As a weirdo, I like being a Kamen Rider

Previously, Lin Chen did subconsciously want to deal with the unawakened net, but he was directly warned by the globe residing in the evolutionary memory body.

They came to this point in time to investigate the truth behind the annihilation of Leo's cavalry. If he had intervened and saved this small team, the tragedy would have been averted, and they would have had no reason to travel through time to this moment.

But even if they hadn't traveled here, the young man would still have made his move, and the team's annihilation would have remained unchanged.

Earth's consciousness explicitly warned him not to make any unnecessary interventions. Once the causal chain of spacetime is broken and reconstructed, this world will undergo uncontrollable upheavals, and no one can predict what kind of collapse will ultimately occur.

After hearing Lin Chen explain the grandfather paradox, Hanagata fell silent, finally understanding why Lin Chen had been watching coldly earlier.

Lin Chen withdrew his gaze from the dense forest, his eyes still filled with undiminished seriousness: "The King can only appear in the bodies of children. The current host is very strange. If he was the King's host a long time ago, then he must have already awakened."

This guy is hiding a huge secret; it seems this has nothing to do with Murakami and his group. We must follow him now, find out his true identity as soon as possible, figure out the reason, and eliminate him. This world doesn't need a king anymore.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Lin Chen raised his hand and once again unfolded the light blue dimensional wall, signaling Hanagata to follow. The two stepped into the light barrier and followed the faint aura left by the young man.

The forest path was covered with tangled dead branches and slippery mud. The young man dragged his heavy steps forward, his steps unsteady and faltering. The power impact from the large amount of life energy he had just absorbed was still churning within him, and his limbs occasionally felt weak and sore as if he had lost all strength.

A gentle breeze in the woods lifted his open plaid shirt, his hair disheveled and plastered to his forehead. He didn't stop for a moment, following the deserted path to the depths of the mountains. A dilapidated old building stood quietly in the weeds, its walls mottled and peeling, its window frames rotten and hollow, and the wildly growing bushes around it almost completely obscured the building.

He raised his hand to brush away the vines and weeds entwined around the iron gate, his fingertips touching the heavily rusted iron doorknob, and metal fragments fell down in a rusty patter.

When the lock cylinder is turned with force, the old lock emits a harsh, dry "creaking" sound, dull and grating, which is particularly clear in the open mountains and fields.

The heavy iron door was slowly pushed open, and a cold, musty smell mixed with dust rushed out from inside the building. The dark corridor was completely dark.

The young man squeezed through the iron gate, then used all his remaining strength to pull it inward, slamming the heavy door shut and cutting off the sound of the wind in the forest.

Not long after his figure disappeared behind the old iron gate, a pale blue dimensional wall quietly unfolded in the bushes not far away, and Lin Chen and the flower-shaped figure stepped out from it, landing on the wet mud.

Hanagata looked up at the abandoned building hidden by weeds. The walls were mottled and the rotten window frames exuded a deathly stillness, completely out of place with the vibrant mountains and forests around it. He frowned slightly and said in a low voice, "There is no one around here. He deliberately hid in a place like this. He must be hiding a secret."

Lin Chen nodded slightly, and the dimensional barrier opened again, allowing the two to enter the building directly.

The interior was pitch black, with only a few faint rays of sunlight filtering through the cracks in the broken roof and window frames, barely enough to make out the path beneath one's feet. The passageway was flanked by mottled cement walls, large sections of plaster peeling off to reveal rusted steel bars underneath. The floor was paved with cracked cement slabs, the gaps filled with dust and debris, making a creaking sound when stepped on.

Exposed, silvery-white pipes meander along the base of the wall, with water droplets occasionally dripping from the pipe joints, echoing crisply in the empty passageway and adding to the chilly atmosphere.

Lin Chen and Hua Xing followed the scent, navigating through winding, narrow passages. After turning the last corner, they found themselves in a room without a door.

This is a small, cramped room, the space feeling oppressive and confined. The entire wall is covered with cold, hard, and mottled metal panels, with streaks of rust of varying shades winding down the steel grain. Pipes crisscross at the base of the wall.

In the corner of the room stood a simple iron clothes rack, its crossbar long rusted, with various coats hanging haphazardly on it.

Beside the clothes rack, a narrow single bed was placed against the wall. The bed board was made of simple wooden planks, and a slightly worn quilt was laid on it. A girl wearing a light brown coat and a pleated skirt was lying quietly on it, her eyes closed, her face slightly pale, and her breathing weak. She looked like she had fallen into a deep sleep. There were no energy fluctuations of Orphnoch in her body, and she was no different from an ordinary human.

The black-haired youth who had been tracking them all along was now standing quietly beside the single bed, his back to the door, his body slightly hunched, his previously messy hair now hanging down over his shoulders, his gaze fixed on the girl on the bed, his eyes filled with an imperceptible tenderness.

Chapter 225 The Time Jackers Reappear

The room was completely silent, with only the sound of water dripping from the pipes and the girl's soft breathing mingling together.

The young man slowly raised his hand, hovering it above the girl's body. Pale green energy gradually gathered in his palm, turning into tiny starlight specks that gently drifted down onto the girl's body and seeped into her body through her skin.

The girl, who was originally weak and pale, gradually gained strength in her chest under the nourishment of the green starlight. Her life force rose at a visible speed, her originally dull complexion slowly turned rosy, and her breathing became more steady and long.

Lin Chen and Hanagata, standing outside the door, stared in astonishment, their eyes wide with surprise. They never expected that this young man, who was suspected to be the King of Orphnoch, would transfer his energy to a human girl.

The young man looked down at the girl, his tenderness growing stronger. The green energy around him slowly subsided. Only after the girl's breathing had completely stabilized did he gently lower his hand and resume his silent, standing posture.

Just as the young man was gazing down at the gentle appearance of the girl on the bed, a clear, cold female voice suddenly rang out from the shadows of the room, breaking the tranquility.

"I told you, you can't save her like this. She's just a living dead now. You can only keep her alive by forcibly replenishing her life energy."

"If you can become the true king and then obtain Faiz's power, then you can be with her forever."

As soon as the words were spoken, a slender figure slowly emerged from the shadows in the corner.

The woman exuded a cool and aloof air, wearing a light blue and dark gray fitted coat with a clean and sharp cut that perfectly accentuated her figure. The collar and cuffs were adorned with silver-gray buttons, adding a touch of sophistication to her otherwise cold and detached demeanor.

She had two thin braids on her head, and her long, black hair fell smoothly over her shoulders. The pink feather earrings on her ears swayed gently with her movements, standing out in the dimly lit room and creating a strong contrast with her cold and aloof demeanor.

The moment Lin Chen saw the woman's figure, alarm bells rang in his mind. He instinctively reached out to open the dimensional barrier, but as soon as his arm was halfway up, he found that his body was completely frozen, unable to move an inch, and even his fingertips could not bend.

His gaze swept over Hanagata beside him, who remained in the same breathless, staring posture, her eyes slightly narrowed, her body as still as a statue, clearly also imprisoned.

Lin Chen's heart sank to the bottom. Damn it, how did he fall for this?

Upon hearing the woman's voice, the young man's body stiffened abruptly. He slowly turned around, his once gentle gaze turning cold and sharp, and his aura becoming violent once more, a stark contrast to his demeanor when he was transferring energy.

He stared intently at the cold, beautiful woman before him, his voice filled with suppressed anger: "I've said it before, I don't need to be a king, all I need is for her to live. Stop interfering in our affairs."

She walked slowly to the young man, her gaze sweeping over the girl still sleeping on the bed, her tone slightly seductive: "Alive? The energy you're forcibly transferring to her now is nothing more than drinking poison to quench thirst. Her body died in that disaster long ago. With your current strength, you can't possibly repair her shattered life force. Sooner or later, she will completely dissipate."

Only by becoming the true king can you ensure she lives on in a meaningful way and stays by your side forever. And don't forget, you fool, I brought you to this time. In the future, you'll just be another wretched creature clinging to life!

Upon hearing the woman's words, the young man's expression became complicated. He clenched his fists tightly until his knuckles turned white, and his eyes were filled with struggle and resentment, but he never spoke again to refute her.

Seeing this, the woman ignored him and turned to walk towards Lin Chen and Hua Xing, who were trapped at the door. Her pink feather earrings swayed gently with her steps.

She slowly circled the two of them, a playful smile playing on her lips. Her tone was flippant yet cold: "Think about it carefully yourself. Now, I think I see two amusing little mice. You were careless, being followed without even realizing it. How can someone like you be a good king?"

Seeing the woman approach, Lin Chen was filled with wariness. Time Jacker Aura—how could this woman suddenly appear in this world? And didn't he already pluck the feather that provided her power? How come there's still one?! Is Swartz really that generous?

He stopped himself from asking a series of questions, fearing that the other person would directly pull out the watch and insert it into his body, but he was now unable to resist and could only let the other person look him over.

Upon hearing Aura's accusation, the man remained silent for a moment before walking over to Lin Chen and Hua Xing's side.

When his gaze fell on the two people, his pupils suddenly contracted, and his face was filled with undisguised shock, clearly recognizing their identities.

Seeing this, Aura's pink feather earrings swayed slightly, her eyes full of surprise. She slowly walked to the young man's side, raised an eyebrow and asked, "What, do you know these two little mice hiding in the shadows? I thought they were just insignificant spying people."

The young man snapped out of his daze and looked at Lin Chen and the other man with a complicated expression.

He took a deep breath, suppressing the complex emotions in his heart, and with a heavy tone, he slowly began to tell Aura his story.

"As you know, in the future I live in, the Orphnoch people have basically disappeared, and they have also lost their powers, becoming no different from ordinary people."

In the future, Smart Brain will document everything about Orphino.

President Hanagata, the man before us, is known as the savior of the Orphnochs. As a species that evolved before humans, the Orphnochs should rightfully become the masters of humanity, but desertification is our inevitable fate.

To break the curse, the radical Orphnochs decided to awaken the King, but Mr. Hanagata believed that the King's awakening would only bring destruction. Therefore, he led the conservatives to develop a sand-inhibiting drug. However, after using the drug, the Orphnochs would revert to human form.

Although they reverted to human form, they retained special physical attributes, such as greater strength than ordinary people. This attracted the covetous eyes of humans. The integration of humans and the degenerated Orphnochs was not smooth.

But at this moment, the radical faction that had been secretly plotting the king's awakening appeared. They announced in a high-profile manner that Lin Chen, the king of Orphnoch, had awakened, and that the entire Orphnoch race would achieve perfect evolution and become the masters of the world.

Sure enough, the first thing the King did upon appearing was to demonstrate his ability to steadily transform humans into Orphnochs. As for the conservative traitors who wanted to live peacefully with humans, they were all executed.

Seeing this situation, humanity decided to join forces with the conservatives to prevent the future where Orphnoch ruled the world.

But things did not go as the radicals had predicted in terms of world domination.

The king survived by feeding on Orphnochs. The stronger the king became, the more Orphnochs he needed to consume. Eventually, almost all Orphnochs that had not been treated with the sand-transforming potion became the king's food.

Ultimately, to prevent the King from devouring the remaining Orphnochs who had been turned back into humans using the sand-transforming potion, and also out of fear that the King would continue to transform humans into food because he had no other choice, the humans and the conservative Orphnochs created three knight belts.

Then, the three heroes wielding the belts, along with Hanagata, the strongest of the Orphnochs, battled the King atop Tokyo Tower. All of them vanished, leaving only the dying Hanagata, who left behind his last words: "The King will surely reappear."

"I see. No wonder you've been hesitant to fully commit to awakening. You were afraid your fate would end up like that previous king, weren't you? But it seems you've been tricked. The history of knights is completely different from how this world developed!"

Especially in this situation, that king seems to be in cahoots with the Orphnoch savior you mentioned!

The young man shook his head violently, his eyes filled with disbelief, his tone urgent and certain: "Impossible! How could this be true? Mr. Hanagata is the universally acknowledged savior of the Orphnoch race. This is a belief etched into the bones of every newly awakened Orphnoch. How could he possibly be in league with the tyrannical king!"

His voice trembled slightly, clearly unable to accept this mind-blowing fact. In his future, the Flower-Shaped One was the hope of his people, a hero who protected the gentle Orphnochs and fought against the tyrannical king—a belief that had long been ingrained in him.

He turned to look at Hanagata, then at Lin Chen, his eyes filled with struggle. "You must be mistaken. You're saying this on purpose to seduce me into becoming king. I won't believe you!"

Hearing the young man's words full of resistance and disbelief, Aura did not explain further. She simply raised her hand slightly, and the time power that had been binding Lin Chen and Hua Xing quietly dissipated.

Lin Chen instantly regained his mobility. He had heard the conversation between the two clearly, and most of his doubts were resolved.

It turns out that this young king of the Orphnochs came from the future; no wonder the king's host was an adult.

Without a second thought, Lin Chen immediately activated the dimensional barrier the moment he regained his mobility.

A gray light curtain spread out, enveloping him and Hanagata, who had just regained his mobility and was still unaware of what was happening.

The young man and Aura were both stunned at the sight. Before they could react, Lin Chen and Hua Xing disappeared into the small room, leaving only the bewildered young man and the amused Aura standing there.

Aura looked in the direction where Lin Chen and Hua Xing disappeared, then turned her head and looked at the young man beside her who was bowing his head in silence. Her tone was somewhat sarcastic: "Now, do I need to say anything? You should have never seen the way those two little mice disappeared."

It seems that the battle you know about atop Tokyo Tower may very well have been just a carefully orchestrated drama.

Even this core story is false; everything you know about Orphnoch is probably just a fabricated lie.

The young man shuddered, slowly raising his head with a look of bewilderment and helplessness in his eyes. Looking at the spot where Lin Chen and the other man had disappeared, and recalling what Aura had just said, he could no longer refute her.

He slowly lowered his head, his gaze falling on his hands, lost in thought.

Chapter 226 Seed of Time

The future time point of the next day.

The atmosphere in the Smart Brain president's office was a bit strange. Hanagata sat opposite him, glancing at Lin Chen, who was deep in thought, with some doubts in his heart.

No matter what happened in the past, this man was always as calm as a mountain, seemingly in complete control, even treating kings as prey. It was as if nothing could faze him.

But ever since returning from the time when Leo's cavalry squad was wiped out yesterday, Lin Chen's entire demeanor has changed, and he exudes a sense of tension even while sitting here.

After much deliberation, Hua couldn't help but ask a question. Only then did Lin Chen suppress his turbulent thoughts and briefly recount the story of the Time Tribulationers.

Hanagata was genuinely shocked upon hearing this. The ability to control time was indeed terrifying. They were like puppets in the hands of such an existence. Such an anomaly that could travel through different timelines was indeed a major threat.

He also understood why Lin Chen had reacted so strongly when he asked him if he wanted to become king during their first meeting.

The two began to slowly review the entire process of their encounter with the future King of Orpheus yesterday. Hanagata frowned deeply and asked the biggest question in his mind: If the young man who carried the power of the king came from the future, how come his records about Hanagata being the savior and the previous king being Lin Chen do not match the events that are happening in the current timeline?

Moreover, the showdown atop Tokyo Tower, which attracted worldwide attention, was something they would never do.

Lin Chen shook his head slightly, stating bluntly that the story was very likely a fabricated history created by Smart Brain to intimidate the newly born Orphnochs and prevent them from causing trouble and obediently accepting the drug.

Hanagata thought about it and felt it was very likely.

The two simply put the topic aside and stopped dwelling on it.

Lin Chen then told Hanagata about the boy's situation that he had overheard during the time stop.

In the future, desertification suppression agents have been widely distributed, and almost all Orpheus will choose to give up their powers and become ordinary people.

This resulted in the king having less and less "food" left.

In addition, the legend of the former king being directly suppressed weighed on his mind, and the future king feared that he would be destroyed in the same way.