Chapter 970: Awakened Lin Sanjiu
Since leaving the Munitions Factory, Lin Sanjiu's mind had been in a state of tension. It had been two days since she had a proper sleep. She had expended too much mental energy and hadn't had a chance to recover. Now, when she needed Mrs. Manas, Mrs. Manas was nowhere to be found.
She stood in the corridor, staring at the iron door, lost in thought for a few seconds.
Honestly, she had no idea why she had instinctively withdrawn her foot at the critical moment and stayed in place. There must have been something that didn't seem right, triggering her alertness...
But now was clearly not the right time to investigate the reason.
Someone had set a trap here. If she had walked into E-14 just now, she would have been trapped by more than just an ordinary iron door. Thinking about how so many lockdown ability users had been gathered on the second floor, Lin Sanjiu couldn't help but bite her lip—she had narrowly escaped a calamity, but who was targeting her?
Lyanna?
If it wasn't for that girl calling her over, she wouldn't have almost been locked inside E-14. So, did Lyanna have something to do with X?
The girl had mentioned that she was initially sent down here herself, and though it might have been a lie, Lyanna should at least know that once Lin Sanjiu discovered the trap, she would be the first to suspect her—wasn't that like delivering herself on a silver platter?
Lin Sanjiu listened intently, holding her breath, but all was silent around her. She suddenly felt envious of Luther—she wished she could split herself into three people right now, one to find Bohemia, one to find Lyanna, and the last one to stay here and see who would come to inspect the trapped prey.
Unfortunately, she couldn't do that.
She could only pick one thing to do.
In an instant, Lin Sanjiu made up her mind and quickly rushed towards the staircase. No matter who set the trap for her, they had probably already seen Bohemia by her side. That meant Bohemia was alone on the Ocean Voyager, unaware that she was in danger—regardless, she had to find Bohemia before X did!
She removed her mask, and the bloated appearance attached to her body instantly turned into air. At this point, there was no need for any more disguise.
Her shadow moved swiftly, like a flicker caught in the corner of one's eye. In just a few breaths, she reappeared in the corridor leading to the F Zone, enveloped by the wind. She could see that the doors of the elevator were opening at that moment, and a group of posthumans were peeking out from behind the doors as they conversed.
Perfect!
Just as the last person was about to come out of the elevator, Lin Sanjiu's footsteps, though light, still vibrated through the floor beneath their feet. Before they could turn around and notice her, Lin Sanjiu suddenly crouched low, her hands and feet simultaneously pushing off the ground. It was like a cheetah leaping out of the grass, soaring over their heads.
At times, she was like a cat, able to land in the most narrow and unlikely places. In the small gap between the two posthumans in front and behind her, she landed with a thud, perfectly in the middle. Right in front of her was the posthuman who hadn't had a chance to exit the elevator—suddenly, his vision darkened, and before he could understand what had happened, Lin Sanjiu slammed him into the elevator with her shoulder, causing a loud "clang" as he hit the elevator wall.
"Who's there?"
The posthumans who had just walked out of the elevator had also reacted by now. They turned around angrily and shouted, their bodies twisting. Lin Sanjiu followed the posthuman into the elevator, and the doors closed tightly, narrowing her view of the outside. Several people outside hurriedly rushed back, and one person, who was closer, kicked at the elevator door.
I've had enough, Lin Sanjiu thought.
She was tired of being like a rat trapped in a dim cage, constantly being chased around. No matter which direction she ran, she would eventually hit a wall. She had many concerns, always trying to convince herself that the Night Wanderers had nothing to do with X, even if they misunderstood her. She didn't want to harm the innocent. She always tried to identify who was working for X and who wasn't, to avoid involving anyone outside of the target— but now, she had had enough.
Her friends shouldn't have to be in danger because of Luther alone.
From this moment on, anyone standing in her way was an enemy.
With just a slight "shh" sound, smooth and gentle, it wouldn't even occur to anyone that it was a lower leg being detached from the knee. It was too fast, catching people off guard. Even the sound of metal cutting through flesh and bone barely had a chance to be heard.
A large fountain of blood suddenly splattered, as if the arteries and veins were filled with anger, instantly dyeing most of the elevator and Lin Sanjiu in blood red. As the posthuman screamed in pain and fell backward, his severed lower leg also fell. Before it could touch the elevator door, Lin Sanjiu swiftly reached out, tossing it back behind her.
The elevator doors that were closing didn't even pause.
Then, the sound of the severed lower leg hitting the ground— a distinct "thud"—clearly reached her ears.
Lin Sanjiu hadn't felt her fighting spirit ignite in a long time—she almost forgot how astonishing her combat instinct could be when it blazed. She had intentionally thrown the severed leg towards the posthuman behind her, but it missed and fell to the ground. In that split second, she raised her eyes slightly and captured the motion of the posthumans outside the elevator—their turn, their wide-open eyes, their raised hands—like scenes from a slow-motion movie, etched vividly into her vision.
Her instincts, blood, and genes made her acutely aware of what was happening.
The space inside the elevator was cramped, and she couldn't avoid it this time. In that instant, she reached out her hand, and the shadow of the card quickly flashed by—then, a long shadow swung in front and behind her, as if it had collided with something invisible in the air. The light flickered a few times, and in an instant, it vanished.
Finally, the elevator doors closed, and the blurred reflections of two people appeared on the metallic doors.
Lin Sanjiu slapped the close button, and only then did she hear the intermittent cries of pain and frantic shouts coming from behind the doors. She slightly calmed down from her fully activated combat state, took a gentle breath, and the elevator gently shook as it began to ascend.
As she turned around, she locked eyes with a man who wore an expression of astonishment.
His eyes were narrow, and now, widened, they didn't occupy much space. He wasn't fat, but his facial features were soft and indistinct, as if he were a docile domesticated animal that would submit with slight resistance. He stared at this person who had suddenly intruded into the sheepfold with a mixture of shock and confusion.
Aside from wondering why his ability to isolate had disappeared without a trace, he was probably also perplexed as to why Lin Sanjiu was holding two bath towels.
Lin Sanjiu lifted the bath towels and glanced at them, then looked up at the man.
"A lockdown ability user?" She tilted her head and smiled. "Thank you for the attack. I'll take it. It will be helpful to me."
As she spoke, both bath towels in her hands transformed back into cards. The bath towel cards, after coming into contact with abilities and absorbing the attacks, now had two additional descriptions of ability attacks—one from outside the door and one from inside the door.
True, her combat power might not be invincible, but she knew that her fighting instinct was always her most reliable companion—there was no absolute disadvantage, only whether her will was awakened.
And now, it was awakened.