175: 175. Come Again

Watching Mike leave the laboratory with a panicked Julie, Lu Feng's lips curved into a faint, almost imperceptible smile.

He found the situation amusing, but on the other hand, he also felt a chill at the intelligence and efficiency of the Eagle's intelligence agencies.

Tingfeng Energy's solid-state battery technology had only achieved breakthroughs on a small scale at present; it was still far from truly changing the industry landscape, at most just a pebble dropped into a lake, with ripples yet to spread.

However, the other party had already pounced like sharks smelling blood, precisely, even using academic exchanges as a cover to dispatch professional spies to steal secrets.

This foresight and execution were indeed not to be underestimated.

"Unfortunately, this time you are destined to suffer a major setback," Lu Feng murmured in his heart, his eyes calm and unperturbed.

In the evening, inside Jiangcheng University's newly decorated auditorium, lights blazed and wine glasses clinked.

The International Forum on New Energy and Materials Science's exchange banquet was being held there.

Soothing classical music flowed as scholars, entrepreneurs, and investors from all over the world, holding wine glasses, gathered in small groups, conversing in low voices, creating a warm and elegant atmosphere.

Undoubtedly, the school leaders, Chief Scientist Professor Qin, and Yu Tianxiong, the representative of Tingfeng Capital, were the undisputed focus of the evening.

They were always surrounded by the most people, discussing technological prospects and possibilities for cooperation, clearly the center of the entire venue.

Lu Feng had changed into a suitable suit and blended into the student union's volunteer team, seemingly busy assisting in maintaining order at the banquet and guiding guests.

But his gaze calmly scanned the entire hall, especially lingering on Mike and Julie, whose face was still somewhat pale.

Yu Tianxiong and Professor Qin gestured to him from afar, a brief exchange of glances, a silent understanding between them.

Lu Feng had already warned them about the possible actions of the Eagle's spies over the phone.

At the banquet, Professor Mike, holding a wine glass, approached Professor Qin with a cordial smile, attempting to fish for information under the guise of academic discussion.

He probed indirectly, talking from international technological trends to the difficulties of laboratory management, his words full of admiration and resonance.

He clearly wanted to close the distance with Professor Qin.

However, although Professor Qin seemed engrossed in technical discussions, his answers always revolved around publicly available information; when it came to core technology and undisclosed data, he became as stubborn as a rock, politely but firmly deflecting the topic, leaving Mike with a sense of frustration, unable to find an opening.

Mike cursed inwardly, knowing he had met a tough opponent.

He subtly gave a look to Julie, who was not far away.

Julie understood, took a deep breath, quickly adjusted her state, forcibly suppressed the fear of the bizarre incident in the laboratory, and put on a charming, confident smile again, walking over gracefully.

"Professor Qin, a man as dedicated to scientific research as you truly has a lot of charm."

She leaned slightly, her hair shimmering softly under the lights, leaving a faint, ethereal fragrance.

"Our institute has also been doing interdisciplinary research on solid-state batteries recently, but unfortunately, we always can't find truly knowledgeable partners."

She skillfully interjected into the conversation, first complimenting Professor Qin's academic achievements, then her words began to carry a subtle hint of provocation, and her body language became more aggressive.

This was her unfailing tactic, using her beauty and charm as a weapon to dismantle the other party's psychological defenses.

Julie's eyes flickered, her voice carrying a hint of lazy seduction, "I wonder if I might have the honor of having a drink with you alone after the banquet, to delve into... an exchange?"

However, to her surprise, Professor Qin merely glanced at her indifferently, his eyes clear, even with a hint of imperceptible annoyance.

He responded politely but distantly, "I'm sorry, Researcher Julie, I have important data to process after the banquet. Academic exchanges can be conducted in formal settings."

Seduction, ineffective!

Julie's smile froze slightly, a wave of frustration rising in her heart, but she did not give up.

She noticed that Professor Qin seemed to have drunk a lot of alcohol and indicated that he needed to go to the restroom. A glint flashed in Julie's eyes, and she felt an opportunity had arrived.

Once he left the crowd, in a relatively private space, it might be easier to break through.

She waited a few seconds without a trace, then also walked towards the restroom, pulling at her skirt, preparing for a major battle inside.

The corridor was much quieter than the banquet hall, and the lighting was slightly dim. Julie quickened her pace, seeing Professor Qin turn a corner ahead, she also hurried to follow around the bend... Suddenly, that familiar yet chilling sensation struck again!

The surrounding air seemed to instantly freeze, the hustle and bustle of the banquet hall silenced as if a mute button had been pressed, completely disappearing.

Professor Qin was gone.

The corridor lights began to flicker unstably, the walls' color turned gray and peeled, as if instantly having endured decades of erosion.

"No... don't..." Julie's heart tightened abruptly, the terrifying memory from the afternoon instantly resurfaced, making her shudder.

She spun around, terrified to see that behind her in the corridor, the lights were extinguishing one by one at a visible speed! Darkness rapidly swallowed everything!

"Ah--!"

Julie screamed in collapse, no longer caring about chasing Professor Qin; the instinct for survival made her turn and run!

The sound of high heels clacking on the floor was especially piercing and lonely in the dead silent corridor.

She ran desperately, turning one corner after another, but it was like a maze, she couldn't find her way out.

"Let me out! Please let me out!" Tears streamed down her face, her mind on the verge of collapse from extreme fear.

Just as she despairingly turned another corner, a thick, nauseating smell of rust suddenly filled her nostrils.

It was the smell of blood!

She stopped in horror, only to see that the previously elegant and clean corridor ahead had turned into a living hell.

The walls were splattered with dark red, almost black bloodstains, viscous blood flowed on the ground, reflecting her pale, distorted face.

And at the end of the corridor, lay two shattered, almost unrecognizable corpses.

Julie's pupils constricted, her eyes wide.

It was... her parents who had jumped to their deaths years ago!!

This was the deepest, most terrifying image she never wanted to touch!

"No--!!!!"

She let out a heart-wrenching wail, collapsing to the ground, clutching her hair tightly with both hands until her knuckles were white, frantically banging her head against the cold wall beside her; "It's not real! This isn't real! Ah ah ah ah!!!"

Just then, "Click click click... click click..." a chilling, bone-grating sound came from the corner.

Julie abruptly stopped, turning back in utter terror.

She saw that the two previously still, broken bodies of her parents began to twitch and writhe unnaturally!

In a manner that defied physiological structure, extremely stiffly, they supported themselves on the ground with their arms, dragging their shattered bodies, slowly, one movement at a time, crawling towards her!

Sticky blood plasma and crushed flesh left long trails on the floor.

Even more terrifyingly, those two blood-soaked heads, lifted with difficulty, their empty eye sockets and torn mouths seemed to form a bizarre smile, staring fixedly at her, emitting a terrifying sound:

"Dau...ghter...why...we...don't...want...to...die..."

The voice carried endless resentment and coldness, piercing deep into her soul!

"No! Don't come over! It wasn't me! I didn't kill you!!"

Julie's mind completely collapsed at this moment!

She scrambled backward, using both hands and feet, fear overwhelming everything.

As the two terrifying corpses crawled closer and closer, the smell of blood almost drowning her, extreme terror made her lose her sanity.

She suddenly sprang up from the ground, recklessly crashing into a window beside the corridor!

"Bang!!!!"

The glass shattered with a crash!

Julie's figure, accompanied by scattered glass shards, flipped out of the window, falling straight towards the pitch-black ground below...