"Little girl, why are you in my room?"
I asked, but the woman before me looked exhausted and deeply pained. After pulling up her pants and flushing the toilet, she passed straight through my body. I stared in shock, unable to touch her—she seemed to treat me like air. I chased after her, using my power to investigate, but discovered she didn't seem to exist at all, just air—yet I could see her.
The girl climbed into bed, pulled the covers over herself, and curled up, looking utterly miserable. Her face was twisted in anguish, as if something terrible had happened to her.
There was no time to think. I called my dad and told him what happened here. He said he'd be back in half an hour. I watched the girl on the bed, and after a while, she suddenly broke into a radiant smile. She leapt up, ran to the door, flung it open, and shouted with excitement. I looked out and saw her slowly fade away in the hallway.
But half an hour passed and my dad still hadn't come back. I sighed, lay on the bed, and kept waiting. I called him again, but the call didn't go through. It was then I realized the internet was down, my phone had no signal, and the TV was dead too.
I could only keep waiting. Around midnight, I grew sleepy again. It felt much quieter outside, and nothing strange happened that night. I slept straight through till morning.
The sound of wind howled. When I woke up, I found the window had opened at some point, letting the wind pour in. Startled, I got up to close it, only to see it was snowing outside—snowflakes piled thick on the ice, completely covering the road. Normally, people from the shops would be out clearing the snow early, but now, though it was already past nine, no one was around.
I went out to find the boss, but he wasn’t there. I ran outside and looked around—the whole town seemed frozen, buried in snow. Some houses were half-covered by snowflakes. I searched everywhere for half an hour and came to a shocking realization: there was no one here.
After a while, I was completely certain—I was the only one here. I walked along the highway to the parking lot and found a few cars. In a nearby shop, I found a car key and had no choice but to drive out. I had no idea what happened while I was sleeping last night.
Driving slowly along the snow-covered road, I tried to recall what happened last night. Except for seeing that girl, nothing strange had occurred.
The wind and snow were fierce, the road buried in drifts. I struggled to drive, barely able to see through the thick fog.
After driving for a while, I vaguely saw houses in the distance and sped up a little.
With a screech, I slammed on the brakes—the car skidded and slid sideways across the highway. I opened the door and stared at the small town now buried in snow. I was back in Fengxuechuan. Glancing back at the snowy, mist-shrouded road, I smiled helplessly.
"It really is the number nine... Sigh, I guess I’ll just head back for now."
I hurried back to my room—everything strange began there. Thinking about the girl from last night, her face showed a deep loneliness, the kind that comes from being alone for a long time, numb to everything. But then she’d run out, overjoyed, and vanished.
Remembering how our bodies collided, and how hers had passed right through mine—I couldn't touch her. She was just like an image, yet she could pull up the covers and lie down. That detail still amazes me.
"Maybe the places she and I were in got swapped."
Thinking about everything that happened, I realized this must be some kind of space—probably just like that small town. My stomach rumbled, so I decided to look for something to eat.
Sure enough, in the boss’s kitchen, I found a fridge packed with fresh food. Not sure what else to do, I made myself something to eat. Afterward, I felt much better. I sat at the door, watching the endless snow fall, and smiled helplessly.
Things have come to this, so I’m not in a rush. I’ve been through this sort of thing before. Now all I can hope is that my dad finds something—or that I find something in this space myself.
After staying inside for a while, I went out and wandered the town. Most places were buried under heavy snow, making the roads hard to walk. After circling the town, I returned to the riverside. It was just past noon, and the snow had stopped. Staring at the snow piled on the ice, I felt a sense of wonder and went down to the river. There was still thick snow by the water, but stones lay beneath it. I carefully walked along the river’s edge.
Unconsciously, I saw what looked like another town in the distance. Excited, I didn’t hesitate and stepped onto the ice. If it cracked, I could fly away in an instant.
The ice wasn’t as thin as I expected, so I ran quickly. Gradually, I realized the town ahead was still far away—I’d been running for over ten minutes and hadn’t reached it. I stopped and looked back; the town behind me was swallowed by fog, already far off. I decided not to go further. It was like a mirage, something I could run toward forever but never reach.
But somehow, after walking for a long time, the town ahead was still shrouded in mist. Shivering, I stood on the ice and accepted the truth—I couldn’t go back. Both towns I could see were like this.
After leaving the ice, I walked along the river road, but the result was the same. Frustrated, I spread my wings and flew, but no matter how fast I went, I couldn’t reach the town.
I tried calling out to Coexistence, hoping it would help me see what was different, but got no response. Even my own Instinctive Rebirth was silent, as if asleep—though I could still use my powers.
After a while, exhausted, I stopped. Time ticked by. I found a sheltered spot and sat beside a lamppost, the wind slicing past, cold as ice.
"If I’d known, I wouldn’t have come out."
Time passed, the sky darkened, and it grew colder. I could only rely on my powers to keep warm. By night, snow began to fall again. Suddenly, I saw a light—I jumped up and ran toward the bright town, getting closer and closer. I thought I could make it, so I ran across the ice.
"Who are you?"
Suddenly, a voice came from above me. Startled, I looked up—it was me. I stared in disbelief and then replied.
"I’m you."
Dazed, the winged version of me above disappeared. I remembered this scene from a dream. Now, the town seemed to move closer. Cold and hungry, I returned to the empty town, my head a mess.
Dreams I’d had before started replaying. I had no idea what was happening or why things had turned so strange and baffling.
I went back to the hotel, cooked a meal, and, feeling better, soaked in the hot spring in my room.
Though everything was still chaotic, I remembered what Zhou Ping had said—the layout of this place was very strange.
Suddenly, I rose from the bath. If I couldn’t reach the distant town during the day, maybe I could do it at night.
I rushed out, spread my wings, and flew over the river. Sure enough, I saw dim lights in the distance and quickly flew toward them. Soon, I reached a bustling town. I remembered—I’d driven from this town full of people to the empty one that morning. Elated, I entered the lively streets by the riverbank. But I found that everyone here had no faces. I shouted several times, but none of them could hear me. When I tried to touch them, my hand passed right through as if they were ghosts.
I went back to my hotel—it was just like the empty town. Then I visited the place next door and saw a chessboard, the same one I’d seen in my dreams, where my dad and Bo Ziran played chess.
Black and white pieces were still on the board. Though I didn’t understand the game, it wasn’t finished yet. I could touch everything in the room, but when I was about to touch the chessboard, I stopped—Fan Xiaoran had warned me in my dream not to touch it, so I decided not to.
But the whole town was full of faceless people. It was deeply unsettling. The two towns seemed opposed, but their buildings were identical. After arriving at this town, I’d come in from outside—strangely, it felt as if the world had turned during my flight.
Unable to stand the noise and the faceless people, I returned to the empty town. Exhausted from a cold, hungry day, I soon fell asleep.