Chapter 1139: Two Paper Boxes
Random instances with entrances in mid-air had never appeared in Zone 014 before. The reason for reducing flights was entirely due to the increased uncontrollable factors brought by the growing number of players, and aerial rescues were extremely difficult. However, in past incidents, there had never been a case where an entire plane simply vanished while flying. So the control tower immediately reported it to the Special Defense Department. Players from the Special Defense Department arrived quickly, along with the well-informed family of that young master.
While they were putting pressure on the Special Defense Department, the player assigned to carry out the mission checked the list of registered personnel and discovered Xu Huo's name. They immediately called Team Leader Wu.
Team Leader Wu had only just locked up the people on the list Xu Huo had given him when he received word that the plane Xu Huo was on had disappeared shortly after takeoff. He felt a surge of breathlessness and quickly gathered his team to rush to the airport.
Professor Lan and the others hadn't left yet. Upon hearing the news, they repeatedly urged, "You must prioritize Xu Huo's safety above all else!"
This didn't need Professor Lan to say—Team Leader Wu was reluctant to lose a talent from Ting City. However, when he called for Nie Xuan, Nie Xuan didn't plan to go along, his reason being:
"He's got a tough life. Even if everyone in the Special Defense Department dies, he won't. I'll head to Jing City in twenty minutes."
As an ordinary person, Team Leader Wu couldn't understand the shift in a player's mindset, but Nie Xuan's changes were obvious even without a professional psychologist. Seeing him looking exhausted and harried, Team Leader Wu couldn't bring himself to offer advice. After all, compared to other players, Nie Xuan still had a time bomb strapped to him.
Moreover, this incident didn't just involve Xu Huo—it could also be the emergence of a new type of random instance. So as Team Leader Wu rushed to the airport, he requested support from headquarters. The technical department at headquarters connected with Ting City, attempting to remotely decipher the sudden situation.
While the Special Defense Department was urgently working, Xu Huo and the others on the plane remained completely unaware.
Most people were doing what they normally did when boarding a plane. But not long after, the young master sitting in the front suddenly stood up, walked a few steps into the aisle, and swept his gaze over the players in the back rows. Then he angrily said, "How dare you steal my items! Search them!"
With a single command, the four bodyguards behind him immediately stepped forward. One of them raised a Special Defense Department ID and said, "Everyone, our young master is a specially hired player for the Special Defense Department. We suspect you of stealing items. Please cooperate with the search. Otherwise, your identity information will be sent to the Special Defense Department before we land. If you end up on the Special Defense Department's blacklist, you'll have trouble moving around Zone 014 from now on."
The yellow-haired player closest to them, who had previously clashed with the young master's group over seating, was fixing his hair in a mirror. He sneered after hearing this, "Don't think having a bit of money makes you special. Forget a special hire certificate—even if you were from the Special Defense Department, so what? You think you can just put people on a blacklist? Is the Special Defense Department run by your family?"
Other players also looked up in twos and threes. One of them said, "Kid, I suggest you keep a low profile when you're out. This is on a plane. If someone dies, the Special Defense Department won't be able to save them in time."
Laughter echoed from both ends of the cabin. The young master remained unfazed. At his signal, one of the bodyguards threw a grid-pattern paper item onto the floor. Four spatial barriers, two horizontal and two vertical, divided the cabin into nine sections, trapping two or three players in each.
Before the players could get angry, the young master took off his sunglasses. "You're right—this is on a plane. If something goes wrong, it'll be hard for everyone to clean up. But the difference is, I can afford to compensate the Special Defense Department for a whole plane. If you want to land safely and not have the Special Defense Department come after you afterward, cooperate and help me find the items."
"The search process is simple. My items all have special marks. Anyone who touched them will be detected with a single scan."
He then looked at the yellow-haired player. "Let's start with you. After all, you're the most suspicious."
The yellow-haired player initially looked angry, but then calmed down. "You say jump, I say how high? Where's my face supposed to go?"
The young master's face darkened. The two bodyguards behind him immediately stepped forward, moving unimpeded through the grid barriers, and flanked the yellow-haired player on both sides.
The yellow-haired player crouched, ready for a fight. But unexpectedly, the two bodyguards didn't touch him or try to attack him. Instead, the light arcs released from their chest buttons swept over him, revealing mottled fluorescent traces on his hands and sleeves.
"Arrest him." The young master didn't bother with more words.
Seeing he couldn't deny it, the yellow-haired player suddenly flipped backward. A sharp blade between his fingers cut an opening in the barrier, and he squeezed through the gap into the next grid section.
"Get out of my way!" A tall player nearby waved his hand with an unpleasant expression, but unexpectedly, a nail clipper flew out of his sleeve. The pursuing bodyguard caught it. "Young master, this is also your item!"
The young master smiled. "Looks like there's more than one thief."
The tall player's face darkened. "What kind of crap item is that? Like I've never seen one before?"
He then grabbed the yellow-haired player by the collar. "Did you plant this on me?"
Stolen items usually weren't very useful unless the thief could kill the original owner. Besides, even if someone stole an item, they wouldn't hide it in their sleeve, let alone let it fall out—it was laughable.
This was clumsy from both the owner's and the thief's perspective, which was why the tall player immediately grabbed the yellow-haired player. Meanwhile, other players began checking themselves. One after another, several people found extra items in their clothes.
This was like poking a hornet's nest. The yellow-haired player looked panicked. After using an item to shake off the tall player, he backed away, saying, "This has nothing to do with me..."
Before he could finish, he accidentally stepped on something. Turning around, he saw it was clearly an item, dropped right at the feet of another player. That player seemed to have just woken from sleep, rubbing his temples with a tired and impatient expression.
But before the yellow-haired player could speak, the other player suddenly stopped moving and looked at him sharply.
The yellow-haired player was startled. As he backed away, he bumped into something else. Thinking another player had made a move, he glanced sideways—only to see all the players behind him stepping back, their faces ugly as they stared at him—or more precisely, at what was behind him.
Rising from behind him was a milky-white box about the size of a human head. Its texture seemed like paper, but when the yellow-haired player bumped into it, the box stood firm in the air as if rooted there. One meter away from it was another box of the same shape, but black in color.
(End of Chapter)