Jing Shu only remembered when she saw Yang Yang slam his fist into the wall. The fake wall in the underground passage, the false mirror in the castle—every single one had a door made to look identical to the surroundings, with a new space built behind it. Habits reveal a person. Just like how Jing Shu, as a foodie, could never change what was in her bones.
No matter how smart Lin Yi was, he lacked any sense of security. Wherever he went, he would hide himself in a place no one could find. It had already become a reflex.
Which meant he was still inside this apartment, concealed in a secret room he had modified himself.
From the outside, no one would notice. Even a careful look might not reveal it. The whole apartment was empty; there was nothing but walls. Who would imagine that someone had built a hidden chamber in a standard shared building?
Jing Shu began knocking inch by inch. A full round produced nothing. Yang Yang still did not understand what she was doing, and she could not explain. If she explained, she would expose herself. Like how had she opened the false door in the underground passage? With smart people, it was better to say less.
She knocked again, up and down, left and right, not even sparing the wall of the built-in cloakroom. Sure enough, one section rang with a crisper sound.
It was not hollow, but it sounded different from the rest.
"What a perfect hiding place. The police would likely never check this spot."
Yang Yang and Jing Shu looked at each other. She saw an odd expression on his face, as if he were staring at a monster.
"Now we just open it." Jing Shu clenched her fist until her knuckles crackled. Maybe she should grab a sledgehammer and smash it down.
Right then, the invisible door swung open. Lin Yi stepped out, a not-quite smile on his face. He clapped lightly. "Looks like I underestimated you. Next time I make a door, it will be troublesome, but I should use identical materials so it will be harder to spot."
Her sharp eyes took in the interior. The hidden space was under four square meters, yet fully equipped: food, water, even a power line. A cabinet-bed offered a place to sleep. He could survive here for a month without issue.
"You think you can still get away?" Jing Shu's laugh was cold. Outside, hundreds of officers were hunting him. All Yang Yang had to do was shout and everyone would rush in. Even explosives would not save him now.
"Get away? Why would I run?" Lin Yi slid his hands into his pockets and shrugged, relaxed as ever, lips tipped in that sunny little smile.
So calm. So assured.
He had to be holding a trump card.
"Yang Yang, call them in."
Villains always stalled with arrogant speeches. Jing Shu would not give Lin Yi time to reach out for help.
Lin Yi tilted his head, his fingers rubbing rhythmically against his pants. He spoke lightly, as if negotiating. "How about this, Officer Yang. Let me go just this once. Pretend you never saw me today. Let me stay inside for a few more comfortable days."
Jing Shu snorted. The nerve of him. As if Yang Yang would ever agree.
Then her jaw nearly hit the floor.
After a moment of hesitation, Yang Yang actually said, "Alright, I will let you go this once."
Jing Shu stared. "What was happening?"
Lin Yi walked toward her one step at a time. His fingers rubbed faster. Watching those long, elegant fingers, she felt a thread of drowsiness creep in.
"What do you say, Jing Shu? You must be tired after a long day. You should go home and enjoy that lavish dinner your grandma prepared. Your cousin is waiting to hear all about your adventures. You are basking in the family's admiring eyes. You enjoy this warmth. You need to talk and let it all out."
For a heartbeat, she almost agreed.
"I almost believed your nonsense." Her mind jolted. She activated the newest feature of her Rubik's Cube Space—illusion. In an instant, she snapped free of the haze.
Surprise flickered across Lin Yi's face.
"So this hidden trump card is your ability? You can make people obey what you say." Jing Shu's lips curled. If that was true, everything finally made sense.
But could such a power really exist?
"You are the second person who has not fallen to my hypnosis," Lin Yi said with a hint of regret. "It is not some grand ability. I am simply the only hypnotist in the world who can reach Level 7. In our field, hypnosis is usually divided into six levels."
That was like a billionaire saying money did not interest him.
Jing Shu's eyes widened. Hypnosis? So that was it. A hypnotist offers suggestions. In a hypnotic state, a person may experience changes in perception, thought, memory, and behavior.
Temporary paralysis, hallucinations, selective amnesia, and automatic responses to the hypnotist's cues.
Compared with the Rubik's Cube Space's illusions, his was a tier higher in some ways. They were not strictly comparable. Lin Yi used voice and gesture to induce hypnosis, then sent people to do things they would not even remember.
His hypnosis endured and targeted specific objectives. It would not stop until the goal was achieved. Hers required the target to be within the Rubik's Cube Space's range.
Even so, her illusions were powerful, almost like cheat codes. She could use the space to seed suggestions directly, without relying on hands or voice. If it failed once, she could keep nudging, again and again, until it worked.
"So that is why Grandma Jing and Zijin said they saw you drive away. You used their mouths to deliver the message that you had already left, making all of us believe you had escaped.
Oh, and you had your subordinate Ling Qi perform a suicide detonation with the detonator. That was hypnosis too?
Last year, you also used hypnosis to slip out from under their guard. You used hypnosis to dig all of Uncle Gou's secrets out, didn't you?"
Lin Yi began to applaud. "But I did not hypnotize Ling Qi. She was willing."