S.C.I. (Volume I) - Case 5: Chapter 8

The Doppelganger Killer 08 - Black and White

As soon as Eugene's words left his mouth, quite a few people found it hard to believe, and the big man in particular curled his lip, sizing Bai Yutang up from head to toe with a look of utter disdain.

Bai Yutang's proportions and stature were truly exceptional, but because he always preferred wearing head-to-toe white, he invariably looked neat and pristine. Combined with his striking looks, his initial impression was more that of a wealthy young master. Everyone here fighting in the underground cage matches was a brawny, thick-limbed bruiser, and even those doing sanda all looked hardened and solidly built. Consequently, nobody had taken Bai Yutang seriously at first; in fact, they mostly thought it would be a shame if such a handsome face got beat up.

Yet that big man had been thoroughly provoked by Eugene's remark. Being naturally crude fellows to begin with, and further agitated by the effects of that strange fragrance, he grew even more ferocious. He ripped his boxing gloves off, threw them to the ground, and lunged forward with a wild haymaker aimed straight at Bai Yutang's face.

Zhan Zhao stood watching from behind as Bai Yutang didn't even flinch. When the big man's fist came within a hair's breadth of his bridge, he tilted his head ever so slightly... Catching that slight evasion, everyone watching sucked in a sharp breath, instantly realizing that this guy was a professional-tier fighter...

Boxing emphasizes total control over momentum, meaning any punch thrown must be capable of being pulled back. The big man was an amateur who relied entirely on brute strength, throwing this punch with every ounce of his power. Seeing that he missed, he hurriedly tried to haul his fist back, but with his massive weight and heavy momentum, it wasn't something he could just check on command, causing him to lunge heavily forward. Bai Yutang sidestepped his upper body, and before the brute's supporting foot could even touch the ground, he snapped his shoulder back, raised his left hand, and delivered a devastating strike right to the upper region of the big man's stomach.

When the blow landed, it made almost no sound at all, yet everyone clearly saw the big man's body snap upward. His mouth flew open, he spewed a mouthful of bitter fluid, and he froze rigidly in place.

Bai Yutang stepped aside, and the big man toppled straight over, maintaining that exact posture as he hit the floor, his body twitching faintly before he lost all ability to get back up.

Zhan Zhao glanced down at him, thinking to himself: What a relief—Bai used his left hand. If he'd used his right, the guy might actually have been crippled for life.

The crowd fell silent for a few seconds before Eugene let out another whistle from the upper level, triggering a flurry of murmurs and gasps of astonishment among the onlookers.

"Hey!" At that moment, a tattooed, bald man standing near the boxing ring called out. He tossed a pair of gloves over to Bai Yutang, vaulted across the guardrail, dropped out of the ring, and walked up to face Bai Yutang. He clapped his fists together a couple of times and tilted his chin at Bai Yutang, signaling that he was up next!

Bai Yutang caught the gloves and eyed the bald man. Someone nearby muttered, "He's our strongest fighter here, Pale Face, you'd better watch out."

Hearing this from the back, Zhan Zhao raised an eyebrow, thinking that no matter how strong the guy was, he couldn't possibly be stronger than Bai. He stepped forward to help Bai Yutang strap on the boxing gloves and murmured softly, "Go get 'em, Bai!"

Looking rather helpless, Bai Yutang shook his head, thinking this cat truly loved creating chaos. He turned back and gave the bald man a nod.

The bald man retreated backward a few steps, bided his time, and opened with a lightning-fast straight punch. His hand speed was formidable, and his frame wasn't as clumsy as the previous giant's, sending a punch straight toward Bai Yutang's face. This time, Bai Yutang didn't just tilt his head; he sidestepped and set his footwork in motion. Watching Bai Yutang glide fluidly to his flank with such nimble footwork, the bald man wondered: Could this guy actually be a professional? Just as doubt crept into his mind, he heard Bai Yutang chuckle softly. "Hey, watch yourself."

Startled, the bald man snapped his head up, only to feel a rush of fierce wind as Bai Yutang's fist stopped right before his nose. Pulling his punch short, Bai Yutang curled the corner of his mouth into a smile. "I told you to watch yourself."

Feeling that he had lost face—especially since he was reputed to be the top boxer around here—the bald man let out an angry roar and unleashed a hook aimed right at Bai Yutang's jaw. Yet fast as his punch was, Bai Yutang dodged even faster! Sidestepping inward, Bai Yutang stepped forward, flicked his left hand to draw the bald man's line of sight away, and seized the opening to drive his right fist straight into the bridge of the bald man's nose...

Zhan Zhao crossed his fingers mentally, praying: God protect him, thank goodness he was wearing gloves. Hope the guy doesn't get a concussion.

The bald man wobbled in place twice, looking completely dazed before his legs turned to jelly and he collapsed onto the floor.

Zhan Zhao quietly counted down for him: "Nine... ten... eleven!!"

Many spectators present stared at one another in disbelief, hardly able to credit that Bai Yutang had so effortlessly defeated the club's premier fighter.

Up above, Eugene watched with surging interest, leaning over to comment to a sanda practitioner beside him, "Boxing probably isn't even his best specialty."

Bai Yutang glanced up at Eugene with a faint smile. "Want to come down and try?"

Eugene raised an eyebrow, turned around to exchange a few words with someone in the shadows, then turned back to shrug with a trace of regret. "I'd love to, but the boss won't allow it. What can you do?"

"I'll trade a few moves with you." A foreigner dressed in black leather trousers stepped forward. Watching the man's bare, bronze-oiled torso gleam with impossibly defined muscles, Zhan Zhao thought to himself: I should make Bai put on some tanning oil next time and see how he compares—he'd probably look a lot better than this guy.

Noticing that the man was taking a sanda stance, Bai Yutang walked back over to Zhan Zhao. Zhan Zhao helped him untie the boxing gloves, murmuring quietly, "Take down one more and that should be enough. One of the managers already went inside just a moment ago."

Nodding slightly, Bai Yutang slipped off the gloves, loosened up his joints, and strode toward the sanda-practicing foreigner.

Zhan Zhao mused silently: Foreigner, oh foreigner, you're just asking for trouble. If you're going to fight Bai, do anything except sanda—he's a champion, a literal champion!

After exchanging a nod with Bai Yutang, the foreigner lunged forward without the slightest courtesy, unleashing a ferocious flying kick. Bai Yutang raised an arm to block it, then drove his elbow down sharply against the man's shinbone. The foreigner winced in pain, caught entirely off guard by the unorthodox move and struck in a spot that left his entire body aching with a bone-chilling numbness.

Only Zhan Zhao understood why Bai Yutang's sanda was so formidable: it was because he was utterly ruthless, specializing in strikes targeted directly at pressure points and nerve clusters. Normally, disabling someone through sheer blood loss or exhausting their stamina until they lost the ability to resist took a tremendous amount of time—that was true for ordinary people, let alone professionally trained fighters. Aside from sheer passion, Bai Yutang practiced sanda primarily to subdue criminals, meaning his techniques prioritized ruthlessness, precision, and speed. He had even dedicated time to studying human anatomy and pressure points, knowing precisely where to strike to instantly rob an opponent of their ability to react and end a fight in the shortest time possible.

The spot Bai Yutang had just struck with his elbow was the inner side of the foreigner's shinbone. Forget taking a violent blow there—even pressing down on it firmly with standard force hurt intensely. Wincing and baring his teeth in agony, the foreigner paused for a split second, and in that fleeting window, Bai Yutang launched a Taekwondo-style side kick that connected squarely with the side of the man's head. Though he hadn't put maximum force behind it, it was more than enough to send the foreigner flying backward crashing into the surrounding crowd, bowling over a whole cluster of onlookers.

Zhan Zhao cast a sympathetic glance at him, thinking: Look at that. Every single top expert in the entire police department has challenged Bai Yutang to solo spars, and every single one of them ended up face-down on the mat in under three moves.

Right at that moment, the crisp clicking of high heels rang out from the iron staircase connecting to the second floor. A woman clapped her hands softly as she descended, calling out with a smile, "Impressive. Truly lives up to the reputation. If you gentlemen would honor me with your presence, please come upstairs for a chat."

The woman walking down wore a short black slip dress. Her figure was exceptional, and though she was in her early thirties and her features weren't conventionally pretty, she possessed a chilling, seductive elegance that carried a distinct allure.

Both Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang were startled, for this was none other than the boss of the East District, Chen Jie.

Bai Yutang turned to exchange a look with Zhan Zhao, then followed Chen Jie up to the second floor.

"Phew—" Seeing the two men follow Chen Jie into the second-floor reception room, Eugene let out a breath and retreated back into his private box. Turning around, he muttered, "Good thing I didn't go down there earlier, or I would've lost face in a major way. How did you know I couldn't beat him?"

The other person sitting in the inner corner of the box didn't acknowledge him, resting his chin in his hand as if lost in a trance. After a long silence, he spoke almost to himself, "Because his surname is Bai."

"So what if his surname is Bai?" Eugene walked over with a curious grin. "Do you know other people named Bai?"

The man smiled faintly, the delicate nasolabial folds around his mouth deepening a fraction. Fixing his gaze on Eugene's eyes, he said slowly, "Black and white oppose one another. If you're on the side of black, never provoke white, or your end will be unimaginably miserable."

"What does that mean?" Eugene grinned ingratiatingly, leaning in a bit closer to catch the faint scent of lilies drifting from the man's hair.

"Both black and white are born that way; you can't change it." The smile on the man's face grew richer, yet his gaze remained ice-cold. "Where there is white, black cannot be tolerated; where there is black, white cannot be tolerated—everyone yearns for white and loathes black. This world is just that unfair!"

...

Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao followed Chen Jie into the second-floor office. Politely inviting the two to sit down, Chen Jie lit a cigarette and said, "If I'm not mistaken, you must be Captain Bai and Dr. Zhan..."

The two exchanged glances, and Zhan Zhao nodded at Chen Jie. "Let's cut straight to the point. We want to review the surveillance footage of this place."

Chen Jie paused for a fraction of a second before breaking into a smile. "Does Dr. Zhan possess magical eyes of discernment? How did you know I have surveillance here, considering I use pinhole cameras hidden entirely inside the walls?"

Bai Yutang smiled. "Wherever there are gambling rings, there is surveillance."

"Sigh..." Chen Jie stubbed out her cigarette, let out a soft sigh, and said, "Just the fact that the two of you came here in person means I can't afford not to give you this face." With that, she nodded to a subordinate standing nearby.

The subordinate picked up a remote control, walked over to the wall, and pulled back a heavy set of curtains. Beneath the drapes weren't windows at all, but a massive multi-split screen displaying real-time monitoring feeds from every corner of the Kingdom of Dark Night's underground fighting club.

"Rewind the tape," Chen Jie instructed her subordinate, turning her gaze back to Bai Yutang. "I heard this case was already handed over to Lan Chenglin to investigate. Why is Captain Bai still taking an interest?"

Bai Yutang shook his head. "What we're investigating isn't that case."

"Oh—" Chen Jie nodded, pressing no further.

The footage on the screen began rolling backward. Pointing to an image of Loach appearing on screen, Bai Yutang asked, "What is this child's background?"

"Hmm?" Chen Jie shook her head to indicate she didn't know, looking toward her subordinate. "Go call Weiyong in here."

The subordinate left, and shortly afterward, a middle-aged man in a suit walked in. "Boss, you called for me?"

Chen Jie nodded, introducing him to Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao. "His name is Weiyong. He basically oversees this venue. You can ask him if you need anything."

Weiyong nodded eagerly, wearing a deferential expression. "Yes, yes, is there anything the two officers would like to ask?"

"Who is that kid?" Bai Yutang pointed at Loach on the monitor once more.

"Oh, he washes dishes here," Weiyong answered with a smile. "His name is Luoyang, nickname Yangyang. He's the son of one of our brothers who passed away. His old man died and his mom ran off, leaving him with nobody to claim him. Our group of brothers chips in to help look after him, and he usually just helps out by washing dishes and running errands."

Bai Yutang nodded. "I'd like to have a quick word with him."

"Certainly, he lives just outside," Weiyong said. "The first house in the alley right behind the club is his place. I'll take you there."

"Hold on a moment." Zhan Zhao suddenly stopped Weiyong as he was about to head out, pointing at the surveillance monitor. "Bai, does this person look familiar to you?"

Bai Yutang stepped closer and froze. In the freeze-frame captured by Zhan Zhao, a crowd of spectators could be seen watching the fights with intensely excited and passionate expressions. However, standing hidden near the back of the crowd was a single individual whose demeanor contrasted sharply with everyone else's. Instead of fiery excitement, he appeared completely cold, and... he was dressed entirely in black with a full, bushy beard—precisely the man who had bumped into Bai Yutang outside the concert venue.

…………………………

When Gongsun returned home, he found the living room lights turned off, though the door to the study was left ajar, casting a faint stream of light through the crack. Gongsun switched on the living room lights and took off his coat. Normally, if Bai Jingtang were home, he would come out to check the moment he heard sounds. What was wrong today?

A friend had recently gifted him a bottle of fine red wine. Carrying the bottle and pulling two wine glasses from the cabinet, Gongsun walked toward the study.

Pushing the door open, he lifted his head...

With a sharp clank, the wine glasses and bottle slipped from his fingers, shattering across the floor—he saw Bai Jingtang leaning back against his chair with his head tilted upward, the desk lamp glowing brightly, and casting a shadow against the wall right behind him.

Hearing the crash, Bai Jingtang, who had originally intended to pull a prank, hurriedly opened his eyes. Seeing Gongsun standing frozen by the doorway with wide, staring eyes, he instantly realized... his joke had gone too far.