Chapter 5

No one knew exactly what had happened, as even Nafuka herself was unclear. However, it didn't matter to me; I just needed to follow the routine of going to school and coming home. The specifics were best left to the experts to worry about.

Liu Tao also woke up at this moment, equally puzzled by the sudden disconnection.

"Anyway, I'm glad you two are okay." After tidying up the documents on the wooden table, Senior Lan Yu smiled at Liu Tao and me. "Since Nafuka said the projection device can't be used for now, you two can just use the computer for now."

"Forget it." I scratched my head and walked over to Senior, casually giving the already turned-on computer to Liu Tao. "Since we've been kicked out and the game is under maintenance, I'll help you instead. Senior, where did you leave off?"

"Hmm, let me see..." Just as Senior Lan Yu was about to look down, a clear ringtone came from her backpack, which had a plastic orchid decoration hanging on it.

Senior looked up and smiled apologetically at me, then took out her phone and walked to the window. "Hello, it's me. What? Now? Ah, okay, okay."

What's going on? Could it be related to the electromagnetic pulse Nafuka mentioned?

"Sorry, Xiao Yi." Senior Lan Yu put down her phone and quickly picked up her backpack. "I have to go. Can you take care of those documents for me?"

"Ha—!?" I was about to grab her shoulders and yell at her. "Are you kidding me? I just said I'd help, not take over everything!"

"Okay, okay, I'll make you some homemade cookies tomorrow. How about that?" Senior's expression was really urgent, but she was still trying to calm me down. "They'll all be yours, not Liu Tao's."

"Deal!" I immediately agreed, and subtly pushed my friend, who was trying to protest, to the floor.

Senior's cooking skills were top-notch. As club members, Liu Tao and I had the privilege of tasting some of her snacks during her free time, and we never liked any other snacks after that. If finishing these documents could get me her homemade cookies, how could I refuse?

"Thanks. Let's make it official. See you tomorrow." Senior said, opened the door, and hurried out, quickly disappearing at the end of the corridor.

For the rest of the time, I finished the documents Senior left behind, while Liu Tao kept begging me to save him some cookies for tomorrow—of course, I didn't agree, but he probably planned to steal a few when I wasn't looking.

"By the way, Nafuka mentioned a global electromagnetic pulse." Liu Tao, sitting at the computer, suddenly broke the silence. "What do you think it is, Zhou Yi?"

"Who knows? Maybe it's a solar storm?" I said casually. "A sudden, powerful solar storm could destroy most electronic devices, instantly sending human society back to the Stone Age. Chaos would spread across the planet, nations would collapse, and violence and cruelty would be everywhere. Just when everything seems most hopeless, the legendary protagonist would come with a halo and superpowers..."

"Stop it!" Liu Tao almost fell off his chair, pounding the table. "Be serious. There's no news of any solar anomalies on the internet. Also, do you know about a not-so-widely known prophecy?"

Here we go again, his supernatural lessons. Since I had just finished the documents, I decided to humor him.

I tidied up the materials and turned to Liu Tao, putting on a listening face. "Oh, what kind of prophecy? Tell me."

Every time Liu Tao talked about these things, he had a mysterious look on his face, and this time was no different. He raised his index finger and widened his eyes to create a mysterious atmosphere, but it reminded me of my mom telling ghost stories on summer nights—by the way, I swear I didn't laugh.

"This prophecy was made by a great witch from ancient times, who paid with her life. Normally, divination doesn't require much, but she was divining about the creator god, which broke the taboo and led to her punishment. Despite this, the witch, sensing something, chose to divine and received a shocking prophecy."

Liu Tao looked very serious and sincere, not joking at all. Although I don't believe in gods, magic, fairies, or vampires, listening to it as a story wouldn't hurt, right?

"The prophecy says that the creator god is already tired of this world and will send his pawns to play a life-and-death game with humanity when they are at their weakest and strongest. What's that look for?"

I felt weak and pointed at the computer, covering my face. "If you want to watch EVA fan works, they're all over the internet. Don't make up nonsense here."

"It's not nonsense!" Liu Tao waved his fist. "This is a message known only to a few experts. I'm telling you out of kindness, and you say it's nonsense!?"

"Sure, sure, you're the top expert in paranormal phenomena. I'm just a nobody in front of you." The school bell rang, and I didn't want to argue anymore. I grabbed my backpack and headed for the door. "Don't forget to lock the door when you leave."

"Zhou Yi, I'm not done yet." The sound of chairs moving and Liu Tao's voice came from behind. He must have stood up in a hurry. "The witch didn't know what method the creator god would use, but she knew exactly when he would act. And that time is this year. So, could the electromagnetic pulse be related to this?"

I walked quickly, and Liu Tao's voice soon faded. Just as I'm obsessed with playing 'Frontline,' he's obsessed with these strange things. If I didn't end the conversation, he could talk for hours.

I had a date with a girl, so I didn't have time to listen to his nonsense.

Jiao, the name of the city where I live. Its center has a not-so-high mountain, and the east side borders the sea. With the city's focus on environmental protection and greening, it's a beautiful place. Huiming High School, while not perfect, has an excellent location—just outside the school gate, you can see the vast blue sea and beautiful white sand, and of course, the various vehicles speeding by on the road.

Walking across the road, holding a girl's hand, and strolling on the beach, talking about love and life, is a very pleasant and romantic thing. In fact, some student couples chose to do this after school. They walked in pairs to the other side of the road, went down the stairs to the beach, and whispered to each other from a distance.

Unfortunately, I wasn't one of them. The girl waiting for me arranged to meet at a bus stop near the school, and she wasn't my girlfriend but my younger sister.

A single word makes a big difference.

Zhou Mengyun, my younger sister by two years, is in the junior high school department of Huiming High School. Unlike me, who has a decent appearance, she is a pretty little beauty, does well in school, and is popular in her class, the type of girl everyone loves.

To be honest, I dote on her, but why did she insist on waiting for me to go home together when she finishes school an hour earlier?

Seeing the black-haired girl waving excitedly from a distance, I felt a sense of helplessness and quickly walked up to her. "Mengyun, didn't I tell you I had club activities today and you should go home first?"

"I have to make sure that woman, Lan Yu, doesn't take you away!" The little girl pouted, showing two cute dimples, and said seriously.

What does this have to do with Senior Lan Yu... And why are you using lines like a girlfriend? Don't you see the aunts waiting for the bus whispering to each other?

"We are siblings." Before the misunderstanding grew, I quickly smiled and explained to the aunts, patting Mengyun's head.

The whispers stopped, and the aunts dispersed, restoring normalcy to the bus stop. I sat down with Mengyun on a nearby bench and waited for the bus in silence.

The road was as quiet as a graveyard, with only the sound of the waves.

"It's taking so long today." Mengyun frowned, looking at the corner of the left road. "How long has it been?"

Hearing this, I was jolted awake from my drowsiness. "Something seems off. No cars have passed for so long. Is something wrong?"

Hearing this, Mengyun also reacted and looked surprised. "Really! Maybe there was a car accident and the road is blocked?"

That would only block one side; cars should still be passing on the other side!

Many people around also noticed the abnormality, but soon the sound of an engine came from the left road, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief, thinking it was a false alarm.

Then, they all fell into shock.

What appeared in our line of sight was not a luxury bus, but a White Tiger main battle tank of the Tang Empire.