"Are you truly certain you want to return to your Infinite Cycle?"
Quentin Kwan looked at me nervously, a trace of loneliness in his eyes. I knew he feared I wouldn't come back after returning, leaving him utterly stranded.
"Don't worry, I promise I'll come back."
Even with my reassurance, Quentin Kwan still hesitated. He must have sensed something instinctual within me—after our union in this cycle, the sudden darkness that appeared had caught his attention. Even Quentin himself couldn't make sense of it, but my arrival triggered this anomaly, likely because my instincts resonated with the anomaly in the Infinite Cycle.
Quentin Kwan slumped to the ground, looking utterly dejected. I waited quietly as the Eye of Time began to pull me back. Soon, thin white threads appeared on my skin, multiplying rapidly. I saw the world around me start to rewind, everything seeming impossibly strange. Quentin was already back in the cycle, having erased his own memories.
As the white threads wrapped tighter and faster around me, my consciousness began to blur. I chose to return to the Infinite Cycle to find Past Ethan Justice and Future Ethan Zhang, to tell them everything, and even seek help from John Chou in the dream realm.
Gradually, I lost consciousness. In a haze, I saw blue skies and white clouds. When I opened my eyes, I was indeed back in that forest. I looked around—no sign of anyone. From the distant village drifted the aroma of food, making my stomach growl.
But for now, I didn't plan to go to the village. I kept waiting here, found a spot to sit, and quietly waited for Past Ethan Justice and Future Ethan Zhang to appear. Though they'd vanished before, as long as I remained in the Infinite Cycle, they should be able to find me.
After a while, I felt drowsy and lay down. Before finding a solution, I didn't intend to enter Quentin Kwan's Infinite Cycle. Eli Lear had created this cycle that could connect to Quentin's Infinite Cycle, but it seemed he himself couldn't find a way to help his father escape.
Soon I drifted into sleep, dreamless. These past few days hadn't drained my spirit at all. I wasn't sure what that meant—only that, upon returning to this cycle, I finally felt tired.
"Wake up, Rachel Lan."
With a gentle shake, I opened my sore eyes, startled to find it was already completely dark. I quickly wiped away my drool—I'd slept too deeply. Past Ethan Justice stood before me.
"What exactly happened in that cycle?"
Not far away, Future Ethan Zhang watched me with a grave expression. I stood up, delighted. Only later did I realize they'd sensed my presence and come to this cycle—they'd just arrived.
After I regained my composure, Past Ethan Justice brought me some food and drink. I ate quickly, rested a bit, then began to recount what had happened—about Eli Lear's birth and about Quentin Kwan.
"Now we can be sure of one thing: Eli Lear is not the child of the Green Wraith."
No sooner had I finished than Future Ethan Zhang reached a conclusion. Past Ethan Justice nodded and spoke.
"In this world, there is the concept of Divine Law, which is absolutely supreme. No matter what methods you use, escaping its punishment is impossible. You might evade it temporarily, but long-term escape is beyond anyone—unless you can step outside Divine Law. As far as I know, only revenants exist beyond it, because they are neither human nor ghost. Humans and ghosts are two opposite states of living beings, and Divine Law is the order of this world."
Sure enough, both Ethan Justices came to the same conclusion as I did: even if humans and ghosts can unite, they cannot create new life.
Such a thing has never happened throughout history—a human giving birth to a ghost's child.
Thinking back on the rumors surrounding Eli Lear's birth, I couldn't shake the feeling that something was quietly moving in the background.
"For now, you shouldn't enter that cycle."
Past Ethan Justice said this, and I nodded.
"That darkness that suddenly appeared and covered everything—what was it? I didn't feel a thing."
"Maybe it's related to the Unreal."
Future Ethan Zhang spoke, standing up and looking skyward, weighed down by something unspoken. Both Past Ethan Justice and I could sense it.
"If something's bothering you, it's better to say it."
Past Ethan Justice hesitated, but soon shook his head.
"It's better if you two don't know about this."
Past Ethan Justice stared at Future Ethan Zhang.
"If you know, then say it quickly."
I looked at Past Ethan Justice in confusion. He seemed unwilling to mention what he'd just spoken of. He glanced at me, then sat down cross-legged again, his expression gloomy.
"Is there something you can't talk about? If that's the case, then forget it."
As I spoke, Past Ethan Justice suddenly grabbed Future Ethan Zhang's shoulder.
"Say it. This might be directly related to Rachel Lan being trapped in this cycle, and to Eli Lear's father being trapped in that other cycle. You can't keep stalling—don't you see how serious things are?"
With that, Past Ethan Justice grabbed Future Ethan Zhang by the collar.
"Let me think it over."
I didn't intend to force Future Ethan Zhang to speak. Past Ethan Justice was furious. Future Ethan Zhang got up, left us, and sat alone in the distant woods, still deep in thought.
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"That bastard definitely knows something. With everything that's happened, I've suspected for a while—hasn't he already contacted this world's Ethan Justice multiple times?"
I gave a helpless smile.
After a while, Future Ethan Zhang finally came over, seeming to have made up his mind, and began to speak.
"Long ago, I killed the Wraithlord."
I swallowed hard. Past Ethan Justice smiled, then said:
"Me too. I also killed the Wraithlord. From the start, I guessed that only by killing the Wraithlord would the world reach its end. In both your world and mine, there's no future left—the world is already dead, nothing remains. My world is a bit better than yours; at least some people and ghosts survived."
Past Ethan Justice spoke with deep emotion. I looked at the two of them in astonishment—they'd both killed the Wraithlord, in their past and future worlds.
Future Ethan Zhang nodded.
"At the time, I knew exactly what killing the Wraithlord would mean. In the end, I chose to do it so Rachel Lan could survive."
I swallowed, unsure what to say to Future Ethan Zhang, or how to comfort him.
"You don't need to worry, Rachel Lan. The Rachel Lan I knew is the same person as you, but from a different world. So you're not the Rachel Lan I once knew. I'm helping you only because of Ethan Justice."
I smiled and patted Future Ethan Zhang on the shoulder.
Future Ethan Zhang continued speaking.
At that time, the world was already shattered and on the verge of collapse—everything was chaos. No matter how hard Future Ethan Zhang tried, he kept failing before the Wraithlord. Humans and ghosts alike died from the Wraithlord's power, and the world became uninhabitable. Rachel Lan was already pregnant, so Future Ethan Zhang could only keep moving her to places where survival was still possible.
But the Wraithlord was relentless, constantly hunting Future Ethan Zhang as if toying with him. In the end, the world was left with only Future Ethan Zhang, Future Rachel Lan, and the unborn child. The child had been in Rachel Lan's womb for many years, unable to be born—Future Rachel Lan used her power to protect it, because its birth would mean death.
There was nothing anyone could do. Future Ethan Zhang planned to die with Future Rachel Lan, to become nothingness. But at the crucial moment, Future Rachel Lan shook her head. She couldn't bear to see her unborn child die before ever seeing the world.
After much thought, Future Ethan Zhang chose suicide—all to defeat the Wraithlord. He became a ghost and finally killed the Wraithlord, ending everything. But after the Wraithlord died, the world quickly decayed, and his power began invading Rachel Lan's body. Future Rachel Lan's life was hanging by a thread. Driven by the instinct to protect new life, she struggled to find a way for the child to live a normal life after birth.
"I searched everywhere and finally met Tan Tian. He was already on the verge of death."
I stared in shock. Future Ethan Zhang held his head, as if the memory was too painful. Having become an evil ghost, Future Ethan Zhang's power constantly threatened Rachel Lan's life. He could only keep his distance, unable to approach her.
"I see... Life is unpredictable. I'm different from you all—apart from friends and family, I have no lover, no child. Everything passes. But you still have a daughter, don't you? As long as she's alive, even if your world is down to just the two of you, even if it never ends, you and your daughter are still alive."