Xiao Yang's gaze discreetly swept across the hostages.
Seventeen people in total, himself included.
But his focus was on four of them.
Because those four had bombs strapped to their chests.
If his deduction was right, at least one of these people was an accomplice.
Possibly more.
So how to find them?
Assuming this person's job was to detonate the bombs the moment things went south,
Then surely they'd need to keep an eye on the bombs at all times?
Like how someone about to eat checks the food first—
Sees the chopsticks before picking them up.
Sure, you don't have to stare at it constantly.
But if the food is alive and keeps moving?
You'd need to watch it to grab it at the right time.
In the same way, to ensure a successful detonation at the right moment,
The person would have to observe the bombs—
Even with just the corner of their eye.
Yet… none of them were doing that.
Which meant—
The 13 people without bombs probably weren't the accomplices.
That left the four bomb-strapped ones as the prime suspects.
Only they could reach the bombs fast enough to trigger them manually.
But then—
Xiao Yang's face darkened.
No, more than that. His soul turned cold.
He'd already inspected the zip ties on those four hostages—
No signs of tampering. No damage.
A normal person couldn't possibly break out of them alone.
So the accomplice… wasn't among the hostages?
Xiao Yang almost cursed aloud.
This was a game of wits.
Clearly, these people weren't stupid.
They'd likely anticipated someone might figure this part out.
Guessed that hiding a thug among the hostages could be exposed—
So they planned ahead.
No accomplice among them?
No—he still believed he was right.
Suddenly, it felt like lightning cracked across his brain,
Clearing the fog.
His eyes lit up.
It had to be someone among the hostages… or someone who could instantly appear among them.
If that's the case, how would they pull it off?
Xiao Yang's eyes gleamed. His gaze shifted upward.
Found it.
His eyes locked onto the ceiling.
More specifically—the ventilation vent.
The ceiling vents were part of the central air system—used for airflow and heat dispersion.
We've all seen it in the movies—people crawling through air ducts.
Totally possible.
If someone was hiding inside the ducts, behind the vent,
All they had to do was pop the cover and jump down.
Instantly appear among the hostages—and detonate.
Slick move.
Xiao Yang let out a bitter laugh.
Problem was—
Even if he saw through it, what could he do?
He wasn't special forces.
Had no tactical training.
How the hell was he supposed to stop it?
And the system? That thing was basically useless right now.
He hadn't had time to copy any abilities. No powers yet.
Sure, he could use the system space—
Ten cubic meters.
Maybe he could "store" the zip ties by touching them?
Or even touch a bomb and stuff it into the system?
But there were four bombs.
The hostages were scattered.
Could he really touch them all before something went wrong?
Too risky.
If he moved now, his secret would be exposed.
People were watching—
Cameras, hostages, terrorists.
Even if he survived this, life afterward would be hell.
No way. Not worth it.
Xiao Yang sighed inwardly.
There's no such thing as a free lunch.
This transmigration might look like a gift—new life, a system—
But if he couldn't survive this crisis, or keep his power hidden,
It was all meaningless.
Don't panic.
If worst comes to worst, screw it. Reveal the system.
Survive first.
You can worry about everything else later.
Power. I need power.
If he made it out of this, he'd hunt down every shred of strength he could find.
This experience had made Xiao Yang realize something—
The world unseen by normal people is terrifying.
Wait… what was that?
Something weird flashed at the corner of his vision.
Still staring at the ceiling, Xiao Yang narrowed his eyes.
Something had moved.
He focused.
Ceiling.
Chandelier.
Wallpaper…
Wallpaper?
His eyes widened.
No. Freaking. Way.
There was a human-shaped patch of wallpaper slowly crawling across the ceiling.
Not that the wallpaper was moving—
Someone had covered themselves with wallpaper and was crawling along the ceiling!
Xiao Yang was stunned.
How?! Is that even scientifically possible?!
He hadn't seen this person enter.
Hadn't noticed anything at all.
And now—
As soon as he locked eyes with the figure, a sharp sting stabbed into his eyes.
A feeling like an invisible blade piercing his pupils.
The figure's gaze was ice-cold.
Emotionless.
Unnervingly calm.
But only for a second.
That chilling gaze softened. The person blinked.
Xiao Yang: (￣ω￣;)
What… the hell?
The next moment, a hand reached out from the "wallpaper."
It looked like a woman's hand—
But there was nothing soft or fragile about it.
Slender, precise, and powerful.
She raised the hand and made a gesture.
Pointed one finger at him—then gave a thumbs up.
Xiao Yang understood.
Sign language: "Hello."
Buddy, I'm not doing okay right now...
He held back the urge to shout and stared at the figure.
Who was she?
Police? SWAT? Special forces?
Didn't matter.
What mattered was—
She was here to help.
Why not a terrorist?
Because terrorists don't do pointless showboating like this.
Then came the second hand signal.
Again, she pointed at Xiao Yang.
Then pointed to her own face—specifically, her mouth.
Though covered by wallpaper, Xiao Yang could tell she was referring to speaking.
Then she pointed to her ear—wiggled her finger.
Finally, she pointed to her eyes, then tapped her temple.
Xiao Yang blinked.
Me? Mouth? Ear? Eye? Head?
Then his eyes went wide in realization.
She pointed at him and then her mouth—"Speak."
Pointed at her ear and shook her finger—"Don't let anyone hear you."
Pointed to her eyes and head—"I can read your lips."
Lip reading… Xiao Yang was stunned.
He mouthed the word:
"Understood."
Her fingers moved again.
Sign language: "Smart!"