Published at 8th of October 2024 3:08 am

Chapter 1176: Originally, She Was Just a Thief…

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Lin Sanjiu was already mentally prepared, knowing that relying on a jacket with only the same color, she would eventually be discovered by the guards. She also understood that she had to act quickly and leave before being exposed.

However, what she didn’t anticipate was that from the moment she entered the left side of the T-shaped corridor until she finally escaped from the corridor, all her actions and reactions happened within just 2.6 seconds.

For Lin Sanjiu, who was completely immersed in an extreme state, when the gaze of the fifth group of guards fell on her for an instant, it felt as if she was being scanned by a laser beam, and even the hairs on her back stood up. In that very moment, her brain had already swiftly completed a series of complex operations, such as gathering information, searching the corridor, and making decisions—in her perception, she just subconsciously made a decision.

In that brief moment, she saw the sign on the wall at the T-junction with arrows pointing left and right. The right arrow read “Procurement Department,” and the left arrow pointed to “Medical Records and Information Management Department”—which was the corridor she was currently in.

This corridor had more than one door, probably all belonging to offices under the “Medical Records and Information Management Department.” When Lin Sanjiu took the first step along with the guard in front of her, she slightly raised her eyes and noticed the nearest office door, about two meters away, to her front right.

The fourth group of guards, also six in number, was divided into three rows, and the first two rows had already passed by the office door. Each group of guards had different ways and timings of checking the rooms, and it seemed that this group had no intention of going inside at the moment they passed the room.

At this moment, from the corridor behind the Procurement Department, the gazes of the fifth group of guards swayed back and forth on her back like searchlights. Even though they were separated by nearly two entire corridors and a considerable distance, seeing figures with similar height and clothing from a distance would make anyone slightly doubtful. They might even casually turn their heads away without paying too much attention. Lin Sanjiu didn’t dare hope for such good luck. She only hoped for a brief moment of doubt.

“Huh?”

From the faraway distance, a low and unclear grumbling sound came from the fifth group of guards. It sounded like it was coming from underwater. In the half-second before it was cut off, they hadn’t managed to articulate specific words, but the unmistakable confusion and doubt were already evident in their voices. They didn’t scan their surroundings anymore, and more of their gazes were now focused on her back.

They became suspicious too quickly!

Lin Sanjiu increased her speed, taking the second step forward. This time, her stride was longer, and her pace was quicker. In the blink of an eye, she had closed half the distance to the office door.

However, just as she was about to reach out her arm and grab the doorknob, the last two guards in the row happened to be walking toward the office door, and she couldn’t reach it. At this very moment, someone from the fifth group of guards stared at her back and slightly opened their mouth. A cry of “Ah!” suddenly burst out from between their lips.

Lin Sanjiu knew she had no time left.

Everything seemed to move in slow motion, and even that cry of surprise seemed incredibly prolonged. Amidst this changed background sound, the moment her second step landed on the ground, she swiftly shot forward and dived straight towards the door of the office.

Usually, if someone suddenly screamed beside you, by the time you turned around to look, the scream would have most likely ended already. The duration of the scream was too short for the fourth group of guards to react in time, and naturally, they didn’t have time to turn their heads to look beside them—

Unless, they had already intended to turn around. As Lin Sanjiu’s fingers closed around the doorknob and turned, the last two guards of the fourth group happened to twist their bodies towards her, seemingly intending to check the office. When they saw an extra back at the door, they were momentarily stunned.

The door smoothly opened.

She had watched the guards check the rooms so many times and knew that the room doors were not locked. With a quick glance over her shoulder, Lin Sanjiu saw that the two guards unintentionally looked at each other before their colleague, which meant that someone unfamiliar was standing at the door. At last, the distant exclamation became a substantive content, “There’s someone!”

The six guards from the fourth group suddenly awakened, and various exclamations erupted from their dark faces. Their footsteps screeched on the floor as several hands reached out towards Lin Sanjiu like branches of a tree. However, at that moment, she had already slipped into the gap of the door. She didn’t even have time to steady herself or turn around; as soon as she entered the room, she lifted her leg and kicked backward with force. The hand that had reached into the gap was instantly caught and let out a miserable cry, quickly retracting.

Seizing the opportunity, Lin Sanjiu used her shoulder to forcefully push the door closed.

The loud ‘bang’ shook the wall, raising a cloud of dust. 2.1 seconds had just passed.

As she hurriedly locked the door, the outside erupted with angry shouts, warning signals, footsteps, intercom conversations, and banging on the door, as if a pot had been set ablaze and boiling water had exploded, with even the alarm once again tearing through the air. “Fugitive found! Fugitive found in the Medical Records Department!”

The guards outside were indeed of at least medium posthuman level. With just a few strikes, the lock in the doorknob sounded as if it was about to give way, looking as if it could be easily abandoned.

Lin Sanjiu didn’t even have time to look back into the office; using all her strength, she grabbed the doorknob with both hands, planted one foot on the ground, and resisted the continuous impact from at least three or four guards outside. Although she had recovered some of her stamina through resting, she was far from her peak state—she wished Hei Zeji hadn’t been lost!

“Items,” Mrs. Manas was flustered, “items, any items.”

“No!” Lin Sanjiu shouted in a highly tense state. Then she switched to her internal monologue,

‘I don’t have any Special Item that can seal the door!’

Wait, hold on. She quickly scanned the office, and in the dim light, she vaguely felt that her idea might work. If there was no suitable Special Item, she still had appropriate regular items.

Lin Sanjiu suddenly relaxed her grip, took a big step back from the door, and with a palm strike, slammed the door. The door panel immediately vibrated intensely, as if it was about to shatter into pieces. She didn’t dare to waste time and quickly withdrew her hand.

The card that had been slapped onto the door suddenly converted into a huge container.

With a heavy thud, it fell to the floor, crushing many light tubes on the ceiling. Like raindrops, shattered fragments flew everywhere. During the process of the card’s conversion, the container crushed many office desks and chairs, even causing the floor to fracture and deform due to bearing the sudden weight of dozens of tons. As for the office door, it had long been firmly sealed shut, and no matter how much force the guards outside used, they couldn’t find even a tiny gap.

Lin Sanjiu stood next to the container, her heart pounding like a drum, causing her eardrums to echo with a buzzing sound.

Even if the guards outside tore down the door, the entire door frame was firmly blocked by the container. She would have at least some time to think about what to do next. While pondering, she turned around.

Being in the basement of the hospital, her original vision was already poor and unclear enough, but she could still see several meters away in the chaotic mist. However, perhaps because all the light tubes had been shattered, there was no light in the room now. She lost even the visibility of those several meters; wherever her eyes scanned, there was only dense darkness.

She couldn’t even see if there was anyone in this room.

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A flashlight was of no use in this place, and if there really was someone in the room, shining a flashlight would not help her; instead, it would expose her to the other person. She had no choice but to use one hand to support the container while feeling her way step by step between the narrow gap between the container and the wall, trying her best not to make any sound by stepping on broken fragments.

On her next step, a ‘squish’ sound came, and she seemed to have stepped on something wet. Lin Sanjiu slowly bent down, extending her hand to touch a warm, sticky liquid on the ground.

The smell of blood assailed her nostrils.

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