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At dinner, Lin Xian had glanced at the calendar. It was still August 28, 2624. This confirmed that although he hadn’t witnessed the apocalyptic white light at 00:42 yesterday, the world had likely been obliterated by it. The cycle persisted, the dream continued, and only the world had altered its facade.

Click. Click. Click.

Lin Xian tiptoed through the living room, navigating around the clutter left by Big Cat Face’s boisterous son. Fortunately, Mrs. Face had managed to tidy up before bed. Yet, despite her efforts, the small, cramped nature of the house remained unchanged.

Finally, Lin Xian reached the front door.

Creak——

The door squeaked open, causing Lin Xian to tense. He glanced back, but there was no stir from Mrs. Face or the children.

Lin Xian carefully locked the door behind him. He didn’t plan to return, and it seemed prudent to deter any potential thieves.

Turning, he embarked down the winding, uneven path, unsure of his destination in the disorganized sprawl of makeshift houses that blocked every view. No wonder he hadn’t spotted the new Donghai City or the distant black skyscraper during daylight.

“Living here too long would drive anyone mad,” Lin Xian muttered to himself.

Disoriented without the moon’s guidance and unable to discern east from west, he chose a direction at random and began to wander. Soon, he found himself at the small market where Big Cat Face had once purchased roast chicken. The area was bustling, hardly navigable for vehicles.

According to Big Cat Face, all resources in this world—knowledge, history, technology—were monopolized by the inhabitants of the new Donghai City. Lin Xian struggled to grasp the structure or rules of this world, unable to comprehend such a convoluted development trajectory. The physical proximity of the old and new Donghai belied a vast cultural and technological gulf as if it were as distant as Earth from the Moon.

“In Big Cat Face’s words, we might as well be aliens to each other without even the chance to exchange scraps,” Lin Xian recalled, unsure if Big Cat Face was exaggerating out of frustration or stating a bleak reality.

After aimlessly wandering for what felt like ages, Lin Xian considered giving up. Overturning this impoverished village would likely yield nothing. There were no history books, no records. The children here grew up devoid of genuine knowledge, their ignorance perpetuated generation after generation.

Even a man as brilliant as Big Cat Face’s father, once a Fields Medal-winning mathematician, now merely taught elementary school math in this surreal dream world.

“Forget it, there’s no point in wandering aimlessly. This place is a labyrinth,” Lin Xian concluded, deciding against further exploration.

He faced two choices:

First, to seek out Big Cat Face’s father early tomorrow to inquire about the “Introduction to Universal Constants” and decipher the cryptic phrase he often repeated. Lin Xian suspected that the father’s research was what the Genius Club wanted to suppress, perhaps fearful of its implications.

Alternatively, Lin Xian could attempt to infiltrate the fortified new Donghai City to access its historical records and unravel the strange evolution of this future. Though Big Cat Face had insisted it was impenetrable, Lin Xian was undeterred. In this infinite loop of dreams, he believed no place was beyond reach, even if it meant risking his life repeatedly.

“Let’s do this,” Lin Xian resolved, vaulting over a wall. Landing on a higher stone wall, he pushed off, flipped over, and landed—

Thud.

He found himself on a second-floor platform, then sprinted and leapt to a third-floor balcony, grasping the ledge and pulling himself up to the rooftop.

“Feels good,” he said, relishing the freedom from the cramped alleys below.

Looking up, Lin Xian saw the bizarre round moon directly overhead, with a dark hand-like shadow pointing ominously at the city below, sending shivers down his spine.

To the inhabitants of this world, such a moon was normal. It had always appeared thus, even in their ancestors’ time. Generations had grown accustomed to this altered perception.

But Lin Xian, from 600 years in the past, knew the true appearance of the moon. What was this black hand shadow? An enormous structure across the moon’s poles? A light-absorbing material? Whatever it was, it transformed the moon into an “art piece.”

Regrettably, to fully comprehend it, Lin Xian would need access to the archives in new Donghai City. “But it truly is an art,” he thought, admiring the moon from an artistic standpoint.

Due to tidal locking, the moon’s rotation period matches its orbit around Earth. This means… “The moon always shows the same face to Earth. We never see its far side.”

Thus, the emblem of the Genius Club could rise nightly, ever visible from Earth, a constant presence in the lunar cycle.

Lin Xian gazed towards the brilliantly lit, massive sci-fi city of New Donghai. Even at this late hour, it buzzed with activity, a city that never slept. Did its residents not require sleep or rest? What kind of lives did they lead? Immortality? Eternal youth? Or had they replaced their bodies with cybernetic parts, like characters from films and games, becoming fully mechanized?

Lin Xian didn’t know. “But I have to see it for myself.”

He glanced at his watch. 00:41:41

If this dream adhered to the rules of the “first dream,” there were just 19 seconds left before the apocalyptic white light would obliterate everything, waking him in his bed. But with such advanced human technology, was it possible they were oblivious to this impending disaster without any means of prevention?

Lin Xian looked up at the bustling New Donghai City, everything as usual. He looked down at his watch—00:41:57…00:41:58…00:41:59…

Suddenly, a faint fragrance of camellias drifted through the night air.

Tap.

A hand rested on Lin Xian’s shoulder.