Sitting on the bed, chin in hand, Jill Young stared intently at the blockhead across from her, deep in thought mode.
Question one: How did Jack Young show up?
Answer: After carefully recalling that weird sensation inside the Time-Space Capsule, the conclusion is—"Jack Young was summoned here." Of course, 'summoned' is just a figure of speech, but look at the Protective Sachet Dad gave me—the umbilical cord powder inside really has disappeared. The umbilical cord is the most primal bond between people, and using a split umbilical cord as a medium to pull Jack out from some mysterious dimension is honestly the only explanation I can come up with right now. And that full-body exhaustion I felt when I first arrived in this world? Probably the price paid for summoning Jack Young.
Question two: Next time I enter another world, will Jack Young show up again?
Answer: Who the heck knows!
Question three: He didn't get any verbal command just now, so why did he suddenly show up to give me a bath?
Answer: Probably because our minds are linked. Even though he's basically sleepwalking right now, our subconsciouses are still connected. Like, I had this random thought—"Wow, having two bodies is awesome, you can even help each other take a bath, how convenient!"—and his subconscious probably picked up on, or even generated, the same idea. At the end of the day, the two of us are like the two poles of a magnet: totally different on the surface, but actually one and the same.
Question four: If we're supposed to be one and the same, then why the hell can't I stand him looking at me?!
Answer: Now that's actually a pretty interesting question. The best guess I have right now is that Jack is in a sleepwalking state, with his mind all foggy and out of it. It's like if your left hand suddenly wouldn't listen to you and started doing its own thing—you'd be on guard even though it's technically yours. If we really were like the Six Paths of Pain from Naruto, sharing senses and controlled by a single godlike will, then I guess this awkwardness wouldn't happen.
But then again, that's not the whole story. When we were working together to escape that giant monster, the sense of coordination went way beyond any so-called 'teamwork' or 'psychic connection.' In that moment, we really were one. No words, no looks, no hints needed—everything just clicked, totally seamless.
Looking at Jack Young now is kind of like watching a video of yourself sleepwalking—you're surprised and amused by all the weird stuff you did, but deep down, you get why you did it. It's not like you were possessed or controlled by something else. That was still you.
"Bottom line, gotta keep an eye on this guy. If things go well, he's a big help. But if things go south, this so-called 'guy who wouldn't even fight back if stabbed' could end up being my Achilles' heel..." Jill Young really doesn't care about what would happen if the blockhead died—hand or back, it's all flesh and blood. Anyone who tries to hurt Jack Young is dead meat!
OK, no more lingering questions. Thought mode: off. Sleep mode: on!
Fatigue hit hard. Jill Young stretched, wrapped herself in the blanket, and closed her eyes. Even though she was in a strange place, she didn't bother being paranoid—her instincts said she was safe, so three breaths later, she was out like a light. Jack Young, sitting on the sofa, glanced at her, then went still. His half-closed eyes were unfocused—who knows if he was just zoning out or quietly keeping watch. Still, his eyes opened just a little wider.
When Jill Young woke up, it was already three in the morning. She'd only slept a few hours, but felt totally refreshed. "Alright, it's about time." Jill waved her hand: "Go, bring that guy down—we're gonna interrogate him!"
Jack Young turned and dashed out, leaping off the balcony straight to the rooftop. Three breaths later, he dragged a short, chubby guy into the room—the same 'helpful' guy from earlier. He tossed the tied-up fatty onto the floor, and Jill Young ripped the tape off his mouth, grinning: "Sober now? Time for a little chat."
At that moment, the chubby guy looked at the two of them like he was staring at demons—pure, indescribable terror. Earlier, Jill Young had marinated him, then hung him upside-down from the eaves. He'd spent hours swinging in the wind, ten stories up, blood rushing to his head, stomach churning, wanting to puke but couldn't, wanting to run but couldn't, stuck between heaven and hell. Tried to struggle, but was scared the rope on his feet wouldn't hold.
After all, the rope was just a prop from this love hotel—not some wuxia-grade beef tendon cord. Usually, it's just for tying up light girls. If a guy weighing a hundred kilos goes overboard, he's toast. He finally got it—the Queen didn't care if he lived or died. Even if he died like a martyr, it wouldn't earn him any regret from his captors.
Scared out of his wits and aching all over, after hours of hanging upside-down, the chubby guy was now the very definition of 'fear.' Seeing Jill Young ready to show mercy, he didn't care about his weak limbs—he flipped over and crawled on the ground, banging his head: "Mercy, Your Majesty!"
"You answer what I ask. You give what I want." Jill Young had zero mercy for guys trying to hit on her: "Whether you live or die depends on your attitude." Her tone was calm and natural, but the chubby guy was shaking like a leaf.
Ten minutes later, Jill Young had gotten everything she wanted.
Forget the cash and trinkets—the main thing was intel about this world. Geographically, it's exactly the same as Earth from her original world. Still called Earth, still has China, the US, Russia, all the same countries, same seven continents and four oceans, same orbit and rotation. Basically, 2013 here is just like 2013 back home. But everything changed that year.
That year, a giant monster attacked the United States, and history veered onto a totally different track. These monsters—tens of meters tall, weighing thousands of tons—brought unimaginable destruction and disaster to humanity. And unlike the Godzilla movie, these weren't just random freak events. It was more like an Ultraman episode—giant monsters popping up all the time, launching wave after wave of attacks on major cities. From then on, humanity, as a single species, was locked in a survival war against another.
These giant beasts are called 'kaiju.' Sure, it's not the most original name, but hey, it's way better than calling them 'butt-bloomers.'
"Kaiju, huh..." Jill Young stared at the ceiling, lost in thought, then muttered, "So did humanity invent some new weapon? Like, a super-giant robot so pilots can slug it out with kaiju, fist to claw?"
"Exactly! Mecha Hunter!"
"And then they brawl it out in cities all around the Pacific Rim, right? Figures..." Jill Young shook her head and sighed nostalgically, "It's just like Pacific Rim... My very first IMAX movie..."
Jill Young remembered that movie vividly. Back in July 2013, she'd bought two tickets to see it with Dummy Meng. But Dummy Meng quit her job and disappeared without a word, and a super-bummed Jack Young didn't ask anyone else to go. He went alone, traded both tickets for one IMAX seat. Still remembered showing up late, getting a terrible seat in the second row. All movie long, you had to pick: watch the action or read the subtitles, but not both—neck sore for days.
So yeah, it really stuck with her.
"No," the chubby guy shook his head, getting all worked up, "it's not just the Pacific Rim. There's the Atlantic Rim, Indian Ocean Rim, even the Mediterranean Rim—those damn kaiju are everywhere! London, Athens, Cairo—so many cities have been wrecked! It's divine punishment, and sinners like us can't escape it!"
Then the chubby guy realized he'd sounded a bit too cocky, so he instantly shrank back and forced a smile: "Boss, how'd I do...?"
"Meh, so-so." Jill Young curled her lip, about to ask more questions, when Jack Young suddenly turned to look out the window. Three breaths later, Jill sensed it too. She heard a noise—a weird mix of explosions, collapsing buildings, and rumbling. Instinctively, they exchanged a look, then both jumped out the window and raced to the roof. At the same time, the whole city erupted in a piercing alarm, like an air raid siren.
In the night sky, the two of them darted across rooftops, one after the other, and soon reached the tallest building nearby. Looking out, they saw it—the giant kaiju was back. This time, it seemed injured, blue blood spurting from a massive wound. The blood even glowed in the dark, sparkling and beautiful—but the prettier something looks, the deadlier it is. The kaiju charged at them with unstoppable force, like it was ready to flatten the whole city.
The planes overhead could barely tickle it, and tanks on the ground popped like balloons under its feet. Crowds of people flooded the streets, screaming as they ran for the nearest shelters. But the chaos seemed to catch the kaiju's eye, and it thundered down the main road. Its primal killing intent made everyone's legs go weak—there was nothing left that could stop it.
Just then, Jill Young's eyes lit up as she looked behind her. Through blinding searchlights and deafening noise, a giant appeared on the other side of the main road—the legendary Mecha Hunter. It strode toward the kaiju, and as fate would have it, the kaiju spotted its enemy and charged. People on the street dove for cover as the eighty-meter-tall Mecha Hunter started to sprint: one step, two steps, then a full-on charge.
With a quake that shook the earth, the two titans finally collided. The instant they crashed, Jill Young was right on top of a nearby building. Seeing that ten-thousand-ton punch slam into the kaiju's head, feeling the shockwave whip her hair back, experiencing the brutal battle up close—something no movie could ever capture—Jill's eyes went wide with excitement. She pointed and shouted, "That thing—I'm calling dibs!"