I was transported by the 100-ton Wang Chuangfei and became a plasma spark spirit?

Before he could figure out whether he was a soul or a body, or what the little girl without a shadow was, uniformed personnel, presumably mistaking him for a victim of a monster attack, 'rescued' him without explanation and took him to this underground monster disaster victim shelter.

Then, he saw the 'reality' of this world for the first time in a news recap playing on an old television in the corner of the shelter ward.

A massive, overwhelming shadow loomed over the city.

A ferocious monster that roars and easily topples skyscrapers like building blocks.

The valiant yet incredibly small defense force fighters, trailing flames, charged toward the monsters, either managing only to barely drive them away or being shot down after a brief struggle, turning into bursts of fire.

On the ground, the situation was even worse; the defensive lines composed of tanks and armored vehicles were torn apart with overwhelming force.

Human resistance was tragic, yet yielded little result.

Li Qingyang still vividly remembers the shock and horror of that moment.

The sight of a tokusatsu drama scene that only exists on TV was right in front of him, completely shattering his worldview!

This is no ordinary world!

He even thought for a moment that he might have wandered onto the set of an Ultraman movie.

But subsequent news reports shattered his illusions completely.

There was no giant of light descending from the sky.

There were no heroes who could turn the tide.

Humans can only rely on themselves, using their flesh and blood to fight against inhuman disasters.

The defense force paid an extremely heavy price, sacrificing a large number of personnel, before it barely managed to repel the monster and force it to temporarily leave the city area and infiltrate Tokyo Bay.

It's about repelling them, not annihilating them.

The monster could return at any time...

Haha, what the hell? There are giant monsters but no Ultraman. Isn't humanity doomed?

No wonder those people looked at him with such complicated expressions.

It turned out that the city had just experienced a terrible monster disaster the day before he transmigrated here.

And he, this 'refugee' who appeared out of nowhere in the alley, covered in injuries, was naturally categorized as a victim...

Sigh, I really want to go home, even if there's no one there. But as long as I'm back, I can laugh even if it's just some stupid story posted by netizens.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

I have some drafts saved up, but not many. I'll update once a day until I sign a contract.

Main text: Chapter Two: Kato Megumi and the Space Vortex - 2/2

The following day, Li Qingyang spent almost the entire day in a state of non-stop busyness.

Changing dressings, treating new abrasions, occasionally uttering a few words of traditional Chinese language that others couldn't understand to soothe the emotionally distraught wounded, and secretly using light to alleviate the wounded's pain, his figure moved between the various cubicles.

The smell of disinfectant practically seeped into his nostrils, leaving him completely numb.

Their hands never stopped working, from dawn till dusk, working non-stop.

If it were him in the past, or any ordinary staff member in this shelter, he would probably have collapsed from exhaustion long ago.

But now? Backaches and sore waists? Not a problem anymore.

Whenever fatigue tries to creep up his spine, the light flowing quietly within him dispels it, like melting ice and snow, revitalizing every cell in his body, and then he continues to work overtime amidst the admiring glances of his colleagues.

The golden rays of the setting sun finally replaced the cold light of the incandescent bulbs, slanting in through the narrow gap at the entrance of the shelter. Only then did Li Qingyang stop what he was doing and let out a long breath.

He took off his slightly stained temporary work clothes and casually draped them over the back of the chair.

Stepping out of the oppressive underground space, the cool evening breeze, carrying dust and a burnt smell, hit me.

Li Qingyang squinted, adjusting to the light, and walked to the edge of the open area, gazing silently into the distance.

The setting sun, like blood, dyed half the sky a deep orange-red and dark purple.

The city, or rather the area that was once a city, about four or five kilometers away, lay silently in the twilight, like the remains of a giant beast.

Twisted steel bars pierced through the broken concrete slab, pointing towards the sky like pairs of desperate hands.

The collapsed buildings piled up, forming undulating hills of rubble, with broken glass gleaming eerily in the last rays of light.

The once bustling streets are now clogged with rubble and abandoned vehicles, and a deathly silence hangs over everything, with only the occasional whistling of the wind passing through the empty window frames.

Deep within the ruins, scattered among the cleanup workers in uniforms, their orange reflective vests peeking out from among the broken concrete blocks.

The government-dispatched teams advanced along the collapsed buildings, each person carrying a detection instrument and repeatedly searching through the rubble.

The tracks of a large excavator rolled over the gravel, and the roar of its engine echoed in the open space.

The robotic arm rose high, the hydraulic system hissed shrilly, and the steel claws dug deep into the edge of a huge concrete slab.

Steel and concrete began their battle, but froze in the twilight. The massive concrete structure remained motionless, while the excavator's tracks slipped in place, appearing somewhat comical and helpless.

Cleanup workers bent over as they moved through the rubble, their steps heavy as they stepped over broken steel bars.

Sweat etched streaks on their dusty faces, and everyone maintained mechanical movements, their eyes revealing exhaustion.

The setting sun shone through the rising dust, casting beams of light onto the ground.

The roar of excavators and the shouts of the cleanup workers rose and fell, but the sounds quickly dissipated into the vast ruins.

This is what the end of the world looks like, isn't it?

Li Qingyang watched all this expressionlessly, the slight sense of relief he had felt from getting off work vanishing completely.

He just felt a little irritable, and there was also an indescribable sense of suffocation.

At that moment, a calm, gentle female voice came from behind.

"Ah, Mr. Li, is the work finished?"

The voice sounded familiar, and Li Qingyang turned around.

The speaker was a girl with a signature bob haircut. Even though she was wearing plain clothes provided by the shelter, she couldn't hide her unique temperament that was somewhere between ordinary and refined.

Her left arm was bandaged; she was the girl named Kato Megumi.

Li Qingyang responded calmly.

"Yeah, I came out for some fresh air."

Kato Megumi walked to his side, also looking at the distant ruins, her tone still calm.

"The underground space is indeed a bit stuffy. It's definitely more comfortable in an open space."

Li Qingyang hummed in agreement, his gaze sweeping over her sling arm.

How is your hand?

"Much better." Kato Megumi gently moved her movable fingers, a faint smile appearing on her face.

"Speaking of which, Li Jun seems to have some kind of incredible power."

She turned her head to look at Li Qingyang, her eyes clear and filled with pure curiosity.

“Every time you change my dressing, I feel a warm sensation coming through the bandage, and the pain is relieved a lot.”

Li Qingyang's heart stirred slightly, but his expression remained unchanged.

"It's probably the medication working its magic, the pain-relieving ingredients are starting to take effect."

Kato Megumi didn't press further, only giving a soft "hmm," her gaze returning to the distance, a gentle breeze ruffling her hair.

The wind brought a delicious smell.

The girl's unique fragrance wafted into his nostrils. Li Qingyang remained calm and continued gazing into the distance, but inexplicably felt a sense of relaxation within him.

I don't know why, but it can't be that he's a pervert who likes to smell young girls' body fragrance, right?

...No way?

A moment later, Kato Megumi turned her gaze back to Li Qingyang's face.

"Li Jun, is something on your mind?"

Li Qingyang was taken aback.

Why do you ask that?

Kato Megumi extended her intact right index finger and gently tapped her brow.

"Because your brow always seems to be furrowed."

"His eyes always seemed to be looking into the distance, as if it were here, but also as if it weren't."

Li Qingyang subconsciously raised his hand and touched the space between his eyebrows.

It was indeed habitually tightened there.

Since arriving in this godforsaken place, he had been in a state of high alert and bewilderment, his nerves almost never relaxed.

He thought he had concealed it well.

I never expected that this girl, who always seemed so calm, would have such keen observation skills.

Did she come here specifically to talk to me, hoping to make me feel more relaxed?

Looking at her calm and composed profile, Li Qingyang suddenly had this thought.

This quiet thoughtfulness and insight... Saintly benevolence, terrifyingly so, so great.

He rubbed his temples hard and chuckled softly, "With the world in such a mess, who can be without worries?"

"?"

Kato Megumi stood quietly beside him, her gaze never leaving his face.

The wind continued to blow the strands of hair across her forehead.

She blinked very gently.

That fleeting chuckle seemed to reveal the boy's true nature to her for the first time.

"I've been at the shelter for so many days, and this is the first time I've seen Li Junxiao, although..."

Kato paused for a moment, seemingly choosing his words, but ultimately used the most direct expression.

"He was laughing while saying those kinds of rude things."

"..."

Li Qingyang inexplicably felt his face getting hot, and subconsciously turned his head away, pretending to look into the distance.

He was about to say something to change the subject when his gaze suddenly froze.

In the far distance, at the edge of the sky, which was dyed a mixture of orange and dark purple, something seemed amiss.

The clouds there seem to be... moving?

It wasn't the kind of drifting caused by the wind, but a more eerie, distorted feeling, like ripples on the surface of water.

The distance is too far for the naked eye to discern.

With a slight thought, Li Qingyang felt a gentle current of light flow from within his body quietly surge towards his eyes.

In an instant, the world before my eyes became incredibly clear, as if I had set up a super-high-powered telescope.

A glimmer of light flashed and disappeared deep within the pupil.

He saw it clearly.

Just above the city ruins, about a few kilometers away in the sky, a huge, deep, dark void was slowly taking shape.

It was like an ever-expanding black vortex, with the light at its edges being mercilessly swallowed and distorted, exuding a chilling stillness.

The center of the vortex was bottomless, as if connected to some unknown and terrifying abyss.

The last trace of color drained from Li Qingyang's face in an instant, replaced by an incredulous horror.

Space vortex?