Chapter 262 - Chapter 262: Chapter 262: Terrifying (1/2)

Chapter 262: Chapter 262: Terrifying

Translator: 549690339

After Fang Pingfang looked up, the light stabilized.

She didn’t give it much thought, continuing to observe the data on her computer screen.

After a while, the light flickered again.

Dr. Fang Pingfang raised her eyebrows, looked up, and felt a little strange.

The power supply to their laboratories was very steady, so the problem was probably with the lights.

Apparently, these lights had quality issues. Had the purchasers taken kickbacks?

She would need to talk to the person in charge of equipment tomorrow. It seemed someone was in for trouble.

Dr. Fang Pingfang was very clear on how much Mr. Liang valued these laboratories. If someone dared to cut corners or squander funds, Mr. Liang would not let it slide.

The lights flickered again, but Fang Pingfang ignored it, focusing on the screen and occasionally hitting the keyboard’s page-turn keys.

But the next moment, the computer screen suddenly went dark.

Dr. Fang Pingfang subconsciously leaned back, looking at the black screen, a little stunned. The power indicator on the lower right corner of the monitor showed that the power was on.

So, was the problem with the mainframe, had it gone black?

Had kickbacks been taken in the purchase of these computer hardware too?

Dr. Fang Pingfang bent over to look at the mainframe, considering a forced restart. At this moment, however, the monitor lit up again, displaying the same image as before it went black.

“What’s going on…” Dr. Fang Pingfang operated the computer and found no issue. It seemed like the screen had just simply gone black for a moment.

She subconsciously looked around the laboratory, but she was the only one there, and the surrounding situation was clear at a glance. There was nothing different from usual.

She got up, walked to the door, and pressed the communication button to the security room.

“This is the security room, is… this Dr. Fang? What can I do for you?” She heard a somewhat puzzled voice through the intercom.

Dr. Fang Pingfang glanced at the surveillance camera in the lab. She knew that, for some special reasons, the surveillance footage of several labs on the second underground floor were stored independently on a separate system. Even the security personnel, who had also signed confidentiality agreements, were not able to view it in real time.

“Are there any other researchers on the D2 level besides me?” Dr. Fang Pingfang asked.

After a moment, the voice on the other end of the intercom said, “Researcher Xie and Dr. Yang just left, you are now the only research personnel on the D2 level.”

“What about security personnel?” Dr. Fang Pingfang asked again.

“Including me, there are six officers on duty, with two on the D2 level.”

“Okay, thank you.”

After she finished speaking, Dr. Fang Pingfang waited for a moment, then pressed the intercom button again. “May I ask, what’s your name?”

“My name is Zhang Yaozu, and I’m the team leader of Security Team 3.” Said the security officer over the intercom.

“Captain Zhang, how long have you been working here?”

“Since the completion of this place, including the preparatory and training period, it’s been ten months, or to be exact, ten months and seventeen days.” Zhang Yaozu replied.

“Do the electronic equipment here often malfunction?”

There was silence from the other end of the line for a moment before Zhang Yaozu finally replied uncertainly, “As for the equipment in the lab, we can’t touch it…”

“I mean, in the past, have other researchers reported equipment malfunctions or electrical problems while working at night?” Dr. Fang Pingfang asked after choosing her words carefully.

Zhang Yaozu replied, “No such thing… although the toilet on D1 did break down in the middle of the night once, and the water wouldn’t flush…”

“Eh, not that.” Dr. Fang Pingfang quickly interrupted, “I mean, for example, the lights. Has there been any fluctuation in light, flickering, or anything like that, just now?”

“That… shouldn’t… have happened, right?” Zhang Yaozu said uncertainly.

Dr. Fang Pingfang looked thoughtful. It seemed that only the lights in the lab where she was located had a problem.

“I just remembered, previously…” Zhang Yaozu hadn’t finished his sentence before the line suddenly went dead.

Dr. Fang Pingfang was taken aback, pressing the intercom button several times, but getting no response. “Captain Zhang? Are you still there? Captain Zhang?”

Only the static of the electric current could be heard on the intercom.

Suddenly, everything around her seemed to fall silent. She could even faintly hear the sound of the fan spinning inside the computer.

Could something have happened to Zhang Yaozu? Dr. Fang Pingfang was inexplicably troubled by this thought.

Several seconds later, Zhang Yaozu’s voice came back on. “…So the lights in these labs should be dimmer than before.”

“Was the line interrupted just now? Is there a problem with the intercom?” Dr. Fang Pingfang asked hurriedly.

In the security room, Zhang Yaozu was stunned to hear this, and looked at the intercom’s indicator light, confused. “No, the indicator light has been on the whole time, the line was never cut. Was there a problem on Dr. Fang’s end?”

“I didn’t hear what you said just now. You said ‘previously’… what happened?”

“Oh, I meant that Dr. Yang previously thought the lights in the lab were too bright and somewhat glaring, so we later replaced all the lights. The lights in laboratories 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10 are relatively dimmer or softer than the others.”

It took Dr. Fang Pingfang a few seconds to respond, “Pay close attention to the surveillance in a while. Watch for any abnormalities outside, and around my lab. Notify me immediately if anything happens.”

“Dr. Fang… what do you mean by ‘if anything happens’?” Captain Zhang felt an inexplicable chill crawl up his spine.

“It’s nothing much, just a random comment I made. Don’t worry too much about it.”

The more you say don’t worry, the more I will. Zhang Yaozu wanted to ask more questions, but Dr. Fang Pingfang had already ended the call.

He immediately turned to the multiple surveillance screens in the security room. Besides the inside of a few labs and storage rooms, other rooms including corridors, stairs, elevators, etc., were all within the surveillance range. Moreover, if he was willing, he could view the surveillance not only for D2, but also for D1, the floors above ground, and even the entire park’s surveillance, directly.

But having checked everything, he found no problems.

Then he noticed Dr. Fang Pingfang leaving Laboratory 6 and entering Laboratory 9. Before entering, she specifically looked up at the surveillance camera in the corridor, as if to tell him, “Be careful, I’m going in.”

“Was there an abnormal situation in Laboratory 6 just now?” He thought back to Dr. Fang Pingfang’s strange behavior during the call and started to feel anxious.

He had never felt this nervous even during some dangerous missions in the past, which made him feel very uneasy.

He couldn’t help but wonder what else was in those labs and secret storage rooms besides the equipment he had seen? What were highly educated talents such as Dr. Fang and Dr. Yang researching?

Previously, like his colleagues, he had signed a confidentiality agreement to work in the secret research department of Divine Technology for the high salary. But he was clueless as to what this department was investigating. To secure the high remuneration, none of them dared to probe into information beyond their duties. They all just busied themselves with their work.

But tonight, Dr. Fang’s mysterious and bizarre words made him curious.