Chapter 10: The Mysterious Box

"May I ask, how long has it been since you last went outside?" Kong Zhe glanced at the woman trembling not far away as he spoke.

The woman was clearly still frightened. Now that Kong Zhe was looking at her, she became even more flustered, stammering, "Uh... s-six or seven months, I think..." She kept edging backward until she bumped into the computer desk against the wall. With nowhere else to retreat, she crouched down and squeezed herself into the cramped space beneath the desk.

"Six..." Kong Zhe was speechless at her answer. Was she trying to break some world record? He then noticed that under the computer desk, there was already a thin mattress and pillow laid out. On the floor next to the desk stood a laptop, positioned so the screen faced directly into the space beneath.

Kong Zhe couldn't help but twitch at the corner of his mouth. Did she really spend all her time under there, sleeping and working? This house was huge—there was no way it didn't have a bed. He shook his head. He knew many scientists had odd habits, but this was stranger than he had imagined.

But that wasn't what he needed to focus on. Kong Zhe checked his watch—less than five minutes left. He had to find that item immediately.

However, he was at a loss. The thing he sought was about the size of a cigarette case, and searching for it in this vast, chaotic house would be like looking for a needle in a haystack.

Left with no choice, Kong Zhe walked over to the desk, crouched down, and asked the woman, "Hey, you..."

"Ah! What are you doing? Help!"

The moment he got close, she cried out, wildly waving a tiny pillow in her hand.

"Shut up!" Kong Zhe barked. The woman flinched, momentarily silenced. Yet she still pleaded nervously, "I-I can give you as much money as you want, just please, don't hurt me..."

"I'm not going to hurt you. I'm only looking for something. If you help me find it, I'll leave right away," Kong Zhe explained.

"What?" Far from being reassured, the woman looked at him with even greater suspicion, arms crossed protectively over her chest, pleading, "You want to take my virtue and you want me to cooperate? No! You can kill me if you must, but please, don't violate me!"

Kong Zhe nearly choked. Good grief, was this woman delusional? Though he couldn't see her face clearly, with that filthy hair and the peculiar odor from living in this house so long, even the most desperate criminal would think twice.

Trying not to laugh or cry, Kong Zhe said, "What I'm looking for is an object—a stack of cards in a black box, covered with strange, intricate patterns. Have you seen it?"

The woman finally relaxed a little, the description ringing a faint bell. After thinking it over, she remembered and said hurriedly, "Yes, yes! Three years ago, I picked up something like that at an antique store. I only bought it because it looked mysterious, but after studying it, it didn't seem special..."

Kong Zhe's eyes lit up, delighted. "Where is it now?"

"You... you said you only wanted that item, right? Then go outside first and I'll pass it to you through the door..." She hesitated, her voice uncertain.

"No. Tell me where it is, now," Kong Zhe said coldly.

"Um..." Startled by his expression, the woman hesitated, then finally stammered, "It's... it's in the cabinet at the bottom right of the left wall."

Kong Zhe immediately looked back. Bottom right of the left wall—sure enough, there was a cabinet. But it was a safe.

"Where's the key?"

The woman hesitated even more, squirming in silence under the desk.

"Hurry up, or I'll take liberties with you right now!" Seeing her still stalling, Kong Zhe threatened her fiercely.

"Ah!" She jumped in fright, and no longer dared to delay. She quickly fished a bunch of keys out of her pocket and handed them to him with trembling hands.

Kong Zhe snatched the keys and rushed to the safe. Judging by the shape of the keyhole, it was easy to pick out the right key.

He swung open the door. Inside were a jumble of things—ancient CDs, tapes, and some magazines. He rummaged through them and finally found a small, pitch-black box at the very bottom.

"That's it—this is it!"

Kong Zhe's hands shook with excitement as he picked up the box.

At first glance, the box looked ordinary, except for a mysterious pattern etched on its surface. But the moment Kong Zhe held it, he knew without a doubt—this was the treasure he had sought through countless hardships in his past life. It might look like nothing special now, but when the apocalypse came, it would transform into a piece of dark-gold equipment.