Apocalypse Star House Hoarding-Chapter 127

Perceiving something unusual likely began when they met again, about two years after their parting.
First, the spatial ability was gone. Additionally, there is a bond between blood relatives that gives a sense of connection. Combined with having witnessed events beyond common understanding, certain suspicions slowly took root.
However, Yu Qi did not ask, and Ya Tong did not explain.
“Yu Xi” was still the same as before—caring for them, trying to provide the best for them.
In Yu Qi’s eyes, this was likely the cost: her younger sister was reborn and returned to save them. Yu Xi gained spatial powers and other unique abilities. Now that they were safe and settled back in their homeland, “Yu Xi” had “left.”
Yu Qi believed that Yu Xi had no choice but to leave, even fearing their sorrow, unable to say a proper goodbye. Instead, she quietly departed, leaving “Yu Xi” behind to accompany them.
Yet, Ya Tong occasionally harbored strange doubts: Was the Yu Xi who had been reborn in Country M truly the original Yu Xi?
And now, this “Yu Xi” seemed different from both the pre-rebirth and post-rebirth versions.
“Yu Xi” continued to follow the military, carrying out various missions, until she was killed in an accident years later.
During that time, Yu Qi became more reserved, often venturing above ground during meteor-free periods to gaze at the night sky alone.
Ya Tong knew what she was thinking. For them, there was a taboo term they never spoke but which lingered in their hearts like a thorn.
That term was the
System Tower
.
Ya Tong glanced at the golden card in her space. She had made up her mind long ago.
Over time, the construction of the underground cities advanced day by day. High-strength meteor-resistant materials were developed and produced.
Human life began to diverge into two paths: the younger generation preferred life in the underground cities, while the older generation yearned for the surface.
Despite the surface being devoid of natural traces except for meteor-resistant houses and the air so harsh that one couldn’t survive without protective suits and oxygen masks, Yu Qi still preferred living on the surface.
Neither of them married. Yu Qi devoted her life to the nation and its people, eventually sacrificing herself during a rescue mission after a cave-in in an underground city when she was in her fifties.
On the verge of death, Yu Qi begged Ya Tong to take her to the surface. Gazing at the stars in the night sky, she closed her eyes forever.
While organizing her belongings, Ya Tong found an unsent letter written twenty years earlier. It was addressed to her.
In the letter, Yu Qi asked if Ya Tong had suspected the truth. But to her, whether it was the old Yu Xi, the reborn Yu Xi, or even the “Yu Xi” without spatial powers, they were all her sister, her most beloved family.
However, if there was any chance that Yu Xi was still alive, she must be in the world of the System Tower.
Yu Qi admitted she wasn’t sure what she would choose when that day came. But if Ya Tong chose to enter another world, she hoped Ya Tong would seek Yu Xi out.
If possible, she asked for help and care for Yu Xi. Yet Yu Qi acknowledged this request was selfish, which was why the letter was never sent.
Ya Tong smiled and suddenly felt at peace. Yes, no matter which version of Yu Xi it was, they were all family.
She knew how much her friend loved her sister. Yu Qi must have missed Yu Xi every day but hid this letter for nearly twenty years to avoid burdening her.
But to Ya Tong, Yu Xi was no longer just Yu Qi’s sister.
She would never forget the arduous and perilous journey they made together, traveling thousands of miles from Country M back home.
Even a difficult journey, in hindsight, takes on a faint, wistful beauty with the passage of time—how much more so for their vibrant journey home.
Like Yu Qi, Ya Tong missed and cherished those memories.
But she was luckier than Yu Qi. What was the end for everyone else was a new beginning for her.
For years, she had been preparing—learning martial arts, survival skills, weapon assembly and disassembly, and other abilities.
Afterward, she lived a grounded life, savoring each day. She lived into her sixties, but spending too much time on the surface took a toll on her lungs.
This was the price humans paid for living on the surface, but she had no regrets. She felt her life was fulfilling and satisfying.
Then, when she closed her eyes and opened them again, she made her choice: to enter the world of the System Tower.
She regained the appearance she had at thirty. It was like being given a second chance at life. Compared to the others, she had a significant advantage: spatial powers, card tools, stored weapons, and countless learned skills.
She traveled through many worlds, completed countless tasks, and witnessed realms that once existed only in her imagination… yet she never found her.
The world of the System Tower was vast and complex. She couldn’t openly search for someone without causing trouble for both herself and the other party.
Eventually, she began to give up, thinking it wasn’t so bad to simply keep living this way.
After all, this life was an extra one. Every day alive felt like a bonus.
This was her seventh S-level task. If she completed four more, she could enter the Inner Tower, challenge SS-level tasks, and even glimpse the secrets of the universe.
But she didn’t care about that. She had no attachment to success or failure, and some said this detachment might be the reason she succeeded in every mission.
This world was no different. Yet, when she closed her eyes and opened them again, she heard a long-lost familiar voice.
“Xiao Xi?”
That familiar name made Yu Xi rush forward.
She looked at the young boy on the sofa, but the gaze in his eyes—filled with longing and affection—was unmistakably familiar.
Yu Xi: …
The sight of such a discordant scene made her scalp tingle.
The only one who would look at her with such an elder-like gaze, call her “Xiao Xi,” and appear in such a manner could only be—
“Ya… Ya Tong-jie?” Yu Xi froze in place.
“You brat, it’s really hard to meet you, isn’t it?” The other smiled and opened her arms, pulling her into a hug.
This embrace transcended time and space, spanning the stardust of the universe, carrying longing and nostalgia. “It’s me. Long time no see, Xiaoxi.”
When Yu Zhenzhen emerged from her shower, she found the atmosphere in the living room had changed. Her mother and Qu Yichen were sitting at the coffee table, studying a map of the tourist area.
The map was a detailed layout of Luyuan Peak, clearly marking every building, attraction, and the routes up and down the mountain.
Since there was no phone signal, they couldn’t contact anyone on the mountain, so they were guessing potential shelter locations and evaluating survival possibilities.
For Yu Xi, meeting Ya Tong again brought both surprise and guilt. Back then, due to various reasons, she had no choice but to leave without saying goodbye. But clearly, after experiencing many task worlds, Ya Tong had already figured everything out.
When Yu Xi tried to speak, Ya Tong patted her shoulder, signaling that she understood.
What was there not to understand?
The story of being reborn had always been a pretense. She was originally someone from the task world, and her mission was to escort them safely back to their homeland.
The only lingering mystery was why she was also called Yu Xi in this world and why, aside from her age, she looked identical to the original Yu Xi.
She had traveled through so many worlds, each time with a different identity, varying in age and gender.
“Are you from the Inner Tower?” This was the only conclusion Ya Tong could think of.
“No.” The matter of the Star House system left her uncertain about how much to reveal, but she decided to share other things. “I am Yu Xi. Every Yu Xi in every world is me. This is my true appearance.”
“So, these task worlds are all your parallel universes?”
“I’ve thought about that too, but it’s just speculation. I don’t have all the answers.” She paused before asking, “How… is my sister?”
“Before her sacrifice, she spent her days doing what she wanted. She and I… we lived a very good life in that lifetime.”
“That’s good.”
Ya Tong gently patted her head. Just as Yu Xi had arrived in this world, aside from her task, she also wanted to rescue the parents of “Qu Yichen” within her abilities. After briefly catching up, they began analyzing the map and sharing information.
When their discussion reached the topic of “fragment worlds,” Yu Zhenzhen returned to the room. In unspoken agreement, they stopped talking and focused on the map, continuing their analysis of the situation.
“…So, if they made it here before the first typhoon hit, they should still be alive.”
“Yes, this building is relatively sturdy, and with the mountain shielding one side, the impact of the typhoon would have been somewhat lessened. However, the trouble comes after the eye of the storm passes. The wind direction changes completely, coming from the opposite side. If they’re still in the same place…” Yu Xi trailed off, leaving the rest unsaid.
Once the eye of the storm passes and the wind shifts, staying in the same shelter would mean facing near-certain death.
Ya Tong frowned deeply, instinctively reaching into her pocket (her spatial storage) for a cigarette.
Yu Xi coughed lightly, prompting Ya Tong to glance at Yu Zhenzhen before reluctantly putting the cigarette back.
Yu Zhenzhen watched Yu Xi and Qu Yichen, a strange, indescribable feeling welling up in her heart.
Noticing her gaze, Yu Xi turned to ask gently, “Are you hungry? What do you want for dinner?”
It was already evening by then. The rain outside was still pouring, the sky completely dark. To the ordinary eye, the view beyond the windows was nothing but a blurry mess through the sheets of rain.
“Let’s just have some instant noodles. There’s still some in the backpack,” Yu Zhenzhen quickly answered, seemingly worried that Qu Yichen might notice anything about their spatial abilities.
Ya Tong, watching the young girl’s eagerness to cover for her mother, smirked slightly before standing up. “I ran around outside earlier. I’ll go take a shower first—while there’s still running water on the mountain.”
She opened Qu Yichen’s survival backpack on the sofa, rummaging through it with a look of disdain before finally deciding to take the entire bag into the bathroom and replace its contents with her own supplies.
It wasn’t that she minded using someone else’s belongings—after all, even her current body wasn’t her own. What she minded was the lack of practicality in this survival bag; it was clear its owner was a rookie with no survival experience.
“You’re going to shower here?” Yu Zhenzhen stared, wide-eyed.
“It’s fine. Given the situation, everyone should shower, eat something, and rest a bit.”
“Rest?” Yu Zhenzhen turned to her mother. “You’re letting him rest here?”
“Mm. You’re all kids. Perfect—one room for each of you, and I’ll take the sofa.”
Yu Zhenzhen: …
The “other kid” in the bathroom, Ya Tong: …
Since many guests were reluctant to return to their rooms, the hotel had arranged a collective dinner. After serving the guests in the lobby, staff pushed food carts through the hallways to distribute meals to those staying in their rooms.
After showering, Ya Tong went to pick up three dinners, mainly to gather information.
Although the hotel and scenic area had issued early typhoon warnings, several travelers were still injured while returning to shelters earlier in the day. Luckily, these were all minor injuries, and everyone had made it back to the hotel.
The hotel, besides reinforcing doors and windows and calming guests, had been trying to contact stranded travelers and coordinate with rescue teams at the foot of the mountain.
Luyuan Scenic Area was on high ground, with no hospitals nearby. The closest hospital and firefighting department were in the town below. After establishing contact, the hotel provided a list of missing persons to the rescue teams.
The rescuers assured them that they would head up the mountain as soon as the typhoon passed and advised everyone to remain calm and wait patiently.
But by the next morning, when the typhoon had passed and the rain had lessened, the rescue team still couldn’t reach the mountain.
The reason: landslides and debris had completely blocked the roads leading up and down the mountain.
Now, not only could people from the foot of the mountain not get up, but those on the mountain were also trapped.