Before the meal, Nathan added: "One of our Hu Qingyiao brothers had all his children killed by spies sent from the mainland in 1949. Only our grandfather survived; all his brothers were killed that year. During the Hong Kong 1967 leftist riots, one of our members nearly died from a homemade bomb. Mainland secret organizations have already targeted our bloodline. Grandfather's family relocated to Hong Kong Island, far from the Futian Port, to evade spies sent by that secret organization. Though its leader has since passed away, the organization persists. To this day, it remains unconquered."
At that moment, Norman's communication device suddenly rang. It was Gilbert Eisenhower, who said solemnly, "My apologies for interrupting your rest. Recent events have unfolded unexpectedly. For reasons unknown, our Supreme Commander has hired a peculiar scientist who calls himself Professor Timing. He gives off an odd vibe—unlike other scientists clad in white lab coats, he wears a brand-new black high-tech suit and sports a tech visor. While all soldiers and scientists wear such visors during combat, no one has ever seen him remove his." Norman immediately grew wary and instructed Gilbert to keep a close watch on this member, reporting any unusual activity immediately. Gilbert responded, “Commander Gavrikov has his reasons for accepting him. If he had a bad record, he certainly wouldn't have taken him on.”
Just as the three were dining, two infants in the nursery suddenly began crying. Cordelia reported she had already fed them and changed their diapers, yet the babies continued to fuss incessantly. When Nathan entered the nursery, Norman warned him to wash his hands immediately. Since infants have weak immune systems, touching them without washing hands could easily infect them. Nathan promptly went to the bathroom to wash his hands with soap. He explained that the babies were experiencing hallucinations, typically caused by stress and sleep deprivation. Rumors circulating about them seeing ghosts had no scientific basis whatsoever. Nathan knew the child was already six months old. He worried that if the infant lacked sufficient eye contact with parents, it could indicate developmental issues.
Seeing both children crying, Norman immediately confronted his three clones. He sternly demanded, “Did any of you three actually enter the nursery?” The three clones shook their heads simultaneously, insisting they hadn't entered the nursery. At that moment, Norman approached the full-length mirror in the room. He saw something he shouldn't have seen. The mirror should have reflected his entire figure, but instead, an image appeared—a mirror image identical to himself. The figure in the mirror had eyes glowing red, the whites of its eyes blackened, and black claws growing from its hands. Wait—it was the same figure again, though now it wore a purple robe and a peach-colored coat, its boots changed to black. Norman screamed in terror. Nathan rushed over to investigate and cried out: “This is bad! The most brutal clone has been released! He should be trapped inside the mirror now, unable to escape. I need to shatter the full-length mirror first!” Norman found a hard object and smashed the mirror. An abnormal glow erupted from the mirror as its glass shattered onto the floor. The clone trapped within finally emerged. The two hurriedly cleared the glass shards to prevent injury.
Nathan shouted angrily, “Hu Chengyan, you've finally succeeded in escaping! Don't you dare harm this family!” Chengyan's rationality remained severely impaired. He spoke in broken, eerie sentences: “Ten years... great calamity... eight heroes... save... father... I miss you...” Norman instantly boiled with rage. He immediately raised the purple necklace and sealed all four duplicates inside it. He turned to Nathan and asked, “Did you hear what he just said? He mentioned a great calamity ten years from now. Who exactly are these eight heroes? And what does he mean by ‘Father, I miss you so much’?” Though frightened, Nathan regained his composure and replied with concern, "Though hard to believe, I've searched every book and found no record of these eight heroes. Since he lived during the Three Kingdoms era, a time teeming with heroes and warriors, the eight he mentioned might not even have existed in the same period. And that line, ‘Father, I miss you so much’... Could he have mistaken you for his father—Hu Xianyong? In any case, all these puzzles remain unsolved. Don't jump to conclusions.“ Norman frowned. ”But what does the Three Kingdoms era have to do with us?" Nathan confirmed he couldn't find any information.
After the terrifying events of that night, Norman suddenly encountered a purple butterfly on the balcony. The butterfly bore strange markings—white spots and black stripes intertwined into an eerie pattern, looking highly unusual. The butterfly left behind a trail of purple powder that smelled like rust. The balcony lights flickered, and a faint vibration filled the air. At that moment, Chengyan's voice echoed in her ears again: “The prophecy was wrong... One year later... A great calamity is approaching...”
Wait—this time the prophecy was wrong? The catastrophe would strike in just one year? Could the mirror's shattering have altered the timeline? Was there any way to avoid it? Then Chengyan's voice echoed again: “No... so painful...” More fragmented words, utterly indecipherable. This catastrophe was inevitable—and now it was only a year away. Just then, the communicator buzzed again. This time it was Professor Timing calling. His voice was grave: “Headquarters is issuing an emergency recall! The Timing Thieves has begun their operation, and the temporal turbulence is intensifying simultaneously.”
ns216.73.216.33da2
and then Add to home screen.