SFTD -Chapter 343 Rooftop Human Skin (Part 2)

Zhou Hai shook his head slightly. From appearance alone, it was really difficult to make any judgment.

Zhao Xinli squatted nearby and pointed to a raised area on the southern side of the roof.

“After my analysis just now, this spot looks more like a head.”

Following Zhao Xinli’s direction, Zhou Hai walked over.

Indeed, in shape it did resemble a spherical form. But if it were a head, then where was the hair?

Yet this thing, just like the rest of its “body,” had completely turned leathery—there wasn’t a single strand of hair left. It was exactly like Xu Biao had asked: what on earth was this thing?

Zhou Hai climbed up two steps of the ladder, then turned and grabbed it from behind, squinting carefully.

From the overall shape, it did resemble a large bird. But its size made that impossible—there was no bird like this on Earth.

His gaze slowly scanned the entire mass from south to north, eventually landing on the eastern edge near the roof eaves, where there seemed to be a ruptured opening.

Without hesitation, Zhou Hai climbed down and quickly moved toward that spot.

Seeing him approach the edge, Zhao Xinli immediately secured a safety rope to the locking ring on Zhou Hai’s waist. Wang Man on the upper level shouted for people to tighten the rope. This area was far too dangerous—one misstep on the corrugated edge could send someone sliding off instantly.

Zhou Hai, wearing heavy protective gear, struggled toward the edge.

Xu Biao also wanted to go from the opposite side, but Zhao Xinli stopped him.

“Forget it. Look up at the people above—who could even hold your weight? I’ll go with the captain.”

With that, Zhao Xinli also fastened a rope around his waist.

He gave Wang Man, who was lying prone on the roof above, an OK gesture. Wang Man nodded quickly and instructed the team to tighten the rope further.

The two of them moved carefully—one from south to north, the other from north to south—toward the middle of that mass. It was only a foot away from the roof edge, and every step had to be taken with extreme caution in rain boots; a single slip could send them falling off the corrugated roof.

After much effort, they finally reached the center. Zhou Hai squatted down directly, while Zhao Xinli stood nearby, using his leg to shield Zhou Hai’s body.

Zhou Hai used tweezers to probe a suspected rupture. The first few attempts yielded no response, but on the third try, when he lifted it, a piece of skin was suddenly peeled back. The sound of tearing leather echoed sharply, sending chills down everyone’s spine.

At that moment, everyone on both the upper and lower platforms instinctively covered their noses—the stench intensified instantly, becoming overwhelmingly strong.

Xu Biao staggered back a step and retched. He suffered from chronic throat inflammation and had extremely poor resistance to foul smells. In that instant, he desperately missed Xiao Liang—whose “anti-stink constitution” was something he truly envied.

Soon, retching sounds erupted all around from the people above as well.

Yet Zhou Hai showed no reaction at all. He grabbed the peeled edge with one hand, dropped the tweezers with the other, and reached inside directly.

Zhao Xinli, who was bracing Zhou Hai with his leg, suddenly felt his entire body go cold as goosebumps erupted. Cold sweat broke out all over him.

Time seemed to freeze.

Everyone’s eyes were fixed on Zhou Hai’s hands as he rummaged inside. After a moment, he seemed to feel two hard objects.

Zhou Hai felt a surge of excitement and quickly dug harder. His body swayed violently, causing Wang Man and the others holding the safety rope to panic and tighten it immediately.

Zhao Xinli also broke into a cold sweat, pressing his leg firmly against Zhou Hai’s back to stabilize him. After four or five attempts accompanied by scraping sounds, Zhou Hai finally pulled the two objects out.

The moment they saw them, Zhao Xinli, Xu Biao, and Da Liu all let out a breath of relief.

A human tooth—specifically a shovel-shaped incisor characteristic of humans.

And a rib bone.

This discovery was enough to confirm one thing: this was a human being—though none of them could quite believe it yet.

Zhao Xinli quickly took out an evidence bag and sealed the items. Xu Biao immediately grabbed it and passed it to Da Liu, the two of them examining it closely.

Based solely on the wear on the tooth, the person was likely not very old.

Zhou Hai stood up and raised his right hand—the same hand he had just inserted inside.

Zhao Xinli immediately turned and retched again. The movement nearly caused him to slip off the roof. Wang Man shouted while tightening the rope:

“Zhao Xinli, hold it in! Don’t throw up now—we can’t hold two people!”

At that, Zhao Xinli, who had been on the verge of vomiting, somehow managed to regain control.

He looked up briefly. Everyone above was drenched in sweat, still gripping the rope tightly. He quickly pulled Zhou Hai toward a flatter, safer area on the southern side.

Only after reaching stable ground did Xu Biao and the others finally see what was on Zhou Hai’s hand.

No wonder Zhao Xinli had reacted like that.

Xu Biao and Da Liu took one look and immediately felt their stomachs twist.

Zhou Hai’s hand was covered in yellowish grease—a sticky, gelatinous substance.

Now exposed to sunlight without the protection of the leathery “skin,” it became semi-transparent and even began to drip.

Xu Biao quickly stopped Zhou Hai, found a bag to cover his hand, then helped remove his glove. Da Liu handed him a fresh pair. After changing gloves, all four finally breathed a little easier.

Xu Biao pointed at the mass and said, “What you pulled out just now was a human incisor and a rib bone. So this thing… is a person. But how did it end up like this?”

Zhou Hai sighed and thought for a moment, then gestured at the width and length of the mass.

“This person’s skin could stretch to this size. That suggests one thing first—he was obese.”

Xu Biao immediately looked up at Zhou Hai in disbelief. Could someone literally be rendered into a human skin bag like that?

Zhou Hai ignored him and continued:

“Only with a sufficiently thick fat layer, combined with continuous exposure to high heat, could the body’s moisture rapidly evaporate. The skin would then undergo leathery transformation, sealing off insect activity and preventing surface decomposition.”

Xu Biao swallowed hard, trying to suppress the nausea, gradually understanding what he meant. He pointed tremblingly at the mass.

“You mean… he dried out like jerky, so flies didn’t touch him? And the fat turned into oil, preventing further decay?”

Zhou Hai nodded.

Xu Biao then pointed at the evidence bag. “Then what about the tooth and rib bone?”

Zhou Hai looked up toward the building above and pointed.

“If he jumped from the upper floors, he could easily land here. Captain Wang, you can start investigating the upper floors.”

Wang Man quickly pulled out a small notebook.

“What characteristics?”

Zhou Hai thought for a moment, picked up the tooth in the evidence bag, and examined it carefully.

Then he said, “Check missing persons reports. Male, obese, relatively tall, aged between 20 and 30, and likely low intelligence.”

Xu Biao paused, then blurted together with Wang Man:

“Low intelligence?”