Time was of the essence, and she could not afford to delay.
Chuanliu must explore and leave before the melee downstairs ends.
She moved quickly through the office, methodically searching for every possible clue.
The secret room is behind this wall, so the switch is...
She had previously "visited" many secret rooms in mansions, so finding the switch to the secret room was not difficult for her.
She walked quickly toward the seemingly ordinary wall, her gaze settling on the many antique vases on the wooden shelf.
She tried them one by one, and finally grasped a vase tightly with both hands and gently turned it.
With a click, the gears slowly turned, emitting a low-frequency, soft sound, and the door to the secret room was opened in an instant.
Without a moment's hesitation, Chuanliu glanced out the window at the situation downstairs, where Jiulong and the employees of "Drunk Bar" were still locked in a fierce back-and-forth battle.
So she took a deep breath and stepped through the hidden door leading to the secret room.
Inside the sealed room stood a massive machine, assembled from countless fragmented parts, leaning against the wall in a three-sided, encircling shape.
Its surface is covered with intricate lines and pipes, and red, yellow and green lights flash regularly like a heartbeat, emitting a soft "beep" sound that cannot be heard outside the sealed room, but is exceptionally clear inside the quiet chamber.
At the center of this enormous machine stood a simple computer. Its black-and-white screen was filled with noise and emitted a faint light.
The seat in front of the computer was empty, as if the owner had just left.
Chuanliu carefully made his way through the machine, walking softly and constantly glancing around.
However, just as she was about to walk towards the computer, a chill suddenly swept over her.
She only felt something cold pressed against the back of her neck.
Just as the girl was about to turn around, a hoarse and deep male voice rang in her ear, "Don't move!"
Before figuring out whether the other party was friend or foe, Chuanliu dared not make any rash moves.
She feigned fear, raised her hands, and said, "Hero, spare my life! I was sent by Brother Long to collect something."
Unexpectedly, the man behind her immediately retorted, "Liar! No one but Jiulong knows about this secret room!"
"I...I just heard noises coming from here, and I came out of curiosity."
Chuanliu answered cautiously, slowly turning around as he did so.
A gaunt man with a haggard face and a full beard came into view. His wary eyes were mostly hidden by his glasses, and he looked so frail that he seemed like he could be blown away by a gust of wind, so he didn't seem threatening at all.
"Wasn't that thumping sound you just made?"
Chuanliu straightened his back, took the initiative, and his tone revealed a hint of threat.
The existence of this man must be a secret, which is why he could only secretly seek help from the outside world using Morse code when Jiulong was not around.
Upon hearing this, the man quickly turned his head to one side and stubbornly said, "I don't know what you're talking about."
Just then, Chuanliu suddenly moved, cleverly using the iron rod that had been pressed against her neck to propel him forward. The man's body swayed involuntarily in the direction of the rod. The frail man instantly lost his balance, and the wooden rod slipped from his hand.
The situation reversed in an instant, and Chuanliu went from being passive to being proactive.
"Ouch."
The man bumped his arm and cried out in pain.
Seeing this, Chuanliu didn't hesitate to press the iron rod against the man's neck. Her eyes were sharp as knives, and her voice was cold as she questioned, "Who are you? Why are you here?"
The man felt the cold touch on his neck, his heart skipped a beat, and the arrogance he had been putting on vanished instantly.
His voice trembled as he stammered, "I...I'm just someone imprisoned here. I was wrong, brother, I'll never do it again! Please don't tell Jiulong!"
Chuanliu frowned slightly, feeling that he had heard the man's voice say those words somewhere before.
"etc."
Chuanliu interrupted the man's wailing, slowly crouching down to carefully observe the man huddled in the corner.
The man tightly covered his head with both hands, curling his body into its smallest possible size.
Taking advantage of the situation, Chuanliu asked, "How long have you been detained?"
The man shook his head vigorously, "You see, I don't distinguish between day and night here. There's no clock here, so I don't know how much time has passed."
Chuanliu pointed to the simple black-and-white monitor and asked, "Did you build this computer?"
On the black and white screen, rows and rows of dense code were written, making it dizzying to look at.
The man shook his head. "Jiulong said that this was cobbled together by someone else using various parts. It's not even a computer. The motherboard burns out every 10 minutes, so it's completely unusable!"
Chuanliu pressed further, "So, what does Jiulong want you to do by locking you up here?"
The man looked up, tears welling in his eyes. "Don't you know Jiulong? Ask him! Why are you bullying a weak man like me?"
Chuanliu raised her eyebrows, toying with a slender iron rod in her hand. She quietly looked at the man in front of her, revealing a chilling smile.
"Brother, I've confessed everything I know, what else do you want?"
The man pleaded in anguish, as if he had suffered a great injustice.
Chuanliu couldn't help but find it amusing. He hadn't done anything, so why was this guy so terrified? How did he even survive on Paradise Island with that kind of courage?
Then, Chuanliu swung the iron bar, creating gusts of cold wind above the man's head. Each time it passed over his head, the man would shudder in fright.
Finally, unable to bear the silent threat any longer, the man softened his tone and asked, "Are you and Jiulong very close?"
Chuanliu shrugged, neither affirming nor denying.
The man grabbed Chuanliu's leg and burst into tears, "Big brother! Please talk to Jiulong and take me away, or at least find me a different place to stay! I've been captured since I arrived on the island, this is no life for a human being, waaaaaah!"
Chuanliu was caught off guard by the hug. She pulled her legs away and felt a growing sense of familiarity with the man in front of her.
"You were arrested as soon as you arrived on the island?"
She asked hesitantly, as if she had grasped a clue.
The man nodded repeatedly.
"Who are you? What's your name?"
Chuanliu stared intently at the man until the man got annoyed by her staring.
The latter then hesitated before saying, "I... my name is Jihu."
"Hacker Fox?"
Chuanliu's eyes widened as he spoke.
Jihu looked at the boy in surprise and stammered, "You, how did you know?"
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