Foresight into the Future

Liu Lang snapped back to reality and found himself standing in front of Yang Zi’s luxurious mansion.

A security guard was already walking toward him.

He checked the time on his phone, muttering, "Hiss... Has time reversed? It's taken me back to the exact moment I first arrived at this mansion!"

A wave of cool sensation emanated from the Jade Ring Bottle, helping him regain a measure of composure.

"Hello, are you here to visit Mr. Yang Zi?" the guard asked, looking him up and down.

Suddenly, Liu Lang grabbed the guard’s wrist. There was an electronic watch on it; he needed to check the time displayed there.

"What are you doing!" the guard instinctively struggled. Liu Lang applied a slight pressure with his hand, causing the guard to grit his teeth in pain, instantly losing any ability to resist.

Liu Lang double-checked the date—it was indeed the day of his first visit.

At that moment, Lan Shengyi walked out on her own. "Please let go of him, or I'll call the police!"

Liu Lang released his grip and apologized to the guard.

"I've seen you in the videos. Is your name Liu Lang? You're just as overbearing as you were in the footage. Say, that bottle in your hand... This is my first time seeing it, but I have this strange sense of familiarity with it."

*Madam, I feel a sense of familiarity when I see you, too.*

"Do you have any recollection of us looking up information about this bottle together?"

Lan Shengyi shook her head in confusion. "This is our first time meeting, Mr. Liu."

"The night of the full moon? The plaza at Tiantongyuan? Just the two of us?" Liu Lang continued prompting.

Lan Shengyi frowned in displeasure. "Mr. Liu, you really are quite frivolous. I am going to call the police."

Liu Lang lowered his head to look at the bottle in his hand, murmuring, "Has time truly reversed, or was it all just a dream?"

"Does that mean I foresaw the future? If it's real, then there's no need to interact with Lan Shengyi. In the future, opening a channel with her led to the fusion of two worlds and brought about catastrophe. Now, as long as I don't open it, I can avoid all that trouble."

He turned and walked away, leaving a bewildered Lan Shengyi behind.

"How annoying. I've only just graduated from high school, and this should be my summer vacation. Why do I have to deal with all this mess?"

All he wanted to do was toss this bottle to Lan Shengyi and then live a shamelessly happy life with Liu Fei'er.

The *Samsara Heaven and Earth Scripture* automatically circulated within his body, clearing his mind instantly. Liu Lang was somewhat startled as to why such a thought had crossed his mind.

Could it be that this bottle was influencing my emotions and thoughts?

***

The *Samsara Heaven and Earth Scripture* surged wildly through his body, and Liu Lang felt a strange, mystical force trying to force its way into him.

"There really is something evil going on!"

Thank goodness the *Samsara Heaven and Earth Scripture* could block this kind of sorcery!

"You damn thing, you still want to mess with your grandpa? I'm going to smash you right now!" Liu Lang fiercely hurled the Jade Ring Bottle away.

As if struck by lightning, Lan Shengyi lunged forward and leaped, catching the Jade Ring Bottle in her arms just before it hit the ground.

Naturally, she also crashed hard onto the floor.

"Madam!" The security guards, having finally reacted, rushed forward and helped her up in a flurry of panic.

She seemed to feel no pain at all. Cradling the bottle as if it were her own child, she affectionately rubbed her cheek against it.

"Finally, you're back in my hands. We are one again. Jinsheng, since you have already been reincarnated, I must hurry to catch up. In our next life, I will surely stay with you forever."

A wisp of soul was extracted from Lan Shengyi’s body and sucked into the bottle.

The Jade Ring Bottle emitted a faint glow, revealing the face of a young maiden who bore a ninety-percent resemblance to Lan Shengyi.

"Back then, coerced by evildoers, I split off a fragment of my soul to undergo reincarnation. Now, it has finally been reclaimed. Liu Lang, I am one destined for tribulation, and Yang Zi is the master of my tribulation. Right now, you are the sole variable, and only you can help deliver us from this ordeal. The Jade Ring Bottle holds profound mysteries and serves as the key to opening the Yunlu Academy. After my reincarnation, I shall leave it in your care."

The maiden's face on the bottle vanished, and everything returned to peace, as if nothing had happened at all, save for the cicadas continuing their relentless chirping.

The Jade Ring Bottle landed upright on the ground.

Lan Shengyi’s body lay on the floor, looking as though she had simply fallen asleep.

That day's trending topics on Weibo: Celebrity Lan Shengyi unexpectedly becomes a vegetative state patient, while her husband Yang Zi makes no public statements.

Inside the Dragon Unit’s office, a group of people gathered around the Jade Ring Bottle.

"You're saying it can predict the future? In your prophetic dream, Ah Zeng and I secretly went to Tiantongyuan?" Ah Zeng asked, finding it hard to believe.

Indeed, she and Ah Zeng had already decided to head to Tiantongyuan to test whether they could enter the video world.

If Liu Lang had returned even a step later, they would have already departed.

Tang Feng put down his notebook and pen. He had just returned to the office, intending to relay higher-level directives to his subordinates, only to run into Liu Lang returning with the Jade Ring Bottle.

"Are you saying there is another unknown world called Yunlu Academy?" He showed no surprise; only exhaustion was etched across his face.

One wave not yet settled, another rises; his heart was weary.

***

"The higher-ups want us to resolve these video-crossing incidents as quickly as possible. Destroy them if we can; otherwise, we must control them. As for those who manage to complete missions and return from the video world, they must be kept under our strict surveillance."

"As for this bottle, I'll keep it in my custody for now. It seems items with magical functions like this will only become more common in the future. I'll have to request the construction of a new vault for us."

Tang Feng retrieved a thick wooden box from his office, which happened to be the exact size needed to hold the Jade Ring Bottle.

"Team Leader, how is it that you happen to have a box like this lying around?" Liu Lang asked.

Tang Feng looked as though he had heard the funniest joke in the world. "Collecting antiques is also one of my hobbies. I just took out a Song Dynasty vase, leaving this box empty for use."

Liu Lang’s gaze drifted past his shoulder, landing on an antique vase brimming with ancient charm resting on the team leader's desk.

He sighed inwardly: Everyone in the Dragon Unit is filthy rich!

Monk Yuanjian answered a phone call. After hanging up, he announced, "We've received a report that someone has completed a mission and emerged from the video world!"

A certain family's daughter had entered the video world twice, successfully completing her missions on both occasions.

The child's mother had noticed anomalies, and under her intense questioning, the girl finally spilled the truth.

Tang Feng arranged for Monk Yuanjian and Liu Lang to investigate the situation.

Liu Lang protested, "I belong to the Special Anomalies Task Force. Why do you guys in the Dragon Unit always make me do the legwork?"

Tang Feng produced an A4 sheet of paper. "The Special Anomalies Task Force has already approved the official request for Comrade Liu Lang's temporary transfer. We are a formal organization, after all—our paperwork is completely proper and compliant."

*Ah! This humble subject is willing to fight to the death, yet Your Majesty, why do you speak of surrender?!*

Smiling, Monk Yuanjian hoisted Liu Lang over his shoulder and carried him off.

"Big Monk, why aren't you wearing your kasaya anymore? I'm really not used to seeing you in a tailored suit!" Liu Lang noticed that the monk possessed a broad, muscular build, and the suit he wore was clearly not cheap. Looking closer, he even spotted several pierced holes in the monk's ears—he truly looked like a mob enforcer in a suit.

Yuanjian chuckled and said, "I've returned to secular life. My spiritual cultivation wasn't deep enough, and I no longer dare to call myself a man of the cloth. From now on, you can call me by my secular name, Li Yuanjian."

*Returned to secular life...*

Liu Lang narrowed his eyes as he sized up Li Yuanjian, sensing that something fishy was going on.

Back in the office, Tang Feng slumped into his leather executive chair, cold sweat beading on his forehead as he labored to lift his head and stare at the Jade Ring Bottle.

"Is this truly the future awaiting Yan'er and me?"