The Time Imprint

"Splash..."

Large raindrops pattered against the window. Qu Xuanqing rubbed her eyes, a strand of hair sticking to her face. She reached out and brushed it away, stretching her body as she leaned against the sofa, waking up from her drowsy state.

She hadn't intended to sleep, but the sound of the rain, shut out of the window, had lost its intensity and became quite hypnotic.

Plus, she felt very safe nestled on Yu Xing's sofa, and she had fallen asleep without realizing it. She curled up, hugging a small fish-shaped pillow, which was soft and comfortable.

It rarely rains this heavily in Mijin City during winter.

After the pre-event ended, the rain started and continued for almost two days. During these two days, the forums in the Absurdity System were in an uproar because of the event. All the well-known factions were "allocating" sessions, and it really looked like they were all united against a common enemy and forming a defensive line against the testers.

But this had nothing to do with her Broken Mirror Squad. In the forum, the twenty spots were always allocated back and forth, leaving seven or eight empty for solo players or small teams that were lucky enough to get two or three spots. Each of them occupied five spots, and all they had to do was grab them before everyone else finalized their positions.

Carlos, not her, is in charge of monitoring the event schedule announcement section, so she's currently free and waiting for dinner.

Qu Xuanqing quietly looked towards the kitchen, where two men wearing aprons were busy working.

Yu Xing looked a bit tired. It was a waste for his broad shoulders and long legs to stay in the kitchen. Qu Xuanqing could only see half of Yu Xing's profile. Just like many years ago, he still looked like a college student, which was very deceptive.

As for the other one...

Zhao Mou was forcibly taken to the kitchen by Yu Xing because Zhao Yijiu said that Zhao Mou cooked very well. So Yu Xing's eyes lit up, and she pulled Zhao Mou, who was doing scene analysis, off the desk and tied an apron on him without saying a word.

It's unclear what Yu Xing was thinking. He had several aprons at home, and apart from his usual plain black one, the rest were all brightly colored. When Yu Xing took out the other aprons, he maliciously asked Zhao Yijiu to help him choose one for Zhao Mou. Zhao Yijiu decisively ignored the look Zhao Mou was giving him and pointed to the pink one.

Qu Xuanqing looked at the scene in the kitchen in a good mood, her gaze lingering for a moment on Zhao Mou's pink apron, finding it surprisingly suitable.

Suddenly, the sofa she was on shifted, and a blue-haired head loomed large in front of her. Carlos grinned, leaned closer, and whispered, "Are you sleepy?"

Qu Xuanqing raised an eyebrow, noticing that this guy had exceeded the safe social distance, but didn't say anything, lazily replying, "Not sleepy."

"If you're not sleepy, do you want to watch me do a magic trick? I just learned it. I was going to show it to Zhao Yijiu, but he said I was being silly~" Carlos leaned back on the sofa, looking just like a large dog whining.

"Could you please take a look?"

Qu Xuanqing: "..." Brother, that's an exaggeration.

But to be honest, she's someone who responds better to gentle persuasion than force. Even if her teammates are obviously being overly dramatic and trying to get their way, she's not really inclined to refuse.

Carlos was the boldest "newcomer" predictor she had ever met. He was a little hesitant to talk to her on the day they first met, but after spending more than half a month together, he no longer regarded her as a senior at all.

"I didn't say you were boring." Actually, Zhao Yijiu was sitting right next to me, his expression calm, wearing his blue light blocking glasses and looking at his phone. Hearing this, he corrected me, "I just said your magic trick was idiotic."

"Hiss." Carlos gasped, turning to stare at him with his large, green eyes. "Listen to this, are you even speaking human language?"

"You really want to hear me spout nonsense?" Under Zhao Mou's tutelage, Zhao Yijiu, though not fond of talking much, was no slouch when it came to insulting people.

"Forget the nonsense, I don't want to get yelled at by 'big brother'." Carlos chuckled, pleased to see the hint of frustration beneath Zhao Yijiu's calm expression, then turned back to Qu Xuanqing, "Then I'll do that magic trick, come on, look at the playing cards in my hand..."

In the kitchen, Zhao Mou, who had just set out the dishes, glanced suspiciously outside and saw his younger brother sitting on the sofa, seemingly looking at his phone, but the tips of his ears were inexplicably a little red.

Due to the angle, he could only see Carlos and Qu Xuanqing very close together, but he couldn't see what they were doing.

"Yu Xing, Yu Xing!" He patted Yu Xing, who was trying to sneak a bite of potato. "What's that Carlos doing?"

Yu Xing picked up a potato with her chopsticks and put it in her mouth, squinting her eyes with pleasure. Then, she glanced at Zhao Mou's expression, seemingly unconcerned, and said, "Oh, isn't it obvious? He's flirting with a girl."

"?" Zhao Mou paused, incredulous. "Don't you think this is outrageous? What makes him think he can provoke Qu Xuanqing? Isn't he afraid of getting killed?"

"First of all, Carlos's flirting is a habit. He likes to flirt with people everywhere, regardless of gender or occasion. When you weren't looking over there, he had just failed to flirt with your brother." Yu Xing wiped her mouth. "Secondly, who gave you the impression that my little Ququ likes to kill people indiscriminately? As long as they're not enemies, she's basically very gentle. Look how obedient she is every time she goes on a mission."

Zhao Mou: "..." Being obedient is just your illusion! Apart from you, she's incredibly aloof to everyone else. She doesn't even send cat emojis to the team's WeChat group!

They won't even send a private message!

But the sight of her protecting her teammates is truly reliable.

Zhao Mou thought to himself, as the vice-captain, should he change his mindset? He was four years older than Qu Xuanqing, after all, and he couldn't always rely on Qu Xianqing's aura of a great demon. After all, although Qu Xuanqing was powerful in Combat Power, her sword would never be pointed at her own people.

Why does he put so many restrictions on himself? It's not like he's dealing with outsiders; he has to maintain his image as a seasoned and difficult person.

Just as he was about to take the dishes out, he heard Qu Xuanqing say to Carlos, "This magic trick is really idiotic. You'd better stay away from me."

Then, looking completely innocent, Carlos was grabbed by the back of his Qu Xuanqing and thrown onto the small sofa where Zhao Yijiu was sitting, almost hitting Zhao Yijiu's head.

Having suffered an undeserved misfortune, Zhao Yijiu leaned back and looked at the Magician who had fallen on him. He silently pushed the man away and went to sit in the most secluded seat in the hall, radiating coldness to himself.

Zhao Mou: "..."

Does being gentle with teammates mean throwing them away with strength that doesn't match your slender arms and legs?

Yu Xing followed her out, said, "..."

He noticed Zhao Mou's expression, which seemed slightly cracked for some reason, and coughed lightly, "Dinner's ready."

After dinner, the group sat down on the sofa. With Zhao Mou and Yu Xing there, the others were much more subdued and waited for the forum results.

According to statistics, all of the top ten guilds that secured spots this time were included. Based on the rankings, Midnight, Widow Investigation Team, Single Prism, Research Institute, Mysterious Eye, Hourglass, Desire Rose, Ghost Enthusiasts Club, Full Moon, and LSP Foundation occupied the seventh, eighth, fourth (publicly), tenth, third, fourth, third, second, second, and third spots respectively, totaling forty-six spots, roughly half of all available spots. This was exactly as Zhao Mou had predicted.

They are indeed an absurdly powerful top force. In the allocation of matches, they discussed and decided that the top four forces should be separated to maximize their overall Combat Power in each match by utilizing their own advantages.

The Mysterious Eye and Hourglass, ranked fifth and sixth respectively, have a good relationship and plan to enter the same arena together. The remaining four forces will split up and go to the arena where the top four guilds are located.

In this way, the main forces in each game are more evenly distributed and more capable of fighting.

Of course, this doesn't mean they can actually unite; it's just a rough allocation. If the participants really start fighting amongst themselves, no one can stop them. After all, personal grudges are common among the participants, and not everyone is magnanimous. Once they see the scales of victory tip in their favor, wouldn't they have the energy to settle their personal scores?

"It's basically confirmed: Midnight and Full Moon will go to the Chaotic Border, the Widow Investigation Team and the Ghost Enthusiasts Club go to Ghost City, Single Prism and Desire Rose will go to City of Madness, the Research Institute and the LSP Foundation will go to Town of No Light, and Hourglass and Mysterious Eye will go to Dead Silent Island." Carlos summarized the intelligence he had gathered over the past two days.

Zhao Mou chuckled as he took notes, "They did have some ideas. They sent the strongest Research Institute, the one with the most theoretical expertise, along with a group of neutral members to attack the Town of No Light of Darkness, which is likely most focused on puzzle-solving. They had Midnight and Full Moon avoid the City of Madness, which is related to the moon. The most coordinated group, the Undead, entered the city with the most complex NPC structure, and they also brought along the enthusiasts who specialize in researching ghosts and spirits. This truly maximized their advantages and avoided their disadvantages. It's just that Single Prism and Desire Rose..."

"What's wrong?" Carlos asked.

Zhao Mou twirled his pen. "Two of the craziest forces have teamed up, and they've even entered the City of Madness. Once they're in the simulation, the situation will likely become extremely uncontrollable. They're trying to completely scare the experience testers to death with their madness. We should rule this out in advance; whoever goes in will be doomed."

"I never intended to team up with Single Prism in this kind of event; it wouldn't benefit anyone," Yu Xing chuckled beside him. "Actually, I prefer Town of No Light. There are more friendly forces there, and the darkness is Brother Jiu's most comfortable environment, allowing us to fully utilize our team's mobility. As long as there are no specific restrictions, none of us are afraid of the darkness."

With only two hours left until the two-day deadline, very few people have confirmed their matches on the notice board. Most of them are unknown small factions and teams. The rest want to wait until the top guilds have confirmed their matches before choosing to follow or avoid a particular faction.

Qu Xuanqing blinked. "Then let's choose Town of No Light? If it really leans towards puzzle-solving, Zhao Mou will have an easier time."

Zhao Mou: "..."

He stopped twirling the pen, gripped the barrel, and felt he needed to defend himself.

"It's not like I'm always at a disadvantage in a fight. I'm just not good at hand-to-hand combat, but my tactics are very strong..."

Zhao Mou pushed up his thin-rimmed glasses, looking every bit the refined scoundrel. Even his claim that he could outmaneuver the opponent with tactics seemed quite believable.

Qu Xuanqing gave a thoughtful "Oh," and said, "I underestimated you. I'm sorry, little fox."

"Don't learn from that bastard Yu Xing, okay? I'm four years older than you. Even if you don't call me 'brother,' you can't call me 'little fox.'" Zhao Mou recalled how Yu Xing when they first met, and then thought about how he had discovered Yu Xing, treacherous nature after getting to know him recently. He was utterly exhausted.

Especially Yu Xing, that guy, he's incredibly good at leading others astray.

"Okay, brother." Qu Xuanqing into a faint smile, which sent a chill down Zhao Mou's spine.

Even Zhao Yijiu glanced at Qu Xuanqing Xianqing.

"Then let's wait until it's almost time and report to Town of No Light." Zhao Mou changed the subject very quickly, as if he hadn't heard Qu Xuanqing him "brother." "Besides, Yu Xing was so high-profile during the exam, ranking first directly. There are definitely many people waiting for his choice."

"Yeah, probably. Quite a few people are interested in me." Yu Xing completely agreed. He's so outstanding—it's only natural that they'd be interested in him.

Just as the group was about to finalize their choices, a muffled thud suddenly came from Yu Xing's bedroom.

Yu Xing's gaze sharpened. There was no one hiding in his bedroom, so why was there a sudden noise? According to his thinking, it seemed that only Hua Subai would come without being asked.

What is that?

Those present were not ordinary people and were very wary of this kind of thing. Zhao Yijiu stood up abruptly, her gaze cold as she faced the closed bedroom door of Yu Xing.

"It's alright, I'll go take a look first." Yu Xing told everyone else to sit down first, then walked to the bedroom, opened the door, and peeked inside.

He first looked at the window; Boss Hua liked to put strange things under his window.

But he soon realized that he had misunderstood Hua Subai this time, because the muffled sound came from nothing other than a pen lying quietly on the floor in the center of his bedroom.

When Yu Xing was a little surprised, because it had been lying dormant in his drawer for a long time.

He walked over, picked up the pen, and stared at it quietly for two seconds.

This is a [Time Imprint].

The gift he received from the "Witch" in the Time Cabin of Alice's Park, which Zhao Yijiu also received a gift from, was used to create a powerful offering that could briefly jump through time. This shows that the "gift" was very precious.

His pen had never shown any use; even if he really wanted to use it to write, it wouldn't leave any mark. After studying it for a while and finding that he couldn't figure it out, he put the [Time Imprint] in his drawer. In any case, an innocent pen couldn't possibly open the drawer by itself, run out of the drawer, and roll onto the floor.

Since the sound was made at this time, something must have gone wrong. Yu Xing pondered for a second, then, Spiritual Sense, she picked up her pen, sat down at her desk, and pointed the pen tip at a blank sheet of paper.

Sure enough, the next second, the pen, which had been feigning death for so long, trembled slightly, guiding his limp hand to draw several marks on the paper. When viewed together, they seemed to...

Die.

Lonely.