Subtle Differences

Qilin headquarters. Descending from the sky, Yu Xian found that this world's headquarters was far more magnificent than the one in his own world. Not only did this world's Qilin headquarters cover a vast area, but it also featured sprawling gardens and even a martial training ground where many newcomers could be seen undergoing drills. Yu Xian's arrival immediately alerted everyone at headquarters. Though Qilin headquarters looked completely undefended on the surface, the reality was just like in Yu Xian's original world—its defensive measures were staggering in number. With an array of aerial-suppression capabilities in place, flying over Qilin headquarters and dropping down from above was nothing short of a miraculous feat. "Yu Tian!" "Hands in the air!" "Insolent! How dare you invade headquarters!" Dozens of people quickly encircled him, drawing their weapons. Just then, a young man who had just finished watching the film felt his eyelids twitch as he stared at the surrounded Yu Xian. Hesitating for a moment, he spoke up, "Wait... Are you Yu Xian? The Shiny Vampire from the movie?" A stunned silence fell over the crowd. Gazing at Yu Xian in disbelief, they realized more and more that the young man before them differed significantly from the wanted Yu Tian. For one, the long golden hair was completely unlike Yu Tian. Moreover, while their faces were about eighty percent identical, their heights were noticeably different; Yu Xian was nearly ten centimeters taller. Veins bulged on Yu Xian's forehead. He nearly felt the urge to start hitting people. Fortunately, someone had recognized that he was not Yu Tian, which took the edge off his temper. Forcing a strained smile, he said, "You invited me to visit Earth—is this how you treat your guests?" Visit Earth? The crowd exchanged glances. The phrase sounded bizarre no matter how they looked at it. At that moment, Xiao Cheng emerged from the headquarters building accompanied by Yu Lie, Zhang Jiao, and others. Xiao Cheng looked at Yu Xian, also finding the whole situation somewhat absurd. However, according to the think tank's analysis and the warship parked near the Moon, Xiao Cheng had to admit that this young man—strikingly similar to the fugitive—was very likely a traveler from another world. Stepping forward with a smile, he extended a hand. "Greetings, and welcome to Earth. I am Xiao Cheng, Minister of Qilin." "Hello, I'm Yu Xian. Relative to Earth in this world, I suppose you could consider me an extraterrestrial." Yu Xian shook Xiao Cheng's hand with an odd expression, sizing him up with a strange look. Understanding the meaning behind Yu Xian's gaze, Xiao Cheng's mouth twitched slightly. "This is Vice Minister Yu Lie." "May I ask... is that film fictional, or is it...?" Yu Lie seized the opportunity to inquire curiously. He could hardly imagine that in another world, he was actually the minister while Xiao Cheng was his subordinate. Just the thought of it felt... utterly exhilarating. Yu Xian considered it for a moment, deciding there was no reason to hide anything. "Those are all true events," he replied. "Part of it was filmed by me, and part of it was supplemented by a bastard. In fact, I'm currently tracking that bastard down and merely happened to pass through your world. After learning about your situation, I decided to do what little I could to help. But surely we aren't going to stand here and talk the whole time?" "My apologies for our poor hospitality. Please, come inside!" Xiao Cheng snapped back to attention and said with a smile. They walked inside together. Looking around the exaggeratingly spacious hall, Yu Xian remarked, "Your headquarters in this world is truly magnificent." As the movie also featured scenes of Qilin headquarters, everyone understood why Yu Xian was so impressed. Yet Xiao Cheng felt there was little to be proud of. After all, extraordinary power had existed for too short a time in Yu Xian's world—he estimated barely a millennium, perhaps not even that. In this world, however, extraordinary power had been around since ancient times. That Qilin headquarters could be built on such an imposing scale was not because they were stronger than the Qilin headquarters of the other world; their ancestors had simply performed well and continuously held the leading position in the extraordinary world. And yet, what was the result? They were trapped and doomed in this world, whereas Yu Xian's world had already produced a top prodigy like Yu Xian—who had even traveled all the way into their world. On that point alone, they were completely outmatched. Afterward, both sides moved to a reception room for talks. The exchange was primarily Yu Xian asking and Xiao Cheng answering, though there were also questions posed by Xiao Cheng that Yu Xian answered. For instance, having no knowledge of the outside world, Xiao Cheng learned of the Abyss and Crescent Bay as Yu Xian shared intelligence on them. Following this friendly exchange, Yu Xian offered to gift Qilin headquarters a spaceship capable of navigating the Abyss free of charge, lifting the atmosphere to even greater heights. As noon approached, Xiao Cheng escorted Yu Xian to the dining hall. To host Yu Xian, Xiao Cheng had spared no expense. The lunch was prepared to the absolute highest standards, with resources urgently requisitioned from various other departments. Once thoroughly fed and satisfied, Yu Xian asked Xiao Cheng to take him to a place where he could release the starship. *** In the desolate mountains. After sleeping for a while, Yu Tian finally calmed down considerably. He guessed the movie was most likely a conspiracy concocted by the authorities to mess with his head. If his composure broke, he might leave behind flaws or clues for them to track, leading to his eventual capture. "Hmph. Looks like the authorities are out of moves if they have to resort to tricks like this." Yu Tian sneered, secretly pondering whether to head into the city and pull off a major score. His abilities were actually somewhat different from Yu Xian's. His first ability was called Gluttonous Vampire, which increased his blood-drinking and digestion speed by dozens of times, allowing him to absorb nutrients from blood far beyond ordinary vampires. Consequently, although he could acquire talents faster, they were not activated by basking in the sun; rather, they were activated through drinking blood. His experiences differed greatly from Yu Xian's as well. On his very first day as a vampire, he had attacked the tenants living in his apartment building. It was just that those residents were already parasitized by aberrant worms. Sucking their blood and killing the worms had not been counted against his criminal record, but by drinking the blood of those infected hosts, he had activated his second ability: Daywalker. In fact, the aberrant worms of this world merely shared a name with the ones in Yu Xian's world; in essence, they were two completely different creatures. As for the exact differences, there was no need to elaborate—it was enough to know they were two distinct species of parasites. His subsequent path, in both motive and outcome, diverged entirely from Yu Xian's. Yu Tian had attended school only because the academy was preparing for wilderness survival training, and he intended to blend in among the students to slip out of Silver City. What he had not anticipated was that the aberrant worms, assuming they had been exposed because of the residents he had slain, went wild throughout Silver City... In the end, taking advantage of the turmoil engulfing Silver City, Yu Tian killed Lano, killed Zhang Kai, and fled into the wilderness, reduced to a bloodthirsty fugitive living like a savage beast.