Episode 2

What is the difference in temperature between midnight and 1 a.m.?

Normally, it is unlikely that anyone would notice any difference.

But tonight is clearly different. The sun has long since disappeared, yet the air's heat seems to grow more intense with each passing minute. Even worse, it has been days since the wind blew. Outside the window, what seems to float in the air is not merely air, but a searing, suffocating hot sand ready to leap at your face.

It was as if some unseen command had been given, for even the last few homes in the city—who had not turned on their air conditioners for various reasons—had their outdoor units roaring to life. Those without air conditioning were no longer able to endure, rushing to bars, 24-hour convenience stores, office buildings... anywhere there was a hint of cool air, they would seek refuge.

Thirty minutes later, with a faint click, several night lights on the 38th floor suddenly went out. The apartment was plunged into absolute darkness—the faint buzzing sound that had been lingering in the bedroom ceased without warning.

The central air conditioning had stopped.

Not long after the cooling stopped, Lin Sanjiu tossed and turned restlessly in her sleep. Without the steady comfort of the 26° temperature, a sticky layer of sweat quickly formed on her skin, as if trapped under an airtight cover. Before long, she was awakened by the heat.

Hmm... the remote should be on the bedside table... The thought barely flickered in her sleepy mind as she reached out, only to feel something amiss. She immediately froze, not moving. After a while, she slowly squinted her eyes and looked upward.

A pale white face hung directly above hers, with two hollow eyes staring straight at her.

It’s back!—again! Lin Sanjiu's mind erupted in a scream, yet her throat was dry, producing no sound. Her heartbeat quickened and grew louder. The white face tilted slightly, listening, before it abruptly closed in on her.

Two weeks ago, she had woken up in the middle of the night, thirsty. As she got up, she ran straight into this face. Terrified, she screamed and fumbled for the light, only to find that it was Ren Nan—

Ren Nan had unknowingly sat beside her, his face expressionless in the darkness, not knowing how long he had been staring at her—just like tonight.

At that time, Ren Nan had said he had been sleepwalking since childhood.

If Lin Sanjiu hadn’t been suspicious, she might have believed him. She now suppressed her fear, pretending to still be asleep, rubbing her eyes and trembling as she asked, "Ren Nan, are you sleepwalking again?"

Ren Nan's face cracked into a silent smile in the darkness, his words crisp and clear: "Yes, I’ve been having my old problem again. Did I scare you?"

"A little...," Lin Sanjiu almost fled the bed and stood by the door—this illusion of being able to escape calmed her slightly, and only then did she realize the suffocating heat in the room. "Why is it so hot? Did you turn off the air conditioning?"

Ren Nan said nothing. Instead, he reached out and pulled the heavy curtains apart, revealing a floor-to-ceiling window. Normally, through this window, Lin Sanjiu would see the sparkling night view of half the city. But tonight, the city had lost its usual brilliance, and even the starlight had vanished, replaced by a suffocating pitch-black darkness.

Inside the windowless apartment, the air was stifling, making it hard to breathe.

"The power grid is overloaded. It looks like the whole city has lost power," Ren Nan’s voice remained relaxed, almost leisurely. As he spoke, he slowly stood, circled the foot of the bed, and walked toward the door.

Suddenly, Lin Sanjiu’s senses went into overdrive. Before he could get closer, she turned and rushed toward the living room. The arrangement of the apartment over the past three months finally paid off, as she managed to make her way into the living room, even in the pitch-black darkness. Without pausing for breath, she slammed the elevator button.

The expected red light did not come on—such an expensive apartment had no backup power system?

"Backup power only supports the hallway lights. As for the elevator—especially the private ones, they don't care," a voice she had been hearing for months spoke from behind her. Ren Nan still sounded gentle, but as he enunciated his words, Lin Sanjiu could hear the faint sound of water. It was as if... Ren Nan couldn’t control the saliva in his mouth...

In the darkness, the blurry outline of Ren Nan approached, finally stopping in the middle of the living room.

Lin Sanjiu felt a wave of dizziness wash over her. Her sixth sense had been right—regret surged inside her. "What... what do you want?" she asked, her voice trembling.

"You’re quite perceptive," Ren Nan took a breath, "you should have felt it long ago. But you should learn to trust your instincts more... otherwise, you wouldn’t have come back with me. Over the past few days, you’ve probably fought with yourself a lot... thank you for trusting me." Lin Sanjiu didn’t realize it, but her clenched fists were trembling uncontrollably.

"Little Jiu, are you sweating a lot in this heat?" Ren Nan suddenly asked a seemingly unrelated question.

Lin Sanjiu paused, instinctively touching her arm. She had only broken a light sweat—but... why was he asking this?

Ren Nan seemed satisfied, nodding in the darkness. "You’re great! It’s not for nothing I’ve trained you for half a year..."

What was he talking about? Lin Sanjiu couldn’t understand a word! She opened her mouth, trying to speak, only to find her teeth chattering. The thought that had been lingering in her mind for days surfaced, and she asked something she never thought she would say: "Do you... want to eat me?"

The shadow in the dark let out a satisfied sigh. "Such sharp intuition."

Lin Sanjiu was enraged by his attitude—fear, indignation, and confusion all mixed together, and she no longer felt helpless. The words burst out of her like a tidal wave: "Stop joking! Who are you really? Why did you pick me? I’m telling you, don’t do anything rash, all my friends know I’m staying here with you..."

She raised her voice intentionally, hoping someone might hear, while quietly inching towards the open kitchen on the side of the living room.

Ren Nan sighed. "You’ve been with me for six months, so I’ll give you a clear answer." With that, he raised his hand and lightly snapped his fingers.

Suddenly, with a deafening crash, a glass wall in the living room shattered into thousands of pieces. Along with the distant sound of a scream, a wave of heat, unlike anything Lin Sanjiu had ever felt, swept into the apartment, engulfing the last bit of coolness left by the central air conditioning.

How... how could it be so hot? It felt as though someone had placed the entire city on a roasting fire! Before Lin Sanjiu could react, Ren Nan’s gentle voice came again: "Starting tonight, this world is no longer the Earth you’re familiar with. In this new world, according to your measurements, it is... oh, 59 degrees Celsius." Lin Sanjiu was stunned. 59 degrees Celsius was enough to cause fatal heatstroke and dehydration to an ordinary person—she quickly touched the back of her neck. Surprisingly, she didn’t break much sweat.

"See! I’ve only nurtured you for a few months, and you’ve already developed ‘heat adaptation’ and ‘sharp intuition’... truly, you’re the potential seed I saw from the beginning. If the new world hadn’t arrived too soon, I would have kept you for another two years before... eating you..." Ren Nan’s tone held a hint of regret. He took a loud gulp and walked toward Lin Sanjiu. "Little Jiu, it’s been so long since I’ve had a good seed."

After the glass wall shattered, the living room was dimly lit. In that faint light, Lin Sanjiu saw Ren Nan’s face.

The once-model-worthy features of his face were now being gradually obscured by his mouth, growing wider and wider. Clear saliva was no longer contained, continuously dripping from the corner of his mouth—and at that moment, Lin Sanjiu was forced back into the corner of the kitchen.

"I... I still don’t understand! What are you? Why do you want to eat me? And what is this evolution and ability... you promised to give me an explanation, tell me!"

Even delaying for a minute was a chance! Lin Sanjiu seized the opportunity to quietly reach for the knife rack on the counter behind her.

The large mouth paused briefly, then shrank slightly, revealing some of Ren Nan’s original features. "Sigh... why are you so stupid? Of course, I’m human, Ren Nan is my name—though I’m different from you backward species. I come from another ‘new world.’ The humans who survive in this new world all evolve different abilities... and my ability is something you can’t even imagine."

Ren Nan wiped his wet chin. "I advise you to put down the knife. My eyesight is very good. Just obediently let me eat you. I promise it won’t hurt—"

"Shut the hell up!" Before he finished speaking, Lin Sanjiu, filled with both fear and anger, had grabbed a sharp knife and lunged at him.

The gleaming boning knife moved with incredible speed, leaving a trail of light in the darkness—just as the tip of the knife was about to stab into Ren Nan’s chest, he lightly stepped aside, and Lin Sanjiu missed. She stumbled, stepping on a piece of glass, and lost her balance, falling hard to the ground.

A mouth, now split open to both sides, gave her no chance to rise, rushing at Lin Sanjiu like a gust of wind—panicking, she managed to roll over and fling the knife out. Ren Nan barely dodged but was still grazed by the blade, a shallow cut forming.

With a clink, the knife fell to the distance.

Enraged, Ren Nan grabbed Lin Sanjiu and slammed her to the ground, his eyes almost shrinking to pinpricks as he stared at her. "A steak should look like a steak!"

In the dim light, Lin Sanjiu stared hopelessly at the shadow as it lunged for her throat.

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