What's Wrong with This Alpha? - Chapter 100

Chapter 100 – The Finale

Just as Jiang Wangshu was frantically searching the world for Duan Yi, the owner of the Time Capsule Experience Center called him, saying Duan Yi had fainted in their shop.

Jiang Wangshu let out a sigh of relief, only to immediately tense up again. Without even bothering to put on his shoes, he sprinted to the shop and hurriedly lifted Duan Yi from the table.

“Thank you, thank you so much! I’m so sorry for the trouble!” Jiang Wangshu blurted out in a panic, alternating between apologies, gratitude, and expressions of concern.

The shop owner, who seemed genuinely concerned and unaware of Duan Yi’s tendency to fall asleep at the slightest provocation, asked, “Should we call an ambulance?”

Jiang Wangshu hoisted Duan Yi onto his back. “No need, he’s just asleep.”

As they stepped out of the shop, Hao Shanshan was anxiously waiting at the entrance.

Seeing Jiang Wangshu and Duan Yi, she immediately rushed over. “How is President Duan?”

Half an hour earlier, they had finished their group dinner and returned to their rooms.

Before going to his own room, Jiang Wangshu felt uneasy and checked on Duan Yi.

The sight nearly scared him to death. Duan Yi’s room was empty, the window wide open, clearly indicating he had climbed down from the second floor.

Hao Shanshan muttered, “How did he end up here?”

Seeing tear streaks on Duan Yi’s face, she pulled out a tissue and gently wiped his cheeks.

When they arrived back at the guesthouse, the group was still awake, standing at the entrance. They only breathed a sigh of relief when they saw Jiang Wangshu.

Pingtou asked, “Are you alright?”

Jiang Wangshu replied sheepishly, “You should all go to bed. I’m sorry for troubling you so late.”

Abbot chimed in, “Chairman, that’s not the right way to put it. We’re all friends, and we’re in the same class. We were really worried when President Duan went missing.”

Fang Yun also offered Jiang Wangshu some hot water. “The guesthouse said they close around midnight. I’m glad we found him in time. I’ve filled your room with hot water—drink some when you get back.”

Normally, if Duan Yi went missing, everyone would assume he was just out partying again.

But lately, his deteriorating condition had made the entire class anxious. His sudden disappearance naturally sent their hearts racing.

Jiang Wangshu said goodnight to the group and led Duan Yi back to their room.

Their rooms were next to each other. Jiang Wangshu carefully laid Duan Yi back in bed.

His eyes were terrifyingly red, and despite all the commotion on the way back, he hadn’t stirred, clearly in a deep sleep.

Jiang Wangshu sighed worriedly, tucked Duan Yi under the covers, closed the window, and then asked the innkeeper for an extra blanket. He decided to sleep on the floor in Duan Yi’s room.

He had shared a few drinks with Pingtou and the others that evening, and the earlier run had exhausted him. He fell asleep the moment he touched the blanket.

Before closing his eyes, he glanced warily at Duan Yi, making sure the other man was sound asleep.

The only sound in the room was the rhythmic ticking of the clock.

When the hands reached three in the morning, Duan Yi’s eyes snapped open.

His eyes burned fiercely, and it took tremendous effort to keep them open.

He lay motionless for a long time, slowly regaining his senses and processing the reality: Sheng Yunze had truly vanished.

Completely erased from this world.

No one remembered him—not even Duan Yi himself, at first.

If he hadn’t found the time capsule…

If he hadn’t stubbornly insisted on opening it…

Just thinking about the consequences made his heart clench painfully. He closed his eyes, trying to swallow back the tears, but tasted only bitterness.

Duan Yi had once heard that a person’s true disappearance doesn’t begin with their death, but when the last person who remembers them forgets them.

In the darkness, he sat up in bed.

The note Sheng Yunze had left him was still crumpled in his pocket, its edges already beginning to tear from being clutched so tightly. Now, lying wrinkled in his palm, it served as proof that a vibrant young man had once existed in this world.

Duan Yi sat silently on the bed for a long time before finally moving.

He glanced at Jiang Wangshu and tucked the blanket over him. For reasons he couldn’t explain, Duan Yi sat on the floor, staring at him for a long time.

This is what Jiang Wangshu looks like, Duan Yi memorized, as if trying to imprint him on his heart.

Then, he quietly opened the doors of his other classmates’ rooms, checking on Pingtou, Abbot, Bookworm, and Xiaobang…

He looked at each of them before putting on his shoes and heading downstairs.

Just then, the shop owner came out for a drink of water. Seeing Duan Yi fully dressed at three in the morning, she instinctively asked, “Can’t sleep? Is something wrong?”

The shop owner had been running the guesthouse for many years and had seen all sorts of people come and go.

Her keen observational skills immediately noticed Duan Yi’s reddened eyes. He didn’t seem to have any particular purpose, perhaps just coming downstairs for a walk.

She smiled warmly. “Sit down. Would you like something to drink? How about some warm milk?”

Duan Yi silently took a seat. The shop owner poured him a glass of warm milk, her voice soft and gentle, carrying the warmth only a mature woman could possess. “Are you studying too hard? My son is also in his second year of high school, about your age…”

She continued, “This age is tough, with all the studying. But life is never easy, is it? Work might be even harder later on. You need to learn how to manage your stress, right?”

After a moment, Duan Yi finally spoke. “I’m not crying because of the National College Entrance Examination.”

The shop owner paused, perhaps finding Duan Yi’s words a bit childish. Seeing him as being about the same age as her own son, her maternal instincts kicked in. “Alright then, why are you crying? Over a girlfriend? Are you breaking up after the exam?”

Duan Yi thought, That’s not it at all.

But he didn’t know how to explain what had happened between him and Sheng Yunze.

It felt like a fantastical event, and he still hadn’t fully processed it.

Was this world fake?

Or were Sheng Yunze and everything they had experienced together fake?

Duan Yi had seen movies where the protagonist believed they had a childhood sweetheart, only to wake up in a hospital room with white walls and a fake, painted-looking courtyard outside.

It turned out everything had been a delusion.

The protagonist was just a mental patient.

Am I crazy too?

The more Duan Yi thought about it, the more miserable he felt. He stubbornly thought, I’d rather stay crazy.

The shop owner immediately recognized that he had broken up with someone and suggested, “Since you’re up so early, why not go watch the sunrise at Wuyun Mountain?”

Duan Yi looked at her. The shop owner smiled and said, “There’s a very effective temple at the summit of Wuyun Mountain, though it doesn’t have a name. If you have any worries, you could make a wish there. I’ve heard it’s very effective.”

“Is it really that effective?” Duan Yi asked.

The shop owner nodded. “Tourists who come here all like to make wishes there.”

Duan Yi spoke up. “What if I’ve lost someone very important to me? Can I wish to see him again?”

The shop owner winked. “Perhaps you could give it a try.”

I just dreamed of Sheng Yunze, Duan Yi thought.

He told himself, If you dream of someone, you have to go see them when you wake up.

“Shop owner, I’m leaving!” Duan Yi suddenly stood up and ran toward the guesthouse entrance.

The sky was still dark, but the young man’s retreating figure radiated vitality and energy.

The shop owner smiled. “Go early and come back early.”

There was only one stone-slab staircase leading to the summit of Wuyun Mountain, winding endlessly upward as if it had no end.

Panting heavily, Duan Yi stepped onto the first step and seemed to hear familiar voices coming from either side of the staircase.

—”Brother, can you carry me? My feet hurt, and I can’t walk anymore.”

—”Just a little further, to that pavilion up there.”

“Brother, you’re so handsome, so good-looking, so considerate, so kind, so eager to help others…”

The voice seemed to rise from the surface of the water.

Duan Yi felt as if he were submerged, and the sound tugged at his heart.

Memories flowed like streams, trickling in from all directions, converging into a rushing river that surged toward the sea.

With each step Duan Yi took, the image of Sheng Yunze in his mind grew clearer.

His words, his actions, the shared past they had experienced together—all wrapped in the wind, brushing against his cheeks, drawing memories from afar until they unfurled before him like a scroll.

He heard Sheng Yunze’s voice and saw his blurred figure.

“Forget it, Duan Yi. You’ll never be able to leave me.”

“Duan Yi. Look at your watch. Twelve thirty-four and fifty-one seconds. Remember this time. It’s the first second I became your boyfriend.”

“Eating this much? What are you, a pig? And such a pervert too.”

“So, when you said ‘lend me your pheromones,’ you really just meant ‘lend me your school uniform’?”

“You didn’t actually think I was going to kiss you, did you?”

“Duan Yi, you’re truly insufferable. Don’t ever expect me to accept your apology.”

“Just a reminder to cut the nonsense. And this is blatant contempt, you idiot.”

“Is your life so boring that you have nothing better to do? If you have time, go to the hospital and see a psychiatrist. You can use my citizen card.”

“If you told anyone that you transmigrated, do you think they’d believe you?”

“I…”

Duan Yi wiped his face with his arm, drying his tears.

At first, he was just walking up the steps, but his pace quickened until he was practically rushing.

It was as if someone was waiting for him at the summit. Duan Yi had never felt such urgency before.

He broke into a run, a silent voice screaming in his heart:

I miss you so much.

I want to see you so badly.

I really, really miss you. I miss you so much.

The young man stumbled forward, his heart filled with fervent prayer, clinging to it like a last lifeline.

If there truly is a god in this world, please let me see him. Just one glimpse, please…

The eastern sky was beginning to lighten with the pale glow of dawn, heralding the arrival of morning.

At the mountain’s summit, a massive ginkgo tree, ancient and majestic, silently bloomed in full glory.

As if standing at the end of time, transcending two eras, it gazed upon Duan Yi with silent, gentle scrutiny.

The ginkgo tree had been dead for countless years, yet delicate new branches slowly unfurled, bursting with renewed life.

The dawn wind brushed against Duan Yi’s face, causing the red prayer ribbons tied beneath the tree to dance wildly in the breeze.

His footsteps gradually slowed until he stood motionless before the ginkgo tree.

The temple was deserted, the mountaintop empty, and the space beneath the tree was equally barren.

Nothing.

Gasping for breath, as if suddenly remembering something, he rushed to the tree and began frantically searching through the thousands of red prayer ribbons.

Finally, deep within the tangled mass, he found the ribbon he had written here.

It bore only two names: his own and Sheng Yunze’s.

He remembered coming here with Sheng Yunze to write their wishes. Duan Yi first wept, then laughed, before collapsing abruptly to the ground.

His gaze suddenly fixed on a particular spot, his eyes freezing in place.

Duan Yi stood frozen for a moment before reaching into the deepest part of the capsule and pulling out an identical red prayer ribbon.

This ribbon also bore only two names: Sheng Yunze and his own.

But the inscription on this ribbon wasn’t from the current year; it was dated seven years in the future.

The prayer ribbon trembled in Duan Yi’s hand, his face etched with confusion.

Why is there another one?

I…

Duan Yi’s mind was a tangled mess, his head throbbing violently.

I was in a car accident during summer vacation…

Only now did he meticulously examine the details he had previously dismissed as odd.

Fragmented memories reassembled in his mind: Xiaoduan Mom’s anguished cries, the blurry hospital ceiling, the acrid smell of disinfectant…

But within this scene, the tear-streaked faces of young Sheng Ming and Sheng Xi suddenly appeared, followed by Sheng Yunxi leaning against the wall with his eyes tightly shut, and Sheng Yunze sitting silently by the hospital bed, his gaze hollow and distant…

The memories shifted and intertwined before his eyes, leaving Duan Yi standing motionless in bewilderment.

Until all the images coalesced into a single scene:

A twenty-seven-year-old Sheng Yunze sat by the bed, his hands trembling as he held Duan Yi’s hand to his lips.

A low, repeated plea echoed through countless ages, landing clearly in Duan Yi’s ears.

“Don’t die… Duan Yi… don’t die…”

“Please… I’m begging you… don’t die…”

“Wake up… don’t sleep… don’t die…”

Duan Yi felt as if he had touched a long-sealed memory. The truth seemed to be right before his eyes. He reached out to grasp it, but a sudden burst of light blinded him.

With his back to the ginkgo tree, he faced the pale dawn sky. The newborn sun was slowly rising in the distance. Duan Yi shielded his eyes with his hand.

“Do you know about the Thirteen Towers?” Duan Yi vaguely heard Sheng Yunze’s voice. “In Chankillo, on the northwest coast of Peru, a lost civilization used thirteen towers to record the times of sunrise and sunset, marking the sun’s movement. Because the Earth rotates on a tilted axis, the sunrise point on the horizon changes throughout the year. The towers at Chankillo perfectly align with these sunrise points.”

“Eureka moment,” Duan Yi suddenly said, as if possessed. His right hand instinctively formed a hollow circle, framing the crimson sun.

Sheng Yunze’s voice seemed to merge with his own at that moment: “They discovered this moment and named it the Eureka Moment. The original meaning of the word is ‘Ah, finally I’ve found it!’ So it’s also called the moment of human enlightenment.”

In other words, when the sun rises, it’s the moment of human enlightenment, and you’ll see the person you most long to see.

Duan Yi clenched his fist tightly, gathering all the light into his palm.

At the point where his palm closed, the tall, handsome figure of a young man materialized beneath a massive flowering tree.

Even though it was already May, the blossoms still bloomed with extraordinary vigor.

Duan Yi stood frozen for a long time, as if unsure whether this was a hallucination or reality. He stared intently at the young man beneath the tree, his gaze unwavering.

As if sensing his gaze, the young man looked up at him.

He rarely smiled so gently, his eyes brimming with warmth, as if encouraging Duan Yi.

Duan Yi’s legs began to move uncontrollably, sprinting toward the young man with all his might, just as he had done countless times before, throwing himself into Sheng Yunze’s arms.

The blossoms bloomed like the fervent love of youth, each cluster vibrant and lush, heedless of the past, unconcerned with the future, living only for the present moment.

He suddenly embraced Sheng Yunze, hearing his own voice:

I’ve come for you. I’ve found you. Without hesitation, without reservation, I’ve rushed toward you.