You went on a blind date and presented an A-level wanted criminal as a meeting gift?

At 8:00 PM sharp, the preview auction officially began.

The auctioneer stood on the stage, using highly persuasive language to introduce the legendary history and unparalleled artistic value of the "Crown of the Empire".

The atmosphere at the scene reached a climax.

"Starting bid: one billion!"

With the auctioneer's gavel falling, a war without gunpowder officially began.

"1.1 billion!" The oil prince from the Middle East raised his sign.

"1.2 billion!" The old European aristocracy refused to be outdone.

"1.5 billion!" The Wall Street financial tycoon exclaimed with an air of certainty.

Prices skyrocketed, and the wealthy people at the scene became completely scrambling to buy this one-of-a-kind Easter egg.

Lin Chen and Ye Qingcheng, however, did not raise their placards and simply watched coldly from the sidelines.

Only when the price was raised to 3 billion and only two competitors remained did Ye Qingcheng lazily raise her bidding paddle at Lin Chen's prompting.

"Fifty billion."

She parted her red lips slightly and uttered a number that instantly silenced the entire room.

Without any attempt to raise the price or any hesitation, they directly doubled the price from the base of 3 billion!

This is the financial power of the Ye Group! This is the domineering presence of the Ice Queen!

A collective gasp filled the room. The two wealthy men who had been fiercely competing instantly turned pale, as if they had swallowed flies, and finally dejectedly put down their bidding paddles.

Are you kidding me? Trying to outspend the Ye Group? That's just asking for humiliation.

"Fifty billion once! Five billion twice! Is there an even higher price?"

The auctioneer's voice trembled with excitement.

The entire room fell silent.

Just as the auctioneer was about to bring down the third gavel and declare the Easter egg a prize for Ye Qingcheng, and the "Phantom" thieves were about to watch helplessly as their long-planned prey was snatched away by someone else with money—

"Snapped!"

An unexpected change occurred!

In that instant, without warning, all the lights in the entire auction hall went out!

The exhibition hall was instantly plunged into absolute darkness, where you couldn't see your hand in front of your face!

Immediately afterwards, a piercing alarm sounded, but it only lasted for half a second before abruptly stopping.

Lin Chen activated the miniature EMP.

The powerful electromagnetic pulse instantly destroyed the display case's backup power supply and alarm system.

"ah--!"

"What's going on? Is there a power outage?"

"Oh my god! An Easter egg! Protect the Easter egg!"

The crowd erupted in a cataclysmic panic and screams, and the scene instantly spiraled out of control. Countless people began pushing, shoving, and running, trying to escape this unknown darkness.

However, amidst this chaos and darkness where mortals could not see, a cold smile curled at the corner of Lin Chen's mouth.

"Finally... they've made their move."

[God-level Insight] Unlocked!

In his eyes, the world had not fallen into darkness.

Everything around him was presented on his retina with unparalleled clarity in a black-and-white thermal imaging mode.

He could see the expressions on the faces of every panicked person, and he could see their hearts pounding with fear.

His gaze was fixed directly on the top of the exhibition hall.

Three figures wearing tight-fitting combat suits made of special materials that can absorb infrared rays silently slid down from the ventilation ducts in the ceiling.

Their movements were clean and swift, without making a sound, and they landed silently, blending perfectly into the chaotic crowd.

"He's got something."

Lin Chen nodded to himself. The professionalism of these people was indeed much higher than that of the petty thieves he had encountered before.

The three thieves, arranged in a triangular formation, rapidly approached the central display case using a highly efficient tactical formation.

One of them took out a small laser cutter and aimed it at the special bulletproof glass that was five centimeters thick.

"Sizzle—"

There was no sound, only a faint red light flashed by.

The seemingly indestructible bulletproof glass was instantly sliced ​​open with a precise circular notch.

Another thief swiftly reached out, slipped his hand into the gap, and firmly grasped the priceless "Crown of the Empire" Fabergé egg in his hand!

Success!

From the moment the lights went out to the moment the Easter egg was obtained, the whole process was seamless and took no more than three seconds!

A perfect theft!

A smug glint flashed in the eyes of the three thieves simultaneously.

They exchanged a hand signal, preparing to evacuate through the ventilation ducts along the same route.

However, just as they were about to turn around...

Just as the thief holding the egg was about to touch the cool, diamond-encrusted gold shell of the egg, in that extremely brief moment, less than 0.01 seconds!

A ghost, ten or even a hundred times faster than them, swept past them.

The speed of that figure had completely exceeded the limits of human visual perception, without even making a sound or leaving a trace.

[God-level Parkour]!

[Godlike magician's hand speed!]

Lin Chen moved.

He moved like a shadow, disappearing between the three thieves.

In that instant, he used a high-quality fake Easter egg that was exactly the same in weight, size, and even feel to secretly switch the real Easter egg from the thief's hands!

"Whoosh!"

Having completed the switch, Lin Chen flashed back to Ye Qingcheng's side, holding her tightly in his arms as if he had never left.

The three "Phantom" thieves were completely unaware of this.

Holding the fake Easter egg, they thought they had accomplished something extraordinary. With smug smiles on their faces, they nimbly climbed back into the ventilation duct and disappeared into the darkness.

Three seconds later.

"Clatter".

The auction house’s backup power system activated, and the lights came back on.

Everyone looked in shock towards the center of the exhibition hall.

There it was, the display case that was supposedly impregnable had been cut open with a large hole, and it was completely empty!

"Oh my god! An Easter egg! The Easter egg has been stolen!"

Su Qingge and Li Mingyu led a large number of police officers in and rushed in. Upon seeing this scene, their faces turned deathly pale.

"Seal off the area! Everyone stay put!"

Su Qingge was so anxious she was about to go crazy, and instinctively reached for her gun.

However, a warm, large hand gently pressed down on her.

"Don't rush, Qingge."

Lin Chen held Ye Qingcheng, who was equally shaken, in his arms, while with his other hand, he slowly took something out of his suit pocket.

Under the light, the object emitted a dazzling and mesmerizing glow.

It was that perfectly intact Fabergé "Crown of the Empire" Easter egg!

Su Qingge, Li Mingyu, and Ye Qingcheng, who were standing next to them, were all dumbfounded. Their eyes were wide open, and their jaws almost dropped to the ground.

"Let them run."

Lin Chen looked at the dark ventilation opening on the ceiling, a devilish smile curling at the corner of his mouth.

"I added something to that fake Easter egg."

"In addition to a high-precision miniature GPS locator, there are also three grams of 'Seven-Day Soul-Slaying Itch Powder' that can remain effective for seventy-two hours."

"The real show is just beginning."