Reversing the Milky Way

In a dilapidated neighborhood in Longguo, 22-year-old Bai Cheng lives. His parents died in a car accident years ago, leaving him to live alone. The house, which was left to him by his parents, is about 120 square meters. Because there are no valuables in the house, he lives a frugal life. Even in 2050, he is still using a traditional mobile phone, while some people outside are already using smart bracelets.

This bracelet is far more advanced than a mobile phone. Not only can it record your physical condition anytime, anywhere, but it can also perform virtual projection for face-to-face calls. It can be said to be a revolutionary product. However, this high-tech bracelet used by only a select few has given Bai Cheng a headache.

Bai Cheng had a girlfriend named Ye Yao, who was the campus belle of their university and his girlfriend of four years during college. Many suitors admired her during college, but Ye Yao still chose him after graduation. After all, they had been together for four years in college, and their feelings for each other were still there.

However, his girlfriend is currently breaking up with him because she thinks he can't afford such a high-tech bracelet. It turns out that after graduating, Bai Cheng interned at a multinational corporation in the US. Although he secured the internship with excellent grades, he was still a low-level employee, earning only 5000 yuan a month.

In today's world, Earth's resources have been overexploited. Ordinary citizens use recyclable resources, which are essentially remnants of resources used by the nobility. These resources are then recycled back to energy stations until they are no longer usable. Considering the daily necessities, his 5000 yuan salary is barely enough to support himself, let alone the nearly 100 million yuan bracelet. This bracelet is essentially a lifetime product, allowing him to operate all his daily functions—convenient, but simply too expensive.

Thinking this, Bai Cheng sighed softly. Luckily, he didn't have to pay rent, otherwise, it would be a problem whether he could support himself. After thinking it over, Bai Cheng stopped thinking about these worries. Anyway, his internship would end in a few days, and when he became a full-time employee, his salary would be over 2 yuan. Life would gradually get better then.

Bai Cheng walked silently along the road. Because his company was very close, he didn't need any transportation and walked to work every day. He walked through the bustling crowd in the residential area, his backpack carrying him towards the tall building.

The sound of alarms could be heard from time to time on the streets outside the residential area, but people seemed not to hear them and continued to go to work and busy themselves. After all, since the development of technology, the weapons of various countries have been improved in an unimaginable way, and the consequences of war are also unimaginable. Therefore, major powers have signed peace agreements to explore planets beyond Earth together.

Bai Cheng looked at the huge 3D projection in the central square, which was displaying an announcement that an electromagnetic storm would pass through Blue Star in five days, potentially causing global power and communication infrastructure to malfunction. He urged the public to take precautions. However, Bai Cheng didn't pay much attention, as this wasn't the first time he'd experienced something like this, and it always ended without any real consequences.

Bai Cheng didn't think too much about it and quickly arrived at the company building. Just then, he saw his girlfriend coming out of his company. It was Ye Yao. "Why is she here? Is she here to see me?" Just as he was thinking this, Bai Cheng was about to walk up to her. But then he suddenly noticed that Ye Yao was followed by a man. He was stunned for a moment, and then quickly found a place to hide.

Then he caught a glimpse of a familiar figure: Zhang Ye, the rich second-generation heir who had pursued Ye Yao relentlessly during their university years. He remembered that Zhang Ye had even chosen to repeat a year of school to win Ye Yao's heart. However, Ye Yao ultimately didn't choose him and instead got together with Bai Cheng. But now they were both leaving the same company, which inevitably made people suspect there was some secret between them.

At this moment, Zhang Ye walked to a vehicle that looked like a car and started it. I immediately recognized it as a new product from his company, Juyuan Technology Group, also called {Super Thunder Leopard EX}. It was a flying car powered by {promethium} mined from Mars. This energy source is the latest energy source mined by humans on Mars, and it is said to be able to replace nuclear energy, circle the entire planet, and is extremely expensive.

It is said that only 50 of those flying cars were ever manufactured in the world, with a staggering price of 5 million. Each one is in the hands of various powerful forces and families. As the engine started, Ye Yao walked towards the flying car. From a distance, she seemed very nervous, constantly looking around with her eyes darting around, as if she was avoiding someone.

Upon seeing this, Bai Cheng clenched his fist. Although he and Ye Yao had been together for almost a year, they were only boyfriend and girlfriend. At most, they would hold hands, but they hadn't taken any further steps. Every time Bai Cheng wanted to kiss her and take things a step further, he was politely refused, and she would always brush him off with a sentence like, "After we get married, you can kiss me however you want."

Bai Cheng remained unrequited for almost a year, constantly feeling that he hadn't treated Ye Yao well enough. Therefore, he scrimped and saved for Ye Yao, giving her roughly half of his monthly salary each month. Now it seemed he had misunderstood; Ye Yao hadn't even given him a second glance.

Ye Yao walked up to the flying car and seemed to say something to Zhang Ye inside. A slight smile appeared on her lips as she spoke. She then stepped into the car, but it didn't leave. Through the car window, two figures could be vaguely seen overlapping. It seemed Ye Yao had initiated the encounter. After a while, the car began to sway rhythmically. About twenty minutes later…

It slowly rose into the air and flew southwest.

Upon seeing this, Bai Cheng felt as if a thousand iron spikes were piercing his heart, and a flame of anger burned within him. His fingers clenched tightly, his nails digging deep into his flesh, leaving a bloody mark. Just then, Bai Cheng's phone suddenly rang.

After Bai Cheng answered the phone, he heard a man's voice on the other end, filled with anger: "Bai Cheng, are you going to skip work today? Don't you know what time it is?" As soon as he finished speaking, Bai Cheng quickly glanced at his phone and realized that he was already 20 minutes late. He had been sitting there for 20 minutes without realizing it. Without waiting for the call to end, he quickly ran upstairs to the company building.

Upon entering the company, Bai Cheng saw a slightly overweight male manager standing at the door. The man looked displeased, his eyes fixed on Bai Cheng as he entered. This was Cui Yangjian, the man Bai Cheng had just spoken to on the phone. He was Bai Cheng's department head, who spent most of his time sitting in his office and exploiting his employees.

This caused resentment among his subordinates, because Bai Cheng usually had a serious attitude towards work, and they could never find a good excuse to make things difficult for him. This time, being late gave them an excuse to make things difficult for Bai Cheng.

Cui Yangjian: "Bai Cheng, you were late for work this time. According to company regulations, your wages for that day will be deducted, and your full attendance bonus for this month will also be deducted, totaling 800 yuan. Come to my office to sign in a bit."

Bai Cheng: "That's not right, Supervisor Cui. A perfect attendance bonus is only 300, it can't possibly be 800, right?"

Cui Yangjian: "Because you were 20 minutes late, you caused business losses for the company. You need to understand that in a Fortune 500 company, the turnover every minute is in the hundreds of thousands. Do you know how much loss your 20-minute lateness caused the company? So you bear responsibility here, and therefore your responsibility fee is exactly 800."

Upon hearing this, Bai Cheng was furious. He had just witnessed his girlfriend's betrayal, and his anger flared even more after hearing Director Cui's words. He felt his bleeding hand begin to bleed again. Gritting his teeth, Bai Cheng managed to squeeze out a few words, "Fine, I'll sign..." As the words fell, Director Cui saw Bai Cheng's sharp eyes, furrowed brows, and the faint blue veins bulging on his forehead, like a wild beast just released from its cage. A chill ran down Director Cui's spine. His body trembled slightly, and he said hesitantly, "Alright, get back to work." He then walked towards his office.

Bai Cheng returned to his workstation and began working. As soon as he sat down, his colleague turned to him and asked, "Cheng, are you alright? Director Cui only got to this position by climbing the social ladder. There have been some changes in the company recently, and the general manager has been replaced. It just so happens that Director Cui knows this new person." Bai Cheng was taken aback and subconsciously asked, "Replaced? Who replaced him?"

"Hey? You don't know? The new general manager's name is Zhang Ye, and he's with a really pretty woman with him. I don't know her name, but judging from their reactions, they seem to be boyfriend and girlfriend." Before the colleague next to him could finish speaking, there was a loud bang as Bai Cheng slammed his fist on the office desk. His red fist mark was clearly left on the white desk, along with several cracks.

"Oh dear, what's wrong with you? You scared me!" Bai Cheng's colleague had no idea that the woman he saw was his girlfriend, Ye Yao. Although they were in a relationship, she never came to the company to see Bai Cheng. Even after a date, they would just go home separately. So Bai Cheng's colleague had never seen his girlfriend and naturally didn't know why he was so angry. "Hey, Xiao Cheng, why are you so irritable? Hurry up and tidy up your desk. If Supervisor Cui sees you, you'll be punished again."

"I'm telling you, kid, you don't actually like that woman, do you? Forget about it. As far as I know, that Zhang Ye is the second young master of the Zhang family, and this [Juning Technology Group] is also a family business." "Their patriarch wanted to step down, so he's leaving two companies under the Zhang family name to his two sons. The other one is [Northern Energy Group], which is a Fortune 500 company."

Listening to his colleague's story, Bai Cheng silently lowered his head and began working. Although he started working, he was absent-minded and thinking about other things. The day's work was spent in a daze.

Soon, it was time to leave work in the evening. It was already 7 p.m., and the sun hadn't completely set yet. The sky was tinged with orange and pink hues of the sunset, and the afterglow shone on the buildings and streets, casting a golden glow. The sunset was particularly dazzling at this moment. Bai Cheng quickly returned to his apartment complex. By then, the sun had completely set, and some stars could be seen in the distance, obscured by clouds, but they weren't very clear. Just as Bai Cheng reached the bottom of his building and was about to go upstairs, he suddenly noticed an old fortune teller standing downstairs. In the lamplight, he could vaguely see that the old man was quite old, wearing an old robe, with mottled white hair and slightly narrowed eyes, exuding an air of mystery. In front of him were several copper coins used for divination, and beneath the coins was a complex Bagua diagram covered with densely packed characters.

'It's really strange. In this day and age, there are still fortune tellers. Cars are flying in the sky, and humans have already migrated to other planets. This is the age of advanced technology, yet there are still people using fortune telling and other charlatan tricks to deceive others.' Bai Cheng thought to himself, and turned to go upstairs. But just as he was about to go upstairs, he heard the old man's murmur in his ear: 'Young man, judging from your face, your forehead is dark. You may face a great calamity soon.'

Upon hearing this, Bai Cheng stopped, calmed his turbulent emotions, and looked at the old man. "Grandpa," he said, "how can you still be fooling people in this day and age? It was we who were superstitious in the past, that led us to follow your ways. If you keep spouting nonsense, I might sue you for defamation!" The old man shook his head and said, "No, no. The Eight Trigrams are the symbols of Yin and Yang in Heaven and Earth, connecting the secrets of the universe. From Qian and Kun, Li and Kan, Zhen and Xun, to Kun and Li, Gen and Qian, the principles of mutual restraint and generation are presented, intricately intertwined." "How about I cast a divination for you? No charge if it's inaccurate."

Upon hearing this, Bai Cheng was immediately delighted and said, "Alright, then you do the calculation."

After listening, the old man stroked his beard and said, "Young man, what do you want to know?"

Seeing the old man's demeanor, Bai Cheng continued, "You said I might face a great calamity soon, so please tell me about the next few days, or tell me about the great calamity you mentioned."

After Bai Cheng finished speaking, he saw the old man take out a cloth bag from behind him. The bag wasn't very large, about the same size as the backpack Bai Cheng carried to work. The old man slowly took out a tortoise shell from the bag and placed the copper coins placed in front of him into it. With a few quick movements, the coins fell into the Bagua (Eight Trigrams) diagram below. Upon seeing the hexagram, a twisted look of terror appeared on the old man's face. His eyes became unfocused, lost in some invisible fear. His hands trembled uncontrollably, and his lips quivered slightly with astonishment, as if he wanted to say something but dared not utter a sound.

Seeing this, Bai Cheng couldn't help but wonder, "Is this old man having a relapse? If something happens to him, I can't afford to pay for it!"

Then he asked, "Sir, did you figure something out? You don't look too good."

The old man said with a grim expression, "This divination indicates a very bad omen. If I'm not mistaken, has something happened to you recently? And judging from your face, it seems you've already suffered a bloody disaster."

After listening to the old man's words, Bai Cheng couldn't help but think of what happened this morning. As for the bloodshed, could it be from that time? Before Bai Cheng could finish thinking, the old man spoke again, "This divination has three parts. The second and third parts are both very ominous and will happen within five days."

After listening, Bai Cheng asked with a hint of doubt, "Really? That's so strange. Can you tell me if I'll have a change of luck in the future?"

After saying this, the old man stuffed the copper coins in front of him into the tortoise shell. After a series of actions, three copper coins fell down again. But this time it was strange. After the copper coins fell down, they did not fall down immediately like before. Instead, they rolled out of the Bagua formation in an upright position. Only after they rolled out of the Bagua formation did the three copper coins fall down.

"This..." the old man murmured in fear, large beads of sweat rolling down his face and fine beads of perspiration seeping from his brow. "Could it be that I miscalculated?" With that, the old man stuffed the copper coin back into the tortoise shell and calculated again, but when the copper coin fell again, the coin that landed in the Bagua formation below remained upright and did not fall down. Then it rolled out of the formation until it was outside the range of the Bagua formation before falling down.

The old man's Bagua diagram wasn't large, but it looked to be at least one square meter. If the first time was a coincidence, was the second time also a coincidence? The old man tried again, and the result was the same as the previous two. Seeing this hexagram, even the old man, who had been practicing divination for many years, couldn't help but sigh. He had never encountered anything like this before. The old man sighed, frowned, and said, "Young man, you may one day transcend the Three Realms and be outside the Five Elements."

Hearing this, Bai Cheng immediately understood that he had been tricked into dying. He was in the prime of his youth, had finally found a beautiful girlfriend, and now she was about to run off with someone else, and he was going to die! What was going on? Thinking this, Bai Cheng asked again, "So, will I die in the future? Where will I die?"

After listening to this, the old man pondered for a while before replying, "Young man, you are not dead, but rather you no longer exist. My divination contains the laws governing the universe, and even the dead can be located. However, your divination is completely unclear and cannot be interpreted. If you insist on saying something, then you are no longer in this universe."

"What?" Bai Cheng couldn't help but exclaim after hearing the old man's words.

"I told you all you charlatans are unreliable. You say I'm not in this universe? Does that mean the Trisolarans came from another universe and kidnapped me?" After saying that, Bai Cheng went upstairs without looking back, leaving the old fortune teller to quietly look at the divination results. At this moment, his emotions could not be calmed for a long time.