?
Stepping into the room where Sun Ya and Wei De were, Su Jin gently closed the door and approached.
Wei De remained deeply unconscious. Su Jin kept his voice low. "Elder Sun, how is the situation? Any changes?"
Sun Ya shook his head and sighed softly. "Based on the previous mutation timeline, there should still be some time before he might wake up. The lack of special phenomena now is a good sign... I've checked his heartbeat and pulse; they're still normal."
"It's highly likely the worm inside him has fallen asleep along with him... But that's precisely the problem. If the Fleshy Orb also strengthened that strange worm, Old Wei might have no chance of survival at all."
"Then let's wait a bit longer. It's still early before dawn," Su Jin said, sitting down on the edge of the mattress.
Looking at the untouched food on the floor, he turned to Sun Ya. "Elder Sun, eat your meal. If another one of you collapses, I really won't be able to handle it."
Although he had no appetite, since Su Jin insisted, Sun Ya did not refuse.
He picked up the bowl and ate in small bites.
Halfway through the meal, Sun Ya stopped and spoke softly. "Xiao Li... There are some things I didn't want to say, but I'm afraid I might end up like Old Wei one day, so I'll just ask you directly."
"What is it?"
Their eyes met. Sun Ya enunciated each word clearly. "Are you an alien?"
Su Jin was stunned and forced a smile. "Elder Sun, you're really strange. Why do you ask that?"
"Your speech habits are very unique, perhaps even you haven't noticed. When communicating with me, you speak with a Longshan accent... But during our investigations, we've encountered many residents in the building; some speak dialects, and your accent shifts to match theirs."
"And sometimes you use formal, written language in your speech, occasionally explaining ordinary things in a strange way. It's as if you have a universal translator on you."
Su Jin's expression froze.
He had never imagined Sun Ya was so sharp!
And no one had ever mentioned this to him before; he himself couldn't possibly have noticed.
The company's translation was really...
Before Su Jin could recover, Sun Ya continued. "I didn't start suspecting you from this, but from seeing your communication device."
"Based on its appearance, from our observations, it should be a civilian device, and the icons inside are very entertainment-oriented, which further supports this judgment. Old Wei and I have both come into contact with the most cutting-edge technology not yet on the market. The device in your hand... this world simply lacks the capability to mass-produce it, or even the ability to manufacture it."
"If you're not an alien or haven't come into contact with alien technology, this is impossible to explain. Old Wei and I have had doubts for a while, but seeing how busy you've been, we never dared to bring it up."
"Can you give me an answer now?"
After a long silence, until sweat slightly dampened Su Jin's palms, he finally spoke. "Your guess is correct. I am indeed an alien. We are not from the same planet, but our species should be the same."
Hearing the confirmation, Sun Ya's heart immediately raced.
"Then you..."
"I know what you want to ask. I don't know how I came to this world, and I became an Expert in your language upon arrival. Just treat it as a cosmic accident. The technology in my world isn't much more advanced than here; perhaps this world will be exactly like my hometown in another twenty or so years of development."
"As for the disaster in this world, I have no clues either... I'm trapped here just wanting to survive, to help you survive, that's all."
"Then why did you come into contact with Fu Qingdai?" Sun Ya pressed.
"Consider it a kind of resonance. I can see the essence of the Gray Rain, and she can foresee the future... Perhaps a higher-dimensional civilization hopes to save this world, so they brought me here." Su Jin lowered his head, feeling bitter inside.
"If there really is a civilization wanting to help us, why don't they act directly?" Sun Ya said with deep melancholy.
"Who knows... Maybe I misunderstood. They might not have good intentions; I might have been set up by aliens."
"If you were set up by aliens, then your previous identity must have been unusual, right?"
"I was just a salesman, living a decent life with prospects, sigh..." Su Jin closed his eyes helplessly. "Let's not talk about it."
Noticing Su Jin's low mood, Sun Ya changed the subject. "Then tell me about what your world is like, okay?"
"Alright." Su Jin smiled, then took out his phone and began to explain slowly.
"I won't talk about the distant past; it's all primitive fighting, no different from here. I'll talk about more recent times..."
Who knew what tomorrow would bring? Perhaps he would die tomorrow, or perhaps the two elders wouldn't be here anymore.
Secrets, identity, everything had long become insignificant in the face of survival.
Sun Ya listened quietly, his expression sometimes dazed, sometimes admiring, sometimes regretful.
Just as he was about to ask a question, an unexpected voice chimed in.
"Sounds like the future development is quite good, but not very happy either... Hah, faster development brings greater desires."
"Elder Wei!" Su Jin was startled and immediately looked down at Wei De.
Wei De had woken up at some point but still lay on the bed, motionless.
However, he was looking at Su Jin with a smile.
"Xiao Li, you really are an alien!"
"Old Wei... Don't talk nonsense. How are you feeling?" Sun Ya quickly helped check his condition.
The dense red web of blood vessels on Wei De's chest was still there, and on the surface, it seemed unchanged.
Wei De let out a breath and looked at the ceiling. "I don't know. The pain is gone... but that worm definitely isn't dead. It's still in my body. I don't know if it's asleep or what; I can't sense its location. If it wakes up, I probably still won't survive."
"What about your ability? Can you move?" Su Jin asked.
Wei De blinked. "I don't know what ability I have; I don't feel any of that 'qi' you mentioned... I can't move at all right now. My body seems to be recovering strength, but it feels like it's being drained away, so that's why."
"Shouldn't we set off? Just carry me along. My notes aren't finished; I'll dictate them, and you find someone to record..."
Su Jin and Sun Ya exchanged a glance.
"Elder Sun, you have deep medical knowledge. Is there a way to resolve this situation?"
Sun Ya pondered. "A parasite has entered his body, and it's so large. In theory, removing the parasite would solve it... but without a sterile environment, even if we operate to examine it, we might wake the worm inside him, and then there's really no saving him."
"...Life and death are fated. Don't force it for my sake; I didn't have long to live anyway," Wei De said. "Find someone to continue transcribing my notes. You got that notebook, right? Read it to me, and I'll continue dictating."
Sun Ya completely ignored Wei De's words and suddenly looked up at Su Jin. "There is a way to save him, and it's highly feasible!"