The mountain path glowed blood-red under the twin moons. Xu Qing and Zhu Meichuo moved swiftly through the night, followed by twenty elite Imperial Guards clad in bulletproof vests—purchased with livestream donations.
"Five *li* remaining," Zhu Meichuo checked the GPS with surprising familiarity for a Ming princess. "Lingfu Temple has a hidden passage behind the scripture depository."
Xu Qing nodded, monitoring Su Yu's temporal beacon. The red dot drew nearer, but his attention fixed on the numbers: **41.3% divergence, 68 hours 52 minutes remaining**.
"Master Xu, the rift..." Zhu Meichuo froze, pointing skyward.
The black fissure in the crimson moon had widened. Within it, the reflection of the Forbidden City grew clearer—*including moving figures*!
"That's another timeline's palace," Xu Qing whispered. "If the worlds fully merge—"
"What happens?"
"Both... might vanish."
Zhu Meichuo paled but steadied herself. "Then we hurry."
As Lingfu Temple's walls came into view, their scouts signaled danger. Through night-vision lenses, Xu Qing spotted six guards—eunuchs armed with *modern crossbows*.
"Cao Huachun's men," Zhu Meichuo sneered. "That dog stole arms from the imperial arsenal."
Xu Qing launched two micro-drones. The footage chilled them:
- Thirty armed eunuchs patrolled the temple.
- Four brutes with stun batons guarded the scripture depository.
- Underground, Zhu Cilang was bound before a *functioning quantum anchor*, with Lin Lan adjusting controls while Cao Huachun paced nervously.
"A frontal assault risks the Crown Prince," Xu Qing frowned.
Zhu Meichuo produced a porcelain vial. "Datura pollen—induces instant paralysis. We'll use the tunnel."
The plan formed quickly: Zhu Meichuo would infiltrate with five guards while Xu Qing staged a diversion.
---
**Action commenced.**
Xu Qing's team blared recorded battle cries from the woods, drawing guards toward the main gate. Meanwhile, Zhu Meichuo's squad emerged behind a Buddha statue in the depository.
She masked her face with silk, then released the pollen under the密室 door.
Cao Huachun collapsed first, coughing violently. Guards toppled like dominoes—except Lin Lan, who lunged for the control panel.
"Stop him!" Zhu Meichuo kicked in the door, stun baton flashing.
Lin Lan dodged, hurling a metal orb that exploded into blinding light and deafening noise—*a flashbang*!
Temporarily blinded, Zhu Meichuo tackled Lin Lan by memory. They grappled, the stun baton searing Lin Lan's arm.
Xu Qing breached the perimeter, glancing skyward en route—the rift now spanned *half the heavens*, the alternate Forbidden City pressing downward like a falling world.
Inside, Zhu Cilang *rammed* Lin Lan with his chair!
"Xu Qing! Destroy it!" the prince shouted.
Xu Qing charged, but Lin Lan activated a wrist device. A *quantum forcefield* shimmered into existence, repelling Xu Qing like a rubber wall.
"Did you think me unprepared?" Lin Lan wiped blood from his mouth. "Not even bullets pierce this."
Zhu Cilang, now freed, pointed to a thick copper cable snaking underground. "Sever that! It powers the device!"
Impossible—the forcefield blocked access.
Lin Lan gloated, adjusting controls. "My sovereign comes! Soon—"
A *dagger* plunged into his back!
Cao Huachun, foaming at the mouth, screeched: "Blasphemer! You court Heaven's wrath! The Son of Heaven is—"
The wounded Lin Lan staggered. The forcefield flickered.
Xu Qing *hurled* the metal capsule—
**BOOM!**
The anchor's shell shattered in a white blast. The crimson moon *convulsed*, its fissure twisting unnaturally. A shadowy figure materialized on the wall—*dragon-robed, face obscured*.
"My lord..." Lin Lan crawled toward the projection.
The figure lifted its head—
Xu Qing's blood turned to ice.
That face... was a *younger Zhu Youjian*!
"Father?!" Zhu Cilang gasped.
The projection reached out—then the anchor *imploded*, taking the vision with it.
The shockwave flung everyone aside. Xu Qing crashed into a wall, dazed. Through ringing ears, he heard:
- Zhu Meichuo calling his name.
- Zhu Cilang dragging his injured leg toward a radio.
- Cao Huachun whimpering, "This slave deserves death..."
Worst of all—the ceiling turned *transparent*, revealing *two skies merging*!
Xu Qing grabbed Zhu Cilang. "Contact the emperor!"
The prince tuned the radio: "Father! I'm safe! But the heavens—"
Zhu Youjian's voice crackled: "*We see it. The entire palace is... fading.*"
"Your Majesty!" Xu Qing shouted. "Evacuate the palace! The fusion starts where both worlds overlap!"
No reply—just static, screams, and *collapsing structures*.
Zhu Meichuo hauled Xu Qing up. "To the capital!"
Zhu Cilang pointed to a hidden path. "The Jianwen Emperor's escape route—leads to the mountain's base."
As they fled, Xu Qing checked the beacon:
**45.9% divergence. 66h 07m remaining.**
And—*a second red dot* now pulsed near the Forbidden City.
"Another anchor..." Xu Qing whispered. "*The sovereign is in the palace!*"
---
Dawn should have broken as they exited the tunnel. Instead, a *swirling vortex* consumed the eastern sky, its center a grotesque fusion of two suns.
Zhu Meichuo mounted a prepared horse. "Ride! We must reach Beijing by noon!"
Xu Qing glanced back. Lingfu Temple flickered like a mirage, while the entire Western Mountains shimmered *purple*.
"The radio!" Zhu Cilang suddenly cried.
Zhu Youjian's fragmented voice came through: "*...Cilang... Xu Qing... Coal Hill... the old locust tree...*"
Coal Hill. The locust tree. *Where Chongzhen hanged himself in history.*
Xu Qing's system activated autonomously, projecting a message from Su Yu:
**[First anchor destroyed, but fusion continues.]
[Second anchor located: Chongzhen Timeline's Forbidden City.]
[WARNING: Sovereign identified as Temporal Fugitive T-001—EXTREME RISK.]
[Countdown: 65h 30m.]**
Attached was a blurred photo: a man in Ming imperial robes standing by a quantum anchor. His face resembled Zhu Youjian's—but with *inhuman coldness*.
Xu Qing turned to Zhu Cilang. "A question—does His Majesty have brothers?"
The prince startled. "Father is Emperor Guangzong's fifth son. Four elder brothers died young... Wait!" He paled. "*Third Uncle Zhu Youxiao—the Tianqi Emperor—was said to have drowned in a well at five...*"
"But what if he didn't?" Xu Qing pressed. "What if he... went *elsewhere*?"
Before Zhu Cilang could answer, they crested a ridge—and reined in their horses, stunned.
Above Beijing, the skies of two worlds *shattered* like broken mirrors. Sections of the Forbidden City turned translucent. And atop Coal Hill...
A *ghostly locust tree* descended from the vortex, merging with its real counterpart.
And *something* swung from its branches...