Chapter 13: System Inventory

"Big Sister Hong, may I go upstairs and take a look?" Chen Yu's face still bore that harmless, amiable smile as he asked softly, "Everyone else went up earlier, but I didn't get a chance to look around."

Liu Hong glanced at him with a complicated expression, nodded slightly, and said nothing more.

Chen Yu kept his smile and walked unhurriedly up the stairs.

The upstairs layout was simple, with only two rooms.

One room was quite spacious and piled high with various odds and ends. Chen Yu glanced around, noting that these items were old, covered with a thick layer of dust.

More than a year ago, the city investigation unit had already combed through this place thoroughly—any valuable evidence must have been taken and sealed away long ago. Even if anything had slipped through the cracks, with how meticulously those three had just searched, it was probably gone now.

But this storeroom wasn't Chen Yu's target.

He turned and pushed open the door to the second room.

What greeted him was a small but exceptionally clean and tidy bedroom.

Just as he expected.

So, the couple really did sleep in separate rooms.

That explained why, downstairs in Liu Hong's master bedroom, his "Retrospect" skill hadn't reacted at all.

He walked slowly into the room.

The furnishings were extremely simple: a double bed, and a solitary writing desk. Nothing else.

This was, in all likelihood, the room Luo Xiangdong had lived in before his death.

Chen Yu walked to the bedside and sat down slowly.

He reached out and gently touched the slightly cold bedding.

"Retrospect!"

In an instant, the familiar dizziness struck, and the scene before his eyes began to twist and rewind.

Within that vision, Luo Xiangdong appeared haggard, sitting on the edge of the bed with knees drawn up. His eyes were wide open, wearing the same obsessed look as he had in the locked room, staring fixedly at a spot ahead.

The vision ended abruptly.

Chen Yu snapped back to himself and immediately followed Luo Xiangdong's line of sight.

There, at the end of that gaze, was a blank stretch of white wall.

However, when he narrowed his eyes and looked closely, he discovered a faint, almost imperceptible square outline in the white!

His heart skipped a beat, and he hurried over.

Reaching out, he measured the outline on the wall.

His pupils contracted sharply!

It was exactly the same size as the wooden photo frame that had been burned in the locked room!

"Could it be... that photo was originally hanging here?"

Chen Yu took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down.

He quickly walked over to the desk and sat down, reaching out to touch the cold desktop.

"Retrospect!"

A new vision flashed before his eyes.

This time, the perspective was blurry and first-person.

The scene was as if the lens was waterlogged—shaky and indistinct.

He could just make out that the person whose eyes he was seeing through was hunched over the desk, writing something on a small piece of paper.

The writing was completely unreadable.

Then, a crystal-clear drop of liquid suddenly fell from above, splashing onto the note and quickly spreading.

"Crying?"

"Were those tears?"

"And it was written on a note, not in a diary?"

A jolt of realization struck Chen Yu.

"This system... is pretty amazing, isn't it? Every time I use Retrospect, it's always on a key scene of the case!"

"A truly conscientious homegrown system! Impressive!"

While Chen Yu was still lost in thought, Lin Bing's sweet but urging voice came from downstairs.

"Hey, handsome! Come on down, it's about time—we need to get going!"

Chen Yu didn't dare linger, not wanting to arouse suspicion.

He quickly composed himself and went downstairs.

He smiled and bid Liu Hong farewell, reminding her again before leaving to contact him at any time if anything came up.

Dusk was falling; today's live investigation had come to an end.

All the contestants would be staying at the luxurious hotel booked by the show.

The hotel itself was a large commercial complex, complete with bars, KTV, saunas, massage parlors—every conceivable entertainment facility.

Chen Yu was quite satisfied with this.

Returning to the single suite assigned by the production team, he took a long, invigorating shower.

He couldn't not—seeing his soot-smeared reflection in the mirror before showering, he couldn't help but laugh.

For most of the day, he'd been wandering around shirtless, playing the role of the "simulated corpse."

He'd even swaggered into the home of billionaire Liu Hong as a guest.

He seriously suspected that the production team had kept him looking like this on purpose, purely for the sake of catching viewers' attention and boosting ratings.

He grabbed a clean T-shirt and casual pants from the wardrobe, changed, and sprawled out on the soft bed, ready to study the "Detective System" in his mind.

What he saw surprised him.

The system's shop was filled with a dazzling array of goods—so many types that it was jaw-dropping.

[Body Function Enhancements]: Strength, Agility, Intelligence, Willpower... Even kidney function enhancement!

[Various Items]: Cash, luxury cars, mansions, all kinds of professional tools... It was so over-the-top that you could even exchange for planes and heavy artillery!

[Passive Skills]: Eye of Insight, Crisis Alert, and so on.

[Skill Experience]: Direct purchase available, used to level up the system.

Only now did he fully understand.

His Detective System could be leveled up.

However, the experience required for upgrading had to be bought with skill points in the shop.

He currently had only 500 skill points.

And it would take a full 2,000 points to go from level one to level two.

A long road ahead!

Still, to quickly complete the tasks at hand and solve the current case, these 500 skill points had to be spent wisely.

First steps are always the hardest!

He opened the [Items] exchange list.

His eyes widened instantly.

There were all kinds of top-tier luxury cars, riverfront mansions in first-tier cities, and expensive luxuries that usually were only dreams—and the prices were shockingly low!

Most of them cost only 1 skill point!

He then checked the [Money] exchange page.

A hundred skill points could be exchanged for a million in cash!

By comparison, the million-yuan grand prize promised by the "Cold Case Reopened" show was nothing!

Never mind—think bigger! Petty gains at hand weren't enough.

For now, he still had to rely on the show's platform and resources.

Otherwise, how could an ordinary guy like him, with no power or connections, get access to these bizarre cases—or earn skill points?

With a bit of reluctance, he used a skill point to exchange for the newest smartphone and an anonymous SIM card.

A magical thing happened.

The moment he confirmed the exchange, a brand-new phone and SIM card materialized in his consciousness.

All it took was a thought.

Whoosh!

The phone and SIM card appeared in his palm out of thin air.

He immediately turned it on and quietly registered a new Green Bubble account.

Then, relying on memory, he entered Liu Hong's number and sent a friend request.

The contestant handbook made it clear: all participants would be monitored by the production team around the clock.

That meant the work phone Lin Bing had given him couldn't be used carelessly.

Who knew what backdoor surveillance software might be installed on it?

If his secret got out, the consequences would be unthinkable.

And this Luo Xiangdong case, plus the old case involving Liu Gang's wife from fifteen years ago, all had a strange air about them.

He had to investigate in total secrecy.

He continued browsing through the system interface.

Soon, tucked away in a corner of the shop, he found a [Functional Items] exchange option.

Clicking it, he saw only a single item—[Insulation (Single Use)].

The description was concise: renders the host undetectable by any conventional technological means for the next 24 hours.

Exchange rate: 2 skill points per use!

Chen Yu couldn't help but break into a wide grin.

This feature was tailor-made for him!

As for the other [Body Function Enhancements], he skimmed through them.

Each basic enhancement cost 10 skill points.

Effect: boosts the chosen attribute by 10 percent of the current baseline.

This would definitely come in handy in the future.

For example... kidney function enhancement.

But not necessary right now.

Finally, he looked at the [Passive Skills] section.

[Crisis Alert]: gives an advance warning if the host is about to encounter immediate, direct physical danger.

Straightforward enough.

[Eye of Insight]: a passive trigger skill. During interactions with key case-related creatures (humans, animals, etc.), there's a chance of seeing some of the target's attribute entries and real-time stats. The specific types of entries would gradually unlock as the skill was used...

Both passive skills cost 1,000 skill points each to learn.

Clearly, he didn't have nearly enough points just yet.

Chen Yu sighed softly and closed the system interface for now.

Just then, the phone Lin Bing had given him suddenly rang.

He raised his eyebrows, picked it up, and unlocked it.

Instantly, several eye-catching trending news headlines popped up on the screen.

#Corpse Actor Escapes Locked Room—So Cool!#
#Detective Variety Show Turns Paranormal, Online Viewership Hits Record!#
#Luo Xiangdong Case Grows Murkier—Can the Mysterious “Corpse Brother” Crack the Truth?#
#Veteran Detectives Speechless—New Star “Corpse Brother” Teaches Everyone a Lesson!#

A string of trending topics nearly filled the whole screen.

Chen Yu could only marvel.

Had he really... become famous overnight?

Not a bad start for a transmigrator, after all.

A mischievous smile played on his lips.

Just then, the Green Bubble app chimed.

It was a message from Lin Bing: "Still awake, handsome?"

Chen Yu snorted inwardly.

So, she was interested in him after all.

The way she'd looked at him earlier had been rather telling.

He replied, unhurried: "Not yet, Bingbing. Just thinking over the case."

Lin Bing replied almost instantly: "So... where do you think we should investigate tomorrow?"

We?

Chen Yu raised an eyebrow.

Since when did it become "we"?

Wasn't he the one carrying the whole case, while those so-called "top detectives" were just there for the atmosphere—sometimes even getting in the way?

He replied smoothly, "We'll deal with tomorrow when it comes—plans can't keep up with changes."

"Oh, and remember to get up early tomorrow," Lin Bing added, "The production team is holding a short meeting to finalize next episode's process before we go live."

"Got it," Chen Yu responded, not eager to keep chatting.

Who knew if she was trying to fish for information?

But Lin Bing didn't want to give up. Another message popped in: "Besides thinking about the case, aren't you thinking about anything else?"

That question...

Now Chen Yu was interested.

Clearly, there was a hidden meaning!

Sure enough, Lin Bing's next message was teasing: "I noticed Liu Hong was looking at you pretty ambiguously today. Do you think she really mistook you for her husband who's been missing for eleven years?"

"Tsk tsk, Liu Hong may be a bit older, but with that mature charm and well-maintained figure, she could turn a crowd of young fans into putty!"

Playing hard to get?

Chen Yu laughed coldly to himself.

He knew this game too well!

Before transmigrating, he'd been a veteran of countless romantic escapades—there wasn't a type of "fish" he hadn't seen in his pond.

This was child's play.

"Nope," Chen Yu replied, "Sister Liu Hong is indeed very charming and graceful—that's a fact."

He started with a sincere compliment, then shifted the conversation, tossing out bait: "But as for being captivating, she's still a ways off compared to our glamorous host Bingbing."

"After all, aren't today's young admirers more into someone like you—elegant, capable, sweet-faced, and with a figure that's almost criminally perfect?"

After sending the message, the other side went silent for a few seconds.

Then Lin Bing replied, "Ugh, you and your slick talk!"

Chen Yu could almost picture her grinning, both embarrassed and pleased.

"Oh, right," Lin Bing seemed to recall something, "The bar downstairs at the hotel is full of pretty girls. The expense card I gave you can be used there as much as you want—no limit. Aren't you going to experience the nightlife?"

Heh, so she was trying to set him up now?

"No thanks, not interested," Chen Yu replied decisively. "I’d rather just lie in bed, mull over the case, think about the unattainable Bingbing, and then sleep contentedly."

Hah, as if he’d fall for that!

"Hehe, you really are a good boy," Lin Bing replied quickly, satisfaction in every word. "Good luck tomorrow! I'm rooting for you!"

Chen Yu chuckled coldly.

Such a send-off clearly meant she saw him as just another fish.

Well, we’ll see whose fishpond gets filled first!