Chapter 77: Spacetime Deviation

Translator: Abo Dammen

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Case Five: The Law of Causality 

The same face, the same build, but different style of dress, different aura.

The Xu Pei before him was unsmiling, his brow tense. His face showed not only wariness at seeing a stranger but also a trace of nervousness, as if burdened with heavy thoughts.

Compared to the Xu Pei He Yixun was familiar with, this one seemed more stable, but lacked a certain vitality. He gave off a more complex feeling, not like a pure researcher. 

Clearly, this was the Xu Pei from another spacetime.

Not only was this judgment based on aura, but He Yixun could also clearly perceive that this was not his omega.

“I’ll explain my identity to you later,” He Yixun said, still treating this Xu Pei as one of his own despite them being strangers. “Whose plane is this?”

“Whose plane?” Xu Pei’s frown deepened, the wariness in his eyes intensifying. He kept his distance from He Yixun, bypassing him to reach the aisle. 

The next second, Xu Pei lifted his chin and called out, “Guards!”

He Yixun: “……”

The Pei Pei back home is much cuter.

Faced with the choice between pulling a gun to take Xu Pei hostage or watching and waiting, He Yixun chose the latter. 

It wasn’t that he unconditionally trusted this Xu Pei, but rather that this plane was like an isolated island in the sky with no escape route. Acting rashly would only put him at a disadvantage.

Two guards came from the aisle, surrounding He Yixun and demanding his identity. The two alphas were tall and burly, releasing pheromones to pressure him, but it had absolutely no effect on He Yixun.

“I came with Professor Xu,” said He Yixun.

“You know me?” Xu Pei looked suspicious. “How did you get on board?” 

He Yixun didn’t answer. “We can talk somewhere else.”

Perhaps feeling that He Yixun posed no threat, Xu Pei temporarily dismissed the guards and led him to the upper deck.

Walking up the spiral staircase, an open circular booth came into view. He Yixun had considered countless possibilities—like this spacetime’s Xu Pei might already be married to Zhan Gao, perhaps he would see the two of them in perfect harmony. But he never could have imagined that in the booth, Zhan Gao, Qiu Wei, Mo Xin, an unfamiliar woman, and… Zhen Li were sitting together.

As if in a meeting. 

The scene before him was far too shocking. So much so that after He Yixun’s right foot stepped onto the top step, his left foot forgot to follow, leaving him momentarily frozen in place, staring wide-eyed at the group.

“What’s going on?” Zhan Gao asked. He must have heard Xu Pei call for the guards downstairs.

Actually, He Yixun couldn’t tell if the person before him was Zhan Gao or Zhan Yuan either. But judging from the Speaker’s badge pinned to his lapel, he could at least confirm his identity was Speaker Zhan, ostensibly Zhan Gao.

“Someone followed me onto the plane,” Xu Pei responded. “Do any of you know him?” 

Qiu Wei and Mo Xin exchanged a glance, both expressing they didn’t know him through their eyes. The unfamiliar woman and Zhen Li remained silent. Zhan Gao then looked at He Yixun and asked, “Who are you?”

He Yixun didn’t answer, staring directly at Zhen Li.

This group of people gathered together wasn’t even the most shocking part. What made him doubt his eyes the most was Zhen Li’s aged appearance, completely different from when he had escaped.

Calculating, Zhen Li was sentenced to life imprisonment at 35. After 20 years incarcerated, he would be 55. But now his hair was graying, his face full of wrinkles, looking at least 65 or older. 

Everyone followed He Yixun’s gaze to Zhen Li. Zhen Li, as if afraid He Yixun would cause trouble for him, spoke up, “I remember you… you’re a reporter from Nucheng TV, right?”

—He seemed not to want He Yixun to expose his identity as an other-dimensional traveler.

The unfamiliar woman joked, “Nucheng TV has such a handsome reporter?”

Qiu Wei took out his phone, as if to verify. “Which department are you from?” 

Zhan Gao frowned. “How did a reporter get on board?”

Xu Pei asked, “Did you want to interview me?”

Although not clear why Xu Pei’s identity would warrant interviews, He Yixun urgently needed to understand the current situation. The only way was to follow Xu Pei’s lead, “Yes, I wanted to interview you.”

“No.” Zhan Gao interrupted. “Professor Xu is not giving interviews until after the hearing.” 

… Hearing?

“You have no right to restrict my freedom,” Xu Pei said, frowning at Zhan Gao.

Even though it was a different Xu Pei from a different world, his reaction to authority remained the same.

“Yes, but this is my plane. I have the right to restrict his freedom.” Zhan Gao took a handheld microphone hanging on the wall and issued an order via the intercom. “Send two guards up here to take this reporter away.” 

Xu Pei’s face showed anger. The metal chain swayed on his shoulder with his restrained breath. “Zhan Gao, don’t go too far.”

“You’re the one going too far, Professor Xu,” Zhan Gao said. “If you hadn’t engaged in that research violating the laws of nature, we wouldn’t be in this situation today.”

Unable to bear it any longer, Xu Pei turned and walked away, heading down the corridor to a room, likely a guest cabin.

The unfamiliar woman shrugged and stood up: “Speaker Zhan, the terms you’re offering are impossible for Professor Xu to accept. I don’t see any need to continue negotiations.” 

Zhan Gao wore a “suit yourself” expression: “I gave him a chance.”

He Yixun was taken by the guards to the lounge at the rear of the cabin. Perhaps because they now knew his “reporter” identity, the guards just told him to “behave” and then went back to chatting, not keeping him under strict surveillance.

Looking out through the oval porthole, the plane was flying in the stratosphere. Cotton-like clouds churned below, and sunlight poured unreservedly onto the wings, dazzlingly bright.

A newspaper rack nearby held the day’s papers. The headline on the front page was particularly eye-catching: Delan Pharmaceuticals Chief Scientific Officer Xu Pei May Face Imprisonment. 

Delan Pharmaceuticals, Chief Scientific Officer—all unfamiliar concepts.

It seemed the deviation between this spacetime and the original one was more than just slight.

He Yixun picked up the newspaper, which still smelled of fresh ink, spread it open with both hands, and began to read. He quickly understood what had happened in this world.

Five years ago, Xu Pei, then a researcher at the National Research Institute, developed a stabilizer that allowed omegas to autonomously decide whether to go into heat. The drug caused an uproar as soon as it was released. First, Xu Pei was laid off from the National Research Institute and joined Delan Pharmaceuticals as its Chief Scientific Officer. 

—The unfamiliar woman from earlier was Delan Pharmaceuticals’ CEO, Sun Yamei, an omega. Without her backing, the stabilizer would have struggled to get approval for production.

Afterwards, more and more omegas underwent stabilizer treatment. They were no longer limited to two fixed heats per year but could freely control their heat cycles.

For example, single omegas could choose never to go into heat, or omegas trying to conceive could have multiple heats until they became pregnant.

This was originally a great boon for society. However, the vast majority of omegas chose not to go into heat. 

Alpha groups grew increasingly dissatisfied. The rift between alphas and omegas widened. As a countermeasure, Nucheng Speaker Zhan Gao spearheaded the drafting, and Congress passed a series of bills in the name of increasing the birth rate—such as the Anti-Abortion Act and the New Marriage Charter—stripping omegas of their legitimate rights.

Consequently, not long ago, large numbers of omegas took to the streets in protests, sparking the largest riot in Nucheng’s history, which had a very negative impact.

This trip Xu Pei was taking with Zhan Gao was to attend a hearing at the state government. A live vote would be held then. If most citizens deemed Xu Pei guilty, he would go directly to prison.

The newspaper made a pessimistic prediction: Xu Pei’s imprisonment was basically a foregone conclusion. 

No wonder he looked so burdened. An utterly unjust trial awaited him.

So, this elite Xu Pei had accomplished what his ‘home’ version Xu Puppy wanted to do but never got the chance—researching a super inhibitor, which he named “stabilizer.”

And the course of events aligned with what Mo Xin had previously advised Xu Pei, where he could only develop something like this by moving to a pharmaceutical company.

But— 

If Xu Pei had jumped to a pharma company, then the S-class alpha wouldn’t exist.

There would be no subsequent identity swap by Zhan Gao. So, was the Speaker Zhan upstairs actually Zhan Yuan?

But why was Mo Xin there?

There were still some things that weren’t clear. 

All the newspapers on the rack were reporting on Xu Pei. He Yixun picked up another one. This one had a more tabloid style, stating that Xu Pei and Zhan Gao had been engaged, but after Xu Pei underwent stabilizer treatment, his pheromones no longer matched Zhan Gao’s, and their engagement was called off.

He Yixun put down the newspaper. His thoughts were a bit chaotic and needed sorting from the beginning.

Xu Pei and Zhan Gao had never married, indicating Zhan Gao had already been replaced by Zhan Yuan. This point could be confirmed. 

Xu Pei hadn’t researched gland repair and modification, so then…

Wait, there was a missing link here.

In the original timeline, the reason Xu Pei wanted to research a super inhibitor was that he obtained He Yixun’s serum.

So how did this elite Xu Pei develop the stabilizer? 

The emergence of parallel universes often stems from someone making a different choice. There must have been some trigger that made Xu Pei change his research direction.

But what was that trigger?

A scene suddenly flashed in his mind: the seating order in the circular booth earlier was: Mo Xin, Qiu Wei, Zhan Gao, then a long gap dividing the six people into two factions, followed by an empty seat with a water cup (where no one was sitting), then Xu Pei, Sun Yamei, and Zhen Li.

Why was Zhen Li here? Why was he sitting in Xu Pei’s faction? 

Could it be…

The blocked train of thought suddenly cleared—

It was Zhen Li!

Everything made sense now. 

The reason this spacetime deviated so much from the original was all because of Zhen Li’s appearance.

Previously, He Yixun and Xu Pei had speculated that Zhen Li, having no one to rely on in this world, would definitely try to find a way back. But they had overlooked one possibility: Zhen Li knew Xu Pei!

He had spoken with Xu Pei in detail in prison, understood his work, understood his ambitions. So he could absolutely survive by relying on Xu Pei!

According to the data on Zhen Li’s computer, the magnetic strength of the trigger determined the coordinates of the travel. Although it was unclear exactly how he managed it, he most likely went back five years and proactively sought out Xu Pei, offering himself to Xu Pei for research. 

He assisted Xu Pei in developing the stabilizer, which led to the split between alpha and omega groups, social unrest, and ultimately forced Xu Pei to face this trial.

Furthermore, the elite Xu Pei’s work environment wasn’t as pure as the research institute; it was equivalent to being steeped in a power arena for five years, which was why he was completely different from Xu Puppy.

In other words, even if there were millions of Xu Peis in the world, only the one who had gone through those experiences with He Yixun belonged to him.

In the current situation, it was actually advantageous for He Yixun. He wasn’t a wanted man, so he had plenty of time to prepare the blocker and other items. And since Zhen Li was in this spacetime, he could also find an opportunity to take him away. 

But then again, why did Zhen Li look so aged?

What was Mo Xin’s identity here?

Was Qiu Wei still the secretary and lover?

Was the Speaker Zhan upstairs actually Zhan Gao or Zhan Yuan? 

To figure these things out, he still needed to find Zhen Li.

He Yixun stood up and said to the guard beside him, “I’m going to use the restroom.”

Author’s Feed:

Beibei will be here soon.

Translator’s Feed:

Forgot to note for this one after so long but Chou Wei/Qiu Wei still has the same character surname, but I decided to just write it different in pinyin (the pronunciation is still the same) to signify the difference in characters in this timeline, your translator’s stylistic choice bc she got possessed with the power of free will. Also Beibei is his Night Charm nickname if anyone still remembers