I recalled that before I time-traveled here, there was another me who had been accompanying Liang Qian and the others. Perhaps that person was the Nie Chuan that Boss Wu mentioned, the one Liang Qian and the others were waiting for, who hadn't reappeared since my arrival.

But setting that aside for now, it seems likely that after Liang Qian and the others waited for that false self to emerge from the giant tree, they too returned to the surface, encountered the same situation as Boss Wu, and found themselves on this island instead of in the desert.

With that, all the pieces of the puzzle fit together.

After clarifying all that, I said, "After you separated from them, we also reached the surface and found ourselves on this island, but afterward, Da Xiong and Liang Qian both died successively."

Boss Wu turned to look at me, appearing somewhat surprised, and said, "Is that so?"

I continued, "Although I witnessed their deaths with my own eyes, I couldn't be certain if they were truly gone."

Boss Wu frowned and asked, "What do you mean?"

I paused, then said, "Do you believe that I... shouldn't actually be here? Or perhaps, do you believe in the concept of time flowing backward?"

Seeing that I wasn't joking, Boss Wu replied, "If you tell me you experienced it firsthand, I'll believe you. After all, didn't I also inexplicably get transported from the desert to the sea?"

Truthfully, I hadn't expected Boss Wu to believe me; I merely wanted to confide in someone.

Yet, unexpectedly, I saw sincerity in his expression at that moment. I felt he truly believed me.

So, I continued, "Because after leaving Lop Nur, I discovered they were actually still alive, and they even traveled with me to Russia."

Boss Wu froze for a moment and said, "Wait! You've completely muddled me. Are you saying you saw them die with your own eyes, and then you saw them come back to life? Is that it?"

I shook my head and said, "It's not like that. When I left Lop Nur, I didn't know they had died. Da Xiong and Liang Qian met up with me later beneath the original desert, and we returned to the desert before being rescued. Afterward, we all went to Russia together, sailed to this island, and then I accidentally triggered some mechanism, sending me back to the time of the Lop Nur incident. I realized that the area beneath Lop Nur also connects to this island, or perhaps, the two places overlap."

I knew what I was saying was too complicated and that Boss Wu likely wouldn't grasp it, so after speaking, I looked at him, waiting for him to process it.

However, Boss Wu was clearly smarter than I anticipated and immediately caught on, saying, "Are you saying there are two of you? One accompanied Liang Qian and the fat man surnamed Wang to this island, and the other accompanied a different Liang Qian and a different fat man surnamed Wang back to the desert? Is that right? In that case, there aren't just two of you, but two Liang Qians and two fat men surnamed Wang, and the six of you experienced different things."

Hearing his interpretation, I felt like I understood something, yet I couldn't quite grasp the core issue.

At this point, Boss Wu added, "Then what are you agonizing about? The Wang Fatty and Liang Qian who died are just two among your six selves. The other Wang Fatty and Liang Qian are still alive, so you have no reason to be sad. Because whichever Liang Qian or Wang Fatty it is, they consider you a friend, so you won't lose either of them."

I paused, feeling that Boss Wu's analysis helped clarify some things.

But then I thought further and felt that what Boss Wu said wasn't entirely correct. I told him, "It's not six people; it's five. Because there's only one me. When I was beneath Lop Nur, I didn't have the experiences I'm having now with you. That was the experience of the other me. And I, due to the time reversal, replaced that other me here, inheriting those memories."

Boss Wu shook his head and said, "No, do you think you're a ghost? Capable of possessing a body? The other you absolutely exists; he just hid himself after you appeared."

Seeing Boss Wu's certainty, I couldn't help but offer a wry smile.

Because the conversation we were having now resembled a dialogue between lunatics—this whole concept of 'another me' was inherently illogical, yet we were discussing it with absolute conviction.

But if I didn't explain it this way, I couldn't think of any other explanation.

The other me, the other Liang Qian, and perhaps the other Da Xiong, might only be using disguises or some other trick, but there absolutely couldn't be an exact duplicate of myself—that much I was sure of.

I voiced these thoughts to Boss Wu, only for him to give a cold laugh and say, "Regardless of their identity or whether their goals align with yours, you must not lose yourself. When the other you takes over the role you were meant to play and is acknowledged and recognized by everyone, this you ceases to exist. Even if you know you are the real one, you will have no place left. There was once a person who looked exactly like me, which eventually forced me to impersonate others. If it weren't for that person, I might have started rejecting even myself."

Boss Wu's expression held a trace of weariness.

I finally understood why Boss Wu was so convinced about the existence of two 'me's—it was because he had experienced the dilemma of having two versions of himself.

While surprised, I speculated who the person was who made Boss Wu realize he was still himself—could it be the person carrying the long saber from earlier? If so, I finally understood why Boss Wu would take such a huge risk to find someone.

After talking so much with Boss Wu, one of my internal knots finally loosened, and I felt much better than before. But I was still somewhat afraid—what if the ones who died were the real ones, and the ones who accompanied me to Russia were the fakes? That would be quite tragic.

In any case, for now, I tried to stop dwelling on those thoughts. If I could investigate the history of the ancestors of the Yakut people and then find a way back to normal time, I could find Da Xiong and Liang Qian and ask them clearly.

"Well? Have you figured things out?" Boss Wu smiled, clearly seeing the look of relief on my face.

I nodded and said, "I feel much better. The most urgent thing now is finding a way back to normal time."

Boss Wu glanced into the endless darkness ahead in the maze and sighed, saying, "I'm afraid that's still a ways off. Neither of us has a clear idea of what lies ahead."