“Tong Yang! You’re on TV!” Xu Junyue exclaimed in surprise.
“Shut up!” Tong Yang snapped back.
Every electronic device with a display in District One showed Tong Yang’s image.
“The time anchor is located at Residential No. 322.”
“The time anchor is located at Residential No. 322.”
“The time anchor is located at Residential No. 322.”
The broadcast continued to repeat.
“Sister Tong Yang! What should we do?”
Tong Yang turned around and shot through Mama Yan’s heart, temporarily incapacitating her.
“First, find the high-quality gene drug. I’ll come back for you in an hour.”
“Okay! Be careful!”
Meanwhile, on the chaotic streets, all the residents of District One, who were fighting each other, stopped their actions, bloodied and staggering, and began to move towards the direction of Residential No. 322.
Those who had been hiding in their rooms, not participating in the fighting, also walked out, expressionless, and approached Residential No. 322.
The time anchor was the only limitation for them to invade the real world. As long as they killed her, there would be no more concerns.
“Tong Yang, be careful! They’re all heading over!” Chu Shiyu warned.
“Residentials 21, 47, and 578 have been occupied by the humans of the Shadow World. Please drive them out with all your might.”
“No way? Have we been exposed too?”
“Damn it, if I had known, I would have just robbed them directly!”
“Oh no! They’re coming! So many of them!”
“How can we fight this? Run!”
The headset was filled with chaotic sounds, and everyone’s coordinates were marked by the broadcast.
Tong Yang dragged the incapacitated Mama Yan out of the study and then closed the door behind her.
Yan Qing and Ye Huai seemed to still be safe; they hadn’t been exposed yet. Tong Yang couldn’t stay here any longer. She had to hold on for an hour before returning to the study to meet up with the others and let Yan Qing out.
In the midst of the chaos, Ye Huai’s voice came through: “Tong Yang, leave Residential No. 322 first and draw them away. I want to take the opportunity to go to the study; the computer there should be able to block the satellite signals for the entire villa.”
Tong Yang replied, “Okay, be careful.”
“Mm.”
Tong Yang dragged Mama Yan into the garden, chopped off a thick branch, and stabbed it into her chest, the bloodied tip piercing through her body and sinking into the ground. Even if her body could recover, it would buy some time.
Mama Yan lay on her back on the ground, her pupils dilated as she stared blankly at the sky, murmuring Yan Qing’s name.
A gunshot rang out from behind, and Tong Yang quickly found cover. Papa Yan, shot in the head by Ye Huai, staggered towards her.
The wound on his forehead hadn’t fully healed; flesh was exposed, and his brain was in chaos. He moved like a zombie, posing no threat to Tong Yang.
With not many bullets left in her gun, Tong Yang seized the chance to leap forward and slice open his trachea. Just as she was about to deliver another blow, Ye Huai’s reminder came through her ear: “Don’t get caught up in a fight; they’re already inside.”
Hearing this, Tong Yang stopped her movements and used the same method to stab him into the flowerbed. Then she got up and ran towards the garden wall, leaping up with a few quick steps, using her hands to push herself over.
The wall was embedded with shards of glass for security. Despite Tong Yang trying to be careful, she still cut her palm, blood flowing freely. The pursuers couldn’t see her exact position, but the broadcast announced her location every thirty seconds. With only a thirty-second time difference, she had no energy to tend to her wound and ran to the other side of the street.
“Where are you?” Tong Yang asked, her breath uneven.
“Running for my life! These things are like cockroaches that won’t die; even if you injure one, it crawls towards me!”
“What about Chu Shiyu?”
Chu Shiyu whispered, “I’m hiding in a basement. It seems there are no cameras here, but someone has been walking above me and fighting.”
“Then stay hidden and don’t come out.”
“What about the Taoist?”
Tang Shuyan said, “I’m on the rooftop; the door is locked, so they can’t get in for now.”
“There are too many cameras here. If our location changes, we’ll be exposed immediately. This isn’t a solution.”
Tong Yang took a deep breath and said, “You all think of a way; I’ll go to the command base and smash the broadcast.”
Ye Huai reminded her, “The command base has a central satellite receiver. If you can destroy it, the satellite signals for the entire area will be blocked.”
“Okay, I got it.”
The command base was located in the central area of District One. Due to the chaos that had occurred earlier, many law enforcers had already left the base. As Tong Yang passed by a shop, she tore a clean curtain to wrap around her palm wound to prevent excessive blood loss affecting her movements.
Although her location was announced every thirty seconds, that time was enough to shake off those behind her.
The streets were crowded with people, so Tong Yang didn’t take the main road but instead weaved through the residential area. The broadcast primarily reported by residential numbers, causing the pursuers to get stuck one after another in the rooms, buying her more time.
If she encountered any stragglers, unlike Mama Yan and Papa Yan who were armed, most were acting alone. Tong Yang swiftly killed them with a knife. Passing by a quaintly decorated house, she saw a silver willow leaf knife on the main altar. Without a second thought, she took it and strapped it to herself.
Arriving at an intersection, the doorplate showed 511, not far from the command base.
However, at that moment, the sound of car engines echoed down the street; the law enforcers had caught up!
They had guns, and Tong Yang didn’t plan to confront them head-on. She sidestepped into a blind spot, and an armored police vehicle slowly approached. The passenger window was down, and a dark rifle was aimed at Tong Yang.
“Bang—”
Suddenly, a gunshot rang out from above.
On the rooftop across the street, Tang Shuyan, dressed as a Taoist, waved at her.
The handgun had a limited range, and Tang Shuyan’s actions drew the attention of the law enforcers. The two people in the vehicle looked up simultaneously, slowing down to gaze at the rooftop not far away.
At that moment, the passenger door was suddenly yanked open. The law enforcer instinctively pulled the trigger, but the gun was redirected by a force, hitting the driver instead.
Tong Yang acted swiftly, stabbing him in the neck, cutting the seatbelt, and pulling him down from his seat. Then she climbed in and shut the door.
The driver was injured, but the armored police vehicle was still moving. Tong Yang grabbed the steering wheel, unbuckled the seatbelt, and opened the left door, kicking the law enforcer out, then sat down in the driver’s seat.
“Which one is the gas pedal?” Tong Yang asked, as she didn’t know much about cars.
“The right one.”
Tong Yang slammed down on the gas pedal, and the vehicle sped off. Fortunately, it was a straight line, and she didn’t lose control, running over the residents of District One in her path. She didn’t stop, and the heavy armored vehicle rolled over their bodies, stopping at the base of the rooftop where Tang Shuyan was.
“Jump down!”
Tang Shuyan looked at the height and slid down the pipe from the rooftop.
“You drive.” Tong Yang opened the driver’s door and squeezed into the passenger seat.
Tang Shuyan quickly climbed into the driver’s seat and closed the door, asking, “Where to?”
“To the command center; crash in.” Tong Yang said.
“Got it!”
Although the police armored vehicle wasn’t as sturdy as a military one and couldn’t withstand much, it sped down the street, with more and more residents chasing after them. There was no longer enough space for the armored vehicle to pass.
“Crash through!” Tong Yang gripped the overhead handle with her left hand and held the willow leaf knife out the window with her right. As the vehicle sped by, the blade sliced through the nearby people, severing them in half.
Blood splattered all over them, the street was littered with corpses, and rivers of blood flowed.
“Ugh… Did you come from the underworld?” Tang Shuyan gasped as he saw Tong Yang expressionlessly pull the willow leaf knife back.
Tong Yang replied, “I didn’t consider them human; they aren’t human.”
Tang Shuyan clicked his tongue, “You don’t seem very human yourself.”
“Drive your car!”
“Wow!!! I saw it! Tong Yang, you’re amazing! I want to try it too!”
“Is the feeling the same as slicing fruit?”
Xu Junyue’s exaggerated voice came through.
Tong Yang said, “It feels a bit lighter than slicing fruit.”
“Ah! I want to try too!”
Tang Shuyan complained, “You two are crazy.”
“What about Chu Shiyu? How’s it going?”
Chu Shiyu’s voice was still muffled, “I’m still in the basement, not discovered yet.”
“Good.”
“Bang—”
At that moment, Tang Shuyan crashed the armored vehicle into the command base’s large iron gate.
“There are grenades here.”
“Pull the pin and throw it in.”
“I’ll give it a try.”
Tong Yang pulled the pin and threw it into the iron gate.
A loud explosion followed, and amidst the smoke from the blast, a mangled body fell onto the windshield.
They charged into the command base with a single push.
Gunfire rang out continuously in the base, and Tong Yang quickly rolled up the car windows. Fortunately, the armored vehicle was very sturdy and suffered no damage.
“I’ll crash you all!” Tang Shuyan drove the armored vehicle wildly through the base, and Tong Yang’s seatbelt had already been cut, so she could only hold tightly to the overhead handle to stabilize herself.
Tang Shuyan seemed to be having too much fun, even performing a drift. Tong Yang, furious, kicked him in the back, scolding, “Do you think I’m dead?”
“Hey! Do you have any common sense? Where’s the seatbelt?”
“Cut!”
“Tong Yang, there’s another entrance inside the base that requires a password,” Ye Huai’s calm voice came through.
“How do you know?”
“I’m already in the study; this computer can connect to the command base.”
“Where’s the entrance?”
“Fifty meters in front of you; there are two law enforcers at the door. Just crash through.”
“Understood!” Tang Shuyan shouted, flooring the gas pedal and crashing forward.
“Bang!”
The armored vehicle slammed the two law enforcers against the closed gate of the base, crushing their lower bodies.
Without a seatbelt, the immense inertia caused Tong Yang’s body to slam against the car door, infuriating her as she elbowed Tang Shuyan in the face before jumping out of the car.
Tang Shuyan: “…”
He felt warm liquid flowing from his nose.
This was the heaviest injury he had sustained since entering the parallel world, dealt by a teammate!
Tong Yang instructed him to back the car out and deal with the others while she checked the password lock outside the entrance.
“Is there danger inside the base?” Tong Yang asked.
Ye Huai replied, “There shouldn’t be; it’s mostly technical personnel.”
“Is there a way to open it?” Ye Huai asked.
“Mm, it should be fine.” Tong Yang responded, taking out the golden identity card.
“Yan Qing’s” identity card was at the S level, so it might allow her to enter the command base.
Tong Yang placed the card on the authentication machine and heard a “ding.”
“Identity authentication successful, please enter.”
The heavy door of the base slowly opened to the sides, and Tong Yang looked thoughtfully at the identity card. Although the door opened smoothly, she sensed an unusual aura, but there was no time to think too much now.
“Block the door!” Tong Yang shouted to Tang Shuyan, then stepped into the base first.
Tang Shuyan crashed the car into the base’s main door, getting it stuck between the two doors, with the front of the vehicle inside.
“Attention all residents of District One, the time anchor has successfully invaded the command base. We will urgently seek assistance from higher-ups to destroy it.”
“Attention all residents of District One, the time anchor has successfully invaded the command base. We will urgently seek assistance from higher-ups to destroy it.”
“Attention all residents of District One, the time anchor has successfully invaded the command base. We will urgently seek assistance from higher-ups to destroy it.”
The entire base was filled with alarm sounds, and Tong Yang and Tang Shuyan cautiously looked around. High-tech equipment was everywhere, and red alerts flashed on the screens, yet there was not a single person in sight.
“Ye Huai, where are they?” Tong Yang asked.
“They went into a basement; there are no cameras inside, so it’s pointless to waste effort. You can’t open it; just destroy the central satellite receiver.”
“Okay.”
“Where is it located?”
“Below the central control console.”
“What’s going on? All the people here have left?” Xu Junyue’s confused voice came through.
Then Chu Shiyu’s voice followed: “I’m in the same situation…”
“What’s going on?”
Tong Yang frowned, “Ye Huai, can you switch to other cameras?”
“Mm.”
After a moment, Ye Huai said, “Everyone is gathering towards the exit of District One.”
Tang Shuyan paused in his actions to destroy the central receiver, “What?”
At the same time, the glass dome above District One suddenly appeared to shatter, with visible cracks forming.
Ye Huai’s voice turned somber as he said, “District One is going to collapse.”
“What?”
“Damn it… it’s over! The sky is falling!”
Tong Yang turned and ran to the entrance of the base, looking up at the sky. The hundreds of meters high glass dome looked like a shattered eggshell. With a “crack,” a massive shard of glass fell from above, letting a beam of sunlight shine through the gap.
The glass shard fell like a meteor, plummeting through the air.
Seeing this scene, Tong Yang’s expression changed instantly.
With such a large glass dome collapsing from such a height, not only the residents of District One but the entire District One would likely be flattened.
“The self-destruction program…” Ye Huai murmured.
“District One had set a self-destruction program in place six hours ago.”
“The ultimate goal is to completely destroy the time anchor.”
“Bang!”
A loud noise rang out simultaneously from nearby and through the headset, causing the ground to tremble.
Tong Yang tightly gripped the golden identity card, finally realizing where her sense of unease had come from.
After piercing through “Yan Qing’s” identity, everything had progressed too smoothly.
“Yan Qing” had told them everything, including this identity card. Although she hadn’t had the chance to use a communication tool to inform District One of the danger, she had countless opportunities to press the button on the identity card to tell the people of District One that she was in danger.
But she never did.
The parallel world knew they would stop the transaction, so they had lured them here, setting the self-destruction program six hours in advance.
Using the high-quality gene drug as bait, they drew them into District One, then aimed to destroy them all at once. In this way, the parallel world could not only kill them but also continue to use the high-quality gene drug to collaborate with the Meng family.
Tong Yang had a threefold gain, and they had a twofold gain.
The continuous impacts around them fell into a heavy silence.
Clearly, the technical personnel of the base had hidden in the basement in advance, and the residents of District One were rushing towards the exit, aiming to completely destroy them along with District One.
The massive glass dome, the falling glass shards, the hundreds of meters high distance, without pre-built bomb shelters, they had no chance of survival.
“Yan Qing, is there a high-quality gene drug in the safe?”
Yan Qing’s voice trembled, “Yes…”
“That’s enough.”
“Sister Tong Yang… are we going to die?”
“One hundred percent.”
“Wuwu… I’m so scared…”
“Ye Huai, can the self-destruction program be canceled?”
Ye Huai replied, “No, it can’t be canceled.”
“Is the time fixed? Or is there a trigger condition?”
“The time is fixed.”
Tong Yang found a comfortable spot to sit down, lost in thought.
Time is fixed.
This meant that regardless of whether they entered the command base of District One, the self-destruction program would eventually activate.
After a long while, Tong Yang scoffed. She had underestimated “Yan Qing,” thinking she was naive and willful, without any ulterior motives. However, how many people raised in the parallel world could have a normal mindset?
If Tong Yang and her group were to be permanently trapped in the parallel world, she would undoubtedly be treated as a test subject left in the real world, and they would go so far as to sacrifice their own lives to destroy her.
However, she was playing the fool, and Officer Wan might not be able to keep her.
“They didn’t let the residents of District One leave.”
Ye Huai’s voice was calm, even in a life-and-death situation.
Tong Yang sneered, “Using the excuse of destroying me to kill all the residents of District One and then shifting the blame onto me, what a clever plan.”
“Bang—”
“Bang—”
Tong Yang asked, “If you could do it all over again, do you have a solution?”
“Do it all over again?” Tang Shuyan asked suspiciously.
“Kill Yan Qing’s parents. No matter the alarms, grab the gene drug and return immediately,” Xu Junyue suggested.
Chu Shiyu said, “The end result would still be the same; District One broadcasts our location in real-time, and there’s no time to play the elevator game to return.”
“That’s true.”
Ye Huai said, “We don’t need to gather together; we should be able to communicate through phone calls.”
Dr. Wu had once used a walkie-talkie to help them traverse the world barriers.
“No, Yan Qing’s safe can only be opened in an hour. Before the self-destruction program starts, she can’t come out, and the safe space can’t be that big to complete the elevator game steps.”
“And the high-quality gene drug is also inside.”
Chu Shiyu realized something and gasped, “So that means, before the self-destruction program starts, Qingqing can’t leave the safe and can’t return to the real world. She’s doomed?”
“Sister Tong Yang… what should I do? I panicked and hid in here… what should I do…” Yan Qing said in a panic.
Using the time loop to return ten minutes before the self-destruction program starts, the others might be able to follow Ye Huai’s instructions to leave the parallel world, but only Yan Qing, trapped in the safe, couldn’t.
“Tong Yang, if we enter the loop, we can all escape, but Qingqing…”
“Sister Tong Yang…” Yan Qing choked, filled with anxiety and fear of being abandoned.
“Don’t be afraid; I’ll make sure you return safely.”
Tong Yang said, “I told you, no matter what happens, you must listen to me. Do you remember?”
“Mm.”
“Tong Yang? What are you planning to do?”
Tong Yang didn’t respond. Amid the loud crashes of falling glass shards, she raised her gun and aimed at her temple.
“Bang—”
After the gunshot, the world fell silent.
There was no need for everyone to experience death; as long as Tong Yang died, time would return to ten minutes ago. Only she didn’t need to die at the hands of those in the parallel world to enter the time loop.
Time returned to ten minutes ago, and Tong Yang sat in the jolting armored vehicle.
Perhaps due to the repeated loops, Tong Yang’s vision darkened, and she realized where she was.
Beside her, Tang Shuyan was in the driver’s seat.
“Go straight to the base,” Tong Yang said.
Tang Shuyan replied, “I know.”
The armored vehicle sped towards the command base, and Tong Yang prepared a grenade in advance, pulling the pin and throwing it as the vehicle approached the iron gate.
“Go in, turn left, don’t worry about the others, take me to the inner door of the base.”
Tang Shuyan glanced at her in surprise, “We haven’t even entered yet, and you already know where the base entrance is?”
Tong Yang’s lips tightened, “Less chatter.”
“The main gate of the base has a password,” Ye Huai said.
“I know; the identity card can get us in.”
Ye Huai fell silent for a moment and asked, “Did you enter the loop?”
Tong Yang was taken aback, “Guess.”
“We died?”
“Pretty much.”
“Why?”
“The self-destruction program; the glass dome will fall.”
“What are you all talking about? I don’t understand!” Tang Shuyan said, confused.
“I don’t understand either,” Yan Qing mumbled.
But Chu Shiyu and Xu Junyue had already figured it out.
“Do you have a solution?” Xu Junyue asked.
“Not at the moment.”
Chu Shiyu asked, “Will you enter the loop again?”
During the incident at Wuming Slope, Tong Yang had to enter the loop three times to prevent things from happening.
“Not necessarily, if needed.”
“Ye Huai, check if the safe can be opened early.”
“Okay.”
As the armored vehicle crashed into the base, a cloud of smoke followed, heading straight for the inner door.
They crashed into the two law enforcers guarding the door, killing them, and Tong Yang jumped out of the car, telling Tang Shuyan, “Find a way to block the others.”
“Got it.”
Tong Yang took out the identity card, and with a “ding,” the heavy door slowly opened, leaving a passage in the middle.
“Attention all residents of District One, the time anchor has successfully invaded the command base. We will urgently seek assistance from higher-ups to destroy it.”
“Attention all residents of District One, the time anchor has successfully invaded the command base. We will urgently seek assistance from higher-ups to destroy it.”
“Attention all residents of District One, the time anchor has successfully invaded the command base. We will urgently seek assistance from higher-ups to destroy it.”
The same message echoed through the broadcast.
Tong Yang asked, “Has the self-destruction program started?”
Ye Huai replied, “Not yet.”
“I understand.”
The self-destruction was fixed to start at a certain time, likely a period after her identity was discovered. The first timeline had accidentally activated after they entered the base.
Tong Yang raised her gun and walked into the base, where some technical personnel in white coats were seated among high-tech equipment. Since the self-destruction program hadn’t started yet, they hadn’t gone into the underground bomb shelter to hide.
They heard footsteps and turned to look.
“Bang—”
Tong Yang shot the person closest to her.
At the same time, Ye Huai’s voice came through her headset: “I’ve tried; the password won’t open it without a key.”
Tong Yang said, “I threw the key in the flowerpot; look for it.”
“Okay.”
The shot personnel fell, and the others just stared at her, their expressions eerily calm.
Now, cutting off the central satellite receiver was meaningless. In a few minutes, the self-destruction program would activate, and all residents of District One would gather towards the exit, with the primary goal of finding a way to open the safe.
The situation became very strange; even though Tong Yang had killed one of them and was pointing her gun at them, they showed no signs of fleeing or attacking her.
“Tong Yang, the key won’t work either.”
Yan Qing said anxiously, “I won’t be trapped in here forever, will I?”
“Do you know who I am?” Tong Yang walked over to the fallen body, keeping a wary eye on the others.
She kicked the body over and noticed the man’s wound healing at a visible rate; he must have injected a low-quality gene drug.
“We know,” one of the technical personnel replied.
“Aren’t you afraid of me?” Tong Yang narrowed her eyes.
“You will die.”
Tong Yang said, “You will die too.”
“Not necessarily.”
Tong Yang frowned, feeling something was off. Compared to the law enforcers, the technical personnel seemed more like machines wearing human skins.
“Don’t you want to kill me?” Tong Yang asked.
“Killing you is their business; it has nothing to do with us.”
After saying that, the technical personnel turned to look at the massive electronic screen.
“Are you human?”
“Yes, we are humans implanted with chips.”
“Chips? What’s their purpose?”
“To develop the brain, lose judgment, and obey orders.”
Tong Yang looked at them suspiciously. It sounded similar to the Order Maintainers, answering every question as if they would obey any command.
Tong Yang raised the golden identity card and asked, “Do you recognize this identity card?”
“Yes.”
“How can the safe in the instructor’s study of District One be opened early?”
“The opening interval for all safes in District One is one hour. The lock cylinder is equipped with a satellite receiver. Opening the door means disconnecting; closing it means reconnecting, and the connection duration is one hour.”
Tong Yang frowned, “It can’t be opened early?”
The man replied, “It can.”
“How can it be opened?”
“Disconnect the central satellite receiver, and the lock cylinder will lose part of its function. You can open it with the key.”
“Shut down the central satellite receiver.”
“Yes.”
Tong Yang said into her headset, “The phone signal will be temporarily interrupted. After Yan Qing comes out, I’ll have them reconnect. We should be able to leave before the self-destruction program starts.”
“Okay!”
“Finally, we can leave!”
“They’re starting to move towards the door!”
The man pressed a button on the control panel, and the voice in the headset suddenly cut off.
Tong Yang estimated the time; Ye Huai should be able to open the safe and rescue Yan Qing within a minute.
Tang Shuyan dealt with the law enforcers and parked the car at the entrance, jumping out.
“Why are they so obedient? They’ll obey anyone’s orders?”
“Come here! Bow to the Taoist!”
The technical personnel seemed to ignore him, staring at the now dim electronic display.
Tong Yang said, “They have chips in their heads, and ‘Yan Qing’s’ identity card also has a chip. They probably sensed the identity card, which is why they listen to me.”
Seeing that the time was almost up, Tong Yang said, “Reconnect the central satellite receiver.”
“Can’t do that.”
Tong Yang was taken aback, “Why not?”
“Once the central satellite receiver is shut down, the self-destruction program will activate, and it can’t reconnect.”
“What about the self-destruction program?”
“The self-destruction program was set up in advance and is not affected by satellite signals.”
Tong Yang kicked him, “Why didn’t you say so earlier?”
“You didn’t ask.”
Tang Shuyan didn’t take it seriously and said, “Anyway, we’ve got Gu Qing out of the safe. We can just go back to Residential No. 322 and meet up with them.”
Tong Yang suppressed her anger; there wasn’t enough time left.
She had thought that by shutting down the receiver, getting Yan Qing out, and then reopening the receiver, she could reconnect with Ye Huai and follow his guidance back to the real world. Now it seemed impossible.
Once the central satellite receiver was shut down, the entire area would lose satellite signals.
She could only loop again, directly entering the base to shut down the central satellite receiver, then rush to meet up with the others.
“Tong Yang…”
With one minute left before the self-destruction program activated, a gunshot rang out in the base.
Entering the loop again, Tong Yang suddenly opened her eyes, realizing she was at the same time point as the first loop. She hadn’t died two minutes early, and the loop hadn’t started two minutes early either.
Like the situation at Wuming Slope, entering the loop multiple times in a short period meant the loop time would be based on the first death time.
“Enter the base, turn right and go straight,” Tong Yang instructed.
Before Tang Shuyan in the driver’s seat could react, Tong Yang said to the others, “Ye Huai, the safe key is in the flowerbed of the study. In a few minutes, I’ll shut down the central satellite receiver. Use the key to open the safe and let Yan Qing out.”
“Chu Shiyu, Xu Junyue, you two go back to Residential No. 322 and meet up with them immediately.”
“Tong Yang, you entered the loop?” Xu Junyue asked in surprise.
Chu Shiyu’s voice was hesitant, “I’m in the basement, and there are still many people from District One outside. I don’t know if I should go out…”
“I’m in the same situation,” Xu Junyue said.
Tong Yang gritted her teeth, “How far are you from 322?”
In the first two loops, after Tong Yang entered the base, the residents of District One had only then started gathering towards the exit, giving Chu Shiyu and Xu Junyue a chance to leave.
If they weren’t too far away, they could meet up before the self-destruction program activated and leave smoothly.
“If we run, it’ll take about ten minutes.”
“About the same for me.”
Tong Yang pulled the pin from the grenade, cursing under her breath. There wasn’t enough time; it would take at least two minutes to enter the base from here. Even if they avoided the residents of District One, they wouldn’t be able to meet up before the self-destruction program activated.
If she had Tang Shuyan drive to pick them up, Tong Yang wouldn’t be able to meet up with them before the self-destruction program, and she would undoubtedly die, entering the loop again.
If she had Ye Huai leave 322 to meet them halfway, it could save half the time, but he had to wait until Tong Yang entered the base, shut down the central satellite receiver, and rescued Yan Qing. Time would still run out.
Moreover, Ye Huai couldn’t engage in strenuous activity; otherwise, if something happened to him, no one would be able to return.
What to do… what to do…
It was impossible for them to meet up before the self-destruction program activated, but to rescue Yan Qing and obtain the high-quality gene drug, they had to shut down the central satellite receiver. Otherwise, their communication would be interrupted, and they couldn’t provide long-distance guidance…
As a result, only Ye Huai and Yan Qing could return to the real world with the high-quality gene drug.
No… they wouldn’t be able to return either…
Tong Yang would die after the self-destruction program activated, and time would loop back to ten minutes ago. None of them would be able to return.
This was almost an unsolvable situation!
Tong Yang even felt that the parallel world and the foreign black market, the Meng family’s transactions, were all designed to create the current situation. Even if Tong Yang could enter the loop countless times, she would still be trapped in this unsolvable predicament.
As long as she died in the self-destruction program, then no one would be able to escape, and they would have to repeat it over and over again.
“Tong Yang, do you want to enter the loop again?”
“Mm.”
Tong Yang heard them speaking, her brain racing as she arranged all possibilities.
“Will you regain your memory?” Ye Huai suddenly asked.
“What?”
“After dying once, when you enter the loop, we’ll regain our memories, right?”
“Right…”
Before Tong Yang could finish her sentence, a gunshot rang out in her headset.
“Ah!!” Yan Qing screamed, “Sister Tong Yang! He shot himself!”
“Is he crazy??”
Tang Shuyan exclaimed in shock, “Didn’t you say he could only die at the hands of someone in the parallel world? He won’t be able to revive, right?”
Tong Yang’s expression was stunned; she hadn’t expected Ye Huai to go this far. Has he gone mad?
Chu Shiyu explained, “As long as he dies after Tong Yang’s loop time point, he can come back to life.”
“Then what… I also want to know what’s going on. I’ll go first.”
Immediately after, another gunshot came from Xu Junyue’s side.
Before entering the parallel world, each of them had carried a gun.
“They say getting shot doesn’t feel like anything, so I’ll go too,” Chu Shiyu said.
In the next moment, the gunfire rang out.
“Ah? You all are doing this? Then I’ll…”
“Wait until you die again; drive the car in,” Tong Yang said, her expression regaining some composure as she interrupted him.
Tang Shuyan reluctantly agreed.
Approaching the main gate of the command base, Tong Yang threw the grenade inside, then told Tang Shuyan to drive straight for the inner door.
They knocked over two law enforcers, and Tong Yang didn’t even open the car door. Racing against time, she climbed out through the window and opened the base door.
Ye Huai was already dead. She hadn’t thought of a perfect solution; there was no need to shut down the central satellite receiver. She just needed to think of a solution to enter the loop again.
Entering the base, the broadcast rang out again.
“Attention all residents of District One, the time anchor has successfully invaded the command base. We will urgently seek assistance from higher-ups to destroy it.”
“Attention all residents of District One, the time anchor has successfully invaded the command base. We will urgently seek assistance from higher-ups to destroy it.”
“Attention all residents of District One, the time anchor has successfully invaded the command base. We will urgently seek assistance from higher-ups to destroy it.”
Tong Yang didn’t waste any time; she needed to make the most of these few minutes to gather as much information as possible.
“Can the broadcast still be used after the central satellite receiver is shut down?”
Her question was vague, but the technical personnel sensed the metal identity card on her and replied, “Yes.”
“Where?”
“Here.”
It was something similar to a walkie-talkie.
“Is there anything in the instructor’s house in District One that can connect to the broadcast?”
“No.”
Tong Yang narrowed her eyes. If she had Tang Shuyan drive the walkie-talkie to Ye Huai, they might be able to do it within five or six minutes.
Finally, a glimmer of hope ignited in her heart.
“Is there a range of use?”
“Yes, about ten meters from the terminal, inside the base.”
The hard-won hope was extinguished again; the walkie-talkie couldn’t be used outside the base, and there wasn’t enough time to drive to get Ye Huai.
They could only use the walkie-talkie here to guide the others back to the real world.
Aside from that, there was no other way.
Suddenly, Tong Yang remembered something and looked at the technical personnel in front of her. They were also people from the parallel world! They could also guide everyone back to the real world!
Tong Yang randomly grabbed a piece of paper, wrote down the steps for the elevator game, and said, “Read this out loud.”
She wanted to test if they would listen. If it worked, she would immediately enter the loop.
“Sorry, that’s not within our scope of duties.”
Tong Yang stabbed into his temple, “What do you mean by ‘scope of duties’? Killing me is within your scope of duties?”
The hope that had ignited in her heart was extinguished again. Even Tong Yang felt a deep sense of helplessness and anger.
“What did we do wrong? What did I do wrong?”
“Does it have anything to do with us that your world has become like this?”
Tong Yang’s breath quickened. May 28th was her death, the college entrance examination on June 7th, the child who almost drowned at Wuming Slope, the missing Ye Wen, one incident after another.
If no one had come to kill her in the parallel world on May 28th, she shouldn’t have encountered these things!
She wanted to survive, desperately wanted to survive!
The parallel world… damn the parallel world…
If halfway through, she got out of the car and went to the base, letting Tang Shuyan go pick up Ye Huai and Yan Qing, before he arrived, Tong Yang could shut down the central satellite receiver. The three of them might be able to reach the base smoothly, and Ye Huai could use the walkie-talkie to guide them to leave the parallel world together…
Impossible, still impossible.
There wasn’t enough time; they wouldn’t be able to return before the self-destruction program activated.
Moreover, there were still many law enforcers inside the base. Alone, she couldn’t enter the base in ten minutes.
She had envisioned many different choices in her mind. No matter what she did, it would ultimately lead to this conclusion.
No one could predict the future, including her; she could only know what she had experienced.
What to do?
Still no way to solve it; she couldn’t return, and no one could return. They could only enter the loop over and over again.
No matter what, Tong Yang could only enter the loop once more.
The time point of the loop was still the same as her first loop node.
This time, she sat in the speeding car, not saying a word.
Even she couldn’t think of any solution anymore.
Unless they left Yan Qing and the gene drug here and returned to the real world.
Not to mention that Yan Qing would die; if they just returned like this, what would be the meaning of everything they had done?
Tong Yang closed her eyes, feeling the fierce wind blowing against her face.
But there was no way; there was absolutely no way.
What to do… what to do…
Minutes passed, and suddenly, Ye Huai’s voice rang in her ear.
“Tong Yang, I remembered something.”
Suddenly, a light bulb went off in Tong Yang’s mind.
The overlooked information connected in her brain like a thread.
Peeling back the layers, everything was interconnected.
She suddenly opened her eyes; she had a way!
She thought of it!
The last and only solution!
