12:17 a.m.
Jin Feixun didn't move.
The photograph was still open on the computer screen.
South Bank Cinema.
The ruins had already been swallowed by the darkness.
She stood in the center of the photograph.
And beside her was Yan Chuxian.
The two of them were holding hands.
Yan Chuxian had turned her face toward her.
She was smiling softly.
As if they had never been separated.
But what truly made Jin Feixun unable to breathe—
was the figure in the lower-right corner of the photograph.
The person wearing the silver watch.
That face.
It was hers.
Not her as she was now.
But a paler, stranger version of herself.
Short hair.
A black coat.
A gaze so cold it held not the slightest trace of warmth.
She stood there.
Like a bystander.
And like an executioner.
Jin Feixun enlarged the photograph.
The person in the lower-right corner was looking at the camera.
And in her hand—
was a knife.
The tip was pointed at Yan Chuxian.
Jin Feixun slammed the computer shut.
“Impossible.”
She whispered the word.
There was no response from the room.
She opened it again.
The photograph was still there.
She enlarged it once more.
This time, she noticed a detail.
The “herself” in the lower-right corner was wearing a silver watch on her wrist.
It was identical to Shen Wen’s.
And on the watch face—
was an extremely small number.
06.
Jin Feixun stared at the number.
A terrible feeling suddenly rose in her chest.
Six times.
The sixth time.
She suddenly understood.
Why Shen Wen always wore that watch.
It wasn't an ordinary watch.
It was a number.
1:00 a.m.
She opened the drawer.
Found the old photograph from seventeen years ago.
And placed it beside the computer.
The two photographs lay side by side.
2017.
2026.
She looked at the two versions of herself.
Then suddenly discovered a horrifying fact.
In every photograph—
she was beside Yan Chuxian.
But each time,
her expression was different.
The first time.
At seventeen, she was crying.
The second time.
She was smiling.
The third time.
She looked calm.
The fourth time.
She looked afraid.
The fifth time.
She was holding Yan Chuxian’s hand.
The sixth time—
she was holding a knife.
Jin Feixun’s hands slowly grew cold.
Could “the fourth experiment failed” not be referring to the number of experiments?
But instead—
had they already lived six lives?
Each time,
they met again.
Fell in love again.
And then lost each other again.
6:00 a.m.
Jin Feixun had spent the entire night sitting in front of the computer without sleeping.
She arranged the photographs in chronological order.
Then she noticed a pattern.
In every photograph,
Yan Chuxian’s position was the same.
Only Jin Feixun’s position changed.
As if someone were constantly adjusting her life.
She suddenly noticed a sentence on the back of the first photograph.
Before, she had only seen:
“Don’t let her live until November 3, 2026.”
But after enlarging it,
she discovered another line of minuscule text underneath.
“Unless she remembers the sixth time first.”
Jin Feixun froze.
The sixth time?
Where was she supposed to start remembering?
She turned on the recorder.
Suddenly,
the recorder began playing by itself.
No one had touched it.
A very soft piece of music came from it.
Piano.
Three notes.
A pause.
Then three more notes.
She frowned.
She had heard this melody before.
Yan Chuxian used to hum it often.
Jin Feixun had always assumed it was just a tune she hummed absentmindedly.
But now,
she suddenly remembered.
The first time this melody had appeared—
was the day her mother vanished.
She immediately opened the computer and searched.
There were no results.
So she began going through her old videos.
Seventeen.
Eighteen.
Nineteen.
Twenty.
She watched them one after another.
Finally,
she heard it in a birthday video.
Her seventeen-year-old self was sitting by the window.
Her mother was cooking in the kitchen.
An old song was playing on the television.
Yan Chuxian’s melody drifted softly from the background.
Jin Feixun stopped.
The girl in the video suddenly turned her head.
Toward somewhere outside the frame.
“Who’s there?”
Her mother’s voice came from the kitchen:
“No one.”
“I definitely heard someone singing.”
Her mother fell silent.
Then said:
“Don’t listen.”
The video ended.
Jin Feixun sat in front of the computer.
Her heart sank inch by inch.
Her mother had known about Yan Chuxian long ago.
And—
she was afraid of her.
9:00 a.m.
Jin Feixun found Shen Wen again.
This time,
Shen Wen didn't refuse her.
The two of them sat in the old teahouse without a sign outside.
The sunlight beyond the window was glaring.
Shen Wen removed her watch.
And placed it on the table.
“You’ve seen it?”
“Mm-hmm.”
“Seen who?”
“Myself.”
Shen Wen showed no surprise.
“The sixth time.”
Jin Feixun stared at her.
“What exactly is it?”
“You.”
“Me?”
“You from the sixth time.”
Shen Wen lowered her voice.
“She isn’t you.”
“Then who is she?”
Shen Wen looked at her.
“What if I told you she is you?”
“Just you without any memories.”
Jin Feixun fell silent.
“Every time an experiment ends, two of you are produced.”
“One retains her memories.”
“One loses hers.”
“The one who loses her memories continues living.”
“And the one who retains them…”
Shen Wen paused.
“is responsible for eliminating Yan Chuxian.”
The color drained from Jin Feixun’s face.
“So the woman in the photograph…”
“is you from the sixth time.”
“Why does she want to kill Yan Chuxian?”
Shen Wen didn't answer immediately.
“Because she believes…”
“that as long as Yan Chuxian dies,”
“you’ll be able to go on living.”
Jin Feixun closed her eyes.
“Then where is she now?”
Shen Wen raised her head.
“Beside you.”
The air abruptly fell silent.
Jin Feixun looked around.
There were only three tables of customers in the teahouse.
Nothing seemed out of place.
“What are you talking about?”
Shen Wen merely picked up her teacup.
“Have you noticed…”
“starting with the fifth time,”
“you’ve begun to look more and more like her?”
Jin Feixun frowned.
“Who?”
“Yan Chuxian.”
Shen Wen looked at her.
“She records sounds.”
“You’ve begun listening to them.”
“She’s afraid of being forgotten.”
“You’ve begun to fear forgetting her.”
“She searches for proof that she exists.”
“You’ve begun searching, too.”
“You’re slowly becoming the same person.”
Jin Feixun said nothing.
She suddenly thought of—
these past few days,
the tone of her voice,
her habits,
even the way she looked at the sea.
They had all begun to resemble Yan Chuxian.
She had always thought it was because of love.
Only now did she realize.
Maybe it wasn't.
4:00 p.m.
Jin Feixun went to the seaside alone.
This was where she and Yan Chuxian had met for the last time.
The sea wind was strong.
Waves crashed against the shore in layers.
She sat on the bench.
Took out the recorder.
And pressed play.
Yan Chuxian’s voice emerged.
“If one day…”
“you’re sitting here…”
“and I’m not…”
“don’t be sad.”
Jin Feixun whispered:
“I’ve found you.”
The Yan Chuxian in the recording seemed to hear her.
After a long pause,
she asked:
“Really?”
Jin Feixun froze.
The recording hadn't been like this.
She had heard it before.
That line had never been there.
But now—
Yan Chuxian in the recording was speaking to her.
“Feixun.”
“I’m here.”
Tears instantly fell from Jin Feixun’s eyes.
“Where are you?”
“In front of you.”
She looked up.
There was no one on the surface of the sea.
“A little farther forward.”
She stood.
And walked toward the shore.
One step.
Two.
Three.
Seawater rose over the tops of her shoes.
Suddenly,
she saw a photograph floating in the water.
She bent down and picked it up.
The photograph was soaked through.
There were only two people in it.
Her.
And Yan Chuxian.
But written on the back was:
“The sixth time wasn’t the beginning.”
And beneath it was another line:
“It was the end.”
Jin Feixun’s breath stopped.
A voice suddenly came from the sea.
“Feixun.”
She jerked her head up.
Yan Chuxian stood not far away.
A white shirt.
Her long hair whipped in the wind.
She was really there.
Not in a photograph.
Not in a recording.
Not in a memory.
It was her.
Standing alive and real by the sea.
Jin Feixun barely thought before running straight toward her.
“Yan Chuxian!”
But Yan Chuxian took a step back.
“Don’t come any closer.”
Jin Feixun stopped.
The two of them faced each other again, separated by several yards of seawater.
Yan Chuxian looked at her.
There were tears in her eyes.
“You shouldn’t have found me.”
“I looked for you for so long.”
“I know.”
“Everyone says you don’t exist.”
“I know.”
“But I remember you.”
Yan Chuxian gave a small smile.
“That’s why I’m afraid.”
“Afraid of what?”
She didn't answer.
She only looked at Jin Feixun.
“Do you remember what I told you the first time?”
Jin Feixun stared blankly.
“Which part?”
Yan Chuxian said softly:
“If one day…”
“everyone forgets me…”
“what will you do?”
Jin Feixun looked at her.
“I’ll remember.”
Yan Chuxian’s tears finally fell.
“But this time…”
She shook her head.
“Don’t remember.”
Jin Feixun moved closer, one step at a time.
“Why?”
Yan Chuxian backed away.
“Because you already remember.”
“Remember what?”
Yan Chuxian raised her eyes.
“The sixth time.”
The sea wind suddenly stopped.
The entire world seemed to fall silent for one second.
Yan Chuxian looked at her.
Word by word, she said:
“You killed me.”
Jin Feixun went completely rigid.
Yan Chuxian continued:
“Not the first time.”
“Not the second.”
“Not the third.”
“But—”
She looked at Jin Feixun.
“Every time.”
The waves slammed against the shore.
The color slowly drained from Jin Feixun’s face.
“Impossible.”
“I wouldn’t.”
Yan Chuxian said nothing.
She merely held out her hand.
On her wrist—
was a silver watch.
The number on its face—
06.
Jin Feixun stared at the watch.
Suddenly,
an image flashed through her mind.
She was holding a knife.
Yan Chuxian stood before her.
She hadn't run.
She had only smiled and said:
“Feixun.”
“If someone has to remember me…”
“then let it be you.”
The image vanished in a flash.
Jin Feixun covered her head in pain.
“Ah—”
Yan Chuxian rushed over.
And caught her.
“Don’t think about it!”
Jin Feixun looked up.
They were very close.
She saw the fear in Yan Chuxian’s eyes.
It wasn't fear of her.
It was fear of her remembering.
“Why did you come back?”
Jin Feixun asked.
Yan Chuxian didn't answer.
After a long while,
she finally said softly:
“Because I wanted to see you one more time.”
“Even if it was the last time.”
Tears rolled down Jin Feixun’s face.
“I won’t let you leave this time.”
Yan Chuxian looked at her.
And smiled.
“You’re still the same.”
“What?”
“Every time…”
she said softly,
“you say that.”
The next second,
a deafening boom came from the distance.
They both turned around.
The old lighthouse by the sea lit up.
It had been abandoned for seventeen years.
Yet at that moment—
its light came on.
A beam of white light swept across the surface of the sea.
A second time.
A third.
Then it stopped on Jin Feixun.
Yan Chuxian’s expression changed instantly.
“They’ve found me.”
“Who?”
She didn't answer.
She only grabbed Jin Feixun’s hand.
For the first time,
she took the initiative and pulled her toward the distance.
“Run.”
“Where?”
“B-17.”
Jin Feixun froze.
“Didn't you say there was nothing of yours there?”
Yan Chuxian looked back at her.
For the first time, genuine fear appeared in her eyes.
“That was before.”
“Now—”
She tightened her grip on Jin Feixun’s hand.
“that’s where the ending of our sixth time is.”
The sea wind began to blow again.
The two figures vanished into the darkness.
And atop the distant lighthouse,
someone stood at the highest point.
A silver watch flashed once in the moonlight.
He lowered his head and looked at the photograph in his hand.
In the photograph,
Jin Feixun and Yan Chuxian were holding hands.
At the very bottom of the photograph,
a new line of text slowly appeared:
「Sixth time: Target reconnected.」 「Initiate final purge.」 「Countdown—72 hours.」