Chapter 19 (Part 1)
Light rain pattered.
The sky was gloomy. From the corridor, it looked like the sky hadn’t brightened up yet.
He closed the door and his two little hands subconsciously pulled on the straps of his school bag as he thought to himself that he should buy a cake from that old shop around the corner so that he wouldn’t be hungry if his father forgets to come back tonight because of working overtime.
Under the lights in the corridor, he stepped onto the ninth step and turned around the corner. There, he ran into someone.
He looked up. The other party was wearing a purple hoodie. A hat covered his face.
It was a stranger.
He paused for a moment and the other party also paused. They then passed by each other.
…….
When the light rain stopped, there were police tape put up downstairs.
It was clearly afternoon, but the sky was still dark. The sound of police cars, the sound of an ambulance as well as the sound of chaotic footsteps could be heard under the flashing red and blue lights.
He stood outside the police tape. Someone rushed over to him and held in him their arms. It was unknown whether their trembling words were used to comfort him or comfort themselves, “Jian Jian, Jian Jian.”
A police officer spoke to that person with a lowered voice. It was a little inaudible, “…….Professor Ji, the child had quite a scare. He may have met the murderer…..”
He lowered his head and saw a drop of water slipping down his yellow raincoat.
…….
It was a warm-toned room. There were a lot of plush toys which made the room feel more comfortable.
The aunty of the Child Welfare Department walked in.
Someone had completed all the formalities. He squatted down in front of him and held his little hand, “Jian Jian, I’m here to take you home. To a new home.”
He nodded.
“Are you afraid?”
He shook his head.
“Alright. In the future, you will have a mother, a father and a brother at home. It will be very lively.”
He remained silent.
“From today, you will be surnamed Ji.”
……….
“Hey Xiao Ji. You already have 89 B-level missions, you’re really not considering supporting an A-level one?” Chief Lin tried to persuade him, “I have already applied to the superiors. With one A-level mission equalling to 10 B-level missions, you will have a total of 99. Once you return, you just have to go one more time and then you would be able to get what you have always wanted!”
He said, “No hurry. It is the same if I do 10 more B-level missions.”
Chief Lin was anxious, “Goodness, why won’t this child listen to me?! For what reason did you join Tianqiong? Everyone already knows that you want a chance to return to that year. The people at the top say that they want to test you but they’re not that strict. No one wants to put you in a difficult position, you’re only doing it to yourself!”
He responded calmly, “Chief Lin, I can’t work with teammates who are blind, arrogant and hold a prejudice against others.”
Chief Lin, “That Captain Song isn’t arrogant for no reason……..Hey, Xiao Ji, wait a minute!”
Please read this from kk translates
A black cat snored on his lap.
He held a book in one hand and used his other to stroke the cat.
This cat was old. He stroked it very lightly, feeling the soft and smooth fur brushing between his fingers.
When the communicator rang, the cat stretched and jumped off his lap. He moved to pick up the video call.
In the call, a grey-haired old professor with glasses appeared.
Another black cat jumped onto his lap and rolled over to reveal its belly. He scratched it as he listened patiently to the other party talk before asking, “Teacher, are you calling to persuade me to go to Jiang City?”
The old professor paused. He then sighed, “Jian Jian, the sooner you reach your goal and go back to that year, the sooner you will be freed.”
He said, “Okay.”
……….
*
Thick eyelashes trembled and the next second, Ji Yushi opened his eyes.
Pain from his abdomen slowly travelled up to his brain. The pain was so bad, he could hardly support himself up. He could only lie in place, taking small breaths.
Fragmented memories returned with the pain. Ji Yushi remembered that he and Song Qinglan were analysing the current situation.
He was only halfway through his words; he still had many things he wanted to say. He was extremely afraid that he would not wake up again once he closed his eyes.
The person sitting next to him placed down the binoculars and looked over, “Advisor Ji! You’re already awake!”
It was Li Chun.
Ji Yushi was still in a confused state, “How long did I sleep for?”
Li Chun checked the communicator, “It is now 10:42. Since you fell unconscious, you slept for less than an hour!”
Ji Yushi took in his surroundings. He saw that they were currently on a second floor balcony.
The low walls were made of small carved bricks, making it hard for them to be spotted from outside but also allowing them to observe the outside situation through the gaps.
JI Yushi had been placed onto a deck chair on the balcony by his teammates. A large parasol blocked out most of the sun for him so that he wouldn’t die from heatstroke.
If not for the growls from the zombies, Ji Yushi would have thought that he was taking an afternoon nap at someone’s place.
Sure enough, when he turned his head a little and looked through the gaps in the bricks, he saw zombies wandering around in groups below.
If he looked a little further, he could see part of the bookstore on the other side of the street.
“Advisor Ji, you sleep very lightly. You had clearly fallen unconscious, but your eyes were still moving around under your eyelids. You clearly weren’t resting well.” Li Chun said this while holding a pair of binoculars. He was talkative, this was something Ji Yushi already knew, “I heard that you usually don’t sleep well but you’re injured so it’s best to rest a little. How could you not say a word and endure it the whole time?”
Ji Yushi had nothing to say in response to that and he also didn’t know what to say.
“Shit.” Li Chun suddenly cursed, “I’m so fucking stupid.”
Ji Yushi: “……….”
Li Chun spoke with embarrassment as he looked out through the binoculars, “It turns out that I have such a bad walking posture. Why didn’t anyone tell me?! I thought I was handsome! No wonder I’ve been so unsuccessful with my relationships and the sisters all fly away. Even Old Zhou walks better than me.”
Please read this from kk translates
What?
JI Yushi suddenly remembered —– At this time, Team 2 should have escaped from Runjin Building and, after losing Tang Qi and Duan Wen, the group of five should have arrived at the bookstore!
He turned to look. He could faintly see several figures in the bookstore. They were from Team 2!
In just a few seconds, a chill ran down his back.
Li Chun and the others already know?
“Advisor Ji, you don’t have to worry. Cap Song has already told us.” Ji Chun turned around and spoke to him, “Because the mission was restarted, different ‘us’ would appear at the same time. Sooner or later, we will meet, just like you two and us right now.”
Song Qinglan has already told them?
For Song Qinglan to do something like this, Ji Yushi could understand.
But wasn’t Li Chun’s reaction too calm? Why would he still be in the mood to complain about his other self in a situation like this? Shouldn’t he be scared at the thought of it?
Ji Yushi was vigilant, “You’re not afraid?”
“What’s there to be afraid of? I’m not even afraid of death anymore so why would I be afraid of meeting my other self?” The simple-minded big boy thought very simply, “Just like how Advisor Ji continued to push on even after getting hurt and knowing that you may die —- Let’s use you Recorders as an example. When you go back to the past to complete tasks, you will always see people and things from the past. If you travelled to a time that is closer to the present time, you may even accidentally run into your past self. Would you be afraid?”
Ji Yushi: “That is different.”
Hearing him say this, Li Chun laughed disapprovingly. That appearance of his was just like Song Qinglan.
No, their entire squad was like this.
“It’s similar.” Li Chun said.
“Look, what we see now is just our ‘past’ self and our other self who has ‘made a different choice’.” Li Chun continued, “But no matter how many of our other selves exist at the same time, the initial anchor point is fixed, just like when you go back to your starting point after completing your task in the past. That is to say, no matter what happens, the me who reappears at the anchor point is still me, and there is only one me. And so, to the me who is at that anchor point, it just means that there were several me’s who once existed at that same point in time. In essence, there is no difference.”
The past self and the self from a parallel timeline, who is the main body?
This was actually a philosophical question. Unfortunately, not many people in the world can answer that.
But because of the anchor points existence, it indeed provided a good explanation.
He didn’t expect Li Chun to choose such a transparent way to understand. Ji Yushi’s pupils constricted slightly, and he suddenly made sense of a few things.
He looked at Li Chun with respect, “You make a lot of sense.”
Li Chun scratched his head with embarrassment, “Actually, this was all analysed by Cap Song! How can I be as smart as you guys! It was only after I sat here and thought for an hour until my mind was about to explode that I managed to figure out what Cap Song meant!”
Ji Yushi: “…..”
Alright.
It seems that no matter which Li Chun it was, his mind was still very simple.
……Song Qinglan.
This person was different from what he had imagined.
Ji Yushi had thought that things would become more complicated as a result and everyone would avoid their other selves, creating a chaotic scene where no one knew who was who and whether they were allies or enemies. He had even imagined the scene countless ‘him’s’ appearing at the same point in time and, in order to compete for the so-called main body, a bloody massacre and self-killing would take place. It was simply a nightmare in a nightmare.
What Ji Yushi didn’t expect was that, under Song Qinglan’s leadership, this squad worked like an arrow, never turning back after leaving the bow regardless of what they were faced with, only advancing forward.
Everyone in Tianqiong’s seventh squad were important core players who worked very well together.
They constantly changed Ji Yushi’s understanding of them.
From the first cycle until now, no matter who was sacrificed and who was left behind, their goal had never changed.
It was like it was reminding Ji Yushi that everything wasn’t a big deal. As long as their will was firm enough, they would not fall into confusion.
No matter what, no matter how many of them there were, there was only one goal.
—— Complete the mission and return to their original world.
This reminder made the heavy rock that had been weighing down on Ji Yushi chest lighten a little.
He was shocked. Could everything actually be that simple?
Song Qinglan’s appearance before he fell unconscious appeared in his mind. The other party’s brows were furrowed and there was an emotion called anger in his eyes.
Ji Yushi didn’t understand it very well as to why Song Qinglan was angry.
And so, where were Song Qinglan and the others?
He voiced this query of his.
Li Chun said, “After you fell unconscious, Old Zhou and Old Duan came —– That is, the team you call Team 4, the ones that we got separated from at Runjin Building. They came on a spacecar, so they arrived earlier than Team 2, but they still don’t know about the situation of several of themselves existing. Tang Qi and Tang Le are probably giving them some time to take it in. Cap Song went to find some bandages and so on for you so he should be back soon. Once we gather up again, we will go to our next destination.”
Ji Yushi’s lips were still pale. He was still quite weak.
“Advisor Ji, the bullet wound on you was from Diamond Bird, you shot yourself with your own gun. Fortunately, Diamond Bird uses energy bullets and doesn’t have a physical bullet, so we don’t need to look for a bullet inside you. The wound may look large on the outside, but it is small on the inside. Please try not to do something like this next time.”
Ji Yushi: “……..”
He was probably afraid that he would drag them down.
Li Chun, “Hey, in fact our Cap Song is a pretty good person. That time when Old Yu’s accident happened, Cap Song did everything he could to carry him out of the desert and walked tens of kilometres with him on his back. Although a scout is considered a civilian job, they are sometimes required to be out in the field. After that accident, Cap Song had been blaming himself. He didn’t want you to come so he deliberately said those things. We are at most just a little straight but it’s not to the extent of being homopho——”
“Whoosh—–”
With a soft sound, a grappling hook caught onto the balcony.
Two wandering zombies below turned and started to growl. A few seconds later, Song Qinglan appeared outside the wall and very agilely leapt over.
“You talk too much.” Song Qinglan’s dark eyes were deep. He glanced over at Ji Yushi and continued to say to Li Chun, “I could even hear you bullshit from across the street.”
Of course that wasn’t possible.
Li Chun hehe’d and immediately shut up.
Tang Le also climbed up the rope and joined them on the balcony, “Advisor Ji, you’re awake!”
Ji Yushi nodded at him.
“I’m glad you’re awake! But you should rest more, we still have time!” Tang Le’s reaction was similar to Li Chun’s. His next sentence turned out to be, “Wait a second, let me look. Has the other me appeared?”
Li Chun handed him the binoculars, “He has but he’s not going in our direction. Probably looking for food. Don’t worry, I left some of those Kemeng Beans that no one wants for them.”
Please read this from kk translates
Tang Le: “……Fuck, you would even do something like that to yourself. Are you human?”
Song Qinglan was too tall and almost had to lower his head to get under the parasol.
He threw a bag of things at Li Chun, “I found a bottle of painkillers but no bandages. Found some disinfectant alcohol, suture threads and waterproof plasters. Use those for now.”
Li Chun immediately came over to treat Ji Yushi’s wound.
As soon as he touched it, Ji Yushi let out a small hiss. His pale and flat abdomen rose and fell with each breathe and the bullet wound that was barely concealed with a band-aid was already soaked with blood.
Alcohol was placed around the wound. It was so painful that Ji Yushi couldn’t speak. He bit his lips firmly, not letting out a single sound.
“Tough guy!” Li Chun couldn’t help but exclaim when he was done with the stitches, “Advisor Ji, I underestimated you!”
“More than a tough guy.”
Song Qinglan didn’t look too happy. Ji Yushi noticed this.
But unexpectedly, Song Qinglan said, “Giving you an apology, tough guy.”
Ji Yushi: “?”
He doubted his ears.
He looked over. Song Qinglan however didn’t mention why he was apologising. He just stared at him and said lazily, “If you wanted it to repeat less, you have to live. Don’t endure without saying anything, I’m not going to eat you. You are one of us so should work together as a team and take care of each other. This is Tianqiong’s seventh squad’s custom.”
After saying that, Song Qinglan leaned down and took out a brand new T-shirt from his pocket, “Advisor Ji, your clothes were cut open. This was something I picked up along the way. Can you change yourself? If you can’t, make a sound.”
Tang Le and Li Chun both looked over at the same time. Their eyes both said: “???”
Although there was nothing wrong with the words ‘working together as a team’ and ‘taking care of each other’, but when did Cap Song become so considerate?
Could only smart people get that kind of special treatment?
Were they unworthy?
Song Qinglan gave the two a cold look. The two of them quickly turned around and pretended that nothing had happened.
Suddenly faced with Cap Song’s kindness and also suddenly becoming one of the seventh squad out of nowhere, Ji Yushi couldn’t help but be suspicious.
But he wasn’t delicate to that extent and was even a little shocked, “Thank you, I can do it myself.”
Song Qinglan, “Are you sure?”
Ji Yushi: “I am sure!”
Ji Yushi then held the hem of his black combat uniform and raised it up.
The stitching just now was too painful, and his body was completely soaked. There was still a thin layer of sweat on his pale skin.
As it turned out, he really did require help. The pain from that action earlier had almost made him fall unconscious again.
Song Qinglan didn’t just stand by and watch nor did he take the opportunity to laugh at him. He just wordlessly helped him pull out an arm to take off the blood-stained black combat uniform and then helped him put on the clean white T-shirt.
In an instant, Ji Yushi’s appearance softened considerably. He looked like a naïve young man who should be holding a book.
When Song Qinglan was done helping him, he said, “You’re welcome, Advisor Ji.”
Ji Yushi: “……….”
Song Qinglan turned to ask Li Chun, “What is the situation now?”
No one answered.
Li Chun and Tang Le took turns looking through the binoculars. Their expressions were a little strange, “Uh, that, it’s hard to say.”
Ji Yushi stored the Diamond Bird away and stood up and fixed himself up, “Let me take a look.”
Li Chun: “Oh.”
Ji Yushi received the binoculars from Li Chun.
In the bookstore, Song Qinglan of Team 2 was currently holding Ji Yushi’s arms behind his back and pressing him against the bookshelf. He appeared to be saying something stern while Ji Yushi had no ability to fight back —- That was the time when Song Qinglan questioned how many cycles he had gone through and suspected him.
Ji Yushi placed down the binoculars and said to Song Qinglan, “Cap Song, the current situation is, you are wall slamming me.” (KKnotes: wall slamming = kabedon)
Li Chun: “!!!”
Tang Le: “!!!”
Song Qinglan, “Me, wall slamming, you?”
Ji Yushi’s expression was natural.
Song Qinglan, “………..”
Please read this from kk translates
Since Song Qinglan showed kindness this time, Ji Yushi felt that he didn’t need to use the words ‘you tried to beat me up’.
He didn’t always hold grudges.
It was a matter of reciprocation.
*
When the spacecar reached the building, it became a temporary gathering point.
Ji Yushi was the first to slide down the rope. He was injured and was very quickly caught by Zhou Mingxuan and Duan Wen and was helped into the car.
The appearance in the familiar spacecar was no different from when they set off from the park management office. The pile of equipment there had pretty much all that they needed —- Ji Yushi immediately recalled the horrific scene from last time; a woman’s screams, loud curses, gunfire, the sight of a young girl lying in a pool of blood as well as the loud sound of the car hitting against a wall. It was all very clear.
The dark-skinned man held his Diamond Bird and shot wildly during this chaos.
There was no pain the moment the bullet penetrated him, but Ji Yushi could still clearly remember the process of it entering him so much so that the pain from his newly stitched wound grew even more intense.
But this car was still fine.
On another timeline, nothing had happened.
Song Qinglan was the last to enter, “Team 2 is nearby. In order not to be involved with them, has everyone turned off the location of your communicator?”
Everyone: “Turned off!”
Song Qinglan said, “Duan Wen, create an encrypted channel that only the people in this car can use.”
Duan Wen did as he was told.
Song Qinglan said, “There are still two or three hours before the black wall arrives here. Have you all understood the current situation? For those who haven’t, hurry up and ask any questions you have.”
Everyone immediately scrambled to ask.
Song Qinglan felt a headache coming and bluntly stopped them, “One by one!”
The Zhou Mingxuan from another timeline who had been busy driving the spacecar over and hadn’t had the time to process the information asked first, “Let me start first! Cap Song, according to the order of appearance, is this our current situation? So me, Duan Wen, Tang Qi, Tang Le and Li Chun, us five are from Team 4 whereas you and Advisor Ji are from Team 3. So that basically means that you from Team 3 and us from Team 4 have formed a team?”
Although it was a bit convoluted, it was indeed the case.
Zhou Mingxuan then asked, “Then, where did Cap Song and Advisor Ji as well as the rest of Team 3 go?”
Song Qinglan said, “After Advisor Ji and I were hijacked from the bookstore, Team 3 remained. Those people must be looking for us. At that time, I managed to get into contact with Tang Qi through the public channel and Tang Qi said he heard a loud noise so they shouldn’t have been far from us. The place the spacecar was damaged was also along the way to the bookstore and Advisor Ji and I from Team 4 would most definitely go to the bookstore after separating from you. I believe that Tang Qi who was originally coming to pick us up after contacting me encountered our other selves from Team 4 who was their way to the bookstore.”
Zhou Mingxuan: “Fuck, I understand now. So basically Team 3 and 4 are still the original team and only Cap Song and Advisor Ji were switched!”
Song Qinglan, “That’s basically it. For the sake of distinction, we can call them Team B.”
Tang Le: “What about us?!”
Tang Qi supported his head, “Of course we’re Team A, little brother.”
Tang Le heard tone in his voice, “Sorry.”
Li Chun was stunned again, “They why didn’t Team B go to the bookstore? The reason why we found the spacecar at the park management office was to go to the bookstore to let Advisor Ji check something he didn’t have the chance to check. It stands to reason that even if we have formed two teams, they would definitely go to the bookstore.”
Sitting on a box of equipment, Ji Yushi rested his head against the wall of the car.
He slowly spoke, “Because the me of Team B must’ve also discovered the overlap of time and space.”
Everyone looked back at him.
Ji Yushi’s face didn’t look too good, as if the smallest wind would blow him over.
The hope of solving this puzzle currently laid with Ji Yushi. Without Ji Yushi, they most definitely wouldn’t be in this current situation and perhaps they would’ve already gone crazy.
Everyone felt bad for him, but they also couldn’t do anything for him.
“But the me in Team B isn’t hurt and didn’t fall unconscious so after discovering the overlap in time and space, they most definitely reached a conclusion before us.” Ji Yushi said, “Team B is the same as us. They also know that if they go to the bookstore now, they would inevitably encounter Team 2 and a paradox would appear.”
This was also what Ji Yushi wasn’t able to say to Song Qinglan before he fell unconscious.
Fortunately, Song Qinglan must have also thought of this and chose to remain nearby, observing the situation.
Of the two of them, one stood while the other sat.
But there was an inexplicable atmosphere between them, as if they were real partners, the kind that no one else could get between.
This kind of tacit understanding had at some point in time established between them.
Li Chun, “What paradox?”
It was hard for Ji Yushi to speak and he had to pause a little with each word.
Song Qinglan went on to say, “Because our existence comes from the third cycle and the reason for the third cycle is because all of Team 2 died. As a result, no matter whether Team A or Team B goes, it would most definitely change the fate of Team 3. The third cycle then wouldn’t be like this and we wouldn’t be here anymore.”
Everyone understood.
“So that’s why they won’t go to the bookstore.”
“I see!”
Ji Yushi nodded and then said, “There is actually one more thing. Do you remember the mission mode?”
Everyone said, “Ouroboros.”
“This is the key point to this current situation. I seem to understand it somewhat now.” Ji Yushi said, “Ouroboros holds the meaning of an infinite loop in Western legends. Since the beginning, we only understood the meaning on that level and thought it just meant that everything would restart after death but, in fact, the representation of ouroboros is a snake eating its own tail. It was a case of consuming oneself.”
Ouroboros symbolised infinity, no limit, no beginning and no end.
Ji Yushi picked up a knife next to him, “Cap Song, help me draw a circle.”
Song Qinglan replied and carved a white circle onto the floor of the car.
Ji Yushi took the knife back and used the tip of the knife to mark out a few spots on the circle.
“Look, no matter which point of the circle it is, it can be regarded as the starting point of the circle and it can also be regarded as the end.” He spoke very slowly, leaving time for the others to think and react, “This is similar to our current situation. In the first cycle, we were killed by a spacecar. It was because the people who chose to drive the spacecar was us ourselves. We encountered a roadblock and had to take the alley to reach the bookstore because we were hijacked by people on another timeline which resulted in damages blocking the road. After escaping from the bookstore, we were faced with a wire fence and was swallowed up by the black wall because the people who had hijacked us had raised that wire fence. As if everything was destined, all these incidents are linked, forming a circle on its own.”
“With the time anchor setting in place, time is fixed. That’s why, every trace we leave is like a point on this circle. There is no particular order, only cause and effect.”
Please read this from kk translates
Once done with this explanation, the large and complex world setting of PU-31 left everyone in shock.
Even though Song Qinglan had a faint guess, he didn’t analyse it as clearly as Ji Yushi did.
For a long time, no one in the car spoke.
“Older brother, did you understand?” Tang Le poked Tang Qi.
“Yeah.” Tang Qi answered coolly and after showing a slight look of confusion, he answered again as if he needed to confirm it once again, “Yeah.”
Zhou Mingxuan, “I can’t do it. I seem to understand but I also don’t seem to understand. I feel a little dizzy.”
Duan Wen took out a cigarette, “Want one?”
Li Chun, “Brother Wen, me too.”
After giving everyone a few minutes to digest this information, Song Qinglan made them put out the cigarettes.
Tang Le was worried. He asked the most critical question, “Then, Advisor Ji, can we still get out of this loop?”
Tang Qi had the same thoughts as him, “Could everything that we’re doing now also be a cause and effect? But nothing has changed?”
Perhaps the painkillers worked as Ji Yushi’s wounds didn’t hurt as much as before.
He was silent for a moment and answered honestly, “I don’t know.”
Song Qinglan suddenly spoke up, “We can definitely get out of this loop.”
He leaned back against the wall of the car. His posture was lazy, but his expression wasn’t at all relaxed, “Since we know what’s going on, there’s nothing to be afraid of. It’s just a loop. The only way is to not look back and keep pushing forward. Even if we fail, we have to leave a clue for next time. Don’t forget, we are not here to experience anything about cause and effect. Our purpose here is to complete the mission.”
Everyone slowly returned to their senses.
Song Qinglan asked, “Let me ask you. Do you want to go back?”
Everyone, “Yes!”
Song Qinglan nodded and then asked, “Then, are you afraid of death?”
Everyone, “Not afraid!”
“Then that’s it.” Song Qinglan laughed, “Why think so much? It’s enough to just understand what’s going on. Besides, although we don’t know where Team B is hiding, we now have two teams, A and B, which is equivalent to learning the doppelganger technique. Wouldn’t it be easier to complete the mission this way?”
Everyone’s spirits were lifted. They even felt a little proud.
Song Qinglan then unceremoniously poured a bucket of cold water onto them, “Of course, the main point is that we have two Ji Yushi’s who can analyse the situation.”
Song Qinglan had said that without any psychological burden.
It was similar to the time when Ji Yushi said blankly that he wanted to lie down and win.
The situation had reversed.
Everyone: “………”
Suddenly, there was a soft sound outside the spacecar. Zhou Mingxuan threw away his cigarette butt and went out to check with his laser gun.
He only saw a grappling hook with a plastic bag nailed to the door of the spacecar.
Three or four zombies had followed the sound. Afraid of attracting more by making more of a commotion, Zhou Mingxuan pulled out a dagger and dealt with them cleanly with it instead. He returned with the plastic bag, “What is this?! There are people who still send messages like this?”
Song Qinglan seemed to have thought of something, “Open it and take a look.”
There was a piece of paper and pen in the bag.
Opening that piece of paper, there was only one book title written in it: <Golden Crow No. 1: Propagation>?
“Let me see.”
Ji Yushi reached out.
Song Qinglan handed it over.
“This is my handwriting.” Ji Yushi quickly understood, “This is from me in Team B! As I guessed, they also figured out the problem of overlapping time and space and knew that they couldn’t go to the bookstore to check the clues right now and have been following us!”
Team B’s Ji Yushi remembered that he needed to look for this clue but didn’t have the chance to read the book.
Everyone had goosebumps on their backs.
They were just saying that they didn’t know where Team B was hiding and now, they had appeared.
This was a different feeling from watching Team 2 in the bookstore. Team 2 was their past self while Team B was their present self.
Anyone would feel uncomfortable at the thought of two of themselves existing at the same time.
“Where did they get the paper and pen?” Duan Wen asked, “Should we contact them through the communicator?”
“No.” Song Qinglan stopped him, “Now that multiple timelines have been established, we must try to avoid being discovered by Team 2.”
Ji Yushi wrote very quickly.
He wrote down all the insights he saw from the book <Golden Crow No. 1: Propagation> and as he wrote, he said, “My earlier guesses were right. PU-31 itself is just an artificial colony in a parallel universe. It is located in the crevice, a marginal product that shouldn’t exist. In this universe, the earths energy has been exhausted and is almost completely gone and that is why there are many colonies like PU-31 which rely on various artificial energy to run. This also includes the artificial sun that emerged under the thermonuclear fusion project.”
“Artificial sun?” Song Qinglan found it incredible, “Golden Crow No. 1?”
Please read this from kk translates
“There is also No. 2.” Ji Yushi said, “I originally thought that cosmic radiation, dark matter or other elements in the artificial sun caused animals and plants to mutate. For example, the strange tasting Kemeng beans that nobody eats, but there were those survivors in black robes as well as that woman——”
“She said that after Golden Crow No. 2 was launched, her daughter has never been in the sun so she definitely wouldn’t mutate.” Song Qinglan immediately understood what Ji Yushi was saying, “That is to say, this zombie disaster is related to the artificial sun.”
“Because of the artificial sun, there are zombies?”
“Fuck, then we’ve been in the sun too. Would we also mutate?”
“This, I understand. It’s similar to a game saving function. As long as we return to the anchor point, it’s equivalent to not being exposed.”
Ji Yushi said, “Not only is it related to mutation, it also must have something to do with the chaser of darkness mentioned in our mission objective. Although I still don’t know what the connection is, there are two Golden Crow bases. We can go separately to find the answer.”
Song Qinglan waited for him to finish writing and then took the pen and signed underneath: Team A.
The two turned back when they were done.
They were met with five confused faces.
Li Chun, “I feel like I’m an NPC who doesn’t understand anything and just follows the protagonist around.”
Everyone nodded, “Aye.”
Zhou Mingxuan repacked everything in the bag and randomly tossed it out.
A group of zombies chased wildly after the bag.
Zhou Mingxuan: “……….”
After a while, there was another soft sound outside.
The bag had returned.
It said: We will go to Golden Crow No. 1.
It was signed below: Team A.
The A was also heavily circled, emphasising that they are Team A.
It was clearly Song Qinglan’s handwriting. He was speechless for a while, “Childish. To us, you are Team B.”
Ji Yushi: “…….”
Song Qinglan scribbled down the team members on the paper to give them an understanding of their team’s current state.
When the note came back, Song Qinglan frowned.
The current situation of Team B was: Song Qinglan, Ji Yushi, Duan Wen, Li Chun, Zhou Mingxuan, Tang Qi. Only Tang Le was missing.
An explanation was attached below: Remind Tang Le not to chase after a two-tailed dog.
There was even a stick figure drawn at the end and a cross over the neck.
Ji Yushi’s previous analysis in the bookstore appeared in Song Qinglan’s mind. At that time, he had said that the zombie that had appeared outside the bookstore in the second cycle wasn’t Tang Qi but Tang Le. Song Qinglan didn’t understand Ji Yushi at the time but now he did.
It turned out to be Tang Le from Team B.
At this moment, Tang Le was still talking to Tang Qi, alive and well.
More than ten hours ago, he had rushed into the bookstore and chugged down some water before saying to everyone, “There is something wrong with this place!”
Facing his teammates ridicule, he said he ran into a dog with two tails.
What he didn’t know was that ten hours later, his other self would be attracted over for the same reason and would die after trying to go after it.
Song Qinglan turned to the side and looked down at Ji Yushi who sat on a box of equipment.
The other person also happened to be looking at him. There were some doubts written in his beautiful eyes, as if he was asking him what’s wrong.
Time was endless, and the universe was vast.
Only wisdom and knowledge remained unchanged.
If one could find a lighthouse when they are lost, then they will be able to find their way home even if they had to cross the ocean or go over a mountain.
Song Qinglan retracted his gaze.
He scrunched the paper up into a ball and threw it out, “Pack up now. Let’s go to Golden Crow No. 2.”
Chapter 19 (Part 1)
Light rain pattered.
The sky was gloomy. From the corridor, it looked like the sky hadn’t brightened up yet.
He closed the door and his two little hands subconsciously pulled on the straps of his school bag as he thought to himself that he should buy a cake from that old shop around the corner so that he wouldn’t be hungry if his father forgets to come back tonight because of working overtime.
Under the lights in the corridor, he stepped onto the ninth step and turned around the corner. There, he ran into someone.
He looked up. The other party was wearing a purple hoodie. A hat covered his face.
It was a stranger.
He paused for a moment and the other party also paused. They then passed by each other.
…….
When the light rain stopped, there were police tape put up downstairs.
It was clearly afternoon, but the sky was still dark. The sound of police cars, the sound of an ambulance as well as the sound of chaotic footsteps could be heard under the flashing red and blue lights.
He stood outside the police tape. Someone rushed over to him and held in him their arms. It was unknown whether their trembling words were used to comfort him or comfort themselves, “Jian Jian, Jian Jian.”
A police officer spoke to that person with a lowered voice. It was a little inaudible, “…….Professor Ji, the child had quite a scare. He may have met the murderer…..”
He lowered his head and saw a drop of water slipping down his yellow raincoat.
…….
It was a warm-toned room. There were a lot of plush toys which made the room feel more comfortable.
The aunty of the Child Welfare Department walked in.
Someone had completed all the formalities. He squatted down in front of him and held his little hand, “Jian Jian, I’m here to take you home. To a new home.”
He nodded.
“Are you afraid?”
He shook his head.
“Alright. In the future, you will have a mother, a father and a brother at home. It will be very lively.”
He remained silent.
“From today, you will be surnamed Ji.”
……….
“Hey Xiao Ji. You already have 89 B-level missions, you’re really not considering supporting an A-level one?” Chief Lin tried to persuade him, “I have already applied to the superiors. With one A-level mission equalling to 10 B-level missions, you will have a total of 99. Once you return, you just have to go one more time and then you would be able to get what you have always wanted!”
He said, “No hurry. It is the same if I do 10 more B-level missions.”
Chief Lin was anxious, “Goodness, why won’t this child listen to me?! For what reason did you join Tianqiong? Everyone already knows that you want a chance to return to that year. The people at the top say that they want to test you but they’re not that strict. No one wants to put you in a difficult position, you’re only doing it to yourself!”
He responded calmly, “Chief Lin, I can’t work with teammates who are blind, arrogant and hold a prejudice against others.”
Chief Lin, “That Captain Song isn’t arrogant for no reason……..Hey, Xiao Ji, wait a minute!”
Please read this from kk translates
A black cat snored on his lap.
He held a book in one hand and used his other to stroke the cat.
This cat was old. He stroked it very lightly, feeling the soft and smooth fur brushing between his fingers.
When the communicator rang, the cat stretched and jumped off his lap. He moved to pick up the video call.
In the call, a grey-haired old professor with glasses appeared.
Another black cat jumped onto his lap and rolled over to reveal its belly. He scratched it as he listened patiently to the other party talk before asking, “Teacher, are you calling to persuade me to go to Jiang City?”
The old professor paused. He then sighed, “Jian Jian, the sooner you reach your goal and go back to that year, the sooner you will be freed.”
He said, “Okay.”
……….
*
Thick eyelashes trembled and the next second, Ji Yushi opened his eyes.
Pain from his abdomen slowly travelled up to his brain. The pain was so bad, he could hardly support himself up. He could only lie in place, taking small breaths.
Fragmented memories returned with the pain. Ji Yushi remembered that he and Song Qinglan were analysing the current situation.
He was only halfway through his words; he still had many things he wanted to say. He was extremely afraid that he would not wake up again once he closed his eyes.
The person sitting next to him placed down the binoculars and looked over, “Advisor Ji! You’re already awake!”
It was Li Chun.
Ji Yushi was still in a confused state, “How long did I sleep for?”
Li Chun checked the communicator, “It is now 10:42. Since you fell unconscious, you slept for less than an hour!”
Ji Yushi took in his surroundings. He saw that they were currently on a second floor balcony.
The low walls were made of small carved bricks, making it hard for them to be spotted from outside but also allowing them to observe the outside situation through the gaps.
JI Yushi had been placed onto a deck chair on the balcony by his teammates. A large parasol blocked out most of the sun for him so that he wouldn’t die from heatstroke.
If not for the growls from the zombies, Ji Yushi would have thought that he was taking an afternoon nap at someone’s place.
Sure enough, when he turned his head a little and looked through the gaps in the bricks, he saw zombies wandering around in groups below.
If he looked a little further, he could see part of the bookstore on the other side of the street.
“Advisor Ji, you sleep very lightly. You had clearly fallen unconscious, but your eyes were still moving around under your eyelids. You clearly weren’t resting well.” Li Chun said this while holding a pair of binoculars. He was talkative, this was something Ji Yushi already knew, “I heard that you usually don’t sleep well but you’re injured so it’s best to rest a little. How could you not say a word and endure it the whole time?”
Ji Yushi had nothing to say in response to that and he also didn’t know what to say.
“Shit.” Li Chun suddenly cursed, “I’m so fucking stupid.”
Ji Yushi: “……….”
Li Chun spoke with embarrassment as he looked out through the binoculars, “It turns out that I have such a bad walking posture. Why didn’t anyone tell me?! I thought I was handsome! No wonder I’ve been so unsuccessful with my relationships and the sisters all fly away. Even Old Zhou walks better than me.”
Please read this from kk translates
What?
JI Yushi suddenly remembered —– At this time, Team 2 should have escaped from Runjin Building and, after losing Tang Qi and Duan Wen, the group of five should have arrived at the bookstore!
He turned to look. He could faintly see several figures in the bookstore. They were from Team 2!
In just a few seconds, a chill ran down his back.
Li Chun and the others already know?
“Advisor Ji, you don’t have to worry. Cap Song has already told us.” Ji Chun turned around and spoke to him, “Because the mission was restarted, different ‘us’ would appear at the same time. Sooner or later, we will meet, just like you two and us right now.”
Song Qinglan has already told them?
For Song Qinglan to do something like this, Ji Yushi could understand.
But wasn’t Li Chun’s reaction too calm? Why would he still be in the mood to complain about his other self in a situation like this? Shouldn’t he be scared at the thought of it?
Ji Yushi was vigilant, “You’re not afraid?”
“What’s there to be afraid of? I’m not even afraid of death anymore so why would I be afraid of meeting my other self?” The simple-minded big boy thought very simply, “Just like how Advisor Ji continued to push on even after getting hurt and knowing that you may die —- Let’s use you Recorders as an example. When you go back to the past to complete tasks, you will always see people and things from the past. If you travelled to a time that is closer to the present time, you may even accidentally run into your past self. Would you be afraid?”
Ji Yushi: “That is different.”
Hearing him say this, Li Chun laughed disapprovingly. That appearance of his was just like Song Qinglan.
No, their entire squad was like this.
“It’s similar.” Li Chun said.
“Look, what we see now is just our ‘past’ self and our other self who has ‘made a different choice’.” Li Chun continued, “But no matter how many of our other selves exist at the same time, the initial anchor point is fixed, just like when you go back to your starting point after completing your task in the past. That is to say, no matter what happens, the me who reappears at the anchor point is still me, and there is only one me. And so, to the me who is at that anchor point, it just means that there were several me’s who once existed at that same point in time. In essence, there is no difference.”
The past self and the self from a parallel timeline, who is the main body?
This was actually a philosophical question. Unfortunately, not many people in the world can answer that.
But because of the anchor points existence, it indeed provided a good explanation.
He didn’t expect Li Chun to choose such a transparent way to understand. Ji Yushi’s pupils constricted slightly, and he suddenly made sense of a few things.
He looked at Li Chun with respect, “You make a lot of sense.”
Li Chun scratched his head with embarrassment, “Actually, this was all analysed by Cap Song! How can I be as smart as you guys! It was only after I sat here and thought for an hour until my mind was about to explode that I managed to figure out what Cap Song meant!”
Ji Yushi: “…..”
Alright.
It seems that no matter which Li Chun it was, his mind was still very simple.
……Song Qinglan.
This person was different from what he had imagined.
Ji Yushi had thought that things would become more complicated as a result and everyone would avoid their other selves, creating a chaotic scene where no one knew who was who and whether they were allies or enemies. He had even imagined the scene countless ‘him’s’ appearing at the same point in time and, in order to compete for the so-called main body, a bloody massacre and self-killing would take place. It was simply a nightmare in a nightmare.
What Ji Yushi didn’t expect was that, under Song Qinglan’s leadership, this squad worked like an arrow, never turning back after leaving the bow regardless of what they were faced with, only advancing forward.
Everyone in Tianqiong’s seventh squad were important core players who worked very well together.
They constantly changed Ji Yushi’s understanding of them.
From the first cycle until now, no matter who was sacrificed and who was left behind, their goal had never changed.
It was like it was reminding Ji Yushi that everything wasn’t a big deal. As long as their will was firm enough, they would not fall into confusion.
No matter what, no matter how many of them there were, there was only one goal.
—— Complete the mission and return to their original world.
This reminder made the heavy rock that had been weighing down on Ji Yushi chest lighten a little.
He was shocked. Could everything actually be that simple?
Song Qinglan’s appearance before he fell unconscious appeared in his mind. The other party’s brows were furrowed and there was an emotion called anger in his eyes.
Ji Yushi didn’t understand it very well as to why Song Qinglan was angry.
And so, where were Song Qinglan and the others?
He voiced this query of his.
Li Chun said, “After you fell unconscious, Old Zhou and Old Duan came —– That is, the team you call Team 4, the ones that we got separated from at Runjin Building. They came on a spacecar, so they arrived earlier than Team 2, but they still don’t know about the situation of several of themselves existing. Tang Qi and Tang Le are probably giving them some time to take it in. Cap Song went to find some bandages and so on for you so he should be back soon. Once we gather up again, we will go to our next destination.”
Ji Yushi’s lips were still pale. He was still quite weak.
“Advisor Ji, the bullet wound on you was from Diamond Bird, you shot yourself with your own gun. Fortunately, Diamond Bird uses energy bullets and doesn’t have a physical bullet, so we don’t need to look for a bullet inside you. The wound may look large on the outside, but it is small on the inside. Please try not to do something like this next time.”
Ji Yushi: “……..”
He was probably afraid that he would drag them down.
Li Chun, “Hey, in fact our Cap Song is a pretty good person. That time when Old Yu’s accident happened, Cap Song did everything he could to carry him out of the desert and walked tens of kilometres with him on his back. Although a scout is considered a civilian job, they are sometimes required to be out in the field. After that accident, Cap Song had been blaming himself. He didn’t want you to come so he deliberately said those things. We are at most just a little straight but it’s not to the extent of being homopho——”
“Whoosh—–”
With a soft sound, a grappling hook caught onto the balcony.
Two wandering zombies below turned and started to growl. A few seconds later, Song Qinglan appeared outside the wall and very agilely leapt over.
“You talk too much.” Song Qinglan’s dark eyes were deep. He glanced over at Ji Yushi and continued to say to Li Chun, “I could even hear you bullshit from across the street.”
Of course that wasn’t possible.
Li Chun hehe’d and immediately shut up.
Tang Le also climbed up the rope and joined them on the balcony, “Advisor Ji, you’re awake!”
Ji Yushi nodded at him.
“I’m glad you’re awake! But you should rest more, we still have time!” Tang Le’s reaction was similar to Li Chun’s. His next sentence turned out to be, “Wait a second, let me look. Has the other me appeared?”
Li Chun handed him the binoculars, “He has but he’s not going in our direction. Probably looking for food. Don’t worry, I left some of those Kemeng Beans that no one wants for them.”
Please read this from kk translates
Tang Le: “……Fuck, you would even do something like that to yourself. Are you human?”
Song Qinglan was too tall and almost had to lower his head to get under the parasol.
He threw a bag of things at Li Chun, “I found a bottle of painkillers but no bandages. Found some disinfectant alcohol, suture threads and waterproof plasters. Use those for now.”
Li Chun immediately came over to treat Ji Yushi’s wound.
As soon as he touched it, Ji Yushi let out a small hiss. His pale and flat abdomen rose and fell with each breathe and the bullet wound that was barely concealed with a band-aid was already soaked with blood.
Alcohol was placed around the wound. It was so painful that Ji Yushi couldn’t speak. He bit his lips firmly, not letting out a single sound.
“Tough guy!” Li Chun couldn’t help but exclaim when he was done with the stitches, “Advisor Ji, I underestimated you!”
“More than a tough guy.”
Song Qinglan didn’t look too happy. Ji Yushi noticed this.
But unexpectedly, Song Qinglan said, “Giving you an apology, tough guy.”
Ji Yushi: “?”
He doubted his ears.
He looked over. Song Qinglan however didn’t mention why he was apologising. He just stared at him and said lazily, “If you wanted it to repeat less, you have to live. Don’t endure without saying anything, I’m not going to eat you. You are one of us so should work together as a team and take care of each other. This is Tianqiong’s seventh squad’s custom.”
After saying that, Song Qinglan leaned down and took out a brand new T-shirt from his pocket, “Advisor Ji, your clothes were cut open. This was something I picked up along the way. Can you change yourself? If you can’t, make a sound.”
Tang Le and Li Chun both looked over at the same time. Their eyes both said: “???”
Although there was nothing wrong with the words ‘working together as a team’ and ‘taking care of each other’, but when did Cap Song become so considerate?
Could only smart people get that kind of special treatment?
Were they unworthy?
Song Qinglan gave the two a cold look. The two of them quickly turned around and pretended that nothing had happened.
Suddenly faced with Cap Song’s kindness and also suddenly becoming one of the seventh squad out of nowhere, Ji Yushi couldn’t help but be suspicious.
But he wasn’t delicate to that extent and was even a little shocked, “Thank you, I can do it myself.”
Song Qinglan, “Are you sure?”
Ji Yushi: “I am sure!”
Ji Yushi then held the hem of his black combat uniform and raised it up.
The stitching just now was too painful, and his body was completely soaked. There was still a thin layer of sweat on his pale skin.
As it turned out, he really did require help. The pain from that action earlier had almost made him fall unconscious again.
Song Qinglan didn’t just stand by and watch nor did he take the opportunity to laugh at him. He just wordlessly helped him pull out an arm to take off the blood-stained black combat uniform and then helped him put on the clean white T-shirt.
In an instant, Ji Yushi’s appearance softened considerably. He looked like a naïve young man who should be holding a book.
When Song Qinglan was done helping him, he said, “You’re welcome, Advisor Ji.”
Ji Yushi: “……….”
Song Qinglan turned to ask Li Chun, “What is the situation now?”
No one answered.
Li Chun and Tang Le took turns looking through the binoculars. Their expressions were a little strange, “Uh, that, it’s hard to say.”
Ji Yushi stored the Diamond Bird away and stood up and fixed himself up, “Let me take a look.”
Li Chun: “Oh.”
Ji Yushi received the binoculars from Li Chun.
In the bookstore, Song Qinglan of Team 2 was currently holding Ji Yushi’s arms behind his back and pressing him against the bookshelf. He appeared to be saying something stern while Ji Yushi had no ability to fight back —- That was the time when Song Qinglan questioned how many cycles he had gone through and suspected him.
Ji Yushi placed down the binoculars and said to Song Qinglan, “Cap Song, the current situation is, you are wall slamming me.” (KKnotes: wall slamming = kabedon)
Li Chun: “!!!”
Tang Le: “!!!”
Song Qinglan, “Me, wall slamming, you?”
Ji Yushi’s expression was natural.
Song Qinglan, “………..”
Please read this from kk translates
Since Song Qinglan showed kindness this time, Ji Yushi felt that he didn’t need to use the words ‘you tried to beat me up’.
He didn’t always hold grudges.
It was a matter of reciprocation.
*
When the spacecar reached the building, it became a temporary gathering point.
Ji Yushi was the first to slide down the rope. He was injured and was very quickly caught by Zhou Mingxuan and Duan Wen and was helped into the car.
The appearance in the familiar spacecar was no different from when they set off from the park management office. The pile of equipment there had pretty much all that they needed —- Ji Yushi immediately recalled the horrific scene from last time; a woman’s screams, loud curses, gunfire, the sight of a young girl lying in a pool of blood as well as the loud sound of the car hitting against a wall. It was all very clear.
The dark-skinned man held his Diamond Bird and shot wildly during this chaos.
There was no pain the moment the bullet penetrated him, but Ji Yushi could still clearly remember the process of it entering him so much so that the pain from his newly stitched wound grew even more intense.
But this car was still fine.
On another timeline, nothing had happened.
Song Qinglan was the last to enter, “Team 2 is nearby. In order not to be involved with them, has everyone turned off the location of your communicator?”
Everyone: “Turned off!”
Song Qinglan said, “Duan Wen, create an encrypted channel that only the people in this car can use.”
Duan Wen did as he was told.
Song Qinglan said, “There are still two or three hours before the black wall arrives here. Have you all understood the current situation? For those who haven’t, hurry up and ask any questions you have.”
Everyone immediately scrambled to ask.
Song Qinglan felt a headache coming and bluntly stopped them, “One by one!”
The Zhou Mingxuan from another timeline who had been busy driving the spacecar over and hadn’t had the time to process the information asked first, “Let me start first! Cap Song, according to the order of appearance, is this our current situation? So me, Duan Wen, Tang Qi, Tang Le and Li Chun, us five are from Team 4 whereas you and Advisor Ji are from Team 3. So that basically means that you from Team 3 and us from Team 4 have formed a team?”
Although it was a bit convoluted, it was indeed the case.
Zhou Mingxuan then asked, “Then, where did Cap Song and Advisor Ji as well as the rest of Team 3 go?”
Song Qinglan said, “After Advisor Ji and I were hijacked from the bookstore, Team 3 remained. Those people must be looking for us. At that time, I managed to get into contact with Tang Qi through the public channel and Tang Qi said he heard a loud noise so they shouldn’t have been far from us. The place the spacecar was damaged was also along the way to the bookstore and Advisor Ji and I from Team 4 would most definitely go to the bookstore after separating from you. I believe that Tang Qi who was originally coming to pick us up after contacting me encountered our other selves from Team 4 who was their way to the bookstore.”
Zhou Mingxuan: “Fuck, I understand now. So basically Team 3 and 4 are still the original team and only Cap Song and Advisor Ji were switched!”
Song Qinglan, “That’s basically it. For the sake of distinction, we can call them Team B.”
Tang Le: “What about us?!”
Tang Qi supported his head, “Of course we’re Team A, little brother.”
Tang Le heard tone in his voice, “Sorry.”
Li Chun was stunned again, “They why didn’t Team B go to the bookstore? The reason why we found the spacecar at the park management office was to go to the bookstore to let Advisor Ji check something he didn’t have the chance to check. It stands to reason that even if we have formed two teams, they would definitely go to the bookstore.”
Sitting on a box of equipment, Ji Yushi rested his head against the wall of the car.
He slowly spoke, “Because the me of Team B must’ve also discovered the overlap of time and space.”
Everyone looked back at him.
Ji Yushi’s face didn’t look too good, as if the smallest wind would blow him over.
The hope of solving this puzzle currently laid with Ji Yushi. Without Ji Yushi, they most definitely wouldn’t be in this current situation and perhaps they would’ve already gone crazy.
Everyone felt bad for him, but they also couldn’t do anything for him.
“But the me in Team B isn’t hurt and didn’t fall unconscious so after discovering the overlap in time and space, they most definitely reached a conclusion before us.” Ji Yushi said, “Team B is the same as us. They also know that if they go to the bookstore now, they would inevitably encounter Team 2 and a paradox would appear.”
This was also what Ji Yushi wasn’t able to say to Song Qinglan before he fell unconscious.
Fortunately, Song Qinglan must have also thought of this and chose to remain nearby, observing the situation.
Of the two of them, one stood while the other sat.
But there was an inexplicable atmosphere between them, as if they were real partners, the kind that no one else could get between.
This kind of tacit understanding had at some point in time established between them.
Li Chun, “What paradox?”
It was hard for Ji Yushi to speak and he had to pause a little with each word.
Song Qinglan went on to say, “Because our existence comes from the third cycle and the reason for the third cycle is because all of Team 2 died. As a result, no matter whether Team A or Team B goes, it would most definitely change the fate of Team 3. The third cycle then wouldn’t be like this and we wouldn’t be here anymore.”
Everyone understood.
“So that’s why they won’t go to the bookstore.”
“I see!”
Ji Yushi nodded and then said, “There is actually one more thing. Do you remember the mission mode?”
Everyone said, “Ouroboros.”
“This is the key point to this current situation. I seem to understand it somewhat now.” Ji Yushi said, “Ouroboros holds the meaning of an infinite loop in Western legends. Since the beginning, we only understood the meaning on that level and thought it just meant that everything would restart after death but, in fact, the representation of ouroboros is a snake eating its own tail. It was a case of consuming oneself.”
Ouroboros symbolised infinity, no limit, no beginning and no end.
Ji Yushi picked up a knife next to him, “Cap Song, help me draw a circle.”
Song Qinglan replied and carved a white circle onto the floor of the car.
Ji Yushi took the knife back and used the tip of the knife to mark out a few spots on the circle.
“Look, no matter which point of the circle it is, it can be regarded as the starting point of the circle and it can also be regarded as the end.” He spoke very slowly, leaving time for the others to think and react, “This is similar to our current situation. In the first cycle, we were killed by a spacecar. It was because the people who chose to drive the spacecar was us ourselves. We encountered a roadblock and had to take the alley to reach the bookstore because we were hijacked by people on another timeline which resulted in damages blocking the road. After escaping from the bookstore, we were faced with a wire fence and was swallowed up by the black wall because the people who had hijacked us had raised that wire fence. As if everything was destined, all these incidents are linked, forming a circle on its own.”
“With the time anchor setting in place, time is fixed. That’s why, every trace we leave is like a point on this circle. There is no particular order, only cause and effect.”
Please read this from kk translates
Once done with this explanation, the large and complex world setting of PU-31 left everyone in shock.
Even though Song Qinglan had a faint guess, he didn’t analyse it as clearly as Ji Yushi did.
For a long time, no one in the car spoke.
“Older brother, did you understand?” Tang Le poked Tang Qi.
“Yeah.” Tang Qi answered coolly and after showing a slight look of confusion, he answered again as if he needed to confirm it once again, “Yeah.”
Zhou Mingxuan, “I can’t do it. I seem to understand but I also don’t seem to understand. I feel a little dizzy.”
Duan Wen took out a cigarette, “Want one?”
Li Chun, “Brother Wen, me too.”
After giving everyone a few minutes to digest this information, Song Qinglan made them put out the cigarettes.
Tang Le was worried. He asked the most critical question, “Then, Advisor Ji, can we still get out of this loop?”
Tang Qi had the same thoughts as him, “Could everything that we’re doing now also be a cause and effect? But nothing has changed?”
Perhaps the painkillers worked as Ji Yushi’s wounds didn’t hurt as much as before.
He was silent for a moment and answered honestly, “I don’t know.”
Song Qinglan suddenly spoke up, “We can definitely get out of this loop.”
He leaned back against the wall of the car. His posture was lazy, but his expression wasn’t at all relaxed, “Since we know what’s going on, there’s nothing to be afraid of. It’s just a loop. The only way is to not look back and keep pushing forward. Even if we fail, we have to leave a clue for next time. Don’t forget, we are not here to experience anything about cause and effect. Our purpose here is to complete the mission.”
Everyone slowly returned to their senses.
Song Qinglan asked, “Let me ask you. Do you want to go back?”
Everyone, “Yes!”
Song Qinglan nodded and then asked, “Then, are you afraid of death?”
Everyone, “Not afraid!”
“Then that’s it.” Song Qinglan laughed, “Why think so much? It’s enough to just understand what’s going on. Besides, although we don’t know where Team B is hiding, we now have two teams, A and B, which is equivalent to learning the doppelganger technique. Wouldn’t it be easier to complete the mission this way?”
Everyone’s spirits were lifted. They even felt a little proud.
Song Qinglan then unceremoniously poured a bucket of cold water onto them, “Of course, the main point is that we have two Ji Yushi’s who can analyse the situation.”
Song Qinglan had said that without any psychological burden.
It was similar to the time when Ji Yushi said blankly that he wanted to lie down and win.
The situation had reversed.
Everyone: “………”
Suddenly, there was a soft sound outside the spacecar. Zhou Mingxuan threw away his cigarette butt and went out to check with his laser gun.
He only saw a grappling hook with a plastic bag nailed to the door of the spacecar.
Three or four zombies had followed the sound. Afraid of attracting more by making more of a commotion, Zhou Mingxuan pulled out a dagger and dealt with them cleanly with it instead. He returned with the plastic bag, “What is this?! There are people who still send messages like this?”
Song Qinglan seemed to have thought of something, “Open it and take a look.”
There was a piece of paper and pen in the bag.
Opening that piece of paper, there was only one book title written in it: <Golden Crow No. 1: Propagation>?
“Let me see.”
Ji Yushi reached out.
Song Qinglan handed it over.
“This is my handwriting.” Ji Yushi quickly understood, “This is from me in Team B! As I guessed, they also figured out the problem of overlapping time and space and knew that they couldn’t go to the bookstore to check the clues right now and have been following us!”
Team B’s Ji Yushi remembered that he needed to look for this clue but didn’t have the chance to read the book.
Everyone had goosebumps on their backs.
They were just saying that they didn’t know where Team B was hiding and now, they had appeared.
This was a different feeling from watching Team 2 in the bookstore. Team 2 was their past self while Team B was their present self.
Anyone would feel uncomfortable at the thought of two of themselves existing at the same time.
“Where did they get the paper and pen?” Duan Wen asked, “Should we contact them through the communicator?”
“No.” Song Qinglan stopped him, “Now that multiple timelines have been established, we must try to avoid being discovered by Team 2.”
Ji Yushi wrote very quickly.
He wrote down all the insights he saw from the book <Golden Crow No. 1: Propagation> and as he wrote, he said, “My earlier guesses were right. PU-31 itself is just an artificial colony in a parallel universe. It is located in the crevice, a marginal product that shouldn’t exist. In this universe, the earths energy has been exhausted and is almost completely gone and that is why there are many colonies like PU-31 which rely on various artificial energy to run. This also includes the artificial sun that emerged under the thermonuclear fusion project.”
“Artificial sun?” Song Qinglan found it incredible, “Golden Crow No. 1?”
Please read this from kk translates
“There is also No. 2.” Ji Yushi said, “I originally thought that cosmic radiation, dark matter or other elements in the artificial sun caused animals and plants to mutate. For example, the strange tasting Kemeng beans that nobody eats, but there were those survivors in black robes as well as that woman——”
“She said that after Golden Crow No. 2 was launched, her daughter has never been in the sun so she definitely wouldn’t mutate.” Song Qinglan immediately understood what Ji Yushi was saying, “That is to say, this zombie disaster is related to the artificial sun.”
“Because of the artificial sun, there are zombies?”
“Fuck, then we’ve been in the sun too. Would we also mutate?”
“This, I understand. It’s similar to a game saving function. As long as we return to the anchor point, it’s equivalent to not being exposed.”
Ji Yushi said, “Not only is it related to mutation, it also must have something to do with the chaser of darkness mentioned in our mission objective. Although I still don’t know what the connection is, there are two Golden Crow bases. We can go separately to find the answer.”
Song Qinglan waited for him to finish writing and then took the pen and signed underneath: Team A.
The two turned back when they were done.
They were met with five confused faces.
Li Chun, “I feel like I’m an NPC who doesn’t understand anything and just follows the protagonist around.”
Everyone nodded, “Aye.”
Zhou Mingxuan repacked everything in the bag and randomly tossed it out.
A group of zombies chased wildly after the bag.
Zhou Mingxuan: “……….”
After a while, there was another soft sound outside.
The bag had returned.
It said: We will go to Golden Crow No. 1.
It was signed below: Team A.
The A was also heavily circled, emphasising that they are Team A.
It was clearly Song Qinglan’s handwriting. He was speechless for a while, “Childish. To us, you are Team B.”
Ji Yushi: “…….”
Song Qinglan scribbled down the team members on the paper to give them an understanding of their team’s current state.
When the note came back, Song Qinglan frowned.
The current situation of Team B was: Song Qinglan, Ji Yushi, Duan Wen, Li Chun, Zhou Mingxuan, Tang Qi. Only Tang Le was missing.
An explanation was attached below: Remind Tang Le not to chase after a two-tailed dog.
There was even a stick figure drawn at the end and a cross over the neck.
Ji Yushi’s previous analysis in the bookstore appeared in Song Qinglan’s mind. At that time, he had said that the zombie that had appeared outside the bookstore in the second cycle wasn’t Tang Qi but Tang Le. Song Qinglan didn’t understand Ji Yushi at the time but now he did.
It turned out to be Tang Le from Team B.
At this moment, Tang Le was still talking to Tang Qi, alive and well.
More than ten hours ago, he had rushed into the bookstore and chugged down some water before saying to everyone, “There is something wrong with this place!”
Facing his teammates ridicule, he said he ran into a dog with two tails.
What he didn’t know was that ten hours later, his other self would be attracted over for the same reason and would die after trying to go after it.
Song Qinglan turned to the side and looked down at Ji Yushi who sat on a box of equipment.
The other person also happened to be looking at him. There were some doubts written in his beautiful eyes, as if he was asking him what’s wrong.
Time was endless, and the universe was vast.
Only wisdom and knowledge remained unchanged.
If one could find a lighthouse when they are lost, then they will be able to find their way home even if they had to cross the ocean or go over a mountain.
Song Qinglan retracted his gaze.
He scrunched the paper up into a ball and threw it out, “Pack up now. Let’s go to Golden Crow No. 2.”
