Chapter 57: Just How Long Has It Been?

Chapter 57: Just How Long Has It Been?

For the humans in "Edge of Tomorrow," it felt like they had just woken up from a dream. Only yesterday, they were still discussing when those terrifying alien creatures would leave Earth.

But when they woke up, they were shocked to find that the once-massive Zerg army had quietly vanished without a trace. Even the fungal mats that once covered the ground had completely retreated.

By the time Alex, the bespectacled woman, and the others rushed to the Zerg base they had previously visited, it was already empty, leaving behind nothing but a deserted city.

"Phew... finally, it's done."

Watching the Leviathan disappear into space, Alex wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. To be honest, convincing Miruune to leave Earth had cost him quite a bit of effort.

Although the Zergs looked down on humans, they still needed to expand. If Alex hadn't had Kerrigan's Soul Stone with him, Miruune would have likely conquered Earth and turned it into a Zerg base long ago.

But it didn't come without a price.

"Forget it, I'll take a break first, then we'll see…"

Shrugging off his worries, Alex reached out his hand. Soon, the Dimensional Codex reappeared in his grasp, with rings of light forming out of thin air, enveloping him. He disappeared into the light, vanishing without a trace.

Just like before, Alex didn't immediately return to the main world. After leaving "Edge of Tomorrow," he found himself once again in that blank main world. Soon, the system's evaluation list appeared and started spinning rapidly.

[Commencing evaluation of user task completion]

[Main Task "Trial" — Progress Evaluation — A]

[Side Task "Black and White" — Progress Evaluation — B]

[Overall Evaluation: A-]

[User receives additional dimensional points +5]

A B evaluation?

Seeing the side task's evaluation, Alex was momentarily stunned. This side task only concluded after he left Earth, but… why was it a B?

Alex remembered very clearly that while completing this side task wasn't mandatory, its reward was something he valued highly. The reward for "Black and White" was the ability to choose the faction of the next summoned Soul Stone. This was extremely important to Alex. Although he had previously summoned two powerful Soul Stones, he didn't dare to use them.

Now, he wasn't expecting much; he just hoped to summon a Soul Stone he could use in the main world.

But what was with this B evaluation?

The "Black and White" task didn't specify clear conditions; it merely stated that Alex's actions in "Edge of Tomorrow" would be evaluated. So, he could only guess. He speculated that it might have something to do with his behavior—perhaps doing good deeds anonymously could have earned him a Soul Stone from the good faction.

Of course, this was just speculation.

Alex thought carefully. He didn't think he had done anything wrong in the world of "Edge of Tomorrow." He hadn't attacked humans; in fact, he had helped them eliminate the alien mimics at great personal cost. He didn't take anything from the masses, and he was self-reliant.

So why only a B?

This evaluation is really ambiguous.

If it were an A or S, it would mean his task completion was outstanding. If it were a C or D, at least he would know he messed up this time. But what's with this B? Did I complete the task or not? Do I get my angel lady or not? Can you give me a straight answer?

Alex didn't know the reason, but thinking about it now wouldn't help. So, he decided not to dwell on it.

Regardless, he was going to take a gamble. If he could summon the angel lady, it would be a win.

Even if he couldn't summon the angel lady, something similar would do, as long as it wasn't another big shot like Kerrigan or Arthas!

"This is really too much for me to handle!"

With that thought, Alex could only sigh helplessly and then quietly wait to be transported back to the main world.

But what Alex didn't expect was that this time, even after waiting for a while, he still hadn't been transported back. This made him pause in confusion. What's going on? What happened? What is this about?

Ding—

Before Alex could figure it out, a soft chime suddenly rang out. Then, a line of system notifications appeared before him.

[Detected that the teleportation destination is unavailable. Initiating search for a new teleportation marker. Random teleportation starting...]

"What the...?!"

Alex naturally didn't know that after his departure, the underground cavern collapsed. So, upon seeing this system prompt, he was startled. Immediately after, a wave of terror swept over him.

He had had enough of these random teleports with no clear destination!

"Wait, at least tell me where you're sending me…"

Whoosh.

But before Alex could finish his sentence, that familiar feeling of weightlessness seized him once again. In the next moment, everything went black, and he was once again "thrown" out.

Streams of light appeared incessantly before his eyes. In the past, this would have made Alex dizzy and nauseous, but luckily, after reconstructing his body, he could easily endure this level of "torment." After a moment, he saw a bright light before him, and the next thing he knew, he was hurtling forward as if he'd been shot out of a cannon.

If it had been the old Alex, he would have probably landed hard on his backside by now. But this time, he displayed an extraordinary reaction. Flipping mid-air, he landed steadily on the ground, moving with the fluid grace of a gymnast—a sight to behold.

"Phew…"

Only now did Alex have the presence of mind to look around. But soon, he was stunned.

Because this wasn't Shadow Canyon.

Alex clearly remembered that Shadow Canyon was a desolate wilderness. But where he was now, he was surrounded by towering mountains. All he could see were dense, towering trees. Not only that, but there was also a thin layer of snow covering the ground?!

How long have I been gone, seriously?

Looking at the snow-covered forest around him, Alex was dumbfounded. He clearly remembered that when he left, it was early summer. But now, it looked like the middle of winter… Wait, no way!

As this thought crossed his mind, Alex suddenly recalled something, and his expression darkened. All this time, because the world of "Edge of Tomorrow" was constantly being reset by Tom Cruise's character, Alex had felt that not much time had actually passed. But thinking about it now, who knows what standards the Map of Myriad Dimensions used to measure the passage of time? What if it wasn't following that world's time but rather the time he spent there?

Wow, if that's the case, I've been in "Edge of Tomorrow" for over half a year!

With this realization, Alex's face turned grim. He had felt a bit guilty about forcing Tom Cruise's character into so many suicides. But now… Well, if you had died a few fewer times, this wouldn't have been such a big deal, right?

Sigh…

Taking a deep breath of the cold air, Alex looked around. Initially, he thought he might be on some high mountain. But now it seemed that the altitude wasn't that high, meaning the cold wasn't due to the terrain but the climate.

In any case, I'd better figure out where I am first.

(End of Chapter)

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