In the video, the Asali Desert looked like a vast yellow ocean. Waves of sand rolled one after another, moving as freely as seawater—sometimes calm, sometimes surging, sometimes roaring, sometimes sweeping across the land.
The Devil's Triangle in the Bamuda Sea was even more astonishing. The deep blue water in the footage kept changing, forming all kinds of strange castle-like structures. From afar, they looked like crystal castles shimmering with dreamlike colors—so lifelike and beautiful they seemed even more magical than the legendary mirages at sea.
As for Tearing Great Canyon, it was the exact opposite of Tianlang Mountain. The sides of Tianlang Mountain split apart, while the two sides of Tearing Great Canyon drew together toward the center. It looked more like two ancient giant beasts gathering their strength as they slowly advanced on each other.
Nabo City wasn't quite as astonishing, but it was still downright bizarre. A hundred-meter-tall lighthouse had actually shifted position!
As everyone knew, lighthouses were usually fixed structures built along the coast to guide ships. Yet in the video, Nabo City's lighthouse was floating on the sea like a ship!
Jiang Yue remained silent for a long time. He couldn't help wondering whether technological advances had come so quickly that a revolutionary new technology had emerged in photography.
Were these videos actually fabricated by new technology and photography, and not real?
Whatever the case, the knowledge available on Gaia Planet couldn't explain these strange phenomena.
Still, Jiang Yue couldn't help thinking again of Nine Li Pavilion at the foot of Mount Dajin.
He thought of the dragon and tiger fighting, of Vermilion Bird's Spine Broken; of Old Turtle transforming and using the water to deliver a prophecy.
White Tiger fighting Azure Dragon—heaven and earth would be torn open.
Vermilion Bird's spine broken—trouble would plague the human world.
Put all these strange tales and bizarre events together, and it was hard not to let one's imagination run wild.
With none of the teachers around to keep the class in line, the rowdy bunch who'd been cooped up for so long let loose. They flooded the group chat without an ounce of restraint and started an all-out meme war.
After the meme battle had raged until all sense of time was lost, some people finally began discussing whether the videos were real.
Most people weren't cultured enough to offer much beyond a simple "Holy crap!"
"Did you guys watch the videos? After seeing them, I can only say four words: holy crap, that's insane!"
"Good heavens, is this an alien invasion? Is the whole world about to go belly-up?"
"It's over, it's over. Is the world ending? I've still got a ton of game credits left. Who should I leave them to?"
"Damn, I just put five hundred yuan on my meal card at the cafeteria! Can I get a refund?"
"Waaaah, at a time like this, there's a secret I have to confess: I'm still a virgin! Comfort me, someone! Help me put an end to that!"
"+1."
"+2."
"+3."
"Wang Xiawei: Mao Doudou should introduce himself here!"
"Mao Doudou: I'm just a nobody. Please spare me, great ones. Bows/emoji."
Whenever a group chat had a bunch of hot-blooded guys in it, no matter how serious or sacred the topic, it was bound to go off the rails—and straight into the gutter.
"Yang Xiaoxiao: @Jiang Yue, what does the top student think?"
"Han Jingjing: @Jiang Yue, big bro top student, tell us what you think?"
"Hang Zixuan: Waiting for big bro top student to speak."
"+1."
"+2."
"+3."
"+10086..."
The endless string of plus-ones caught Jiang Yue off guard. He'd always kept a low profile, never joined in on the chat or meme battles, and never tried to get attention. So why were they singling him out?
"Jiang Yue: I'm just as confused as you are. This is Yifeng's group, and he's well-connected and knows what's going on. Why don't we let him explain?"
On the other side of the screen, Du Yifeng nodded smugly. Jiang Yue might be absurdly handsome, but at least he knew his place. The group was Du Yifeng's creation, and the videos were his to share—not some top student's excuse to steal his thunder and flirt with girls.
As for all those girls tagging Jiang Yue, Du Yifeng felt a little jealous, but he didn't take it too seriously.
After all, Jiang Yue was good-looking and had ridiculous grades. If Du Yifeng were a girl, he'd throw himself at him too.
Having a top student like Jiang Yue praise him in the group left Du Yifeng feeling unexpectedly flattered.
Compared with those losers' ugly attempts to suck up, this kind of understated praise from a top student really hit the spot. It gave him a much stronger sense of satisfaction.
Most importantly, the praise was perfectly judged—fresh and natural, without a trace of artifice. It filled him with a profound sense of pleasure and fulfillment.
He couldn't help thinking that top students really were something else. They knew how to play the game.
Earlier, everyone had watched the videos, then spammed the group with memes and random chatter. Nobody had remembered him, the one who'd dug the well.
They'd eaten the melon and left the melon farmer behind. It was shameless and heartless. Honestly, Du Yifeng felt disappointed, but he was too proud to complain.
Now Jiang Yue had brought the conversation back to him and, in the process, shown how much he valued him.
Du Yifeng's disappointment eased considerably.
Still, he put on a show of restraint and waited a while before tapping away on his phone's keypad.
"I can't say much right now. I'll just say this: these videos come from a very reliable source. There's at least a ninety percent chance they're real. You can draw your own conclusions about the rest."
"Holy crap, so the world really is about to change?"
"Boss Yifeng, did this come from an official source?"
"If this is real, are we still supposed to go to school?"
"Could it really be an alien invasion?"
"I'm going back to the countryside to hide. I'll dig a cellar and build an underground bunker. Living through the apocalypse sounds great!"
"What good is a bunker? What are you going to eat and drink?"
"Heh, my family's got a lot of farmland. We produce at least twenty thousand jin of grain a year. We raise pigs, chickens, and five or six cows. We can live off the land just fine."
"Holy crap, a rich guy! Is it too late to become friends?"
"Got any sisters at home? I'm looking for a wife and don't mind moving in with her family."
"Bowing to the rich guy. Begging for food here."
"Bro, you've gotta help us out at a time like this."
There they went again—the chat had gone off the rails.
"Han Jingjing: Waaaah, I'm only seventeen, and I haven't even had my first kiss."
"Yang Xiaoxiao: Snickering/emoji. Jingjing, confess your feelings! @Jiang Yue."
"Jiang Yue: ..."
"Mao Doudou: Boss Jiang practices a celibacy technique and can't get close to women for the time being. Whatever you want, come at me!"
"Yang Xiaoxiao: Hehe, never mind."
"Han Jingjing: Hehe, never mind +1."
Critical hit! 500 damage.
Even through the internet, everyone seemed to hear Mao Doudou's heart shattering.
Mao Doudou gazed up at the heavens in despair. Why did a man as exceptionally gifted as he have to endure such cruel hostility from the world?
This had to be Heaven's test for him, Mao Doudou!
World, mutate!
Let my talents mutate too! One day, I'll make these blind butterflies know just how terrifying it is to be ruled by my nineteenth brother!
Mao Doudou frantically made a grand vow. It was all for nothing.
The group chat kept flooding with messages.
Jiang Yue had no interest in the group chat. He locked his phone, stood up, and began clearing the dishes.
San Gou, meanwhile, clicked his tongue in admiration. "Second Brother, high school sounds like so much fun. Maybe I should keep going to school?"
Jiang Yue hadn't kept the group messages from San Gou. San Gou had shamelessly watched the whole thing.
"Second Brother, there's that Han Jingjing again, and Yang Xiaoxiao too. They're definitely into you."
San Gou spoke like an old hand, his tone tinged with envy and jealousy.
Why was San Gou so unpopular at school? Why did all the girls walk around him? Was he not handsome enough?
They had the same grandfather. San Gou wasn't that much worse than Second Brother, was he? At most, Second Brother was a little taller and paler. Once San Gou grew a bit more, surely he wouldn't lose to him?
Hmph, the only thing Second Brother was better at was schoolwork. San Gou probably couldn't catch up to him there.
San Gou sneaked a look as Second Brother carried the dishes into the kitchen.
He slipped quietly off his chair, furtively picked up the phone Jiang Yue had left on the table, and unlocked the pattern lock with practiced ease.
He quickly found the new group chat and opened Han Jingjing's profile.
He tapped "Send Message," and the input box appeared.
"Jiang Yue: Jingjing, could you send me the photos of Tianlang Mountain?"
Ding!
Han Jingjing replied almost immediately.
"Sure, I'll send them right away."
San Gou hurriedly switched the ringtone to silent. He silently urged her, hurry up, hurry up.
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