Chapter 23: Welcome Home?
Marcus highly doubted that the information provided by the Transcendence System was the truth of the real world!
"The system also has no evidence, but Earth in the host's world should be trapped in such a Time Cage. The timeline of the entire universe is correct, but Earth is isolated in this Time Cage," the Transcendence System explained.
Marcus pondered silently. According to the Transcendence System, this Time Cage existed in an orderly manner, meaning it was created by intelligent beings. What kind of civilization could create a Time Cage?
Why would a civilization with the technology to create Time Cages use one to trap Earth?
What was their purpose?
Marcus couldn't understand it at all.
Marcus didn't waste his brain cells; if he couldn't understand it now, he wouldn't understand it now, but he would figure it out later.
"Host, the World Gate has been fully opened," the Transcendence System relayed in his mind.
Marcus couldn't help but look around. In his bedroom, there was no bright light portal, no shimmering spatial passage, and no teleportation array inscribed with mysterious runes.
"Where is the World Gate?" Marcus asked.
"The World Gate is hidden within a spatial rift, not existing in the real world, and bears the imprint of the host's spirit and soul. Only the host can pass through it," the Transcendence System responded.
"..." Marcus was speechless. "What do you mean only I can pass through?"
Before the Transcendence System could reply, Marcus added, "If I manage to acquire the Liquid Metal Terminator T-1000 through special means, can't I take it with me?"
"Of course you can. The World Gate will refuse passage to life forms with souls. If you try to force your way through, you will be rejected by the world's power. The world's consciousness, for self-preservation, will obliterate such beings," the Transcendence System explained.
"Terminators are intelligent machines, not life forms, and have no souls. The host can freely take the Terminator to any world," the Transcendence System affirmed.
Marcus breathed a sigh of relief.
If he couldn't take the Terminator with him, his investment in the Terminator world was pointless.
"One more question: can I leave the Terminator world at any time and then re-enter it at any time? Wouldn't that allow me to live freely in both worlds?" Marcus raised a question.
"The host can indeed leave the Terminator world at any time, and at the same time, can enter the Terminator world at any time. Theoretically speaking, the host can indeed live freely in both worlds," the Transcendence System first affirmed Marcus's statement.
"However, please note that the host asked about the time flow ratio between the two worlds before. The system cannot determine this either. Because the system has determined that the two worlds are not in the same universe. Therefore, the system has no way of determining the time flow ratio between them," the Transcendence System explained.
Marcus was speechless. This Transcendence System was supposed to transcend all the heavens and myriad worlds, so why does it feel a bit unreliable now?
"The World Gate has been completely stabilized. Does the host want to return to their original world?" the Transcendence System responded.
Marcus considered for a moment, took the Terminator T-800's compact nuclear reactor with him, and then replied, "Yes, return to my world."
The next moment, Marcus disappeared from the Terminator world!
...
In a daze, Marcus returned to the real world. He looked around and found himself still in his bedroom, but something seemed a little off!
Marcus keenly noticed something amiss with the bedroom layout; his belongings had been rummaged through.
"What's going on..." Marcus tried to find his phone. He'd left it on the computer desk before leaving, but it was now gone.
Given the phone's mysterious disappearance, Marcus tried turning on the computer.
A soft click.
Marcus pressed the power button, but the computer didn't start, or rather, it didn't respond at all, as if there had been a power outage. Marcus tried turning on the lights, and sure enough, they didn't turn on either.
"Is there really a power outage?" Marcus was somewhat skeptical. His apartment was in the downtown area; in his memory, power outages were almost nonexistent.
Marcus cautiously walked to the window and peered through the glass to see if anyone else had power. The answer was yes; he found that others in his building had electricity.
"Could it be that a long time has passed?" Marcus wondered to himself. Could it be that the three months he spent in the Terminator world had elapsed much longer in the real world?
After a moment's thought, Marcus decided to go out and check the situation. He went straight to a convenience store and looked at the day's newspaper.
July 7, 2014...
Marcus remembered that he left on June 6, 2014, so had a month passed in the real world?
He also remembered the time he entered the Terminator world: May 12, 1984, and the time he left was near dawn on May 13.
"Time flow rate 1:3?" Marcus pondered to himself.
"Marcus?" The convenience store clerk looked at Marcus in surprise. "Didn't you go missing?"
"..." Marcus was speechless. "Ahem, I just went on a road trip to clear my head."
"Hey!" The clerk, Dave, chuckled. "You're quite the free spirit, you didn't even take your cell phone!"
Marcus scratched his head. "I've been feeling really stressed lately and didn't want anyone to find me."
"You'd better be more careful!" Dave warned. "Things are getting weirder lately, there are more and more strange things happening, and the authorities are always being secretive. It's best to be careful."
"Oh?" Marcus asked curiously. "What exactly is going on with those strange things?"
Dave lowered his voice before speaking. "I heard from a buddy that those strange places are very likely connected to something big. Don't tell anyone, or you'll get into trouble with the feds."
"Don't worry, don't worry, I definitely won't say anything," Marcus smiled and agreed on the surface, but his heart sank.
Having learned about the Time Cage from the system, Marcus was already mentally prepared. Now that Dave had mentioned strange occurrences, he guessed that the authorities might be actively managing public perception.
Perhaps the authorities could no longer hide it?
After leaving the convenience store, Marcus didn't go home. Instead, he withdrew some cash from an ATM, bought a prepaid phone, and checked into a hotel. He didn't even activate the phone, simply using the hotel's Wi-Fi.
Marcus planned to stay in the real world for a while longer to learn more about the Time Cage.
However, when Marcus woke up, he finally realized a huge problem!
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