Chapter Sixteen: Chai Si—A Facade Submerged Within the Metropolis

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“According to the surveillance footage we obtained,” Chai Si said as he drove, “Evan left the gate of the Wei family estate at 7:21 a.m. on November 16th and never looked back.”

Of course, that bodyguard wouldn’t return either; the moment he stole the replica, he immediately abandoned all duties without so much as a word, heading straight for Blackmore City.

“What about his whereabouts after leaving the estate? How can you be certain?” The young woman sitting in the passenger seat, her long, thick dreadlocks dyed deep purple cascading over her shoulders like a flowing bouquet of lavender, asked.

“I have his GPS records,” Chai Si replied. “We’re currently following the exact route he took on the 16th.”

The young woman paused, casting a glance his way.

“I’m aware,” Chai Si said without changing expression. “Just because the GPS logs a route doesn’t guarantee he actually traveled that path.”

“Right. I’ve heard you have to contact the manufacturer to adjust the route data to know the exact path taken. Without police authority, that’s difficult to do,” the dreadlocked woman answered.

Generally, that’s true.

But Chai Si’s luck had always been decent.

He quickly discovered a grocery store opposite Evan’s apartment building. Since people lived on the second floor, the store had installed a smart security camera at the entrance, recording all comings and goings.

Posing as a police officer, he smoothly retrieved the footage from the desired timeframe—at 10:47 a.m., Evan’s car pulled onto the street, lingered briefly, and snagged a parking spot.

That day was a Saturday, without rush-hour traffic. Evan took three hours and twenty-six minutes to get from the Upper State District to Blackmore City, just thirteen minutes longer than the GPS estimate. Considering the rainy weather that day, such a discrepancy was within a normal range.

“If he took a different route, the timing wouldn’t be this close.”

Other GPS routes would have taken at least twenty more minutes, which wouldn’t match up; besides, Evan was fleeing with stolen goods, so naturally, he would take the fastest route, not a detour.

This ruled out the possibility that Evan detoured halfway to somewhere else—like his sister’s house or a rented personal storage unit—to stash the replica with someone else. Thirteen minutes’ difference was simply insufficient time.

What if Evan called ahead to his sister to wait for him somewhere? He could have passed a package out the window while driving by, causing only a slight delay that wouldn’t show up on the driving record.

But Chai Si quickly dismissed this hypothesis himself.

Evan’s possessions were all in his hands. He easily accessed the telecom records and found that Evan had not made any calls that morning, nor had he contacted his sister in the days before or after. In fact, Evan made only two calls on the 16th: one from the bodyguard team captain, questioning why he left his post without permission; the other was to a pizza place in the afternoon, ordering a large Italian sausage pizza.

There was no way he’d hand over a priceless replica to a total stranger delivery person.

If they knew each other, that might be different, but according to the Hunter sent to investigate, the delivery person had no connection to Evan.

He might have borrowed someone else’s phone, but no evidence currently supports that—and Evan didn’t seem like the kind to plan that far ahead.

Regardless, Chai Si intended to explore every possibility.

He had to bring back what Uncle Kai wanted. No obstacle could stand in the way of this mission.

“Mr. Monroe, I have a question—” the young woman with dreadlocks began.

“Just call me Chai Si,” he interrupted. “When other Hunters call me Mr. Monroe, it means they know they’re in trouble.”

The Purple Dreadlocks had not been with the family faction long. Previously an unknown ordinary Hunter, she had recently surged in reputation and become a sought-after talent. Since being recruited into the Kai family, this was the first time Chai Si had met her in person.

According to Chai Si, such a transformation in a Hunter wasn’t unusual.

The Nest contained countless bizarre and uncanny phenomena. Beyond replicas that could be brought back to the human world, Hunters might encounter creatures, rules, domains, or entities beyond imagination, many indescribable. Interactions with these would yield countless consequences and effects—most, of course, not beneficial.

The vast majority were adverse.

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But occasionally, a lucky Hunter like Purple Dreadlocks would draw a good fortune card, returning from the Nest with abilities they previously lacked.

“Chai Si,” she corrected herself, “I’ve scanned the Wei family estate thoroughly. I can confirm there isn’t a single replica left inside or outside the estate. On the way here, I didn’t sense any presence of replicas either. This supports the idea that the bodyguard took the replica and headed straight to Blackmore City... this part is understandable.

“But why did he lock himself in and refuse to leave after returning home? Since he stole the replica, he must understand its significance and value, and know someone would come looking for it. If it were me, I would grab essentials and run immediately—no, maybe I wouldn’t even return home at all.”

Before answering, Chai Si tilted his chin toward the window.

Outside, the heavy, overcast sky threatened rain. Beneath it, the dark green forest receded steadily.

“Well? Any feelings?” he asked.

Purple Dreadlocks frowned, paused for two seconds, then said, “There’s a lot of overlap with the area I scanned last time... still no replicas.”

Chai Si glanced at the time but remained silent.

He didn’t know how Purple Dreadlocks sensed these things.

Logically, the ability to “sense replicas” was fundamental and precious to Hunters. But Purple Dreadlocks’ accuracy was poor.

Driving at fifty kilometers per hour for several minutes, they still hadn’t left the area she previously scanned.

Roughly estimating, her detection range was about five kilometers in diameter. Where exactly within that circle the replica might be—only the heavens knew.

Such a vague sense—was it really something worth bringing into the Hunter family faction?

Chai Si had never witnessed the Nest firsthand, so he didn’t know the answer.

“That Evan guy is a bit clever.”

He refocused on the present, staring straight ahead, and answered, “He knew someone would be tracking the replicas stolen from the study, so he gambled with fate… He bet he could get away with it.”

“Get away with it?”

“If Evan fled immediately after Wei Xilai’s death, everyone would realize at once something was wrong. Not to mention, no one knew if Wei Xilai’s death was natural or not. What if it was murder? If Evan ran, that would link him to Wei Xilai’s death.

“If Wei Xilai was murdered, Evan’s flight would attract attention from three parties.

“One: the police investigating the cause of death; two: whoever killed Wei Xilai and doesn’t want clues discovered; three: the various Hunter family factions suspecting Evan of stealing the replicas.”

Purple Dreadlocks nodded. “Exactly... It would be better if he pretended to know nothing. Even if he planned to run, he should have stayed under the radar for the first few days.”

“Right. He couldn’t stay at the estate because the first place people would search for the replicas was the estate itself. Wei Xilai fired Evan before his death, so Evan could use that as an excuse to leave. Also, four replicas were stolen, and Evan probably only had one. Staying low-profile might keep him off others’ radars.”

“So how did you find him?” Purple Dreadlocks asked with interest.

“…I was lucky.”

“Luck? I don’t believe in luck,” she said, gazing at the road ahead with a smile. “Everything I have, I earned myself.”

A young answer indeed.

The Nest was no elementary school teacher; it never rewarded mere effort—but Chai Si kept silent.

“Really? Then you probably don’t care about rumors among other Hunters.”

“What rumors?”

“That my good luck is because I attract the good fortune of those around me.”

Purple Dreadlocks probably thought he was joking. She smiled, glancing at Chai Si, but like a shadow passing overhead, her smile soon faded, and she returned to silence.

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Most who become Hunters possess intuition sharper than ordinary people.

Following the GPS route, Chai Si exited the highway and entered Blackmore City.

The city was a forest of glass and steel skyscrapers, interspersed with classical buildings that had stood through centuries. Neon signs overlapped with shadows and light; bustling office workers strode through the streets, tourists rode red double-decker buses, phones raised to capture moments... as if pieces of a jigsaw puzzle gradually assembling before him the world’s most prosperous, vibrant, and diverse metropolis.

Chai Si had lived in Blackmore City for thirty years, yet his accumulated knowledge barely scratched its surface. Among the vast, varied population lay an unknown future—no one knew what might happen next. Chai Si had never considered leaving the city. Besides the Kai family connection, he needed this unpredictability as much as oxygen.

If life were the same every day, he might as well be dead, merely waiting to be buried.

To minimize distractions, Purple Dreadlocks closed her eyes and opened the car window, as if listening to the city’s pulse.

“No... no... Is this Bluebrook Fifth Street? ...No, nothing here either.”

“Are you sure?”

Suddenly, Purple Dreadlocks opened her eyes. “Wait!”

Chai Si released the accelerator. As the car slowed, the impatient honking from the cars behind echoed.

Blackmore City folk were not known for patience or kindness.

“Got it!” Purple Dreadlocks’ eyes widened as she twisted her head left and right, but a veil of doubt clouded her face. “Wait, let me try again—”

“Where?”

Ignoring him, she leaned out the window, froze for a few seconds, then collapsed back into her seat.

“Gone,” she whispered. “I thought there was a replica nearby... but it was such a fleeting feeling. When I focused again, it was gone. I swear, my senses are usually accurate—I’ve never encountered this before...”

A fleeting presence?

The car crawled forward slowly, the honking and shouting behind completely shut out of Chai Si’s mind.

His attention swept around like a spotlight: roads, streets, buildings, pedestrians, signs... scenes he had seen countless times before appeared as if for the first time, vivid and clear in his mind.

Within a five-kilometer radius, a replica that only flashed briefly...

His eyelid twitched suddenly, and his gaze fixed on a distant round sign marked with the letter “D.”

A thought struck him.

He glanced at the opposite lane, waited for a gap with no oncoming traffic, then sharply turned the steering wheel, cutting across half the road and crossing into another lane.

Amid screeching brakes, honking horns, and furious shouts, he held the steering wheel firmly with one hand while continuously honking to warn others. The car climbed onto the sidewalk; startled pedestrians scattered like waves stirred by the vehicle.

Purple Dreadlocks gripped the handle above her head, screaming, “What are you doing? Where are you going? You’re going to hit someone!”

The car’s tires straddled the curb, one side on the road, the other on the pavement, angled as they sped forward. They thundered past a row of shop entrances, frightening a customer who had just stepped out and spilled coffee all over themselves.

Chai Si paid no mind to the chaos outside.

Eyes locked ahead, he said, “I know where the replica is.”