When they parted ways, no one expected it to be the real end, and certainly, no one anticipated reuniting so soon.

Five of the seven members of Team 7 were now together, but Duan Wen and Zhou Mingxuan were still missing.

Duan Wen had arrived at the rehabilitation center before them, so Song Qinglan asked, “Where’s Old Zhou?”

The five of them quickly made their way to the rehabilitation center.

Whether it was the “six-person rule” or the interference caused by self-observation, once they put on their simulated faces, it was as if they had instantly severed their connection with this world’s “consciousness.”

The streets were already filled with panic, and though they were walking briskly, no one paid them any attention.

When Song Qinglan posed the question, the others fell silent.

Even Ji Yushi found this odd.

“What happened?” Song Qinglan’s tone grew more serious.

No one knew Zhou Mingxuan better than Song Qinglan. They had enlisted together, trained as special forces, and eventually became Guardians side by side. While Zhou Mingxuan liked to joke around, he was, next to Duan Wen, one of the most level-headed members of the team.

They stepped down the stairs, brushing past several ghostly human figures.

As they crossed a side street, a group of protestors approached, chased by police cars, with screams echoing everywhere.

Tang Qi said, “He might not be coming back.”

Song Qinglan stopped in his tracks.

Unlike Ji Yushi, the others were ordinary people, and when they had overlapping memories from two realities, it was easy to ignore one of them. Song Qinglan recalled Zhou Mingxuan’s life in the bubble world — it was significantly different from his life in the original reality, and what had changed was deeply important to Zhou Mingxuan: in this world, Zhou Mingxuan’s only family member, his grandmother, was still alive.

Song Qinglan remembered that in the original reality, due to Guardian training, Zhou Mingxuan didn’t have a regular schedule for returning home. After one three-day training session, he had come home to find that his grandmother had passed away. It was a long-standing regret for Zhou Mingxuan, one that he rarely spoke of. But in this world, he had been given a second chance.

In the bubble world, changes weren’t frightening, nor was gaining things one didn’t originally have, such as Li Chun’s girlfriend, Tang Qi and Tang Le’s extra sister, or Duan Wen’s wife and children.

What was truly terrifying was when the bubble world allowed someone to experience the feeling of regaining something precious after fate had taken it away.

Zhou Mingxuan’s situation was strikingly similar to Ji Yushi’s.

Even Ji Yushi, who had always been extraordinarily calm and had completed many recorder missions, struggled with the temptation. So how could the impulsive, hot-blooded Zhou Mingxuan resist?

“We went to Zhou’s house to find him,” Tang Le continued, picking up where his brother left off. “His grandmother is not in good health and needs someone to take care of her.”

“But it’s all fake!” Li Chun couldn’t help but exclaim. “Why doesn’t Zhou understand that? Damn it!”

“It’s not that he doesn’t understand,” Song Qinglan suddenly interjected. “It’s just that letting go is too hard. He needs someone to pull him out.”

Ji Yushi unconsciously clenched his hand.

Though Song Qinglan wasn’t looking at him, Ji Yushi could still feel the lingering sensation of that strong hand pulling him back.

Song Qinglan added, “Let’s leave it for now. We’ll discuss it after we meet up with Old Duan.”

They soon arrived at the rehabilitation center, and the sight before them was astonishing. Patients were running wildly, nurses were chasing after them, and family members were frantically arriving to take their loved ones home. It was chaos.

Ghostly figures from the other world had appeared on the lawn, by the fountain — the figures were clearer here than outside. The human ghosts stood still, allowing their facial features and expressions to be clearly seen. Some patients had even found their other selves and were shouting incoherently at their ghosts.

What further convinced Team 7 that everything was related to Director Wang was the fact that not only were ghostly human figures appearing at the rehabilitation center, but ghostly plants, buildings, doors, and windows were also clearly visible. It wasn’t just an apparition anymore; it was a physical reality.

The overlap of the two realities was centered here, spreading outward to the rest of the world.

Song Qinglan glanced at his watch and urged, “Let’s move quickly!”

Everyone picked up the pace.

Ji Yushi knew why Song Qinglan was rushing.

Sky Vault from this reality had likely already identified the source of the overlap. Song Qinglan had been keeping time ever since receiving Sky Vault’s emergency call, estimating how long it would take for Sky Vault to arrive.

“Captain Song!” Ji Yushi asked, “How much time do we have left?”

They didn’t wait for the elevator, racing up the stairs two or three at a time.

Song Qinglan responded, “No more than ten minutes!”

“Bang—”

The door to the hospital room was flung open, and Duan Wen, who had been waiting inside, looked up sharply. “Captain Song! Consultant Ji!”

The group rushed inside.

The first thing Ji Yushi noticed was Director Wang sitting on the edge of the bed.

The once wise and kind-hearted female leader no longer looked as put-together as she used to.

Her hair was disheveled, and she wore a patient’s gown, staring blankly at a ghostly figure in the room. The figure was an old man with white hair, lounging in a single chair, sipping tea. Because time was frozen, the teacup remained pressed to his lips, unmoving.

“Director Wang!”

Song Qinglan strode forward and crouched in front of Director Wang, trying to get her attention.

But Director Wang remained unresponsive.

Duan Wen explained, “It’s no use. I’ve been here for a while, and she’s been like this the entire time. Damn it, I suspect the so-called treatment for schizophrenia here has only made things worse.”

Song Qinglan pressed a finger behind his ear, and the simulated face began to dissolve, revealing his original, deep-set features. “Can you recognize me?”

Director Wang finally looked down at him, but her expression didn’t change.

Having finally reached what they thought was the key figure in the situation, they realized that aside from confirming the overlap was centered on her, they had no further clues.

“Damn!” Li Chun cursed. “What did they do to Director Wang? She used to be a university professor before coming here! What is this?”

His words triggered a thought in Ji Yushi.

In the information Song Qinglan had gathered, it showed that in this reality, Director Wang was a professor of quantum physics, with research that even involved the bubble world.

Ji Yushi’s gaze swept across the room, scanning the overlapping objects to distinguish which ones belonged to this reality.

As a respected university professor, Director Wang had many personal items in the room, including some paper books. Ji Yushi’s eyes landed on a thin, transparent panel — Director Wang’s computer. He picked up the panel and unlocked it using Director Wang’s face, bypassing personal content to search for useful information.

“Captain Song!” Ji Yushi called out, “Look at this!”

A holographic projection activated.

Song Qinglan frowned. “What is this?”

The rest of the team looked, but no one understood.

The projection displayed numerous hastily written equations and diagrams, page after page, seemingly endless.

It felt like a déjà vu moment for the team, reminding them of when Ji Yushi had scribbled formulas in the space capsule during the Ouroboros mission.

Sure enough, Ji Yushi was the only one who could understand it. He quickly explained in simple terms, “It seems like Director Wang was calculating the differences in electromagnetic waves between the two worlds…”

“Electromagnetic waves?” Song Qinglan immediately thought of communication equipment. “Was she studying this?”

Ji Yushi swiped through the holographic projection, revealing two waveforms.

At first glance, the two waveforms looked identical, but upon closer inspection, there were subtle differences. The data stretched on endlessly, and the timestamps on the waveforms showed that Director Wang had been recording them for over fifteen years.

In other words, it was likely that Director Wang had accidentally detected the electromagnetic frequencies of the other world during her research, which led her to begin studying the bubble world.

“No… that’s not all…” Ji Yushi’s expression tightened, his black eyes reflecting the light of the projection, his voice tense but tinged with excitement. “We were right. Director Wang likely has two sets of memories, to some extent.”

Duan Wen said, “Wait, we have two sets of memories because there’s only one of us across two realities. Does that mean there’s only one Director Wang too?”

“No, only the seven of us are unique,” Ji Yushi explained. “After we saved Sky Vault’s Team 12, we inadvertently created a bubble world. Even if Team Leader Qi didn’t become the director, there were too many variables in this reality. Small discrepancies meant that Director Wang didn’t become the director here. What makes her special is that she’s the common variable for the seven of us. When we approach her, it causes this reality to become unstable.”

By saving Team 12 of Sky Vault, they had unknowingly created a time anchor over the past fifteen years, resulting in the formation of the bubble world.

Because of them, the bubble world came into existence.

It was fragile, dependent on reality. If they left it and returned to the time anchor, it would collapse and reset, forming a new bubble without ever fully evolving.

Ji Yushi continued, “Director Wang’s two sets of memories aren’t like ours. Rather than true memories, it’s more like she’s become aware of another version of herself in the other reality. In her research, she selected herself as the subject, not only monitoring her other self but also recording the differences in their frequencies in detail. This could be the real reason for her mental instability.”

Amidst the chaotic formulas, Ji Yushi found a very consistent set of data.

Director Wang had meticulously noted the similarities and differences each time she detected them and tried to synchronize the two sets of data.

“Another self.”

Suddenly, a female voice spoke.

The group turned around to see Director Wang, who had been sitting in a daze, now facing them and speaking: “That’s not really me. I will prove it.”

The quiet room, the still ghostly figures, and the mentally unstable woman — the whole scene felt eerie.

It wasn’t just them; every person in every world believed they were the one true version of themselves.

Time was running out. Song Qinglan, now wearing his simulated face again, turned and asked, “How will you prove it?”

Director Wang turned her gaze back to the ghostly figure sitting on the sofa and said, “Find the key point.”

The group: “…”

That wasn’t exactly helpful!

The silence lasted only a moment before Ji Yushi spoke up: “I know what to do.”

Everyone, except Song Qinglan, stared at him in shock.

“You know what to do? Again?!” Li Chun was on the verge of losing his mind.

“Song and I were briefly pulled back into the original reality by a phone call recently,” Ji Yushi explained, seeing Song Qinglan nod in agreement. He continued, “If we use an electromagnetic wave simulation program to simulate the electromagnetic waves that were in sync with the original reality a month ago, then…”

He paused, hesitating.

“Then we call someone who will answer on that day,” Song Qinglan picked up where Ji Yushi left off, seemingly reading his mind. “But it has to be someone unique in both worlds.”

Tang Qi asked, “But Consultant Ji said only the seven of us are unique in both worlds. So who do we call?”

Tang Le nodded eagerly, waiting for an answer.

“The meaning of ‘unique’ doesn’t have to be the same as ours. As long as the person’s life is completely different in both realities, and they don’t share the same phone number, it will work,” Song Qinglan explained. “We just have to make sure the call won’t be interrupted. Right, Consultant Ji?”

Ji Yushi nodded in agreement.

Duan Wen quickly realized, “Then the obvious choice is to call Director Wang.”

Li Chun chimed in, “Do you even remember Director Wang’s phone number?”

Everyone looked at each other. Even for their closest family members, people didn’t often memorize phone numbers anymore.

Ji Yushi said, “I remember.”

Everyone: “!!!”

How could they forget that their team had a member with a photographic memory, who didn’t even need a phone contact list?

Just as the words left his mouth, the sound of vehicles and people came from outside.

Song Qinglan hurried to the window, peeking through the blinds. “Sky Vault’s people are here.”

“Then let’s go!” Tang Le urged. “We need to find Old Zhou now and use the simulator to make the call!”

Song Qinglan released the blinds, which snapped back with a clatter. After a few seconds, he said, “No need to look.”

“Bang—”

The door was kicked open.

Zhou Mingxuan stood in the doorway, holding a laser gun aimed at them.

Everyone froze in place, unsure of what was happening.

Facing the gun, Song Qinglan didn’t flinch or show any fear. He simply stared at his most trusted teammate with calm, dark eyes.

Zhou Mingxuan spoke softly, “Captain Song, I’m sorry. I’m not going back.”

He shifted the gun slightly, gesturing, “Before they get here, I’ll cover you guys. Go now.”