Chapter 10

On November 25th, at 6:30 in the morning.

During the roll call, the dorm supervisor naturally noticed that Xian Xiaoxiao and her roommate were missing.

They immediately reported to Professor Tang and checked the surveillance; from the footage, no one had left the dorm after lights out.

The situation was strange, but the dorm supervisors were not detectives and wouldn't think too much about it. Now that the people were missing, they just needed to find them.

To search for these two escapees, everyone in the center, including the dorm supervisors, skipped breakfast.

Starting at 7:00 in the morning, the patients were ordered to stay in their rooms and not leave; their dorm doors were all locked. The dorm supervisors then conducted a thorough search of the entire center, checking under every bed, under every desk in every office, and every corner of every classroom.

But the result... was obviously still nothing.

For Yuzuki, it was too easy to leave with someone under the cover of night. Even if they checked all the street surveillance within a ten-mile radius, they wouldn't find their traces.

This successful escape greatly displeased Uncle Tang.

After thoroughly confirming that the two were no longer in the center, he didn't notify the parents of the escapees immediately. Instead, he gathered all the patients in the large classroom used for group therapy and prepared to give them an "extra class."

He wanted to tell the remaining patients that just because someone had escaped, they shouldn't start thinking about doing the same.

He planned to find a few people close to Xian Xiaoxiao and "treat" them for not noticing their ally's escape intentions in time.

Or, he could just randomly pick a few people... those he usually disliked or decided to shock on a whim. It was also an option.

In short, he wanted to vent because this incident made him feel his authority was being challenged.

However, at 10:00 in the morning, when all the patients were gathered and Uncle Tang stood on the podium to start speaking... something strange happened.

The patients... the children, suddenly began an organized riot.

In the early years when the center first opened, there were a few incidents where three or five teenagers banded together to attempt violent resistance or escape, but no matter how hard they tried, they were no match for the dozen or so tall and strong middle-aged dorm supervisors... so those children ultimately failed.

After such incidents occurred a few times, Uncle Tang had a plan. He continuously strengthened control and added more "treatment" clauses to nip similar incidents in the bud.

After these years of adjustments, there had been no cases of four or more people conspiring to resist for a long time.

Unexpectedly... today, a "collective rebellion" happened. Over a hundred "patients" all participated in the action, and their behavior was like they were possessed. Each one was very efficient and fearless, even if they were knocked down by the dorm supervisors' fists or electric batons, they would immediately get up and charge forward again.

If it had to be described, this was less like a human riot and more like an attack by zombies or robots.

Undoubtedly, this was the effect of the nanomachine virus...

The dorm supervisors were not controlled because they had rest and shifts, and even when on duty, they didn't eat every meal in the cafeteria.

But in such a situation, even though the dorm supervisors were not controlled, their resistance was easily crushed. When they realized the situation was out of control, their first reaction was to run. After all, for them, being a dorm supervisor was just a job, not a lifelong career, and there was no loyalty to speak of... they didn't want to risk anything for Professor Tang or the center.

Unfortunately... everything happened too quickly. If someone had turned and run at the first sign of the riot, they might have had a chance to escape, but the dorm supervisors didn't react that way... the fastest four of them, three were intercepted on the first-floor corridor leading to the main entrance, and one was caught when trying to hide in the women's restroom.

In less than five minutes, from the first to the fourth floor, all the dorm supervisors were pinned to the ground by the patients. Their faces were contorted with fear... they roared and screamed, struggling with all their might, but it was in vain. The people controlled by the nanomachine virus would not give an inch in such a struggle and would not be intimidated.

"Why are you so afraid?" After a moment, all the patients, wherever they were, spoke in unison at the same second.

This bizarre scene, as if over a hundred voices were controlled by the same will... was unbelievable, yet it was happening.

"Is it some instinct telling you that something even more terrifying than death is about to happen to you?" A few seconds later, the patients spoke in unison again, "Heh... but in reality, it might not happen, right?"

At the same time, outside the main building, in the parking lot.

Zi Lin had changed into a casual suit from somewhere, and he walked towards the main building with a leisurely pace.

At that moment, he was holding a walkie-talkie. The two sentences he had just spoken were first said into the walkie-talkie and then broadcast through the mouths of each controlled person.

"Fear is just a choice. The root of your fear is not the objective situation but the 'evil' in your hearts.

"'Sin' is equal. When you harm others, you also change yourself.

"Those who are a bit smarter can realize this; so when they plant the seeds of sin, they reflect and show reverence... even if retribution may not come, they prepare themselves mentally.

"But you people... when you switch from being the aggressor to the victim, you show this reaction, which is rather laughable, isn't it?

"Those who truly have a heart for healing and saving are not afraid, because those with firm beliefs... regardless of whether their actions are right or wrong objectively, are fearless subjectively.

"You are afraid because you know exactly what you are doing.

"Since you are willing to make a living by persecuting others, why not prepare yourself for the day when you will be consumed by evil?"

By the time he finished speaking, he had just reached the first-floor corridor and stood in front of a dorm supervisor.

"You... what do you want to do..." the dorm supervisor asked in a trembling voice.

Zi Lin looked down at him from above, his eyes not even looking at a person, not even at an animal, but at an object... a piece of... trash.

Zi Lin ultimately did not answer him. He just bent down and lightly touched the dorm supervisor's shoulder with his index finger. A second later... the dorm supervisor's body instantly turned into a puddle of liquid.

"Ahh! Ahh—" The other two dorm supervisors immediately screamed when they saw this.

But Zi Lin did not stop. The patients who were pinning down the dorm supervisors were indifferent, executing their mission like robots.

Thus, he went up floor by floor. Along the way, he turned all the subdued dorm supervisors into "corpses" with only their heads remaining, and finally... he reached the fifth floor.

Although all the electronic doors in the building were now open, the door on the fifth floor was still closed.

The corridor where the dean's office and the surveillance room were located used a different system and had an independent backup generator. Even if someone destroyed the power box outside the building, the power here could still last for a long time.

"Uncle Tang, you're quite clever, aren't you?" Zi Lin stopped in front of the electronic door and looked up at the camera above the door, "When the situation went wrong, everyone else instinctively ran downstairs, but you ran upstairs."

He spoke calmly and confidently: "You knew that at your age, in such a 'every man for himself' moment, you would likely be pushed to the back by the dorm supervisors. Even if they 'let the leader go first' and you successfully escaped the building, you could still be caught by the children on the street and beaten to death or severely injured in a short time..." He paused and continued, "Similarly, trying to escape by car is unrealistic. Even if you managed to get in the car, you would be blocked inside and couldn't drive out of the parking lot. So, running to the exit is a dead end. The real way out is to hide in the safest place in this building, call the police quickly, and wait for them to control the situation before coming out."

Every word Zi Lin said was clearly heard by Professor Tang, who was in the surveillance room, sweating profusely as he watched the surveillance footage.

"You should know by now that I am a person with abilities, but you don't know why you can't make phone calls, right?" Zi Lin continued, "Actually, you don't need to worry about that. Since the resources I have are strong enough to control over a hundred people in this center, blocking the building's communication signals is easy."

He paused again, giving Professor Tang some time to think.

"Uncle Tang, I know you are watching me in the surveillance room, and I know there is a secret room in your office... you are now considering whether to come out of the surveillance room and hide in the secret room." Each word from Zi Lin was like a wall... these walls cut off Professor Tang's retreat and choices, gradually forcing him into a corner, "Let me be straightforward... opening this door is easy for me, and opening the door to your secret room is also easy. You know the situation in this center well. Once the communication is cut off, your chances of being rescued in a short time... are very slim."

He licked his lips and smiled kindly, "Now, I give you two choices... one, you open this door yourself and let me in; two, I force the door open and come in.

"If you choose one, I will come in alone, without anyone, and all I want to do is talk to you. After the talk, I will leave.

"But if you choose two..."

He didn't finish his sentence but paused again, then added, "Oh, of course... I understand what you are most worried about; you can rest assured, I can swear... I will not kill you. Even if you choose not to open the door now, I will not kill you."

After he finished speaking, about twenty seconds later, the door... opened.

Zi Lin smiled and walked in slowly.

When he reached the middle of the corridor, Professor Tang timidly came out of the surveillance room.

"You... huh huh huh huh..." When Zi Lin approached, Professor Tang tried to say something, but he was only able to utter one word before Zi Lin suddenly pulled out an electric baton and jabbed it into his waist... he kept shocking him until he fainted, then turned off the baton.

...

Fifteen minutes later, Professor Tang woke up from his brief unconsciousness and found himself tied to the "treatment bed" in his secret room.

At that moment, Zi Lin was standing on a table, extending his arms to fiddle with something in the corner of the ceiling.

"You... you said... no..." Professor Tang mumbled half a sentence.

Zi Lin had just finished his work, put his hands down, and lightly jumped off the table, "Yes, I said 'I will not kill you,' and you are still alive, aren't you?"

Professor Tang took a deep breath and, with his still numb tongue, said, "You said... if I... opened the door myself... then..."

"Yes, I am keeping my promise," Zi Lin said, "Look, I came in alone, right? And I am indeed preparing to talk to you and leave after the talk."

"But... why did you tie me up?" Professor Tang finally managed to say a complete sentence.

"Ha..." Zi Lin laughed, "Of course, it's for your safety." As he spoke, he pushed the "treatment machine" over to Professor Tang and started connecting wires to him.

"You! What are you doing!" Professor Tang immediately shouted when he saw this.

"Because the things I want to talk about, you may not want to say, and even if you do, you might lie. So, it's best to use this machine to assist our conversation... to ensure you tell me everything you know and that it's all true," Zi Lin explained.

"You untrustworthy bastard... uh uh uh..." Professor Tang was about to curse, but his words were interrupted by the intense pain from an electric shock.

"Hmm... is this the frequency you usually use to 'treat' people..." After a round of shocks, Zi Lin said in a relaxed tone, "I must say, you half-assed people are no good... the machine has many functions, but you use it so crudely. Let me show you the difference between a master and a third-rate community college art class."

"Ha ha... do you know who my backer is?" Professor Tang panted heavily, glaring at Zi Lin.

"Ha ha... you're quick to answer..." Zi Lin chuckled, "Don't rush, I have a lot of questions. One by one." As he spoke, he quickly adjusted the settings on the treatment machine.

This attitude made Professor Tang furious: "I tell you, I don't care who you are, the forces behind me are not to be trifled with. If you dare to do anything to me... uh uh uh... ah ah ah..."

Another round of electric shocks interrupted his threats.

This time, the effects were different, with adjustments to intensity, waveform, phase, and frequency... it even gave Tang a burning sensation in his lungs.

"Hmm... not bad, the readings are quite accurate." After this round of shocks, Zi Lin muttered, looking like he was just testing, "Now, let's get serious..." He picked up a pair of pliers from the table, cut the ends of a few wires from the treatment machine, and made them into clips. Then... he started to undress Professor Tang, "Which question should I start with... hmm... let's start with an easy one..." He paused maliciously for a few seconds, smiled, and asked, "Do you think... this is a 'conversation'... or 'torture'?"

...

On November 25th, in the evening, at 18:15.

Zi Lin's "conversation" with Professor Tang was finally over.

Zi Lin was certain he had gotten all the information he wanted, and even some he didn't.

However, his mood was still not good.

Because... "Faceless" had escaped, and right under his nose.

Zi Lin's companion had sent a message in the afternoon. After checking, none of the patients controlled by the nanomachine virus were Faceless... it was impossible for him to pretend to be controlled and mix in with the crowd.

Moreover, among the dead dorm supervisors, there was definitely no Faceless, as he could not be restrained by a few ordinary people.

As for Professor Tang... if he were Faceless, he would have been exposed long ago during the day.

The two who escaped the night before, Xian Xiaoxiao and Yuzuki, were both ability users. Faceless could only disguise his appearance, not his abilities, so it was impossible for him to be them.

So, who else could it be?

After thinking it through, Zi Lin realized... the security guard at the gate was missing.

Yes, the answer was that simple, yet reasonable.

Why hadn't Zi Lin noticed any suspicious people in the center after observing for several days? Because the person was not working inside the center but was always in the gatehouse...

Since he brought his own boxed meals, Faceless was unaware of the nanomachine virus. And since the center's gate was closed at night and the gatehouse didn't require night shifts, he didn't have the chance to encounter Yuzuki and Xian Xiaoxiao's escape.

But before the incident this morning, Faceless had clearly noticed something was amiss. Most likely, Zi Lin's companions who were providing support outside were exposed... so, Faceless changed into a passerby and casually walked away.

"Sigh... he got away, and I don't know how 'that guy' will mock me when I get back..." When the "conversation" with Uncle Tang was over, Zi Lin was thinking about this.

However, he was not the type to dwell on past failures. Even if one of the two tasks he came to do failed, he would still properly wrap up the other.

Before leaving the secret room, Zi Lin first looked back at the still unconscious Professor Tang, then walked to the center of the room, looked up, and spoke to the ultra-miniature camera he had installed in the corner of the ceiling earlier.

After speaking, he walked out and left the door to the secret room open.

Soon, the communication block on the building was lifted, and the local police received an emergency call almost simultaneously.

...

At 18:36 in the evening,

A police motorcycle arrived at the entrance of the "Sunshine Youth Behavior Correction Center"...

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