Chapter 22

Hao Ren got up from the ground, using his hands and feet, and while pinching his thigh, muttered to himself, "Damn, can I still enjoy being a human on Earth...?"

He was one hundred percent sure that he was cooling off in front of his house just a moment ago. The surroundings were the old streets and alleys he had been familiar with for over twenty years, the dilapidated houses on Bai Shi Road in the southern suburbs, and the uneven cement road under his feet were all vividly in his mind. But he had just closed his eyes for a moment, and everything around him had completely changed.

Hao Ren found himself standing on a vast, boundless prairie!

Looking far into the distance, the view was endless, with only knee-high green wild grass stretching out as far as the eye could see. The night wind, fresher than in the city, blew continuously, and the grass under his feet undulated like waves. Hao Ren looked up at the sky, which was a clear, star-studded night sky he had never seen in the city. The stars were so dense and bright that he could clearly see the scenery on the prairie under the night sky.

And at the far end of the horizon, two moons, one large and one small, were slowly rising into the sky. A halo of light could be seen around the edge of the larger silver moon—two moons!

"I knew I shouldn't read too many novels!" Hao Ren watched the two moons slowly rise into the sky, the night sky filled with stars he didn't recognize (of course, he didn't recognize many stars on Earth either), and finally couldn't help but jump up, "Is this a穿越 (穿越 means '穿越' in Chinese, which refers to a genre of stories where characters are transported to another world or time)?"

Hao Ren had already pinched his thigh several times, and now it hurt so much that he could hardly walk. This made him feel that he wasn't dreaming. But what was going on in front of him? Could he be thrown to another world while cooling off on the curb? Oh, my dear mother, he still had two monster girls at home who needed to be fed!

Hao Ren's mind was a jumble of thoughts, like a carousel, running through countless ideas. He thought of a dozen classic examples of crossing to another world, and then thought about the two troublemakers at home and his newly acquired identity as an employee of the Space-Time Administration. But in the end, all these thoughts turned into a long sigh. He realized he couldn't just wait here, because he had heard a wolf howl just now...

Hao Ren said goodbye to his recliner and started walking in the direction of the two moons in the sky: in that direction, he vaguely saw the silhouette of what looked like buildings, at least a goal to move toward. Of course, he knew that wandering around in such an unfamiliar environment was not a wise move, as it would either waste his energy or lead him to greater danger. But the key was that he felt he had "crossed"! The process of getting here was already abnormal, and waiting in one place would never result in someone coming to save him. It was better to check out the surroundings first.

"Even the landing point isn't reliable, thrown onto such a vast prairie, not even a tree in sight, how can I survive?" The night on the prairie was bone-chillingly cold, and Hao Ren could only hug his arms and mutter as he walked, "Do I have to eat grass? If I eat poisonous grass, I'll die. If there were a forest, it would be much better. I could chop down a tree and build a workbench, maybe I could survive..." (a Minecraft reference)

Clearly, Hao Ren was not a qualified "crosser": after just a few minutes in this unfamiliar environment, his mind was already running wild, not at all fitting the stereotype of a "crosser" who becomes calm, wise, and resolute upon entering a new world. But he couldn't control his wild thoughts, as they helped to slightly dispel the bone-deep unease and tension—after all, he was just an ordinary person, a small citizen who had never faced a crisis greater than not being able to rent out his house until three days ago. How could such a small citizen remain calm, resolute, and smart?

Another faint wolf howl came from the distance, but it might also be a hallucination caused by his tension. Hao Ren couldn't help but think of the wolf girl at home with a bit of a mental issue: Lily would howl like this, and it sounded much better. If that wolf girl were here, it would be great... although she wasn't very smart, she should be able to handle wild wolves, right? But then again, he didn't know if she could get along with Vivian. If he couldn't return, they would definitely tear down the house within three days, but let them tear it down; it wouldn't matter to him anymore.

Hao Ren walked on the vast prairie, his mind full of wild thoughts, and the surroundings seemed so vast that he felt the distant scenery hadn't changed at all, even after walking for so long. If it weren't for the recliner that had disappeared from his line of sight and the two moons that could guide his direction, he would have thought he was just walking in circles.

The temperature around him was getting lower and lower, and the night wind on the prairie was not something a T-shirt could withstand. At first, Hao Ren thought the air here was fresh and the wind was cool, but now he really missed the slightly hot and polluted air of the city from half an hour ago.

Just then, another wolf howl came, this time very close and very clear, definitely not a hallucination.

Hao Ren felt the hair on the back of his neck stand up, and the strange sixth sense he had developed over twenty-five years instantly kicked in. He realized he had unknowingly entered a deep grass area, where the grass was even knee-high. In all directions, pairs of eyes glowing with a faint green light gradually appeared, as if floating out of the darkness.

Ghostly wolf silhouettes emerged from the grass, and Hao Ren had no idea how these creatures had gotten so close without him noticing. Honestly, he was terrified; he had never seen such a scene before!

But fortunately, even as an ordinary citizen, Hao Ren had a side he could be proud of—his composure. He suppressed the urge to run or scream, knowing that doing so would only lead to a quicker death. Hao Ren faced off with the wolf pack, trying to find a way to escape, but his mind was full of frustration with no outlet: Could things get any worse? To die so inexplicably, what a waste!

It would be great to have a weapon for self-defense right now. Although Hao Ren was sure that even if he had a Green Dragon Crescent Blade, he wouldn't stand a chance against the at least twenty to thirty prairie wolves in front of him, at least having a weapon would boost his courage. But after carefully searching his body, he only found an old Nokia... well, in a certain sense, this thing could be a super weapon. Tied to a stick, it might even serve as a war hammer, but at such a critical moment, let's not joke about the "universal super weapon"!

The wolf pack, of course, wouldn't give Hao Ren the chance to daydream. Just as he was distracted, the nearest wild wolf suddenly pounced silently. Hao Ren only saw a black shadow coming at him, and its shape seemed different from the wolves on Earth. The only thing he could do was instinctively raise his hand to block...

"Landlord! Landlord!"

A life-saving cry suddenly rang in his ear, and Hao Ren felt a pain in his head as the world turned hazy and upside down. When he opened his eyes groggily, he saw the familiar street, the familiar old house, the familiar gray and star-sparse city night sky, and Lily's silly face.

Hao Ren took a deep breath, an action he hadn't completed when the wild wolf pounced. Then he looked around groggily, "Am I back?"

"What do you mean, 'back'?" Lily poked Hao Ren's arm and then pulled him up, "Landlord, you didn't come back to the house for a long time. The one with wings told me to find you, and then I saw you lying on the ground, making strange noises."

Hao Ren was almost dislocated by the strong, silly wolf girl, but at least he was fully awake. He looked at himself, everything was fine, and then turned to see the recliner that had somehow tipped over. He finally realized that the incredibly realistic "crossing" experience was just a ridiculous nightmare.

But this dream was too realistic, wasn't it?

"Nothing, just a dream," Hao Ren waved to Lily, feeling touched that the two troublemakers at home cared about him—though it would be better if they didn't fight.

And just as Hao Ren waved, he noticed something in the crease of his tightly clenched fist.

A tuft of black wolf fur.

"Damn it!!" Hao Ren threw the tuft of wolf fur away as if it were hot coals, jumping up, "What the hell!"

(Well, let me think... I'll continue to ask for satisfied votes for the completion of the Xi Ling series.)

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