Chapter 19 – Return to the Living World

On the high-speed train from Shencheng to Ningnan…

Su Lifeng withdrew his gaze from the window and glanced at the girl sitting beside him.

She was focused intently on a news report playing on her phone: “It is reported that the Cruise Ship tragedy has resulted in over four hundred missing persons, with only five survivors. These five survivors were finally discovered by search teams near the waters of Shencheng after drifting at sea for three days. Due to the extreme emotional trauma they exhibited upon rescue, they have not yet accepted media interviews. We wish them a speedy recovery from this shadow and a return to normal life, while hoping that more survivors can be found soon…”

“Search teams are currently scanning the area where the Cruise Ship disappeared, but according to footage from helicopters, no clues regarding the wreckage have been found on the surface. However, the search will continue, with Rihuan and Hanchao also joining the efforts…”

“How terrifying,” the girl muttered to herself. Sensing Su Lifeng’s gaze, she looked up at him in surprise, then offered a friendly smile. “Are you watching the news too?”

She noticed that Su Lifeng wasn’t looking at her, but at her phone screen. It was hardly surprising; the news had been saturated with reports over the past few days, making it the biggest headline in recent memory.

“I heard a student tour group from Ningnan University was on board. So many people died, and only three students made it back alive. Sigh, I used to feel like tragedies like this were so far away. You see natural disasters happening everywhere, but never here. I never expected so many victims would be from Ningnan University…” The girl’s expression turned pained. After a moment of reflection, she asked, “You look like a student yourself. You wouldn’t happen to be from Ningnan University too, would you?”

Su Lifeng looked at her and gave a slight nod.

“You really are! Actually, I just received my admission letter from Ningnan University. I’m a freshman this year. My name is Qiu Yuming-Qiu like the season autumn. Please look after me in the future, Senior.”

The girl’s somber mood vanished instantly, replaced by excitement as she reached out her hand.

“Su Lifeng. Your surname is quite rare,” Su Lifeng said, finally speaking as he shook her hand.

“Haha, I get that a lot.” The girl felt that although Su Lifeng didn’t use much strength, his hand felt very solid-different from its slender, fair appearance. However, as a girl, she couldn’t keep holding a stranger’s hand forever, so despite her brief curiosity, she quickly let go.

“You’re not from Ningnan, are you? There’s still about a week before the semester starts. Why are you here so early?” Su Lifeng asked.

Qiu Yuming gave an embarrassed smile. “Yeah, I’m from Shencheng, but I’ve always looked forward to Ningnan University, especially the School of Life Sciences. I heard it’s top-tier in all of Huaxia… Even though I’m not a biology major, I still think it’s amazing. Sigh…”

At this point, her expression darkened again. “It’s a shame this happened. I heard many people have been going to the gates of Ningnan University to leave flowers. Once I arrive, I’ll go leave some for those seniors too. And those three surviving seniors-I really hope they’ll be okay. They’re probably still in the hospital, right? I actually went to Shencheng Hospital once, but the nurses wouldn’t let me visit.”

Seeing Qiu Yuming’s rapid shifts between cheerfulness and sadness, Su Lifeng paused for a moment before letting out a soft breath. For most people, this tragedy was likely just that-something to sigh over, yet filled with an unreal sense of distance. They would lament it for a moment, then quickly push it to the back of their minds, just like every other tragedy that had come before.

Unfortunately, the impact this tragedy would have on humanity went far beyond that. It was just that, for now, no one knew the truth except for him.

Su Lifeng gazed at the scenery rushing past the window-the endless rice paddies and the buildings standing among them-wondering how much longer this peaceful scene could last.

Hearing that Qiu Yuming had tried to visit them, Su Lifeng smiled slightly and said, “Don’t worry. They’ll be fine.”

“Yeah, that would be for the best.” Qiu Yuming assumed he was praying just like she was, so she nodded with a smile. It never crossed her mind that this gentle-looking senior was actually one of those five survivors…

Furthermore, the news Qiu Yuming had heard was already outdated. Su Lifeng and the others had been discharged from the hospital the day before. Among them, Ye Long had taken Ye Nannan back to their hometown, Cheng Xiaomei had mentioned wanting to get away from the crowds for some peace and quiet, and Jiang Yushi had been whisked away in the middle of the night by her family. Before leaving, however, Jiang Yushi had made a point to find Su Lifeng and tell him she would find a way to contact him once she was home.

The five of them had escaped death together, only to go their separate ways.

Of course, Cheng Xiaomei and Jiang Yushi would eventually return to school, but Su Lifeng still felt a sense of melancholy.

Even though the nightmare had only lasted half an hour, returning to civilization left everyone with a lingering sense of unease, as if they were no longer fit for society…

At least, that was how it felt for them.

As for Su Lifeng, he had more important things to do, which was why he had been so eager to return to Ningnan.

“Senior Su, I still don’t know which department you’re in. We should hang out sometime!” Qiu Yuming was quite lively. As they prepared to get off, she asked him directly, acting as if they were already old friends.

Su Lifeng appreciated this kind-hearted and cute junior, so after a moment’s thought, he replied, “I’m in the School of Life Sciences.”

“Ah! You’re already a graduate student? You look only a year or two older than me…” Qiu Yuming looked Su Lifeng up and down in surprise.

The high-speed train pulled into the station at that moment. Su Lifeng stood up, pulled his bag from the luggage rack, slung it over his shoulder, and said, “See you at school.”

Surprised that Su Lifeng was heading for the exit so quickly, Qiu Yuming froze for a second. Suddenly, the name Su Lifeng felt somewhat familiar…

“Where have I seen that? Oh! His name is on the School of Life Sciences’ website! Ahhh, what a waste, I didn’t realize it until now! I didn’t expect him to be so young in person, and he’s actually kind of handsome…” Qiu Yuming thought excitedly.

At the same time, she wondered if she had seen it somewhere else too… A thought struck her, and she quickly pulled up the news again. Finally, her eyes locked onto a line in the report: “List of rescued: a student surnamed Su.”

But after staring at it for a moment, Qiu Yuming shook her head. “It couldn’t be him. He looks so normal… If it were me, I’d definitely be traumatized for a long time. Yeah…”

Following the first wave of passengers off the train, Su Lifeng walked briskly out of the station.

He stopped by a roadside shop to get a replacement SIM card and bought a new phone. Fortunately, the bank cards in his wallet hadn’t been ruined by the seawater; otherwise, he would have had to rely on government aid just to get home. However, Su Lifeng didn’t want to deal with the rescue personnel more than necessary… After all, he had used “mental trauma” as an excuse to hide many details. In particular, the fact that he had absorbed a Xenospecies was an absolute secret.

Jiang Yushi and Cheng Xiaomei had coincidentally adopted the same strategy. What surprised Su Lifeng, however, was that Ye Long and his daughter hadn’t said anything either. Especially Nannan… Su Lifeng had expected the little girl to break down easily, but even if she had spoken, her young age would have made her story hard to believe, especially given how fantastical the events were. To his surprise, she had simply remained expressionless and silent.

The matter of the Spatial Gate was far too bizarre. Su Lifeng was certain that if the secret of the Xenospecies were discovered, the five of them would be unable to escape the fate of being examined or even experimented on. Perhaps his suspicions were a bit dark, but one only had to look at Zhang Hai to know-as dangerous as the Xenospecies were, the temptation they offered was equally immense.

After turning on his phone, Su Lifeng paused for a moment before dialing a number from memory.

The phone rang for a long time before someone picked up. “Didn’t I tell you? Unless it’s an emergency, try not to call me.”