"These are the results of my observations. The first stage is emotional fluctuation; people in this stage are prone to irritable moods but largely retain their self-awareness. The second stage is emotional extremity; those individuals I mentioned earlier were in this stage. The third stage is emotional collapse; individuals at this stage have lost all self-awareness, with only killing and madness left in their eyes."
Chen Pao explained as he walked, glancing back at Li Chonglou, "The fellow you encountered in the secret passage earlier has already entered the third stage."
The brows under the white mask immediately twitched. "You even know about what happened there?"
"Hehe, the moment I entered, I immediately disguised myself as a surveillance robot. I went there before he did."
"Alas, it cost me one, that idiot really deserved to die."
Li Chonglou asked with some curiosity, "Then why have these people only entered the third stage now, while that guy fell into it so early?"
"This should be related to self-control. The stronger a person's self-control, the less they are affected. However, they cannot escape it beyond a certain point and will only gradually fall into it as time increases."
"It's like this brother here; his self-control is clearly exceptional."
Eagle Eye's movements suddenly paused. He remembered something and quickly exclaimed, "Holy crap, doesn't that mean you..."
"Yes."
Eagle Eye immediately fell silent. There was clearly some inside story to their conversation, but just as Li Chonglou was about to inquire, a figure suddenly appeared ahead.
The three immediately stopped.
It was a man in a black robe. Li Chonglou recognized him as one of the six who had been unaffected earlier.
Before Li Chonglou could speak, Chen Pao suddenly put Liu Fei down and hurried forward.
"Brother, want to join us and cooperate?"
Chen Pao's actions left Li Chonglou and Eagle Eye utterly bewildered. However, since he had put Liu Fei down first, Li Chonglou did not voice his confusion.
The black-robed man also noticed the four of them immediately. Although he also wore a mask, his eyes clearly showed vigilance. He adopted a defensive posture in response to Chen Pao's actions.
"Don't move, who are you!"
"Brother, don't be nervous, we're all good people."
Such a statement, akin to "a guilty conscience needs no accuser," made not only the black-robed man but also Li Chonglou and the other man's lips twitch.
"Do you take me for a fool?"
Chen Pao stopped about ten meters away and waved his hand, "Brother, don't misunderstand. If you don't want to cooperate, we can just go our separate ways."
This was the second time he had mentioned cooperation. The vigilance in the black-robed man's eyes visibly lessened, and a hint of curiosity arose.
"What cooperation?"
Suddenly, a few people appear, and they want to talk about cooperation. Anyone would feel inexplicably curious. Not to mention the black-robed man, even Li Chonglou and Eagle Eye looked at Chen Pao with curiosity.
Since taking off his mask in that room, Chen Pao had not put it back on. At this moment, his fair face revealed a handsome smile, making him look like a twenty-something neighborhood boy.
Harmless.
"You've seen the situation at the airport. At least fifteen people have lost control, and the police are also in close pursuit. In this situation, it's difficult for us to find the person."
This was the truth. In fact, ever since Lin Qianqian had brought people in, they had already considered retreating. The police's intervention meant that the passengers would be evacuated effectively. News of Green Ox mingling among the passengers had already spread, rendering their search meaningless.
As for the northern exit, most people had gone to check it out. The ambush by the seven-person squad was also a good thing for them, at least assuring them that Green Ox would not leave from here first.
It was just that not many people knew about the situation at the northern exit yet.
So, the black-robed man did not rush to speak, waiting for Chen Pao to continue.
Chen Pao paused, then smiled, "However, this problem is not something only we can think of. I believe someone is already blocking the exit, and it will surely be impossible for the police to escort people out all at once."
"As for the north, there are also people guarding it, so you don't have to worry. However, this brings up another issue: we are all acting alone. Even those guarding the exit, if the police react and break us one by one, the outcome will still be as I said."
After spewing a lot of nonsense, Chen Pao finally got to the point: "But what if we unite first?"
The black-robed man instantly understood Chen Pao's intention, and his eyes lit up. Chen Pao struck while the iron was hot, saying, "The hardest part of this kind of alliance is how to start and who will lead. Now, I've already solved this problem. Look, these two are friends I've already won over. This one is..."
Chen Pao suddenly froze. He just remembered that he didn't know Li Chonglou and the other's names. Just as Li Chonglou and the other thought he was about to be embarrassed, this guy naturally continued.
"Ah Jia, he's Ah Yi, also brothers."
As he spoke, Chen Pao turned and winked at the two of them. His acting skills were wasted if he didn't go into show business.
However, Li Chonglou didn't expose him, wanting to see what tricks he was up to.
Chen Pao turned back to the black-robed man, "By the way, brother, what's your name?"
"Zhang San."
"Good name! Simple and easy to remember. I believe brother Zhang San is also no ordinary person."
Chen Pao immediately gave a thumbs-up. His demeanor made Li Chonglou suspect that even if the black-robed man had said "Er Gou," he would have spoken in the same way.
Also, how could such a common name as Zhang San be related to not being ordinary?
At this point, both Li Chonglou and Eagle Eye understood one thing: Chen Pao was definitely a person who talked a lot of nonsense.
It seemed his previous words also needed to be carefully examined.
Meanwhile, under Chen Pao's enthusiastic greeting, Zhang San's vigilance was lowered considerably.
"So, what are you guys planning to do next? If I cooperate with you, what will I have to do?"
Zhang San asked the two core questions. Chen Pao answered without hesitation, "It's simple, you just have to act with us. As the saying goes, there's strength in numbers. If the other party sees our numbers, they'll have to think twice before making a move."
"As for what we're doing next, of course, it's to talk with the police about cooperation."
"Talk with the police about cooperation?"
Chen Pao suddenly showed a nervous expression and scanned the surroundings. His demeanor startled all three of them, making them think someone else had caught up.
"It's not very safe here; someone could catch up at any moment. Let's talk as we walk."