Chapter 15

Hao Ren stood there, dumbfounded (he seemed to be in this state quite often these days) as he heard a sentence that almost made him choke. At that moment, he almost couldn't believe the words coming from the big eyes of the pen: "What did you just say...?"

"The Temporal Administration Bureau," the silver-haired woman said with a smile. Although she had a cold and distant aura when she was silent, once she spoke and smiled, that coldness melted away, making her seem very approachable.

Hao Ren, still dazed, asked, "No, I mean, what did you say after that?"

"Oh, the Wangbat Tuozi Office," the silver-haired woman nodded happily, admitting it so readily.

Hao Ren almost wanted to bash his head against something... but he'd better go outside to do it; everything here looked so valuable that he might not be able to afford the damages. But he really wanted to bash his head against something! How did the words "Temporal Administration Bureau" and "Wangbat Tuozi Office" end up together? And when the white-haired girl said it, she didn't seem to find it odd at all; it was as if it was the most natural thing in the world. Hao Ren felt the same way when he heard this: Old Wang has three children, the eldest is called Da Ming, the second is called Er Ming, and the third is called Eisenbruch William Hannibal...

But the silver-haired woman made such a reasonable statement that Hao Ren had no words to respond: there indeed was a Wangbat Tuozi nearby.

"Heh... heh," Hao Ren forced a stiff laugh, shifting his position on the thick, cushioned seat to a more stable one, worried that another shocking revelation might make him fall to the ground. "The Temporal Administration Bureau, right... oh, by the way, what did you say your name was?"

It was only then that he remembered the other party had introduced herself earlier, but he hadn't been paying attention at the time.

The silver-haired woman, not at all bothered, was even more good-tempered than expected: "I'm called Raven 12345. You should remember this; it's important."

"Even the numbers?"

"Even the numbers—actually, the numbers are the main part," the woman who called herself Raven 12345 nodded vigorously. "It helps to avoid confusion with other Ravens. Do you have any other questions?"

A flood of ideas—androids, clones, dark forces, evil armies plotting to overthrow the Earth, a 200,000-word text with the love and hate of a dozen main characters, and three sets of romantic relationships—flashed through Hao Ren's mind. It wasn't that his imagination was too wild; he just watched too many movies. But he was smart enough not to ask where the other Ravens were (he judged from experience that it was a taboo question, and he would later realize how wrong he was), and just scratched his chin: "Raven 12345... ah, quite a creative name, heh, heh. So, what do you need from me?"

The silver-haired woman smiled slightly: "A strange creature should have already moved into your home, right? If my calculations are correct, it's a 'werewolf.'"

Hao Ren instantly tensed up, his muscles involuntarily trembling: he had previously considered this his highest secret, planning to guard it strictly, believing that Lili's identity must never be revealed. This was his last futile attempt to save his familiar daily life, but he never expected that this mysterious woman seemed to know everything! However, he quickly relaxed—since the mysterious person was also an "outsider," it was inevitable that she knew some things. Hao Ren was very clear that he was still in the dark about a certain mysterious field, so he couldn't show too much surprise, which would put him at a disadvantage.

Since Raven 12345 didn't mention Vivian, it meant her information was a bit outdated, and Hao Ren naturally wouldn't bring it up.

He nodded: "Indeed, but I don't think it's a problem, right? Your Temporal... Administration Bureau manages this?"

"It's not a problem, just a heads-up. In the future, more strange creatures will move into your home; this will be your job," Raven 12345 said casually, shocking him. "The organization has high hopes for you..."

"Wait a minute!" Hao Ren couldn't help but jump up: "Is this all your arrangement?!"

"Not currently, but it will be in the future," Raven 12345 shrugged. "Anyway, you've already met the 'werewolf' called Lili, and I happen to need an assistant. You're very suitable for this job."

"What exactly do you do?" Hao Ren frowned, feeling that Raven 12345's words were a bit disjointed, always starting to talk to herself for no reason, and never getting to the point. Just explain what the Temporal Administration Bureau does!

"We? 'We' is a large group," Raven 12345 touched her nose. "The Xiling Empire is vast, managing countless universes, with numerous departments and complex divisions. We do all sorts of things. You can think of us as deities for simplicity—by the way, we only recently transformed into a divine race as a whole, so the organization is young, but youth means opportunity. As for the Temporal Administration Bureau, it's a department under the empire responsible for managing various universes, handling information transmission, regulating inter-universe travel, and enhancing world cohesion... according to the latest directive from the top, but it might change in the future. I'm a low-level official in the Temporal Administration Bureau, responsible for the trivial matters of this universe—like preventing certain races from causing a world-ending disaster or planning the evolution of celestial bodies. Normally, this isn't my job, but I'm filling in due to some special circumstances. As for you, I need an assistant—since I manage the entire universe, I need someone to handle the local trivial matters. You were chosen, feel special?"

Hao Ren listened to this almost fantastical story, feeling dizzy and disoriented, and calmly stood up: "Thank you, but you're a nice person, your tokusatsu shows are very interesting. Could you please show me the exit?"

Raven 12345 didn't even show a hint of surprise, as if she had seen similar reactions many times. After Hao Ren finished speaking, she snapped her fingers: "According to the onboarding requirements, new probationary inspectors need to undergo a psychological test, which takes quite a while. I'll start with the most basic one for you..."

Before Hao Ren could say anything more, he felt a sudden lightness, and the surroundings changed dramatically!

The luxurious room disappeared, and darkness enveloped him from all sides. Hao Ren found himself standing in a void, and then a bright spot suddenly burst forth, radiating light in all directions!

The first thing to appear was an indescribable, scorching light, without a discernible structure or fixed form. This light rushed towards him with overwhelming force, spreading to the farthest reaches in an instant. Hao Ren only had time to blink, and the light had already expanded to a scale beyond his comprehension.

Then the light dimmed, and the ultra-high-energy rapidly decayed and degraded. Primitive particles were born as the light cooled and decayed, and the afterglow of the initial flash swept through the universe, giving rise to the first primitive nebulae, which laid the foundation for future galaxy clusters and massive celestial structures.

The cooling continued, and ancient stars began to form in the dense regions of the primitive nebulae, while the nebulae themselves fragmented into independent galaxy clusters. Local nuclear reactions replaced the rapid energy of the Big Bang, and the universe entered a more gentle and orderly period. As the cooling continued, the ancient stars quickly burned through their fuel, exploding and ejecting accumulated heavy elements. These heavy elements, the first stable materials to appear after the "initial flash," traveled along the paths indicated by the remnants of the stars, colliding, merging, and being captured by new, young stars.

The first star systems were born.

Matter became increasingly sparse, and the restless galaxies, after releasing a large amount of energy and consuming a large amount of matter, settled down. The complexity of the universe increased, stars evolved, and life flourished. Hao Ren felt his vision exceed human understanding, standing at an almost omniscient perspective to observe the entire universe. He immediately saw his goal: near a young star, a blue planet was being covered in green...

Then the image froze, and a line of text appeared before his eyes: "Genesis Video Expert Trial Version. Please recharge to continue."

The surrounding scenery receded like a tide, and Hao Ren found himself back in the luxurious room, drenched in sweat. The woman who called herself Raven 12345 smiled at him: "This is the record of your universe's evolution to this point, of course, with some adjustments to the timeline for your convenience. This isn't a recording I made; it's a snapshot directly extracted from the underlying information of the universe, so you've essentially experienced the creation of the universe. How does it feel?"