Tong Yang returned to the same timeline as the first loop. The moment she regained her bearings, she sprinted toward the reservoir. With the experience from the previous two cycles, she moved much faster this time. Still, reaching the reservoir within ten minutes was nearly impossible. Her only hope was that Chu Shiyu could stall the homeroom teacher of Class 4-6.
After parting ways with the two versions of Tong Yang from different worlds, Chu Shiyu had initially planned to locate all the students of Class 4-6, including Tong Le and Yang Lin. But before she could take more than a few steps, the pitch-black night sky suddenly brightened, and she inexplicably found herself back in the real world.
Compared to Tong Yang, she believed the children were in greater danger, so she resolved to find them first. However, she soon received a call from the homeroom teacher of Class 4-6, who claimed all the missing children had been found and returned to their parents. Chu Shiyu decided to head down the mountain to verify this.
As she walked along the main road near the reservoir, a steep cliff loomed on her left, while a dense forest leading to the reservoir stretched on her right.
Midway, Chu Shiyu suddenly froze, her body stiffening in terror as she turned to look at the cliff. She stumbled backward, colliding with a tree before barely steadying herself.
Then, it all came back to her.
"Chu Shiyu!"
"Yang Lin and the others are at the reservoir! I'm coming to help you!"
"Be careful of their teacher!"
After hearing Tong Yang's words, Chu Shiyu had been struck by a falling rock before the pain could even register. Darkness swallowed her consciousness.
"The reservoir?" Chu Shiyu murmured, her face pale. Without wasting another second, she bolted into the forest, racing toward the water.
She knew Tong Yang could enter time loops—perhaps she had already cycled and needed Chu Shiyu's help, using this method to warn her? During the college entrance exams, Chu Shiyu had regained memories of her death at the exact time she had died in the previous loop.
The reservoir? Beware of the Class 4-6 homeroom teacher?
Could it be…?
A chilling realization struck her. She remembered Tong Yang mentioning earlier that she had called the teacher, but the woman had denied receiving any calls. That could only mean one thing—there wasn’t just a parallel-world "Tong Yang" on Nameless Slope, but also a parallel-world "homeroom teacher"!
Yang Lin and Tong Le were in danger!
Panic surging through her, Chu Shiyu sprinted toward the reservoir at full speed. Bursting through the thick foliage, she arrived at the water’s edge just in time to see a woman standing on the stone bridge, shoving a child—unconscious, with a rock tied to his foot—into the reservoir with a loud splash.
"STOP!!"
Chu Shiyu roared, diving into the water and swimming desperately toward where the child had sunk. The rock had to be untied immediately—she had to save him!
Hearing her shout, the woman on the bridge coldly glanced down, her expression eerily calm. She bent to pick up another stone and hurled it straight at Chu Shiyu in the water.
"Ah—!" Chu Shiyu, slowed by the water, took the hit squarely on her forehead. A sharp pain exploded as blood instantly spread across the surface.
With a gasp, her body sank, swallowed by the dark water until all movement ceased.
The woman stared at the bloodstained ripples for a few seconds before turning away, dragging another unconscious child toward the bridge. She tied a rock to the child’s body, then pushed them into the reservoir with the same detached efficiency.
As the splash faded and the water stilled once more, she turned to leave—
Only for a sudden, crushing pain to explode at the back of her skull. A deafening ring filled her ears as she staggered forward, barely managing to stay upright.
At the same time, Chu Shiyu burst through the water’s surface, clutching a child in her arms, blood streaming down her face from the gash on her forehead.
"Are you okay?" Tong Yang stood nearby, gripping a thick tree branch, her eyes locked on Chu Shiyu.
The other woman shook her head, hauling the boy to shore. "There’s another child in the water. Be careful."
Tong Yang gave a firm nod before diving back in.
Gritting her teeth, Tong Yang turned just as the woman lunged at her with another rock.
"Get lost!"
She sidestepped the attack and kicked the woman to the ground.
The woman glared up at her, then—without warning—snatched the rock and swung it toward the unconscious child nearby.
Tong Yang’s eyes narrowed. She whipped the branch down hard, striking the woman’s arm and forcing her to miss. The rock thudded harmlessly onto the grass, but the woman was relentless—she immediately lunged for the child’s throat.
Tong Yang snarled, tackling her from behind and yanking her away by the neck.
"Why are you killing them? Why kill Tong Le?"
She tightened her grip, teeth bared. "They’re just children. If you want a fight, come at me. I’m right here."
The woman thrashed violently in her hold. Tong Yang, exhausted from the relentless loops and nonstop chaos, was pushed to her limit—her body and mind teetering on collapse. A single slip in focus was all it took for the woman to wrench free.
Slipping out like an eel, the woman grabbed Tong Yang’s legs and slammed her onto the ground.
The impact knocked the air from Tong Yang’s lungs. Her vision blurred as a high-pitched whine filled her skull. In that split second of disorientation, the woman seized the advantage, pinning her down and locking both hands around her throat, squeezing with brutal force.
Tong Yang gasped, choking as her fingers scrambled blindly across the dirt. Her hand closed around a jagged rock, and with the last of her strength, she smashed it into the woman’s temple.
The sharp edge tore skin, blood mixing with sweat, but the woman’s grip didn’t loosen.
Tong Yang’s lungs burned. Spots danced in her vision. She couldn’t even lift the rock again.
Jaw clenched, veins bulging at her temples, she met the woman’s savage glare—then suddenly grabbed a handful of sand and flung it straight into her eyes.
The woman recoiled on instinct, her grip faltering just enough for Tong Yang to twist free. With a feral growl, she sank her teeth into the woman’s wrist, biting down until flesh tore and blood filled her mouth.
The woman shrieked, fingers spasming as she collapsed onto Tong Yang.
Spitting out the chunk of flesh, Tong Yang looked every bit the enraged beast as she shoved the woman off.
The woman scrambled back, clutching her bleeding wrist and temple. For the first time, fear flickered in her eyes as she stared at Tong Yang—as if she were the real monster here.
Tong Yang wasn’t faring much better. Her face was flushed, veins protruding from exertion. The force of her bite had split her lip, blood smearing her mouth and chin. But her gaze remained fierce, unyielding.
Without hesitation, she lunged again.
The woman finally felt fear creeping in and turned to flee into the woods. Tong Yang, gripping a sharp stone in one hand while wiping blood from her chin with the other, quickened her pace and caught up. She seized the woman by her hair from behind, yanked her back, and threw her to the ground. Without giving her a chance to react, Tong Yang straddled her, raised the stone, and smashed it repeatedly into her face.
After all, this thing would soon return to the parallel world anyway.
"Ah!"
"I was wrong! I was wrong!"
"Spare me... please spare me..."
Tong Yang seemed deaf to the pleas, continuing to batter the woman's face until it was a mangled mess—teeth knocked out, eye sockets caved in, leaving her incapable of uttering a sound. All she could do was gasp for air like a fish, mouth gaping.
Tong Yang's heart pounded violently, her emotions barely restrained to keep from delivering another blow.
She tossed the stone aside and staggered to her feet, her voice icy and resolute: "Don’t touch my brother. No matter how many times this loops, no matter which world we’re in, I’ll kill you with my own hands."
Returning to the stone bridge, Tong Yang saw Chu Shiyu collapsed on the shore, clutching a boy. The dim light made it hard to tell which of the two rescued children was Tong Le, but since they hadn’t been submerged long, their lives shouldn’t be in danger.
Tong Yang rushed to Chu Shiyu’s side, turning her over to see blood streaked across her face. A frown creased Tong Yang’s brow.
"Tong..." Chu Shiyu suddenly grabbed her hand, forcing her eyes open with effort. Her breaths were labored, words broken. "I... I couldn’t... find Tong Le..."
Tong Yang’s breath hitched. She released Chu Shiyu and plunged into the water.
"Tong Le!"
Tong Yang had never trained in swimming and was a poor swimmer. Fortunately, the abandoned reservoir’s depth only reached her chest. She submerged herself, frantically groping through the water, her fingers sliced by weeds. The air reeked of blood and the damp stench of the water.
Perhaps it was the cold, but Tong Yang’s voice trembled.
"Tong Le... Lele..."
Why couldn’t she find him?
Was Tong Le not here? Had he died before this loop even began?
Was she trapped in this cycle? Had "Tong Yang" lied to her—had Tong Le died two days ago?
What should she do...
But... she wouldn’t kill Tong Le...
Why...
The frigid water enveloped Tong Yang’s body as she scoured the depths. Tong Le wasn’t here. Even if she looped again, it wouldn’t matter—he simply wasn’t here!
How could this be... Why...
If Tong Le died in the parallel world, did that mean he had to die in the real world too?
Why...
"Tong Yang..."
On the shore, Chu Shiyu, barely conscious, struggled to prop herself up. Her voice shook. "Lele might already be safe... Please, help me save Linlin first... The rope on his leg is too tight... He’s been in the water too long... If we don’t get him to the hospital soon..."
Tong Yang stood motionless in the water, snapping back to reality at the sound. Head bowed, she waded silently back to shore.
"Thank you..."
Chu Shiyu offered a grateful smile before passing out.
Thank her?
Tong Yang didn’t want thanks.
If Yang Lin’s life could be traded for Tong Le’s, she might have watched coldly until he drowned.
But reality didn’t work that way.
Why?
Why wasn’t Tong Le here?
Why had the news reported Yang Lin and others as the drowning victims?
---
They had turned Nameless Slope inside out but found no trace of Tong Yang or the missing children.
With no direct evidence linking the children to the mountain, the search was suspended after nearly two hours. The team shifted focus to reviewing nearby surveillance footage for the kids’ last known whereabouts.
But the footage yielded nothing useful. The only person who knew the truth was Tong Yang, so the search in the mountains resumed.
Then, a heavy figure emerged from the woods.
The crowd gasped.
A disheveled girl staggered forward, a unconscious boy strapped to her back with a makeshift belt of clothing. Both were drenched, each step a laborious drag.
Recognition dawned, and a collective inhale swept through the onlookers.
"What happened?!"
"Bring the stretcher! Now!"
As the crowd surged toward her, Tong Yang’s legs gave out, and she collapsed to her knees.
"The others... are in the reservoir..." Her voice was a whisper, barely audible.
"The others... are in the reservoir..."
With that, her eyes fluttered shut, and darkness took her.
---
Dawn broke, pale as fish scales. Tong Le woke to the chill of morning dew.
A green coat draped over him, the sound of flowing water nearby. Footsteps approached from behind.
"Jiejie?" Rubbing his eyes, Tong Le sat up.
"Awake? Eat something."
"Thank you..."
Tong Yang settled beside him. As the mist cleared, a dried-up reservoir came into view.
Tong Le accepted the food but hesitated before taking a bite.
"Jiejie... when can I go home?"
Tong Yang paused. "Homesick?"
Tong Le nodded. "I miss home. Jiejie must be so worried."
Silence stretched before Tong Yang spoke again.
"Lele, do you remember the night you had a high fever at two years old?"
"No." Tong Le shook his head, then lowered his gaze. "But Jiejie carried me to the hospital."
"Mm. That’s right." She reached out, ruffling his hair affectionately. "If Jiejie hadn’t taken you to the hospital that night—if you’d left this world forever—would you have blamed me?"
Tong Le blinked. "I wouldn’t blame Jiejie."
"Why?"
"Because Jiejie was just a kid too."
Tong Yang’s expression softened, then she smiled faintly. "Let’s go. I’ll take you home."
"Mm..."
---
When Tong Yang woke, her head throbbed, her body ached, and the sharp tang of disinfectant filled her nose.
A cough escaped her parched throat. Someone at her bedside stood to pour water.
Her eyes opened slowly, taking in the sterile white of the hospital room.
"Jiejie, are you okay?" Tong Le’s familiar voice, thick with tears and worry, reached her ears.
Dazed, she turned to see him still in his elementary school uniform, eyes red and swollen from crying.
"Jiejie, drink some water first."
Tong Yang sipped from the offered cup, the cool liquid soothing her throat. After a moment, she asked, "Are you hurt?"
Tong Le said, "I'm sorry, sis, I shouldn't have..."
"It's not your fault. Don't blame yourself."
Tong Yang sat up, and soon the medical staff noticed she was awake. They came in to check on her, advising that she was suffering from extreme exhaustion, though her injuries weren’t severe. They told her to rest well and eat nutritious food to recover.
After the medical staff left, seeing Tong Le’s guilt-ridden expression, she smiled and said, "I’m fine. Don’t worry."
Truthfully, when she couldn’t find Tong Le at the reservoir, she had already guessed—he must still be in the parallel world.
"Tong Yang" had deceived her, but in a way, it had also helped Tong Le escape danger.
Before long, Chu Shiyu walked in, her forehead wrapped in bandages.
Tong Yang deliberately sent Tong Le away, telling him to go home and change his clothes.
Once he was gone, Chu Shiyu locked the hospital room door and approached the bed. "Thank you," she said.
Tong Yang replied calmly, "No need. I just wanted to save Tong Le."
"Still, I owe you my gratitude."
Tong Yang tilted her chin slightly, signaling for Chu Shiyu to pass her a banana.
Chu Shiyu obliged, even peeling it for her.
"How’s your head?" Tong Yang asked.
"Mild concussion. Nothing serious, and no scarring."
Tong Yang nodded. "And the others?"
"All the kids from Class 4-6 are fine. The homeroom teacher... fell to her death at Nameless Slope last night."
"The police don’t even know when she entered Nameless Slope. She left the school yesterday afternoon under some excuse."
"She was killed by someone from the parallel world."
"I see..."
"What did the police say?"
Chu Shiyu sighed. "The person who took Tong Le was caught on surveillance—no doubt about that. But when 'you' took Yang Lin, you were with us the whole time, never leaving. Coincidentally, the car’s dashcam was broken, so the police are assuming someone impersonated you. As for the other kids from Class 4-6, after waking up, they said their homeroom teacher took them to Nameless Slope. Since Tong Le wasn’t there that night, the police closed the case as attempted murder by the teacher, who then died in a fatal fall while fleeing."
Tong Yang nodded, silent for a few seconds. The death of the Class 4-6 homeroom teacher was unavoidable now.
"Do they remember what happened before?"
Chu Shiyu shook her head. "Yang Lin hasn’t woken up yet. I subtly asked the other kids—they were drugged with sleeping pills and don’t remember anything after passing out."
"That’s for the best."
These children were still young. It was better they didn’t recall the memories of their deaths.
"You’ll stay in the hospital for the next couple of days. I told Auntie and the others that you were the one who saved Yang Lin and the other kids. Don’t worry about the expenses."
Tong Yang didn’t refuse her kindness. After all, she had paid her own price to break the cycle.
Chu Shiyu didn’t stay long—her own condition wasn’t much better than Tong Yang’s.
Half an hour later, the police came to take Tong Yang’s statement. She told them everything she could, omitting the parts about the parallel world since she had already mentioned it before, and they hadn’t believed her.
After the questioning, the senior officer asked the others to step out, wanting to speak with Tong Yang alone.
"Tong Yang, how did you know those kids were taken to Nameless Slope?"
Tong Yang studied him quietly, not answering immediately.
The officer continued, "Don’t worry, I’m not suspecting you. I’m just genuinely curious."
"You and Chu Shiyu entered Nameless Slope and seemed to vanish completely. And those kids—we searched the reservoir three times with police dogs and didn’t find a single trace."
Tong Yang asked, "If I tell you, will you believe me?"
The officer sighed. "Others might not, but I will."
Tong Yang held his gaze for a long moment. "We entered a parallel world. The person trying to kill them wasn’t the Class 4-6 homeroom teacher—it was her counterpart from that world."
"The teacher didn’t just fall to her death. Most likely, she was killed by someone from the parallel world too."
The officer’s expression darkened. He remained silent, watching her for a long time.
"Boss, Tong Yang’s homeroom teacher is here."
A voice from outside broke the stillness in the room.
"One moment."
The officer quickly scribbled his contact number on a piece of paper and placed it by her bedside. "Don’t tell this to just anyone. Protect yourself."
Tong Yang’s eyes flickered. Did he actually believe her?
Clutching the paper, she pressed her lips together. "Uncle... can I trust you?"
The officer paused, then said firmly, "Of course."
As the officer left, Teacher Yang entered with a fruit basket.
"Tong Yang, are you alright?" Teacher Yang asked with concern.
"Thank you, Teacher. I’m fine," Tong Yang replied.
"That’s good. At least that teacher wasn’t deranged enough to harm you too."
The incident from last night had caused quite a stir, making the morning headlines. Tong Yang and Chu Shiyu’s actions were also mentioned in the report.
Tong Yang forced a faint smile but said nothing.
"Oh, and Tsinghua University called the school when they couldn’t reach you. They wanted to check on your condition."
Tong Yang said, "Teacher Yang, could you let them know I’m not in good shape right now? I won’t be meeting them on Monday. If they have anything to discuss, it’ll have to be over the phone."
"Alright, don’t overthink it. Just focus on resting."
Tong Yang’s phone had fallen into the reservoir last night. Even if it were retrieved now, it’d be useless. A shame—she still had questions for the gossip group.
As if reading her mind, Chu Shiyu brought her a new phone after lunch.
"Auntie gave it to you. She said once Yang Lin is feeling better, she’ll bring him here to thank you in person."
"Got it. Thanks."
Tong Yang accepted it without hesitation, powering it on and connecting to the hospital’s Wi-Fi to log into her old social media accounts.
Throughout the day, the only parents who came to check on her—the student who’d nearly drowned in the reservoir—were Chu Shiyu’s Auntie and Yang Lin’s mother. But Tong Yang didn’t dwell on it. After all, saving them hadn’t been her intention in the first place.
"Hey sis, want an apple? I’ll peel it for you." Tong Le pulled a chair up to her bedside, watching her nervously.
When he heard she was hurt, he rushed to the hospital immediately. Learning that she had reported him missing and gone to Nameless Slope searching for him—only to endure that ordeal—filled him with guilt and fear. He was terrified she’d be angry at him for leaving with a stranger.
At first, he hadn’t realized that person wasn’t her. But the longer he spent with her, the more he sensed something was off. She wasn’t his sister at all.
"I’m good. You should rest too—no need to stay by me the whole time."
Tong Le stubbornly shook his head. "I don’t need rest."
Tong Yang gave him a helpless look. "Fine, peel me an orange then."
"Okay!" Tong Le immediately brightened up with a smile.
Tong Yang tried logging into her old chat account, but it required a phone verification code. Her phone had been broken for a while, so she figured she’d have to get a new SIM card later.
She sighed and switched to searching for news related to yesterday’s events. There were a few scattered articles, but none had gained much traction.
After all, it was just a small local incident—hardly anything major.
Setting her phone aside, Tong Yang ate some fruit and dozed off.
Meanwhile, Tong Le pulled up a small stool beside her bed to do his homework, still unaware that their homeroom teacher had passed away the night before.
She slept until evening. When she woke up, she nibbled on some food before Yang Lin and his mother arrived to visit her in the hospital.
Yang's mother’s eyes were still red-rimmed as she walked in, holding the pale-faced Yang Lin by the hand. Behind them followed Chu Shiyu and a middle-aged man—likely Yang Lin’s father.
"Miss Tong, Shiyu told us everything. If it weren’t for you, our Linlin would’ve… We can’t thank you enough! I never imagined Linlin would get caught up in something like this…"
"Yang Lin, are you okay?" Tong Le stepped forward, his voice laced with worry.
Yang Lin pressed his lips together and shook his head.
Tong Yang tried to get out of bed, but they stopped her.
"Don’t move. The doctor said you’re physically exhausted and covered in injuries. If you hadn’t carried Linlin down, he might never have woken up… Thank you. Truly, thank you both!"
"That’s right, Miss Tong. At school, Lele is the only one who befriended Yang Lin and stood up for him. And now, to think Shiyu is even in your class… What incredible fortune that our paths crossed with you and your brother."
Feeling the weight of their gratitude, Tong Yang stayed silent for a long moment before speaking. "Could you do me a favor?"
"Of course! Just name it—if it’s within our power, we won’t refuse!"
Tong Yang lowered her gaze, her lips pressed into a thin line.
"Tong Yang" had once told her she was a temporal anchor—if she were killed, people from parallel worlds could freely invade this one, replacing those who belonged here. That meant she’d face countless unpredictable dangers in the future. She couldn’t just wait passively for them to come for her; she had to take the fight to them, eliminating them one by one, sending them back where they belonged. She wouldn’t let anyone threaten Tong Le again.
More importantly, none of these recent events had happened in the original timeline. Tong Le and the students of Class 4-6 were never supposed to experience any of this. But because of her, the future had shifted—suddenly, there were reports of Tong Le’s death.
If she chose to attend university in the capital, what would happen to Tong Le then?
She didn’t even know what kind of place it was—how could she protect herself, let alone him?
She couldn’t possibly take him with her everywhere once she left home.
"Auntie, would it be possible for Tong Le to stay with you on weekends for a while? I’ll send you living expenses regularly."
Yang Lin’s parents were educated, reasonable people. They’d never harm Tong Le.
Besides, the old policeman had said she could trust him. If she asked for his help too… then Tong Le’s safety would be more certain.
His future wouldn’t change again.
In the original timeline, Tong Le had lived just fine.
"Sis?"
Tong Le stared at her, bewildered, his fingers nervously clutching the hem of his shirt. "Sis, wh-why…?"
