Hijacking the Timeline

Translator: CinderTL

Realizing he was in a life-or-death situation, Feng Qi didn't panic.

He calmed himself and began analyzing the situation.

One thing was certain: within ten minutes of entering the Dream Realm, he would be killed.

The reason was clearly related to the suggestion solicitation post he had published on the game forum a few days earlier.

[It's likely the detailed explanation in your suggestion solicitation post that drew attention. Perhaps it wouldn't have been noticed otherwise.]

[But other Domain Forces lurking within human society, like the Scarlet Research Institute, can directly access real-name verification data online. Discovering that you're the recently celebrated super genius, the Behind-the-Scenes Domain Faction, who had previously dismissed you, would certainly take notice.]

"That makes sense," Feng Qi nodded.

He hadn't expected his post soliciting advice from netizens to have such a significant impact.

The most crucial question now was how to survive the assassination upon returning to reality.

With roughly thirteen minutes remaining, he wouldn't simply wake up and die.

Time remained frozen until he regained consciousness, as he had confirmed during his previous traversals.

Therefore, he still had time to prepare, perhaps even strike back.

After all, the version of him on the Sacrifice Line had lost all his abilities, including the Narrator and his innate abilities. His combat power was vastly inferior to the version of him who would return to reality.

Perhaps the assassin who killed the Sacrifice Line wasn't even a match for him.

But this was unknown until he actually encountered the assassin.

Perhaps the assassin was even stronger than him when he had his innate ability.

[Schrödinger's Assassin's strength exists in a superposition of being weaker and stronger than you. You can't know its true power until you actually see it, Qi Zai! You're in danger!]

Ignoring the Narrator's commentary, he continued analyzing the situation.

In this Dream Realm, he clearly couldn't rely on any external help.

The Sacrifice Line had died just ten minutes after its start, leaving no hidden clues he could use.

This time, he couldn't even enter the Scarlet Research Institute's Secret Base. After all, the Sacrifice Line, who died at 17, hadn't even joined the institute yet, let alone shared his secrets with Wei Wei and other Scarlet Research Institute leaders.

Therefore, the Scarlet Research Institute route was completely useless, and there was no Talent Ability Blind Box.

Next, the Lin Ran route was also invalid.

In the normal historical trajectory, this Future Line's Lin Ran would have cultivated an additional technique to protect his consciousness. This might have allowed him to retaliate against the Lord of the Mist, gain his power, and become an ally in the Dream Realm.

However, this Sacrifice Line died before it even had a chance to begin, failing even to contact Old Wang.

Therefore, in this Future Line, Old Wang's historical trajectory remains unchanged. He will rejoin the Tiger Soul Research Institute.

It's confirmed that in this Dream Realm, the Lord of the Mist's host is Old Wang, not Lin Ran.

He can't offer himself any assistance.

[So stop searching for information and focus on leveling up. Strive to become stronger before little black kills you. Only then can you increase your chances of survival when you return to reality.]

After hearing the Narrator's analysis, he nodded immediately.

This Future Line offered no intelligence. The only thing he could do was make himself as strong as possible.

But before leaving, there was one more thing he needed to do.

He turned his gaze to the data control console and began searching for information.

He wanted to understand the exact nature of the injury that killed him in this Sacrifice Line. This would help him determine the assassin's ability specialization and allow him to train accordingly.

Flipping through the database, he found many images.

But in these images, he was covered in a white shroud, with no detailed photographs preserved.

He then tried searching for the death report.

To his surprise, he didn't have permission to view it.

"It's unlikely to be the Technology Research Institute. You should be familiar with their methods. This assassination more closely resembles sudden death, with no visible marks on the body. The fact that your death was classified as an assassination suggests the Tiger Soul Research Institute might be responsible."

"Regardless of whether it's the Technology Research Institute or the Tiger Soul Research Institute, the Domain-Transcending Creatures behind them share a common trait: their abilities lean towards mental-based art magic. You should prioritize acquiring a magic immunity-type innate ability to arm yourself. For example, the Stone Statue Domain Creature we encountered on the plains to the east."

Hearing the Narrator's analysis, the image of the stone statue from the plains immediately flashed through his mind.

The Narrator had previously urged him to pay close attention to it, noting its partial immunity to art magic, which perfectly complemented his close-combat abilities and would be worth hunting down once he grew stronger.

In his current situation, hunting down the Stone Statue Domain Creature would significantly enhance his safety upon returning to reality.

(PS: Details about the magic-immune statue can be found in Chapter 115.)

With this thought, he immediately turned and strode towards the metal corridor.

The Sacrifice Line offered no useful information. The most crucial task now was to grow stronger.

Leaving the underground shelter, he headed directly east.

His target was the Plain Region beyond the city ruins, where he would search for the magic-immune statue.

[Friendly Reminder: You might not be a match for the magic-immune statue. It's best to hunt domain creatures in the city ruins first to improve your strength... Wait, I just thought of something. You could use the Goat-Headed Demons to gang up on the statue, which would greatly increase your chances of winning.]

"Good idea!"

He decided to follow the Narrator's advice and first search for the Goat-Headed Demons.

His human body transformed into Battle Body Form, with the qi blood on his surface solidifying into patterns that etched themselves onto his bones, dramatically increasing his running speed.

Death was a shadow at his heels. He had to make the most of every second in the Dream Realm to grow stronger.

In truth, killing the statue would be simple for him.

All he had to do was find Suction Cup, then throw her out. No matter how strong the statue's defenses were, they wouldn't withstand a single punch from her.

But the problem was that Suction Cup killed domain creatures too quickly.

He wouldn't have a chance to land the finishing blow.

If he kept Suction Cup with him, he wouldn't be able to improve his strength. The moment danger arose, she would automatically strike, clearing any obstacles in his path.

Except for little black, of course.

So he decided to first search for the Goat-Headed Demons in the city ruins, hunting domain creatures along the way to improve his strength. He would only seek out Suction Cup when little black was about to arrive.

Once Little Black and Suction Cup began their battle, he would head to the Plain Region to hunt Stone Statues.

With his next steps planned, he ran faster toward the hazy Blood Moon.

After hours of running, he reached the city ruins.

This time, the city ruins looked almost identical to when he first arrived. It was at this very entrance that he had encountered the "Nightmare" and gained the Nightmare Talent Ability.

Yet, he still couldn't find the Nightmare.

This near-confirmation of his earlier suspicion—that domain creatures stripped of their abilities would be erased from the timeline—made him reconsider his plan.

He had been contemplating whether he could let Lin Ran kill the Lord of the Mist during the anti-parasitic ritual, allowing Lin Ran to gain the Lord of the Mist's innate ability.

Now, he decided against it.

If the ritual succeeded, Lin Ran might be erased from the timeline along with the Lord of the Mist.

He walked along the street, strewn with rubble and building debris, his gaze scanning the surroundings for domain creatures to hunt.

"Narrator, help me find a target!"

[There's one in the building at nine o'clock! Go get it!]

Without hesitation, Feng Qi charged into the dilapidated building on the right. Following the Narrator's instructions, he searched the depths of the abandoned structure and finally found the domain creature.

It was entirely pale blue, cat-like in form, small in stature, and had three fluffy, bushy tails.

The moment it saw Feng Qi, the domain creature leaped from the ground, pressed itself against the wall, bared its sharp teeth, and let out a warning hiss.

Feng Qi wasted no words. He unleashed his psychokinesis, attempting to control the creature.

However, psychokinesis was limited in its effectiveness within his Battle Body Form. He managed to control it for only about a second before it broke free.

His fist slammed into the wall.

Boom!

With a deafening crash, the wall collapsed, and debris rained down from above.

The impact made the entire building seem on the verge of collapse.

But Feng Qi ignored the crumbling structure, his eyes locked on the cat-like domain creature as he continued to advance.

As his iron fist descended, he released his psychokinesis again, attempting to bind it.

To his surprise, the cat-like domain creature's eyes instantly turned purple. The telekinesis swirling around its body vanished in an instant, and it dodged Feng Qi's fist once more.

Boom!

Resigned but unwilling to give up, he resolutely continued the chase.

However, this domain creature was incredibly agile and possessed the ability to dispel telekinesis. He couldn't even get close.

With each punch, debris flew in all directions, and the ceiling above him collapsed, crashing down.

After a few more attempts, he decisively gave up.

This domain creature might not be particularly strong, but its escape ability was undoubtedly the best he'd ever encountered.

Unless he activated his human form and relied entirely on psychokinesis for combat, there was no chance of catching it.

But activating his human form would leave his own defenses vulnerable, significantly increasing the danger.

After careful consideration, he chose to abandon the pursuit.

There was still time; he could easily search for other domain creatures. Why get stuck on this one tree?

Brushing aside the rubble, he returned to the dilapidated street.

Turning back, he saw the cat-shaped domain creature had followed him, trailing far behind.

Whenever he glanced back, the cat-shaped domain creature would raise its head, its three tails swaying provocatively from side to side, as if taunting him. Its expression was utterly infuriating.

As Feng Qi continued his journey, the domain creature would leap onto nearby buildings, taunting him with side-sweeping tail flicks.

Sometimes, it even blocked his path, head held high, wagging its three tails wildly.

But whenever he dared to approach, Three-Tailed would quickly leap away, never giving him a chance to get close.

Feng Qi found this incredibly frustrating.

This was also the first time he had encountered a beast-form intelligent domain creature in the Dream Realm.

Ignoring Three-Tailed, he pressed on.

Besides searching for domain creatures to hunt, he followed the route from his memories, preparing to seek out the Goat-Headed Demons.

These demons would be his allies in confronting the magic-immune statue.

As for Suction Cup, he temporarily abandoned the idea.

Following the Narrator's guidance, he searched the abandoned city and finally found the building where the Goat-Headed Demons resided.

The building's surface was covered in writhing, blood-red flesh moss, perfectly integrated with the crumbling structure. The moss had even repaired the building's damaged sections, preventing it from collapsing.

In the middle floors of the building, a massive flesh cavern yawned open.

It seemed to possess a life of its own, slowly pulsating, expanding and contracting rhythmically.

It was within this flesh cavern that Feng Qi had shattered the statue in his previous dream, gaining the "blood source" ability.

Reaching the base of the structure, he leaped up and grabbed onto the flesh moss, beginning to climb.

As he ascended, the flesh moss on the building's surface extended tiny, blood-red tendrils that latched onto his body, attempting to draw him into the structure and merge him with it.

But this force was utterly insufficient to impede his progress.

In moments, he stood at the entrance to the writhing flesh cave.

The passage within seemed alive, constantly undulating. Entering it felt like stepping into the body of some monstrous creature—a truly bizarre experience.

On the verge of entering the Goat-Headed Demon's lair, he felt not a trace of unease.

Previous explorations of the Dream Realm had already proven that the Goat-Headed Demon was now harmless to him, even mistaking him for a "belief." Thus, he had nothing to fear.

At the end of the flesh tunnel, he turned right and found himself in a vast chamber the size of a basketball court.

A group of Goat-Headed Demons huddled on the ground, kneeling and worshipping a flesh statue.

This flesh statue was largely similar to the one he had seen before, except that the rune crystal embedded in its forehead was missing, stripping it of its previous eerie aura.

The Narrator's analysis confirmed their suspicions: "The statue shows no signs of life. This proves our previous hypothesis correct. After you drained the statue's power, all life within the flesh statues across all timelines vanished."

Feng Qi nodded immediately after hearing the Narrator's words and leaped down from the flesh tunnel.

His feet landed with a dull thud.

The Goat-Headed Demons, who had been worshipping the flesh statue, turned their heads to look at him.

Their expressions were initially wary, but quickly shifted to surprise.

They sensed a familiar power source emanating from Feng Qi—an aura and energy fluctuation they revered as divine.

As they stared at each other, the Goat-Headed Demons suddenly surrounded him, kneeling before him and beginning to prostrate themselves in worship, muttering prayers he couldn't understand.

Feng Qi counted twenty-eight Goat-Headed Demons in total.

"My servants, follow me!" Feng Qi grinned, then began crawling toward the flesh tunnel's exit.

Just as he'd expected, the Goat-Headed Demons followed him, acting like loyal underlings.

Feng Qi led the Goat-Headed Demons into the flesh tunnel and reached the exit. There, he saw Three-Tailed waiting for him.

The moment Three-Tailed saw him, it raised its fluffy tail and tilted its head back.

[Taunt stance activated! Come at me, you slow-moving bone man!]

The Narrator's voiceover chimed in.

Feng Qi immediately lunged at Three-Tailed.

Seeing Feng Qi charge, Three-Tailed arched its back like a diver, then plunged straight down.

Its body spun several times in mid-air before landing gracefully, its tail still raised defiantly as it looked up at Feng Qi.

Ignoring the taunt, Feng Qi leaped down from the high ground.

The Goat-Headed Demons followed suit, tumbling down like dumplings.

The already broken ground was left in utter chaos by their repeated impacts, with debris flying everywhere.

For the next few hours, Feng Qi decided to lead the Goat-Headed Demons in sweeping through the city ruins, hunting as many domain creatures as possible until little black arrived.

(End of the Chapter)

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