Chapter 60: Breaking Into The Station

"Actually, whether Detective Luo is really the source of the infection is still being investigated, and the headquarters hasn't reached a conclusion yet," Tang Li said. "At first, they just wanted to talk to him and get some information, not arrest him. But Detective Luo's aggressive behavior escalated things."

It still sounded crazy to Chu Cheng. He thought for a moment and then asked, "So, just because he was caught on camera, the headquarters suspected he was the source of the infection?"

"That's part of it, but there's probably more to it," Tang Li replied, lowering her voice. "From what I've heard, there's something suspicious about the whole situation at the Fourth Precinct of the Jiangdu Police Department."

She paused and then asked, "Do you know that Agent Luo used to be a sheriff before he joined the Ninth Division?"

"Yeah, I know," Chu Cheng said. "He mentioned it to me, and I saw some old photos in his office."

"Do you know which branch of the Public Security Bureau he worked for?"

"I'm not sure. Wait," Chu Cheng said, suddenly realizing something. "You don't mean to say..."

"Yes, it was the Fourth Branch," Tang Li confirmed. "So naturally, people are connecting the dots. I also heard he had some kind of issue with someone there."

"What kind of issue?"

"I'm not sure. That part's encrypted, and only higher-ups with special access can see it. But this isn't really something for you to worry about. If you see Detective Luo, just contact headquarters immediately, and they'll handle it."

Tang Li was right. Chu Cheng didn't know Agent Luo that well, and whether Luo was infected or caught by the organization didn't really matter to him.

Before, Chu Cheng wouldn't have bothered with this kind of thing and would've stayed as far away as possible. But now, things were different. He had a new hobby—getting involved in stuff that wasn't his business.

Now, he was that guy online who yelled about injustice and stirred things up just for fun. As long as he had his computer and his keyboard, he was ready to go.

Chu Cheng was intrigued by the clues Tang Li had mentioned. He'd been at the scene of the Fourth Branch incident last night—as Batman, of course. He just hadn't realized that this was where Agent Luo had worked before.

He didn't have the higher access needed to get more details, but that didn't bother him. Like they say, "If we want it, we'll get it." There were very few things Chu Cheng couldn't get—except, maybe, his parents' approval.

After a while, Batman found himself outside the Secret Service Nine building, which was disguised as a trading company.

As usual, it was best to observe and scout the place first. Even though people joked about the security at the mental hospital being questionable, it was still a large organization, and it couldn't be that easy to break into.

Batman scanned the entire building in detective mode, building a mental map of the place.

First off, touching the building from the outside was a no-go. The glass on the outside was covered in cutting-edge motion sensors. Even if a cat scratched the glass, an internal alarm would go off, instantly revealing anyone's location.

Thanks to the detective mode, Chu Cheng could see where the sensor was and even trace the wiring inside the building's walls. Following the web of wires like a spider's web, he found the control hub.

That made things easy. Chu Cheng switched Batman's gear to his universal decoder. With a few quick moves that were beyond Chu Cheng's understanding, Batman hacked into the control hub, and a bunch of sensors went offline.

It only took a few seconds.

Chu Cheng imagined the tech experts at Secret Service Division Nine freaking out if they saw this. They'd probably question everything they knew about technology.

But it wasn't really their fault. After all, Batman once hacked into Darkseid's home planet system and even hijacked their biochemical weapon arsenal. So compared to Batman, the entire IT department at the division would be outclassed.

With the sensors disabled, Batman used his grappling hook to land on the floor Chu Cheng had scouted earlier. The detective mode's x-ray vision ensured the coast was clear, and the universal decoder took care of the security cameras and electronic locks. Batman was in.

Getting around inside was even easier. With detective mode on, Chu Cheng could see where every guard was, and the universal decoder looped fake footage on the security cameras, making the hallways appear empty.

If any guards or agents couldn't be avoided, Batman would put them to sleep, leaving them to wake up after Chu Cheng was long gone.

After ten minutes, Batman reached the sub-base server room, where two sleeping agents were lying on the floor.

Batman's stealth was efficient and almost boring.

Chu Cheng picked up the gear, and Batman pulled out his trusty decoder. This time, instead of using wireless, he plugged a data cable directly into the server.

Chu Cheng guessed this might take a bit more effort. Even though he didn't understand the process, he saw that Batman was working with his tech gadget for a little longer than usual.

From Chu Cheng's point of view, it felt like a simple process: find the target, press the button, wait for the loading bar, and done—like defusing a bomb in a video game.

The firewall held Batman off for over a minute, which Chu Cheng figured was something they could brag about for a year.

Once connected to the system, Chu Cheng operated the decoder like it was his own computer. Though he was no programmer, the interface was user-friendly, making it easy to search for information.

Chu Cheng typed in "Luo Yajun," and a ton of information popped up.

One entry immediately caught his eye.

It was a photo of Agent Luo Yajun, looking much like he does now, with the same sparse hair. But the caption clearly read...

...death certificate!?