Chapter 1886: The Future
Although they had just experienced a life-and-death battle, the people of Zone 010 were generally joyful. Therefore, even some of the injured came out to help, gathering together to chat and laugh while preparing dinner, creating a relaxed and lively atmosphere.
Gao Dawei crouched in front of the wheelchair, teasing little Melissa. Both he and Chang Shoujie knew that she couldn't really understand much of what was said, but they still took pleasure in talking to her endlessly.
Not far away, Juan Er and Xiao Hui were rubbing their hands together, standing in front of the cooking utensils, ready to show off their skills.
Liao Xiaoyi and Gan Feng were downstairs, talking with players from other zones who wanted to coexist peacefully with Zone 010. Of course, there were even more players from other zones who were taking a wait-and-see attitude. After all, who was in charge of Zone 010 didn't matter much to them.
Meanwhile, a thousand meters away from the building, several people who had once joined the Sand Sea Player Organization were heatedly discussing whether to stay or leave. Some argued for cooperating with Zone 010, just like when the cannibal players were in charge. Others said Zone 010 was exclusionary and would never treat them well, suggesting it was better to find Brother Xia, who had run away. As long as they had people, they could settle anywhere—even build another safe zone!
Of course, there were also ordinary people in the Sand Sea Safe Zone, but these individuals basically had no right to move freely within the city. They had previously been kept by the cannibal players as food and experimental subjects. Now, hearing the commotion outside, some with sharp ears caught the names of well-known Zone 010 players. Excitedly, they passed the news to their compatriots, telling them that better days were coming. Once the players had cleaned out those with ill intentions in the city, they would surely come to rescue them.
Perhaps because it had just rained, the city was still relatively cool. The buildings that had been cleansed gleamed with a peculiar light under the sun. Air currents surged through the atmosphere, carrying sand and dust, but also seeming to carry moisture. Those tiny particles floating in the air slowly rose toward the sky, converging under the setting sun into a pillar of faint light distinct from the surroundings. This pillar shot straight into the sky, disappearing into the distant heights, as if connecting to the boundary of space.
Xu Huo, who had been resting against the wall, opened his eyes. In an instant, his field of vision was filled with irregular lines connecting to the high sky. Some of these lines fell on buildings, some on sand and dust, and some on people... He shifted his gaze, looking at Melissa, who was giggling in Chang Shoujie's arms, and saw a line on her body.
Time rays and space rays, for a Super Evolver, are not actual physical objects but a kind of sensation. The linear form of perception is entirely due to the personal understanding of the Super Evolver. In reality, whether they have a form or what their true form is, no one knows.
Xu Huo had stepped onto the threshold of Temporal Super Evolution in the Chaos Space, but he could only sense the time rays. To manipulate them, he would need the help of "Angel's Eyes," or special items and Primordial Stones. Connecting to different time rays across other spaces, as he had done in the Chaos Space, to destroy objects or kill others, was another level entirely. Not only could he not achieve it, but he hadn't even grasped a trace of it.
So the time rays he saw might not be real. In fact, he wasn't sure why he suddenly saw "time rays," since these lines should only exist in his imagination. Yet, these "time rays" had appeared.
He didn't touch these time rays. After a few seconds, they suddenly trembled, releasing a strange, faint light that flowed in streams—some flying toward the sky, some entering the ground. They seemed to breathe, echoing each other...
Gradually, the scene before Xu Huo's eyes began to change. The city, weathered by wind and sand, looking old and dirty, transformed bit by bit into brand-new skyscrapers. The swirling sand and dust within the city vanished, replaced by a massive canopy covering the sky above. Beneath this canopy, aircraft shuttled back and forth, able to descend onto tall buildings or land on the ground. The streets were bustling with pedestrians, many of whom bore faint black patterns on their bodies. Residents moved between different shops, smiles on their faces.
Every hundred meters, flags fluttered in the wind. These flags were new and clean, apparently just put up recently. Some bulletin boards still had notices about maintaining order during the celebrations. Then, something seemed to happen, and everyone in the city looked up toward the building, cheering excitedly.
Xu Huo withdrew his gaze and saw a tall figure walk past him. She passed through Gao Dawei and Chang Shoujie, passed through Melissa, and walked to the newly renovated floor-to-ceiling window, waving to the people below. She wore a special breathing mask, and the exposed skin on her face was clean, without the black patterns similar to others. Her large braid covered her overly prominent bones...
Watching this scene, Xu Huo smiled faintly. But in the blink of an eye, it all disappeared.
The city was still the same as before. Little Melissa, sitting in Chang Shoujie's arms, was still fully armed and wrapped tightly. She couldn't say many words yet, but under Gao Dawei's coaxing, she kept calling out "Uncle."
Soon, the banquet began. Xu Huo and his group, who had greatly helped the people of Zone 010, naturally sat at the VIP table. Gan Feng and the others came up in turns to toast, speaking words of gratitude and inviting them to visit Zone 010 again. They promised that the next time they came, Zone 010 would not be like this.
Having resolved the threat of the Sand Sea Safe Zone, the players of Zone 010 were full of hope for the future.
Juan Er and the others were veterans of the drinking table, matching the Zone 010 people drink for drink without losing ground. Xu Huo had two glasses and then withdrew, finding a quiet place to rest.
He took a clean cup, poured tea, and placed it on the seat opposite him. "You haven't left yet? Didn't clear the instance?"
The Pink Hair walked out of the darkness with a bottle of wine, sat down beside him, and looked out at the city lights. After taking a sip, she said, "I saw it."
"What?" Xu Huo asked casually, sipping his tea.
"You evolved, didn't you?" The Pink Hair turned her head to glance at him. "Although I'm not destined for temporal or spatial evolution, I've seen others evolve before. I remember that feeling."
"Probably," Xu Huo said. "I'm not entirely sure either."
Judging from what had happened, it seemed he had foreseen the future of Zone 010. The examples of precognition he had encountered before relied either on items or special ores, and the predicted futures weren't always reliable. This was somewhat similar to Jiang Jiang, who had foreseen his own death scene.
If this was a form of time power, then it was triggered passively, because at that moment, he had no opportunity for evolution. It felt more like an illusion.
(End of Chapter)