The trending topics on social media were completely dominated by the 8.20 Conference, with hashtags like #Atavist Management Regulations Revised# leading the charge. But right beneath them, a sudden new entry popped up, much to the delight of the superficial internet crowd:

#The Uniformed Gatekeeper Brother is Too Handsome#

This was not the first time Qiu Fa had trended online. However, as a public official with a complicated and tragic family history, he despised public attention. The authorities usually suppressed these searches quickly, and with how fast new gossip circulated, the buzz would normally die down in no time.

Sure enough, before the fans could even finish gushing over him, the hashtag vanished, replaced by other trending news.

The man in question neither knew nor cared.

Once the voting results were finalized and his presence was no longer required to keep the peace, Qiu Fa left the Great Hall and returned to his apartment.

Only then did he realize he had not set a specific meeting time with the information broker. But it did not matter. He knew they would meet eventually.

He stood in front of his wardrobe, sorting through a row of identical uniforms. Drawn by the sudden feeling of human warmth nearby, the petals of the Ring of Truthful Tongues opened up. Its small mouth and sharp tongue appeared, quickly starting to chatter.

“You keep changing into the exact same clothes. Is there really any point? Tee-hee.”

“At least they’re clean,” Qiu Fa muttered.

“Clean is one thing, but shouldn’t you take a shower and scrub yourself raw first? You dragged your feet last time and let her slip away. This time, you need to strip down fast and make things official. There won’t be time for a shower later, heh-heh.”

Memories of that night rushed back into his mind. “…With a mouth that filthy, do you really want me to pull your tongue out?”

“How could you say that? You knew I was called the Ring of Truthful Tongues when you brought me back, yet now you complain that I talk too much,” the ring whined, sounding deeply offended.

Qiu Fa ignored it. He threw on a fresh uniform and ran a hand through his already neat buzz cut, waiting for the broker to show up.

Ding-dong.

The doorbell suddenly rang.

Qiu Fa immediately stood up and pulled the door open, only to find the apartment’s property manager standing there, holding a beautifully wrapped gift box.

“Hello, sir. A gentleman asked me to deliver this to you.”

Qiu Fa took the box and opened it. Inside lay several pairs of brand-new leather gloves in various styles.

Qiu Fa: “…”

A moment later, his phone buzzed with a text message.

Do you like them?

Qiu Fa immediately dialed the number. The call went through almost instantly.

“I. Only. Want. My. Original. Pair!” he growled, pacing the room.

“If you don’t like them, just say it. Why the angry tone? It’s kind of scary,” the broker’s voice came through, dripping with amusement.

“You know exactly why I’m angry. You broke your word!”

“Are you referring to me not returning your gloves, or the fact that I didn’t deliver them in person?”

Qiu Fa could easily picture the smug grin on her face. Before he could speak, the chatterbox ring on his finger suddenly squealed.

“He got all dressed up and has been waiting for you to come over! Heh-heh!”

The ring was tiny, and its tongue was even smaller. Its voice was barely there, almost silent to any normal person from this far away. But Qiu Fa was a top Atavist, and his apartment was completely quiet.

On the other end of the line, Jing Pei let out a quiet, knowing, “Ah…”

Qiu Fa glared fiercely at the ring on his finger.

“Well, it seems the issue isn’t the gloves, but rather my absence. Should I deliver them in person next time?”

“Hmph. You’d better.”

Qiu Fa hung up abruptly, almost as if he were fleeing the conversation. He then turned and stalked toward the ring with a menacing glare.

“Ah! Help!”

---

In the backseat of her car, Jing Pei stared at her screen and smiled at Qiu Fa’s hasty hang-up.

The car had already pulled up to the gates of the Long estate, but she had stayed inside to finish the call.

Long Yiming was waiting outside. Once she stepped out, they walked together toward the main house.

“I heard what Lou Ningzhou said,” Long Yiming began, his tone serious.

“You should stay away from the Yuewan Mountain Range from now on. Those Angel Atavists possess some truly bizarre, prophetic abilities. Besides, the game rules have changed now. It’s too risky for Atavists to take lives. Even if Lou Ting’s power is passive, if the government ever decides to get rid of him, they won’t care about passive or active.”

He could not let his family’s sole remaining Atavist take such risks. Lou Ting’s power was terrifying; if he unleashed it, anyone nearby would be incinerated on the spot, with absolutely no hope of rescue.

“The government won’t touch him,” Jing Pei said calmly.

“But you saw Liao Yi’an. Division Nine wants nothing more than to tear the entire Atavist circle to shreds.”

“I know what I’m doing.”

“Good. You’ve always been different from your peers. I trust we don’t need to worry about you.”

Jing Pei returned to her courtyard, accompanied by Chu Xusheng.

Long Baobei, who had already been brought back to the estate, ran over to greet them. His tail wagged wildly, and his dark, silly eyes looked normal again—clearly no longer reflecting Mo Weiwei’s gaze.

Jing Pei knelt down to rub the dog’s head, thoroughly enjoying herself.

“Young heir,” Chu Xusheng spoke up suddenly, his voice quiet. “That secret weapon of yours… can she really turn the tide?”

“Are you worried Lou Ting will kill me too?”

“…Yes.” Chu Xusheng frowned. He did not like how often the word “death” had been brought up lately, especially when it concerned his master.

“Don’t worry. She can change everything.”

“But… she isn’t even an Atavist. She’s just an ordinary person. How is that possible?”

“She’s far from ordinary,” Jing Pei smiled.

The original novel was a big story with lots of side plots and one huge main storyline. It had many main and side characters, and none of them were safe from danger. Readers never knew who might get killed next.

But Min Yue was the sole protagonist who possessed absolute immortality.

This immortality was tied directly to the deepest secrets of the Nevergone District and the main plot of the story. In fact, that was where the entire tale truly began.

---

In the Nevergone District.

Min Yue tapped away at her battered laptop, closely tracking the news about the 8.20 Conference. Whenever she spotted a high-quality photo of Jing Pei taken by the media, she enthusiastically downloaded and saved it.

The front door opened, and her mother, Min Jing, walked in. She leaned over to look at the screen. “That’s a lovely picture.”

“I like this one better. She looks so elegant and noble here.”

“She certainly does.” Min Jing watched for a moment before adding, “The next time you go see her, let me know. The neighbors have prepared some thank-you gifts for you to bring her.”

“What kind of gifts?”

“Just some simple, cheap things, but they’re sincere. If it weren’t for her help last time, who knows what would have happened to us,” Min Jing said lightly.

Clearly, the previous incident had left no lingering shadow on her mother’s heart. But Min Yue shivered, a dark cloud flitting across her eyes.

Min Yue wrapped her arms tightly around her mother’s waist, burying her face in her chest.

Min Jing looked down at her daughter with mild concern. Min Yue had always been simple-minded, cheerful, and optimistic—nothing ever seemed to weigh down her clean, bright soul. Yet, for some reason, the last incident had left a deep trauma. Even though they had escaped unscathed thanks to the young heir of the Long family, Min Yue was still deeply affected.

It was like she had gone through some terrible horror her mother didn’t know about. She would hold onto her out of fear, wake up screaming from bad dreams, and had become really clingy.

Min Jing suspected something had happened, and it likely involved the young heir. Otherwise, why would Min Yue be so utterly devoted to her? But her daughter refused to speak.

She’s growing up and keeping secrets now, Min Jing thought with a trace of motherly melancholy.

After a few more moments of clinging, Min Yue finally let go, allowing her mother to return to her chores.

As she watched her mother walk away, terrible, bloody images flashed through Min Yue’s mind without warning: her mother’s head cut off, broken limbs, and her flesh torn into a mess…

A freezing chill washed over her, and that familiar, inescapable despair threatened to drown her again. She hugged herself tightly, waiting until a pale, jade-like hand emerged from the dark memories to tear the shadows apart.

She would never forget that night.

Late one evening, her mother had gone out to investigate a lead on missing residents in the Nevergone District. Sensing something was wrong, Min Yue had gone out to search for her, only to watch her mother die right before her eyes. An eerie, bizarre atmosphere enveloped the entire district. She ran, screaming for help, but her voice echoed in a completely silent, empty neighborhood.

Although she had not seen a single corpse, she had a terrifying intuition: everyone in the Nevergone District was dead. She was the sole survivor.

Driven mad by the sheer horror and grief, she had sprinted into the local police station. “Help! Please help! Everyone in the Nevergone District is gone! There’s something out there… a monster is eating them all!”

The tense officers exchanged looks, their expressions instantly relaxing.

“Ah, the Nevergone District. You live there, don’t you? Here, have some water and calm down.” The other officers filed out, leaving only two behind.

“You have to go now! Someone might still be alive!”

“First, tell us what exactly ate them.”

“I don’t know! It’s an invisible mass… like a ghost!”

Hearing this, one of the officers got up and left, leaving only a single female officer with her.

The female officer looked at her with pity. “Do you remember your name? What is your family’s phone number?”

Min Yue’s lips shook, and her whole body trembled as she babbled about ghosts in a way no one could understand. Nobody believed a word she said.

Realizing this, Min Yue grabbed the officer’s hand. “Just come with me to the district and see for yourself! Everyone is gone!”

But right then, a call came in about another case, and the female officer quickly rushed out.

Only a clerk remained, trying to coax her into giving her name and her family’s contact info.

“Are you… are you really not even going to look?” Min Yue stared at them in disbelief. There were so many people living in the Nevergone District, yet the police would not even bother to check. She had always known their district was treated differently, but protected by Min Jing, she had never directly faced the harsh discrimination and neglect until now.

“We’ll go check once we have some spare officers, okay?”

Her sanity snapped. The final straw had fallen, crushing her spirit. She screamed in rage, “You don’t care about our lives at all! Do the residents of the Nevergone District not have rights?! You won’t even go look!”

In her hysterical state, she caused a massive scene at the station. Someone recorded a video of her breakdown and sold it to a tabloid, but even then, it barely drew any attention online.

When her energy was entirely spent, she sat on the curb in a daze. The scorching sun made her head spin, and she began to wonder if it had all been a horrific dream.

If it wasn’t a dream, how was the world still spinning? People were walking by, completely oblivious, while her mother and every friend and neighbor she had ever known were dead.

She dragged herself back to the Nevergone District to prove she was dreaming. But the streets were indeed desolate and empty. Worse, that terrifying, invisible entity was still lurking there. She could feel its cold breath, sending shivers down her spine.

It was real. But why did nobody care?

As the sun began to set, Min Yue climbed to the roof of a residential building directly opposite the police station. Once she drew a crowd of officers and reporters, she screamed that something terrible had happened in the Nevergone District and that the police had abandoned them. Then, she leaped off the edge.

Thud!

Min Yue bolted upright, staring at her familiar ceiling. The comforting scent of her home filled her nose.

“Yue, I’m heading out now,” a familiar voice called out.

Min Yue spun around and saw Min Jing’s gentle face. She began to pant heavily, her heart hammering against her ribs.

“What’s wrong? Did you have a nightmare?”

“Yes… a terrifying one.”

It seemed she had indeed just had a nightmare. When she opened the door, her neighbors were walking down the street as usual. Her mother and the members of the mutual aid society were still searching for clues about the missing residents. Everyone was alive.

Though shaken, she assumed the fear was just a lingering remnant of a very realistic dream. She had dreamed of the end of the world before, waking up with a deep sense of grief that took time to fade.

But that night, a member of the mutual aid association knocked on their door, claiming to have tracked a human trafficker to their hideout.

Min Jing immediately got out of bed. A wave of intense dread seized Min Yue. She grabbed her mother’s arm. “Mom, don’t go!”

“Why not?”

“I… I dreamed that you died when you went out.”

“Silly girl, there are so many of us, and we aren’t helpless. We won’t lose to a bunch of traffickers. I’m leaving.”

Unable to convince her, Min Yue could only watch her leave. She lay in bed, desperately telling herself that a nightmare was just a nightmare, and reality would not play out the same way.

But then that familiar, creepy feeling came back, making her hair stand up. Her heart pounded hard. She threw off her blanket and ran out into the night.

The Nevergone District was pitch black, shrouded in a heavy mist. There was no sound. She screamed for her mother, just like she had in her “dream.”

“A Yue!” she heard her mother’s panicked, terrified cry.

Min Yue spun around. Her mother’s head was severed from her neck. Her hand was stretched out, though whether she was trying to reach her or push her away, Min Yue would never know.

The nightmare had become reality.

Was it really a dream? Was any of it a dream?

When she found herself back at the police station in the next loop, she no longer screamed. Instead, she calmly begged them to check the district. A sympathetic young officer finally agreed to accompany her.

“See? Everyone is gone! Do you believe me now?”

The officer finally realized something was terribly wrong. The residents of the Nevergone District usually clung to their homes; the streets were never this dead quiet.

“Stay here. I’m calling the station,” he said.

Min Yue felt a surge of joy. She had finally found a ray of hope.

The very next second, her blood ran cold.

A thick, pale red tentacle burst out of nowhere, skewering the officer mid-call. His phone clattered to the ground.

“Ah!”

The shock was too much to bear. Min Yue blacked out.

When she opened her eyes again, she was staring at the same ceiling, smelling the same scent.

“A Yue, I’m heading out now.”

Min Yue stared at her mother’s back, a strange but impossible-to-ignore idea forming in her mind.

Had time reversed? Had she traveled back to the moments before her mother’s death?

“Mom, did we have any Atavists in our family history?”

“What? Of course not.”

“Why not? Mom, I’m telling you the truth. I have an Atavist ability. I know exactly what’s about to happen. Just watch!”

She tried desperately to convince her mother she had prophetic powers. But because she had not been with her mother during the day in the previous loops, she could not provide any specific details and quickly stammered to a halt. Min Jing simply laughed it off, thinking her daughter was playing a prank.

That night, Min Yue decided to keep her mother inside, but Min Jing scolded her firmly. “A Yue, what’s wrong with you? The neighbors helped raise you when you were little. We owe them everything. Now that we finally have a lead, we have to go, even if it’s a trap. Either come with me or stay inside!”

With no other choice, Min Yue got out of bed and followed her. At the very least, she would find out what they were up to. If worst came to worst, she would die with her mother.

The mutual aid members carried clubs and makeshift weapons, moving as a silent crowd through the dark streets. Surrounded by them, Min Yue felt a sliver of safety. They eventually arrived at a well-preserved villa deep within the district.

Centuries ago, the Nevergone District had been a small city in Yunjin Prefecture before being abandoned and demolished by the government. Intact villas like this were very rare, usually claimed by the district’s powerful gang leaders. A small group of women and children like the mutual aid association could never afford to live here.

“Is it the Qianlong Gang? This is too much! They already control most of the resources in the district, and now they’re trafficking people? No wonder they’ve been so quiet lately—they’re making a fortune under the radar!” the members hissed, recognizing the villa as the residence of the gang’s boss.

“We should call the police!”

“We can’t. If the police get involved, they’ll just kick us all out of the district anyway.”

“We handle our own problems here.”

They slipped inside easily since there were no guards. But the huge villa was packed with missing residents and members of the Qianlong Gang. Everyone stood in a strange, frozen state, staring blankly like helpless sardines waiting for a whale.

Standing at the entrance, Min Yue’s heart raced. For a split second, she felt something crawl behind her. She spun around, but there was nothing. She had felt this sensation for months—as if some invisible creature was slithering through the district, occasionally passing right by her.

But this time was different. After slithering past her, the entity slowly materialized, transitioning from a transparent shadow into a solid white form. It was a massive, pale worm-like creature covered in long, thin tendrils. Its black head sported a circular mouth lined with saw-like teeth.

It opened its maw wide, like a whale plunging into a school of fish, and lunged at the villa. It did not tear down the walls, but glided straight through them, swallowing the frozen crowd inside. The sound of crunching and screaming echoed from its stomach before slowly dying down. The creature’s pale white body began to flush with a murky, dark crimson.

Min Yue stood frozen. Suddenly, a figure burst from the villa.

“A Yue! Run! Run!” it was Min Jing. She had managed to hide in time and escaped the initial feast, her face pale with terror.

Min Yue grabbed her mother’s hand, and they bolted toward the edge of the district. But that cold, terrifying aura closed in rapidly. Min Yue’s grip suddenly went slack. She turned back in horror to see a pale red tentacle piercing through her mother’s chest.

“Mom!”

“Run…”

The tentacle dragged her mother back into the gnashing maw. Min Yue, her eyes bloodshot, turned and ran for her life.

She returned to the nearest police station. This time, she did not ask them to investigate the district, knowing ordinary officers would only be slaughtered. They needed Atavists.

“The Tribunal Division? If you are certain an Atavist is committing these crimes, we must first inspect the scene. If we detect Atavist energy waves, we will report it to them.”

“You can’t go in there! You’ll die!” Min Yue begged, trying to block the door.

But without entering the district to collect energy signatures, they could not confirm Atavist involvement, which meant the Tribunal Division would never deploy officers, and nobody would stop the monster.

The police insisted on following protocol, refusing to make an exception. A few younger officers began whispering that the residents of the Nevergone District were all half-mad, questioning Min Yue’s sanity. Though she tried to stay calm, she lost control and began screaming in frustration.

In the next loop, Min Yue woke up and immediately told her mother, “I know where everyone is. We have to save them right now!”

Min Jing immediately gathered her group and followed Min Yue to the Qianlong Gang’s villa, dragging the frozen victims out of the trap. Min Yue believed that by rescuing them early, they would finally escape their fate. But late that night, she watched as her mother silently sat up, threw off her blanket, and walked out the door.

“Mom?”

Min Yue chased after her, only to freeze on the threshold.

The streets were filled with people. Every single resident was walking in a daze, completely hypnotized, marching right back to the villa. No matter how much she screamed or pulled, she could not stop a single one. She could only watch them enter the villa and get devoured.

The Tribunal Division… I have to go there myself. Only they can help me…

In the next loop, Min Yue immediately boarded a high-speed hover-train to the regional Tribunal Division headquarters.

“Have your local station collect Atavist energy waves first. We will only step in once Atavist involvement is confirmed.”

“The killer is still there! Anyone who goes in will die! Please, just send one person! Just one officer to come with me!”

“Where is the scene? The Nevergone District?” Upon hearing the location, the clerk’s expression shifted, showing a subtle hint of disdain. “Just leave your contact details. If an officer becomes available, they’ll contact you.”

Min Yue flinched at that look. At the police station, at the Tribunal Division—every time she mentioned the Nevergone District, people looked at her with suspicion, as if the residents were all unstable lunatics whose words could not be trusted, or whose lives simply did not matter.

If Qiu Fa had been at the headquarters at that moment, he would have heard her desperate cries and connected them to the secrets of the Nevergone District. The crisis might have been resolved right then. Unfortunately, Qiu Fa was away from Yunjin Prefecture at the time.

Min Yue ran out of options and threw herself into traffic.

The impact knocked her cold, and time wound back once more.

In the next loop, she saved the missing residents again and begged her mother to lead everyone out of the district.

“But where would we go? This is our home.”

“Just for one night! We’ll come back tomorrow, I promise!” She was desperate to escape this repeating night of absolute terror.

Seeing her daughter’s hysteria, Min Jing chose to trust her. But even she could not convince the mutual aid members to leave their homes, let alone the rest of the cynical residents.

The district’s population was highly complex, but they shared one trait: they were all outcasts. Many had families in the outside world but chose to sever all ties. To them, this desolate slum was a sanctuary. To suddenly ask them to leave was impossible, and some grew highly suspicious.

“Is the government trying to clear the district again? You want to lure us out and burn our homes down, don’t you?!” an old resident who had lived there for decades shouted. The crowd instantly became hostile.

“Exactly! Why else would they suddenly tell us to leave?”

“I’d rather die here than step a foot outside!”

“Min Jing, you traitor! Are you colluding with outsiders to destroy us?”

An angry mob surrounded Min Jing, demanding answers. Min Yue tried desperately to drag her mother away, but Min Jing chose to stay behind to prove her innocence, forcing Min Yue to flee alone.

Night fell, the mist rolled in, and the tragedy played out exactly as before.

Time reversed again, and again, and again.

Min Yue wandered the streets outside the district with empty eyes. She didn’t understand why saving just one life was so hard, or why no one would hear her cries for help.

“Hey, can any of you tell me why the Nevergone District is called that? Why is there a man-eating monster lurking inside? Why does nobody care about our lives? Why can I turn back time, but have no power to fight the monster or change the ending? Is this a curse?”

She returned to the police station, her eyes hollow, speaking in fragmented, incoherent sentences that only convinced the officers she was completely insane.

When they tried to transport her to a psychiatric facility, she reacted violently, leading to another viral tabloid headline about a hysterical Nevergone District girl.

Min Yue sat on the curb once again, staring blankly ahead. Amidst the bustling noise of the city, a fragment of conversation suddenly drifted into her ears.

“I wonder what the results of the 8.20 Conference will be.”

“Whatever they are, I’m fine with it. After watching that documentary, I think Atavist privileges make sense.”

“Our young heir Long Jin will be attending, right?”

“Of course! She’s the only Azure Dragon in the world. How could she miss such an event?”

“I’m waking up early to watch the live broadcast.”

Long Jin…

Long Jin…

The name, which had felt buried in her memories for an eternity, finally surfaced.

Along with it came the words the young heir had once said to her: “If you ever need help, you can find me at the Twelve Zodiac Academy.”

She recalled the news stories—who she had saved, who she had helped. She was a powerful and compassionate Atavist.

A spark of hope suddenly flared in Min Yue’s deadened eyes. She scrambled to her feet, though a wave of dizziness forced her to pause before she could steady herself. She realized the academy was currently on summer break; she would not find Long Jin there. She had to go back to the Tribunal Division.

Yes, she could reach her through them!

Clinging to this final lifeline, she rushed back to the Tribunal Division, tears streaming down her face. She paid no attention to the stares of passersby.

When she arrived, they told her that Long Jin was no longer working there.

“Can you call her for me?” she begged, her voice trembling. “She knows me! If you just call her…”

“If she knows you, why don’t you go to the Long estate? Stop making a scene here. Leave.”

“No, there’s no time! Please, I beg of you…”

“Hey, what is going on here?” an officer called out, noticing the commotion.

“This girl is looking for Long Jin.”

The officer paused. “Come inside. I’ll help you contact her.”

The fading light in Min Yue’s eyes instantly returned. She stared at him. “Really?”

“Come over here.” The officer picked up the desk phone and dialed.

Min Yue held her breath, listening intently as the line rang.

When the call connected, she nervously picked up the receiver. A clear, gentle female voice said, “Hello.”

“I… I am the one from the Nevergone District…”

“I know. I remember you. It seems you need my help?”

“Yes! Please help me. I really don’t know what to do anymore.”

“Tell me what happened.”

Min Yue gripped the receiver tightly. “Will you believe what I say?”

“I don’t think you would go through all this trouble just to play a prank on me.”

“What if… what if I told you I can turn back time? Would you believe me?”

The line went quiet for a moment. Min Yue bit her lip, waiting in agonizing suspense, until the voice replied with absolute sincerity: “I believe you.”

Tears spilled over Min Yue’s lashes. She choked out a sob. “Would the you from yesterday have believed me too?”

“Of course. And the me from yesterday would have been just as happy to help you.”

And so, time wound back once again.

Min Yue opened her eyes. Without saying a word to her mother, she bolted out of the house, ran straight to a public phone booth, and dialed the secret contact number Jing Pei had given her from the future.