Legend of the Embroiderer

Li Zhao woke up with a severe headache and found himself tied to a metal bed in the laboratory.

The pungent smell of disinfectant penetrated his nostrils, and the shadowless light above his head made him squint his eyes.

He twisted his body and found that his limbs were firmly fixed by energy shackles, and Lingyue, who was wearing a white coat, was using a scalpel to cut open his chest, revealing a mechanical heart inside that was flashing with blue light.

"Welcome back to reality, Subject 001."

Lingyue's voice seemed to come from the Netherworld, so cold that it made people shudder. "Or rather, welcome to the 723rd restart of your life."

Her words hit Li Zhao's heart like a heavy hammer. He widened his eyes and looked at the strange woman in front of him with disbelief.

Lingyue turned around and took out a data chip from the instrument. The chip flickered with a faint light in her hand, as if it was a symbol of Li Zhao's life that had been restarted countless times.

"You fail every time in the virtual world, and this time is no exception."

Lingyue's tone did not fluctuate at all, as if she was stating a very ordinary fact.

Li Zhao's body trembled involuntarily, and his voice became a little hoarse because of fear:

"You...who are you?"

Lingyue raised the corner of her mouth slightly, revealing a sneer:

"I'm the chief scientist leading the Twin Balance Project, and you—" She suddenly leaned in close to Li Zhao, so close they could almost feel each other's breath, "are the perfect vessel I created using gene editing technology to hold the Yin-Yang Core, which can destroy dark matter."

The metal door of the laboratory was suddenly kicked open, and several people in radiation protection suits rushed in.

"Dr. Lin, this is bad! The dark matter tide has erupted prematurely, and there are only 37 hours left in the real world!"

Lingyue's expression suddenly changed. She plunged the scalpel into Li Zhao's mechanical heart. "Looks like we have to start the final plan ahead of time."

Li Zhao felt dizzy and when he opened his eyes again, he found himself standing in front of the Twin Moon Temple in the virtual world.

Lingyue appeared beside him in combat uniform, holding a quantum dagger that could control time and space.

"Listen, subject."

She thrust the dagger into Li Zhao's abdomen. "The real world is about to be destroyed. You must find the 'initial code' in the virtual world and restart the universe."

Li Zhao felt memories flooding back - he was an ordinary person in the real world, chosen by Lingyue to participate in the rescue plan.

Every death restarts the virtual world, and Lingyue monitors all his experiences through the implanted chip.

"Why are you telling me now?" Li Zhao roared.

Lingyue sneered: "Because the previous 722 restarts have proven that only when you completely trust Lingyue can you activate the Yin-Yang Core."

The Twin Moon Temple suddenly shook, and the projection of the leader of the men in black appeared in the air.

"Dr. Lin, do you think you can stop me by changing your identity?"

His voice was distorted with electronic synthesis. "I was the one who activated the dark matter tide, and you—" His projection suddenly turned to Li Zhao, "I am the one who planted the virus in the real world."

Li Zhao suddenly felt a sharp pain, as if countless fine needles were piercing his body at the same time.

His mechanical heart seemed to have lost control, beating wildly, and every beat brought unbearable pain.

Seeing this, Lingyue picked up the dagger without hesitation and quickly cut a hole in Li Zhao's chest.

Blood gushed out and splashed onto the ground, forming a pool of dark red blood.

However, Lingyue did not hesitate at all. She reached into Li Zhao's chest and accurately grasped the core that was shining with dark purple light.

This core is the key component of Li Zhao's mechanical heart and the source of energy for the entire body.

"This is the Yin-Yang Core." Lingyue said softly, her voice revealing a sense of determination and firmness.

She carefully took the core out of Li Zhao's body, and then embedded it into her own heart without hesitation.

As the core was embedded, Lingyue's body trembled slightly, and a powerful energy instantly surged in her body.

"Now, I'm going to the real world to stop him." Lingyue's eyes became sharp, and she clenched her fists, as if she was ready to face all difficulties.

Li Zhao struggled to get up. He grabbed Lingyue's wrist tightly and said, "Let me go with you!"

Lingyue shook her head, her eyes revealing a hint of helplessness and sadness.

"Li Zhao in the real world is already dead. You are just a replica of his consciousness."

Her voice was calm and cold. "You'll just die in vain if you go."

After saying this, Lingyue turned and walked towards the space-time rift. The rift emitted a faint light, as if it was a passage connecting two worlds.

"But if you can find the original code in the virtual world, there might be a glimmer of hope."

Lingyue left these words before stepping into the rift, and then disappeared in the light.

Li Zhao chased into the crack without hesitation. The moment he passed through the crack, the scene in front of him shocked him - he actually came to the laboratory in the real world!

In the laboratory, Li Zhao saw Lingyue fighting fiercely with the leader of the men in black.

Lingyue's figure flew in the air, and her attacks were as fierce as a storm, but the leader of the men in black easily avoided her every attack.

Li Zhao's attention was drawn to a huge culture chamber in the center of the laboratory. Through the glass, he saw his real self lying quietly inside, his body connected to various instruments.

What shocked him even more was that there was a Yin-Yang core inserted in his heart!

The leader of the men in black suddenly launched a fierce attack, and the dagger in his hand stabbed towards Lingyue's abdomen like lightning.

Lingyue was unable to dodge and was pierced by the dagger, with blood gushing out immediately.

The leader of the men in black looked at the injured Lingyue and said with a sinister smile: "Do you really think you can restart the universe?

Too naive! The Li Zhaos of all time and space are awakening. They will become the new gods of dark matter, and you are nothing more than an insignificant existence!

Li Zhao felt his consciousness begin to split, and countless selves in time and space awakened at the same time.

He saw Lingyue in the virtual world running in the laboratory, saw himself in a certain time and space leading the dark army to attack the Temple of Light, and also saw his young self being chosen by Lingyue in the orphanage.

"Li Zhao, wake up!" Lingyue's voice came from all directions.

Li Zhao lowered his head and found himself standing at the intersection of all time and space. In each time and space, he was repeating the same action - stabbing the dagger into Lingyue's heart.

He suddenly realized that this was an endless cycle of tragedy.

"Enough!" Li Zhao roared, condensing all his time and space self into a ball of light.

He threw the ball of light at the Yin-Yang Core, and the light of the nuclear explosion instantly engulfed the entire universe.

When Li Zhao opened his eyes again, he found himself lying on the bed in the orphanage, and Lingyue was looking at him tenderly.

"Welcome to Restart #724."

Lingyue smiled and said, "This time, let's try a different approach."

She handed him a toy yin-yang ball, "Remember, true balance lies not in power, but in choice."

Li Zhao clenched the Yin-Yang Ball tightly, feeling countless memories of time and space flashing in his mind.

No matter how many times he restarts, he will fight to protect Lingyue.

The moment he turned around, a line of small words appeared on the surface of the Yin-Yang Ball:

"The Li Zhaos of all time and space are awakening, and you are just the most unsuccessful one among them."