EMSD Chapter 29

The timeline that Tong Yang returned to was still the same as the first loop.

As soon as she regained her senses, the first thing she did was sprint toward the reservoir. With the experience from the last two times, Tong Yang moved much faster this time, but even so, it was still difficult to make it there within ten minutes. She could only hope that Chu Shiyu would manage to delay the homeroom teacher of [Class 6 Grade 4].

After parting ways with the two versions of Tong Yang, Chu Shiyu initially planned to find all the students from [Class 6 Grade 4], including Tong Le and Yang Lin. However, after only taking a few steps, the pitch-dark night sky suddenly brightened, and inexplicably, she found herself back in the real world.

Compared to Tong Yang, she felt that the children were in even more danger, so she decided to search for them first. However, not long after, she received a call from the homeroom teacher of [Class 6 Grade 4], who said that all the missing children had been found and returned to their parents. Chu Shiyu decided to head down the mountain to confirm this.

She walked along the main road near the reservoir, with a seven- to eight-meter-high cliff on her left and a forest leading to the reservoir on her right.

Suddenly, Chu Shiyu froze in her tracks, her body stiffening as she turned in horror to look at the cliff. She stumbled back a few steps, crashing into a tree behind her before she barely managed to steady herself.

She remembered!

“Chu Shiyu!”

“Yang Lin and the others are at the reservoir! I’m coming to help you!”

“Be careful of their teacher!”

After hearing these words from Tong Yang, Chu Shiyu was struck on the head by a rock falling from the mountain. Before she could even feel the pain, she lost consciousness entirely.

“Reservoir?” Chu Shiyu muttered, her face pale. Without giving herself time to think, she bolted into the forest, running toward the reservoir.

Chu Shiyu knew that Tong Yang could enter time loops—maybe she had already gone through the loop and needed her help, which was why she used this method to remind her. Because during the college entrance examination, Chu Shiyu had previously regained memories of her own death at the exact time of her death in the last loop.

The reservoir? Be careful of the homeroom teacher of [Class 6 Grade 4]?

Could it be…

As this thought struck her, Chu Shiyu was shocked. She remembered Tong Yang mentioning earlier that she had called the homeroom teacher during the day, but the teacher had claimed not to have received any calls. That could only mean one thing: there wasn’t just a “Tong Yang” from the parallel world on Nameless Hill, but also a “homeroom teacher” from the parallel world!

Yang Lin and Tong Le were in danger!

Chu Shiyu’s heart was burning with anxiety. She ran toward the reservoir as fast as she could. Finally, when she burst out of the dense woods and arrived at the edge of the reservoir, she saw a woman standing on the shore of the stone bridge. The woman was pushing an unconscious child, whose feet were tied to a stone, into the reservoir with a loud splash.

“Stop!!”

Chu Shiyu shouted furiously before diving into the water and swimming toward where the child had sunk.

The child had a stone tied to them. She had to untie the stone quickly and rescue the child!

Hearing her voice, the woman standing on the bridge glanced coldly down at her with an icy, calm expression. Without a word, the woman bent down, picked up another stone, and hurled it violently into the water.

“Ah!” Chu Shiyu, not a fast swimmer, was struck on the forehead by the rock. Intense pain shot through her as blood quickly spread across the water’s surface.

With a scream of agony, Chu Shiyu’s body slowly sank under the water, completely submerged and still.

The woman stared at the blood-stained water, pausing for a few seconds before turning back to the shore. She tied a stone to another unconscious child and dragged them toward the stone bridge.

As she gazed at the now calm water, she threw the child and the stone into the reservoir with a splash.

As the sound of the child hitting the water faded, the surface of the reservoir calmed once more, and the woman turned to walk away.

However, just then, a sharp pain struck the back of her head. Her ears rang, and she stumbled forward uncontrollably, but she managed to stay on her feet.

“Whoosh!”

At that moment, Chu Shiyu surfaced from the water, holding a child. Blood streamed from her forehead.

“Are you okay?” Tong Yang stood by the shore, holding a thick branch, looking toward Chu Shiyu in the water.

Chu Shiyu shook her head and brought the boy to the shore, “There’s still one more child in the water. Be careful.”

“Got it.”

With that, she dove back into the water.

Tong Yang clenched her lips, turning around just in time to see the woman raising another stone, ready to strike.

“Get lost!”

Tong Yang dodged sideways and kicked the woman to the ground.

The woman glared straight at her, and without warning, picked up the stone again, aiming it at the unconscious child.

Tong Yang’s brow furrowed. She swung the branch hard, striking the woman’s arm. The stone missed its target, falling onto the grass nearby. But the woman, incredibly persistent, immediately lunged at the child’s throat to strangle them.

Grinding her teeth, Tong Yang pounced, wrapping her arms around the woman’s neck from behind and pulling her away from the boy.

“Why are you killing them? Why kill Tong Le?”

Tong Yang tightened her grip on the woman’s neck, gritting her teeth, “They’re just kids! If you have the guts, come for me instead! I’m waiting for you.”

The woman struggled violently in Tong Yang’s grip. Tong Yang, exhausted both physically and mentally from going through multiple loops, was reaching her breaking point. In a moment of carelessness, the woman slipped free!

Like a slippery eel, the woman wriggled out of her grasp, turning to tackle Tong Yang to the ground.

Tong Yang lost her balance, and her back hit the ground hard. Her head rang with a deafening buzz, and she briefly lost focus. The woman took the chance to pin her down and wrapped her hands around Tong Yang’s throat, squeezing tightly.

Tong Yang struggled desperately as suffocation set in. Her hands groped frantically around her, finding a sharp stone, which she swung at the woman’s temple. The sharp end pierced the skin, and blood mixed with sweat clung to the woman’s face. Yet she still didn’t let go.

Tong Yang felt her lungs about to burst. Her strength was rapidly fading as the lack of oxygen overwhelmed her.

Gritting her teeth, Tong Yang’s forehead bulged with veins, her eyes bloodshot. She stared into the woman’s vicious eyes, then suddenly grabbed a handful of sand from the ground and flung it into her eyes. The woman’s body reflexively jerked away, loosening her grip for just a moment. Tong Yang seized the opportunity, bending her head down and sinking her teeth into the woman’s wrist. She bit down hard, tearing a chunk of flesh off with her teeth!

“Ah!” The woman let out a blood-curdling scream as her fingers twitched uncontrollably. She collapsed onto Tong Yang.

Tong Yang spat out the foul-tasting flesh, her eyes wild like a beast’s. She flipped the woman off her and shoved her away.

The woman fell back onto the ground, bleeding profusely from her temple and wrist. Her wide eyes now showed fear as she looked at Tong Yang. She instinctively shrank back, as if Tong Yang were the true monster here.

Tong Yang wasn’t much better off. Her face was flushed from broken blood vessels, and her mouth was stained with blood. Her lips and chin were red, her eyes fierce and filled with rage. Like an enraged lion, she wasted no time before leaping at the woman again.

The woman finally realized fear, her will to resist collapsing. She turned and fled into the woods. Tong Yang, gripping the sharp stone, wiped the blood from her chin and quickly caught up to her. She grabbed the woman’s hair from behind and yanked her down, throwing her to the ground. Without giving her a chance to react, Tong Yang climbed on top of her and raised the stone, smashing it into her face repeatedly.

After all, this creature would soon return to the parallel world anyway.

“Ah!”

“I was wrong! I was wrong!”

“Spare me… please, spare me…”

Tong Yang seemed to hear nothing. She kept smashing the woman’s face until it was a bloody mess, her teeth falling out, her eye sockets caving in. The woman could no longer make any sounds, her mouth opening and closing like a fish gasping for air.

Tong Yang’s heart pounded furiously, and she had to force herself to calm down, barely managing to control her emotions enough to stop.

She casually tossed the stone aside and staggered to her feet, her voice cold and resolute, “Don’t touch my brother. No matter how many times the cycle repeats, no matter what world we’re in, I’ll kill every last one of you with my own hands.”

Tong Yang returned to the stone bridge, where she saw Chu Shiyu lying by the shore with a boy in her arms. The light was dim, and it wasn’t clear which of the two boys had been rescued. However, they hadn’t been underwater for too long, so they likely weren’t in any immediate danger.

Tong Yang first ran to Chu Shiyu’s side and gently turned her over. Seeing the blood on her face, she couldn’t help but frown.

“To…” Chu Shiyu suddenly grabbed her hand, struggling to open her eyes as she spoke with great effort, “I… I didn’t… find Tong Le…”

Tong Yang’s breath caught in her throat. She released Chu Shiyu and immediately dived back into the water.

“Tong Le!”

Tong Yang had never learned to swim, and her swimming skills were poor. Fortunately, the reservoir had been abandoned for years, and the water only reached chest level. She submerged herself and groped around in the water, her fingers scratched by water plants. The stench of blood and the musty smell of water filled the air.

Maybe the water was too cold—her voice trembled.

“Tong Le… Lele…”

He wasn’t there? Why wasn’t he there?

Was Tong Le not here? Had he died before she entered the loop?

Could she not go back even if she looped again? Had the “Tong Yang” lied to her, and Tong Le had already died two days ago?

What should she do…

But… she wouldn’t have killed Tong Le…

Why…

The freezing water wrapped around Tong Yang’s body as she searched every corner of the reservoir. Tong Le wasn’t there. Even if she looped again, it wouldn’t matter. Tong Le wasn’t here!

How could this be… Why…

If Tong Le was dead in the parallel world, did that mean Tong Le in the real world had to die too?

Why…

“Tong Yang…”

By the shore, Chu Shiyu, barely conscious, struggled to sit up, her voice trembling, “Lele might already be safe… Please help me save Linlin first, okay? The rope on his leg is tied too tight… He’s been in the water for too long… If we don’t get him to the hospital soon, it’ll be too late…”

Tong Yang stood in the water, stunned. Hearing her voice, it was as if she finally snapped out of her daze. With her head hanging low, she silently waded back to the shore.

“Thank you…” Chu Shiyu gave her a grateful smile before passing out.

Thank you?

Tong Yang didn’t need thanks.

If it meant bringing Tong Le back, she might have coldly stood by and watched as Yang Lin died.

But that wasn’t how reality worked.

Why?

Why wasn’t Tong Le here?

Why did the news report say that Yang Lin and the others drowned instead?

—

They had almost turned Nameless Hill upside down but still hadn’t found Tong Yang or the other missing children.

Without any direct evidence proving that the children were on the mountain, after nearly three hours of searching, the group paused their efforts and returned to nearby stores to check surveillance footage, hoping to find the last known locations of the children.

However, the surveillance footage didn’t yield much. There were no useful clues, and the only person who knew the truth was Tong Yang. So the group decided to continue searching the mountain.

But just then, a figure staggered out of the woods.

The group stared in astonishment. A disheveled girl emerged, carrying an unconscious boy on her back. Their waists were tied together with a shirt, and both were soaking wet. Every step seemed a struggle.

Seeing who they were, the crowd collectively gasped.

“What happened?!”

“Get a stretcher over here! Quickly!”

As the group rushed toward her, Tong Yang finally lost all her strength. Her legs gave out, and she collapsed to her knees.

“The others… at the reservoir…” Tong Yang’s voice was so weak it was barely audible.

“The others… at the reservoir…”

With those final words, she slowly closed her eyes and lost consciousness.

—

At dawn, Tong Le woke up, covered in morning dew.

He was draped in a green coat, and the sound of flowing water filled the air. Behind him, soft footsteps approached.

“Sister?” Tong Le rubbed his eyes and sat up.

“You’re awake? Eat something.”

“Thank you…”

Tong Yang sat down next to him, and as the mist cleared, a dried-up reservoir appeared before them.

Tong Le took the food from her but didn’t eat it. After hesitating for a moment, he asked, “Sister, when can I go home?”

Tong Yang was silent for a moment, “You want to go home?”

Tong Le nodded, “I want to go home. Sister must be worried about me by now.”

Tong Yang didn’t respond. After a long pause, she asked, “Lele, do you remember the night you had a high fever when you were two years old?”

“I don’t remember.” Tong Le shook his head, then lowered his gaze, “But you carried me to the hospital.”

“Yes, that’s right.” She raised her hand and affectionately ruffled his hair, “If I hadn’t taken you to the hospital that night, and you had left this world forever, would you have blamed me?”

Tong Le was taken aback, “I wouldn’t blame you.”

“Why?”

“Because you were just a kid too.”

Tong Yang was momentarily stunned, then smiled softly, “Let’s go. I’ll take you home.”

“Okay…”

When Tong Yang woke up, her head was throbbing, and her body ached all over. The strong smell of disinfectant filled her nose.

“Cough…” Her dry throat made her cough lightly. The person sitting by the bed immediately stood up and poured her a glass of water.

Tong Yang slowly opened her eyes, staring at the sterile white walls of the hospital room. For a moment, she didn’t react.

“Sister, are you okay?” Tong Le’s familiar voice echoed in her ears, filled with concern and a choked sob.

Tong Yang turned her head in surprise. He was still wearing his Experimental Elementary School uniform, his eyes red and swollen as if he had recently cried.

“Sister, drink some water first.”

Tong Yang took the cup and sipped some water. The dryness in her throat eased slightly. After a moment of silence, she asked, “Are you hurt?”

Tong Le replied, “I’m sorry, Sister. I shouldn’t have…”

“It’s not your fault. It’s not your mistake.”

Tong Yang sat up, and before long, the medical staff noticed she was awake and came in to check on her. They reminded her to rest, saying that while she was exhausted, her injuries weren’t severe, and she should focus on recovering and eating nutritious food.

After the nurses left, seeing the guilt and worry in Tong Le’s expression, she smiled and said, “I’m fine. Don’t worry.”

In fact, when she didn’t find Tong Le at the reservoir, she had already guessed that he was probably still in the parallel world.

“Tong Yang” had lied to her, but in doing so, had indirectly helped Tong Le avoid danger.

Not long after, Chu Shiyu, her forehead bandaged, walked in.

Tong Yang deliberately sent Tong Le away, asking him to go home and change his clothes.

Once he was gone, Chu Shiyu locked the hospital room door, walked to the bedside, and said, “Thank you.”

Tong Yang’s expression was indifferent, “No need to thank me. I was only trying to save Tong Le.”

“Regardless, thank you.”

Tong Yang motioned with her chin for Chu Shiyu to hand her a banana.

Chu Shiyu obliged, even helpfully peeling it for her.

“How’s your head?” Tong Yang asked.

“A mild concussion. It’s not serious. Won’t leave a scar.”

Tong Yang nodded and asked, “What about the others?”

“The kids from [Class 6 Grade 4] are fine. The homeroom teacher… died last night on Nameless Hill.”

“The police don’t know when she entered Nameless Hill. She left the school yesterday afternoon with some excuse.”

“She must have been killed by the people from the parallel world.”

“Yeah…”

“What did the police say?”

Chu Shiyu sighed, “That woman was caught on surveillance when she took Tong Le. That part’s undeniable. But when she took Linlin, you were with us the whole time and never left. The dashcam in that car happened to break, so for now, the police think someone impersonated you. As for the other kids in [Class 6 Grade 4], they said that the homeroom teacher led them to Nameless Hill. Since Tong Le wasn’t there that night, the police are concluding that she attempted murder and fell to her death while trying to escape.”

Tong Yang nodded, falling silent for a few moments. The death of the homeroom teacher from [Class 6 Grade 4] was unavoidable.

“Do they remember what happened?”

Chu Shiyu shook her head, “Linlin hasn’t woken up yet. I tried asking a few of the other kids, but they were drugged with sleeping pills. They don’t remember anything after falling unconscious.”

“That’s good.”

These children were still young, so it was better if they didn’t remember their deaths.

“You’ll be staying in the hospital for the next couple of days. I’ve already told my little aunt and the others that you saved Linlin and the other kids. Don’t worry about money.”

Tong Yang didn’t refuse her kind offer. After all, she had paid a high price to go through the loop.

Chu Shiyu didn’t stay long before leaving, as her condition wasn’t much better than Tong Yang’s.

Half an hour later, the police arrived to take Tong Yang’s statement. She told them everything she could, omitting any mention of the parallel world, as she had already tried to explain it before, but they hadn’t believed her.

After the statement was done, the lead officer asked the others to leave, wanting to talk to Tong Yang alone.

“Tong Yang, how did you know the children were taken to Nameless Hill?”

Tong Yang stared at him quietly without answering right away.

The officer continued, “Don’t worry, I’m not suspecting you. I’m just genuinely curious.”

“After you and Chu Shiyu entered Nameless Hill, it was like you both disappeared. Even with search dogs, we combed the area around the reservoir three times and found nothing.”

Tong Yang asked, “If I told you, would you believe me?”

The officer sighed, “Other people might not, but I would.”

Tong Yang stared deeply at him for a long time, “We entered a parallel world. The ones trying to kill them weren’t the homeroom teacher from [Class 6 Grade 4], but her counterpart from the parallel world.”

“The homeroom teacher wasn’t killed by a fall. Most likely, she was murdered by someone from the parallel world.”

The officer’s gaze darkened as he stared at her in silence for a long time.

“Boss, Tong Yang’s homeroom teacher is here.”

A voice from outside broke the silence in the room.

“Wait a moment.”

The officer quickly scribbled down his contact number and placed it on her bedside, “Don’t tell anyone lightly. Protect yourself.”

Tong Yang’s eyes flickered slightly. Did he believe her?

She clutched the piece of paper with his contact information and bit her lip, “Uncle, can I trust you?”

The officer paused for a moment, then said, “Of course.”

As the officer left the room, Teacher Yang entered with a fruit basket.

“Tong Yang, are you feeling okay?” Teacher Yang asked with concern.

“Thank you, Teacher. I’m fine,” Tong Yang replied.

“That’s good. Thankfully, that teacher didn’t lose her mind and kill you as well.”

Last night’s incident had caused quite a stir and had even been reported in the morning news. Both Tong Yang and Chu Shiyu’s actions were also mentioned in the article.

Tong Yang forced a smile, saying nothing.

“By the way, Tsinghua University tried calling you, but you didn’t pick up. They called the school instead, saying they wanted to check on your health.”

Tong Yang replied, “Teacher Yang, could you let them know that I’m not feeling well right now? I won’t be meeting with them on Monday. We can handle everything over the phone.”

“Sigh, alright. Don’t worry too much. Just rest and recover first.”

Tong Yang’s phone had fallen into the reservoir last night. Even if it was recovered, it would be completely ruined. It was a shame, as she had wanted to ask something in the gossip group chat.

As if reading her thoughts, after lunch, Chu Shiyu brought her a new phone.

“My little aunt gave this to me. She said that once Linlin feels better, she’ll bring him over to thank you in person.”

“Alright, thanks.”

Tong Yang didn’t hesitate to take the phone. She connected to the hospital’s Wi-Fi and tried logging into her old social media accounts.

That day in the hospital, only Chu Shiyu’s little aunt and Yang Lin’s mother had come to check on her. None of the other parents of the students who had nearly drowned had visited. Tong Yang didn’t mind—after all, her initial intention hadn’t been to save them.

“Sister, do you want an apple? I’ll peel one for you,” Tong Le asked, sitting by her bed, carefully watching her expression.

Upon hearing that his sister had been injured, he rushed to the hospital immediately. He felt terrible and guilty, knowing that his sister had reported him missing to the police and had gone to Nameless Hill to find him, leading to everything that happened. He was also scared—scared that his sister would be angry with him for following a stranger.

At first, he hadn’t realized that the person wasn’t his real sister. But the longer they spent together, the more he felt that something was off. That person wasn’t his sister at all.

“I don’t want any. Take a break. You don’t need to stay here with me.”

But Tong Le shook his head stubbornly, “I don’t need to rest.”

Tong Yang gave him a helpless look, “Alright then, peel me an orange.”

“Okay!” Tong Le’s face lit up with a smile.

Tong Yang tried logging into her old chat account, but it required a verification code sent to her phone, which had long since broken. It seemed she’d need to get a new SIM card.

Sighing, she switched to browsing the news about yesterday’s events. There were a few scattered reports, but the story hadn’t gained much attention.

After all, it was just a small local news story, nothing major.

Putting her phone down, Tong Yang ate some fruit and quickly fell asleep.

While she slept, Tong Le sat beside her on a small stool, doing his homework. He still didn’t know that their homeroom teacher had died the night before.

When Tong Yang woke up in the evening, she ate a little food before Yang Lin and his mother arrived to visit her.

Yang Lin’s mother still had red eyes, and she held the pale-faced Yang Lin’s hand as they entered the room. Behind them were Chu Shiyu and a middle-aged man, probably Yang Lin’s father.

“Tong Miss, I heard from Shiyu that if it weren’t for you, Linlin would have… Thank you so much! I never imagined Linlin would go through something like this…”

“Yang Lin, are you alright?” Tong Le asked worriedly as he approached.

Yang Lin pressed his lips together and shook his head.

Tong Yang tried to get out of bed, but they stopped her.

“Don’t get up. The doctor said you were exhausted and had multiple injuries. If you hadn’t carried Linlin down from the mountain, he might never have woken up… Thank you so much! Thank you both!”

“Yes, Tong Miss, Linlin only had Lele as a friend at school. He didn’t let anyone bully him. I didn’t expect Shiyu to be in the same class as you. What a blessing it was to meet you siblings…”

Feeling their sincere gratitude, Tong Yang remained silent for a long while before finally speaking, “Can I ask you for a favor?”

“Of course! Anything you need, we’ll do it without hesitation!”

Tong Yang lowered her eyes, her lips pressed tightly together.

“Tong Yang” had said that she was the time anchor, and once she was killed, the people from the parallel world could come to this world without fear and replace those who existed here. This meant that in the future, she would face many unpredictable dangers. She would also need to actively confront those dangers rather than passively wait for the people from the parallel world to harm her. She would hunt them down one by one, sending them back to where they belonged, ensuring that no one could ever threaten Tong Le again.

More importantly, the events that had occurred so far weren’t part of the original timeline. Tong Le and the students from [Class 6 Grade 4] were never supposed to experience these things. But because of her, the future had changed, and suddenly, the news of Tong Le’s death had appeared.

What would happen if she went to college in the capital? What would happen to Tong Le then?

She had no idea what kind of place it was or how to protect herself, let alone how to protect Tong Le.

If she left home, how could she possibly keep him by her side all the time?

“Auntie, could Tong Le stay with you on weekends for a while? I’ll regularly send over money for his living expenses.”

Yang Lin’s parents were reasonable people, and they would never harm Tong Le.

Besides, the officer had said that she could trust him. If she asked for his help again… Tong Le would be safe from so many uncertainties.

His future wouldn’t change again.

In the original timeline, Tong Le had always lived a good life.

“Sister?”

Tong Le looked at her, confused and unsure, clutching the hem of his shirt, “Sister, why… why…”