Chapter 303: Alarm

After confirming the patrolling guard's footsteps had faded, Ying Duo finally exhaled, began inspecting the room's layout, and found a humanoid silhouette lying on the bed, surrounded by various complex devices and Rune arrays.

Ying Duo's gaze swept rapidly across the entire room.

The interior was spacious and simple, decorated in an ancient, elegant style, and the one lying on the bed was Chen Xiaoshuang, the true head of the Chen Family and Chen Mo Zhi's sister.

Her eyes were tightly shut, her complexion as pale as paper, and within roughly a one‑meter radius around her body it was as if a pause button had been pressed.

Both the air and the light were frozen at that moment.

Ying Duo tried to step forward, hoping to observe the situation more closely; it would be even better if contact could retrieve Chen Xiaoshuang's character panel.

However, as he was about to enter that special zone, an invisible resistance appeared, and Ying Duo seemed to slam into an air wall, held outside and unable to advance further.

Since direct contact with Chen Xiaoshuang was impossible, Ying Duo immediately shifted focus and began a carpet‑style search of the entire room.

The volumes on the shelves were mostly about medicine, Aberrant Arts theory, and family history; nothing abnormal or noteworthy, yet Ying Duo still collected them all.

He used the Reconnaissance skill to examine the walls and floor, even uncovering hidden compartments in some furniture, discovering several concealed safety devices that mostly held Chen Xiaoshuang's personal seals and a few rare Source Crystals.

Although valuable, they were not the target.

After stowing everything into his backpack, only the last golden‑glow inspection point came up empty.

Ying Duo's golden eyes scanned the empty compartment; he didn't know whether his target had ever been hidden there, but something had indeed been stored and was taken by someone else.

Before Ying Duo could restore all the compartments, a Rune hidden in a compartment wall was successfully triggered after prolonged exposure to air.

Di—

A faint humming sound rang in the room.

Immediately, the Rune arrays hidden throughout the walls, ceiling, and floor ignited with blinding red light simultaneously, instantly bathing the whole room in blood‑red.

System Prompt: You have triggered the alarm! Spatial interference activated! Within the interference zone, Teleport abilities will be severely disrupted; area lockdown countdown: 10 s.

【Please escape the current area within 10 s! Otherwise the Teleport skill will be completely sealed!】

System Prompt repeatedly popped up at the center of Yang Yixie's computer screen, with blood‑red countdown numbers flashing nonstop in the upper right corner:

9...... 8......

Yang Yixie didn't even have time to read the prompt; as soon as the alarm sounded, he already commanded Ying Duo to transform into a Ying Guang Lu Data Stream rushing toward the room's sole window.

The Rune on the window and its connections elsewhere are prone to gaps, giving Ying Duo a chance to break through from that spot.

Buzz—!

The once‑smooth Data Stream hit the window and suddenly became viscous; the Teleport skill, disrupted by energy interference, had its normally instantaneous extraction process forcibly stretched.

7...... 6......

The Data Stream painstakingly squeezed a slit through the window gap, but its outward crawl remained agonizingly slow; the previously steady footsteps outside the door had become rapid and chaotic, sprinting toward this direction.

5... 4...

Bang!

The solid‑wood door was ripped open by a massive force from outside, and two Chen Family guards rushed in first, their energy weapons fully charged.

Upon entering, they simultaneously aimed their weapons at the room's window—the point of greatest energy barrier fluctuation.

"Lock onto the Invader!" the squad leader shouted sternly, his pupils narrowing as he spotted the still‑open compartments.

"Maximum alert! Do not let him escape!"

3...

The Ying Guang Lu Data Stream twisted as if alive, narrowly dodging several energy beams; the beams struck the window, causing rippling effects on its seemingly fragile surface, yet the glass remained unscathed.

2... 1...

The countdown was about to hit zero, and the room's spatial lockdown field was reaching its peak, threatening to trap everyone inside forever.

Sizzle!

The stubborn green Data Stream finally forced its way out of the window, merging with the deep, boundless night beyond.

The red light in the room still flickered; the incoming guards saw only an intact window pane, while outside there was nothing at all.

"The Invader has escaped! Breakout direction unidentifiable!"

"Immediately activate the sealing barrier, alert all patrol units to heighten vigilance, and prioritize checking any spatial fluctuations or energy anomalies within the Chen Family premises!"

The guard captain inside reacted swiftly, issuing orders while dashing toward the "breached" window to examine residual energy traces.

The piercing alarm rang simultaneously throughout the Chen Family mansion and the surrounding Church district, and more footsteps gathered from all directions.

Within seconds, several figures exuding stronger auras appeared at the doorway, including the Chen Family's old steward, his face ashen.

They stared at the empty compartments, especially at Chen Xiaoshuang still sleeping on the bed in frozen time; only that area's time was halted, not bathed in the warning red light like elsewhere, making their faces grow even sicker.

"Immediately contact the Supervision Bureau, request city‑wide martial law assistance for the search!"

The old steward's voice was hoarse, laced with uncontainable anger and lingering fear.

"Also... send someone right away to summon the eldest young master... no, to invite the acting head of the family and his classmates!"

————————————————

The alarm sound abruptly ripped through the night's silence, and Shen Zexi jolted awake in an instant, his inner alarm blaring; his first thought was:

Ying Duo!

Although he had double‑checked before sleeping that Ying Duo was honestly lying on the bed next to him, Shen Zexi only returned to his own bed after confirming Ying Duo was asleep.

But given Ying Duo's utterly unpredictable behavior pattern and rather "eventful" record, Shen Zexi never truly trusted his so‑called rest.

Shen Zexi immediately threw back the blanket, rose, and walked around the simple screen that divided the room's center.

Behind the screen, the blanket on the bed lay especially smooth, and the Ying Guang Lu head rested quietly at the pillow's center.

Ying Duo's eyes were shut, breathing even and long, hands folded flat on his chest; his posture was so upright it could serve as a mortuary illustration.

Shen Zexi stood at the bedside, using the eerie red light filtering in from the window to scrutinize Ying Duo at that moment.

His clothing was tidy, his hair… hmm, still Ying Guang Lu, but seemed a bit dimmer than usual? Could it be because Ying Duo's consciousness had entered sleep?

Whatever, as long as Ying Duo didn't go out causing trouble, it would be fine.

"Dong dong dong."

"The room's door was knocked, the rhythm somewhat urgent."

"A servant's respectful voice came from outside the door."

"Shen Zexi, Ying Duo, sorry to disturb you, but the Chen Family has encountered some sudden situation; please both of you go to the main hall at once."