At eight in the morning, Yan Junxun and Shi Shanyan were sitting punctually in the Supervisory Bureau's investigation room.

"You're here so early," Piao Lin said as he sat down and adjusted the room temperature. "Have you all had breakfast?"

"We have," Shi Shanyan said, flipping through Liu Chen's file, sighing with a mixture of intention and nonchalance. "Woke up bright and early."

Yan Junxun was slumped over the table sleeping, completely ignoring their conversation. He was wearing a white shirt today, with one arm propped up to cover his face, hiding himself completely.

"Did Mr. Yan not rest well?" Jue asked in a soft, gentle voice.

Yan Junxun didn't make a sound, as if he were asleep.

The investigation room was a bit quiet. After a while, Jiang Lian pushed the door open and came in. He placed the materials on the table and said to them, "Liu Chen is here."

"Good morning, everyone." Liu Chen walked in, his face all smiles. He was also wearing a tie today, his leather shoes polished to a high shine, looking quite dapper. At Jiang Lian's gesture, he sat down in a chair and said very politely, "Thank you, thank you."

"It wasn't easy getting you here," Jiang Lian said, resting his arm on the armrest of his chair. "We even had to schedule an appointment."

"I've had many interview requests recently, my apologies." Liu Chen tugged at his suit jacket, his gaze naturally sweeping past them, searching for the profiler. He asked in an undisguisedly curious tone, "I wonder which of you is the profiler?"

Yan Junxun paid Liu Chen no mind. His thin shoulders were hidden behind the seat, and the sound of his steady breathing was muffled in his arms, giving the impression that he was fast asleep.

"Who do you think it is?" Shi Shanyan closed the file and looked at Liu Chen with his arms crossed.

Liu Chen looked at Shi Shanyan. He had noticed Shi Shanyan the moment he walked in, but now he had to feign surprise. He said, "So it's you. I was very happy to speak with you on the phone yesterday. I've always been very curious about you and have wanted to do an interview with you. But as you know, we still have some misunderstandings to resolve."

Liu Chen clasped his hands, adopting an interview-like posture, as if he held no grudge about being yelled at the day before, speaking in a very relaxed manner.

"This case, or rather, Chen Xiulian's case—I will cooperate and tell you everything I know."

"This isn't an interrogation today," Jiang Lian said emotionlessly, pushing up his glasses. "Just a simple investigation. Piao Lin, you can start."

"Alright." A light screen lit up beside Piao Lin, displaying the information Jue had compiled on Liu Chen. He fiddled with his pen, uncapping and recapping it, then asked, "Do you know Chen Xiulian?"

"I don't. Chen Xiulian and I had never crossed paths before that hostage situation. Perhaps she had read my reports or was a loyal reader of mine, but I truly don't know her. If you've read my column, you'd know I'm very popular, and this kind of fanatical and extreme reader—" Liu Chen seemed troubled by his own charm. "I often advise them to think twice before they act, but to this day, I still can't figure out why she came to me. I've never sexually assaulted anyone."

Shi Shanyan had been watching him the whole time and couldn't help but chuckle at this. "You really are a beacon in the Docking Area."

"Although the controversies surrounding me are quite extreme, I swear, I have never personally violated any laws." Liu Chen lightly raised a hand, as if that could prove he was telling the truth. "Your Supervisory Bureau, in the Docking Area, in this world, has ushered in the 'System Era.' Let me be frank, you're the ones who have caused supervisory agencies to gradually lose their purpose. Doesn't the world need people like me? Even if we often argue, we have a symbiotic relationship. Unless one day, the System truly rules the world and humanity is extinct. Otherwise, even without me, there will be other 'Liu Chens' to speak up for the vulnerable groups of humanity. I've digressed. Anyway, I have no connection to Chen Xiulian. You can verify this with Miss 'Jue'; I hear it's the best information database in the Docking Area."

Liu Chen needed to express himself; it was his way of life. He intended to use all manner of words to lay bare his heart, to prove that he was a good person in the traditional sense. But at the same time, he was very clear about what he was doing and what he wanted to do. For him, expression was merely a means to an end.

Jue replied politely, "Thank you for the compliment, but you need to recount the details of the hostage situation again."

"No problem," Liu Chen said, his every move highlighting his cooperation. "Going back to last week, I was resting at home when I called for cleaning services. She, that Chen Xiulian, came in wearing a mask. I thought she was the cleaner, but who knew she would attack me."

Yan Junxun had woken up at some point. He was resting his head on his arm, silently staring at Liu Chen with what could be described as rapt attention.

"I remember she was wearing a Communicator, the kind of obsolete model you'd buy in a second-hand market." Liu Chen clasped and unclasped his fingers. Although he appeared very natural, it was still a signal that he was forcing himself to relax.

When he recalled Chen Xiulian, he was far from being as relaxed as he appeared on the surface.

The sound of scribbling echoed from the small blackboard in Yan Junxun's mind.

This guy had been dreaming about the hostage situation recently. He remembered every detail, but he was deliberately being vague, trying to erase his own pathetic state.

But that wasn't important.

On his mental blackboard, Yan Junxun drew a slash through the name "Liu Chen." He had no desire to probe the shadows of Liu Chen's psyche.

"She knocked me to the ground. For a woman, her strength was astonishingly great."

'Of course.'

Yan Junxun thought with some impatience.

'It's not like she went there to chat with you.'

"When I was about to pass out, I felt like she was arguing with someone. Afterwards, you all also confirmed that she wasn't quite right in the head. I think she wanted to kill me at first, but changed her mind halfway through, wanting to use my influence to pull a big stunt."

'This guy is bullshitting.'

Yan Junxun scribbled randomly on the blackboard, dragging the white chalk line out long. His condition was average today, as if only half of him was working. But it wasn't on purpose; he had to restrain his thoughts from straying elsewhere.

"You all saw the media frenzy stirred up by the live broadcast. It was a remarkable instance of media notarization. Chen Xiulian jumped off the building right before our eyes," Liu Chen lamented. "How impactful. She made the public reflect. I told you a long time ago, if the Supervisory Bureau wants to save its reputation, it needs cases like this. Cooperating is the best way."

'Idiot.'

Piao Lin cursed silently in his heart. He capped his pen with a deadpan expression, offering a sincere evaluation of the enthusiastic media personality image Liu Chen was crafting. Then he said, "Oh. How did you get involved in another case right after Chen Xiulian's ended? Let's talk about yesterday's phone call."

"After Chen Xiulian jumped, someone left me a message. Unlike the ones on my homepage, this message came from my chatroom..."

'Chatroom, it's the fucking chatroom again.'

"I like to experiment. As long as someone is willing to give me information, I'm willing to test if it's real or not," Liu Chen said, spreading his hands. "The effect was great; I helped you fish out a real murderer. I was still skeptical during the call yesterday, but today I'm sure. The fact that even the profiler is willing to sit here and listen to my nonsense shows that the person on the phone yesterday is the real deal. You need his information, right?"

"Remarkable," Piao Lin said perfunctorily. "So what can you provide us with?"

"His ID. In my chatroom, he goes by 'Ferryman'," Liu Chen said, smiling at Shi Shanyan. "Do you remember him, Profiler? He called you."

Yan Junxun snapped his chalk and looked up from his small blackboard. He remembered. Of course, he remembered. The night Liu Chen exposed the profiler, some lunatic had called in and even attacked his system.

'But wasn't that a madman?'

'Is that so,' Shi Shanyan thought for a moment. "Let me confirm, are you saying this killer is that pervert who secretly took pictures of my canines?" He finally remembered, his fingers lightly tapping Yan Junxun through the back of the chair. "Ah... then I'm a little scared."

Yan Junxun's back reacted subtly, as if stung by a tiny feeler. He didn't need to turn around to know that Shi Shanyan's finger was still wrapped in the special band-aid from Panda.