Since she existed in a parallel world, perhaps they shared the same essence.
The clamor of voices and the barking of dogs echoed across the nameless slope as Tong Yang and Chu Shiyu locked eyes, waiting—or perhaps searching.
The floodlights placed at the foot of the mountain illuminated nearly the entire sky, their glow spilling over the dense forest. Tong Yang and Chu Shiyu moved deliberately toward the more secluded paths, occasionally glancing up at the distant light.
If they could just escape the crowd, once the light on the horizon vanished, they would likely find themselves in the parallel world.
"Tong Yang, are you okay?" Chu Shiyu asked breathlessly, watching the silent figure ahead of her with unease.
"Yeah," Tong Yang replied softly.
As long as she knew Tong Le was still alive—as long as there was still a chance to find him—that was all that mattered. What terrified her more was the possibility that he might be taken somewhere she could never reach.
No matter what it took, whether he was alive or dead, no matter how many cycles she had to endure, she would save him.
Time slipped away as they circled the abandoned reservoir, carefully avoiding others. Whoever had taken Tong Le would never risk dragging the police—potential threats—into the parallel world.
In her hyper-focused state, Tong Yang barely registered exhaustion, though Chu Shiyu was faring worse. A pampered young lady unaccustomed to hardship, she nevertheless kept close behind Tong Yang, afraid to lose sight of her even for a moment.
Finally, after what felt like countless loops back to the stone bridge by the reservoir, the light reflecting on the water gradually faded, swallowed by endless darkness. The distant voices and barks of dogs seemed to lower in volume until there was nothing left to hear.
A cold wind swept through the trees, the cicadas’ song receding into silence. Leaves rustled as if whispering secrets, and the sky darkened abruptly, heavy clouds pressing down, blotting out every star.
Tong Yang checked her phone—the screen displayed 9:00 PM sharp, and the signal bars were gone.
"We're here," Tong Yang said grimly. Time didn’t matter. Once inside the parallel world, even if she had to relive the cycle, she would bring Tong Le back.
Chu Shiyu stepped closer, nervously scanning their surroundings.
Unlike before, they had left the police station unarmed. In this wilderness, there was nothing to use for defense except for a couple of sturdy branches they’d picked up—hardly useful. If their enemy had weapons, or if there was more than one of them, they stood no chance.
A dry twig snapped in the woods with a sharp crack. Both of them tensed, turning toward the sound. Among the dappled shadows of the trees, a vague silhouette stood motionless beneath the branches.
"Be careful," Tong Yang warned before stepping cautiously forward.
Chu Shiyu followed, switching on her phone’s flashlight. As they drew closer, the beam revealed floating motes of dust—and a figure standing with half its body exposed, the other half hidden behind a tree.
Tong Yang approached, raised her branch, and swung hard at its head. The spot where she struck immediately caved in, and the body crumpled like an empty sack of clothes, collapsing to the ground.
"Ah!" Chu Shiyu gasped, ducking behind Tong Yang.
"He’s been dead for a while," Tong Yang said.
After speaking, she bent down and grabbed the thing by its hair, lifting it from the ground. It felt unnaturally light in her hand—clearly not the weight of a normal person.
"It's a human skin," Tong Yang said.
She turned the "man" around, revealing nothing more than a hollowed-out skin, its form barely held upright by branches propped inside.
Chu Shiyu's eyes widened in shock. "A... human skin?"
Tong Yang tossed the skin onto the ground and crouched to examine the incision along its abdomen. The organs and subcutaneous tissue had been meticulously cleaned out, leaving no trace of blood. The edges of the wound were carefully trimmed, suggesting the killer had taken great pleasure in the act—savoring every step, methodically stripping away every layer of flesh.
This was the work of a sadist, someone who reveled in the process of killing, treating the flayed skin as a trophy to be collected and displayed.
And logically, there wouldn’t be just one.
Tong Yang pressed the skin under her foot and stood, scanning the surroundings. Sure enough, scattered throughout the woods were nearly ten more hollowed-out skins, each propped up by branches in various poses, standing eerily upright.
"Yang Lin and the others... they couldn’t have..." Chu Shiyu’s face paled, her voice trailing off.
Tong Yang shook her head and shouted, "Tong Le?"
"Is anyone here?"
"Yang Lin!"
"Lele!"
Her voice echoed through the trees, met with silence.
Chu Shiyu stared at the grotesque displays on the ground. Even after everything they’d been through, the sight filled her with dread and revulsion. How could children survive in a place like this? Especially Tong Le—he’d been taken last Wednesday, meaning he’d been alone here for two whole days.
Even an adult like Chu Shiyu would lose her mind after two days in this nightmare.
After a moment of thought, Tong Yang recalled that Tong Le had been found drowned in the reservoir. No matter what, he would end up there—so all she had to do was wait. But Chu Shiyu couldn’t afford to do the same. There was no telling what might happen in the meantime, and since the news had appeared out of nowhere, it might be better to track down "Tong Yang’s" hiding place instead of just waiting.
"Let’s search around the reservoir first, then check other areas."
"Okay..."
The two circled the abandoned reservoir, calling out names, but no one answered. No figures appeared.
They then followed the reservoir’s entrance, expanding their search.
As they passed a barren tree, Chu Shiyu noticed something odd—despite having no leaves, its branches seemed to bear strange "fruit."
"What’s that?" she asked, puzzled.
Tong Yang, walking ahead, glanced up. "Eyeballs."
"What?" Chu Shiyu froze.
Tong Yang lifted a branch and tapped the tree. Several round, sticky objects tumbled down. Chu Shiyu instinctively caught one in her palm, only to recoil in horror—a mucus-covered eyeball stared back at her.
"Ahhh!!!" She shrieked, flinging it away. It landed at Tong Yang’s feet.
Her cries echoed through the mountains. Faintly, Tong Yang heard a sob, as if coming from somewhere ahead.
"Someone's there!"
Tong Yang broke into a sprint, her foot crushing an eyeball that had fallen near her.
Chu Shiyu gagged at the sight, covering her lips, but she didn’t dare fall behind. Without another thought, she hurried after Tong Yang.
"Who's there?!" Tong Yang dashed toward the source of the crying and saw a dark figure stumble out from behind a rock, scrambling backward in panic.
"Who are you? Don’t run! Tong Le? Is that you?"
The shadow only ran faster at the sound of her voice.
"I said stop!" Tong Yang snarled, vaulting over the rock and landing squarely in front of the fleeing figure, cutting off their escape.
"Ah! Don’t kill me! Please don’t kill me!"
Tong Yang grabbed the back of his collar and yanked him off the ground.
The boy kicked wildly in the air, sobbing hysterically. "I was wrong… I was wrong… Please give me another chance, I beg you!"
Chu Shiyu circled around the rock and caught up, shining her phone’s flashlight on the boy. Tong Yang threw him to the ground, and in the light, they recognized his face—it was Xu Mimi, a classmate of Tong Le and Yang Lin.
"Wahhh… I won’t make noise again… Just give me one more chance… I’ll hide properly this time…"
"Where are Tong Le and the others?" Tong Yang bent down, hauling him up to eye level. Xu Mimi was covered in dirt, his face streaked with tears, clearly terrified out of his wits.
"P-please let me go! Go find them… I just wanna go home… I don’t wanna die… Just kill them instead, okay…?"
Tong Yang clenched her jaw, gripping his chin and forcing him to meet her gaze. "I’m Tong Le’s sister. I’m not the one who brought you here. Now tell me—where are the others? Why is someone trying to kill you?"
"Kid, calm down. We’re here to help," Chu Shiyu said gently. "Where are the others? Who’s after you? How many of them are there?"
Xu Mimi’s tears streamed down, his panic slightly receding as he glanced between Tong Yang and Chu Shiyu, though fear still filled his eyes. "Just let me go… I’ll hide real good…"
"Where are they hiding—?" Before Tong Yang could finish, the boy suddenly lunged down and sank his teeth into the fleshy part of her hand, wrenching himself free.
"It’s you! I’ll kill you! I wanna go home!" He snatched up a pebble and hurled it at Tong Yang.
Expression cold, Tong Yang kicked him away. "No noise allowed, huh?"
She stepped forward, seized Xu Mimi’s arm, and twisted it sharply behind his back. A scream of pain tore from his throat—and instantly, rustling sounds erupted from the hillside above.
Both women looked up.
A figure sat perched in midair, gazing down at them with eerie calm.
"Such violence toward a child… We’re just playing a game of cat and mouse." A lazy, mocking voice drifted through the darkness.
The mountains were too shrouded in blackness to make out the girl’s face, but her voice… was nearly identical to Tong Yang’s.
"Darling… Aren’t you going to run?"
Xu Mimi shuddered at those words and, mustering all her strength, wrenched her hand free from Tong Yang’s grip, scrambling forward on all fours.
"Hey..."
Tong Yang and Chu Shiyu didn’t immediately chase after her.
"Where is Tong Le?" Tong Yang asked coldly, staring at the girl on the hillside.
The girl smirked. "Aren’t you going to ask who I am?"
"Is that necessary?"
"Hmm... I guess not."
Chu Shiyu slowly turned her phone flashlight toward the girl. She was dressed in the same clothes as Tong Yang, sitting on the slope with one knee bent, a black screwdriver clutched in her hand.
Under the harsh light, the girl didn’t even blink. Instead, she narrowed her eyes and flashed a relaxed smile.
Her face was identical to Tong Yang’s!
If the two of them stood side by side, they’d be like mirror images—utterly indistinguishable.
At the same time, Chu Shiyu noticed something.
Unlike the parallel-world humans she’d encountered before, this girl seemed no different from an ordinary person. If not for seeing them together, she’d never have guessed they were two separate individuals. No wonder even Tong Le, who had spent every day with Tong Yang, had struggled to tell them apart.
"Where is Tong Le?" Tong Yang showed no surprise at the girl’s appearance, repeating the question as she clenched a broken branch in her palm, her gaze dark and dangerous.
"Dead," the girl said lightly, tossing out the word as if it meant nothing.
Tong Yang’s breath hitched. "When?"
The girl shrugged. "Who knows? Care to guess?"
"Ah... I heard you can enter time loops. Why don’t you die once and find out?" The girl narrowed her eyes, her tone teasing.
"You know about the time loops?"
"I know a lot of things. Want to hear more?"
Tong Yang asked, "What will it take for you to tell me?"
The girl smiled meaningfully. "If you’re capable enough."
"Let’s play a game," the girl said, pushing herself up from the ground. "How about it?"
"What kind of game?"
"Cat and mouse. We’ll both be the cats, using any words we want to lull the mice into trusting us. Only when we’ve gained their trust can we strike. Let’s see who wins—me, by killing them, or you, by saving them."
Tong Yang frowned. "So, that means Tong Le and the others are still alive?"
The girl chuckled. "Who knows? They’re hiding well. I haven’t caught them yet. Maybe they’ve already fallen somewhere and died?"
Tong Yang stared at her, her expression darkening. After a long pause, she said, "Fine. I’ll play your game."
After experiencing the "cat and mouse" game, even a child wouldn’t easily trust either of them again. While this would make gaining their trust harder, it also meant they wouldn’t believe "Tong Yang" either—buying them some time to stay alive.
Moreover, with past experience as a lesson, Tong Yang knew the girl couldn’t easily break the rules she’d set.
"You, classmate—you’re a mouse too," the girl said, pointing at Chu Shiyu.
Chu Shiyu clenched her jaw, glancing at Tong Yang.
Tong Yang asked, "What happens if I kill you during the game?"
The girl smiled. "We’re the same kind. Killing each other breaks the rules. Maybe, compared to that world, you prefer it here?"
"Anyway, though it’s a bit late. Tong Yang, welcome to my world."
Tong Yang pressed her lips together, giving no reply.
"Classmate, turn off your phone flashlight. You have ten minutes to escape. Don’t make a sound, and don’t let yourself be found."
Tong Yang and Chu Shiyu exchanged a glance before she turned and sprinted in the direction Xu Mimi had gone.
The girl waved at her. "Please follow the game rules strictly. No chasing until after ten minutes. I can’t stand the idea of two identical versions of me in one world—how disgusting."
Tong Yang couldn’t help but feel the same revulsion.
As the girl disappeared down the hillside, Tong Yang stood alone in the dark woods. Suddenly, she exhaled sharply, crouched down, and clutched her head, murmuring, "Thank goodness… Tong Le is okay…"
She had no idea how he’d survived these past two days, but at least he was still alive.
Checking her phone, she waited until the ten minutes had passed before running in the direction Chu Shiyu had gone.
If she could regroup with Chu Shiyu, things would become much simpler.
Following the game rules, Tong Yang couldn’t use her phone flashlight, forcing her to grope forward in the dark. Occasionally, she called out softly, but no response ever came.
Passing through a clearing, she noticed something spread out on a nearby rock. Moving closer, she realized they were freshly washed human organs, neatly arranged on the stone.
A quick glance confirmed they all belonged to adults—the children wouldn’t be hiding near here.
The unnamed hillside was vast. After wandering through the woods for a long time without hearing any signs of life, Tong Yang decided to turn back toward the reservoir.
Returning to the reservoir, she circled the stone bridge, calling out, "Tong Le!"
"Yang Lin!"
"Are you there?"
She considered using a secret only she and Tong Le knew to lure him out, but with the girl lurking somewhere unseen, she worried it might backfire.
The reservoir remained eerily lifeless. Tong Yang clenched her jaw. Before she and Chu Shiyu had entered this parallel world, the children had already endured several rounds of this cat-and-mouse game. The girl must have used similar tricks to draw them out before, making them even more cautious. Finding them in these vast mountains would be nearly impossible.
But Tong Yang couldn’t just wait by the reservoir. The future news could change at any moment, and Tong Le’s death wasn’t even supposed to happen in the first place.
Where would they go?
If it were Tong Le, where in the mountains would he most likely hide?
Where? Where?
Then it hit her. Her head snapped up.
"The graves!"
Their parents’ graves!
Their parents were buried somewhere on this mountain!
If Tong Le had nowhere else to go, he’d almost certainly head there.
But after all this time, he might have already come and gone, hiding elsewhere. Still, Tong Yang had to check.
She broke into a run toward the burial site. But then a chilling thought struck her—if the one who killed her in this world was Yang’s mother, would their parents’ graves even exist here?
She ran to the familiar hillside, where, under the pitch-black sky, two small tombstones stood just as she remembered.
"Tong Le? Lele?"
"I'm your sister!"
"Are you here?"
"If you can hear me, don’t trust anyone who looks like me, and don’t go near the reservoir! Find Sister Chu Shiyu—you’ve met her before!"
"If anyone else can hear this, stay away from the reservoir! If another sister finds you, stay with her and don’t come out!"
Tong Yang wasn’t sure if anyone else was hiding in the darkness, but this was the only way she could warn them not to trust her or the girl. If Chu Shiyu could find them and bring them together, that would be the best outcome.
Catching her breath, Tong Yang approached the two tombstones and suddenly noticed the names carved on them didn’t match reality.
The first tombstone read "Tong Jin"—her and Tong Le’s father. The second, however, didn’t bear their mother’s name. Instead, it read: Tong Le.
Tong Yang’s breath hitched. Disbelieving, she bent down and traced the name with her fingers. "Tong Le?"
How could it be Tong Le? In this parallel world, was it not their mother who had died, but Tong Le?
Or… was this the grave of the real Tong Le?
No. Impossible.
The earth over the grave was tightly packed, and though no weeds grew there, the grave had clearly existed for at least five years.
"Didn’t I tell you? Tong Le is dead."
A voice spoke up abruptly behind her, and Tong Yang whirled around.
The girl stepped out from the trees, her expression calm and composed.
Tong Yang pressed her lips together. "When?"
"Two years old?"
"How?"
The girl smirked, a cruel glint in her eyes. "I killed him."
Tong Yang stared at her, silent.
"Haven’t you ever thought about killing him?" The girl walked up to the tombstone and ran her fingers along its edge. "Strange. I am you. We should have lived through the same things."
"Was the cat-and-mouse game a lie?" Tong Yang asked.
The girl raised an eyebrow. "Who knows?"
"Are the others really not here anymore?"
"Maybe."
"What do you actually want?"
"Hmm… for fun?" She tilted her head. "Though, I do love watching your panicked, hopeless expression—like a lost dog searching for its owner. What’s the matter? Didn’t you always hate your brother?"
Tong Yang was almost certain now. Tong Le and the others were no longer in this parallel world. Chu Shiyu, after being led away, had probably returned to reality as well. Even if she still didn’t understand the girl’s motives, as long as they made it back to the real world, where police and firefighters were searching for them, they’d be safe.
Tong Yang countered, "And what do you know?"
The girl replied, "You always blamed your parents for being irresponsible, and Tong Le never realized how terrible his family was. But wasn’t their neglect only directed at you? At the very least, Tong Le received all their love, didn’t he?"
Tong Yang stared at her in silence. "So?"
"So?" The girl smiled coldly. "So, you hated Tong Le—more than you hated your parents. If not for him, your life wouldn’t have been so miserable."
Tong Yang curled her lips with a hint of mockery. "So what? Did your life get better without Tong Le? Aren’t you just like me? Or even worse—didn’t your mother hate you so much she wanted you dead in the real world?"
The girl let out a derisive laugh. "So you did kill her. Ever since I was nine, she’s wished I’d die a thousand cuts. I should thank you for helping me."
"Maybe if I could go back, I’d do the same as you that night."
"You know, I didn’t take Tong Le to the hospital that night. He cried for so long… by the time I checked on him, he was barely breathing."
The girl sat down in front of the tombstone. "What about you? Don’t you regret taking him to the hospital?"
"Why would I regret it?" Tong Yang countered.
"Why?" The girl gave her a strange look. "Have you forgotten why our parents were drunk-driving the wrong way that night?"
Tong Yang stared at her in silence.
"Because you borrowed a neighbor’s phone to call them during their party and said Tong Le had a high fever—that he needed to go to the hospital right away."
"They told you to take him out first and that they’d meet you at the intersection."
The girl sneered. "You rushed out carrying him, forgot to even put a coat on him. So they screamed at you in the car, didn’t see the truck coming—'Bam!'—crashed right into it. Their bodies were twisted beyond recognition, and even in their last moments, they were glaring at you in rage. But you know what they didn’t notice? You’d lost one of your slippers. Barefoot in the dead of winter—must’ve been freezing."
Tong Yang listened calmly, her face expressionless.
"Remember that teacher in middle school who liked you? If Tong Le had died back then, she probably would’ve adopted you. Given you a mother’s love, taken care of you like a normal parent. You might’ve even left this hellhole years ago."
"Because I didn’t take Tong Le to the hospital, didn’t call them… When Dad came home, he said he’d kill me. So I killed him first—with an axe."
The girl toyed with a screwdriver in her hand and went on, "After hearing your story, I kept thinking… if I’d made the same choice as you that night, our parents would’ve been the ones to die. What a blessing that would’ve been."
Tong Yang scoffed. "So you regret it now?"
The girl lowered her eyes, lips pressed together. "Yeah. I regret it."
"He grew up well under your care. Obedient, cheerful, kind—bringing you flowers, buying you birthday gifts. Never judged people by appearances, never bullied classmates, even stood up for those who were bullied."
"And you? You weren’t killed. You made it through the college entrance exams, made a bunch of friends, earned a fortune. You were about to take your brother away from this place."
The girl smiled faintly. "I kept thinking… if I’d made the same choice as you back then, maybe I’d have ended up like you too. So I regret it."
"But it’s impossible. This place is already a lawless wasteland."
She turned to look at Tong Yang, her smile widening. "So then I thought… since we’re the same person, if you died, could I take your place here?"
"I could watch Tong Le grow up. Have that bright future."
"What do you think, Tong Yang?"
Tong Yang lowered her eyes, her lashes veiling the emotions beneath. "Then go ahead and try."
Her tone was calm, devoid of any discernible emotion or threat—as if she were simply stating that it was possible.
The young girl slowly turned her head back, gazing at the name "Tong Le" engraved on the tombstone, murmuring, "How could I ever do that?"
"...How could I ever bring myself to?"
"So what exactly is your goal?" Tong Yang asked.
She found the situation strange—listening to the "Tong Yang" from a parallel world narrate these words felt like standing before a mirror, confronting her own innermost thoughts.
"Tong Yang" had asked if she had ever once wanted to kill Tong Le.
Tong Yang didn’t answer, but yes, she had.
Not on the night Tong Le had a fever at two years old, but the moment he was born.
Back then, she had believed that Tong Le’s birth into this family was his misfortune and tragedy.
She didn’t hate "Tong Yang"—she pitied her deeply. At two years old, Tong Le had died while she stood by indifferently, watching the only person in the world who had truly loved her slip away.
The girl sat silently before the grave for several seconds before speaking. "We were the first parallel world to be discovered."
Tong Yang’s expression faltered. "What?"
"Before they found you, they found us."
"And then?" Tong Yang’s tone sharpened slightly.
"Not everyone has your mental resilience. At first, we didn’t even know how to resist. By the time we realized what was happening, thirty percent of society had already been replaced. To fight for power and resources, there was mass slaughter. No one knows whether the survivors were from our world or theirs—or both. But nearly every person left had blood on their hands."
"As you can see, aside from the very top of society, life for the rest is brutal. No laws, no rules. The strong prey on the weak. Kill others, steal their resources, and you survive."
"But too many people died. Resources kept dwindling. It couldn’t last. So, we discovered you."
The girl let out a humorless laugh. "You’re the lucky ones. The temporal anchor landed on you."
Tong Yang frowned. "Temporal anchor?"
"Ever played a game? Think of it as a respawn point for a character. And your world has temporal displacement—you’re one of them."
Temporal displacement?
Could it be the discrepancy between her time and the time of the gossip group members?
"People from parallel worlds can come here through me?"
"No, they can appear anywhere. But because of the anchor, their numbers are limited. If the anchor disappears, they can flood in unchecked. That’s why they’ll do everything to kill you."
"Then why am I stuck in a loop?"
"You ask too many questions," the girl snapped impatiently. "I don’t know. All I know is you can loop. But my guess? It’s tied to the temporal displacement. You’re the anchor—meant to exist in a fixed point in time. But in the displacement, you exist in two times at once. So you can’t die. Until the displacement ends, you’ll keep looping."
In other words, as long as the temporal displacement between her and the gossip group members persisted, she could loop indefinitely?
"Why is there a time discrepancy? Why am I the anchor?" Tong Yang's frown deepened.
"I don't know."
Hearing this, Tong Yang fell into thought.
Though she didn’t understand the reason, the other person’s words were likely true.
Because she had inexplicably become a "time anchor" and was also one of the "time-displaced," she could refresh like a game character within the "two-year discrepancy."
Tong Yang nodded but didn’t press further. Instead, she asked, "You approached Tong Le and brought the others here just to tell me this?"
The girl scoffed, twirling a screwdriver idly in her hand. "A whim? I originally wanted to ruin your life and make you suffer, but I changed my mind at the last moment. Maybe I just wanted to see if different choices would lead to different outcomes."
"With just you alone, even if you can rewind time, what can you really stop?"
Tong Yang lowered her gaze and smiled. "How would I know unless I try?"
"Good luck, then."
"Thanks?"
"How insincere."
"Oh, one more thing—they’re far more terrifying than you think."
"So, you’re afraid of them?"
The girl smirked. "I just don’t have a reason to oppose them."
Tong Yang looked up at the sky, where the pitch-black darkness was gradually pierced by light. The girl’s figure began to fade, and the names on the tombstones quietly shifted.
Though the situation had unfolded unexpectedly, and she’d gained some clues about loops and parallel worlds, her doubts remained unresolved. Worse, the task ahead seemed even more complicated now.
If she didn’t act quickly to deal with the people from the parallel world, their resources would be plundered, and this world would eventually turn into a wasteland identical to the other.
After hours of tension and pursuit, Tong Yang was exhausted, both physically and mentally. Yet she didn’t rest, dragging her heavy, sluggish steps down the mountain.
The nameless slope was nearly silent now—likely, Chu Shiyu had already safely led the students of Class 4-6 down.
The return journey felt longer than the way up. Only now did Tong Yang notice the countless scratches from branches on her skin, her limbs weak and aching, her sweat-drenched clothes clinging uncomfortably to her body.
All she wanted was to take Tong Le home, shower, and collapse into bed.
The phone watch she’d meant to give him was lost somewhere—she’d have to buy a new one.
But after hearing "Tong Yang’s" words, she had to reconsider whether keeping Tong Le by her side was wise. After all, those people would stop at nothing to kill her.
If she took Tong Le away—to a university, to an unfamiliar city where they had no home—how could she guarantee his safety?
This time, they’d escaped unscathed. Next time might not be so lucky.
Her phone had long since died. Tong Yang was utterly drained. After nearly an hour of walking, she finally reached the foot of the mountain, where the faint sound of a woman’s wailing reached her ears.
Stepping out from the shade of the trees, the harsh light made her raise a hand to shield her eyes. The woman’s cries grew louder, more desperate.
Dozens of cars were parked at the base of the mountain, with seven or eight floodlights illuminating the ground. A crowd had gathered, and from within came the heart-wrenching sobs of a woman.
In the chaos, Tong Yang stepped forward in a daze, pushing through the crowd. She saw Yang's mother, whom she had met before, collapsed on the ground, weeping uncontrollably, while Chu Shiyu sat pale-faced, her cheeks streaked with dried tears.
"What happened?" Tong Yang asked numbly.
Hearing her voice, Chu Shiyu jerked her head up, fresh tears rolling down her face. "Tong Yang… they're dead…"
Tong Yang's expression froze. "They're dead? Who?"
"Yang Lin… Tong Le… all of them…"
"Why? How could they be dead? Didn’t they just come back?"
Chu Shiyu sobbed, her voice breaking. "They went to the reservoir for some reason… The police said it was you… it was you…"
Tong Yang shuddered violently. "Where’s Tong Le? Where is he?!"
"The police are still recovering his body…"
"Tong Yang?! Arrest her!"
Before she could react, several officers rushed up behind her, gripping her shoulders and slamming her to the ground. They moved too quickly—Tong Yang had no chance to resist before handcuffs clamped around her wrists.
Then, she saw them: neatly arranged body bags on the ground, just like the one Sun Ye had been zipped into after his fall. The outlines inside were small, as if holding children.
Suddenly, pinned beneath the officers, Tong Yang thrashed violently, slamming her head against a rock. Blood gushed from her forehead, warm and thick, blurring her vision as it dripped into her eyes.
"Hey! What are you doing?!"
The officers shouted in alarm, yanking her up, but Tong Yang fought like a wild thing, nearly breaking free.
"Tong Yang! Calm down!"
Restrained by two officers, she strained against them, her blood-streaked gaze locking onto Chu Shiyu’s devastated face. "Chu Shiyu, help me!"
Chu Shiyu stared at her in shock, instinctively shaking her head. "No…"
"You know I can save them!"
Then, silently, Tong Yang mouthed a single word: "Gun."
Chu Shiyu’s eyes widened as she noticed the two officers aiming their firearms at Tong Yang.
"Now!"
Gritting her teeth, Chu Shiyu suddenly lunged, slamming into one of the armed officers. A deafening bang echoed—the officer’s finger jerked on the trigger, and the bullet struck Tong Yang square in the chest.
Her body convulsed, consciousness slipping away within seconds.
This time, she was quicker to adapt. When awareness returned, her body swayed briefly before she steadied herself.
The mountainside was aglow with scattered lights—the timeline had reset to shortly after she’d left the parallel world. Without hesitation, she sprinted toward the reservoir.
But the distance was impossible to cover in ten minutes.
As she neared the reservoir, she spotted Chu Shiyu walking through the woods.
"Tong Yang?" Chu Shiyu called out in surprise. "You’re back? The homeroom teacher of Class 4-6 called—Yang Lin and your brother are already at the foot of the mountain—"
"No," Tong Yang cut in, realizing Chu Shiyu had been this close to the reservoir before the tragedy. "They’re still at the reservoir!"
"What? But the teacher’s call—"
A cold dread settled in Tong Yang’s chest. She remembered calling Class 4-6 last night to ask about Tong Le, only for the teacher to claim today that no such call had ever happened.
She’d assumed it was "Tong Yang’s" doing—but now, it was clear she was wrong.
There’s more than one parallel world! And don’t forget the homeroom teacher of Class 6, Grade 4!
Tong Yang didn’t explain, not daring to waste a single second. But the distance from her parents’ graves to the reservoir was too far, with rugged mountain paths in between. Ten minutes was nowhere near enough. By the time the two of them arrived at the reservoir, one after the other, they found two unconscious children lying on the shore—neither of them Tong Le or Yang Lin. A woman was tying stones to their feet.
When Tong Yang looked at the eerily calm surface of the water, she knew she was too late.
Taking a deep breath, she turned and grabbed Chu Shiyu’s clothes. "Chu Shiyu, your cousin and my brother are dead. This is my first loop. Ten minutes wasn’t enough for me to get here in time… I’ll probably loop two more times. Next time, I’ll tell you from the cliff above to go straight to the reservoir, then kill you with a rock before looping again. This time, when the death moment comes, you’ll regain your memory. From your position, you can reach the reservoir in under two minutes. If you save them, I’ll come help you. If you die too, I’ll keep looping until we succeed. Understood?"
Chu Shiyu stared into her bloodshot eyes, realizing the gravity of the situation, and nodded blankly. "Okay… I—I believe you."
Instead of attacking the woman by the reservoir, Tong Yang immediately entered the loop, returning to the starting point of her first cycle.
This time, she had a goal. She didn’t head downhill but turned and sprinted toward the cliff.
Six minutes later, she reached the edge and, under the dim light of the sky, spotted Chu Shiyu passing below.
"Chu Shiyu!"
"Yang Lin and the others are at the reservoir! I’ll come help you soon!"
"Watch out for their teacher!"
A voice rang out, and Chu Shiyu looked up in confusion. "Tong Yang? You’re out—"
Suddenly, a heavy rock came rolling straight toward her.
"What the— AHH!"
Tong Yang watched from above as the rock struck Chu Shiyu. From this height, the impact would be fatal. She took a deep breath and leaped off the cliff.
And then, she entered the third loop.
