"Huff... huff..." Jill Young was gasping for breath, drenched in sweat, like a regular person who'd just run twenty kilometers. That interdimensional time-space trip nearly wiped her out for reasons she couldn't even explain. Honestly, even counting the past twenty-something years, she could barely remember ever feeling this exhausted. Good thing was, the Titan Spirit Method: Sixth Level not only gave her brute strength, but her stamina bounced back pretty fast too. She took out a bottle of Purified Liquid, had a sip, and within a few breaths, the cold sweat was gone.
She took a deep breath to steady herself, then looked around: Okay, where on earth did I end up this time?
As she glanced up, Jill realized her sweaty, out-of-breath look wasn’t unusual—plenty of people nearby were just as winded. Looking higher, she saw a ceiling not like any ordinary room's, but more like a mineshaft, crisscrossed with heavy supports. Under the dim yellow lights, it looked solid and tough.
Scanning her surroundings, Jill saw they were in a space about the size of a soccer field, with a steel vault door at one end. Thousands of people were crammed inside, faces pale and terrified. Packed together like sardines, folks instinctively grabbed whoever was next to them, as if clutching each other could keep the fear at bay. Even though everyone looked like they’d run their legs off, no one dared to breathe too loud—everyone was frozen, staring up at the ceiling.
Honestly, this place felt less like some futuristic world and more like one of those old slave ships from history. When a bunch of slaves were shipped off to the New World, it probably looked just as crowded and scared as this. The real kicker, though, was that solid steel vault door...
"Figures, locked up again..." Jill’s mouth twitched—she didn’t even have the energy to complain. This wasn’t the first or second time, either: prison vans, traps, jail cells... why did she always end up like this? Did the universe just have it out for her or something?
"Captain, everyone here looks like regular civilians, nothing futuristic about their clothes," someone whispered in the crowd—a woman, judging by the voice. Another, deeper male voice replied, "These civilians aren’t acting right, and this place looks like a bomb shelter. Let’s just watch for now, don’t do anything rash."
While that guy and gal were talking, someone else suddenly shouted from deep in the crowd: "I—I did it! I was right!" The voice was young and, in the heavy silence, painfully loud. Everyone turned to look—a young man in his early twenties was jumping around, laughing and waving his arms. "I knew I was right! I really made it here! Hahaha, I did it!"
Jill glanced over and quickly figured it out: those folks speaking up must be the other Chosen Ones who crossed over with her. She hadn’t expected to actually arrive here through some kind of time-space pod—turns out, her past dreams of other worlds and this current mess were two totally different things.
But just how many Chosen Ones came this time? Jill activated Xiao Jingzhe’s secret detection technique—her eyes shimmered with a faint golden glow as she scanned the area.
To the left, that so-called "Captain" and their crew were over there. Jill craned her neck, peeking through the gaps in the crowd—looked like three or four people had a faint glow about them. The crowd was packed so tight, Jill’s height didn’t help her get a better view among all the mixed ages and genders, so she couldn’t see clearly.
Up ahead, Jasper Xiao was there—easy to spot. With all the people in the way, it was impossible to tell if there were any more Chosen Ones.
To the right, that loudmouthed kid had already been tackled to the ground. A bunch of burly guys jumped him—one covered his mouth, others pinned his arms and legs, twisting him into all sorts of positions, basically doing everything they could to shut him up. The young guy ended up slapping the floor and begging for mercy, totally subdued. But even with all that tough-guy action, you could see the fear and panic in their eyes. It was like they were hiding from something huge—so much so that even someone yelling was enough to freak them out.
Clearly, these folks were in a bad spot, but for now it had nothing to do with Jill. Jasper Xiao was already stepping in to negotiate, obviously trying to rescue the loudmouth from the human pile-on. Jill shrugged and decided to keep observing—she really didn’t want to be stuck here a second longer than necessary.
But just then, something felt off.
There was wind on the back of her neck.
Wind itself wasn’t weird. The place looked rough, but it had ventilation, plus a bunch of giant fans. And with so many people moving around, there was bound to be some air movement.
But Jill’s face grew serious—what she felt was breath, someone’s actual breathing. The way it hit her neck, judging by the angle and strength, the person behind her had to be a tall man, standing really close. The problem was—she hadn’t sensed anyone behind her at all!
With all her abilities—Clear Sight in Snow, Rain Listening, Subtle Touch—Jill could sense everything around her, like the environment was reflected perfectly in her mind. Even places she couldn’t see, she could count heads by sound alone. She could even sense a mouse scurrying twenty meters away by the wall—nothing escaped her.
But! Until the instant she felt that breath on her neck, Jill hadn’t sensed a single thing behind her!
Not a whiff of anything strange, not a hint of a presence, not even the tiniest sense of threat! Even if Jill tried to sense it now, she couldn’t hear the person’s heartbeat—no matter how closely she listened, all she got was her own. It was like the guy behind her was just a tree or a stone pillar: there, but so harmless Jill let her guard down completely.
Even her well-trained instincts for danger were completely useless against this guy!
To put it another way: if this guy wanted to ambush her, she’d already be toast. When did the Chosen Ones get someone this good? And—Jill’s expression darkened—why the hell was this jerk standing so close? No matter how crowded it was, it wasn’t rush-hour subway crowded—dude, you’re practically glued to me! Are you messing with me, you creep? Trying to get fresh, you perv? Or are you auditioning to be my personal ghost?!
[This chapter isn’t over yet~ Click next page to keep reading the good stuff!]
Suddenly, Jill spun around. She moved so fast the people nearby barely registered a blur before Jill had already leapt back three steps, fists up and ready. In a split second, her energy was at its peak—her slim frame radiated a storm-like aura, and her lightning glare was so fierce even the bystanders felt a chill. Didn’t matter how tough the guy behind her was—if he dared get fresh, he was getting a thunder punch!
But the moment Jill saw the person behind her, all that fierce energy froze solid—she turned to stone, stuck in place. Eyes wide, mouth open, neck craned, Jill lost all composure, looking like she’d seen a ghost. No—if it was a ghost, she’d just punch it, no problem. But... this guy really shocked her!
Standing there was a man about twenty-five or twenty-six, just over six feet tall, dressed in kung fu clothes. He was tall, good-looking, with sharp eyebrows, bright eyes, and a straight nose. Just standing there, he had this calm, collected vibe—like a pine tree standing tall, or a bell sitting steady. His posture and build were striking. And he looked... weirdly familiar. Really, really familiar...
"No, no way, absolutely not, I must be seeing things. Yeah, definitely seeing things!" Jill squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head like mad, as if trying to fling the hallucination away. After two deep breaths, she looked again—same guy, same look, nothing changed!
Something’s fishy, seriously fishy! How could I see someone like this here? There’s no mirror in front of me! Actually, even if there was, I wouldn’t see someone like this! I mean, right now I’m Jill Young—there’s no way I’d see the person I used to see in the mirror for so many years! Hahaha, this is nuts. Wait, what was his name again? Uh, it’s Jack Young, obviously Jack Young, because that’s me—
You gotta be kidding me!
What the heck is going on here? Seriously, what is this? Wait—maybe it’s disguise, or an illusion! Jill suddenly had a eureka moment, slapped her palm, and reached out to pinch the guy’s face. He didn’t react at all, just let her pinch away. The skin was warm, real, and the pulse matched hers exactly—no wonder she couldn’t hear another heartbeat. Ha, mystery solved! That’s great—
You gotta be kidding me!
No way this guy is me! I’d never just stand there like a dummy and let someone pinch my face! Hold on, technically, ‘me’ isn’t really ‘someone else’—I mean, I am me, so pinching my own face isn’t exactly something I’d dodge, right? Thinking about it, it makes sense why I didn’t sense any threat—who’s ever worried about their own foot kicking themselves?
But—still!
No matter how you slice it, this makes zero sense...
Jill suddenly felt all her strength drain away, like reality had just sucker-punched her. She staggered, wobbling on her feet. Not far off, Jasper Xiao noticed something was up and frowned, "Hey, what’s going on? Something wrong?" Jill’s weird behavior had him worried, and he started to come over, but just then, a heavy rumble echoed through the shelter.
The rumble hit so suddenly, shaking the whole place. Everyone instantly tensed up, pressing together even tighter, faces twisted in indescribable fear. Clearly, the sound meant something terrifying, and even the Chosen Ones went on high alert.
The only two not reacting were Jill and the maybe-Jack Young guy. Jill was still in meltdown mode, and the guy just stood there like a statue, face totally calm, not a single expression.
"Heh, hehehe..." Jill suddenly laughed. "Never thought I’d see ‘you’ in a situation like this. Uh, no, I mean ‘me.’ Uh, that’s even weirder—let’s just stick with ‘you.’" She’d confirmed it, because she grabbed the guy’s left hand and checked. Under Jill’s gaze, a golden image appeared in his palm—a profile portrait of herself.
With the image linking both sides, it was clear—this guy wasn’t a fake. The two profile sigils were perfectly connected. This man was Jack Young. He was her other self!