photo.”
“……”
Han Su hurriedly opened the file. The very first photo made him freeze on the spot.
In the photo was a statue—its form that of a giant seated upon a throne.
Tiny, grain-sized worshipers knelt around it, emphasizing its vast size.
From this photo, Han Su saw the same image he always glimpsed in his hallucinations whenever he activated the Giant’s Eye—tall, majestic, bizarre. One could almost faintly hear the wailing of the ritual and the beat of drums from the photo itself.
For a moment, his head spun.
He forced himself to endure and flipped through the photos one by one. There weren’t many, but they were effectively captured. Besides the statue, there were also various artifacts and murals that clearly didn’t belong to this era—each one depicting that giant.
Later, the style changed. No longer statues or vessels, but pages of research reports.
Some described people whose bodies had enlarged, locked in iron cages, roaring and howling.
Some lay on iron beds, their bodies pierced by tubes, their skin deathly pale, their flesh melting.
Until he reached the final photo—clearly a rushed snapshot of a paper document.
Due to age and haste, most of the text was hard to discern, except for a large headline that filled his view:
【Codename—Pale Giant Project!】
【……】
Seeing this codename, Han Su felt the blood rush straight to his head.
No mistake—what was recorded here was the very monster from the fourth floor, the one that had selected Li Manman.
More importantly, why was the codename on this document the same as the one reported by the media?
Back when he escaped from the ancient castle, he had no idea what these monsters were. All he could do was describe their appearances as best he could to the media and the agents from the Public Security Bureau. Those monster names had all been coined by reporters who treated the incident as mere spectacle.
And now, seeing the exact same names appear on an old document—Han Su felt a surreal jolt wash over him.
These aged records dated back far longer than the kidnapping case ten years ago.
Yet they already contained the corresponding codenames for the monster?!
Could it be a coincidence?
Han Su would rather believe those reporters had unknowingly been influenced by the mysterious, subconsciously assigning those names.
Or perhaps… those reports were written by people who already knew the truth?
Looking at those photos, Han Su felt, for a moment, like he was back in the ancient castle, facing those monsters.
He fought to suppress his emotions. After a long pause, he finally raised his head.
They had indeed found it.
The traces of those monsters...
Li Yiting hadn’t done wrong. This document was indeed crucial to the kidnapping case.
No matter how tough the higher-ups’ attitude might be, as long as the Disaster Management Bureau wasn’t a total dictatorship—if any shred of rule-based structure remained—then, with this new report combined with the data, no one could reasonably deny the kidnapping case’s legitimacy anymore.
With this report, no one could ever again claim that the kidnapping never happened!
He exerted great self-control to rein in his excitement, raised his head toward Li Yiting, and said in a steady voice:
“Mr. Li, thank you. The data you brought is extremely important.”
“……”
“We should say we’re lucky.”
Hearing Han Su personally affirm the value of this evidence, Li Yiting appeared visibly relieved.
There was even a hint of deep exhaustion finally easing away. He gently pinched the bridge of his nose and said softly:
“At the banquet in the Lilac Courtyard, if we hadn’t met, I might’ve believed that Drunkard.”
“Of course, he was a smooth talker. Just a few vague hints from him gave me a deep sense of dread. I really thought of placing all hope in him. It was your words that reminded me to be cautious during the Lilac Courtyard event.”
He even gave a slightly self-satisfied smile and said:
“I don’t understand most of the things you people deal with now, but at least, I can still read people.”
“Xiao Han, compared to them, I trust you more.”
“……”
Listening, Han Su couldn’t help but nod, feeling a wave of emotion in his heart:
Li Manman’s father… was truly remarkable.
In today’s Qinggang—or the world as a whole—divides were clear, and class divisions stark.
Countless behemoths hid and disguised themselves.
Just like in the recording Black Rose had played for him: they were ancient aristocrats, pretending to be normal people.
People like him, who had been exposed to the world of mystery, didn’t count. For ordinary people, trying to change their status was almost laughable.
Like that rich Young Master Zhang He, who died beneath the wheels of the Ghost Truck, terrified by the pressure of it all.
Currently, he still didn’t fully understand the upper echelons of society or the business world, but he could feel it—Li Yiting must be one of those who had risen from the business world with intellect and tactics, almost breaking class boundaries and ascending through the metropolis.
Or rather, if Li Manman hadn’t met with misfortune ten years ago, then the Magic Box Corporation would’ve already ascended.
Just this time alone—realizing the issue at the Lilac Courtyard, leveraging Haidi City’s influence to gain development access, recognizing the importance of the data, then decisively bringing it back to Qinggang…
Even after Aries ordered him to keep everything secret, he still managed to photograph the documents and hide them. That alone spoke volumes of his resolve.
He didn’t hesitate. Standing up, he said: “Let’s go—take me to see those things!”
……
……
“This is trouble. That rookie’s gotten involved!”
Meanwhile, as the Doctor drew the screen and Hei Hu stood guard outside, making it impossible to interrupt Han Su and Li Yiting’s conversation, the Aries investigator had already realized the gravity of the situation. Instead of forcibly intervening, he stepped aside and made a call.
On the other end, the Drunkard Investigator’s voice sounded tired, even a bit rueful:
“I’m starting to think I might’ve pissed off a banshee somewhere and got cursed with bad luck.”
“Why is nothing going smoothly lately?”
“Back at the Lilac Courtyard, we almost convinced the Magic Box Corporation to hand over that land. Then suddenly, the old man—who knows what got into him—decided to halt all funding and planning, and the whole thing got delayed.”
“And that CEO of the Magic Box Corporation is bold too—he dared to open the ruins without our permission…”
“……”
The more the Aries investigator listened, the darker his expression grew. He cut him off coldly: “Is now really the time to talk about this?”
“I risked a demotion just to buy you time on this mission—not to hear you vent.”
“If you can’t handle this, maybe we should’ve sided with Zhang Chiguo earlier.”
“……”
The Drunkard sighed and said softly: “I just couldn’t let go of such a promising young man.”
“But everything’s arranged. As long as he dares leave the city—he won’t have a chance to come back.”
Hearing this, the Aries investigator’s heart tensed slightly: “You're really going through with it? Aren’t you afraid Zhang Chiguo will…”
The Drunkard chuckled lazily: “Zhang Chiguo is cunning, but does he have the guts to overturn the entire Disaster Management Bureau?”
“It’s that rookie investigator who needs to learn what it feels like to offend the entire investigator class…”
“……”
“……”
“Outside the city?”
As Han Su stood up, his gaze swept over the current storage location for infected individuals and unearthed items, and his brows furrowed slightly.
The same task, once outside city limits, automatically increased by one difficulty level.
In other words, this theoretically B+ Level task, once it reached beyond city borders, essentially became an A-Level mission.
Most crucially—beyond the city, Miss Ai’s oversight no longer applied. It was lawless.
Li Yiting nodded: “Yes. The Red-Eye Disease outbreak happened during transport. I don’t understand these things much, but I do know they involve incomprehensible mysterious effects. Once symptoms appeared, we halted the transfer. The items—and people—were left outside.”
“Later, this Aries investigator came, and at his request, a temporary containment site was established. This time, he forced me to return and fetch the materials.”
“……”
“So this… was why Miss Ai advised me to approach this mission with caution?”
Han Su finally understood what Miss Ai had meant when she sent him the commission.
Outside the city—lawless territory. Stepping out of the cradle of reality meant directly facing opponents lurking in the shadows…
He didn’t show any particular reaction to the mission’s location, nor did he start planning immediately. Instead, he felt as though something long-awaited had finally arrived. He took out his phone and sent a message to Wei Lan:
【Wanna come out of the city and have some fun?】
Wei Lan replied with a grinning emoji: 【My friends and I have been waiting for this. We’ll definitely be there on time…】