Chen Yu looked at the speck of light, and his view suddenly changed.
As the light faded, Chen Yu blinked. What he saw really was-
"Who are you?" Byakuya Ishigami asked, staring at the strange figure.
Primitive animal hides, crudely made clothes.
"You're..." Chen Yu looked at the people floating around him and surveyed his surroundings. Noticing a window nearby, he walked over.
The others watched Chen Yu warily, cautiously drawing together.
"Is this... space?" Chen Yu gazed at the stars outside, and at Earth.
"This is the Space Station. Who are you?" Byakuya Ishigami asked again.
"Me? I'm... Chen Yu," Chen Yu said, looking at Byakuya Ishigami.
"Chen Yu? You're Chen Yu?" Byakuya stared at him in astonishment.
He couldn't imagine that the young man before him, who looked like a savage, was Chen Yu.
"Oh, right, this thing..." A woman with twin ponytails looked at the equipment in her hands, only to find the no-signal indicator flashing.
"How did you get here?" Byakuya asked.
Boom-
Suddenly, a green light flashed outside the window.
Everyone's attention turned toward it.
Darya picked up the microphone and shouted, "Earth, tell me what's going on! What happened?"
But no sound came from the other end.
Chen Yu quietly watched through the window as the green light swept over Earth.
"Stop calling. No matter how much you call, it won't help," Chen Yu said to Darya as she kept trying to make contact.
"What's going on?" Darya asked in shock, hearing nothing from the other end.
"Because Earth has already been petrified."
"Petrified?" Everyone stared at Chen Yu in astonishment.
"Yes. If you don't believe me, try checking the equipment on Earth. You'll see countless stone statues. Those are... what humans look like after being petrified," Chen Yu told them.
Upon hearing this, Shamil quickly began operating the equipment, and Byakuya got to work too.
Following Chen Yu's instructions, they connected to equipment on Earth. Once they brought up the feed, all they saw were stone statues packed together.
"How could this happen?" Lillian stared at the scene in shock.
"If that's true, why are you here?" Connie asked cautiously.
"Me? I came from the petrified world thirty-seven hundred years in the future." Chen Yu had no choice but to tell them the truth.
"Thirty-seven hundred years?" Byakuya murmured.
"Yes, thirty-seven hundred years." Chen Yu nodded in confirmation.
Silence fell over them.
"Could you tell me your names?" Chen Yu asked, looking at them.
"Byakuya Ishigami."
"Shamil."
"Lillian."
"Connie."
"Darya."
"Yakov."
"Thank you. So it was you." Chen Yu looked at them. He had to remember them.
Although he didn't know why he had appeared here, remembering them would at least give him something to take back.
"What is the world like thirty-seven hundred years from now?" Byakuya Ishigami asked urgently.
"I was with Senku before the petrification. After being petrified, I woke up again because Senku revived me with Revival Fluid," Chen Yu said, slowly explaining his circumstances.
"Senku?" Byakuya Ishigami asked when he heard his son's name.
"Yes, Senku Ishigami. He was the first human to awaken. At first, he lived quietly on his own, using science and crafting skills to save his friend Taiju. At the same time, he wanted to use science to revive all of humanity."
"Revive all of humanity?" the others said in astonishment, while Byakuya smiled.
"You raised a good son, sir," Chen Yu said respectfully to Byakuya.
"Haha, I knew he'd always find a way to surprise me," Byakuya said with a laugh.
"Then, about reviving all of humanity?" Connie asked cautiously.
"I'm afraid you can't do that right now. Besides, even if I told you, you might forget by the time this machine falls to Earth," Chen Yu said helplessly.
"I see," Connie said, crestfallen.
"Could you sing your song again? I want to remember it, even though I won't be able to have you sing it in person," Chen Yu asked Lillian.
"Why?" Lillian asked, puzzled.
"Because someone wants to hear your song."
"All right." Hearing this, Lillian hid her sadness and disappointment and began to sing.
When the song ended, Chen Yu used his extraordinary memory to commit it to heart.
He could change his voice and sing it for the whole world.
"I'll remember it. Thank you, Miss Lillian," Chen Yu said, bowing his head.
"And thank you, all of you. I've seen your descendants on Earth." After some thought, Chen Yu decided to tell them.
"Our descendants?" Yakov asked.
"Yes, your descendants. I've only seen some of them, but the others belong to the tribe with the largest human population. They live and reproduce there, keeping humanity alive."
"Could you tell us what happened to the world afterward?" Byakuya asked.
"Of course, but I can't say too much. After all..." Chen Yu nodded in agreement.
"From what I know, after you landed on Earth, you began continuing the human race there. Then, thirty-seven hundred years later, I saw some of your descendants elsewhere.
The village those descendants formed is called Ishigami Village.
I don't know how many generations Ishigami Village has gone through, but among the people I know are Kohaku and Ruri, who look a lot like you." As Chen Yu spoke, he looked at Lillian.
"Huh? Me?" Lillian asked, at a loss.
"Yes, they're all your descendants. The current generations are all of mixed ancestry. Without modern technology, they lived as Stone Age hunters, but Senku's arrival changed everything.
He invented a generator, developed iron-smelting techniques, and even introduced ramen. And a man named Chrome contributed to all of this. He kept collecting strange rocks, and when Senku arrived, they all became valuable.
He also made a light bulb. Though it only shone for an instant, its light was breathtaking."
"And later, I saw people who looked a lot like all of you. There's Kohaku and Ruri, who resemble you, a referee who resembles you, and a captain-or perhaps a boxer?-who resembles you. And Connie, there's someone who looks like you too, with twin ponytails as well. As for you two, I've also seen people who resemble you. They're all your descendants, though rather than descendants, perhaps they're more like reincarnations," Chen Yu said, looking at the two of them.
"I see. What a shame. Thirty-seven hundred years..." Connie said, rubbing her eyes.
"Thirty-seven hundred years... how do you know it was..." Shamil asked.
"It was Senku. While he was petrified, he kept counting, over and over, until thirty-seven hundred years had passed."
Hearing this, everyone looked at Byakuya. He really had raised a fine son.
"Thank you, Darya and Yakov. Perhaps I'm a reincarnation of you two as well. I'm a doctor too," Chen Yu said, looking at Yakov and Darya.
"A doctor? Chen Yu? Could you be that young genius?" Yakov murmured, recalling something.
"Yes, that's me. Perhaps, in the future, I'm a reincarnation of you two," Chen Yu said with a smile.
"What a pity. We won't get to see what comes next," Yakov said regretfully.
"Then how did you come here?" Lillian asked.
"I don't know. All I know is that I was working on a prescription when I sensed something and saw something shining in the sky. When I opened my eyes again, I was here," Chen Yu explained.
"That boy Senku... is he doing all right?" Byakuya walked over and asked Chen Yu.
"He's doing very well. He even saved Ruri from pneumonia in that primitive society," Chen Yu said.
"Pneumonia? He's that capable now? That kid must have been through a lot." Byakuya wiped away his tears.
Sensing something, Chen Yu bowed to them. "It's an honor to see you all again, but it seems I have to go. Perhaps I was able to meet you because I'm different. Thank you."
As he finished speaking, Chen Yu's figure flickered several times. Then a faint speck of light drifted out of their minds and vanished along with him.
When Chen Yu disappeared, everyone except Byakuya seemed to shudder.
"I say we wait for humanity to rescue us," Yakov said.
"For a month? Or two?" Shamil asked.
"How could anyone rescue us now? Didn't you hear what that boy Chen Yu said? All the humans down there have been petrified," Byakuya said.
"Chen Yu? Who's that? It sounds a little familiar," Yakov said.
"Byakuya, are you all right?" Lillian asked, looking at him.
"Don't you remember? Just now..." Byakuya looked at them.
"We saw a beam of light just now, and then we couldn't contact the surface. What's wrong?" Yakov said.
Byakuya stared at them in astonishment, a term coming to mind: time paradox.
It seems Chen Yu only came here by chance, and his departure corrected the timeline. What a strange world. But why am I the only one who remembers?
Looking at Earth through the window, Byakuya thought, It seems Chen Yu was right. Even if he told them, they'd forget. At that thought, Byakuya hurriedly took out a notebook and began writing at top speed. He had to record everything before he forgot too. When he finished the last word, he looked at the page in his notebook.
At the very end, he saw the words: "This is real. Don't speak of it. Don't doubt it. Just remember him."
Chen Yu... was it? I hope we can meet again.
As his consciousness returned, Chen Yu seemed to hear that voice.
It seemed to be communicating with him, but when he woke again, he had forgotten what it had said. He looked around. Everything was just as it had been before he lost consciousness.
He looked up at the sky. "Until we meet again, everyone."
Remembering Lillian's singing, he took Xiao Xi, Reiko, and Miwa with him and ran down the mountain. He wanted to sing this song, carrying it across millennia for future generations to hear.
(This chapter was written to make up for a regret. After all, when Senku woke again, he couldn't even see his father. All he found were descendants from who knows how many generations later. As far as the main plot is concerned, you can simply take this as Chen Yu memorizing the song and wanting everyone to remember the song that the superstar Lillian sang for the whole world thousands of years ago. It doesn't affect the main plot. If possible, there will be an Easter egg later; if not, there won't be. If this chapter wasn't written well, you're all welcome to help create it together.)
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