Chapter 99

Before they knew it, it was once again time for the time travelers to make their journey.

The outside world was buzzing with discussions about the case. A student from outside the school had exposed the details of the incident, and thus, the masked killer that Qingchen had portrayed came into everyone's focus.

Everyone knew that he had almost wiped out the criminal organization and that he had pursued and avenged in the darkness.

But no one knew who he was.

Some said he was Liu Dezhu's subordinate, others said he was just passing by, and there were all sorts of speculations.

But there was no doubt that among the most famous time travelers in the country, a new figure had emerged.

And he was just as mysterious as He Xiaoxiao.

Countdown: 00:10:00.

Osaka, Japan.

In the highest suite of the St. Regis Hotel next to Shinsaibashi, a girl sat curled up in a chair by the large window. She wore light green shorts and a white T-shirt, her head lowered as she looked at her phone.

News of the time traveler kidnapping case at Laojun Mountain had already reached Japan, causing a huge stir.

At this moment, there were already hundreds of cases of time travelers being victimized.

Some had their mechanical limbs forcibly taken, and others had just brought back medicine when they were murdered by friends.

Surprisingly, the proportion of crimes committed by acquaintances, friends, and family was extremely high.

Initially, everyone was more worried about the threats from certain black organizations on the dark web, but in reality, they had underestimated human nature and overestimated family and friendship.

Shinno Kyouko watched all of this, a sense of confusion rising in her heart.

She had only wanted to be a good entertainer, so how did she suddenly get involved in such matters?

It was precisely because of these events that she felt very insecure.

In the surface world, she had to worry about others discovering her identity as a time traveler.

In the hidden world, she had to carefully deal with the Shinno family to prevent them from finding out.

A few days ago, the Shinno family had conducted a thorough investigation within the family and subjected the seven time travelers they found to terrifying torture.

If it weren't for the fact that Shinno Kyouko's parents in the hidden world had died early, and she had lived alone on the fringes, making it difficult to trace some information,

If it weren't for the fact that she had sensed the danger and done a lot of preparation early on,

If it weren't for the fact that she was of mixed Chinese and Japanese descent and had spoken Chinese since childhood,

She would probably have been discovered a few days ago.

The most important part of this investigation was "Mandarin."

Because the Shinno family had long been integrated into the Federation, they had adapted to local customs and popularized Mandarin. Only the core members of the family still retained the use of their native language.

They considered this the noblest tradition, using Mandarin for external communication but using Japanese for the family genealogy and ancestral worship.

Among the Japanese time travelers who had traveled to the Shinno family, only Shinno Kyouko could speak Chinese.

Thus, they all met their end collectively.

Due to the marriage alliance, Shinno Kyouko was brought to City 18 to meet the young man named Qingchen. The Shinno family was very concerned about the outcome of this marriage and the benefits that would follow, so the investigation of her was not very thorough.

Thinking about the marriage, Shinno Kyouko suddenly typed "Qingchen" into the Chinese search engine on her phone.

But as with the previous times, there was still no useful information.

"From what I can see, it's still unclear whether that young man is a time traveler... I didn't see him last time, I wonder if I'll see him this time? Hmm? If I keep going to see him, will he think I like him? Should I be a bit more reserved and wait a while before going again?"

"But, it seems I'll be returning to the family with those people soon, and if I don't go, it might be hard to see him again."

The bustling night view of Osaka was like a nebula, and the girl's thoughts drifted in the night sky.

The countdown reached zero.

...

As the dark and fragmented world began to reassemble,

Qingchen returned to the dim prison, grunting as he almost fell to the ground.

The last time he left, he was standing, so this time, his foot injuries immediately burst open upon his return.

Fortunately, Qingchen had been mentally prepared, so he didn't fall.

After stabilizing himself, he looked at his arm.

Return countdown: 167:59:55.

"Back? Looks like you're pretty badly hurt," Lin Xiaoxiao said casually, "But it's good to be back."

Ye Wan smiled and nodded, "Nothing is more important than life and death. However, just a few seconds ago, you were fine, and now you look so exhausted. It's a bit hard to get used to."

As she spoke, Ye Wan patted the chair in front of him, "Sit down and talk."

At that moment, Qingchen smiled. It turned out that Ye Wan had anticipated that he would injure his feet, so she had prepared a chair for him in advance.

Just like how she had anticipated that, although he had said those people weren't worth the risk, he ultimately couldn't suppress his bloodlust.

Uncle Li's evaluation was very accurate; deep in his calm and powerful mind, there was indeed a hidden, unimaginable bloodlust.

Contradictory yet harmonious.

Uncle Li, as if reading Qingchen's thoughts, smiled and patted his shoulder, "It's really unusual to see you so mature for your age. Perhaps the hardships of life have made you收敛了少年的心性。但年轻人，本就该肆意妄为一些，有些事情你年轻时不做，等你到了我这个年纪就会发现错过了很多。"

"Youth is a time of passion and naivety. During this time, you might make some mistakes, even many mistakes."

"But when youth ends, you'll realize that making mistakes is one of the reasons why youth is so beautiful and brilliant."

At that moment, you are impulsive, unrestrained, and fearless, but you never regret it.

After Qingchen sat down, Ye Wan had him take off his shoes and shirt, "Let's see how badly you're hurt. Xiaoxiao has prepared some ointment for you."

When everyone saw the fine wounds on the soles of Qingchen's feet and the deep blood grooves on his shoulders, they could almost imagine what the young man had gone through in those two days.

The wounds on his feet meant that Qingchen had walked a long distance barefoot.

The blood grooves on his shoulders meant that he had faced enemies with guns.

For an ordinary young man, this was already the extreme of danger, but he had returned safely.

Lin Xiaoxiao said, "Congratulations, you've overcome the hardest part."

The "hardest part" he referred to was the first battle of one's life.

A battle that left a deep impression.

Actually, they all knew that the first battle in life was very important, as it determined future achievements.

It wasn't about how much it improved one's strength, but whether one would retreat when facing other enemies in the future, and whether one would still possess unmatched courage and bloodlust.

Strength determined the lower limit, but character determined the upper limit!

Beside him, Ye Wan looked at the soles of Qingchen's feet and sighed, "Qingchen, who treated your wounds? They were so meticulous. I thought I would have to re-treat them, as walking barefoot on the ground can embed many fine impurities into the flesh, leaving some health issues. But now it seems that the person who treated your wounds was very careful, and must have cared a lot about you."