Bear Paw

Lin, who was stirring the pot, shuddered at the words, nearly dropping the utensil.

The term "Internet" was only something he had seen in history books.

Tiantian's eyes also trembled slightly as she looked at Qiao Jiajin and asked seriously, "Qiao Jiajin, when did you say you were born?"

"Haven't I told you? In '79," Qiao Jiajin extended a finger to scratch his head, looking indifferent.

"1979, what do you mean?"

Tiantian slowly stood up, cautiously staring into Qiao Jiajin's eyes: "You're not joking with me, right? If you were really born in '79, you should be over forty years old this year."

Lin was slightly stunned by the words and turned to look at Tiantian: "That doesn't seem right..."

Qi Xia ignored the arguing people and served himself a bowl of meat.

Qiao Jiajin frowned, feeling Tiantian's words were very hard to understand: "What's wrong with you, Tiantian? Are you delusional from hunger? How could a vigorous and handsome guy like me look like I'm over forty?"

Indeed, he didn't look forty years old.

In terms of his appearance and physical fitness, it was impossible for him to be over forty.

Xiao Xiao, who was on the side, didn't move like Qi Xia when she heard the conversation.

Lin Qin's mouth twitched slightly as she asked, "Qiao Jiajin, what year is it now?"

Qiao Jiajin looked at her suspiciously: "It's 2006, of course. Why do you ask?"

He turned his head and saw Tiantian and Lin Ju looking at him in disbelief, which made him feel even stranger.

"What are you all staring at me for?"

Lin felt the whole situation was filled with an indescribable eeriness. He turned to Tiantian and asked, "Tiantian, which year are you from?"

"I'm from 2019..." Tiantian said with a frown, "What's going on here?"

Lin felt weak all over and slowly sat down: "Everyone... I'm from 2068..."

"Ah??" Qiao Jiajin was shocked, "2068?"

Qi Xia nodded silently after hearing this.

Yes, she really seemed like someone from the future.

In her era, masks had to be worn from a young age, and they became as common as regular clothing from birth.

That's why she would look strange without a mask, as if she was naked.

With the rapid development of the internet, she didn't need to know what a 'flyer' was.

Qi Xia shook her head silently, not expecting everyone to notice this issue.

"It's even more bizarre now..." Tiantian's lips trembled slightly as she said to everyone, "We are not from the same year, yet we gathered on the same day. Could this really be done by 'God'..."

Lin Qin said in disbelief after hearing this: "If we are not from the same day, then the 'earthquake' we experienced before coming here was also not the same..."

Then she looked at Qiao Jiajin: "But in my memory, there has been no mention of a large-scale earthquake in the area where you are from..."

"And you?" Tiantian suddenly asked Qi Xia, "Which year are you from?"

"What's going on here?!" Qiao Jiajin felt dizzy, "Cheater Boy, why is this happening? You're so smart, have you guessed anything?"

Qi Xia shook his head; any theoretical knowledge he knew couldn't explain the current situation.

Why did everyone come from different time periods?

Was it random or intentional for 'God' to select these people?

How long was the time span of the participants?

"Anyway, we will only gather here for ten days," Qi Xia looked out the window at the dark red sky, his eyes very determined, "Regardless of whether all this was done by 'God,' I don't care. Right now, I just want to fill my stomach and go find the 'Dao' as soon as possible. Even if you all care about this issue very much, I don't recommend you to seek the truth."

After hearing Qi Xia's words, everyone slowly sat down.

Yes, Qi Xia was right. They needed to get out.

No matter which year they were from, they all had a common goal, which was to escape from this hellish place and return to their original lives.

Spending a few days investigating the issue of 'time periods' would go against their goal.

The five of them took small bowls from the restaurant, each serving themselves a bowl of meat soup, their expressions still a bit unnatural.

The mysteries of this place seemed to be wrapped in layers, and there were many things the group wanted to figure out.

Time.

Is the 'truth' more important, or is 'escape' more important?

"Yes... don't think about it." Tiantian sighed, "How many 'incredible' experiences have we been through?"

Lin Qin and Qiao Jiajin looked at each other and both shook their heads helplessly.

Tiantian picked up an old frying spoon and slowly tore the meat from the bear's arm, placing some in each person's bowl.

The bear's arm had been stewed to a mushy texture, and the meat easily detached from the bones with a gentle touch. A rich aroma of meat also spread, accompanied by the hot and thick soup, assaulting everyone's nostrils.

"It's... quite fragrant." Qiao Jiajin swallowed his saliva and took his bowl.

Qi Xia also held the bowl in his hands without moving.

He glanced at Xiao Xiao with his peripheral vision and, seeing that she had started eating, waited silently for a while.

Only after he was sure that the food in front of him was completely safe did he tear a piece of white meat from the bone.

He brought the bear meat to his nose and smelled the aroma, then threw the meat into his mouth and took a gentle bite. The hot meat juice burst in his mouth.

"Whoosh..." Qi Xia was scalded and quickly exhaled a few breaths of hot air, then chewed hastily and swallowed the white meat.

It was terrible.

He never thought that bear meat would be so bad.

The texture in his mouth was greasy and rich, and after a few chews, it left a strong fishy taste in his mouth.

Perhaps it was because they had no seasonings, or perhaps the taste of bear meat was like this. In any case, after taking the first bite, Qi Xia no longer wanted to touch the bowl.

He looked at Lin next to him, who also frowned, her features twisted as if she had eaten a very sour lemon.

Qiao Jiajin and Tiantian, however, didn't seem to mind. They chewed the meat in large mouthfuls while looking at the two of them.

"What's wrong? Doesn't it taste good?" Qiao Jiajin asked.

"You tell me?" Qi Xia asked, "Do our taste buds differ because we come from different eras?"

"It's indeed very bad," Qiao Jiajin said with his mouth full, "But we need to survive, Cheater Boy. You must not have eaten leftover food from the garbage when you were young, right?"

Hearing Qiao Jiajin's words, Qi Xia found it somewhat interesting. He put down his bowl with a bit of a playful tone: "Qiao Jiajin, your usual diet must be quite substantial. You've not only eaten bear paw but also garbage?"

"Cheater Boy, you're getting a bit too bold..." Qiao Jiajin stuffed another large piece of meat into his mouth and said, "Do you know how much older I am than you? Call me 'Brother Qiao' from now on, and I'll look out for you. In my life, I've eaten more garbage than you've eaten bear paws."

"I'll say it again, I've never eaten bear paw or garbage."

Tiantian and Lin Ju were amused by the two men, and it seemed as if the food in their hands had become more palatable.

Yes, no matter which era they came from, at this moment, they were all comrades in arms.

Qi Xia also stopped bickering with Qiao Jiajin and picked a few more pieces of meat from the bowl and ate them.

No matter what, eating something was always better than going hungry, and they didn't know what kind of games they would have to face next. It was essential to always maintain full physical strength.

The bear's paw part happened to be in Qi Xia's bowl. He thought that the so-called 'bear paw' would be different from the other parts, but after just one bite, Qi Xia started to retch repeatedly.

This part was even more greasy than the other parts, and it tasted like a piece of phlegm with the taste of fatty meat, extremely pungent.

"Did the ancients really consider this a delicacy?"