43: Chapter 43 Catching a Turtle in a Jar: The "Night Rat"

The office door closed behind Li Guoxiong with a dull thud, sounding like a heavy hammer that completely shattered the last sliver of hope in Li Zeyu's heart.

He stood there in a daze, looking at the documents scattered across the floor and the messy office. His father's every word echoed repeatedly in his ears—"bankruptcy protection," "cleaning up the mess," "the Li family can't afford to lose anymore."

"Ha... Hahaha..." Li Zeyu suddenly let out a low laugh. At first, it was suppressed, but then it grew increasingly manic. "Lost? I, Li Zeyu, would lose to a factory on the verge of bankruptcy?!"

He spun around abruptly and kicked over the coffee table next to him. The sound of shattering glass was piercing, and tea mixed with shards splashed all over the floor. The assistant was so frightened that they retreated two steps, not daring to breathe loudly.

On what grounds could Fanxing Technology step over the bones of his Lis Sci-Tech to soar to success?

A crazy thought grew in his heart, wrapping around his sanity like vines. He directly tossed Li Guoxiong's warning of "don't do anything out of line" to the back of his mind.

A flash of ruthlessness crossed Li Zeyu's eyes. He pulled out another phone—an encrypted one not in his contacts—and dialed a number he had never contacted openly. His voice was raspy like sandpaper: "Hello, I need you to do something for me... The price will be doubled."

---

At the same time, Fanxing Technology's factory area.

The security system, which had undergone three days of modification, was now fully online. Chen Fan stood in the monitoring center, looking at the thirty-six split screens on the large display. The entire factory area was silent in the night, with only the surveillance cameras disguised as streetlights and vents turning noiselessly. Their infrared indicators flickered in the darkness like eyes that never closed.

Lin Hao was snoring on a temporary bed set up nearby, but Chen Fan had no desire to sleep. His fingertips slid across the tablet, the screen jumping with dense security data.

Li Zeyu wouldn't let things go—Chen Fan knew the psychology of such people too well. The pain of falling from the clouds would twist into a manic desire for revenge.

"Xiao Zhi," Chen Fan said in a low voice, "increase the monitoring frequency of the sensors around the R&D area, especially the sensitivity of the ground wave vibration array. Set it to the highest level. I have a feeling we'll have 'guests' visiting tonight."

"Executed. Sensitivity increased by 30%, warning response time shortened to 0.05 seconds."

Just as the words left his mouth, a red dot in the top right corner of the screen suddenly flashed frantically!

[Warning! Warning!]

[Abnormal vibration frequency detected outside the western wall of the R&D area. Waveform analysis: Five people approaching in coordination, well-trained gait, not ordinary thieves.]

[Coordinates locked: Area from X35, Y78 to X4, Y82.]

Chen Fan's eyes narrowed. His fingers slid quickly across the screen, pulling up the real-time surveillance footage of the western wall.

In the night, five dark shadows moved like ghosts against the base of the wall. They wore all-black, tight-fitting night suits, their movements clean and efficient. They held specialized tools—thermal imagers, electromagnetic probes, and silenced electric saws.

The leader was lean and fit, his eyes glinting coldly under his night-vision goggles.

It was exactly the black-market expert Li Zeyu had hired at a high price, code-named "Night Rat." This person specialized in infiltration and intelligence theft. He charged a high price in the black market and had never failed.

"Arriving right on time." Chen Fan sneered, tapping lightly on the control panel. "Activate the 'Catching a Turtle in a Jar' protocol. Keep the warning layer silent and let them approach the wall."

"Understood. Active alarms on the western wall have been deactivated; sensors switched to passive monitoring mode."

Outside the wall, Night Rat raised his hand and made a gesture, and the team stopped immediately.

"Boss, the probe shows something under the wall." A subordinate lowered his voice, the electromagnetic probe in his hand emitting a faint hum. "It's a vibration sensor, buried quite deep. The model... I haven't seen it before."

Night Rat narrowed his eyes. "Dig it out. Be careful, don't trigger the alarm."

Two subordinates immediately pulled out entrenching shovels and began digging along the base of the wall. The shovel had barely entered the soil ten centimeters—

Buzz!

The underground sensor captured the strong vibration, and the signal was instantly transmitted back to the control center.

[Target triggered active digging behavior. Threat level increased to Level 2.]

[Activating interception layer defense: Area Denial Sprayers. Target locked. Launching.]

At the top of the wall, devices disguised as gray water pipes suddenly popped open their casings. More than twenty sprayers turned simultaneously, their nozzles aimed at the five people below, instantly spraying a thick, milky-white foam!

This foam was a product of Chen Fan's Amplification modification using industrial glue and special solvents. Its stickiness was fifty percent stronger than the standard version and carried a faint bio-current that could cause brief muscle paralysis.

"What the hell is this?!"

"Get away!"

Just as the cries of alarm rose, the foam poured down like a rainstorm. Night Rat reacted the fastest, rolling backward to retreat, but the two subordinates who were digging couldn't dodge in time and had their legs instantly encased in foam.

"Damn! This stuff is stuck!"

The two struggled to pull their legs out, only to find that the foam expanded and solidified rapidly upon contact with the air, pinning them to the spot like cement. Worse still, a numbing sensation spread from where they were encased, and their leg muscles began to spasm uncontrollably.

"Electromagnetic jammer! Quick!" Night Rat roared.

Another subordinate immediately pulled out a black device and pressed the switch.

Zzz-zzz-zzz—

A strong electromagnetic interference wave spread out. The screens in the monitoring center flickered violently, and static appeared on three of the displays.

[Strong electromagnetic interference detected. Frequency band coverage 2.4-5.8GHz. Some warning layer nodes are offline.]

[Activating countermeasures: Directional Electromagnetic Pulse Device. Target locked. Launching.]

On the roof of the R&D area, an inconspicuous metal box suddenly opened. Inside, a pulse generator modified by Amplification charged instantly. A beam of invisible directional electromagnetic pulse was accurately fired at the jammer outside the western wall!

Bang!

Green smoke rose from the black device, the screen shattered, and it was completely scrapped.

Night Rat's pupils constricted—his jammer was a military-grade modified version. How could it be taken out instantly?!

Just then, a dense buzzing sound came from overhead.

He looked up abruptly to see more than thirty drones taking off simultaneously from the helipad on the roof of the R&D area! These drones, modified by Chen Fan's Amplification, had wings with a dark silver metallic luster, and the Sonic Balls hanging below them flashed red lights in the night.

The swarm, like hunting falcons, completed their formation in the air and dived toward them!

"Retreat! Retreat quickly!" Night Rat screamed hoarsely.

But it was already too late.

The drone swarm hovered ten meters above the five men, and the Sonic Balls were activated simultaneously!

A sharp, high-frequency sonic wave erupted, its frequency precisely controlled to cause dizziness and nausea without causing permanent damage. The sound felt like countless steel needles piercing their eardrums, reaching deep into their brains!

"Aaaargh—!"

Screams tore through the night sky. The five men collapsed to the ground, clutching their heads in pain. Some began to retch, while others saw black and lost their balance.

Immediately after, more Alloy Wires shot out from the ground, the walls, and even the launchers of the drones in the air, binding the five men into immobile bundles.

The gate in the wall slowly opened, and Chen Fan walked out with Lin Hao. Lin Hao was still holding his phone, with "Connected to 110" displayed on the screen.

"Night Rat, real name Zhang Biao, thirty-two years old. Retired from the special forces, expelled for violations, then drifted into the black market. Suspected in seven commercial secret theft cases, with a police reward of 200,000 yuan." Chen Fan stopped in front of Night Rat and calmly read out his profile.

Night Rat was covered in cold sweat, looking at the young man in front of him in shock. "You... how do you know..."

"Your employer is Li Zeyu from Lis Sci-Tech, isn't it?" Chen Fan asked.

Night Rat's face turned pale.

"The police will be here in ten minutes." Chen Fan stood up. "You have two choices now. First, keep your mouth shut and take the fall for everything—theft of commercial secrets, illegal trespassing, and disrupting production and operations. With multiple crimes combined, you'll get at least ten years. Second..."

He paused. "Identify the mastermind behind the scenes and turn state's witness. I can help you apply for a reduced sentence."

Night Rat stared intently at Chen Fan. A few seconds later, he lowered his head dejectedly. "I... I'll choose the second option."