Equally exhausted, the two took turns carrying the tracking dog as they traversed through Sunshine Community.

It was already three in the morning. The three people and one dog had been roaming around Lening City for over ten hours, with rest and meals taking less than an hour. The rest of the time had been entirely occupied by their task.

Initially, two teams and five tracking dogs were dispatched by the higher-ups for support, but the support team would not arrive until daytime today.

Before then, they had to try and track the opponent while the scent on the cloaked person was still somewhat evident, even if it meant finding more suspect targets or eliminating several misleading ones.

Soon, the two followed the tracking dog’s lead and arrived at the base of one of the residential buildings.

Unlike typical residential complexes, Sunshine Community did not have any walls and consisted of over ten slightly aged apartment buildings. It lacked property management, and despite decent facilities near the school, many aspects were inferior to those of regular residential complexes.

Certainly, it was precisely due to the absence of walls and property management, combined with poor security, that some building owners collaborated to install security doors and surveillance alarms at the entrances of their buildings.

Building Six, where Su Xin lived, belonged to one of the better-secured ones.

With the tracking dog, they arrived at the entrance of the building. By observing the dog’s reaction, they could basically confirm that their tracking target was indeed inside this building.

It was uncertain whether they would find the actual cloaked person or just another piece of black cloth.

They paid little attention to the lock of the security door, as they were well-trained talents fostered by the conglomerate, excelling not only in combat but also possessing versatile skills akin to those of special agents. While they might struggle with complex safes, civilian security locks were hardly a challenge.

Quickly, after a few minutes of probing, they managed to open the security lock without triggering the alarm, stealthily sneaking in.

They ascended the stairs slowly and silently.

A few minutes later, gasping for breath, they, holding the tracking dog, reached the fourth floor, seeing the dog repeatedly baring its teeth at Room 401. They confirmed the target was inside.

But a new problem arose.

The room had a security door as well, and forcing the lock would definitely alert the occupants.

If the target inside was indeed the cloaked individual, both of them would certainly meet their demise.

But if they didn’t break in, they wouldn’t be able to confirm whether the target was the cloaked person or just the black cloth, rendering all their tracking efforts meaningless.

After merely a moment of hesitation, the two exchanged grave glances, and one cautiously began to pick the lock.

Even though they acted with utmost care, the sound of metal friction and mechanism turning was strikingly loud in the stillness of the night, soon alerting the occupants.

Looking through the gap of the door, they saw the lights inside flicker on, followed by a rough man’s voice barking:

“Who’s there?!”

“I’ve called the police. You can’t escape; there’s surveillance in the stairwell, and your appearance has been recorded.”

The two remained silent and did not leave, continuing to work on the lock.

Though they hadn’t seen the person inside, they could almost assert that the person speaking was not the cloaked individual.

Whether the cloaked person was a family member of the speaker and was coldly observing from another room, quietly waiting for them to break in, or if the cloaked person wasn’t there at all and the target identified by the tracking dog was just another piece of black cloth—they had no idea.

But they had no choice but to proceed.

At this moment, one of the team members, waiting with the tracking dog, after listening attentively for a moment, suddenly drew a handgun, unlocked the safety catch, and aimed it through the gap of the security door towards the wooden door inside.

“Careful.”

He softly cautioned, then pulled the trigger, firing two shots at the room inside.

The bullets pierced through the wooden door, seemingly striking the man who had just spoken inside. The two heard a sharp scream erupting from within.

Seizing the opportunity, the other person quickly continued picking the lock and managed to unlock it in about two minutes. Holding their guns, they entered, cautiously scanning the area.

Following a search, the two, guided by the tracking dog, discovered their target beneath the refrigerator—

A piece of black cloth.

Whether to feel relieved or disappointed, they both left that household, leaving behind the man still screaming in agony and a terrified mother and her child.

…

Two minutes earlier.

In the darkness, Su Xin practiced swinging his sword meticulously, repeatedly.

In his perception, the surrounding world seemed to become a void—devoid of sound, vision, anything extraneous.

Only him and the sword in his hand.

“Whoosh!”

Another fierce slash descended.

“Ding! [Swordsmanship Maniac] progress +1.”

Just then—

“Ah!!”

A scream suddenly erupted from downstairs.

The piercing wail pulled Su Xin out of his solitary world.

Momentarily stunned, he closed his eyes.

Three seconds later, the Self-Deception ability successfully activated, putting him into Stealth State, simultaneously triggering the Super Sensing Sketching trait, allowing him to ‘see’ the situation within a ten-meter radius.

The previous night, when he scattered pieces of black cloth around various locations in Lening City, he also discreetly placed one at Room 401 downstairs, and even hid one in the classroom beneath the school.

He couldn’t merely gamble on luck with the opponent.

Rather, he employed a bit of wit.

If the opponent had exceptional luck, accurately finding his true self among numerous scent sources, they would be confounded by two similar scent sources in close proximity.

Just like now.

When the opponent arrived at this building, tracking upward via the stairs, the first scent they detected would certainly be from the household downstairs.

If the opponent engaged in conflict due to the tracking, Su Xin could hear the commotion from his upstairs position, allowing him to make reckless decisions.

Even if no conflict occurred, no noise was generated, the opponent would likely leave right after discovering the piece of black cloth downstairs, rather than pursuing the subtle scents still here.

Perhaps, they would perceive his scent as lingering from that household downstairs.

Unless their tracking was accurate to within a meter, discerning close scent sources by smell alone.

In that case, all his efforts would be futile.

But now, it seemed, his gamble had paid off.

“It’s time to find you all…”

Su Xin smiled lightly.

Maintaining Stealth State, he continued observing the activity downstairs, seeing that those two did as anticipated, taking the black cloth and leaving. He immediately set down the wooden sword and silently teleported after them.

…

The trio and the dog returned to their car.

Duan Yilin, having just rested for a while, felt slightly better and took the driver’s seat while the others rested in the back with the dog.

“Shall we call it a day?”

“The cloaked person usually operates at night. The chance of finding them during the day is higher, as they might be asleep. Whereas at night, the opponent could be teleporting everywhere or hiding afar, which makes locating them impossible.”

“Moreover, it’s clear that the cloaked person knows we are tracking them by scent and is just playing tricks on us this way.”

One suggested.

Duan Yilin pondered for a moment before agreeing:

“Alright, everyone has worked hard, let’s go rest first. We’ll hand off responsibilities when the support team arrives and then return for our penalties.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep