Chapter 1578: Disappearance

Dictatorial, cold-blooded, tyrant.

Chen Ling couldn't connect these words to the two figures before him, who had no schemes and were as pure as big boys...

Chen Ling felt an inexplicable sense of fragmentation in his heart, as if one of the two worlds was an absurd dream... and Ling-xu Jun was not Wu Tongyuan, and Cang-yun Jun was not Qi Muyun.

They were different.

……

Just as there was laughter outside,

in the tent in the distance,

Ji Xuan opened his eyes hazily...

He stared blankly at the top of the tent, taking a long time to come to his senses, and sat up from the ground in a daze.

"How did I get here?"

"Oh... I came to attend the meeting... yeah... and then..."

"Holy crap! The future me is so handsome!!"

Ji Xuan finally recalled everything, his eyes shining like stars.

At this moment, Ji Xuan’s head no longer hurt, his back no longer ached, and his mind was filled with longing and yearning for his future self. At this time, he also felt that his body seemed a bit different from before.

Something seemed to have been added to his body.

"The future me... what did he do to me?" Ji Xuan looked at his hands, a flash of confusion in his eyes.

He only remembered that his future self asked, "Do you want to become as handsome as me?" and then used something to cover his head. After everything went black, he completely lost consciousness.

Ji Xuan subconsciously reached out to touch the top of his head. Something was still covering it. He took it off and discovered it was a strangely shaped hat...

Just now, because they were worried that taking off this hat would interrupt Ji Xuan’s absorption of the Red Star wish power, neither Chen Ling nor the other Nine Juns had rashly taken it off. Ji Xuan looked at the hat in his hand, his heart full of questions.

The future me gave me a hat?

The head size isn't even right!

Ji Xuan looked toward the bottom of the hat. Just then, he seemed to have discovered something and reached in to take out an object...

It was a note.

Ji Xuan was very familiar with the handwriting on the note; he could be certain that he had written it himself:

——【Inside-Out Hat】.

The simple six characters left Ji Xuan stunned for a long time.

He felt this was a hint from his future self. Could it be that he had hidden some gift in this hat?

Ji Xuan didn't hesitate much and pushed the top of the hat in hard. The hat turned inside out; the original outside became the inside, and the original inside became the outside... But even inside out, the hat didn't look strange at all, as if it could be worn normally either way.

However, after the hat was turned, the original blue ribbon became red.

"Strange..."

"I don't even like red?"

Ji Xuan muttered while walking to the mirror, slowly putting this red hat on his head...

He was naturally full of curiosity and wanted to try everything. The future Xuan-yu Jun seemed to know this very well, confident that leaving a note would drive Ji Xuan to put it on... Ji Xuan didn't doubt it at all; after all, his future self wouldn't screw himself over, right?

However, the moment this red hat was placed on Ji Xuan’s head, an extremely concealed space force flashed!

The next second,

Ji Xuan’s figure vanished into thin air.

The tent fell into dead silence again, with only a top hat with a red ribbon gently fluttering to the ground...

……

"Speaking of which, Dr. Su, how are things between you and Yao Qing now?" Yang Xiao asked curiously.

In the open space where the evening wind blew, everyone didn't notice anything unusual. They were still huddled in front of the warm pot, eating instant noodles and canned food while chatting.

Su Zhiwei froze, and a faint blush flashed across her cheeks.

"Um... he’s waiting for me at the base."

Although Qi Muyun didn't know who Yao Qing was, seeing Su Zhiwei’s reaction, he guessed a thing or two. He raised an eyebrow and asked with interest:

"Oh? When did Dr. Su get a boyfriend? Why haven't I heard of it before?"

"No... we... haven't confirmed our relationship." Su Zhiwei subconsciously wanted to deny it, but after hesitating for a moment, she pursed her lips, as if she had made up her mind:

"However, if there’s a chance later... I will take the initiative to bring it up."

Chen Ling lowered his head and silently ate a mouthful of instant noodles.

"Oh my!" Qi Muyun laughed, egging her on. "Not bad. To be chosen by Dr. Su, he must be extraordinary... Is he also in research?"

"No, he’s an outsider."

"Childhood sweethearts?"

"Sort of."

"Are you older or is he older?"

"...I’m older."

"Age-gap romances are great, they're the sweetest!" Qi Muyun's smile grew even brighter. "If there's a chance next time, call him out for a meal so we can meet him."

Su Zhiwei thought for a moment. "He... might be a bit shy."

"Ask him when you go back," Chen Ling, who had been keeping his head down eating noodles, suddenly interjected.

He looked up at Su Zhiwei and said earnestly, "For the meal, I can organize it. I just think that if you like someone, you should say it sooner rather than later. We can all help you out... In short, don't drag it out until the end... only to be left with regrets."

Su Zhiwei had originally intended to refuse, but seeing Chen Ling take the initiative to offer to set up a gathering to create an opportunity for her, she made up her mind after a long hesitation.

"Um... okay!"

In her heart, Su Zhiwei had actually had this idea for a long time, but neither she nor Yao Qing were good at taking the initiative; they needed an external force to push them. Now, Chen Ling's sudden offer gave her the perfect opportunity—a catalyst to push her forward.

"Then it's a deal... Director Chen, I'll leave it to you then." Su Zhiwei felt a bit embarrassed.

"Don't worry."

Chen Ling smiled. "Leave it to me."

"Oh, that's perfect. I still have some creative merchandise from our Meteorological Bureau in my bag. Dr. Su, just take it back with you this time as a welcome gift for Yao Qing's younger brother." Qi Muyun seemed to remember something, slapped his thigh, and turned to rummage through the backpack beside him.

"You're giving a welcome gift before you've even met the person?" Wen Ruoshui was left speechless.

"What do you know? We people from Shandong prioritize being decent."

Qi Muyun dug around in his bag for a long time, suddenly froze, and then pulled out a thin object, examining it with confusion.

"Strange..."

"How did this thing get in my bag... I clearly didn't have it when I packed?"

Yang Xiao leaned over curiously:

"What is it?"

Qi Muyun shook the object in his hand, producing a faint "rustling" sound:

"It looks like... a letter?"

Chen Ling, who was eating noodles, suddenly froze with his chopsticks in mid-air.