Chapter 134: Genius Hacker, Terror Like This

The surveillance shows no trace of hacker intrusion.

The video feed also lacks any obvious gaps.

Only some minor details are off.

Thus, under normal circumstances, no one would notice the footage had been tampered with.

Even a hacker inspecting it wouldn't spot it.

But because of a single remark from Li Chen, Xu Mo's move was ruined.

After all, when the police review surveillance, they usually fast‑forward to save time.

Who would think someone would not only refuse to fast‑forward, but painstakingly scrutinize every frame without missing a detail?

"The footage was cut?" Han Fei said, excitement evident in his tone.

He thought a professional hacker is worlds apart from the half‑baked tech staff at the police.

He could spot the problem in an instant!

"Right," Wuya replied, "I initially missed the trace of Xu Mo's intrusion, so I assumed he hadn't hacked the surveillance."

"Later I examined it again and noticed a detail: between 10:38:26 and 10:38:27, a leaf on the ground vanished halfway out of thin air, proving the footage was cut."

"At first glance the video seemed fine because Xu Mo's technique was sophisticated: he left no intrusion trace and didn't tamper with the entire clip, only swapped a tiny segment, a detail that's hard to detect."

"That leaf is the flaw. I guess the leaf might have been blown away by wind, or displaced by the airflow when they left, or even kicked away as they walked, but that's irrelevant. The point is… if my guess is correct, Xu Mo likely left the Welfare Institute around 10:38:27."

"Uncle Han, hold on a moment; I'll try to restore that segment of video."

Wuya said that while beginning the operation.

Now that we know the issue, we can address it directly.

For a hacker, completely deleting or replacing a surveillance segment so it can't be recovered isn't difficult.

But it requires ample time.

Obviously, Xu Mo was busy fleeing and didn't have that much time.

Wuya believes Xu Mo could at most tinker with the footage while on the run, but certainly lacked time to fully delete or replace the video.

For a top‑tier hacker like him, restoring a segment that hasn't been fully erased only takes time.

Of course, the prerequisite is knowing which time window was tampered with.

Ten minutes later.

Wuya successfully restored that footage.

"Done, Uncle Han. He did leave during that interval; I've extracted the video and sent it to your email—take a look."

"Great!" Han Fei exclaimed, his face alight with excitement.

He opened his email and reviewed the clip.

In the footage, Xu Mo and his group said a few words beside a white Big G, then boarded and drove away.

They headed due north.

In fact, Han Fei wasn't the only one thrilled.

Wuya felt a hint of excitement too.

Come to think of it, Xu Mo is one of the few hackers who could fool him.

If he hadn't later examined the footage so meticulously, he might actually have been duped by Xu Mo.

He's an interesting opponent.

He was almost eager to locate Xu Mo's hideout.

After sending that clip to Han Fei,

Wuya resumed his work.

North of the Welfare Institute, about 2.5 km of straight road leads to a three‑way intersection.

Driving that distance takes roughly five to eight minutes.

He examined the footage for the time corresponding to that three‑way intersection.

He again identified the issue and restored the problematic several‑second segment of Xu Mo's drive through the intersection.

Then he repeated those steps…

Almost every ten‑plus minutes, Han Fei received another clip.

The Water Friends in the Live Broadcast Room were left stunned.

"Is this the surrendered genius hacker? Terrifying as this…"

"Whoa, this kid's awesome! He can't really pinpoint Xu Mo's location, can he?"

"Be confident; he'll definitely find him—just a matter of time."

"I told you Xu Mo doesn't have Wuya's skill—got found in an instant."

"Bro, you forgot—these footages were hacked by Zhou Qiaoqiao, not Xu Mo. Xu Mo only taught her the method. The fact that they were found due to some detail flaws only shows Zhou Qiaoqiao's technique is lacking; it doesn't prove Xu Mo is inferior to Wuya."

"No way—if Xu Mo were worse than Wuya, the fact they were found would mean his teaching method is flawed!"

"I think Xu Mo's instruction is fine; it's Zhou Qiaoqiao's operational mistake. Even a calculus teacher teaches integration—did you get it? I want to ask, if you didn't understand, is that your problem or the teacher's?"

"wqnmd! What the heck, go argue on a construction site!"

"66666, you can't argue so you resort to insults? Getting angry?"

"Seriously, locating Xu Mo is useless; he also has an Alarm Program. Even if you find his hideout, what then? As soon as the Investigation Team gets near Yunqi Rose Garden, Xu Mo can detect them and slip away."

"……"

Not only the Water Friends in the Live Broadcast Room, but even the three remaining members of the Investigation Team were baffled.

Looks like the external support Han Team brought in really has something!

The police's tech staff would need an entire night to restore that video.

This person can restore one in about ten minutes!

Among the three, the most clueless is Li Chen.

He decides to retract his previous remark.

The external support that Han Team brought in isn't bad at all; on the contrary, it's damn good!

It should be only a short while before they locate Xu Mo's hideout.

……

Yunqi Rose Garden.

After Xu Mo's party investigated the Exhibition Event thoroughly, they rushed back immediately.

At this moment, Xu Mo is sitting on the sofa, staring at the map drawn by An Youyi that lies flat on the coffee table.

He studies the map while sorting through the information he's gathered.

Because the System exists as a cheat, many seemingly thorny problems are actually easy to solve.

Xu Mo has System Space, and with this tool's help, whether it's smuggling regulated knives in or taking a stolen gem out, it's no problem.

Moreover, security screening can't detect it at all.

As for the Display Cabinet's lock, he can open it with Divine-level Lockpicking Technique.

Don't overestimate the Electronic Lock; although it's driven by electronic components and looks very high‑end.

But in the face of Divine-level Lockpicking Technique, it's still insignificant.

After all, the internal pin‑tumbler structure of any lock is largely the same.

Electronic locks are no exception; as long as you pry the bolt controlled by the electronic components, you can open it.

Regarding the escape after the heist, Xu Mo can either stash the gem in System Space and stride out through the main gate, or open the unlocked doors that have no guards and leave that way.

These issues aren't really problems at all.

What truly counts as a problem are the security guards scattered throughout the Exhibition Venue and the offline electronic eyes.

To steal the gem without leaving a trace, two conditions must be met simultaneously.

First, evade the guards' eyes.

Second, ensure the surveillance can't capture him.

But satisfying both at once demands extremely high hand speed.

He must open the Display Cabinet's lock, extract the Blue Sapphire inside, stash it into System Space, and close the cabinet—all within tens or even a few hundredths of a second.

But how long must one train to achieve such speed?

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Nothing else, good night Makabaka~