Indeed, it was Minister Wang.

The middle-aged woman in the photo was the one who had been in charge of the Jiangcheng branch for the past fifteen years.

Ji Yushi was certain of this, as he had memories from both timelines.

As for Song Qinglan, just as he had mentioned earlier in the car, it was during the Ouroboros mission when he saw that woman suddenly appear, that he unlocked a crucial memory, and the events of the previous cycle came rushing back to him.

The moment Song Qinglan saw Minister Wang’s photo, his memories flooded in, and the previously blurred impressions became clear.

Like a slow-motion film, the memories layered themselves frame by frame in Song Qinglan’s mind.

The invasive intensity of it made Song Qinglan’s head feel like it was going to explode. From the moment he joined Sky, a new set of memories began forming, covering nearly a thousand days of experiences, replacing and refreshing all the people and events in his mind. Yet, the pre-existing memories did not disappear.

“Captain Song!”

A distant voice called out.

“Captain Song!”

The voice gradually drew closer, until it was right in front of him.

Song Qinglan snapped back to reality, finding himself with his elbow on the counter, fingers pressed against his temple, his forehead already covered in a light layer of sweat as he breathed rapidly.

Amidst the chaos, he looked up to see Ji Yushi’s furrowed brow and concerned eyes.

“How are you?” Ji Yushi asked anxiously, “Why did you suddenly stop talking?”

So this is the kind of pain Ji Yushi usually endures?

It’s even worse than the aftereffects of the first time travel mission, because this is true memory overload.

Song Qinglan’s head throbbed as if it were being pierced by needles: “Damn, about Minister Wang… it all just came back to me.”

Ji Yushi was stunned: “You remembered?! Was it after seeing the photo?”

The pain made Song Qinglan irritable: “Yes! As soon as I saw the photo, I remembered everything.”

Just like how Ji Yushi had remembered after seeing Minister Qi.

The kitchen fell quiet for a moment.

Having witnessed so many unbelievable things, the two of them weren’t particularly shocked by Song Qinglan’s sudden flood of new memories. Instead, they both felt a slight chill.

If Ji Yushi, like them, had forgotten Minister Wang, Song Qinglan wouldn’t have specifically looked up the information, and they would never have discovered the differences in the world. But Ji Yushi remembered—whether it was because of his hyperthymesia or some other reason, Ji Yushi was like a bug, a dividing line in the world.

Just imagine, what would have happened to them without Ji Yushi?

Where exactly are they?

What is going on?

After recalling everything, Song Qinglan didn’t have time to think too much or waste words.

Despite the headache, he forced himself to speak his thoughts: “So in another reality, for fifteen years, it was Minister Wang, and it was Minister Wang who sent us on the mission—that’s now beyond doubt. I think, for now, we can stop worrying about which reality we’re in, because that’s not the most important question.”

Ji Yushi suddenly understood Song Qinglan’s point: “Because regardless of which reality, we shouldn’t have dual memories!”

If the timeline had been overwritten after the butterfly effect, then the memories should also have been overwritten. Therefore, no matter which reality they were in, they should only have one set of memories. Yet, they remembered both.

Understanding this might explain why, even if they really had entered a parallel world, they hadn’t encountered another version of themselves.

One self, two sets of memories.

There must be countless connections between them.

Wang Xiaoqian’s file was still open.

Song Qinglan scrolled down the page: “Consultant Ji, look at this.”

The more complete file stated the reason for Wang Xiaoqian’s resignation—mild schizophrenia.

Ji Yushi was astonished. How could the intelligent and wise Minister Wang suffer from such a condition?

Before he could think further, the research projects Wang had worked on caught his attention: A study on the creation of bubble worlds within a timeline.

Bubble worlds.

In the concept of time anchors, those loops are known as time bubbles.

They exist outside the timeline, forming their own world, and if used, they could cause severe time paradoxes.

Research on time anchors had been explicitly banned, yet Minister Wang had once conducted such research.

Ji Yushi’s gaze returned to the words “schizophrenia,” and a thought flashed through his mind—parallel worlds, bubbles, schizophrenia… this tangled mess seemed to have a sliver of clarity.

In his uncertain and suspicious state, he heard Song Qinglan ask, “Do you think Minister Wang might also have dual memories?”

Ji Yushi: “…I don’t know.”

Song Qinglan rubbed his temples and murmured, “We might need to find her. What do you think?”

Song Qinglan made several calls, contacting many people, and finally confirmed Minister Wang’s location.

It was in a sanatorium in Jiangcheng, which meant they would need to return to Jiangcheng.

With a preliminary plan in place, it was already late at night.

Ji Yushi found a new set of toiletries for Song Qinglan, preparing to have him stay over. Since this apartment was close to the school, Ji Minyue would occasionally stay over, so there was a guest room.

Song Qinglan entered the bathroom.

The clean bathroom cabinet held only one toothbrush, one cup, and even the towels and other items were for just one person.

He couldn’t help but wonder if Ji Yushi never had his partners stay over.

What was this new partner like?

Ji Yushi was aloof and held grudges; it seemed like something he might do—cut ties and deny past relationships.

Song Qinglan washed his face with cold water. Despite the lack of sleep, he was still wide awake, thanks to that cup of coffee. The aftereffects of the memory overlap still lingered, and his head was still aching when he inadvertently noticed the laundry basket nearby.

Entering someone else’s living space inevitably reveals traces of their life.

There wasn’t much in the woven laundry basket—just a set of clothes that hadn’t been washed yet, with a hint of black fabric peeking out.

It was a pair of black underwear.

Suddenly, Song Qinglan’s heart skipped a beat.

Maybe it was because he had entered someone else’s private space, and his gaze had fallen on their intimate belongings, but he couldn’t help but recall the glimpse of Ji Yushi’s pale, slender waist and abdomen he had seen in the training room at Sky before they departed.

Song Qinglan gritted his teeth and shook off the image, washing his face again.

The feeling he had downstairs while listening to Ji Yushi talk about his romantic history returned, leaving him agitated.

Song Qinglan sensed that something was slipping out of control, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it.

Had he really traveled all the way from one city to another just to help Ji Yushi sort out his thoughts and figure out if they were in a parallel world?

If not, then what kind of feedback was he hoping to receive?

“Knock, knock.”

The bathroom door was tapped.

Song Qinglan wiped his face with a towel and opened the door: “What’s up?”

Ji Yushi looked a bit awkward: “Sorry…”

He helplessly explained a ridiculous fact, “My guest room is gone.”

Song Qinglan asked in confusion, “Gone?”

The guest room that Ji Yushi remembered no longer existed. It had been cleared out and was now completely empty, with nothing left inside.

The two of them stood in the doorway of the empty room, speechless.

“When I opened the door, I suddenly remembered that I once planned to organize all my books and turn this room into a study.” Ji Yushi said, “But I didn’t realize that in this reality, I had already done it. I haven’t opened this door since I got back.”

Song Qinglan: “…”

He suddenly had a bad feeling.

Ji Yushi asked, “Captain Song, can you sleep on the sofa?”

That messy sofa.

Song Qinglan’s face darkened.

Ji Yushi thought he was dissatisfied with the idea of sleeping on the sofa, so he reluctantly offered another option, generously saying, “Otherwise, if you don’t mind, you can sleep in my room, and I’ll sleep on the sofa.”

Since he was the one who invited the guest, making someone sleep on the sofa wasn’t very considerate.

But with Song Qinglan’s so-called PTSD, would he really be willing to sleep in his bed? Ji Yushi doubted it.

The room?

That wasn’t much better.

Song Qinglan did mind.

Since he was already here, he couldn’t just leave now, so Song Qinglan compromised, “Forget it, I’ll sleep on the sofa.”

Ji Yushi agreed and then said, “Well, goodnight.”

Song Qinglan: “Goodnight.”

The atmosphere was a bit strange.

They had known each other for so long, yet it seemed like this was the first time they had interacted so politely.

Ji Yushi had never expected that they would have any contact after the mission ended, let alone under these circumstances.

Song Qinglan asked, “Will you be able to sleep well tonight?”

Ji Yushi: “Hmm?”

What did he mean?

Song Qinglan lowered his gaze and suddenly smiled: “It seems like I haven’t been much help. This time, I forced my analysis on you, and it was all stuff you already understood. At best, I helped you organize your thoughts, but it wasn’t really useful. The only thing that might have been helpful is that I also remembered Minister Wang, which at least proves that you’re not crazy.”

Ji Yushi was momentarily stunned, unsure of how to respond: “…”

Song Qinglan concluded, “Get a good rest tonight. Don’t think about anything else. Tomorrow morning, I’ll stop by my grandfather’s house, and then we’ll head to Jiangcheng.”

An hour later, the room was quiet; Ji Yushi had fallen asleep.

Song Qinglan lay on the sofa, staring at the ceiling.

He couldn’t sleep. This world was far more complicated than he had imagined. He was even considering the possibility that they might be in a sub-mission set by another Sky system.

That possibility was terrifying.

In the darkness, something gently jumped onto the sofa.

Song Qinglan sat up and found it was Ji Yushi’s cat.

At some point, it had escaped from the cat house Ji Yushi had locked it in.

This orange cat, which had been hostile to Song Qinglan earlier, hissing and spitting, was now just silently staring at him.

It made no sound, seemingly observing Song Qinglan, as if it were about to pounce and tear him apart.

Song Qinglan sat up and met its gaze, his eyes narrowing slightly. He sensed something was wrong.

His tall stature usually made him quite intimidating; even the family dog would tuck its tail between its legs when faced with him like this. But the cat didn’t blink, its eyes glowing softly.

At that moment, the light from the rooftop of the tall buildings outside swept into the room.

Song Qinglan noticed a shadow through the crack under the door of the living room.

Years of training had honed his danger instincts, and Song Qinglan immediately and silently stepped barefoot onto the floor, moving without a sound.

He approached the door and then looked through the peephole.

The green glow of the hallway’s safety light was faintly visible.

There, standing in front of Ji Yushi’s door, was the neighbor lady they had encountered in the elevator, dressed in her pajamas, staring at the apartment with a blank expression, much like the cat.