Chapter 2

In the washroom.

Xia Zhi finished washing up, casually turned off the faucet, and by the way put the mouthwash cup and toothbrush back in place.

He raised his head to look at the mirror, gazed at himself in the mirror, then turned and left, walking out.

Although he believed he had been decadent for a very long time, this feeling could not be described by the passage of a mere year or two, but by the passage of vast years. However, in reality, all of this was merely what happened "today".

So he also would not appear sloppy or unkempt.

But that was merely it; he also naturally had no vigor, instead presenting a listless appearance. He had no energy to do things, nor could he muster interest to do them — including returning to his work post.

However, he still decided to go back to work today —

Or rather,

Xia Zhi simply wanted to go back and take a look, to try spending this long and monotonous day in a different way.

This also counted as his current main lifestyle, because he could no longer hold expectations for the present or the future, yet life had to continue; no matter how dull the days, he had to find something to kill time.

Fishing, playing games, extreme sports...

Anything was fine, as long as it could kill time.

Anyway, they were all things repeated who knows how many times.

————

Just as he walked down the stairs, urging messages arrived again, one after another, one following another.

Every vibration of the phone seemed to be urging Xia Zhi to quicken his pace.

After all, it was already midday, yet he still hadn't arrived at the company; no matter how you looked at it, this didn't resemble a positive, hardworking attitude, not a qualified employee striving to let the boss live a good life.

If it were an ordinary corporate slave, facing such direct pressure from a top-level superior, they would more or less be panic-stricken.

But Xia Zhi himself was very calm about this; it couldn't be said he completely didn't care, it could only be said he thoroughly sneered at it.

"OK OK, I'm already in the car..."

"But the road's a bit congested, there'll probably be a traffic jam, it'll be slower to arrive..."

Facing the successive urging messages, he perfunctorily replied two sentences while stepping past the delivery rider and security guard who were quarreling, walking out of the residential complex in a leisurely manner. Although a wonderful real-life Tekken was about to unfold next, for him who had watched it countless times, there was no attractiveness at all.

Still that sentence —

He just wanted to change a way to kill time today, not really to go back to work. To put it bluntly, this was no different from him choosing to go fishing, skydiving, or mountain climbing today.

Anyway, in essence it was the same, merely a way to kill time.

As for being scolded for lateness, or being deliberately made things difficult by superiors, having bonuses deducted, and such... probably only his past self would be entangled in these meaningless people or matters, his emotions stirred day by day by these trivialities.

But the current Xia Zhi had long since seen through them; since he had already realized the futility of these things, he naturally didn't care at all.

It wasn't that he didn't mind, but that he didn't care.

Walking out the residential complex gate, he headed straight right, walked not far, then turned right again.

Near this residential complex was a lane specializing in various breakfast shops; in the morning it would be very lively, but by midday there would be no one. Xia Zhi often came here to eat breakfast, then started his day's itinerary.

Although he once had a long period where he was full of passion for food, vowing to taste all the world's delicacies in a single day, therefore every morning he would head straight out the door, advancing toward his target.

However, when this passion faded and interest waned, people often unconsciously return to their initial form, following the principle of convenience, choosing the most direct way to act.

Xia Zhi was naturally no exception; he was now completely a salty fish that had lost its dreams, main strategy was muddling through, making do day by day; of course, whatever was convenient was how he did it.

So now when he went out in the morning, he came here to eat breakfast; it had almost become a fixed mechanism that was bound to trigger in every cycle.

Walking through the familiar alley, he lowered his head thinking; that question which had been pondered countless times surfaced again — what to eat?

In his past normal life, this question was already an existence that troubled him daily, let alone his current terrible situation. Admittedly he could also choose not to eat, but that would only add a torment named starving to an already boring day.

Anyway, it was all killing time regardless...

Why make one's experience even more terrible, even more painful in this process?

— No matter how you think about it, this is a sad story.

Xia Zhi shook his head, no longer thinking about these messy things, then raised his gaze to survey the surroundings.

The next second.

He abruptly halted his movement, slowly turned his head back, looking toward the opposite direction, a trace of doubt revealing in his gaze, like being attracted by a magnet.

An abnormal existence caught his attention.

Due to the emptiness of the street, that figure appeared exceptionally conspicuous.

But none of these were the key; the true key was, that figure should not have appeared here! At a time it should not appear, it appeared at a place it should not appear! That was why it was so conspicuously abrupt!

"..."

"..."

For that one instant, Xia Zhi's heartbeat instantly accelerated, suspecting whether he was still in a dream, or had simply seen wrong. He maintained that stiff posture, standing dazed in place, as if the whole world was receding from him.

Immediately after, like lightning tearing across the vast sky, his thoughts abruptly became clear.

He hadn't seen wrong!

It was absolutely impossible to have seen wrong!

His understanding of this lane had reached a hopelessly sad degree; whether it was the position of every paving stone, or the past pedestrians, their names, their life histories, when they appeared, with whom they chatted, what they said...

He knew it all clearly!!

Even at the most clamorous morning, with people coming and going in a bustling whole lane, he could completely grasp it! Let alone now, when it was already quiet midday, Breakfast Street had become cold and quiet, empty and unpeopled!!

A figure that should not exist!!

At least before today's cycle began, he had never noticed that a human figure would appear at that position at this moment!

In a split second —

It seemed every nerve was trembling, and also as if every cell was quivering; an indescribable feeling swept through Xia Zhi's whole body like a violent storm.

Long-lost...

He discovered he actually still had the emotion of "excitement".

…………

…………

Yet another strange world……

It feels somewhat similar to the last world, yet vastly different……

The white-haired girl vigilantly scanned her surroundings, the sword gripped tight in her hand revealing her wariness. The moment she stepped into this new world, she immediately keenly observed the surrounding environment. Before long, her complexion visibly turned grave.

Indeed, one cannot let their guard down!

This new world is very likely similar to the previous one, filled with unknown dangers and bloody chaos.

This point is important and must not be ignored. After all, the world the girl had just set foot in not long ago presented exactly such a scene.

Although it was only a rough understanding, she already knew that in that world, people lived in buildings made of glass, had iron pieces in their heads, and fought from a distance. They used things like thousand-li scopes, and traveled by flying ships……

If these were all results of some unique magical techniques, then one could only marvel at the astonishing degree of development, the staggering popularity, even revealing a faint trend of technology running out of control.

——The girl did not know what a cyberpunk world was, where technology is advanced, artificial intelligence is ubiquitous, yet order is chaotic, the wealth gap immense, and crime rates remain high.

——After all, she hadn't had time to learn much before she was nearly caught up in a sudden gang shootout, riddled with bullets alongside them.

In the city streets brilliant with neon lights, fierce battles could erupt at any moment, metal fragments flying wildly like a torrent, flowers of killing blooming……

For a bystander caught up in it all muddle-headed, this was hardly friendly, simply an unprovoked disaster.

To the extent that even now, arriving at this new world, a shadow still lingered in her heart. Because after a simple cursory examination, she naturally perceived suspicious similarities existing between this world and the previous one.

Whether it was the vehicles speeding on the roads, or those distant high-rise buildings reflecting glass curtain wall reflections, these elements all faintly exuded the aura of the previous world, that unique style, familiar outlines, recognizable at a glance.

Perhaps, this world is the previous world's…… original appearance?

In any case, whether it is or not, staying vigilant is always the wise move.

She cautiously scanned her surroundings; there were not many pedestrians on the street, and under the scorching midday sunlight and sweltering heat wave, it appeared slightly deserted. But for her, this was probably a good thing.

This meant not too many people paid attention to her, did not witness the scene of her arrival, saving her a lot of unnecessary trouble.

The girl pressed her lips tightly together.

This works too……

Perhaps she can catch a brief respite……

However, just as she just gave rise to this thought, almost in the same instant, without any warning——

"Hello."

A voice came from the front, seemingly flat and plain, yet clearly carrying irrepressible lightheartedness.

The girl froze for a moment, then as if understanding a beat late, perceived that ahead, there stood a tall figure. This figure seemed to have appeared in an instant, yet also seemed to have been standing there quietly all along.

It was just that she had inexplicably ignored his existence, until that figure spoke, only then did she abruptly realize this fact.

A figure that should not exist!!

「……!! 」

Originally a bird startled by the mere twang of a bow on the run, seeing enemies in every bush and tree, startled so badly, her pupils abruptly contracted to the limit, as if icy cold qi spread from her spine all the way to the crown of her head, a intense sense of crisis stabbing at her cerebral cortex.

Under such psychological expectation rendering, almost without needing to think, out of a near-instinctive reflex——

The white-haired figure suddenly erupted into motion, shifting behind her in an instant like a ghost, movements swift as wind, dragging out a long white trail of light!

In a split second, distance was opened.

————

(PS: New Year new atmosphere, everyone Happy New Year, unknowingly this book has been updating for two years, congratulations all around……

Ciri cameo, a little nostalgia for the previous book's Ciri route (speaking of which, does that even exist……)

(Chapter End)