Spy-x-War Showdown
Chapter 508 - 496

Chapter 508: 496

While Anton reveled inside, Yang Yi and the others were simply waiting in the car outside.

Yang Yi thought a brief appearance by Anton would suffice, but to their dismay, it wasn’t until well after 3 a.m. that Anton emerged from the hotel alone.

Gently nudging the dozing Rodriguez awake with his hand, Yang Yi whispered, "He’s out."

Anton looked somewhat weary.

Anton walked straight to Yang Yi’s car, yanked the door open, tossed his belongings onto the seat, and murmured, "You guys go ahead, I’ll head back at dawn. Also, give me a pack of cigarettes."

Rodriguez’s eyes widened as he whispered incredulously, "You’re not leaving now?"

Glancing at Rodriguez, he said, "There are still two women waiting for me; I can’t leave just yet."

"A quick show of face should’ve been enough, do you really plan to keep up this charade indefinitely?"

Anton replied calmly, "If I didn’t have to frequent the nightclubs anymore, that would be feasible, but if I must, then I need to make sure they’re taken care of."

After speaking, Anton let out a low sigh, adding, "Women are such a hassle..."

Xiao Ran knew what Anton was up to; since everything was for the mission, she had to turn a blind eye to whatever Anton did—after all, for a spy, this was nothing out of the ordinary.

But when Anton griped about women being troublesome, Xiao Ran couldn’t stand it anymore.

"Troublesome women? It’s your shamelessness that’s crystal clear!"

Watching Xiao Ran’s disdainful and fuming expression, Anton curled his lip and said softly, "Amateur..."

Xiao Ran grew even angrier, but she certainly couldn’t argue with Anton, so she could only glare hatefully at him.

Anton took the full pack of cigarettes Rodriguez offered him, and with a sigh, explained, "Do you think I enjoy this? Understand this—I am sacrificing myself to fulfill the mission."

After finishing his sentence, Anton turned and walked away.

Watching Anton’s retreating figure, Rodriguez cursed under his breath, "He’s showing off! The bastard is definitely showing off!"

Yang Yi heaved a sigh and said quietly, "Alright, let’s go."

Upon returning to their hotel, Yang Yi immediately rushed back to his room and then connected the two small boxes that Anton had delivered to his computer.

The small boxes were detectors; used in pairs, they could only scan small spaces but didn’t require strong vibrations, which was sufficient for Yang Yi and his team.

The detectors were only for collecting signals; it was the computer’s job to analyze the signals and form images. However, Yang Yi’s laptop wasn’t up to the task, hence he needed to send the data to Tang Guo so that Tang Guo and Schultz could convert the data into images before sending them back.

A few minutes later, the images were transmitted back to Yang Yi’s computer.

The situation was urgent, yet Yang Yi and his team had to proceed slowly, but now that there was progress, they couldn’t consider whether it was night or day.

Soon, all the key members were gathered in Yang Yi’s room.

Rotating his computer to show everyone, Yang Yi declared gravely, "The image is out, and our conjecture is correct—there is indeed a large space underground."

The image wasn’t complete; it showed walls and the space itself, but areas far from the detectors were blank.

No doors were visible on the image, as the area that materialized seemed to be continuous.

After everyone reviewed the image, Yang Yi turned to Hank and asked, "What do you think?"

Hank didn’t respond hastily; he pursed his lips, furrowed his brow, and pondered for a good while before saying, "No door. If there were a door, it would be visible in these images—that’s what the person who handed me the detectors said."

Yang Yi nodded and prompted, "And then?"

Hank exhaled deeply and said, "I don’t know where the door is or what kind of lock it is. What’s your professional opinion on this? But..."

Pointing to the center of the image, Hank suggested, "Look here; it looks like a small room. I think that’s the safe, a very large one."

Yang Yi grew interested and pressed, "Oh? Why do you say that?"

Hank frowned and explained, "You can see two layers of rooms. This part of the image is blurry—it must be a safe that’s either snug against or built directly into the wall, made entirely of metal. Look here, this is probably the safe door. The reason it’s not clear is likely because the door is very tightly integrated with the main body of the safe."

Rubbing his chin, Hank shared his concern, "I’ve never dealt with a safe this large. If this room is indeed a safe, then cracking it open is going to be tough."

"Aren’t you the one who claims you can crack any lock?"

Kate was genuinely curious, with no malice or intention to mock Hank.

Hank spread his hands and admitted, "What if it takes me five hours? What if it takes two days to pick that lock? Simple locks take just a few seconds, but if this is a large safe and the lock is something I’ve never encountered, I truly don’t know how long it would take."

Yang Yi suddenly interjected, "Wait, considering its location, could this be a bank’s underground vault?"

Brian shook his head, stating, "It’s just a minor bank branch; they wouldn’t have an underground vault. However, if it’s controlled by the Grey-cloaked People, that’s a different story. Hmm, we can’t discount that possibility."

Yang Yi pulled out the blueprints they had already obtained and, after comparing them with the image on the computer, he quickly said, "It’s underneath the bank but connected to the repair shop’s underground space—it’s very likely a metal safe."

Slapping the blueprint down, Yang Yi declared seriously, "We need to find the door."

Hank gravely explained, "The door won’t be too hard to find, but trust me, the moment you locate the door, the opposition will surely know you’re spying on their vault. And then, you’re suggesting a forceful entry, right? However, I can’t guarantee how long it’ll take to open the lock; if it really takes hours to open, then what?"

The longest duration Yang Yi could accept for an operation was ten minutes; any longer, and they couldn’t proceed, for this was Rome, and they were in a stronghold of the Grey-cloaked People. To avoid a total wipeout, they needed to act swiftly—the faster, the better.

"I need to know what kind of lock it is first. Then, I can study it specifically, but that requires us to locate the secret door, stealthily enter the underground vault, verify the lock, and then come back. Once I’ve done my research, I can then give you an exact time frame for picking the lock. But I don’t think that’s very likely; it’s not doable," Hank concluded helplessly, spreading his hands. "I don’t want to say this, but you can’t pin your hopes on me."

Yang Yi exhaled sharply and said, "Then let’s do it the hard way!"

After vigorously rubbing his face, Yang Yi seethed, "Forget picking the lock; let’s blow it open! We’ll blast open their underground vault!"

Brian nodded in agreement, declaring, "Yes, brute force is the only option now."