Cyberpunk: 2075.

Chapter 809, Section 19: A One-Second Infiltration
Carl's infiltration skills weren't particularly outstanding—but what is considered "outstanding" ultimately depends on who you compare him to.

Compared to a top FIA agent like Li De, Karl's skills were indeed insignificant.

In a top-secret mission where life and death hang in the balance, his slightly awkward, low-pitched footsteps and occasional hesitant pauses would be fatal flaws in infiltration. Back in Dogtown, it was Karl's actions that led to his exposure.

But right now it's just a semi-abandoned warehouse, patrolled only by programmed drones and infrared sensors. Karl's abilities are more than enough to deal with these.

He hunched over as he passed through the shelves of Section A, which were piled high with parts, like a fleeting shadow.

The information he had gleaned from the warehouse staff flashed through his mind: patrols in Zone B had recently been increased. This thought hooked at his attention, making him avoid the rotating surveillance cameras. He didn't even care that his knee had pressed against the leaking hydraulic hose and that the oil stains were staining his clothes.

After carefully noticing that the oil stains on his clothes wouldn't drip or leave any marks, Karl's steps became steady and quick.
He licked his lips, suppressing his breath to be lighter than the dust he rubbed against the soles of his feet. The iron gate to Block B was fifteen meters away, and a sliver of cold light seeped through the crack in the door, indicating that the other side of the gate was still under 24-hour lighting.

Just as Carl was about to take a step across the fifteen-meter distance, he suddenly sensed something was wrong.

His steps abruptly stopped 15 meters from the line.

His soles were only half an inch from the first pressure plate, and his feet, suspended in the air, could feel the faint electric vibrations from the ground. A strange sense of excitement made his heart skip a beat—this pause was purely accidental, perhaps a sixth sense, or perhaps just a second's hesitation as he looked at the light spilling out from the crack in the door of Block B.

But it was this moment of hesitation that allowed him to see clearly what a deadly trap was hidden beneath the seemingly ordinary ground in front of him.

Carl was indeed inexperienced, and he only now realized that some traps that hinder infiltration might not be set on those seemingly solid and heavily guarded doors, but rather outside the doors where people are most likely to let their guard down.

These are security devices that should be activated after the employees have left. They are clearly the result of precise calculations, and they blend seamlessly into the walls and floor. It would be very difficult to distinguish them without careful observation.

'We've gotten used to T-BUG clearing all obstacles for us, and we've gotten used to V and the others helping us troubleshoot. Acting alone, it's easy to make mistakes.'

After suppressing the thrill of almost being exposed, Karl began to examine the area fifteen meters in front of him.

After careful observation, Carl realized something was amiss. There were some subtle, pattern-like things on both sides of the wall. But they weren't decorative patterns on the wall. It was just a peripheral warehouse, and neither the employees nor the building were worth the company's attention. Those things that looked like patterns were actually a military-grade dynamic identification system.

Carl had seen advertisements for this device, which claimed that it could automatically adjust the spacing and frequency to ensure that it could detect and judge the moment a person appeared within range, and immediately issue an alarm. The advertisements stated that only one device was needed to ensure the safety of an entire room.

Now, on the fifteen-meter-long road, there are four dynamic recognition systems on both sides that look like patterns.

'Looks like I really made the right choice coming here.'

After confirming those items, Carl felt a sense of joy. As he had said before, ordinary outlying warehouses wouldn't need such high-end goods. In other words, the presence of such high-end goods meant he had found the right place. There was indeed something strange about Warehouse B.

Carl's gaze swept across the ground. The pressure sensor panels embedded in the ground had a matte finish. Each one was only the size of a coin, but when triggered, they were enough to make the explosion-proof gate collapse in that instant. What looked like the ceiling lights in the corridor were actually surveillance equipment that was slowly rotating. The lens surface was coated with a honeycomb-shaped anti-reflective film, and even a moth flying by would be marked as an abnormal target.

After two minutes of careful observation, a smile appeared on Karl's face. This level of security was indeed tricky when undetected, but once detected, it posed no threat.

Instead of taking action, Carl took out his phone and checked the time.

Coronado Farm in Santo Domingo is located very close to Badlands; in other words, if any adverse conditions occur in Badlands, Santo Domingo is always the first to experience them.

The weather forecast on his phone predicted a sandstorm would arrive in a short while.

A small sandstorm, something the people of Santo Domingo have grown accustomed to, is now something Karl needs.

It's only natural that equipment would be interfered with during a sandstorm.

Karl took out a small, silver-white knife from his waist.

This is the small knife that Karl always carries with him; it was a gift from Haruko.

Five minutes later, the sandstorm arrived. The moment the overhead monitor turned to the other side, Carl threw out his knife. As it was activated, the 'patterns' on the wall and the monitor suddenly froze for a second, as if it were an interference caused by a bad soil sandstorm.

It didn't last long, only a second, but that was more than enough.

Karl took a deep breath, and at that moment, everything around him seemed to slow down and stand still.

In Karl's perception, the flying silver dagger and the tiny specks of dust floating in mid-air were so clear and distinct.

Carl walked forward.

His steps were as light as if he were playing hopscotch, a game he played as a child. Carl moved forward precisely by stepping through the gaps between the pressure plates. Those extremely expensive sensors were now useless. They didn't trigger a single signal as he passed by. When he passed under the surveillance camera, he even had the leisure to smile at the camera, revealing his signature smile. Anyway, the recording was now interfered with, so it wouldn't leave any trace.

When Carl's fingers touched the doorknob of Block B, the security system behind him seemed to wake up and start working again, but it was too late.

"What a nice day." Carl felt the sandstorm howling outside the window, which was making the warehouse churn, and sincerely hoped that it wouldn't affect the meals and return home of his peers at the barbecue restaurant.

After checking and confirming that there were no detectors at the door and entrance, Carl retrieved the knife he had just thrown and pushed open the door.

He pushed open the door with the leisurely ease of someone taking out their keys to go home. The cold light leaking through the crack in the door swallowed his figure. The whole movement was fluid and natural, and even his breathing rate remained normal.

(End of this chapter)