Chapter Three: Quantum State Countdown

The meeting lasted for over two hours before Wang Jing was taken for a physical examination. Of course, this was only done after ensuring absolute safety, as they wanted to study the reason why Wang Jing could travel to other worlds and why his physical condition was somehow linked to all of humanity.

“You're not going to dissect me, are you?” Wang Jing asked nervously as he watched the researchers enter.

“You’re overthinking it. Right now, you’re more precious than a giant panda. If we dissected you, it would be like dissecting ourselves—unless someone’s lost their mind, no one would do that.”

Wang Jing was surprised. Judging by the accent, the researcher before him, wrapped up tightly, had quite a pleasant voice, and sounded rather young.

“So, what are you going to examine?” Wang Jing asked, curiosity piqued.

“First, we’ll check the quantum state of your body. We suspect that your quantum state is locked together with that of all humanity,” the female researcher explained.

“Then, what’s the reason I can travel between worlds?” Wang Jing pressed on the question that concerned him the most.

“We don’t know that yet. We’ll have to finish the examination to find out.”

“Then let’s begin right away!” Wang Jing urged, unable to wait.

He lay on a cold bed, his body covered with various sensors.

Although Wang Jing saw only one person, behind the scenes, the world’s top quantum physicists and professors were watching.

In just five minutes, the examination was over.

As the female researcher removed the sensors from his body, Wang Jing asked in surprise, “It’s over already?”

“Yes.”

“How can it be so fast? Shouldn’t you have me move around or something?” Wang Jing was confused.

“The quantum state has nothing to do with your macroscopic state. At the quantum scale, there’s no concept of time or causality, so five minutes is sufficient,” the female researcher replied.

Wang Jing nodded; as a university graduate, he had some basic understanding of quantum physics.

“So when will the results be ready?” Wang Jing asked again.

“That, you’ll have to ask the professors. I’m just running errands,” the researcher shrugged.

Wang Jing could only accept this helplessly.

Meanwhile, top scientists from around the globe were already meeting via video conference, analyzing the quantum data collected from Wang Jing.

“As we suspected, his quantum state is locked with that of everyone else,” a young quantum physicist said over the video.

“No, only part of it is locked. There’s a portion whose quantum state isn’t locked at all,” an elderly quantum physics professor pointed out, gesturing to a segment of the data.

“That’s right; not only is it not locked, but the quantum attributes in that part are also gradually declining,” added a bearded theoretical physicist.

“Don’t you think this quantum decay feature is like a timer?” a disheveled quantum scientist asked, frowning.

“Now that you mention it, it really does seem that way,” the white-haired physicist agreed, but then questioned, “But what happens when the countdown ends?”

Before anyone could answer, the white-haired physicist’s expression changed dramatically. He cursed and then exclaimed excitedly, “Damn it! When the quantum attributes vanish, the system will collapse, dragging the other locked quantum states into the collapse too. We’ll all die!”

“Holy shit!”

The faces of all the scientists changed. They grumbled in unison, “How much time do we have left?” The bearded physicist nervously counted as he spoke.

Twenty seconds later, the disheveled scientist gave them the answer, “We have three hours left, at most.” He didn’t forget to add, “That’s the upper limit.”

“Is the data accurate?” a portly theorist asked.

“I ran the calculations with Galaxy-IV supercomputer. The data is accurate, with an error margin of no more than ten minutes,” the white-haired scientist replied confidently.

Hearing that the calculations came from Galaxy-IV, all the scientists accepted the data without question.

“So how do we stop the quantum countdown? Or at least reset it?” the portly scientist asked anxiously.

“Maybe if we have him travel again, the quantum state might return to normal,” the white-haired physicist suggested, though he sounded uncertain.

“That could work, but will the higher-ups approve it?” a slightly balding professor in a suit asked worriedly.

At that moment, the leaders of the five permanent UN Security Council members suddenly joined the video meeting. The President of the United States spoke, “We approve your plan, but it must be carried out with Wang Jing’s safety as the top priority.”

“Yes, sir,” the white-haired physicist responded, standing up solemnly.

“There’s not much time left. Get moving, and if you need anything, just say so,” said the President.

“Yes. I’ll ensure the task is completed safely and as quickly as possible.”

The President nodded and exited the video conference. Everyone else left in turn.

“Quickly, quickly! We have less than three hours. I need two fully insulated cold-weather suits, a transformer, a special operations soldier, and I want to video call the world leaders…”

The entire temporary base instantly became a hive of activity. Meanwhile, Wang Jing, who was resting in the lounge, was brought out by the female researcher.

“What’s going on? Why is everyone so busy all of a sudden?” Wang Jing asked as she entered.

“It’s a long story. Here’s your medical report. You’ll understand once you read it,” she said, handing him a tablet.

After reading the report, Wang Jing asked in disbelief, “Is this a joke? In three hours, I’ll collapse into nothing?”

“It’s not just you. It’s everyone on Earth—and maybe not even a trace will remain,” the researcher replied.

“So when do I start traveling? And how do I do it?” Wang Jing asked.

“It should be within two hours. As for how, I’m not sure either, but I suspect it involves electricity—after all, both of your previous travels happened when you were electrocuted.”

Wang Jing nodded, then asked, “How will I get back afterwards?”

“That, I don’t know. But I’m sure someone will tell you when the time comes,” she replied.

Wang Jing nodded, fell silent for a while, then asked, “By the way, what’s your name? We’ve been together all this time, and I still don’t know.”

“My name is Qiu Ruoxue. You can call me Xiaoxue, or just Ruoxue.” Although Wang Jing couldn’t see her face, the slight upward curve of her eyes told him there was surely a smile behind the mask.