Warden Hammer Lock
"Your review results are in order, you can leave now."
Upon hearing this, Gu Ding pushed open the door and went out. He knew he had to leave this planet as soon as possible; the longer he delayed, the more likely his identity would be exposed.
He walked briskly down the corridor toward the exit.
Just as he was less than twenty meters from the door, a figure suddenly blocked his way.
He was a tall man, over two meters tall, who looked to be in his forties, with a resolute face. His uniform was different from the other prison guards'; he also wore a white cloak that fluttered in the wind, and Gu Ding could vaguely see the three large characters "Warden" written on it.
This man must be Hammer Lock, the highest-ranking officer of Rioben Prison.
Hammer Lock is a legendary figure in the Fei Me Universe Country. He is 1,300 years old, which is still in his prime according to the 2,500-year age limit for Thirteenth-Order Gene Body. However, he had already made a name for himself in prison when he was only 20 years old.
There are many stories about him, but the most memorable is the incident when he first became the deputy warden of Leoben Prison. At that time, he was a Twelfth-Order Gene Body, while an escaped convict had successfully broken through to the level of a demigod. The warden was killed by that demigod, and he alone fought the escaped convict in the prison for fifteen minutes until reinforcements arrived. Upon examination, it was discovered that he had no intact bones left, all his internal organs had shifted, and only half of his heart remained. Yet, he still managed to hold on until reinforcements arrived.
When Sea Emperor was searching the prison roster, the instant he saw this name, he wanted to persuade Gu Ding to abandon the operation.
Gu Ding was well aware of how terrifying the guy in front of him was.
Hammer Lock extended his large hand toward Gu Ding, holding a Smart Watch in his palm. "You forgot something."
Gu Ding stared at Hammer Lock for a while, then walked straight toward him and reached out to retrieve the watch.
Hammer Lock suddenly clenched his fists. "Gu Ding, do you really think you can leave Jer Star so easily?"
Gu Ding stopped in his tracks, standing less than a meter away from Hammer Lock. He looked up at him and said, "You've mistaken me for someone else."
"Your identity disguise is flawless. We even traced back over 170 generations of ancestors and relatives to this identity. We found no flaws whatsoever. For a hacker to go this far, I'm starting to doubt whether you're even human. But even with such perfect information, you have one fatal flaw—you're not nervous enough. From beginning to end, you haven't shown any signs of unease. Even during the interrogation, it was the same. There's only one explanation for your lack of nervousness: you know this prison can't hold you." Hammer Lock offered his deduction.
"Not being nervous enough could be due to a medical condition, such as insufficient adrenaline secretion. Or it could be a psychological illness that causes a lack of tension. Or it could be like me, with a naturally strong mental fortitude that makes it difficult to feel nervous. To infer my identity based solely on this is rather arbitrary," Gu Ding retorted.
"You come from the Long Teng Universe Country. Otherwise, you wouldn't have visited Perritt. You grew up listening to Perritt's stories, and the only place that tells Interstellar Pirate stories is a tavern, which matches the Rose Tavern where you grew up. Moreover, the time you appeared was exactly around the time Gu Ding arrived on this planet. And after Prisson saw you, he exclaimed that you were Gu Ding. You're not telling me that all of this is just a coincidence?"
"Although the Long Teng Universe Country isn't as large as your Fei Me Universe Country, it's still a Universe Country with a population of over a trillion. No one's probably ever counted the number of taverns, but it must be countless. Is the timing of my arrival a coincidence? There must be more than just me on Jer Star today. I met over three hundred people on the cruise ship alone. As for your ugly, fat colleague, he's clearly mentally unstable; he might call Gu Ding'." Gu Ding refuted all of the other party's arguments.
"No matter how you deny it, it can't change the fact that you are Gu Ding." Hammer Lock remained certain of Gu Ding's identity.
"If you're so sure, then go ahead and arrest me." Gu Ding spread his hands.
"Although I would love to do it, I can't." Hammer Lock shook his head upon hearing Gu Ding's words. "You've attended military academy, so you should know very well that the functions of prisons and the military are different. The function of prisons is to detain and manage those sentenced to imprisonment by Federal Court. I am the administrator of the prison, and my authority cannot exceed my functions. Simply put, I cannot lay a hand on anyone who has not been sentenced to imprisonment by Federal Court. When federal laws were enacted, they defined the functions of each department. I respect federal laws, so I will not overstep my authority."
"In that case, give me back my watch. I'm in a hurry." Gu Ding held out his hand.
"You can't escape." Hammer Lock still chose to open his fingers, letting Gu Ding take the watch from his hand and brush past him.
"While arresting you is outside my jurisdiction, it is within the military's jurisdiction," Hammer Lock said, dialing a number. "Wu Te Lei De, this is Hammer Lock. I've found Gu Ding; he's walking out of our prison gates alone. Also, he's disguised as someone else. I've sent you the photo. He could be disguised as someone else, so my suggestion is to seal off the port."
Gu Ding, who had just reached the door, paused and uttered two words: "Unlock!"
In an instant, sirens wailed throughout the prison, the chains on all the prisoners in Rioben Prison were unlocked, and the doors to their cells were all opened.
Upon noticing the commotion, Hammer Lock turned around with a cold gaze and looked at Gu Ding. "Now, you've really succeeded in angering me."
"You provoked me first!" Gu Ding turned his head to look at Hammer Lock, pushed the door open with his left hand, and instantly darted out.
A silver chain suddenly shot out from inside the prison gate, closely following behind Gu Ding.
Gu Ding knew the attack came from Hammer Lock, and he quickly dodged. He had seen Bade fight before and knew that being entangled by chain-like weapons would be extremely troublesome. Moreover, this time, the attacker was a peak thirteenth-tier powerhouse with Combat Strength comparable to a demigod— Hammer Lock.
But Gu Ding soon discovered that no matter how he tried to escape, it was all in vain. The chain seemed to have eyes and could always catch up with him in the first instance.
Gu Ding had pushed the tenth level of his Limitless Body Technique to its limit, unleashing eight consecutive Shadow Step, each with a slight shift in direction. Even so, his left ankle was still bound by the chains.
The moment Gu Ding realized the chains had wrapped around his ankles, he knew something was wrong. Then, a tremendous force pulled him back from the other end of the chains. His frail body slammed heavily against the prison gate, sending the gate crashing into the prison corridor.
Gu Ding slowly got up, wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand, and coldly looked at Hammer Lock not far away. He asked with a hint of sarcasm, "Is this what you call respecting federal law and not overstepping your authority?"
"Previously, you were just an ordinary visitor. Even if you had appeared here under your real identity, I wouldn't have made a move against you. But just now you launched a serious attack on our prison system, causing several prisoners to escape. Regardless of whether any prisoners ultimately escaped, your actions fall under the category of prison break. This is one of the few types of crimes that fall within my jurisdiction," Hammer Lock explained. "But don't worry, after arresting you, I won't throw you directly into jail. I will transfer you to the military, where you will face trial in Federal Court. After the trial, I will apply to transfer you to Rioben Prison."
"So you're saying you've got me cornered?" Gu Ding knew that this opponent was exceptionally strong, but he was never one to compromise easily. He decided to fight with all his might.
"This chain is covered with my internal energy. Once you're entangled by it, it's unlikely you can break free..." Just as the sound of the Hammer Lock fell, he was surprised to see that the chain that had been wrapped around Gu Ding's ankle slowly loosened its grip. It was the Sea Emperor's unlocking function taking effect.
This scene took Hammer Lock somewhat by surprise, but he quickly recovered. He guessed that Gu Ding must possess a special ability to break free from the restraints.
Gu Ding knew he couldn't escape easily. Although the Sea Emperor could break the chains binding his opponent, Gu Ding's speed was far beyond his reach. Even with the eleventh level of his Limitless Body Technique activated, he would only have near -Twelfth Order Combat Strength and speed, while his opponent was a genuine thirteenth-tier peak expert. His only chance was to hold out until the high-value bounty criminals who had been freed arrived, thus stalling the warden and allowing him to slip away.
Hammer Lock was different from the military. The military would fight to the death if they encountered Gu Ding. But Hammer Lock wouldn't kill Gu Ding. For him, the fairness of the law was more important than anything else. He arrested Gu Ding to bring him to Federal Court.
Gu Ding clearly understood Hammer Lock's intentions, and since he couldn't escape, he simply attacked. He activated his Limitless Body Technique to the tenth level, and simultaneously unleashed Berserk, charging towards Hammer Lock.
"Wow, it's quite lively here..." A voice suddenly came from not far away, interrupting the two people who were fighting.
P. S.: Ugh... I'm so stuck on this chapter, I've been writing since 5:30 AM...