Chapter 775: Watch Your Words
When Ling Mo was almost done with his second cigarette, the guard had just about finished writing.
He carefully handed the notebook over, saying, “I wrote down everything I could think of. There shouldn’t be any omissions…” His anxious mood was reminiscent of handing in an exam paper back in school, except this time the evaluator held his life in their hands, not a grade.
Ling Mo flipped through the pages quickly. Even so, by the time he looked up, the guard had already broken out in another cold sweat.
“How is it?” the guard asked with a forced smile.
“Not bad,” Ling Mo commented.
Having been stunned by Ling Mo’s “mind-reading” ability, the seemingly timid guard had finally decided to behave.
But if he had intentionally written any false information, the ever-observant Ling Mo would have noticed through his psychic fluctuation…
Hearing Ling Mo’s approval, the guard let out a breath, feeling relieved, and then asked expectantly, “So, am I…”
“No rush, there’s more business to discuss,” Ling Mo said, waving his hand.
The guard’s eyes widened instantly, “So you haven’t even gotten to the main point yet?”
At this moment, Xiao Pan looked over and saw that Ling Mo had already approached the guard and was speaking in a very low voice…
A few seconds later, Ling Mo straightened up, while the guard nodded slightly in confusion.
“Remember everything?”
“I wouldn’t dare forget…” The guard quickly nodded.
“Don’t say anything until you see the person,” Ling Mo warned again.
The guard continued to nod, “I understand.”
Xiao Pan had been watching from the side but suddenly heard this, “After smoking here for so long, has the cigarette smell confused your memory of the perfume scent?”
“What?” Xiao Pan was a bit stunned and responded in astonishment.
Ling Mo looked at him calmly and then laughed, “Looks like there’s no need to smoke anymore.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Xiao Pan replied expressionlessly.
However, when Ling Mo moved his gaze away, a flash of frustration appeared in Xiao Pan’s eyes, and his facial expression finally began to change.
He moved his lips, mouthing word: “Pervert!”
About ten minutes later, the remote building had returned to silence.
The dozen or so people who went inside seemed to have been devoured by the darkness; no sounds emerged, nor did anyone come out.
But if someone were to venture inside at this moment, they would hear faint noises at the stairwell…
“Ugh…”
The guard, his face red with effort, was trying to stretch his leg to hook a pistol lying in front of him.
Not far from him, Xiao Pan, also gagged, was struggling hard, occasionally lifting his head with great effort.
The two exchanged a glance, both looking like they were on the verge of tears.
“Come on, I have faith in you. Oh, by the way, your companions are locked downstairs. They’re not in immediate danger but they won’t be waking up anytime soon. And just in case you try to slack off, here’s a friendly reminder: if you manage to escape on your own, the consequences will be a lot lighter. Plus, with the information I’ve given you, you might even turn out to be a hero.”
The guard felt a sense of despair recalling Ling Mo’s words as he set down the pistol.
That guy was too crafty!
He said it so nicely, but couldn’t he have made it a bit easier?
However, this method was indeed the most effective for buying time. The pistol was placed in a very strategic position-Xiao Pan could barely reach it, while the guard’s toes just managed to touch it.
Thanks to the way Ling Mo had positioned it, as long as the guard persistently stretched out his leg and adjusted his contact point according to the angle, he could slowly tip the gun upright… which would make it easier for him to hook it.
But the hardest part about this… was that he couldn’t see it at all!
Only Xiao Pan could see the gun, which meant he had to perform sit-ups as much as possible, despite his whole body being restrained, and he had to do it without stopping!
During this process, they also had to communicate through eye contact.
And the time they had for this exchange was only one or two seconds!
Who can keep up such a difficult posture for so long?
They managed for a while at first, but as their strength quickly drained, the duration they could maintain the position grew shorter and shorter…
“What kind of person comes up with such a crazy idea so quickly?” the guard thought, with tears streaming down his face…
Grab the gun, send a signal!
With this in mind, the guard widened his eyes and strained his neck upward once more, while furiously stretching his leg… He was desperate to redeem himself!
…
“Are you sure your plan will work? What if things don’t go as expected?” Mu Chen asked as he followed Ling Mo along the path within the tall gra.s.s.
Ling Mo thought for a moment and said, “It’s not an absolute foolproof plan, but the success rate is pretty high, so it’s worth a try… Besides, even if it fails, at least it buys us some time tonight. The more time we can buy, the bigger our advantage. If they chase after us, the last thing they want is for the distance to widen or to lose our trail. But this is just a temporary measure; if Niepan can’t catch us, they’ll likely try something else.”
“True…” Mu Chen nodded in agreement, “They won’t just take this loss quietly.”
“Not wanting to suffer a loss may lead to a bigger one,” Ling Mo said meaningfully, but he didn’t elaborate further.
Mu Chen opened his mouth to ask more but restrained himself after glancing at the sungla.s.ses man.
“And if it does work, how long will it buy us?” Old Lan couldn’t help but interject.
He was carrying the mutation koi fish and had a constant smile of excitement on his face.
Apparently, he was eager to get to work on his research, which is likely why he suddenly cared about the timing.
Ling Mo shrugged and answered, “At most, three days…”
“That’s enough, that’s enough…”
Old Lan looked down at the vacuum-sealed bag in his hand and couldn’t help but chuckle.
Mu Chen felt a s.h.i.+ver down his spine and muttered, “Seriously, are you channeling Bear Grylls or something?”
“What? You think I don’t know who Bear Grylls is? But you’re kind of right. If we can find the parts that aren’t toxic, we could actually cook and eat them. Generally, when a creature mutates, some internal organs remain uninfected initially. If those are disinfected properly, they’re no different from regular food…” Old Lan explained seriously.
“Nothing about that sounds normal! And why are you talking like you’ve already tried it?”
“By the way, this also applies to humans among general creatures. But remember, the moment they complete the mutation, their whole body is full of the virus… hehehe…”
“Why would I need to remember that…? Also, where does your weird sense of pride come from?”
At this moment, the sungla.s.ses man, who had been rolling his eyes, suddenly showed a hint of something unusual and s.h.i.+fted his gaze to Ling Mo.
Although Ling Mo was talking to Mu Chen and Old Lan, the sungla.s.ses man had a vague feeling that Ling Mo’s gaze had swept over him, intentionally or not…
“Whimper whimper!” The sungla.s.ses man suddenly started thras.h.i.+ng wildly after freezing for a moment.
“Wham!”
Mu Chen didn’t hesitate to kick him again, “What’s your problem!”
“It’s nothing. He’s just a bit scared,” Ling Mo said suddenly.
Hearing Ling Mo’s words, the sungla.s.ses man’s face seemed to turn a bit ashen.
From Ling Mo’s look, he seemed to understand something…
Based on the intelligence provided by the guard, after Ling Mo and the others climbed over the fence, they moved along the wall for a while.
Once they were out of the surveillance range of the campus buildings, Ling Mo led them swiftly across the road.
As for those Niepan members stationed on the road, they were easily avoided.
To the two Senior Zombies, these people standing outside the campus were as noticeable as s.h.i.+ning lightbulbs; it was impossible not to notice them…
Although Yu s.h.i.+ran and the others were still inside the campus, with Ling Mo’s guidance, it was only a matter of time before they made their way out.
Seeing Ling Mo lead them through a winding path to an apartment building, Lan Lan and her father were instantly dumbfounded.
They both turned to look back at the way they came, then turned again to size up the building.
“You guys live this close?” Old Lan marveled.
Lan Lan, on the other hand, looked utterly incredulous and tentatively asked, “Are we really staying here tonight? Isn’t that too risky…? I really don’t want to get caught again. Outside is so much more fun than the laboratory, and there’s a lot more interesting collections too.”
“Right under their noses,” Ling Mo explained.
“That’s too casual an explanation! Hey!” Lan Lan still wanted to protest, but Ling Mo had already pulled Ye Lian and Xia Na inside first.
As their figures quickly disappeared from view at the entrance to the stairs, Lan Lan’s look of disbelief remained, her eyes wide open.
“Actually, we could walk slower…” Mu Chen, dragging the sungla.s.ses man along, whispered in a knowing tone.
“Why?” Lan Lan asked instinctively.
“Our captain’s nickname is the kissing maniac…” Mu Chen sighed, slowly making his way up the stairs.
Lan Lan stood there pondering for a moment, then suddenly understood and exclaimed, “Oh, I see!”
A mischievous smile formed on her lips as she sprinted upstairs, “I’m going to check it out.”
“Go ahead… Hey, wait! That’s not right! Why are you so excited about someone else kissing? I never taught you to spy on things like that. You’re still too young… Stop right there!” Old Lan, carrying the mutation koi fish, followed behind her. But unfortunately, as an ordinary old man, how could he keep up with Lan Lan, who was a superhuman with an enhancement ability…
In the stairwell, Old Lan’s growling complaints echoed continuously…