Deity Investigation Report

Chapter 258, Number 02: Life's Journey

"call……"

came back……

The surroundings were unusually quiet, so quiet that it made people uneasy.

In the past, every time Han Su escaped from the castle, he would try his best to remember what he looked like when he entered the castle, and he would prepare himself to continue his previous life.

Although I had the intention to restart things and held onto hope, I still subconsciously recalled the horrific scene I witnessed before entering the castle: the collapse of Qinggang, the deaths of many, and the bizarre and terrifying things swarming and killing among the crowd.

If you use the key to return, you will still be back in that environment, and only a few seconds will have passed.

But this time, surprisingly, nothing happened.

I found myself sitting up in bed, opening my eyes to find myself surrounded by darkness.

"Are you that afraid I'll eat you?"

Just as Han Su was about to activate his mental power and see the surrounding scenery clearly, a slippery voice rang out beside him, and a smooth arm draped over his shoulder.

The voice was languid and sweet, instantly making Han Su's back stiffen slightly. He instinctively wanted to reach out and slap her, but reason stopped him from making a violent move. He only whispered:

"Turn on the lights!"

"..."

"laugh!"

His response was a mocking laugh, followed by a muttered remark: "A greenhorn is a greenhorn. You think you can't find your way without a lamp?"

As he spoke, a smooth body brushed past Han Su. Someone groped to get out of bed, and a warm sensation rushed towards him, but the light was not turned on. Instead, a candle was lit with the sound of a lighter.

By the light of the candle, Han Su could clearly see the surrounding narrow room, the simple items, the open sleeping bag, the gun leaning against the table next to him, and the dim candle flame.

And the pale, white body holding the candle.

This extremely unfamiliar scene immediately gave him a strong sense of alienation, and his head suddenly throbbed with pain as countless memories began to flood his mind.

This time, the memories are more numerous than ever before, and they are all incredibly unfamiliar.

Even though he was already used to each flash and then receiving new memories, he felt like his brain was splitting open.

"They escaped..."

Amidst this vast sea of ​​memories, Han Su gradually came to understand his predicament, his expression one of astonishment.

Just as he had thought, because he didn't get out using that key this time, he didn't return to the familiar anchor line of his life. But what surprised him was how much his life had changed.

The last time he experienced a different life was when he was adopted by the chairman of the Magic Box Group and became the godson of a wealthy man.

Although that experience brought about a significant change in my life, at least it happened in Qinggang...

Where am I now?
He covered his head and thought it over carefully before finally understanding his experiences over the past ten years through countless turbulent fragments of memory.

In this life story, he escaped from the castle 27 hours after the kidnapping.

At this time, the police search team led by Zhang Chiguo had already gone to another suspicious area after finding nothing, while the private search team led by the chairman of the Magic Box Group had not yet arrived, which was just in the gap.

So what I encountered was a private investigator who rushed over after hearing the news.

This private investigator already knew about the disappearances of these children from wealthy and influential families and wanted to try his luck to see if he could find any valuable clues to exchange for money.

So he happened to meet himself, but he didn't hand himself over to the police or other victims' families, as that would only get him a small amount of money. This person knew the wealth of those kidnapped people and wanted to find more valuable clues from himself.

Perhaps he was also thinking that if he could find all the missing children on his own, he would be set for life.

So he hid himself away and asked in private.

But faced with his own bizarre tales of monsters and castles, the man was enraged and decided to teach himself a lesson.

Then, he killed himself.

Of course, it was only because he had been hungry all day in the castle, and after escaping, he wandered aimlessly and was extremely exhausted when he was hit hard, which caused him to go into shock.

But the private investigator was terrified. Knowing his value as the sole survivor, he dared not bear the consequences. So, he used his clever little brain and dragged himself to the sea cliffs on the edge of Qinggang City and threw himself off.

This very decision led to a dramatic turn of events in his life.

He was lucky to survive after fainting and was rescued by a passing cargo ship. He sailed across the ocean to a small country in the southern region, where he was sold by the sailors to a local thieving organization, beginning his difficult struggle for survival in this foreign land.

I was already extremely frightened at the time, and then I was hit on the head by a private investigator while my mind was still unclear. In addition, I was soaked in seawater and had a high fever for several days on the ship, which almost caused me to lose my memory.

Forget Qinggang, forget the kidnapping case.

He worked his way up from being a runner to a street hustler until he was discovered to be a skilled fighter and was chosen by a mercenary squad to become an intern mercenary.

Right now, I'm on my way to carrying out a high-reward mission.

The woman holding the candle is the captain, named Akbai, the captain of the thirteenth ranked mercenary squad in the Black Table Southern Continent region, codenamed Queen Bee.

She picks me, trains me, takes care of me, and then takes all my commission.

That night, she planned to make him her lover, promising to make him her official lover after she slept with him.

But before it even started, I woke up.

……

……

"Is it really possible that such a small difference in timing during their escape has led to such a vast difference in their fates?"

As Han Su pondered these questions, an indescribable sense of shock welled up within him.

Being found by Zhang Chiguo, being found by the chairman of the Magic Box Group, and being found by this unknown private detective have all led to a completely different "present" situation for me.

While Han Su was thinking about these questions, his eyes were blank and he was lost in thought, which made the naked woman opposite him feel embarrassed.

"Little glutton, why are you acting like you've never seen this before? Be a good boy, and I'll make you a real..."

She placed the candle on the table, sticking it stickily to him, but Han Su impatiently raised his hand and said, "Get out of the way!"

At this point, I had nothing to do with this matter at all.

But upon hearing this, Captain Akbai's expression suddenly changed. He abruptly raised his hand and grabbed Han Su's neck, coldly saying, "Have you grown wings?"

Han Su raised his left hand, grabbed her wrist, and gave her a cold look.

Akbai felt as if her wrist was being gripped by Han Su, as if it were clamped by copper and iron, and she couldn't pull it back. In her anger, she realized that she was much more skilled than Han Su, and in a fit of rage, she wanted to grab the dagger next to her sleeping bag and stab him.

But when she looked up, she saw Han Su's eyes, empty and cold, filled with disgust.

A sense of danger washed over him, causing a slight chill to run down his spine, and he forgot to grab his knife.

She paused for a moment, then spoke instinctively, her voice softening slightly: "What's wrong with you?"

Han Su looked at her, slowly suppressing his murderous intent, and suddenly asked, "Do you know anything about Qinggang City?"

Only after saying that did I suddenly realize how absurd it was.

Based on their memories along this life path, the word "Qinggang" rarely appeared in their mouths. It was a city on the other side of the ocean, in the coastal area of ​​the Eastern Region, and not even the largest city, which had a somewhat remote feel to it.

"What, even you're tired of working in the wilderness and want to settle down in a city?"

Akbai said, "Don't even think about it. I picked you up from the street and trained you. Don't even think about leaving until you've earned back what you lost for me."

Han Su didn't even bother to respond to her. He regretted asking the question as soon as he did, and was just thinking about how to get the relevant information.

Akbai, however, felt a bit annoyed that Han Su didn't answer. She looked at the handprint on her wrist, grabbed a piece of clothing lying around her, and suddenly said, "What city do you want to find out about? Go find Lalai!"

"He's already stolen the signal from Broken Ridge Mountain City; he can go online now." "..."

Han Su quickly recalled the information about the person named Lalai in his mind, then got up, dressed, and went outside.

Stepping out of the room, he felt a chilly wind blow against his face. Looking around, all he could see was a vast expanse of darkness. Even with his exceptional mental agility, he could only make out that this place seemed to be an abandoned town in a mountain valley.

Their squad is currently on a mission and awaiting further instructions from their employer, so they have temporarily chosen this ruined town to rest.

Han Su arrived at the front of a nearby house, knocked on the door, and was greeted by a lewd, teasing voice: "What? Did the little dog's back give out and he got kicked out by the mistress?"

Han Su narrowed his eyes slightly as he looked at the dark-skinned man with a thick beard.

He was the technician in the mercenary squad, responsible for debugging equipment in the wilderness, receiving signals from the employer, and conducting electronic scanning of target areas, among other things.

After a moment's consideration, feeling that he could kill him with ease, he didn't bother to say anything more, only saying, "I need to borrow the computer to look up some things."

"Connected to the internet."

"..."

The other party clearly wanted to tease him a bit more, or even ask what it was like to have a beauty like Akbai, but seeing Han Su's sullen face, he had no choice but to hand over a heavy, durable laptop and say, "Don't go to those websites randomly, I've already downloaded all the good stuff."

"Don't log in to anything to avoid information leaks."

"..."

Han Su opened the website, entered the keywords, and saw news related to Qinggang City.

One by one, item by item, both familiar and unfamiliar.

The biggest news item related to Qinggang was: [Qinggang's new generation of Queen pageant concludes; ambitious candidates preparing to compete in the Alliance-level Queen competition?]

Later, there were news reports of the Magic Box Group investing heavily in the field of archaeological excavation, and a genius doctor preparing to establish a pioneering laboratory.

Without any trace of having been attacked, or of any unusual disaster, or of the Abyss Studio, the city lies peacefully on the other side of the ocean, its lights shining just as I remember.

"Could this be considered an unexpected restart?"

Han Su looked at the related news again and again, and because he didn't find any special results, he felt a sense of relief.

Therefore, my previous idea was correct, and reality did indeed restart.

Because he was the one who caused Qinggang to suffer this devastating disaster in the previous life storyline, everything in Qinggang became peaceful and normal after he no longer had any contact with Qinggang in this life storyline.

Since Ms. Shen did not discover the Will of Bronze within her, the Abyss Studio had no reason to invade Qinggang, and the Four Heavenly Kings should not be dead either...

This means that everything in Qinggang that was once related to me has remained unchanged.
Following this line of thought, Han Su became increasingly surprised.

Although some details are still lacking verification, he already feels that this guess should be reasonable.

But what about those things that haven't changed, despite the surprise?

He subtly activated his spiritual power and carefully sensed it, but he was immediately surprised to find that his spiritual level, all its spiritual activity, amplitude, and mysterious power remained unchanged.

On the contrary, the divine matter returned to its original, unactivated state.

"How is this going?"

At first, his heart sank, but Han Su quickly analyzed the reason.

The achievements such as mental activity, range, and mysterious power were originally gained by myself on that anchored timeline and belong to the spiritual realm. Therefore, after escaping from the castle, they all followed my consciousness and descended onto this new life line.

However, physical changes will not follow, while divine matter, though seemingly mysterious and strange, actually possesses "physical" or rather, real-world attributes.

This version of myself on this life path has never activated divine matter, so I am currently in an initial state of dormancy.

……

……

"So, from this perspective, my spirit and will should also belong to something that transcends the characteristics of time and space?"

Han Su gradually figured out the problem. The fishermen's chants of the past had shown characteristics that transcended time and space, which amazed him. Now, he finally identified another thing with the same characteristics.

Yourself.

Using the castle as an anchor point, each person's life will be different depending on when they escape and the people they meet. They will also experience different things.

However, changes in one's own consciousness, especially at the spiritual level, share similar characteristics across different life paths.

Like a seed, it grows into different branches.

The first time I escaped the castle, the time Zhang Chiguo found me and started my life, should be considered my true life storyline. Escaping through the escape door by summoning the key will also return me to that life storyline.

Everything on that life path was something I experienced firsthand, giving it an irreplaceable sense of authenticity.

So, that should be considered the original life line?

And in the life timeline I'm currently on, everything from the past is actually acquired through memories. Maybe I can give it a number, like 02?

Of course, similar timelines had existed before, but at that time, such vague and unfamiliar life lines did not have much meaning for Han Su, so they were not effectively sorted out and recorded. It is more reasonable to start numbering them from now on.

He had already realized the significance of these different life paths.

The original life storyline is too easily visible to others, including the White Corpse, the Drunkard, Ms. Shen, and even the descendants of the Knights.

They can see themselves if they want to.

As the sole survivor, I have been living under the spotlight the whole time. So, joining the Disaster Management Agency, getting an investigator's license, and applying to reopen the kidnapping case were all difficult steps. Every step I took was subject to countless stares.

But now it's different.

Before, those descendants of knights were in the shadows while he was in the light; now, he is in the shadows while they are in the light…

Wouldn't it be much more convenient for me to do whatever I want than before?
As Han Su pondered this, he gradually began to feel a sense of relief, and countless thoughts instantly flooded his mind.

"and many more……"

But as he pondered these questions, his gaze shifted slightly, and he noticed the time displayed on the computer screen below:

2724 9 Month 11 Day.

A sudden chill ran through him; something was wrong...

When I returned to the castle this time, it was September 13, 2724. Based on past experience, returning to the castle and then escaping again, regardless of whether my life has changed or not, will return me to the corresponding point in time, at most only a few seconds have passed.

This time, it seems as if we've gone back two days in terms of time.
Has some other factor come into play?
……

……

"Did you seem too eager and scare the young man away?"

As Han Su picked up his laptop and searched for various news articles, Captain Akbai, who had already put on his clothes, returned to his usual sharp and indifferent demeanor. He came over, but simply crossed his arms and watched him coldly without disturbing him.

The technician, Larai, however, gave Captain Akbai a greedy yet cautious look with a grinning expression.

"Remember who you are!"

Captain Akbai glanced at him suddenly, without saying a word, but a strange aura emanated between them, allowing them to exchange countless messages in an instant: "You're just a worker bee, you have no right to be jealous, nor do you have the right to sleep in my bed!"

Technician Larley shrank back: "I know, of course I know, but does this young dog codenamed Butcher have a chance to become a bust?"

“If you feel that your thinking is too redundant, I can let someone else do this job.”

Captain Akbai responded coldly to the message, saying, "Just wait for the signal. This war between the Giant Horn City Independent Investigators and the Skinning Farm has been going on for too long. Our employer is worried that if the war drags on any longer, it will attract the roving knights."

“Once the negotiations break down, we need to deal with these goat-worshipping folks as quickly as possible and eradicate their totem code.”

(End of this chapter)