Chapter 714 - 9: Using Animals to Find an Animal (Part 3)

Chapter 714: Chapter 9: Using Animals to Find an Animal (Part 3)

If he really was raising a special wolfdog, someone would have eventually noticed something.

Philips and his team speculated that the wolfdog was being raised in the wild, which would make it easy to hide and train.

So, there was nothing wrong with the direction of a large-scale search for the wolfdog. If the killer was indeed in this four-state border region, they should be able to find him through the dog.

With everyone set on that course, what else could Shen Xin say? He could only rest for two days and then continue the search.

The first day of the second round yielded no results.

After returning to base, even Teddy couldn’t help but complain to Shen Xin.

’Let’s go home.’

That certainly wasn’t what he’d been saying before they came. He had been clamoring about finding a wife for himself, coming out here for a vacation, and tricking a pretty Bald Eagle into coming back with them.

And look at him now, being worked like a dog.

What could Shen Xin do but comfort him and tell him to hang in there a little longer?

That night, back at the command post, Shen Xin was discussing things with Ding Yuwei.

"Shouldn’t we think of another way?" Shen Xin mused to Ding Yuwei.

First off, there was nothing wrong with their method of searching for the wolfdog.

They were even using AI; efficiency was already maxed out.

Perhaps they just lacked a bit of luck.

But it was also possible that their initial direction had been flawed from the start.

This wasn’t a game of finding a needle in a haystack, after all. It was a case. So shouldn’t they go back to the beginning and analyze the case files again?

Ding Yuwei sat across from him, thought for a moment, and said, "I’m actually quite worried about us right now. Haven’t you noticed strangers around us lately?"

Shen Xin said, "That shouldn’t be a major problem."

It was the AI’s fault, in a way. Its high efficiency had attracted some unwanted attention.

But there had been a response from back home, too.

For instance, not only was Lin Wei with Shen Xin now, but the embassy had also arranged for two military attachés to come over.

Besides, he was here on official business. The people here wouldn’t dare to do anything reckless.

So, while Ding Yuwei’s concerns were valid, Shen Xin remained focused on the case itself.

He tilted his head back and thought for a long while. Then, on a sudden whim, Shen Xin recalled a thought he’d heard from Da Mei.

She had previously said she wanted to help, that she’d made many friends and could have them help him find the target.

’Could that be a new direction?’

Shen Xin sat up straight, continuing to follow this train of thought.

This was a wolfdog. It was possibly being raised in the wild—in a forest, for example.

These past few days, with the AI making things less hectic, Shen Xin had of course been continuously going over the case files, mulling over the case.

He had been considering one question all along: how had the killer managed to hide for so many years?

Living in another state while committing crimes in this one was a possibility.

But it was more likely that he lived right here in this area.

Living all alone in the wilderness seemed unlikely, as that would actually make him more conspicuous.

The forest was a possibility, but not a very high one.

Because the BAU’s profile analysis suggested that the killer might have a legitimate job and may have even been married.

If he lived in a town, he naturally wouldn’t have the space to raise a wolfdog.

In that case, the wolfdog could only be kept free-range in the wild.

In a forest, for instance. The killer would feed it regularly and bring it along when he went to kill.

When he wasn’t killing, it would roam freely in the forest.

In that case, this wolfdog should have come into contact with other animals in the forest.

The animals living in the forest should know of such a wolfdog’s existence.

’So, could he find it through these animals?’

It was like looking for a cat.

Your cat goes missing, somewhere within your neighborhood.

You can’t find it, but you can seek out the stray cats that roam the area.

Give them food and water, tell them what you’re looking for, and ask them to help you find your lost cat.

There were real-life stories of people finding their cats this way.

’Couldn’t I do the same thing?’

Find a group of animals in a certain area, give them their instructions, and then let them search on their own, reporting back if they found anything.

There was a problem, though.

He had his favorability system, but finding animals over such a large area and then cultivating their favorability would be too slow.

But his talent actually had another application: beating the other party into submission.

It was also the simplest and most brutish method for raising favorability.

The more Shen Xin thought about it, the more feasible it seemed. He felt it was worth a try.

If that was the case, wasn’t it time to make use of the Tian Kui, that group of guys who were bored out of their minds?