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Chapter 147 - 146: Watch Closely—This Is How You Use Optical Camouflage!

"That girl is really pretty." Wang Baihu’s eyes lit up the moment he saw the photo. "Her attire is also very stylish and bold. Not everyone can pull off this kind of makeup."

Honglian rolled her eyes. As long as the girl is good-looking, she’ll receive special attention from her partner. "Can you focus on the main point?"

"Hmm... Between 17 and 20 years old, around 170 cm tall, weighs just over 50 kg?" Wang Baihu assessed up and down. "She has a lot of accessories, but I can’t see any brands, same with the clothes and shoes... They should all be discounted items bought online. She knows how to dress herself while also being frugal. She’s a good girl. Damn... I’m a bit jealous of that guy!"

"Is your partner always like this?" Zhang Yingzi asked quietly.

"Yes." Honglian admitted without hesitation, since it’s not her that’s being embarrassing. "With these photos, the police should be able to find the person."

"Absolutely right!" Captain Xiao’s voice came from behind again.

How does this person move like a ghost, coming and going without a sound? Honglian turned around, "Have you finished talking with the big boss?"

"Almost. If this cooperation is successful, it will undoubtedly be a great event." Xiao Canong said with a smile. "You guys have seen the photos too. They’re likely our breakthrough for the search. The police will upload the image model of this person to the Skynet system. As long as she’s still in the country, she’ll definitely be caught by the facial recognition cameras. Then it will be our turn."

Everything was handled flawlessly.

Honglian knew the police didn’t directly upload the photos online, undoubtedly thanks to their captain’s suggestion, because this isn’t like past situations. First, the man and his female companion are not criminals, so they can’t use a wanted order to offer a reward on them. Considering a large amount of video footage has been released from the scene, it’s hard to completely suppress it. The man might be seen as a hero by netizens, and releasing the photos could have the opposite effect, provoking public resistance.

Secondly, it’s to prevent them from taking desperate risks. If enthusiastic citizens report or capture them based on the photos and anger the ability user, things would become quite tricky.

The most prudent method is still to silently track them down and let the professional Execution Team handle it once the target is found.

"Oh? Looks like the forensic scientists have finished taking photos?" Xiao Canong turned to look at the center stage and then walked towards Lu Lixin’s location.

He approached the model fused with flesh and squatted down, seemingly inspecting its tragic appearance.

Honglian suddenly noticed him reach out his hand.

What does the captain intend to do?

She hurried over.

When she arrived by Xiao Canong’s side, she was shocked to find him inserting a finger into the criminal’s brain! Without the protection of the skull, the brain was soft like tofu. After stirring it twice, the pulse speed of those large blood vessels suddenly accelerated and then gradually calmed down. The eye that was staring at them also lost its sparkle.

"You... killed her?" Honglian asked in shock.

"To be precise, she was already bound to die. I just sent her off a bit early." Xiao Canong wiped his finger with a wet tissue. "You guys won’t be going around talking about this, right?"

The other two approached as well, Wang Baihu and Zhang Yingzi exchanged a glance, then shook their heads and looked at Honglian.

Whom could they tell? To the police?

Moreover, Honglian also believed these criminals were beyond saving... They probably wouldn’t even be considered "human" now.

"Why did you do this? Wouldn’t it be better to just let them fend for themselves?"

"Why, indeed?" Xiao Canong stood up and straightened the folds of his suit. "In the end, we’re all alike... Just consider it as me being kind-hearted."

...

...

"The police are looking for me." Lin Qing suddenly said.

"Huh? Oh..." Chen Xuan raised an eyebrow and continued organizing the inventory. "How do you know?"

"Aren’t you surprised at all?" Lin Qing rolled over on the sofa, her legs swinging in loose clothes. She changed out of her combat suit after coming back and put on her usual home leisure outfit. After all, at this hour, the neighborhood was already silent at night, and there would hardly be any visitors. "The photographer told me, didn’t he add me on WeChat?"

Cunning, that guy was tipping off the police while hiding from them?

"I just think you have the ability to handle it." Chen Xuan shrugged. Lin Qing is essentially the opposite of Liu Shuyue; the latter seems cold, keeping others at a distance, but gets along quite well once familiar, and is quite pure-hearted, after all, she’s someone who came out of closed education in the mountains. Lin Qing is very familiar from the start, yet her thoughts are more meticulous than Liu Shuyue’s, and her mind is also built with higher defenses.

Perhaps it’s difficult to survive in the future environment without remaining vigilant.

"Hey, store manager, can’t you ask a couple more questions? After all, the police got photos of me and you together."

"Weren’t you the one who insisted on taking them!" Chen Xuan retorted irritatedly, but he was indeed curious. "You think they can’t find you through the photos?"

"Since you’re begging to ask, I’ll reluctantly tell you." Lin Qing flicked her finger, "Look at the photos, and you’ll know."

Chen Xuan opened his phone, and sure enough, the photos had been forwarded.

He opened them, letting out a surprised "huh" voice. "Is this you in the photo?"

At a glance, the two looked somewhat similar, but upon closer inspection, you’ll find many differences—like the brow position, nose height, lip shape... even the makeup isn’t the same! Undeniably, the girl in the photo is equally strikingly beautiful, and in the same style as the previous Lin Qing, yet when comparing with the real person lounging on the sofa, bare-legged, you’d feel they don’t look like the same person.

The problem was, everyone had seen the photos at the time, and the photographer was quite satisfied, not noticing any difference with the actual person.

As for his own self, who served as the backdrop, it looked exactly the same as the real deal... Fortunately, the hat and mask covered nearly the entire face.

"How did you do it?" Chen Xuan asked curiously.

"A kind of anti-photographic technology. Simply put, the contours under my skin can be micro-adjusted, including this makeup." Lin Qing explained proudly. "At night, especially in low-light conditions, shadows cover up many details, making it hard for the naked eye to notice changes. When you look back at them, the photo and real person seem completely different."

"Not only can the hair color change, but even the entire face can change. That’s exaggerated."

"I can’t change drastically, like transforming from buck teeth to cherry lips. Micro-adjustments have to adhere to basic principles." Lin Qing added. "Moreover, its main function is not to deceive human eyes, but to deceive machines. Humans rely on mental imagery; they don’t need precise images to match with memory, whereas machines depend on algorithms. Changing facial feature points equates to becoming another person, so being photographed poses no problem."

"I get it." Chen Xuan nodded with some emotion. "I’m beginning to doubt whether I’ve seen the real you."

"This is the real me now. At Crystal Palace, I made some tweaks, but then the prosthetic malfunctioned, and the facial contours reverted to their original state."

Malfunction equates to a normal appearance.

No malfunction turns into a mask.

That’s future technology.

Chen Xuan remembered her injury again, "How are you now? Has the prosthetic malfunctioned and recovered?"

"Aside from the weapon system and central reinforced spine not being repaired yet, other prosthetics are working about seventy percent, so let’s say seventy percent." Lin Qing suddenly jumped off the sofa, "Oh... let me show you something fun."

After saying this, her head, arms, and legs completely disappeared, leaving just a T-shirt floating towards Chen Xuan like a white ghost.

"Whoa, is this optical camouflage?"

"Impressive, right? It can also block infrared detection."

The clothes floated onto Chen Xuan’s back, and he immediately felt his body sank... So heavy, it must weigh two or three hundred pounds if not more. Without Heart Method Body Refining, that kneecap might have given way directly. Although he could feel something touching his back, his skin surface was icy cold without a hint of warmth. If he hadn’t personally seen Lin Qing disappearing in front of him, this sensation would definitely feel like being possessed by a ghost.

"Alright. If I hadn’t seen an invisibility talisman before..."

"How can that be the same? An invisibility talisman can be detected by spells, real optical camouflage is true invisibility!" Lin Qing retorted.

"The clothes aren’t invisble, though."

"I usually wear combat suits, which can camouflage with the skin."

"Alright, alright, can you come down now?" Chen Xuan decided to concur on the surface for now.

"No way, I’m in ghost mode now." Lin Qing intentionally used a gravelly voice to whisper in his ear, "Ghost Warrior, reporting to you."

Footsteps suddenly sounded in the stairwell.

"Chen Xuan, are you here?"

The next moment, Liu Shuyue ran to the bar from the second floor.

A clattering sound came from behind the bar as spacious white clothes fell to the floor.