Chapter 143: Sudden Fire, Exhibition Event Power Cut

Feeling the force on his shoulder, Xu Mo was a little flustered.

After all, he was here to steal something.

Few people can do bad deeds without any nervousness.

Especially when, before committing the crime, someone suddenly patted him on the back.

In such a situation, even the most mentally steady person would lose composure.

Even Xu Mo, a Lawless Rogue accustomed to great turmoil, is no exception.

At this moment, his heartbeat was a bit faster than usual.

Xu Mo even wondered whether he had shown a flaw.

No… impossible.

Xu Mo's Disguise technique is now very proficient; after disguising, he examined himself carefully in the mirror, and no one could possibly recognize him after the Disguise.

Moreover, his behavior after entering the Exhibition Event matched that of other visitors, with nothing suspicious.

Thinking of that, Xu Mo's uneasy heart calmed again.

He slowly turned around, wanting to see who had just patted him.

After turning, Xu Mo saw a young man wearing glasses, now smiling as he stared at him.

Xu Mo frowned.

He could be certain he absolutely did not know this person, not even having seen him before.

The next second, the Glasses Boy spoke: "Zhang Wei! I sensed it was you from afar, didn't expect it to be true. Why didn't you go to the last class reunion?"

Xu Mo: "…"

He was so nervous just now!

He even wondered if he had been discovered.

Who knew, this damn guy was just a random passerby.

Because he had Disguised himself as a common face, the kid mistook him.

Still Zhang Wei?

You're the one who's Zhang Wei!

Your whole family is Zhang Wei!

"Sorry, you have the wrong person," Xu Mo said helplessly.

"Impossible to be wrong! My memory is excellent," the Glasses Boy retorted at first.

Then he pointed at himself: "You don't remember me? Li Yi, we were the school's darlings back then, you were the bottom of the class, I was second to last, the homeroom teacher hoped we would drop out and not embarrass him, haha…"

Reuniting with an old friend, the Glasses Boy looked extremely happy, talking nonstop.

Xu Mo, however, felt a bit of a headache.

He really had no time to chat nonsense with this guy now.

According to the agreement, at a quarter past three, several people would create chaos to give him a chance to act.

It is now 3:13, leaving only two minutes until a quarter past three.

Continuing to argue with this glasses‑wearing guy might cause trouble.

Xu Mo conceived a plan.

Staring at the Glasses Boy: "I just remembered!"

The Glasses Boy looked at Xu Mo with an expectant face: "You remembered me, right?"

"I remember… you still owe me two thousand yuan, don't you?" Xu Mo said.

Hearing this, the Glasses Boy's face instantly froze.

After a two‑second pause, he pretended to take a call and pulled out his phone from his pocket.

"Sorry, I have a call, let me take it."

"Hello Uncle Wang, what!? My grandma again used laundry powder as salt and put it into the pot to stew ribs? What? She poured an entire bag of laundry powder in? My house is now filled with bubbles? Uncle Wang, please make sure she doesn't drink the soup, I'm going back right now!"

He put down the phone, looking at Xu Mo with an apologetic expression.

"Sorry, brother, something came up at home, I have to go back, I'll repay the money I owe you another day!"

Saying that, without waiting for Xu Mo's reply, he slipped away quickly.

After the Glasses Boy left.

Xu Mo glanced at his watch.

Fifty seconds remained until a quarter past three.

In these final fifty seconds.

Xu Mo was observing.

He needed to imprint the Display Cabinet containing the Blue Sapphire, and the surrounding scene, perfectly into his mind.

This way, he could act later with ease.

Fifty…

Forty‑nine…

…

Three…

Two…

One!

A quarter past three.

The huge Exhibition Venue suddenly experienced a turn of events.

In an instant, darkness swept every corner of the Exhibition Venue.

The previous second, the Exhibition Venue was still brightly lit.

This second, however, one could not see a hand in front of one's face.

The sudden darkness caught everyone off guard.

Someone screamed.

Another, with a trembling voice, said, "W‑what's happening? Am I… am I blind?"

He, of course, wasn't blind.

It was because the venue's wiring had malfunctioned.

Almost all electronic equipment inside the venue, including lights and surveillance cameras, failed completely.

The only ones that didn't fail were several fire emergency lighting fixtures extending to the exits.

The darkness lasted less than ten seconds before the fire emergency lights came on.

The emergency lights could still operate because their principle differs from other lamps; they have two power modes.

Normally they draw power from an external source, but if a power outage occurs, they automatically switch to battery power and provide illumination.

These lights are usually mounted on walls and run all the way to the exits.

They exist to handle emergencies, offering some illumination even when the circuitry is damaged, guiding people toward the exits.

However, the fire emergency lights provide very weak illumination, at best nowhere near the venue's regular lighting.

They simply cannot light the entire venue, especially the central area.

In the middle of the venue, darkness still reigned.

Even the emergency lights aren't very bright.

But in utter darkness, even a faint glow can dispel people's fear of the dark.

At this moment, hardly anyone shouted out of fear.

And no one doubted they had suddenly gone blind because they couldn't see.

The chaotic scene steadied thanks to the remembered emergency lights.

"What's going on? Is this a power outage?"

"You scared me; when will the power come back?"

"Mader… I really thought I was blind just now, damn!"

…

But at that moment, a voice suddenly rose from the crowd.

"Could it be a fire? I heard that when a sudden fire breaks out, they cut all power to prevent electrical fires, leaving only an emergency light…"

When that was said, the improving situation fell into chaos again.

"Fire??? Damn, where's the fire?"

"I didn't see any, must be fake, right? It's so dark; if there were fire, we'd see it instantly."

"Oh, who cares if you can see the fire? Not seeing it doesn't mean it's not there; maybe it's elsewhere."

"Exactly, even though we can't see a flame here, it doesn't mean there's no fire elsewhere; the blaze might spread soon."

"Then, before the fire reaches us, everyone should orderly follow the emergency lights to the safe exit!"

"..."

Even though no flame was seen.

That doesn't mean there's truly no fire here.

What if another part of the Exhibition Hall has already ignited?

It's just that we didn't see the fire source.

So the crowd's evacuation was relatively orderly.

In no time, several hundred people evacuated the Exhibition Hall in order…