EMSD Chapter 27

After hurriedly saying goodbye to the two admissions office teachers, Tong Yang didn’t go home but went straight to the Experimental Elementary School.

Once she arrived at the school gate, Tong Yang called the homeroom teacher of Class Six, Fourth Grade, and said she wanted to see Tong Le. Before long, the homeroom teacher came to the gate to take Tong Yang inside.

The two of them went to the window outside Class Six, Fourth Grade. It was already time for evening self-study, and the students were sitting in their seats doing homework. Tong Le was sitting in the third row in the middle of the classroom, next to Yang Lin, the boy who had visited their home before. The two had their heads close together, seemingly discussing the solution to a math problem.

“Tong Yang, do you want me to ask him to come out for a bit?” the homeroom teacher asked.

Tong Yang looked at the unharmed Tong Le, and finally, her heart, which had been hanging in suspense, settled back down. Although there had never been any incidents of missing or mysteriously dead students from the Experimental Elementary School in the future, the appearance of herself from a parallel world made her feel intensely uneasy.

But as long as Tong Le was fine now, that was enough.

“No need, thank you, Teacher. I just wanted to check on him.”

Tong Le seemed to sense someone outside the window. His serious little face melted into a surprised smile when he saw Tong Yang. Yang Lin, sitting next to him, also glanced over and gave a shy smile.

Tong Yang waved at them and then left the hallway with the homeroom teacher.

“Teacher, do you remember when I last visited the school?” Tong Yang asked tentatively as they walked downstairs.

She was a little worried that the “Tong Yang” on the phone might have already visited the school and seen Tong Le.

The homeroom teacher thought for a moment, “It seems it was on May 29th when you came to bring Tong Le some snacks.”

Tong Yang let out a sigh of relief without showing it. After waking up from the struggle with the murderer, she had visited Tong Le, using the snacks as an excuse to check on him, fearing for his safety.

“Thank you, Teacher. From now on, if I come to see Tong Le, I will always contact you in advance. If I don’t, please don’t let me into the school.”

Tong Yang had no choice but to say it this way. If she outright mentioned the possibility of someone identical to her appearing and coming from a parallel world, the teacher would probably think she was crazy.

The homeroom teacher found it strange but nodded nonetheless, “Alright. By the way, you mentioned before that you might transfer Tong Le to another school after the College Entrance Examination. Have you decided?”

Tong Yang replied, “I’m not sure where yet.”

The homeroom teacher tried to persuade her, “Tong Yang, the school doesn’t recommend transferring him at this time. He’s doing well academically, and he gets along well with his classmates. A new environment might take some getting used to and could affect his studies.”

“Thank you, Teacher,” Tong Yang replied. She hadn’t fully thought it through yet, so she added, “I’ll give it some more consideration.”

After leaving the school, Tong Yang felt slightly more relaxed. On her way back, she once again asked the members of the “Melon Eating Netizen 007” group chat whether any strange events had occurred in the old district of Yaocheng around June 19th. The members said they had scoured the internet, but there hadn’t been any news, not even a brawl.

Feeling reassured, Tong Yang then entered the “1209 Secret Incident Museum” group chat.

Learning Is for Earning Money: “Be careful for the time being, everyone.”

[???]

[What’s going on?]

[Tong Jie is warning me not to go home after school like some campus bully, LOL.]

[What’s happened, though?]

Learning Is for Earning Money: “The me from the parallel world has appeared.”

[What???]

[Huh? What do you mean?]

[Whoa?! For real? That’s intense!]

[OMG, what should we do? Is there a way to tell you two apart?]

Learning Is for Earning Money: “She looks just like me—voice, mannerisms, even her silhouette… Basically, don’t trust the real-life me, and don’t trust the online me either.”

[…Then who should we believe?]

[How do we know you’re real now?]

[Is this the real you?]

Learning Is for Earning Money: “Yes. She used my phone to call others, but during the day, my phone will always stay with me. At other times, you’ll have to judge for yourselves.”

Learning Is for Earning Money: “Anyway, try not to contact me for a while. Even if you see me on the street, pretend you don’t know me.”

[Are you in danger?]

[We’re worried about you…]

Learning Is for Earning Money: “If I am, I can always restart. But can she?”

[Whoa! Good point!]

[Let’s catch her soon!]

[Running into someone exactly like you in real life is so creepy.]

[And terrifying.]

After reminding them a few more times, Tong Yang exited the social media app.

She hadn’t mentioned the situation to the group because the only person from their timeline being targeted was her. The “Tong Yang” from the parallel world likely posed no threat to them.

Not long after getting home, Tong Yang received a call from her homeroom teacher, Teacher Yang.

“Hello, Teacher. What’s the matter?” Tong Yang asked while drying her wet hair.

“Tong Yang, the exam results are coming out in a few days. Have you received any calls from admissions?”

“Yes, I have. Two admissions officers from Peking University came to see me today.”

“What?! Peking University’s admissions officers came to see you?! They didn’t contact the school beforehand!”

“It seems they got in touch with me directly, and we arranged to meet today.”

“You should’ve told me! What if they were scammers?”

“They shouldn’t be. They showed me information from Peking University’s official admissions site. It was legit.”

Teacher Yang’s voice grew excited, “What did they say?”

Tong Yang recounted everything the admissions officers had told her. She had a lot of respect for Teacher Yang, who had helped her a lot over the three years of high school.

“You didn’t agree to anything yet, right?” Teacher Yang’s voice became even more urgent.

“No, I didn’t.”

Teacher Yang said, “Listen to me, Tong Yang, don’t agree to anything right away. More schools will be contacting you. You should learn more about them first and weigh which one suits you best.”

“Got it, Teacher,” Tong Yang paused and then asked, “Does this mean they already know my score, and it’s really high?”

Although the two admissions officers hadn’t explicitly said so, their enthusiasm made it clear that her score must have been exceptional.

Teacher Yang’s voice was filled with joy, “Even though students are usually the only ones who can check their scores and rankings, top schools like Peking University have their ways of getting information. Based on past admissions practices, they contact students with high scores a week before results are released. These students are in the first batch. Some with particularly high scores even receive home visits. The second batch, usually the top 150 or so in the province, gets contacted about two days before. The third batch consists of those who’ve just passed the score threshold; they’re usually contacted online.”

Tong Yang’s breath caught, “So, my score and ranking are really good?”

“Tong Yang, if they’re offering you a straight path to a Ph.D., your ranking is most likely within the top three in the province! I bet within two days, you’ll be contacted by teachers from Tsinghua and other top universities! If you can’t make a decision, come to me for advice!”

Tong Yang couldn’t help but smile, “Thank you, Teacher. But please don’t tell anyone before the results are out. I don’t want everyone celebrating for nothing.”

“Of course, I understand. Just make sure to answer any calls from admissions. I’ll let you know if any schools contact us.”

“Thank you.”

After hanging up, Tong Yang sat on her bed, staring out at the dark night outside the window.

If Teacher Yang was right and her ranking was in the top three of the province, it meant she would at least receive an 180,000 yuan scholarship. If she ranked first, the prize would be 200,000 yuan! Adding in the money she had earned recently, she would have saved up 200,000 yuan! Plus, with a full scholarship for university, covering all her tuition and fees, and even earning a monthly stipend during her graduate studies, she wouldn’t have to worry about money for the next four years!

Indeed, the College Entrance Examination was the most important turning point in her life. As long as she seized this opportunity, her future would only get better.

If she could solve the issue of the parallel world once and for all, then she and Tong Le could finally get their lives back on track.

“Maybe I should buy Tong Le a phone watch tomorrow,” Tong Yang muttered to herself, leaning back against the headboard with a smile.

The next day, Thursday, Tong Yang didn’t go to her part-time job at the milk tea shop. Instead, she went to a nearby mall and spent 600 yuan on a black children’s phone watch for Tong Le.

That way, if anything happened in the future, they could contact each other at any time.

After returning home, she remembered that Children’s Day had fallen on the last Saturday before the College Entrance Examination. She had made Tong Le stay at school instead of coming home, so she bought two amusement park tickets online, planning to take Tong Le for a day of fun that Saturday.

Over the next two days, she received calls from several prestigious universities. Their offers were similar to those from Peking University: invitations to visit the campus, special transportation arrangements, and the option to choose a dormitory.

Tong Yang still didn’t give a definite answer, saying she needed more time to decide.

Tsinghua University’s admissions teacher asked to meet in person, and Tong Yang scheduled the meeting for Monday, June 24th—the day before the results were released.

On Friday, at 2:30 p.m., Tong Yang went to pick up Tong Le from the Experimental Elementary School, bringing along the phone watch she had bought for him.

When she arrived at the school gate, she was surprised to see Chu Shiyu sitting in a BMW parked by the roadside.

It was obvious that Chu Shiyu had also noticed her, but remembering Tong Yang’s previous warning in the group chat, she only glanced at her briefly and didn’t greet her.

Tong Yang, of course, didn’t approach her either. As she walked past the car, Chu Shiyu leaned her head out, sneaking a look at her from behind, seemingly trying to determine if she was the real deal.

Before long, the school bell rang to signal the end of the day.

Tong Yang glanced back and saw that Chu Shiyu’s car was still parked by the roadside. She was likely waiting for a child she knew to be dismissed, though Tong Yang recalled that they only had one child in their family.

Students gradually began trickling out of the school, and Tong Yang leaned against a tree, holding the bag with the watch in it. She noticed Chu Shiyu opening her car door and hesitantly walking toward her.

“Tong Yang?” she called hesitantly when she was a few steps away.

Tong Yang glanced at her, “Hm?”

“You’re—you’re the real one, right?” Chu Shiyu still didn’t dare to get too close.

Tong Yang was speechless, “Would I tell you if I weren’t?”

“Good point,” Chu Shiyu muttered.

“You’re pretty brave, though. What if I wasn’t me?”

Chu Shiyu rolled her eyes, “You don’t know the face you usually wear? Like everyone around you is dead. If it’s not you, then who?”

Tong Yang didn’t bother denying it, “What are you doing here?”

“Picking up my cousin. You?”

“Picking up my brother.”

“Your brother goes to the Experimental Elementary School too?”

“What, do you think I’m here sightseeing?”

Chu Shiyu made a face as if she had swallowed a fly, “Can’t you be a little nicer when you talk?”

Tong Yang shrugged helplessly.

“By the way, have any university admissions teachers contacted you recently?”

“Yeah.”

“Which school?”

“What, you want to go to the same university as me?”

“Why not?”

Tong Yang eyed her suspiciously, “Don’t tell me you’re interested in me?”

“Are you nuts?” Chu Shiyu rolled her eyes, “I just think this isn’t over yet. I want to learn more about it. Maybe if we go to the same university, we’ll encounter something similar again.”

“Aren’t you afraid of dying?”

“I am, but I’m also really curious. I want to figure out what’s going on.”

Tong Yang shook her head, “Suit yourself.”

She had already warned her. If Chu Shiyu insisted, there was nothing more she could do.

“What grade is your brother in?” Chu Shiyu asked.

“Fourth grade, Class Six.”

“Hm? That’s the same class as my cousin. They’re classmates.”

Tong Yang was surprised, “What’s your cousin’s name?”

“Linlin.”

Tong Yang: “…”

“His full name.”

Chu Shiyu frowned, “I forgot. We’ve always called him Linlin since he was little.”

“My aunt said Linlin’s been bullied at school lately.”

Tong Yang understood, “Yang Lin?”

“I think so. My uncle’s surname is Yang.” Chu Shiyu looked at her suspiciously, “How do you know? It wasn’t your brother who was bullying him, was it?”

Tong Yang gave her a half-smile but said nothing.

“But your brother doesn’t seem like the type to bully others,” Chu Shiyu frowned.

Tong Yang didn’t bother continuing the conversation, turning her gaze back toward the school.

More and more students were coming out, and she even saw Xu Mimi, the girl who had bullied Yang Lin before. But there was no sign of Tong Le or Yang Lin.

A few minutes later, Yang Lin, with his head down, came out of the school alone, carrying his backpack.

“Linlin,” Chu Shiyu called, and Yang Lin looked up and ran over to them.

“Shiyu-jiejie, why are you here again? Didn’t I tell Mom that no one’s bullying me anymore, so you don’t need to pick me up?”

“Your mom’s still worried. Plus, I’m on break and didn’t have anything to do.”

Seeing Tong Yang standing nearby, Yang Lin asked in surprise, “Shiyu-jiejie, do you know Tong Yang-jiejie?”

Chu Shiyu nodded, “We’re classmates.”

“Wow, what a coincidence.”

Tong Yang glanced behind him but still didn’t see Tong Le. Just as she was about to ask, Yang Lin spoke first.

“Tong Yang-jiejie, where’s Lele?” Yang Lin asked curiously, gripping his backpack straps.

Tong Yang froze, her heart skipping a beat, “Tong Le isn’t at school?”

Yang Lin looked puzzled, “He took time off.”

Tong Yang’s expression stiffened. She bent down and grabbed his shoulders, “Took time off? When?”

Yang Lin seemed frightened by her urgency. His body trembled as he stammered, “We-Wednesday night.”

“Wednesday night…” Tong Yang’s face turned pale. That day, she had gone to the school, and Tong Le had been sitting in the classroom just fine. How could he have taken time off?

“Why did he take time off? Was he not feeling well? Where is he now?”

Seeing how scared Yang Lin was, Chu Shiyu placed a hand on Tong Yang’s shoulder and frowned, “Calm down. Maybe he’s resting in the dormitory.”

Yang Lin’s eyes reddened as he mumbled in confusion, “But Tong Yang-jiejie, you’re the one who took Lele away.”

Tong Yang’s whole body shook, and her eyes turned red in an instant.

Chu Shiyu, seeing her expression, suddenly recalled what Tong Yang had said in the group chat, and it was indeed on Wednesday.

“Tong Yang…”

Tong Yang let go of him, her hands trembling as she pulled out her phone to call the homeroom teacher of Class Six, Fourth Grade.

“Teacher, did Tong Le take time off?”

“Tong Yang? Yes, you said you wanted to take Tong Le to visit some schools in the capital, so he’s on a two-day leave and will return on Monday.”

“When was that? Didn’t I leave right after visiting that day?” Tong Yang tried to steady her voice, but the bag with the phone watch fell from her hand.

“Well, you did leave, but you came back a couple of minutes later, saying you wanted to take Tong Le to experience university life in advance.”

“I called you last night, and you told me Tong Le was still at school.”

“What? When did you call me? I didn’t receive any calls from you yesterday.”

Tong Yang’s hand, holding the phone, slowly dropped. The person who answered her call last night wasn’t Tong Le’s homeroom teacher? Tong Le hadn’t been at school since Wednesday night?

Two days… Two whole days…

“Call the police,” Chu Shiyu said sternly, “The school must have surveillance cameras.”

Yang Lin looked at the two of them with a worried expression, “Lele’s missing?”

“Call the police…”

Tong Yang’s fingers felt numb. She could barely hold onto her phone, dialing the wrong number several times before finally calling the police.

She didn’t care about the consequences, didn’t care if she would be labeled crazy—Tong Le couldn’t be harmed…

But two days had already passed… Two whole days…

She had been negligent! Knowing that there was someone identical to her, she shouldn’t have left Tong Le at school alone…

After contacting the police and explaining the situation, they told her to wait at the gate while they arrived to check the surveillance footage, reassuring her not to worry.

Chu Shiyu had the driver take Yang Lin home while she stayed at the school to accompany Tong Yang.

It seemed the homeroom teacher had sensed something from Tong Yang’s questions because not long after, he found her.

“Tong Yang, what’s going on?”

“Tong Le is missing. I didn’t take him away.”

Tong Yang crouched on the ground, her eyes wide open as she numbly responded to the teacher’s questions.

“What are you talking about? I saw you take him away myself, and you even left a note for his leave.”

“I told you, I’d always contact you in advance if I came to the school to see Tong Le.”

The homeroom teacher was stunned for a moment, “But you had just left, and how was I supposed to know why you came back?”

Tong Yang knew this wasn’t the school’s fault, nor the teacher’s. The only person to blame was herself. She should have been more prepared, shouldn’t have let her guard down just because the College Entrance Examination was over. She knew things wouldn’t end so simply. She knew there were dangers lurking around her. She should have been more vigilant!

But where would this “Tong Yang” take Tong Le? What was her goal? Was Tong Le still alive?

Tong Yang had no clue. She couldn’t even imagine where “Tong Yang” might have taken him.

But why? In the timeline two years later, there had been no news of Tong Le going missing. Why had he disappeared now? Could the future still be changing? Was nothing set in stone? Was history unfolding in real-time? If so, what was the point of her knowing the future?

Or perhaps this event was never supposed to happen at all? Was her survival creating a butterfly effect?

Or maybe she and the group members came from different parallel worlds?

Tong Yang entered her social media app and asked the “Melon Eating Netizen 007” group members again if there was any news of Tong Le going missing on June 24th, but this time, there was no response.

“Tong Yang, the police are here.”

Several officers approached Tong Yang and asked, “Are you the family member of the missing child?”

“I am.”

“When was the last time you saw him?”

“Wednesday night, around 7:30 p.m.”

The homeroom teacher described what had happened that evening in detail. The group decided to check the school’s surveillance footage first.

Throughout the process, Tong Yang clutched her phone tightly, hoping that the group members might provide some useful information.

After gathering details, the school led them to the surveillance room.

They rewound the footage to Wednesday night at 7:30. Tong Yang watched as the homeroom teacher escorted her to the school gate. After she left, the teacher chatted with the security guard for about one minute and twenty-one seconds. Then, the “Tong Yang” who had already left reappeared at the gate.

Even though the surveillance footage was blurry, Tong Yang could still clearly see the person. She was dressed exactly like her, had the same hair length, and had the same face.

“Teacher, I’m sorry, but I still want to take Tong Le on leave.”

That person stopped the homeroom teacher, even smiling as she spoke.

The police officers standing in front of the surveillance monitor all turned to look at Tong Yang, while Chu Shiyu watched her with concern.

Tong Yang clenched her palms tightly, feeling as if a fire was burning inside her. Unlike the passive anger she had felt when threatened before, this time she was filled with rage toward the people from the parallel world. She wanted to kill every last one of the creatures that had invaded this world. She wanted to destroy everyone from the parallel world who had come here, so they would never have a chance to harm others again.

The footage showed “Tong Yang” and the homeroom teacher walking back into the school. About ten minutes later, she was seen leaving the school alone, with Tong Le in tow. The two disappeared from the surveillance camera’s view.

“Family member of the student, perhaps we should be asking where you took the child?” one of the officers said, turning to Tong Yang with a serious expression, “The surveillance footage clearly shows you taking your brother out of the school.”

Tong Yang took a deep breath and replied, “That’s not me. The person in the footage isn’t me.”

The officer furrowed his brow, looking her over as if trying to determine if she was telling the truth. After a moment of hesitation, he said, “We should check nearby surveillance cameras to see where they went, but you’d better think carefully. There aren’t many cameras in the old district, so we’ll have to rely on footage from nearby shops.”

“I understand.”

Tong Yang struggled to maintain her composure. Her only hope now was to rely on the surveillance footage. She had no other leads, no idea where “Tong Yang” would take Tong Le.

After leaving the school, they checked with nearby shops. Since the area had many students, most of the stationery shops and small stores had surveillance cameras. The shopkeepers were cooperative and provided the footage when the police came asking. Unfortunately, there were many blind spots in the camera coverage, and they didn’t even capture Tong Yang’s initial departure, let alone the whereabouts of “Tong Yang” and Tong Le.

After checking several shops, they still found no trace of the two and had no clue where they had gone after leaving the school.

Eventually, they decided to check near Dongyang Complex. The only footage they found was of Tong Yang walking alone at 8:07 p.m.

With no valuable information from the investigation, all they knew was that the last person to see Tong Le was Tong Yang. So, she was taken to the police station to make a statement.

“Tong Yang, are you okay?”

Inside the police car, Chu Shiyu kept casting worried glances at her.

Tong Yang clenched her phone, her nerves taut. She was racking her brain, trying to figure out where “Tong Yang” might have taken Tong Le. If there was no surveillance footage, was it possible that Tong Le had also been taken into the parallel world?

But what were the conditions for entering the parallel world? How could she actively enter it?

Tong Yang even wondered if she should try to enter the time loop again. But she didn’t know where Tong Le was, whether he was dead or alive. What good would it do to go back ten minutes?

What should she do? Where should she look for Tong Le? If he had been taken into the parallel world, could he still come back?

No… If the alternative was that “Tong Yang” had killed him, she would rather believe that Tong Le had just entered the parallel world. One day, she would find the entrance and bring him back!

After making her statement at the police station, the officers reviewed footage from bus stations and highway exits in the old district. It was a long shot and yielded no results.

By 7:30 p.m., after hours at the police station, Chu Shiyu had stayed by Tong Yang’s side, while the homeroom teacher had long since made excuses to leave at the school.

But after all the investigations, the only conclusion was that “Tong Yang” had been the one who took Tong Le away.

The police questioned Tong Yang repeatedly, and toward the end, it felt almost like an interrogation. Despite her and Chu Shiyu’s insistence that it wasn’t her, and even after explaining about the parallel world and the events surrounding the College Entrance Examination, no one believed them.

Because compared to such bizarre stories that only existed in movies, what could be more convincing than the surveillance footage?

Tong Yang didn’t bother explaining further, knowing that words were useless at this point. She kept sending messages to the “Melon Eating Netizen 007” group, making countless voice and video calls, placing all her hopes of finding Tong Le on them.

“Tong Yang! Even though he’s your brother, do you realize your actions are already illegal? We found a large sum of money deposited in your account recently. If you can’t provide any leads, we have reasonable grounds to suspect you’re involved in human trafficking! This is a criminal case, and you could go to jail!”

It was as if Tong Yang didn’t hear any of it. She kept her head down, eyes glued to her phone, continuously making calls.

“Tong Yang!”

A large hand snatched her phone away, and at the same time, she saw the “Call disconnected” message on the screen.

“Tong Yang, this is a serious matter. If you don’t remember, we can arrange for a psychologist to help you…”

“Give it back to me!”

Seeing the call had been cut off, Tong Yang’s eyes lit up with hope. She lunged forward, trying to grab her phone back. But after all, she was just a student. How could she possibly overpower a police officer?

Two male officers grabbed her arms and pinned her back into her seat.

Ding dong—

Ding dong—

The group chat notifications kept ringing. Tong Yang gritted her teeth, her voice hoarse, “Give it back to me! I’m about to find him! Give it back!”

“Calm down!” The older officer frowned at her before looking down at the phone, “There’s no message here.”

“No, no way! You just can’t see it! Give it back to me! I can—I can see it!” Tong Yang struggled even harder, but the stronger the grip on her became.

The older officer looked at her, saying, “Tong Yang, we suspect there may be something wrong with your mental state. A psychologist will be here shortly…”

“Please… Please just give it back to me…” Tears filled her eyes, her voice barely more than a croak, “Give it back… Please…”

Having known Tong Yang for three years, even through their time at Third Middle School in the parallel world, Chu Shiyu had never seen her in such a pitiful state. Her eyes were red, and no matter how hard she tried to explain, the surveillance footage was undeniable. How could anyone believe them if they hadn’t experienced it themselves?

“Uncle, please give her phone back. We won’t run away,” Chu Shiyu said, her eyelashes wet with tears, “We’ll fully cooperate. Please, give it back to her…”

The older officer sighed in frustration and signaled for the two officers to release Tong Yang. He handed the phone back to her, saying, “Tong Yang, I was the one who handled your parents’ DUI case. I know it wasn’t easy for you to raise your brother all these years, and I don’t believe you would hurt him. But you need to calm down. When the psychologist arrives, cooperate with the evaluation. If you’re suffering from a condition like dissociative identity disorder or sleepwalking, it might help us find your brother faster.”

As soon as she was released, Tong Yang snatched the phone and quickly opened her chat app. The “Melon Eating Netizen 007” group had sent several messages.

[What’s wrong? It’s only 6 AM.]

[Whoa, I’ve never seen you this anxious before.]

[Tong Le? Let me check. Wasn’t there nothing yesterday?]

Tong Yang paid no attention to the mention of “6 AM.” In her current frenzied state, nothing mattered except news about Tong Le.

[Oh, crap! I found something!]

[At 3 AM on June 25, 2024, the police received a report that a child’s body had been found by a night fisherman near the shore. Upon investigation, the child was identified as a nine-year-old student from Experimental Elementary School’s Fourth Grade. He had only one living relative…]

The group chat sent a long, copied news excerpt. Tong Yang skimmed it briefly, but it was clear—all the details pointed to Tong Le.

“Night fishing… Night fishing…” Tong Yang muttered to herself in a daze. The body would be discovered at 3 AM tomorrow, drowned. The autopsy would confirm the time of death between 9 PM and midnight on the 24th. It was now 7:54 PM. Tong Le hadn’t died yet—there was still time!

Learning Is for Earning Money: “Can you find out the location?”

[It seems to be an abandoned reservoir.]

[Yeah, an abandoned reservoir. Hardly anyone ever goes there.]

“Abandoned reservoir…” Tong Yang murmured. The only abandoned reservoir in the old district was on the mountain where her parents were buried. Tong Le was there…

“Chief, we’ve just received more reports. Several more children from Class Six, Fourth Grade haven’t returned home after school, and their parents have searched everywhere. The phone watches they carry aren’t answering.”

The older officer’s face changed, “All of them are from Class Six, Fourth Grade?”

At the same time, Chu Shiyu’s phone rang. She stepped aside to take the call.

“Linlin? He’s not with me. I sent the driver to take him home after school.”

“What? Someone picked him up on the way? Which classmate?”

“With me? Tong Le’s sister…” Chu Shiyu suddenly turned around to look at Tong Yang, “Linlin’s been taken too!”

“Tong Yang!” Tong Yang, who had been sitting quietly in the rest area, suddenly jumped up and ran out while everyone was caught off guard.

By the time the officers and Chu Shiyu realized what had happened, Tong Yang was already far away.

“They’re at Wuming Slope!” Tong Yang’s voice echoed in the distance, and Chu Shiyu immediately understood what she meant. She turned to the officers, who were about to give chase, and said, “Tong Le, Linlin, and the other missing children from Class Six, Fourth Grade are at Wuming Slope. Tong Yang has gone ahead.”

The police station wasn’t far from Wuming Slope, a rugged area with uneven steps and mountain paths. Tong Yang knew the police would be faster in finding Tong Le, but if she stayed, they would only question her further. She couldn’t waste any more time.

By running out now, the police—whether they believed her or not—would come to Wuming Slope in pursuit.

The sky was darkening, and the road leading to Wuming Slope had almost no streetlights. Tong Yang ran as fast as she could, not caring what was underfoot. The night breeze made her feel dazed, but she didn’t dare stop or hesitate for even a moment.

Wuming Slope was a desolate mountain with dense vegetation. It was said that years ago, seven or eight students had drowned in the reservoir there, and eerie rumors had spread, causing fewer and fewer people to visit, except for some brave fishermen.

Tong Yang ran into Wuming Slope. It was too dark to see the path clearly, so she turned on her phone’s flashlight. Sharp branches scratched her exposed skin, leaving shallow cuts.

“Tong Le!”

“Lele!”

“Yang Lin!”

Her shouts echoed through the quiet slope, but the vast mountain remained silent, with only the sound of cicadas occasionally answering her.

Tong Yang’s clothes were soaked with sweat, and beads of perspiration ran down her forehead, stinging her eyes.

“Tong Le! Lele!”

“Yang Lin!”

Tong Yang dared not blink, afraid she’d miss their voices. Her hair clung to her sweat-drenched skin, and the uneven mountain path made walking difficult.

She was exhausted—physically and mentally—but she couldn’t afford to stop.

“Is anyone there?”

“Tong Yang? Are you here? Come out, and we’ll talk!”

If Tong Le was here, then “Tong Yang” was likely here as well. Rather than running around like a headless chicken, finding her would be easier.

Tong Yang kept shouting as she made her way to the reservoir she remembered, but she didn’t see anyone or hear any response.

“Tong Le!”

Tong Yang stood panting by the shore of the abandoned reservoir, shouting loudly.

She shone her phone’s flashlight around the reservoir, but the water was calm, and no one was in sight.

“Yang Lin!”

Tong Yang searched around the shore but still found no sign of anyone. Suddenly, the sky in the distance was illuminated by dozens of bright lights, casting countless beams over Wuming Slope, filtering through the gaps in the trees and faintly lighting up the scene before her.

“Tong Yang!”

Chu Shiyu’s voice called from afar, mixed with the voices of others shouting.

“Linlin!”

“Xu Mimi!”

By now, the police had likely notified the parents of the missing students, and everyone had come to Wuming Slope to search for their children.

“Tong Yang!” Chu Shiyu emerged from a narrow forest path and sighed with relief when she saw Tong Yang unharmed, “Are you okay? The police and firefighters are here, and they brought search dogs. There’s an ambulance waiting at the foot of the mountain too.”

Tong Yang turned to look at her. In the faint light, her eyes were bloodshot, and she said in a hoarse voice, “They’ve entered the parallel world.”

Chu Shiyu gritted her teeth, “What do we do? Do you know how to enter it?”

Tong Yang shook her head, “No… I don’t know…”

Chu Shiyu said, “My aunt said the driver saw you while taking Linlin home. The person said they were going to take Linlin to find Tong Le and mentioned that I would be coming too, so Linlin went with them.”

“Also, three other students from Class Six, Fourth Grade haven’t returned home since school let out. Their parents tried calling the phone watches the kids carry, but they keep getting no answer.”

Tong Yang clenched her fists tightly at her sides. There was no doubt that Tong Le and the other students had been taken into the parallel world. Even if they searched all of Wuming Slope, they wouldn’t be able to find them without locating the entrance to the parallel world.

“What should we do? We almost died in the parallel world ourselves. What about those kids…?”

Tong Yang took a deep breath and said, “Tong Le is going to die tonight. The other kids might not.”

Chu Shiyu looked at her deeply and asked, “Can that be changed?”

Tong Yang met her gaze, “Yes.”

“What are you thinking?”

Tong Yang said, “If all she wanted was to kill them, she could’ve done it easily. They’re just a group of kids with no ability to resist. But she didn’t. Instead, she showed up at my place to take Tong Le and Yang Lin. She likely took the other students too. She’s gone to all this trouble—she’s probably targeting me.”

“Then what’s her goal?”

“To kill me? To replace me? To make me lose everything and suffer?”

Tong Yang looked around the area and said,

“If her target is me, then she’ll definitely come for me and take me into the parallel world too.”

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Extra 2 releases for the month of Nov complimentary event @ my Discord