Chapter 1007 - 517: Departing for the Primary Crime Scene...

Five minutes later, all the key personnel of the Criminal Investigation Unit assembled on site.

The team consisted of a total of 23 people, including eager young criminal investigators newly joined to the force and seasoned criminal technical experts nearing retirement.

At this moment, outside the door of the Criminal Investigation Unit, Director Lu, Director Hou, Jiang An, and Zhang Biao stood side by side at the front of the team, their expressions grave.

Director Lu surveyed the scene and spoke solemnly: "Comrades! Today’s urgent assembly is for a critically important task—site investigation."

As soon as he finished speaking, a low murmur arose from the team.

Site investigation was no stranger to everyone present, but bringing together over 20 key personnel for a single investigation was unprecedented.

When they received Zhang Biao’s urgent notice earlier, the specifics of the task were not disclosed, leaving many feeling tense;

Now hearing that the task is a site investigation, many felt half-relieved.

Originally, everyone thought there might be an emergency field operation, such as a cross-province arrest or a large-scale industry venue inspection.

Understandably, in the police force, mobilizing a large number of officers usually implies two scenarios: one is handling a collective incident, a daunting and perilous task that tests the team’s adaptability and coordination;

The other is executing a major arrest operation, where facing the edge of the knife and life-or-death moments are inevitable.

In comparison, although site investigation also carries significant responsibility, it ultimately involves professional operations in a relatively controlled environment, which allows some reassurance amidst the tension.

However, this slight relaxation was not to last.

Director Lu’s ensuing words made everyone hold their breath once more.

"This investigation is unlike the past; the target site is extremely complex, with a wide coverage area and scattered potential evidence, and time is extremely urgent."

"We need to complete the extraction and analysis of every minute trace in the shortest possible time; any oversight could cause the case to stall."

"That’s why we need all of your concentrated strengths to cooperate and tackle this challenge."

"This is not a usual investigation but a battle against time, a struggle for truth."

The team instantly fell silent, with every face being re-etched with focus and determination.

Seeing the slightly eased tension on their faces, Director Lu did not show the slightest sign of relaxation.

He looked around and slowly spoke: "Don’t start feeling relieved just yet."

"Based on past experience, a regular site investigation would not mobilize so much police force."

"But this time, we’ve mobilized nearly half of the Crime Investigation Unit’s elite force, which itself indicates the task’s uniqueness and significance."

He paused momentarily, his tone more solemn: "More importantly, the site we’re going to investigate this time is not a newly occurred case, but the scene of a murder case from ten years ago."

Instantly, a suppressed murmur arose within the team, with everyone displaying confused and puzzled expressions.

Hasn’t that scene been investigated repeatedly?

From the year the case occurred until now, countless professionals have trodden there, collected evidence, and conducted countless reviews.

Not only has our unit, but even special teams established by the province have repeatedly organized site reviews, with every corner and trace nearly thoroughly documented and analyzed.

In a joking way, it’s said that the site is like a reheated dish that’s been cooked and stirred multiple times; do we need to fire it up anew and cook it again now?

It seemed Director Lu saw through everyone’s doubts and continued: "I understand what’s on all your minds."

"The site has indeed been investigated many times, but precisely because of that, this time we need to adopt an entirely different strategy."

"Earlier, I had a thorough discussion with the two experts sent by the Provincial Department—Director Hou and Mr. Jiang."

"We’ve all agreed that this time we’ll employ a grid system approach to the central site investigation, conducting unprecedented detailed subdivisions."

He walked to the whiteboard, drawing a clear diagram: "We’ll divide the central site into countless one-square-centimeter grids, like an invisible grid covering every inch of land."

"Each grid is an independent investigation unit, and we need to systematically extract and fully cover possible minute traces within—especially those barely distinguishable by the naked eye, such as bloodstains."

"This level of precision and breadth has never been reached by any previous investigation."

"Ten years ago, technological limitations might have overlooked or failed to detect many minute pieces of evidence,"

Director Lu’s voice was firm and powerful, "But today, we have more advanced technological means and more systematic investigation methods."

"What we need to do is return to the origin, re-examining that seemingly familiar site with today’s perspective and technology."

"Even if just one extremely faint trace is rediscovered, it could be the key to breaking the deadlock and illuminating the truth."

"Thus, this is not a mere repetition of labor but a deep excavation into historical details, a dual test of technology and perseverance."

"All of you must abandon the notion of ’this place has already been thoroughly investigated’, and go as detailed as a one-square-centimeter examination."

Hearing the specific and extreme number "one square centimeter," everyone on site fell into a short silence, followed by the realization of the enormous workload and difficulty ahead.