CHAPTER 54: CHAPTER 54: THE CLOCK ATOP THE TOWER

As time ticked by, the atmosphere at the temporary camp grew increasingly tense.

Although most of the missing persons were bewildered when they were brought in, many were aware of the situation. Through word of mouth, all 188 people quickly learned what they were about to face.

Initially, some protested, arguing that the Federation had no right to restrict their freedom, and a few even attempted to breach the blockade—after all, this group had just managed to escape the anomalous time-space and return to the world they were familiar with, only to be told: it’s not over yet, you’ve become the anomaly node now. Anyone’s mindset would be unsettled in such a situation.

But after their protests were completely ignored and the blockade proved impenetrable, people gradually began to accept this reality.

The main reason, of course, was that after four stubborn individuals were knocked to the ground by soldiers using riot shields during an escape attempt and dragged back to camp, Sun Hang addressed them over the broadcast.

"You all know in your hearts that the anomalies are real, the time you perceive is not aligned with this world, so don’t hold onto any false hopes. Even if you successfully escape, you will have to face the subsequent anomalies on your own. It’d be better to stay with everyone and look out for one another in case something unforeseen happens."

Apart from a few individuals with personality deficits, the majority of people were susceptible to herd mentality. After hearing Sun Hang’s words, they realized it made sense, and the crowd became much quieter.

However, as daylight broke, the crowd began to stir once again.

This was fear of the unknown, and such emotions tend to spread easily among people.

From Sun Hang’s perspective, this was the start of the day (5:00am), but for these people, it was dusk (7:00pm).

After repeated tests, Sun Hang and his team were able to determine that the "time point" these missing individuals were in was exactly ten hours behind the real world.

"Instruct your subordinates to maintain order in the temporary camp; we can’t afford any chaos at this time." Sun Hang called over the officer who had been accompanying them, speaking with a serious demeanor. "But make sure the soldiers don’t approach the temporary camp. I suggest bringing over two high-pressure water cannons to keep the peace."

"Are you sure something will ’happen’ today?" The doubt in the officer’s eyes had lessened significantly compared to before, though not entirely dispelled.

The officer held the rank of colonel, essentially the second-in-command at Longquan Air Force Base. With the base commander held hostage by Ye Xuan, he was effectively the highest authority on site.

"I can’t be one hundred percent certain, but you’re aware that the anomalous states of these people haven’t been resolved."

The colonel exhaled slowly, opting not to speak.

Not long ago, he had several of the missing persons brought in, pointing to the massive countdown board outside the camp, asking each one for the time they saw—without exception, the time each of them reported was a full ten hours later than what the colonel himself saw with his own eyes.

"Do you remember more details about the second ’resonance’?" Yang Lian asked.

"The memory is already very hazy. The more I try to recall it, the more distorted the images become." Sun Hang shook his head, "I can only remember that it was overcast, and I was on the rooftop of the research institute, looking at the high-rise buildings in the distant commercial district... wait a minute! Commercial district! High-rise buildings!"

"What is it? Have you made a new discovery?" The colonel, who had already turned to walk away, quickly snapped to attention and came over.

"Yang Lian, call the people at the institute and have them go to the rooftop and take some photos in the direction of the commercial district for me!" Sun Hang instructed.

"Okay!"

In less than five minutes, dozens of photos arrived via email.

You could tell the photographer used professional equipment because even in such a misty, overcast morning, the buildings of the distant commercial district were captured clearly in the photos. Many details wouldn’t even be visible to the naked eye, yet they were clearly recorded.

"What’s the name of this skyscraper?" Sun Hang asked, pointing to a building partly obscured by clouds and fog in the first photo.

"That’s the Financial Center Building, the tallest structure in Tianfu City, standing at four hundred..." Yang Lian paused midsentence, having also realized the key issue.

The top of the Financial Center Building’s glass curtain wall was adorned with four massive screens, displaying four clock faces with diameters of over twenty meters when there weren’t commercial activities or other special occasions. In the photos taken by the research institute colleagues, the virtual clock faces showed both hands at eight minutes past five.

In the "virtual scene" seen during the second resonance, crucial time information was indeed present!

Meeting Yang Lian’s earnest gaze, Sun Hang shook his head with some difficulty.

"I can’t remember... I just can’t remember," Sun Hang murmured, "I vaguely recall a clock on a building, but I have no recollection of what time it showed."

"Is it because the memory is hazy, or is the clock merely decorative?" Wang Xiyi asked.

"What do you mean by... the clock being ’decorative’?" asked the colonel, not quite understanding.

"It means the clock is just for show. It’s just a clock, and it provides no information beyond being a clock," Wang Xiyi explained, "The clock is merely a conceptual existence. You know there’s a clock there, you can ’see’ the clock, but it doesn’t show any time... because it’s just a clock, a conceptual object."

"So, the clock likely has no hands, no numbers at all?" the colonel guessed, half-understanding.

"The hands might be there, but they don’t point to any number," Wang Xiyi said, "Of course, your understanding isn’t wrong either."

"No... I remember the hands on that clock pointed to a number... But some mysterious force seemed to compel me not to notice the clock, to forget everything I saw..." Sun Hang pressed his temples, "The more I try to think about it, the blurrier the scene becomes... Now I can’t even ’see’ the shape of the Financial Center Building anymore."

"If it’s merely a matter of unclear memory, I have a solution." Wang Xiyi picked up her phone and dialed a number.

"Hello, Director... we need support," Wang Xiyi said into the phone, "Requesting the deployment of anomalous object ’Ji 1992’ as quickly as possible, to be sent to the Air Force base."