Genius Club

Chu An Qing stared at everyone in disbelief, then began to doubt herself. She looked out the window of the equipment bay, trying to make sense of what she was seeing.

In the pitch-black background of space, just ten meters away from the space shuttle, a small, bright blue electric ball was bouncing around. It flashed constantly, moving up and down, left and right, with no discernible pattern. Its color was a bright, eerie blue, with electric threads that made it look weightless. The brightness was so intense, especially against the pure black backdrop of space.

How could they not see it?

She blinked several times quickly and stared again at the flashing time-space particle. No, she wasn’t mistaken! It was still there, flying just like before! Still flashing, jumping, darting around.

Earlier, when everyone was working together to capture the time-space particle, the radio channel was a mess with commands, anxious voices, and status reports. It made her feel tense just listening. But Yellow Finch hadn’t assigned her any tasks, and she didn’t know what she could do in the passenger cabin. So she followed Lin Xian’s advice and watched the fascinating time-space particle through the window.

She saw Gao Yang operating the mechanical arm swiftly and decisively, but he missed the time-space particle several times by just a hair. It made her nervous. The closest Gao Yang got to success was when the lid of the time-space particle catcher, which looked like a rice cooker lid, passed right through the non-physical electric ball of the time-space particle. She thought it was a pity. But she didn’t feel too bad. At least they were getting closer to success.

However, even though the time-space particle hadn’t changed at all, still as bright and eerie blue as ever, the radio channel exploded with shouts. Everyone said they couldn’t see the time-space particle and that they had lost it. Gao Yang was furious, and the mechanical arm outside stopped moving, awkwardly hanging there.

But Chu An Qing clearly saw the time-space particle flying outside! Why did they say they couldn’t see it and had stopped trying to catch it? The space shuttle was descending lower… If they didn’t hurry, they might miss their chance! So, she ran into the equipment bay to tell everyone.

“What did you say!?” Liu Feng shot up from the pilot’s seat, but his safety belt yanked him back down. He hurriedly unbuckled it, tossed the time-space particle tracker aside, and ran to the equipment bay. Then he skidded to a halt and turned back:

“Wei Cheng, don’t touch the controls! Keep flying at 0.97 speed, and don’t change direction or angle! I’m going to see what’s going on with An Qing!”

Wei Cheng nodded. He had heard Chu An Qing clearly over the radio. As soon as she said she could see the time-space particle, and it was still flashing and jumping outside the space shuttle, he made a decision—maintain course and speed, no adjustments. If Chu An Qing could still see it, the particle’s direction and speed hadn’t changed. So, if the space shuttle’s speed and direction stayed the same, they wouldn’t lose it even if they couldn’t see it. His job was to keep up with the time-space particle, no matter how slim the hope. As for catching the particle… He had to rely on the younger team members to figure it out.

Above Oya Continent, 55 kilometers in the atmosphere. The space shuttle continued to descend.

In the equipment bay, Liu Feng rushed in, looking at Lin Xian and Yellow Finch, then at the bewildered Chu An Qing.

“You can see the time-space particle? Are you sure? What’s its status? Is it stable? Still flashing and jumping? Any change in direction? How active is it?”

He bombarded her with questions.

Chu An Qing quickly explained everything. In summary, it was one sentence:

“Except for you all not being able to see the time-space particle… it hasn’t changed at all. At least to me, it looks the same and moves the same as before.”

“What’s going on!” Gao Yang banged on the control panel, looking at Liu Feng. “Liu Feng, explain this! Can we still catch it or not?”

Liu Feng raised a hand to silence Gao Yang. “Stop shouting, I need to think.”

After about a minute, Liu Feng lifted his head and faced everyone.

“For months, that time-space particle traveled from the other side of the sun to Earth without colliding with anything. Even when it entered the asteroid belt between Jupiter and Mars, it didn’t collide with any celestial bodies, rocks, or even dust. I was puzzled. It couldn’t have traveled such a straight path without a single collision or even a graze. The odds are too low. But facts are facts. I convinced myself it was because space is vast and empty. Even the Voyager 1 probe left the solar system without hitting anything. So, I didn’t think much of it. But now, based on recent events, the time-space particle is unstable because it’s from another time-space. It instinctively avoids everything in this time-space! This property, this… I need a name for it… yes! I got it!”

Liu Feng clapped his hands, scanning the room, and finally looked at Lin Xian.

“Something from another time-space that avoids and rejects everything in this one… and this time-space repelling and resisting foreign objects. I suggest we call this phenomenon—Time-Space Rejection!”

Lin Xian squinted. It happened. Liu Feng’s habit of naming things. Every scientist’s most thrilling moment is discovering a new substance or law. Liu Feng’s naming rules were interesting. Always starting with “time-space,” followed by a simple, clear suffix.

Rejection reaction. A common medical term. Simply put, the human immune system instinctively rejects foreign objects, sometimes called a rejection response.

For example, if you get a splinter, the wound turns red and pus forms—rejection reaction; if a virus enters your body, white blood cells fight it—rejection reaction; after an organ transplant, rejection is most intense because the body senses the organ isn’t original and the immune system attacks it, controlled only by drugs; blood transfusions require matching blood types to avoid rejection.

In short, small or large, rejection reactions constantly occur in the human body. They’re vital for the immune system. Without them, the immune system would collapse, leading to inevitable death.

Liu Feng’s “time-space rejection” theory viewed this time-space as a whole with an immune system. Time-space itself rejects foreign objects. Like the now-invisible time-space particle. It’s not from this time-space, so it’s rejected and attacked by this one. Thus, it’s unstable, erratic, avoiding all matter in this time-space.

“I get it,” Lin Xian said. He looked at Liu Feng. “The time-space particle flew for months in near-vacuum space, almost not touching anything, so its visible energy remained almost intact. Even minimal loss was unnoticeable.”

“Yes,” Liu Feng nodded.

“Then, when the particle entered Earth’s exosphere, around 1000 kilometers high, it started interacting with more particles, becoming more unstable,” Lin Xian continued. “Even in the exosphere, the air is thin, but Gao Yang’s attempts with the rice cooker lid and the mechanical arm were more impactful.”

“The lid and arm are dense compared to the thin atmosphere. Such contact for the particle is like white blood cells or drugs attacking a virus. Rejection reaction, or time-space rejection, hit its peak, damaging the particle most.”

“So just three contacts—the lid, the arm, the space shuttle wing—consumed all its visible energy, making it invisible. To us, it’s a treasure, but to this time-space, it’s an unwelcome invader, like a virus.”

Lin Xian and Liu Feng’s deductions left Chu An Qing and Gao Yang stunned.

“Then, why can An Qing see it when we can’t? Not even the tracker, electronics, or cameras?” Gao Yang said, scratching his head. “If there’s a time-space rejection reaction, why isn’t it affecting her?”

Gao Yang’s words left the bay in silence. Lin Xian and Liu Feng exchanged glances. By now, anyone with a bit of sense could guess the reason. No wonder Yellow Finch recruited Chu An Qing for the team; no wonder Yellow Finch assigned her no tasks but kept her on the space shuttle; no wonder Yellow Finch hadn’t said a word since the mission began, leaning silently against the back wall.

The answer was clear. This was Yellow Finch’s long-hidden truth. This was Chu An Qing’s true value on the mission. Everyone else couldn’t see the time-space particle, but she could; the particle avoided everyone else but not her; plus, the unsolved mystery: Zhang Yu Qian, Chu An Qing, and CC looked identical despite being from different time-spaces, down to the same tear mole. All these anomalies confirmed it—Chu An Qing possessed a unique time-space characteristic. Even her true identity and existence were extraordinary, deeply tied to time-space!

But the deeper truth wasn’t something Lin Xian could deduce now. The only one who knew was…

Lin Xian turned slowly, staring at Yellow Finch, leaning silently against the wall. The mysterious woman, full of secrets. But now, her secrets were unfolding.

At that moment, Yellow Finch finally raised her head, meeting Lin Xian’s gaze. Their eyes locked. Her blue, crystalline eyes stared into his. His eyes mirrored the eerie, fluid blue of the time-space particle:

“Time-Space Rejection,” Lin Xian said slowly.

He recalled Chu An Qing’s secret. Yellow Finch once collapsed in the washroom. Weak. Unable to get up. Trembling. Refusing to let Chu An Qing see her face. Not letting Chu An Qing call for help. Avoiding, resisting, dodging. Just like the now-invisible time-space particle… The particle’s light dimmed, becoming invisible. Chu An Qing also saw Yellow Finch’s bright blue eyes dim slightly. All clues finally pieced together into the truth!

“Yellow Finch…” Lin Xian said softly. “It seems time-space rejection doesn’t just apply to the particle, right? Liu Feng wasn’t wrong. Everything from another time-space, be it a particle, object, or person… faces rejection in this unwelcoming time-space.”

Yellow Finch listened quietly. Then, she smiled faintly, sighing softly:

“Congratulations, Lin Xian.” She finally broke eye contact, looking down. “Congratulations on discovering a crucial…Time-Space Law.”