Other World

When I recovered from the dizziness, the surroundings had changed completely.

This was a forest clearing carpeted with fallen leaves, encircled by towering ancient trees. Beyond those tall trees, all I could see was an ever-darkening forest and occasional fragments of sunlight leaking through gaps in the branches and leaves. Looking upward, a brilliant silhouette of clear blue sky peeked through the interwoven boughs, forming a stark contrast with the gloomy, dark forest around the clearing.

I had never seen such an utterly pure sky before.

"What is this place..." I muttered as I shook my groggy head.

Pandora-zero's faintly mechanical voice, characteristic of when she was analyzing something, sounded beside me. "Environmental parameters altered... recalibrating... gravity reloading... atmospheric data reloading... environmental energy analysis... full-spectrum scanning system activated... Brother, it appears that an abnormal activation of the Null Beacon Qian Qian was carrying brought us to a new world. There are no relevant records in the existing Database..."

In other words, the legendary transmigration had finally happened to me?

Wasn't this way too ridiculous?!

I had indeed panicked a little upon hearing the news, but I quickly calmed down—since Pandora-zero could transition directly from the Shilin Mother Planet to Earth, she definitely had a way to return from this world.

I had considerable confidence in that technology.

"Hm? Where is everyone else?" I looked around and discovered that only Pandora-zero, Lin Xue, who was still unconscious, and I were here. Everyone else, including Qian Qian, was nowhere to be found.

Pandora-zero closed her eyes. After waiting for quite a while, she opened them again and said, "This world is not too far from Earth. I have successfully contacted Sikaro. Only the three of us were accidentally transported to this planet. The others have safely left the ruins and are currently returning to base. I have already asked Sikaro to let them know we are safe."

"When can we go back?" I asked. I had no interest in sightseeing in this unfamiliar world. If we ran into something even Pandora-zero could not handle, that would be a real problem. Traveling through another world sounded nice, but it would be better to return as soon as possible. If I accidentally got myself killed here, I would be far too irresponsible toward Qian Qian and Older Sister.

A faint electrical crackle came from Pandora-zero's body before she replied, "The Space Transition System requires cooling. There are still 72 hours until its next activation."

It looked like we would have to stay in this world for three days—hopefully, the food here would be something I could digest.

If we were to make it safely through the next three days of traveling in another world, I needed a basic understanding of this place. And the best way to learn was undoubtedly to ask the loli-shaped multifunctional radar beside me.

Just then, a soft groan interrupted my thoughts. Lin Xue had slowly awakened.

"Mm—Chen Jun?" Lin Xue sat up with some difficulty. The first thing she saw was me standing nearby, and with her keen senses, she immediately noticed that something was wrong with our surroundings.

"...Where is this?!" Lin Xue cried out in surprise. "Why is the environment here so strange? There are so many unfamiliar energies in the air, too."

I reached out and pulled Lin Xue to her feet. "Welcome to another world."

"Another world?!"

"Looks like we transmigrated because of a little accident."

Panic quickly appeared on Lin Xue's face as she asked in disarray, "Chen Jun, what did you say? Transmigrated?! You're not joking, are you?"

Feeling mischievous, I decided not to tell Lin Xue just yet that we would be able to return to our original world in three days. Instead, I put on a perfectly matter-of-fact expression and said, "Of course I'm not joking. Can't you sense how abnormal the environment is? You've never felt anything like this on Earth, have you?"

After hearing my answer, Lin Xue finally accepted the fact that we had transmigrated. She could not help asking worriedly, "Then what do we do now? If we really can't go back, everyone still on Earth..."

"That's something to consider later. Right now, our top priority is—I'm hungry."

Of course I was hungry. From leaving Exile Town, to getting into trouble at the ruins, to transmigrating here, I had not eaten a thing. More than half a day had passed, and I was already starving. Prompted by my reminder, Lin Xue's stomach cooperatively growled as well, making her extremely embarrassed.

"Can we eat the things here?" Lin Xue looked around at the unfamiliar plants, but found nothing that even remotely resembled food.

I realized that after coming to this unfamiliar world, Lin Xue, that stubborn girl who was used to bickering with me, had finally stopped making trouble. Instead, she had begun to rely on me somewhat. It seemed that even Lin Xue, with her little-witch personality, had a girl's vulnerable side.

"Warning—strong energy reaction detected. Large Carbon-Based Lifeform approaching—" Pandora-zero's voice suddenly sounded in my mind. At the same time, Lin Xue immediately hid behind me and said in a frightened tone, "Chen Jun, I think something really powerful is coming!"

One of the three great laws of transmigration: the protagonist encounters an enemy...

Just as I was rendered speechless by the appearance of such a cliché plot, a deep roar came from above and to one side of us. The next second, the sky overhead darkened.

"Ah—" Lin Xue cried out in alarm. "What is that?!"

"Could you please read more novels and watch more movies? Isn't that the dragon that exists in every kind of novel solely to provide the protagonist with experience points for leveling up later on?"

"Nonsense! Of course I know it's a dragon. I just screamed to fit the mood!"

I had been defeated by Lin Xue, this bad-tempered and prideful girl...

While we were talking, the enormous black lizard in the sky had already spotted three nutritious-looking, preservative-free meals on the ground. With a low roar, it dived toward us.

Weren't dragons from other worlds supposed to be highly intelligent and naturally arrogant? Why did this one look completely like a hungry beast?!

Amid Lin Xue's screams, I quickly stepped forward and shouted, "Amaterasu!"

Three white pillars of light descended from the sky in a triangular formation, blocking the dragon from the front and both sides at once—but to my disappointment, that pot-bellied lizard was clearly more agile than I had expected. It swiftly folded its wings, tilted its body, and narrowly slipped through the gap between the pillars.

It had easily evaded such a swift and unexpected attack. It seemed unlikely that I could bring this thing down. Still, after being startled by that move, the dragon in the sky clearly became more cautious. It retreated slightly and began circling around us.

Just as I was lamenting my failed strike, which I had been certain would hit, Lin Xue's astonished voice reached me. "Chen Jun, didn't you say this attack of yours had a lot of restrictions? That it needed charging and stuff? Why does it look so easy for you to use now?"

Uh, in my haste, I had forgotten Lin Xue was here...

Should I silence her?

How could I... That would be far too disharmonious.

Anyway, this was not Earth. It should be fine to use some unfair methods, right? As long as Lin Xue could keep the secret—although this girl had never gotten along very well with me, I could still trust her ability to keep a secret. If necessary, after we returned to Earth, there would still be time to have Keaos alter her memories.

So I put on an extremely serious expression, stared into Lin Xue's eyes, and said, "Comrade Lin Xue, there is a matter concerning the survival of humanity itself. I hope you can agree to my request."

If you refused, I could not say what those arms dealers would do to a human who knew the truth...

Seeing the unprecedented seriousness on my face, Lin Xue nervously swallowed and said, "You're not going to ask me to fulfill the mission of propagating humanity with you in this world, are you?"

This girl had read quite a bit of Qidian...

"I just need you to help me keep a small secret," I said, flicking Lin Xue lightly on the forehead, my tone somewhat helpless. "A secret about Pandora-zero and me."

"Oh, I thought..." Lin Xue blushed, not minding that I had flicked her forehead. "If it's just keeping a secret, then don't worry!"

"Very good..." I smiled faintly and turned around. "Pandora-zero! For the Empire, roast that attacker for me!"