Chapter 278: 274 I and Myself Are Each Other

274 I and Myself Are Each Other's Father and Son

What the sister-in-law said next left Fang Mu feeling a mix of amusement and exasperation; this woman actually wanted to set him up on a date.

Fang Mu could understand this to an extent. After all, he looked to be in his early thirties, and although he was an amnesiac, his temperament, knowledge, and other qualities were far superior to everyone else in the village. Naturally, they could tell that Fang Mu's background was, at the very least, far wealthier or more prestigious than their own.

Furthermore, Fang Mu was currently working for the village committee and had even helped receive leaders from the city, chatting happily with them. The simple villagers naturally believed that Fang Mu was a capable person and that his return to prosperity was only a matter of time.

Therefore, in the eyes of the villagers, Fang Mu was nothing less than a potential "diamond bachelor," and those with unmarried women in their families all wanted to help push them toward him.

In the end, Fang Mu declined the sister-in-law's good intentions. He was already plagued by a Curse and could barely look after himself. He had already brought disaster upon An Qin and failed to change anything; was he supposed to bring disaster upon another woman in this lifetime?

"Oh, don't be shy. That girl from the Laowang family is quite pretty, and she's got a great figure. I even had a fortune teller look at her face; she's definitely a wife who will bring prosperity to her husband." The sister-in-law thought Fang Mu was just being bashful and hurriedly continued to persuade him.

Fang Mu was silent for a moment, then said, "No, sister-in-law. Actually, there is something I feel I need to tell you and Brother Lin Fengtian."

Fang Mu's tone was very calm, even carrying a hint of a smile, but the sister-in-law felt an unquestionable sense of pressure. Her mouth, which usually wouldn't stop chattering, suddenly failed her, and she could only nod with a sheepish laugh, "... Okay, okay."

Although she didn't know what Fang Mu was prepared to say, the sister-in-law had a vague suspicion that this little brother, who had been with them for some time, was likely planning to leave.

That evening, after Lin Fengtian returned from the market, Fang Mu spoke of his impending departure at the dinner table.

Upon hearing this, Lin Fengtian didn't seem surprised. He had sensed the atmosphere of a farewell dinner the moment he returned. He silently ate a few bites of food before sighing and saying, "You finally remembered?"

Hearing Lin Fengtian's words, Fang Mu was stunned. "Huh?"

To Lin Fengtian, Fang Mu's expression at that moment looked like the embarrassment of being exposed. He wore the look of someone who had seen through everything, took a sip of wine, smacked his lips to savor it, and said, "Actually, a month ago, the Enforcer Brigade already had news regarding your background."

"Found... my background?" Fang Mu's eyebrows twitched, and he pointed at himself, feeling completely incredulous.

He was a transmigrator; where would he have any background in this era?

Unless...

Fang Mu felt his limbs suddenly twitch, a chill traveling from his body to his brain. His heart pounded as he listened to Lin Fengtian continue to elaborate.

"A-Shui, actually your surname is Fang, and your name is Fang Sen. You are the only son of the late veteran Fang Peng, right?" Lin Fengtian looked at the changing expression on Fang Mu's face and shook his head. "I've seen the old photos of veteran Fang Peng; you're cut from the same cloth. You look too much alike."

As he listened, Fang Mu's brow furrowed incessantly, his fingers nervously kneading the fabric of his trousers.

If his life before transmigration was called the first generation, then he was Fang Mu in the first generation, and the one who married An Qin and had children was the second generation, named Fang Lin.

Every time he transmigrated, a "wood" character was added to his name, and since he was currently in his third generation, being called Fang Sen made perfect sense.

Fang Mu was certain this was the naming pattern he would come up with; his naming style was just that perfunctory. When he was a writer in his first generation, he was notoriously bad at naming things in the industry.

In this way, he now knew that Fang Peng was himself from his next transmigration.

The reason he could be sure Fang Peng was his fourth generation was that he knew the character "Peng" was actually a homophonic substitute for four "wood" characters.

Listening to the heroic deeds of "Fang Peng" on the battlefield, Fang Mu felt a twitch in his heart. An image of a middle-aged Fang Mu appeared in his mind, and he imagined him furious and heroic, slaying enemies on the battlefield.

Thinking that he had actually become his own son, Fang Mu felt a bit disoriented; such a thing was simply inconceivable.

However, it was actually quite logical. This way, he wouldn't have to worry about being an undocumented person during his next transmigration, because the version of himself who had transmigrated in reverse could leave an identity for his past self.

"I'm very sorry, A-Shui. I really treated you like my own younger brother, and I truly couldn't bear to see you go. I also never found a suitable opportunity to tell you about this." Lin Fengtian felt somewhat guilty.

Fang Mu shook his head gently. In truth, even if he hadn't known about this, he would have decided to leave. It wasn't just because the people in this village were increasingly treating him as one of their own; he worried that his existence, cursed by an Alien God, would implicate them. At the same time, he wanted to continue his journey to lift the Toad God's Curse.

"By the way, A-Shui—oh, I should call you A-Sen now." Lin Fengtian patted Fang Mu's shoulder and said, "Since you're leaving, go to the Enforcer Brigade before you go. Your father left some things for you."

I even have an inheritance? Fang Mu felt a bit excited after hearing this.

The next day, after bidding farewell to the villagers, Fang Mu went to the town's Enforcer Brigade to handle some paperwork. He successfully obtained his identity card and household registration for this era, as well as "my" inheritance.

The inheritance was a somewhat rusty green iron box. After opening it, he found only a rather thick letter inside; the rest was just paper currency from a past era. It might not be worth much now, but in the more distant future, these banknotes would hold value.

Fang Mu didn't intend to take the money. During his feigned amnesia, he had earned some income from doing odd jobs. It wasn't much, but it was enough for his travels.

He tore open the envelope. The moment he saw the handwriting in the letter, Fang Mu couldn't help but chuckle. It was indeed his own handwriting; the version of himself from a more distant era hadn't shown any obvious improvement in his penmanship.

When you see this letter, I think you should know what is about to happen. There are only three things I want to tell you.

First, "we" are in a desperate Mobius Loop, but none of us have yet found a way to escape.

Second, we can only change ourselves.

Third, there is not only one who gives us a Blessing.

It is not that I don't want to write in more detail, but the more I say, the easier it is to involve things outside of us, and that is forbidden.

Our death will be the beginning of another one of us, until life ends.

Therefore, we must all live on...

It was a very short letter, yet Fang Mu felt as if he had seen a horrifying story. He sat on a chair in the Enforcer hall, cold sweat pouring down incessantly. The wind blowing into the room accelerated the evaporation of the cold sweat, hastening the drain of his body's warmth.

Why were the "we" in the first point specifically placed in quotation marks? If it were just to refer to "Fang Mu" at different time periods, there would be no need for special quotation marks; Fang Mu at every time period would be aware of this. Unless, the "we" here covered other people... or non-human things.

The second point: what does it mean to change ourselves?

The third point: there is not only one who gives us a Blessing. The Blessing of an Abnormal god is a Curse; this was clear enough, but it was the most terrifying part.

In other words, more than one Alien God was watching him. He was like a prisoner waiting to be torn apart by chariots!