Tang Chen successfully carried Tang Xiao out of the mist. The people stationed outside gasped in shock, but he had no time to explain. After placing Tang Xiao on the ground, he immediately turned and rushed back into the mist.
“Hurry, hurry! Where’s the doctor?!”
The on-site personnel quickly sprang into action. Though they didn’t know what had happened inside, Tang Chen had managed to rescue a survivor. The ambulance and stretcher were already waiting outside. Nurses hurriedly loaded Tang Xiao into the ambulance and rushed him to the hospital.
Li Xiaoyi finally felt a small sense of relief. It was only the first rescue, but it was a good sign.
However, Tang Chen’s younger brother looked somewhat familiar...
Li Xiaoyi quickly recalled the intelligence reports recently gathered by the players and soon matched Tang Xiao’s identity.
Wasn’t he the scientist who discovered a cure for the zombie mushroom?
The special department had been collecting information on that scientist as well. However, the sudden outbreak of the mist incident had taken priority, so Li Xiaoyi had been sent ahead to handle matters on-site.
A scientist connected to the ability to rewind time—or perhaps a time-manipulating superpower himself.
Li Xiaoyi’s gaze followed the departing ambulance, but he didn’t dwell on the thought for long. The situation at hand was still urgent. He simply ordered his team to ensure Tang Xiao’s full recovery.
The accelerated fusion of the two worlds had caught everyone off guard. In such a chaotic time, scientists who could research mushroom diseases like the zombie mushroom were extremely valuable. Not just Tang Xiao—Xiao Bai’s team, as well as any scientists who had contributed similar breakthroughs within the game, were now on a high-priority watchlist, as long as their real-world identities could be traced.
The time-manipulating player in the game remained an enigma. Their identity, gender, and origin—whether they were a native of that world or a player—were all unknown.
But Li Xiaoyi had a strong feeling that the answer was right in front of him.
At that moment, his phone rang again. Answering the call, he heard a report from an internal department member.
“Mr. Li, this is intelligence from the player side. They’ve noticed that the flow of time in the real world is off—it seems there’s been a time-reversal phenomenon.”
Time reversal wouldn’t affect both worlds simultaneously. This meant that if players remained in the game world during a reversal, they would notice the discrepancy in time flow upon returning to reality.
The special department had previously detected time reversals in the game using similar observations.
A sharp glint flashed in Li Xiaoyi’s eyes as he responded warmly, “Understood. Thank you.”
The final piece of the puzzle had silently fallen into place.
So that’s how it was.
Li Xiaoyi continued managing the on-site situation. Meanwhile, Tang Chen’s team successfully rescued more survivors one after another, finally easing the tension among the personnel.
Yet, there were more sighs than cheers.
Despite the many people Tang Chen’s team had saved, even more had vanished into the mist, their fates unknown.
Many within the special department speculated that these people weren’t necessarily dead but had instead been transported to the other world.
But that wasn’t much better. Players in the game world had searched the various bases for missing people but had never heard of anyone suddenly appearing.
Most likely, they had appeared in the wilderness.
That was almost a death sentence. In a world overrun with mutant beasts and parasitic plants, their chances of survival were slim.
How much longer would this disaster last?
Three hours later, Tang Chen’s team had nearly finished clearing the mist-infested area of mutant beasts. Under military protection, medical personnel entered the mist to rescue the injured who couldn’t move on their own. Ambulance after ambulance transported them to hospitals.
Finally, with every member of Tang Chen’s team utterly exhausted, they confirmed that there were no more survivors in the school. Only then did they end the mission, collapsing onto the ground outside the school to rest.
Li Xiaoyi approached them. Tang Chen instinctively tried to stand, but Li Xiaoyi quickly gestured for them to remain seated.
“You’ve all worked hard this time. Just sit and rest—no need for formalities.” Li Xiaoyi plopped down beside them with a warm smile. “How was the situation inside?”
“It was better than we expected, thanks to the efforts of those inside,” the vice-captain reported, glancing at Tang Chen. “Especially Tang Chen’s younger brother, Tang Xiao. I heard he led a group that rescued over twenty people in the dormitory. If not for their efforts, more people might have died before we arrived.”
Qiu Yifan nodded in agreement. “Yeah, wasn’t Tang Chen’s brother supposed to be an ordinary person? Incredibly, he managed to do all that. From what I heard, the things they went through should have killed them multiple times over. I can’t believe they made it all the way without losing a single person.”
Li Xiaoyi’s eyes gleamed, and he patted Tang Chen on the shoulder. “You have an amazing little brother.”
Tang Chen let out a bitter chuckle. “I was scared out of my mind, honestly. To be fair, luck played a big role in their survival. Tang Xiao is just an ordinary person—if I had a choice, I’d rather he stayed put and waited for rescue.”
“An ordinary person, huh…” The smile on Li Xiaoyi’s lips stiffened slightly. “Say, Tang Chen… do you know what kind of research your brother is working on?”
“I know a little. Last time I went home, my parents even threw a celebration for him,” Tang Chen scratched his head. “But I don’t really understand the specifics… It didn’t seem to be going too well, though.”
He recalled the messages his parents had sent, mentioning that Tang Xiao had been feeling inexplicably down lately. He suspected it was due to setbacks in his research, but since he was busy with missions, he couldn’t take time off to visit. He had only been able to send gifts home, hoping to cheer his little brother up.
“Xiaoxiao is a bit mischievous. Honestly, we never expected him to do anything groundbreaking. As long as he’s happy, that’s enough for us,” Tang Chen said.
Li Xiaoyi: “...”
For the past three years, Tang Chen had been in closed training—developing his superpowers, and taking on missions. Since he wasn’t a player, he had been transferred away from his original post later on, preventing him from gaining deeper insight into the game world's intelligence.
Naturally, he had no idea that the scientist Tang Xiao, who had recently become famous in the game world, was his own younger brother.
Li Xiaoyi roughly understood the situation and patted Tang Chen on the shoulder. “I'll approve some time off for you later. Try to communicate more with your brother.”
Tang Chen was confused. “...Huh? Okay?”
Why did his superior look so strange?
After completing a mission, Tang Chen quickly bandaged his wounds and rushed straight to the hospital where Tang Xiao was staying.
He soon learned that Tang Xiao had simply passed out from exhaustion and had already regained consciousness.
Tang Chen knocked on the hospital room door. After receiving permission, he entered and saw Tang Xiao sitting on the hospital bed, playing a handheld game console. However, his expression seemed somewhat distracted. When he heard the noise, he looked up toward the doorway, his pupils widening.
The young man standing at the door looked over at him and smiled. “Xiaoxiao.”
Tang Xiao tossed aside the game console, jumped off the bed, and broke into a run. “Brother!”
Tang Chen caught his little brother as he lunged forward. “Xiaoxiao, long time no see. Though, strictly speaking, we just saw each other—” Tang Xiao's smile stiffened as images of what had happened at school earlier flashed through his mind.
After a brief silence, he asked, “The people in the dormitory building… were they saved?”
“Of course, thanks to your timely intervention,” Tang Chen said with a sigh. “But personally, I still wish you would focus more on protecting yourself.”
Tang Xiao remained quiet for a moment before asking, “And the mycelium at the school gate…?”
“We've already taken care of it. Strange thing, though—after I got you out and went back, I found that the mycelium had withered on its own. Didn't take much effort at all.”
Tang Xiao closed his eyes for a moment, forcing his emotions into a corner. His expression remained completely calm. “That's good.”
“We haven't seen each other in three years, brother.”
Tang Xiao had spent three years absorbed in the game world, while Tang Chen had been away from home for three years as well. If it hadn't been for past precedents and the occasional message from Tang Chen to assure their parents he was alive, their family would have nearly reported him missing.
Tang Chen ruffled Tang Xiao's hair, his expression apologetic. “Sorry, I've been too busy with missions to make time.”
“Come in and sit. But you came at the wrong time—Mom and Dad just left after visiting me.”
“It's fine. I’ve got some time off now, so this time, we can properly spend time together.”
Tang Chen sat in a chair by the bed and asked, “How are you feeling? Why were you playing games just now? Are you already better?”
Tang Xiao gave an awkward laugh. “The game was borrowed from the guy in the next room. I'm feeling much better. I wasn’t actually injured in the first place. The doctor said I should be able to leave the hospital soon.”
“That's good.” Hearing that, Tang Chen finally relaxed.
The two brothers casually chatted about what had happened over the past three years, mostly sharing the good and leaving out the bad. Tang Chen was like this, and so was Tang Xiao. But remembering his superior’s words—’Spend more time talking to your brother’—and recalling the messages from his parents, Tang Chen couldn't help but ask,
“I heard you were feeling down for a while. Are you doing better now?”
Tang Xiao's expression stiffened slightly. “...Much better.”
Tang Chen carefully studied his brother's eyes, catching a faint trace of unease. He assumed Tang Xiao had faced setbacks in his research and didn’t press further.
He figured his little brother had hit a roadblock in the field of scientific research. After all, he understood how difficult it was—research attracted some of the world's smartest people, and without exceptional talent, it was hard to make significant achievements.
Maybe Tang Xiao had run into obstacles. Tang Chen knew his little brother well—while he had managed to get into a top university, he wasn’t exactly a genius. Plus, after starting college, he had become increasingly engrossed in gaming.
Becoming a game streamer seemed like a good career choice for him. Tang Chen, like their parents, no longer had high expectations. As long as his little brother was safe and happy, that was enough.
With that thought, he voiced his reassurance. “It's okay if you don’t want to pursue research. We’ve got your back. As long as you don’t break the law or cross society’s moral bottom line, you can do whatever you want in life.”
Tang Xiao finally looked up from his game console and glanced at Tang Chen with a quiet smile. “No matter what kind of mess I make, you guys will cover for me?”
“Of course,” Tang Chen said as a matter of fact. “As long as it’s not illegal.”
Tang Xiao let out a soft chuckle before saying, “Then I’ll take your word for it.”
Tang Chen nodded. After all, what kind of trouble could his little brother possibly cause? He had watched him grow up and knew that Tang Xiao had an upright character—completely different from those rich troublemakers. There was no way he would get involved in anything serious.
Just then, Tang Chen's phone emitted a distinctive ‘beep beep’ sound.
It was a signal from his department. He paused, took out his phone, and saw an updated player intelligence report from his direct superior.
[Name: Tang Xiao
Gender: Male, between 20 and 30 years old
Occupation: Scientist
Identity: Suspected a super S-rank time-related superhuman. One of the inventors of the ‘latest generation gene-editing technology’ in the game world. Scientist responsible for decoding the zombie mushroom.]
Tang Chen:?
He was aware that player information was regularly updated in the internal network, but only for those who had awakened superpowers. These individuals could pose potential instability in reality, so they were monitored.
But Tang Xiao? Since he hadn’t awakened any superpowers, Tang Chen had merely filed his information in the system so that other department players could lend a hand if they ever encountered him in-game. And that was supposed to be the end of it.
But now this updated intelligence report…?
Tang Chen: ……
This name seemed awfully familiar.
This face in the attached image—even more familiar.
Like a ghost, Tang Chen slowly lifted his head to look at his little brother, who was lounging on the hospital bed, casually playing his game with an utterly carefree expression. He simply couldn’t see how this guy was supposed to be a world-saving scientist.
Sensing his big brother’s burning gaze, Tang Xiao looked up. “...What’s wrong?”
What’s wrong? He’s seriously asking what’s wrong?!
Tang Chen was about to suffocate. He looked at the name and portrait on his phone, and they seemed to match his younger brother.
But these identity remarks—each one was more outrageous than the last!
A super S-rank time-based superpower user? As far as Tang Chen knew, the highest recorded rank was A-rank. Where did this ‘super S-rank’ come from??
And the inventor of the latest generation of gene-editing technology, the scientist who cracked the zombie mushroom??
It wasn’t that Tang Chen looked down on his younger brother—it was just that this was too absurd! He knew his own family well. Sure, Tang Xiao was smart, but not that smart, right? He wasn’t entirely sure how significant this gene-editing technology was, but he did know about the zombie mushroom. It had plagued that world for nearly a hundred years—once infected, death was almost certain.
At least… until recently.
Tang Chen looked at Tang Xiao in a daze. “You…”
Weren’t you just playing games all the time? When did you become a scientist?
He vaguely remembered that Tang Xiao was indeed skilled at gaming and had once assured him that he would do well in the game world.
Tang Chen never expected his brother to achieve anything remarkable in that world—he knew that the so-called ‘game’ was actually the real world. His only hope was that Tang Xiao could stay alive.
But Tang Xiao had clearly exceeded his expectations! How could gaming skills be applied in this way?!
“Brother, what’s wrong?” Tang Xiao looked at Tang Chen in confusion, hesitating as he put down his game console. “Did something happen in your department? If they’re calling you back, don’t worry about me. Just go.”
“...No. They’re not looking for me.” Tang Chen’s expression was incredibly complex. If he had to break it down, it was about three parts shock, two parts disbelief, and a lingering sense of Are you sure they didn’t get the wrong person? He took a deep breath and sat beside Tang Xiao. “Xiaoxiao, tell me the truth.”
“In the game world... did you become some kind of incredible scientist?”
Tang Xiao was stunned for a moment. Then, from Tang Chen’s reaction, he quickly pieced things together. Slowly, he put down the game console and looked into Tang Chen’s eyes seriously. “Personally, I don’t think it’s that incredible.”
“But yes, if you’re asking whether I’m the one who cracked the zombie mushroom—then yes, that was me.”
It really was him?!
Tang Chen couldn’t stay calm anymore. He had once been rather hot-tempered, but after years in the military, he had grown steadier. Especially in front of his younger brother, he always made an effort to appear calm and reliable. But now, this carefully maintained persona was on the verge of collapse in the face of this explosive revelation.
Taking a deep breath, Tang Chen rubbed his forehead helplessly. “Weren’t you just a graduate student?”
“Yeah.” Tang Xiao blinked and hid behind his game console. “But in that world, I already earned my PhD.”
“So technically, you can call me Dr. Tang.”
Tang Chen: “...”
My own little brother... is actually a brilliant scientist?
How come I never knew our family had such excellent genes?
In a dazed tone, Tang Chen asked, “And what about the superpower thing? You told me you didn’t awaken any abilities.”
“I didn’t.” Tang Xiao scratched his head. “It’s kind of complicated to explain… I always thought it was just the game’s save-and-load function.”
Plus, he had tested his blood before, and nothing had shown up, so he never considered it. It was only later that he realized other players probably didn’t have this ability—not to mention the skill point allocation system.
“And you signed a confidentiality agreement, so I didn’t dare ask too much.”
Tang Chen: ……
So this was my own fault??
He had just said that no matter what trouble his little brother caused, he’d have his back.
And now, he was immediately eating his words… Because this was definitely not something he could cover for!
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