Chapter 502 - 242: King of the Sky, Move Out

Chapter 502: Chapter 242: King of the Sky, Move Out

"This..."

Chen Jifeng gritted his teeth. "Alright then. Thank you for your hard work, Advisor Yang. Director Yao and the members of the special task force are waiting in the conference room."

With that, Chen Jifeng turned to the side and led the way.

"SCREEE—"

A piercing shriek from a bird of prey, sharp enough to split clouds and shatter stone, suddenly tore through the air from high above.

The sound was so close and so sharp that Chen Jifeng and the two officers with him jumped, instinctively looking up.

There, above the city bureau’s courtyard, a majestic Beaked Eagle with an astonishing wingspan spread its broad wings, descending slowly with an imperious air.

Its lightning-sharp eyes swept across the ground below, filled with the majesty of the King of the Sky.

The current from its wings made the leaves on several nearby evergreens RUSTLE.

"What a huge bird!"

"Is that a vulture? Or an eagle?"

"What’s a big bird like that doing here?"

The police officers and civilian staff in the courtyard, and even passersby, were all stunned by the sudden appearance of the raptor over the city bureau. Everyone stopped in their tracks, crying out in amazement.

Chen Jifeng was also stunned. Then, as if remembering something, he snapped his head toward Yang Qi, his eyes filled with shock and uncertainty.

Yang Qi looked up and made a simple gesture to the Beaked Eagle, Qi Zai, in the sky, pointing to a thick evergreen tree.

Qi Zai immediately let out another short cry, then tucked in its wings. In one smooth, gliding dive, it landed precisely on the tree.

It folded its wings, raised its head, and puffed out its chest. Its sharp eyes calmly scanned the stunned crowd as if inspecting its own territory.

The branch dipped slightly under its considerable weight, but the bird stood as steady as a mountain.

The scene silenced the entire city bureau courtyard for several seconds. You could have heard a pin drop.

Everyone, including Chen Jifeng and the officers behind him, stared dumbfounded at the majestic Beaked Eagle in the tree, then back at the calm-faced Yang Qi, their minds struggling to process what they were seeing.

’This... This massive bird of prey was brought here by this Expert Yang?’

’And it’s so obedient?’

’He tells it to land, and it just... lands...’

Chen Jifeng swallowed hard, and the way he looked at Yang Qi completely changed.

He had only heard that this expert could communicate with animals and was highly skilled, but to personally witness such a majestic bird of prey obeying commands like a common pigeon... the visual impact was indescribable.

"Captain Chen, this is my other assistant, Horn Carved Qi Zai. It will help us search and observe from the air. Don’t worry, it’s very obedient and won’t harm anyone."

Yang Qi explained to Chen Jifeng, his tone casual as if he were talking about something perfectly ordinary.

"A-Assistant..."

Chen Jifeng felt his tongue twist into a knot. The two young officers behind him looked like their eyes were about to pop out of their sockets.

’Bringing a cat as an assistant was strange enough, but bringing a living, breathing Beaked Eagle that can fly as an assistant, too?’

"Let’s go, Captain Chen. We shouldn’t keep Director Yao and the others waiting," Yang Qi reminded him.

"Oh, oh, right, right. This way, please. This way."

Chen Jifeng snapped back to his senses and quickly led the way, but he couldn’t help glancing back at Qi Zai in the tree, his heart pounding.

’With this kind of "assistant" on our side, maybe there’s really hope this time?’

The group walked into the office building, leaving behind a crowd of police officers in the courtyard who were still recovering from their shock, pointing and murmuring about the Beaked Eagle in the tree.

Soon, news that a wonder-worker who could command eagles had arrived at the city bureau spread like wildfire throughout the Yuanzhou City Public Security Bureau.

...

Chen Jifeng led Yang Qi to a large conference room on the third floor.

Pushing the door open, they entered a room thick with cigarette smoke. A dozen or so people with grim expressions sat around a long conference table. A map of the West Mountain District hung on the wall, marked with six jarring red dots and several arrows.

At the head of the table sat a man in his fifties with a square jaw and a naturally imposing aura. This was Yao Zhenwei, the deputy director in charge of criminal investigation and the head of the special task force.

When they saw Chen Jifeng enter with a young man—who had a black cat perched on his shoulder—everyone in the conference room froze for a moment, their eyes landing in unison on Yang Qi.

"Director Yao, leaders, this is the animal behavior expert from the Donghua City Bureau, Yang Qi, Advisor Yang. Advisor Yang, this is our Director Yao, the head of the special task force. These are the core members of the task force..." Chen Jifeng quickly made the introductions.

Yao Zhenwei stood up, sizing up Yang Qi as he extended a hand. "Advisor Yang, welcome. It must have been a long trip. The situation is urgent, so let’s skip the pleasantries. I assume Captain Chen has already briefed you on the basic situation. We’re at a complete loss right now. We’re hoping you can give us a breakthrough."

Yang Qi shook Yao Zhenwei’s hand. It was a firm grip, the palm calloused and rough.

"You’re too kind, Director Yao. I’ll do my best. Time is of the essence. I’d like to first see the most critical surveillance clips, as well as the latest detailed map of the demolition area on the west side of the West Mountain District."

"Good. Xiaoliu, bring up the videos and the map immediately," Yao Zhenwei ordered, decisive as ever.

Soon, several processed surveillance video clips began to play on the large screen at the front of the conference room.

The first clip showed a little boy in a blue padded jacket, kicking a ball by himself on a quiet old street.

Suddenly, he stopped and looked up at the sky. A curious smile appeared on his face, and he even waved his hand.

The camera zoomed in, and you could just barely make out a rainbow lorikeet perched on the eaves of a roof diagonally above the boy. Its feathers were brightly colored, and it was a full size larger than a common parrot.

The parrot seemed to tilt its head at the boy, then fluttered its wings and flew toward the street corner.

The boy hesitated for a moment, then actually dropped his ball, jogged after the parrot, and disappeared from the camera’s view.