A strange sensation began to flow from Shen Yiyue's hand.
Ning Yu felt her consciousness start to blur.
"Xiao Yu, hold my hand tightly this time. Don't let go again."
Shen Yiyue looked at Ning Yu and smiled.
Ning Yu's previously chaotic consciousness suddenly became clear, and a faint golden light began to glow in her eyes.
[Reverse flow detected]
[Activating: Eye of Fate Perception]
The system's prompt echoed in her mind, and Ning Yu realized that the earlier sense of fuzziness was a precursor to her memories disappearing.
Sure enough, it was dispelled by the newly acquired [Eye of Fate Perception].
Ning Yu suddenly thought of the déjà vu she had experienced before. Perhaps everyone had once wandered through many parallel timelines.
Only in extremely rare moments would one suddenly sense: "I seem to have experienced this scene before."
But soon, this feeling would fade, submerged by the torrent of 'daily life,' until the next time it was encountered.
The surroundings began to shift rapidly. The two people who had been sitting at the dining table in the living room had vanished.
Ning Yu soon found herself walking through a long corridor. Here, she had no physical form, only moving forward continuously.
Rather than moving forward, the constantly shifting patterns around her could also be seen as moving backward.
It looked utterly mysterious.
Finally, a blinding white light enveloped everything, twisting the surroundings, and Ning Yu had no choice but to close her eyes.
"Sister, you took my snacks again! There are some over there, why do you have to take mine?"
Her senses still somewhat hazy, Ning Yu faintly heard Shen Qianqian's voice.
When things finally settled, Ning Yu found herself standing in the bathroom, with the hairdryer already plugged in.
This was the day they had gone out for training, the day Shen Yiyue had trained exceptionally hard.
Looking back now, Ning Yu felt she had been completely oblivious.
She had even questioned Shen Yiyue about why she was pushing herself so hard, not realizing that Shen Yiyue had probably been full of grievances but unable to express them.
Ning Yu casually dried her hair for a few moments before quickly stepping out of the bathroom.
"Xiao Yu? Your hair isn't fully dry yet, the ends are still damp."
In the living room, Shen Yiyue, who had just snatched her sister's cookies, looked at Ning Yu with a puzzled expression as she emerged from the bathroom after only briefly drying her hair.
Hearing this, Ning Yu was momentarily stunned, feeling a sense of unease.
What’s going on? It seems like she doesn’t have the memories of the timeline reversal?
Walking over to Shen Yiyue, Ning Yu quickly blinked her right eye three times.
Shen Yiyue looked at Ning Yu with a "what are you doing?" expression, not understanding her actions.
This was their agreed-upon secret signal.
"Ning Yu, what are you doing...?"
Shen Qianqian also looked at Ning Yu with a confused expression.
Now Ning Yu was completely panicked.
No way, I’ve returned, but Shen Yiyue hasn’t?
What’s going on?!
She hurriedly grabbed Shen Yiyue's hand and pulled her toward the bathroom.
"Come here, help me dry my hair."
Ning Yu’s face was pale, her mind in complete disarray.
Once inside the bathroom, Ning Yu turned around and saw Shen Yiyue smiling at her.
Suddenly, it clicked.
"You’re messing with me."
Ning Yu closed the bathroom door and glared at Shen Yiyue, who was barely holding back her laughter.
"Xiao Yu, were you worried just now?"
Shen Yiyue teased Ning Yu while unwrapping the towel from her hair, seemingly ready to dry it alongside her.
"I wasn’t."
Ning Yu picked up the hairdryer with a huff and started drying her hair herself.
"You’re saying you weren’t... Ah!!"
Shen Yiyue had just reached out to take the hairdryer and help Ning Yu when Ning Yu suddenly put it down and pinned her against the wall.
"You scared me to death."
Ning Yu was exasperated by this idiot.
"Seeing you so worried about me, I thought it’d be fun to tease you~!"
Shen Yiyue was still grinning.
"Bad girls deserve punishment."
Ning Yu looked at Shen Yiyue with a slightly aggressive gaze, making her nervous.
Mainly because Ning Yu was so close that Shen Yiyue could feel her warm breath on her skin.
Shen Qianqian was still in the living room, debating whether to peek at the two of them drying each other’s hair.
Suddenly, she heard her sister’s laughter coming from the bathroom.
"Hahahaha... hahaha..."
At first, she thought they were just talking.
But soon she realized it was only her sister’s laughter, and it didn’t stop.
She immediately understood, glanced at the blueberry cream cookies her sister had stolen, and lifted her chin:
"Hmph, the wicked will be punished by the wicked. Serves you right for stealing my cookies!"
Shen Yiyue had expected the usual 'punishment,' but this time Ning Yu didn’t follow the script.
Instead, she pinned her down and started tickling her!
"Hahaha... Xiao Yu... haha I’m sorry... hahaha I really won’t do it again..."
Ning Yu discovered that Shen Yiyue was extremely ticklish. Her face turned red from laughing, and her body went limp as she lost all strength.
"That’s what you get for teasing me."
Ning Yu finally let her go, shot her a sideways glance, and tossed the hairdryer at her.
"Dry my hair."
"Hmph, you’re just using me as a hair-drying tool."
......
"Now, Ning Xuan is at the base. I’ll go find her."
The two of them spread out a large sheet of paper on the living room table, sketching out their plan.
From this point onward, Ning Xuan should be the first to come looking for Ning Yu.
Following her would be the awakened individual with freezing abilities and the soldiers he led, and then Chen Xing with her horde of zombies.
However, these two groups clearly had different objectives—one wanted to take Ning Yu back, while the other aimed to kill her on the spot.
Moreover, Chen Xing had the advantage in numbers, and the key to the deadlock likely lay with her.
This time, Ning Yu didn’t leave immediately. She tied up her silver hair and tucked it under a hat, then put on a pair of polarized sunglasses.
She wore a neutral, casual T-shirt.
Now, she didn’t just look like a handsome young man—she could easily pass as a stylish tomboy, making Shen Yiyue’s eyes sparkle.
"Xiao Yu, you look so cool!"
She smoothed out the wrinkles on Ning Yu’s clothes, admiring her from head to toe.
Ignoring Shen Yiyue’s infatuated gaze, Ning Yu quickly headed out.
She made her way to the Ark’s free trade zone, now familiar with the area.
She walked straight toward the stall where Ning Xuan was 'fishing' for information.
This time, she would be the one to 'reel her in.'
After a few detours, Ning Yu spotted Ning Xuan disguised as a young man at a stall, with the familiar pocket watch on display.
She walked up quickly.