Chapter 1: Roughly Pitched into a Trap

On the side of a mountain road in late autumn, clusters of shrub leaves were a deep, purplish red, looking like vibrant flowers from a distance. In the azure sky, the autumn breeze carried white clouds drifting toward the horizon.

Despite such a picturesque autumn scene, a young girl sitting on a rock with her back against a tree had no heart to appreciate it. She pressed her hand against the hilt of the sword at her waist, glanced at the few children beside her, then withdrew her gaze to look up at the sky, her face filled with a sense of existential despair.

"Mother? Sit here, it’s not cold." A girl of about five or six years old pointed timidly to a spot beside her.

That spot was also a large rock, but unlike the others, it was covered in a thick layer of yellow leaves, clearly placed there by human hands.

"How many times do I have to tell you? Don't call me Mother. You are not allowed to call me Mother." Hong Xiaoduo felt like she was going crazy, but looking at the child's innocent expression, her irritation couldn't find an outlet. *Sigh, what am I doing? Why am I being so hard on a few poor children?*

Xiaoduo couldn't help but wonder: if she had known it would turn out like this, would she have been better off just pretending not to see them being abused by that man last night and walking away?

She was already frustrated enough not having her own affairs sorted out. How did she even have the energy to meddle in other people's business and play the hero?

"Mother, these are wild fruits I just picked. Eat some to fill your stomach." A boy walked over, holding the corner of his shirt. He picked out a few of the larger, better-looking wild hawthorns from the fold and handed them over cautiously.

Another one calling her Mother. Xiaoduo felt her temple throbbing. The manic frustration she had just suppressed erupted all at once. She glared at the boy and pointed at the little girl nearby: "She’s small, so I’ll let it slide if she talks nonsense, but what about you? You’re eight or nine, right? Your eyes work, don't they? Take a good look at how old I am!

How many years older than you could I possibly be? How can you even say that?

I look like I’m only fifteen or sixteen at most. Could I have a son as big as you? Did I give birth to you before I was even ten?"

The berated boy’s already pale face turned ghostly white, and he trembled slightly.

He looked at his younger siblings, who were equally frightened, and remembering that he was the eldest, he gathered his courage and stammered cautiously: "Then... then how should we address you, Miss, to be appropriate?"

How to address her? For her, this question shouldn't even exist. Her heart and her mind had been in a chaotic mess since the moment she appeared in this completely unfamiliar place yesterday.

Compared to how these children addressed her, she was more desperate to know: what exactly was her current situation?

Just then, a rumbling sound reached her ears. Hong Xiaoduo turned her head and saw the child beside her clutching her stomach with her small hands, her face sallow.

She knew that sound—it was the sound of hunger.

From the time she saved them last night until now, they hadn't eaten a thing. How could they not be hungry?

The wild fruits in the boy's shirt—not to mention whether they were even edible—were so few that they wouldn't even be enough to fill the gaps between their teeth, let alone stave off hunger. Yet, they had offered them to her first.

Of course, the gesture had very little to do with filial piety toward their "Mother"; it was clearly an act of sycophancy, born of fear that she might abandon them.

"Forget it, forget it. Call me whatever you want. You there—whoever you are—keep them here and don't wander off. I'll go find something to eat." Xiaoduo knew the feeling of hunger was unbearable. Adults could manage, but these were just children.

Especially when she saw their pitiful state—afraid to make a sound even when hungry, afraid to cry, yet still trying to find ways to please her for fear of annoying her—her heart felt inexplicably restless.

Who could she blame for all this? Only herself!

What made Hong Xiaoduo feel even more like breaking down was that, having not slept all night, she could only remember her own name. Her only remaining memories began from the moment she went to that seaside beach recommended by many influencers—the azure sky, drinking coconut water on a lounge chair under a parasol, and admiring the eight-pack abs of the handsome men playing volleyball on the sand.

All memories prior to that had vanished. She couldn't recall a thing!

The weather had suddenly turned, and a light rain began to fall. The tourists on the beach had left, and she didn't want to hide in her hotel room without any handsome men to watch.

She thought she’d wander around the area to find some local delicacies. To taste authentic local food, one couldn't stay near tourist attractions; it was expensive and tasted bad.

She searched for a local food court on her phone, but couldn't get a taxi, so she had to walk. Halfway there, the sky suddenly filled with thunder and lightning, and in an instant, a storm broke out. She could barely hold onto her umbrella.

Seeing a "Technology Experience Center" by the side of the road, she thought she’d go in to take shelter and leave once the wind and rain died down.

There was only one receptionist in the center. Even after she told him she just wanted to wait out the rain in the lobby, the man was very enthusiastic, saying it was no problem, the rain didn't look like it would stop anytime soon, and she might as well go inside and take a look. He even said that if she bought a ticket with her ID card, she might win the grand prize—free admission and free access to all experience projects.

Looking at the rain outside, she couldn't even see the street across from her. Who knew when the rain would let up? She put down her umbrella and took out her ID card to register.

Unexpectedly, after the man looked at her ID, he looked very surprised. He immediately picked up the landline to make a call, and soon an elderly man wearing glasses arrived, looking very scholarly.

Hong Xiaoduo heard the receptionist respectfully call the old man "Director." The old director took her ID, looked at it, and asked if she knew the exact time of her birth.

She didn't think much of it at the time and told him. Then, she saw the old director become incredibly excited, muttering something about how he had finally waited for this.

He then explained to her that when the Technology Experience Center was first built, someone suggested setting a few specific birth dates. If a visitor's birth date matched, they would not only be exempt from experience fees but would also receive a special souvenir.

The old director said that since the center opened, Hong Xiaoduo was the first and only lucky person.

She was quite happy at the time and even casually remarked that she would definitely buy a few lottery tickets once she went out and found a lottery booth.

From the receptionist earlier, she had already learned that the center's main attraction was a "Cross-Space-Time Journey." Participants could choose the era they wanted to experience—for example, the ancient past or the distant future.

Xiaoduo had always had a dream of being a swordswoman and loved reading ancient-style novels.

The old director personally guided her to lie down inside an experience pod that looked like a large capsule. He put a brainwave cap on her, like the ones used for EEGs in hospitals, and then instructed her to operate the screen in front of her to input the era, scene, identity, appearance, and desired skills for her experience.

There were no restrictions, so she chose the role of a swordswoman. Thinking of the plots she had read in ancient novels, she added skills in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, just to show off and crush any "white lotus" villains she might encounter.

When choosing the male lead, she hesitated a bit. What identity should she give him? A prince? A duke? A general? A marquis? A wandering knight?

Just as her finger hovered over the screen in hesitation, she turned her head to see if the old director was laughing at her. That was when she saw the old director standing outside the transparent pod, wearing an excited, thrilled, and very eerie smile on his face.

When Hong Xiaoduo realized something was wrong and tried to take off the equipment to leave the pod, it was already too late. The old director, seeing her intention, nimbly reached out and tapped a button. The glass door of the pod slammed shut. She saw the old director outside the glass door saying something to her, but she couldn't hear him at all—she didn't know if his voice was too soft or if the pod was just too soundproof.

Then, it felt like she was speeding forward through a tunnel decorated with many colorful lights, and after that, she lost consciousness.

When Hong Xiaoduo regained consciousness and opened her eyes, she was dressed in ancient robes, standing in an ancient town where all the passersby were also dressed in period clothing. She even had an ancient sword strapped to her waist. It was heavy, and without even drawing it, her intuition told her it was the real deal.

In that moment, amidst her confusion, she was certain of only one thing: she had been set up.

(End of chapter)