Chapter 227: The Lock-Picking Expert

“City folks really know how to play,” Xiao Yu muttered to himself, not entirely sure why.

But it was true.

They’d set up a scene straight out of a horror movie. These people really did have a taste for the extreme. Xiao Yu couldn’t help but scoff. Sure, the situation in front of him looked terrifying. 

The passage was about two and a half meters tall, and the saw blades reached a height of roughly one meter from the ground. That left about one and a half meters of space above them—plenty for Xiao Yu to leap over with ease.

But…

He couldn’t shake the feeling that it wasn’t going to be that simple.

If the gap was so easily avoidable, why had Peng Junlong claimed to have seen someone get sliced to pieces?

Xiao Yu raised his head. He scanned the ceiling of the passageway. His eyes locked onto five grooves.

So that’s it!

Just as he had suspected, five additional saw blades extended from the ceiling, perfectly aligned with the ones on the ground. They began spinning, ready to slice through anything caught between them.

A chill ran down Xiao Yu’s spine.

With blades above and below, there was now just a single meter of space between them.

Could anyone dodge that?

Even a professional athlete might not escape unscathed. One wrong move and they’d be shredded. Only someone with circus-level acrobatic skills, maybe a fire-jumping performer, would stand a chance.

Otherwise… they were done for.

So this was the “entertainment” that Second Brother and Third Brother enjoyed? 

Watching people struggle in a death trap, using their final moments to provide sick, twisted amusement?

A glint of cold fury flashed in Xiao Yu’s eyes as he crouched down and sprang forward toward the ten rotating saw blades.

As he neared them, he launched himself into the air. His body stretched out horizontally, feet first, with his head following. He perfectly entered the fifty-centimeter gap between the two rows of saws.

Xiao Yu could feel the upper saw blades spinning just ten centimeters from his face as he glided through.

Smack!

With the agility of a cat, his feet landed lightly on the ground. Xiao Yu slowly stood up. A layer of cold sweat covered his forehead and back. Behind him, the ten spinning saw blades slid towards the end of the hallway as expected.

But then… they paused, reversed direction, and began cutting their way back towards him.

“Damn it!” he cursed.

He took off in a sprint towards the end of the hallway. He could see a door ahead, a wooden one. It looked like the kind that could be easily broken down. 

If he wanted to avoid the saw blades, the only option was to smash through the door and escape. That was exactly what Xiao Yu planned to do. He raced towards the door, preparing to crash into it.

It wasn’t the sound of hitting the door, though. 

Instead, it was the sound of his shoes skidding to a hard stop on the floor, halting the momentum of his forward charge.

Cold sweat trickled down his forehead as his eyes locked onto the door with a look of fear.

What had just happened? What startled him so much?

The moment Xiao Yu was about to reach the door and slam into it, his enhanced hearing picked up an unusual sound from behind the door— the grinding of gears, a humming noise like a blender, and the vibrations of something like a cutting machine.

He suddenly remembered what the suspect Peng Junlong had said about witnessing three people die. The last one was turned into minced meat.

What was behind that door? 

And if Xiao Yu had slammed into it, would he have been ground into meat as well?

The answer was obvious.

That hallway was filled with the scent of people for two reasons. One, it was used for killing, serving as entertainment for some sick individuals. And two, the door was repeatedly patched up after use, so there were always people coming through.

This hallway wasn’t a path at all.

It was a death trap designed to slaughter people. 

“Humans’ biggest enemy really is overthinking!” Xiao Yu muttered with a frustrated smile. “I totally overthought things and ended up running straight into this death trap. If my wife found out about this, she’d probably call me an idiot, huh?”

No, when it came to business, Mu Qingwu might be the older sister. But when it came to police work, Mu Qingwu was definitely just the little sister.

Now, that thought brought balance back to his mind.

Grinning, Xiao Yu turned around and sprinted toward the spinning saw blades. 

Using the same technique as before, he deftly passed through the blades and raced back the way he came.

The moment he exited the passage, he let out a long breath. The relaxed expression on his face turned cold as he stepped toward another hallway—one that barely had any human scent.

“Alright, little tech guy in the control room, I’m coming for you.”

Why choose this path? The woman had said she didn’t know where the control room was, and that Second Brother and Third Brother wouldn’t let anyone else go near it. So, naturally, there wouldn’t be many traces of human activity leading to the control room. Maybe none at all. 

He wondered how they managed to get food and water in, though.

The hallway stretched for about twenty-five meters until it reached a thick, heavy metal door. The door had a keyhole, but nothing else.

After sizing up the door’s defense, Xiao Yu figured even if he maxed out his Bear Strength and smashed his body against it, he’d probably just wreck himself without making a dent.

Why not rescue the victims first? 

Because of the traps. Unless he got the guy in the control room under control, Xiao Yu knew the person inside could easily harm the captives. 

So, how to unlock this door?

Xiao Yu’s eyes locked on the keyhole. A grin tugged at the corner of his mouth. He removed one of his leather shoes and peeled back the sole to reveal a hidden steel shank.

Not many people knew this, but many shoes had these steel shanks inside. It acted as the spine of the shoe, maintaining its arch and providing stability. It was actually part of mandatory safety standards for certain types of footwear.

Xiao Yu pulled out the steel shank. He then carefully examined the keyhole on the heavy door. 

Holding the steel piece in his hand, he quickly scraped it against the concrete wall. Thankfully, the steel wasn’t wear-resistant. Its durability was similar to an ordinary metal strip.

After about seven or eight minutes, a thin, rough-edged strip the width of a fingernail appeared in his hand. He inserted the steel strip into the lock and pressed his ear against the keyhole, listening carefully to the sounds from within.

Then, Xiao Yu pulled the strip out again and resumed scraping it to refine the edges. Once satisfied with the uneven, jagged piece in his hand, he grinned.

He inserted it back into the keyhole and gave it a strong twist.

Click. The lock disengaged.

“Lockpicking expert, huh!” Xiao Yu couldn’t help but chuckle. 

He had always thought this ability from the system was pretty useless. Turns out, it came in handy after all.

With the door unlocked, Xiao Yu quickly dashed inside. But the moment he saw what lay within, he froze in his tracks.

Like a statue, he stood there, completely still.