Chapter 110: How Could It Possibly Be Dodged

The raid on the Abandoned Warehouse was clean and precise, like a surgical operation. The unconscious Rose was swiftly transferred to a safe house set up by "Shield" in Marseille, where the accompanying medical specialist performed emergency treatment. The Leader, whose calf had been shattered, was secretly detained by Lei Zhan's people; what awaited him would be an interrogation more agonizing than death.

Inside the safe house, the atmosphere remained heavy. Although Rose was out of life-threatening danger, she was still unconscious due to massive blood loss and severe injuries. Qin Feng stood before the one-way glass, gazing at that pale yet still stunningly beautiful face inside the medical pod, his eyes deep and unfathomable.

"Director Qin, the preliminary interrogation results are out." Shadow's voice came through the encrypted Communication Equipment, tinged with a hint of incredulous shock. "That ringleader, codenamed 'Poison Scorpion,' is one of the persons in charge of the Shadow Trade Guild's operations in southern Europe. According to his confession, they captured Rose for a Key Fragment of 'Pandora's Box' that she possessed."

"Pandora's Box?" Qin Feng's brow furrowed slightly; he had never heard that name before.

"It's a legend, or rather, a closely guarded secret circulating among top-tier underground forces." Shadow explained, "It is said to be a vessel containing technology or information powerful enough to alter the world order. It was split into several parts, each controlled by a different key. The Shadow Trade Guild seems to have been collecting these Key Fragments all along. Rose got one from somewhere unknown, and that's why they targeted her."

Technology or information powerful enough to alter the world order? Qin Feng's heart stirred. This description… why does it sound somewhat… familiar? Could it be related to the system, or to a supernatural item like the "Heart of the Ocean"?

"Also," Shadow's tone grew even more grave, "Poison Scorpion confessed that what they had set up in the warehouse was not merely an ambush of manpower. On the warehouse's load-bearing pillars and several key nodes, they had pre-installed miniature high-explosive charges! The original plan was: if they couldn't capture you alive, they would detonate the explosives the instant they subdued you, staging the scene as an accidental death!"

A cold glint flashed in Qin Feng's eyes. Ruthless indeed! No wonder he had felt something off about the warehouse's structure.

"But…" Shadow's voice was filled with confusion. "According to our on-site investigation and Poison Scorpion's confession, after the fighting broke out, the person responsible for detonation… seemed to have missed the optimal detonation window for some unknown reason, or rather… they lost control of the detonation device? Poison Scorpion himself was extremely confused and furious about this; he swore it was absolutely impossible!"

Unknown reason? Lost control?

The corner of Qin Feng's mouth curved into a barely perceptible arc. He, of course, knew the reason.

Upon entering the warehouse and sensing that hidden energy source and the hum of electronic equipment, he had already secretly mobilized the ability of 【Fortune Dominion】. He could not dismantle the explosives directly, but he could Fine-Tune "fortune."

He drastically weakened the "fortune" of those ambushers—especially the person in charge of detonation—while slightly boosting the "luck" of his own side. This influence might seem like mysticism, but at a critical moment, it could produce a decisive effect—for instance, the person in charge of detonation might fumble due to a momentary spike of nerves, might trip over an inconspicuous cable on the ground, might miss the command due to a sudden minor glitch in the Communication Equipment…

Layer upon layer of seemingly coincidental "accidents" stacked together ultimately led to this "absolutely impossible" outcome—the explosives failed to be detonated in time.

This is the terrifying aspect of an ability that touches upon the level of rules! Silent and invisible, yet capable of reversing life and death!

"Perhaps their equipment malfunctioned, or perhaps… luck was on our side." Qin Feng offered no explanation, merely saying lightly, "Continue the interrogation. Dig out more of the Shadow Trade Guild's strongholds and personnel rosters, especially information about 'Pandora's Box.'"

"Yes!"

The communication ended.

Qin Feng turned his gaze back to Rose inside the medical pod. Key Fragment… Pandora's Box… This woman truly stirs up a storm wherever she goes. This time she nearly lost her life in the process.

However, this also provided him with a new lead and direction. This "Pandora's Box" was worth keeping an eye on.

Just then, the life monitor inside the medical pod emitted a soft alert tone. Rose's eyelashes fluttered a few times, and she slowly opened her eyes.

Her gaze was initially dazed and wary, but when she saw Qin Feng standing outside through the glass, that wariness instantly melted into a complex, hard-to-read emotion—relief at having survived a disaster, and also a barely perceptible… dependence.

Qin Feng pushed open the door of the medical pod and walked in.

"How do you feel?" His tone remained calm.

Rose tried to move and immediately winced in pain, but her mouth refused to yield: "I won't die… just feels like I was trampled by a herd of elephants…" She looked at Qin Feng with a strange expression. "Hey, Little Madman, what was the deal with those explosives in the warehouse? Don't tell me they suddenly found a conscience or it was an equipment malfunction?"

Although she had been severely wounded and weak at the time, her assassin's instincts were still intact; she had vaguely sensed the lethal threat hidden in the warehouse and had prepared herself to perish together with the enemy. In the end, the explosion never happened.

Qin Feng walked to the bedside, looked down at her, and instead of answering her question, asked: "What's the story with the Key Fragment of 'Pandora's Box'?"

Rose's face changed slightly, her eyes flickered, and then she resumed that languid look, even attempting to throw a flirtatious glance. "Oh my, the moment I wake up you're already interrogating me… I'm a patient, you know. Can't you show a little concern first…"

"Rose." Qin Feng cut her off. His voice was not loud, but it carried an unquestionable pressure. "I don't have time to play games with you. You know very well that if it weren't for me, you'd be a corpse right now, or in the hands of the Shadow Trade Guild suffering a fate worse than death. Tell me everything you know about 'Pandora's Box' and the keys."

Rose looked into Qin Feng's eyes that seemed capable of seeing through everything, and the flirtatious smile on her face gradually faded. She was silent for a moment, then finally sighed, her tone turning serious:

"Fine, fine… you win." She licked her cracked lips. "'Pandora's Box'… is said to be related to a Prehistoric Civilization or extraterrestrial technology. What's actually inside, nobody knows. But almost all top underground organizations and certain national intelligence agencies are secretly searching for its Key Fragments. This time… I happened to stumble onto a lead and got one Key Fragment. I didn't expect it to cause such a huge commotion, nearly costing me my life…"

She paused, looked at Qin Feng, her gaze carrying a hint of inquiry: "Little Madman, who exactly are you working for now? Your subordinates, and you… you've become terrifying. Those explosives in the warehouse, how could it possibly…"

She still couldn't help pressing about the explosives. It was too bizarre, completely defying common sense.

Qin Feng looked at her, then suddenly leaned down, brought his face close to her ear, and in a voice only the two of them could hear, whispered:

"Some questions—knowing the answer may not be a good thing."

His breath brushed past her ear, carrying a faint warmth, yet it made a chill rise from the depths of Rose's heart.

She gazed at Qin Feng's profile so close at hand, at the bottomless calm in his eyes, and all her questions lodged in her throat.

She finally realized that the man before her was no longer the "Little Madman" of years past, the one with whom she could trade quips as both rival and friend.

He had already become an… existence she could neither comprehend nor fathom.

Why didn't the explosives in the warehouse go off?

She might never know the true answer.

And that answer itself perhaps represented… a domain mortals must not touch.

Rose closed her mouth, and closed her eyes too, burying all her questions and dread deep in her heart.

Qin Feng straightened up, looked at Rose who had quieted down again, and knew she had made her choice.

He turned and left the medical pod, giving instructions to Lei Zhan, who was waiting outside:

"Keep a close eye on her. Once her injuries stabilize, take her back to the country."

"Yes!"

Qin Feng walked out of the safe house and looked up at Marseille's azure sky.

"Pandora's Box"… Prehistoric Civilization… extraterrestrial technology…

The secrets of this world seemed to be far more numerous than he had imagined.

And his journey was destined not to be confined to business and technology.

Deeper, darker waters awaited his exploration.

And this time, he would no longer be reacting passively.

He would take the initiative to lift that veil of mystery.