Like a Lifetime Ago (Part Two)

Zheng Zha let out a deep breath of relief. He looked out the window at the view. This really was the place where he had worked as a manager. Sunlight bathed the scene outside, and a flock of pigeons flew past. The peaceful atmosphere and faint hum of voices—this was the real world where he had been born and raised. There were no monsters, no Aliens, no T-virus, and none of the constant terror that kept him on edge. The peaceful real world seemed like heaven.

In a daze, Zheng Zha suddenly felt that the real world was so strange to him, as if it belonged to a past life in another lifetime. After struggling through the horrors of the deathly cycle, he had finally been reincarnated back here.

Loli patted her chest and said, "I was so scared just now. I was afraid I might be an illusion created by that ball of light. Hehe, so we really can come back to the real world! Now I can relax... You big lecher, what are you thinking about?"

Zheng Zha shook his head. Some information appeared in his mind, left there by the Main God. For thirty days in the real world, he could not reveal anything about the Main God's space by any means. Otherwise, he and everything he owned would be erased.

After thirty days, he had to return to this office, and the Main God would take him back to its space. He also had to touch all his belongings with his physical body, or they would be left behind in the real world. If an item was unique to the Main God's space, it would be erased. If he did not return to the office after thirty days, he and all his belongings would be erased at the same time.

"So that means I can't tell anyone anything about that place, and I have to come back here after thirty days. And I have to hold Loli's hand, too, right?"

Zheng Zha nodded to himself, committing these instructions to memory. Then he said, "Come on, Loli. I'll take you to meet my parents."

Loli obediently took his hand. The little girl followed along beside him with a grin, and the two of them opened the door and stepped outside.

Beyond the office, employees were busy at work. Dozens of people hunched over their desks, typing or handling paperwork, while others chatted and laughed. When Zheng Zha and Loli came out of the room, many people instinctively looked over. Then they all froze, and the entire hall fell silent.

"M-Manager Zheng..."

"Zheng Zha..."

After a few seconds of silence, everyone crowded around, peppering him with questions. Most of them wanted to know where he had been all this time.

Zheng Zha exchanged a few casual jokes with them, then pulled a young man he knew over and headed for the stairwell. Once they were out of the crowd, he asked, "Wang San, how long have I been away from the company? What's going on now?"

The young man named Wang San pulled out a pack of cigarettes and offered Zheng Zha one. "Brother Zheng, did something happen at home? Why'd you leave without a word? You could've at least left your buddies a message. No one knew where you were, and that bitch Zhao Lei used your absence as an excuse to fire you. Now her old flame, Li Liangdong, is the manager. That bastard Li has got everyone so pissed off that if you don't come back soon, we might all quit together."

Zheng Zha lit the cigarette and took a puff. "Something did happen... Wang San, here's a tip for you guys. That bitch likes fooling around in her office, right? Buy a set of pinhole cameras and find a chance to record what goes on in there. Don't take it too far—just use it to scare that bastard Li. After that, he'll be more obedient than a dog. I'm leaving, brother. Keep an eye on things here. The old lady and the old man aren't in good health, so bring the guys by to visit them from time to time."

Wang San froze. He was about to say something more, but Zheng Zha had already stepped into the elevator, leaving Wang San standing there in a daze.

Once Zheng Zha and Loli came out of the building, both of them felt a little wistful. Zheng Zha had been through life-and-death struggles. He hadn't exactly achieved some great enlightenment, but it was hard to avoid being changed by the experience. Perhaps his heart had simply grown more weathered.

As for Loli, she was amazed. Her memories were still from ten years ago, when the area had yet to be developed. Low, simple houses had been everywhere, and even the roads had been little more than bumpy paths. Now, everywhere she looked, there were tall buildings and wide, straight roads, surrounded by dense crowds. The moment they left the building, they were soon swallowed up by the sea of people.

The crowd jostled Loli, and Zheng Zha hurriedly scooped her halfway into his arms. The little girl blushed, but a sweet smile appeared on her face. "So much has changed! If you left me here by myself, I'd be lost in a few minutes. Hehe, I might even get kidnapped and sold by human traffickers..."

Zheng Zha hugged her tightly. "I won't leave you behind... Never!"

Loli smiled even more sweetly, practically dangling from Zheng Zha as she asked, "Where should we go now? We only have thirty days. Uh, let's go see your auntie and uncle first, then my mom and dad. How does that sound?"

Zheng Zha smiled and nodded, but then he suddenly froze. After a long pause, he said ruefully, "Oh no... We don't have any money. The clothes I put my money in are back in Alien One... Looks like we'll have to walk."

Nothing could have been more awkward. He had a cubic meter of platinum ingots in his Storage Ring, yet he didn't have any money for a taxi. Zheng Zha truly felt like a man dying of hunger while holding a golden rice bowl. With no other choice, he and Loli walked hand in hand toward his parents' home.

It was noon by the time they arrived at Zheng Zha's parents' home. It was an apartment building, the kind of place where middle-income families in the city lived. When they knocked, a woman in her fifties opened the door.

Her features faintly resembled Zheng Zha's. The moment she saw him, she smiled warmly. "Son, what brings you here today? You weren't home last Saturday or Sunday, and when I called your cell, it said you were out of the service area. Were you on a business trip? Come on in, come on in."

Zheng Zha took Loli's hand as she hid behind the door. Smiling at the woman, he said, "Mom, look who this is."

Loli shyly stepped out from behind Zheng Zha. She smiled sweetly and said, "Hello, Auntie. Loli's come to visit."

The woman stared blankly for a moment, then gasped and pulled Loli close, looking her over from head to toe. Then she shouted, "Honey, come out here! Honey!"

Zheng Zha quietly closed the door, then watched as his parents joyfully examined Loli. The little girl was both shy and happy. Although Zheng Zha had told her not to talk about where she had come from or where she had been, the elderly couple were so excited that they could hardly sit still. They called Loli's parents, then asked her questions nonstop. She managed to steer the conversation away every time, so the couple could only settle for chatting about ordinary things.

About an hour later, while Zheng Zha and Loli were still eating lunch, there was an urgent knocking at the door. As soon as Zheng Zha's mother opened it, two figures hurried inside. They were a couple around fifty years old. The moment they saw Loli eating, they rushed over. The woman hugged her and burst into tears, repeating "Loli, Loli" over and over. The man managed to keep his composure. His eyes reddened at once, but he still greeted Zheng Zha first.

"All right, all right. Let's find out what happened first." The middle-aged man held his wife back, his eyes red as he looked at Loli. "Are you really Loli? That's impossible. We saw her die with our own eyes..."

Then he turned to Zheng Zha. "Zheng, you didn't pay someone to impersonate her, did you? Tell me, what's going on?" By the end, he was practically shouting.

When Zheng Zha saw Loli start to cry and seem ready to say something, he immediately patted her hand. Then he said, "Uncle Luo, I might joke about anything else, but I'd never joke about Loli... I swear she really is Loli, your daughter. As for the rest, I'm sorry, but I can't say anything more."

Before the middle-aged man could speak, Zheng Zha's father shouted, "What do you mean, you can't say anything more? What is this, some company secret? Or the phone numbers of your women? This is a matter of life and death! I'm your father, and I'm telling you to explain, so you'd better explain!"

Zheng Zha shook his head with a wry smile. "Dad, how could I not understand what you're saying? But I really can't tell you. If I do, Loli and I will die. All I can say is, I swear she's your Loli..."

Zheng Zha's father was about to continue, but his mother stopped him. The middle-aged woman was still charming, and it was clear she must have been a great beauty in her youth. She smiled warmly. "No matter what, it's wonderful that the child came back. If she really did come back from the underworld, then maybe there's truth to the fact that she can't talk about it."

The adults suddenly understood. What else could "the underworld" mean? They were all old enough to believe in such things. Their daughter had been dead for ten years, yet now she had suddenly appeared, with the exact same appearance, mannerisms, and way of speaking. And Zheng Zha, who had brought her back, was stumbling over his explanation. They immediately thought of that possibility, and Loli's mother hugged her and started sobbing again.

Zheng Zha breathed a huge sigh of relief. His greatest worry had been that he wouldn't be able to explain where Loli had come from. The elders' guess was a misunderstanding, but it happened to explain everything perfectly, so he was more than happy to play along.

"Dad, Mom, Uncle, Auntie, Loli and I will only be staying for a month. After that, we'll have to leave again." Once the four elders had calmed down, Zheng Zha said it with a smile.

Zheng Zha's mother began to tremble. Her eyes filled with tears as she said, "Son, you haven't... You haven't already..."

Zheng Zha quickly supported his mother and smiled. "Mom, no, I'm not dead. I'm alive and well. Feel my hand—it's warm, isn't it? Hehe, I meant Loli and I will be leaving... for a year or two. There are some things we haven't finished yet. In a year or two, I'll bring Loli back, and then we'll never leave again."

Zheng Zha's mother cried as she squeezed his hand. Loli's mother's sobs grew even more heartbroken. The two men exchanged a glance and began comforting their wives. Loli's father even said, "That's right, it's wonderful that she came back. What are you crying for? It's only a year or two. We made it through ten years already. A year or two will pass in the blink of an eye. Don't cry..."

As the mood grew more and more sorrowful, Loli looked at her aged parents and cried uncontrollably. Her parents held her and wept harder and harder, looking as if they might faint.

Zheng Zha sighed and went to the window to draw the curtains. Then he circulated his Internal Force and opened his Storage Ring, dumping everything inside out in one go. A clatter of metal rang through the room, and thick platinum ingots, each about as thick as three fingers, rolled across the living-room floor. Their silvery gleam was so bright it hurt the eyes. Along with the ingots were a Submachine gun, daggers, and other items. The elders stared at him in a daze.

Zheng Zha picked up a platinum ingot and smiled. "Don't worry. I'll definitely bring Loli back. These platinum ingots are a specialty of that place... the place Loli and I have to return to. They're incredibly cheap there. Uncle and Auntie, you've been having a hard time all these years, and Loli helped pay for these ingots too, so take half of them. But don't flaunt your wealth. This stuff is valuable, so be careful when you sell it. One ingot at a time will be more than enough."

Compared with his words, the platinum ingots scattered across the floor were far more shocking. The entire room fell silent, with only Loli's soft sobs remaining. At that moment, no one noticed the tiny black dot at the base of the High-vibration particle cutting dagger's handle. It flashed a faint green light, but only for an instant. Then it returned to the handle's glossy black color, as if it had never flashed at all. No one noticed a thing...