Chapter 10: Verification

Chapter 10: Chapter 10: Verification

As he waited, time seemed to stretch into fine threads, flowing by, one slow second at a time.

Xu Mo sat leaning against the stairwell landing on the third floor, his eyes fixed on the mottled wooden door before him. His feelings were a complex mixture of anticipation, calm, and an unavoidable thread of anxiety. The purpose of this "door opening" was completely different from the last. For now, the desire for knowledge and verification had overshadowed the pressure to survive.

’So, this time... I don’t necessarily have to get anything specific,’ Xu Mo told himself.

It was a novel feeling. The last two times, he had been hounded by the shadow of death, like a drowning man desperately clawing for any piece of driftwood that could save him. His goals had been brutally clear: medicine, water, and food.

Now, however, Xu Mo had a small, temporary buffer. It allowed him to explore the boundaries and rules of his Superpower with a relatively calm mindset.

Of course, being calm didn’t mean he was without desire. A checklist of coveted items still flashed through Xu Mo’s mind: a better, more professional weapon, like a Mountain-Cutting Saber or a tactical axe; a truly sturdy and durable large backpack to drastically improve his carrying capacity; more comprehensive medical supplies, especially a first-aid kit for trauma; and if he could find a map or a compass, it would be an invaluable treasure for his planned relocation...

’But none of that is the priority this time.’

Xu Mo gently shook his head, shelving the list for now.

The core of this attempt was to verify his "door type correspondence" theory. If he was right, the efficiency of his future supply runs would increase exponentially, a far better deal than blindly trying his luck this time.

Because of this, Xu Mo was fully prepared for the possibility of coming back with nothing. Even if the door opened into another residence, or even a completely empty room, as long as it proved his theory, this "door opening" would be a success. Its strategic value would far outweigh scrounging up a bag or two of food.

He analyzed the situation rationally, but deep down, that primal human hope for a lucky break hadn’t been completely extinguished. After all, this was a precious sixty-second opportunity, a miracle that took forty-eight hours to build up. Even if it was just grabbing something small on the way out, that would be fine too.

This subtle, contradictory feeling became especially pronounced as the countdown entered its final ten minutes.

Xu Mo subconsciously wet his somewhat dry lips. His gaze shifted from the wooden door, and on a strange impulse, he opened his bottle of mineral water and washed his hands.

He didn’t know what, exactly, he was praying to for good luck. Was it inscrutable fate, or the entity that had granted him this bizarre Superpower? Perhaps it was just a form of psychological comfort—a symbolic act of "cleansing" and "making a fresh start" to ward off any potential "bad juju" and secure a better outcome for his experiment.

The amount of water he used was negligible, but after completing this small ritual, Xu Mo truly felt the last vestiges of his anxiety smooth away, replaced by a strange sense of calm and conviction.

Shaking the last droplets of water from his hands, his gaze grew sharp and focused once more, locking onto the wooden door that would decide the outcome of his test.

The countdown in his mind swung steadfastly toward zero, like a pendulum.

[00:05:00]

[00:03:00]

[00:01:00]

[00:00:03...02...01...00]

As the countdown hit zero, Xu Mo’s eyes narrowed and he mentally commanded:

’Open!’

A faint light flickered. Xu Mo stepped through and once again arrived in the strange, time-frozen world.

His gaze, quick as lightning, swept across the room.

Before him was an office, so standard it was almost a stereotype. A wide desk, a black leather swivel chair, a filing cabinet against the wall. On the desk sat a desktop computer, a landline phone, a pen holder, and some neatly stacked files. In the corner were a few potted plants, their leaves a vibrant, glistening green, yet frozen in a single moment of growth. Several abstract paintings of inscrutable meaning hung on the walls. On the other side of the room, against the far wall, there was even a small sofa for taking a quick break.

’An office...’ A flicker of disappointment passed through Xu Mo’s mind.

The environment was too sterile. Everything was orderly, exuding a business-like impersonality that made it difficult to find even a single small object reflecting the owner’s gender or personality. It was a far cry from the kind of place he’d hoped for, one that might hide more living supplies or special items. The sofa looked comfortable and might have been useful, but its size and weight were far beyond what he could quickly carry away.

’Good thing I braced myself for this,’ Xu Mo thought, quickly suppressing his disappointment. The main objective this time was verification, not plunder.

He immediately turned to look back at his "entrance." Behind him stood a light-colored wooden door of a similar style, almost identical to the one he had just opened.

The theory was confirmed!

The rule of corresponding door types was real. Opening a wooden door had indeed led him to an indoor space that also had a wooden door.

This confirmation invigorated Xu Mo, the slight disappointment from before instantly replaced by an immense sense of accomplishment. Now that he understood this rule, his future supply runs would be much more targeted, and his efficiency would skyrocket.

The sixty-second countdown was already ticking. No time to waste. Xu Mo quickly turned his attention back to the office.

[50 seconds remaining]

Time was tight, so Xu Mo moved faster. He shot over to the desk and quickly yanked open the drawers. They were empty, aside from some company stamps, blank invoices, and a few half-used pens. He glanced at the filing cabinet and the shelves on the wall, which held a few decorative trinkets—useless in his current situation.

[30 seconds remaining]

His eyes darted around before locking onto the glass coffee table across from the sofa. Next to an ashtray sat several exquisite metal tea caddies! He rushed over, picked one up, and weighed it in his hand. It felt heavy, the seal intact. While he couldn’t eat tea leaves for a meal, in a post-apocalyptic world where vitamins were scarce, tea could provide some trace elements. More importantly, a hot drink offered psychological comfort.

"At least I’m not leaving empty-handed," Xu Mo muttered, pursing his lips as he deftly stuffed all the tea caddies inside his jacket.

[10 seconds remaining]

Still not satisfied, Xu Mo’s eyes swept the room one last time. He ended up grabbing the laptop from the desk. Then, as if to spite the world, he snatched a cushion from the sofa and tucked it under his arm. Only then did he turn, clutching his "spoils," and step back to the third floor of his own apocalyptic world.

The faint light dissipated behind him, and the world returned to silence. Xu Mo stood on the stairwell landing, looking down at the slightly comical collection in his arms: a laptop, tea caddies, and a sofa cushion.

He hadn’t managed to get any practical survival supplies, but the corners of his mouth turned up in a slight smile.

The theory was confirmed. That was more important than anything else.