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墨書 Inktalez
The knocking at the door sounded again, more urgent than before, like a death knell.
Lin Yuan and Su Jiu'er exchanged a glance, both sensing a hint of wariness in each other's eyes.
"Who is it?" Lin Yuan asked in a low voice, his tone carrying an almost imperceptible tension.
"Delivery!" came a rough voice from outside.
Lin Yuan and Su Jiu'er were taken aback; the unexpected response caught them off guard, like a bucket of cold water splashed over them.
"Delivery?" Lin Yuan repeated, feeling somewhat bewildered. "We didn't order anything."
"Sir, your delivery has arrived. Please open the door," the voice outside called again, still rough but now tinged with impatience.
Lin Yuan and Su Jiu'er exchanged glances, both sensing that something was off.
"Could it be someone from the Qi Gong Association pretending to be a delivery person?" Lin Yuan whispered, his eyes flashing with caution, like a vigilant leopard.
Su Jiu'er nodded in agreement. "Better to be careful."
Taking a deep breath, Lin Yuan gripped the Time Manipulator hidden in his sleeve and cautiously opened the door just a crack, revealing half of his wary face. Standing outside was a burly delivery man, built like a bear, holding a large insulated box. Yet his face bore an incongruously professional smile that felt unsettling, as if he were wearing a mask made of human skin.
"Sir, your delivery. Please sign here," the delivery man said, his tone still rough but his smile appearing somewhat stiff, like someone wearing a mask.
Lin Yuan did not let down his guard; he scrutinized the delivery man closely, trying to find any signs of deception. The delivery man's shoes were polished to a shine and spotless—nothing like those of a delivery person who braved the elements. Moreover, his hands, though large, were surprisingly clean, with no calluses on his knuckles that would indicate long hours gripping handlebars.
"Did we order takeout?" Lin Yuan asked again, a hint of confusion in his tone as he subtly activated a bit of Qi Gong, ready to respond to any unexpected situation.
"Sir, are you sure?" The delivery person's smile became even more strained. "This was dispatched by the system; there must be no mistake. If you don’t believe me, you can check the order."
With that, the delivery person pulled out a phone from his pocket and handed it to Lin Yuan. Lin Yuan didn’t take it directly; instead, he pinched the corner of the phone with two fingers, as if it were a dangerous object. He quickly glanced at the order and saw that it indeed had his address and name, but the items listed made him both amused and bewildered—ten servings of Spicy Crawfish, five skewers, and two large bottles of beer. Who ordered all this at such a late hour?
"Who... who ordered this?" Lin Yuan asked, looking utterly perplexed as if struck by lightning.
"Sir, I wouldn’t know," the delivery person shrugged. "I’m just responsible for delivering. Perhaps it was ordered by one of your friends? Can you sign for it now? I’m in a hurry." Saying this, he pulled a pen from his waist and handed it to Lin Yuan.
Lin Yuan took the pen hesitantly, his gaze sweeping over the delivery person's overly clean hands, increasing his suspicion. He signed for the delivery but couldn’t shake off the feeling that this takeout might be a ticking time bomb.
After receiving the signature, the delivery person turned and left in a hurry, as if he had something urgent to attend to. Lin Yuan watched him go, feeling that something was off, like a fishbone stuck in his throat making him uncomfortable.
"What’s wrong?" Su Jiu'er asked, noticing Lin Yuan's unease.
"I don’t know," Lin Yuan shook his head. "I just feel something is strange, like... like someone is following us."
Su Jiu'er walked over to the window and looked outside. "Look," she pointed down below, "that Black Van has been parked there for a long time, just staring at our building."
Lin Yuan joined her at the window and followed her finger’s direction. Sure enough, a Black Van was parked by the roadside with its windows tightly shut. He couldn’t see who was inside, but he keenly sensed a faint Qi Gong Wave emanating from within; whoever was in that vehicle was definitely not ordinary.
"It seems we’re being watched," Lin Yuan said gravely. "And it’s very likely that they are from the Qi Gong Association."
"Let’s not worry about them for now," Su Jiu'er replied. "Let’s first see what’s hidden in this takeout; perhaps this is part of their scheme."
Lin Yuan nodded and walked to the table, carefully opening the thermal box. A rich aroma of Spicy Crawfish wafted out, making Lin Yuan's fingers tingle with anticipation.
"Wow, it smells amazing!" Lin Yuan couldn't help but exclaim, his stomach beginning to rumble. He picked up a crawfish and was about to peel it when suddenly, his movements halted.
"What's wrong?" Su Jiu'er asked, noticing Lin Yuan's unusual behavior.
Lin Yuan remained silent, simply pointing at the crawfish, his eyes filled with shock. On the shell of the crawfish were strange symbols, resembling some kind of mysterious writing.
"What is this?" Su Jiu'er also noticed the symbols, her expression filled with confusion.
Lin Yuan picked up another crawfish and found the same symbols. He took out all the crawfish and examined them closely, discovering that each one had different symbols etched into their shells, forming what looked like a complete code.
"What... what does this mean?" Lin Yuan murmured, furrowing his brow in deep thought.
Su Jiu'er also fell into contemplation. Suddenly, as if struck by a revelation, her eyes lit up. "I got it!" she exclaimed excitedly. "These symbols could very well be some sort of cipher, just like... like ancient Oracle Bone Script!"
Lin Yuan's face lit up with realization. "Right! How did I not think of that!"
The two immediately began to study the symbols, trying to decipher their secrets, much like two archaeologists unraveling an ancient puzzle. Time ticked by slowly, filling the room with a tense atmosphere.
Suddenly, Lin Yuan exclaimed, "I figured it out!"
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