Nobita's Time Heist

“I don’t need them anymore,” Arthur said as he handed his satchel to Nobita. “Take them. I owe you a debt of gratitude that can’t be repaid with just a few things.”

US dollars, bonds, gold bars, gold nuggets, gold grains... As it turns out, the term "gold content" truly carries weight. Even in such a backward world, upon seeing gold, a farmer's eyes would suddenly clear, and greed and desire would flash across them.

In that instant of looking up, Da Xiong was almost certain that he had conceived the idea of ​​murder and robbery. In such a technologically backward place, the difficulty of gold mining was unimaginable, and it would undoubtedly be even more precious than in later generations. This small piece of gold might be enough for his food expenses for a year or two.

If Suneo were handling this kind of matter, he might have considered this point and tried to tailor his offer accordingly, using something less valuable, such as industrial metal products rarely seen in this era, or a hearty meal, to bribe the farmer. But Nobita himself doesn't have that many cunning ideas; the fact that he thought of exchanging goods for information is already quite clever.

However, after hesitating for a few seconds, the gaunt farmer sized up the boy before him, then quickly took the gold nugget from Da Xiong's hand, choosing the least risky approach.

"This is 'Yuye,' and it is now the 2004th year of the New Dynasty." The farmer carefully wrapped the gold nuggets in layers and placed them in the only pocket of his tattered clothes. He lowered his voice and winked, "You are wandering sorcerers, aren't you?"

"A sorcerer?" Da Xiong was taken aback. In the Japanese language, this was a very unfamiliar term.

“You have a good eye.” Dekisugi smiled without changing his expression. “Indeed, as you said, we are wandering scholars conducting some geological research.”

“Well… you’d better be careful. This country doesn’t welcome wandering sorcerers. Although no one cares in this wretched place of Yuye, you have so much gold on you, you’re bound to attract attention.” The farmer pointed to the west and said in a deep voice, “If you’re so inclined, take a boat, cross the sea, and go to Chang’an to find someone from the Imperial Observatory to get a certificate. That would be much better.”

"after all……"

"In recent years, strange phenomena have been occurring frequently, and rumors about them are circulating everywhere..."

He leaned closer mysteriously and whispered in their ears, "The Wang family's rule may really be coming to an end."

Chapter 157: Operation Time Pincer!

"This is a lot of information, wait a minute, let me catch my breath..." Suneo rubbed his temples hard, looking extremely pained. "First of all, this isn't Japan anymore?"

“Geographically, it should still be Japan,” Dekisugi explained. “However, it’s no longer the same place we remember. The history, culture, and major events that constitute ‘Japan’ were erased by some enormous force a very long time ago. For the people living on this land, it has been called Pingwa since ancient times.”

"Pacify the Japanese pirates?" Fat Tiger scratched his head. "Is it that hard to pronounce?"

"If I remember correctly, the word 'Wa' should be the ancient Chinese name for the Yamatai Kingdom. During the Three Kingdoms period, it seems that Himiko was even granted the title of Queen of Wa, who was close to Wei."

"Putting all that aside for now, what does he mean by the 2004th year of the new dynasty?" Shizuka asked, puzzled. "There can't possibly be a dynasty that long, right?"

"According to historical cycles, it would be quite remarkable if such a loosely structured ancient agricultural dynasty could last for a few hundred years. The contradictions of land annexation were simply unsolvable, and once they accumulated to a certain extent, they would inevitably end in war. A feudal dynasty that could last for two thousand years is unheard of and, theoretically speaking, impossible!"

"Judging from the images transmitted by the spy satellites, this is the situation all over Japan." Da Xiong summoned one satellite transmission interface after another, finally letting out a long sigh and abandoning all hope. "Cities are divided into small plots of farmland, and people live in wooden houses, mostly doing farm work. Many places have not yet been developed and have retained their original forest state. The total population of all of Japan is estimated to be less than 50."

"Our loved ones...should...be really gone."

"Mom..." Xiaofu bit his lip, and it took a lot of effort for him not to burst into tears on the spot.

"Then... my mom, dad, and Fatty... too..."

Da Xiong looked sad and shook his head.

……

"boom!"

After a brief silence, Fat Tiger gritted his teeth and slammed his fist into the tree trunk, causing the leaves to fall in unison.

The last time time was rewritten, it was merely a regression in technological advancement; family relationships remained unchanged. This time, however, it was like a knife slashed across a major artery, altering everything beyond recognition. Terms like "pacifying the Japanese pirates" and "controlling the wilderness," which had never been heard of before, sprang up like mushrooms after rain. This punch, though clearly aimed at a tree trunk, felt more like hitting cotton, leaving Gian feeling utterly powerless.

"We don't have a single clue!" Xiao Fu leaned against a big tree, slumped to the ground, and said dejectedly, "What is the Wang family's rule? A person with the surname Wang has become the new ruler of the world? Who exactly is this guy? We have absolutely no idea!"

"Didn't he say that the Wang family's rule is about to end?" Fat Tiger's eyes were practically spitting fire. He clenched his fists together, his knuckles cracking. "Perfect, let me get involved too! I'm going to drag that Wang guy out of the palace and give him a good beating!"

"At least he gave us a place name, leading us across the sea to a city called Chang'an, where perhaps a solution could be found."

Nobita put the spy satellite into his pocket and took a deep breath.

They thought things had come to an end and they could finally rest for a while, but unexpectedly, the situation escalated, even destroying their perfectly good home. Now, everyone in the team had a reason to continue fighting.

"Just like last time, we'll split into two groups!"

"Huh?" Dekisugi paused for a moment. "Are you going to split up and go in two groups?"

Because he had fallen into the Golden Land alone and knew nothing of his previous adventures, he thought that Nobita and the others were rushing to rescue him.

"Xiaoshan, you, Panghu, and Xiaofu form a group. Just like that old farmer said, go to Chang'an across the sea and see if you can find any clues." He took out a spare bag from his pocket and tossed it to Xiaofu, instructing him, "Try not to get into any conflicts. Remember, you're going to gather intelligence. When it comes to adaptability, I feel more at ease if you and Xiaofu are together."

"Is it starting again?" Suneo took the bag, muttering somewhat reluctantly, "I was hoping to get a few days of rest."

"What's there to complain about? Don't you want your loved ones to come back sooner?!" Fat Tiger probably wanted to encourage him, but he slapped him so hard he almost dislocated his shoulder. "Even if you take a boat, it will take two days to get from here to the other side of the sea. Why don't you take this time to get a good night's sleep?"

"Once we arrive, I'll try to make contact with the ruler there. See if we can exploit the information gap to glean some intelligence." Dekisugi nodded, accepting the mission with a composed and measured demeanor, displaying the composure of a seasoned general. In a sense, this kind of member is the most worry-free for Nobita, because they are almost impossible to mess up; they are the team's safety net.

"Then, Shizuka, Asur, and I traveled to 2004 years ago."

"?" Asur looked up in surprise. "Are you going to launch a 'time pincer attack'?"

"what is that?"

"..." Seeing Da Xiong's confused look, Asul understood and shook his head in disappointment, but still patiently explained, "People in the past and present, in two different time periods, launch an attack at the same time to achieve the desired strategic effect. This is the latest tactic developed by the Time Police in the 22nd century."

"Is this the latest?" Nobita asked bluntly, scratching his head. "We used this tactic when we were in fourth grade."

……

After many gadgets were banned, Doraemon was running out of ideas when faced with the endless army of Iron Men. The enemy's army was like machines that had come straight off the production line, tireless, fearless of sacrifice, and seemingly without end; in a sense, they were like an indestructible Mother of Insects. Back then, Nobita's mastery of gadgets wasn't as proficient as it is now, and he couldn't come up with a method like Yggdrasil's infinite troop production; he could only resort to the most primitive method—brute force.

The final result, naturally, was that they were outnumbered.

In a moment of crisis, Shizuka used a combination of [Exit from the Mirror World], [Anywhere Door], and [Time Machine] to travel to Mecca Tobias 30 million years ago. Starting with the creators of the Iron Legion, she obliterated, or rather, altered, the race's very essence. Despite having no prior communication, in this life-or-death situation, the team had executed a textbook example of a time-pincer maneuver.

Of course, Nobita often uses this tactic in his daily life, even going so far as to implement a time-manipulation maneuver on himself, which usually doesn't end well. (From "Nobita's Revenge")

The drastic changes in the timeline forced him to abandon any thoughts of rest, rouse himself, and say in a deep voice, "Everyone, the next period of time may be a bit tough... We must use the [wireless phone] to maintain communication at all times."

"This is very likely part of the Apairon Foundation's plan to cause a significant technological regression to facilitate their goals. In any case, we are probably the only conscious modern humans left."

"That 'new dynasty' was established two thousand and four years ago. The only way to change all of this is to destroy it at its root!"

Chapter 158: The Prophet of the End of the Century

"Speaking of which, two thousand years ago, Japan was still in the Jomon period, and probably hadn't even developed a proper writing system yet," Shizuka analyzed in the time machine. "At that time, a unified dynasty had already emerged in the neighboring mainland China."

"New Dynasty, that's a pretty new name," Da Xiong couldn't help but complain. "Could it be that someone traveled back in time and established it?"

"No matter what, it's too exaggerated for a feudal dynasty to last for two thousand years. There must be something fishy going on. Unless they can manipulate people's minds, the accumulated conflicts will definitely explode eventually." Shizuka was very confused. "Nobita, what benefits do you think they gained by turning the whole world into a backward agrarian civilization?"

"The Apairon Foundation's goal seems to be related to destroying our technology." Recalling the words and actions of that robot cat, Nobita was still a little uncertain. "They... said they wanted to create a more advanced 'new human.' I couldn't understand the meaning behind it. All they do all day is farm and nothing else. Can that be considered a new human?"

“New Humans…” Asur sneered, “What grand ambitions they have.”

“A nation’s productivity is positively correlated with its level of technology. An industrial civilization can certainly produce more resources than an agricultural civilization. The Apairon Foundation is a 22nd-century organization, right? If they are the masterminds behind all this, what’s the point of ruling a low-productivity agricultural civilization? In that era, they didn’t even have seasonings or toothpaste!”

It was rare for Shizuka to speak so much in one go. In fact, most of the time, the team's analytical work was basically handled by Kosugi. Once she started talking, it was like a machine gun, rattling off a series of analyses that basically said everything everyone wanted to say, and she was always one step ahead. Shizuka felt there was no need for her to speak up.

At this moment, having finally found some time alone with Nobita, she poured out her heart to him like a floodgate, thus providing some supplementary information for Nobita, who wasn't very good at handling complex historical details.

Indeed, upon calming down and thinking about it, everything is filled with a strange and incongruous feeling.

Regardless of historical cycles, if the Apairon Foundation is behind this, then the so-called "royal rule" is essentially a puppet regime. Just as they exploited Toyotomi Hideyori and Dutch van der Linde, this group enjoys seeking out desperate leaders and offering them a glimmer of hope.

If no one stops the losers of these two eras, it's foreseeable that the history of America and Japan will be thrown into chaos. Perhaps the Toyotomi family's rule will continue indefinitely, or perhaps America will become a world rife with bandits—it's hard to say.

Following this logic, in the original history, the Xin Dynasty, contrary to its arrogant and cool name, was certainly a dynasty on the verge of extinction. However, the Foundation intervened, forcibly defying fate and preserving it, even annexing other civilizations in the surrounding regions. The once prosperous world lost its opportunity for development, spending two meaningless years under the rule of a royal family. How they managed to do this is currently unclear, but it's conceivable that a force not belonging to this era was at work behind the scenes.

but……

What did the Apairon Foundation, as the mastermind behind it all, gain?

A feudal autocratic dynasty.

A ghost that has been passed down in the Wang family for two thousand years, has lost all vitality, and is completely rotten!

For a 22nd-century schemer, after all that effort, isn't the prize they finally get a little meager?

What use is a rigid, inflexible, and inflexible ancient dynasty?

unless……

……

A strange chill crept up from his ankles, and the time tunnel, which had been like a kaleidoscope, suddenly darkened, a tangible darkness spreading out and obscuring all light. One of the buttons on the time machine turned red, emitting an incredibly piercing alarm that abruptly interrupted Nobita's train of thought. The sharp alarm made his heart clench, and he almost cursed aloud.

"Damn it, why do they all like to launch sneak attacks in time tunnels?!"

However, compared to the previous sniper, this newcomer was at least more aboveboard. Turning around, a figure stood quietly at the other end of the tunnel. He wore a deep black robe, the edges of which seeped through like ink, staining the moving clock patterns on the time tunnel with a distorted black, causing the minute and second hands to spin erratically. He was about two meters tall, with arms that reached past his knees, and his entire body had an unsettling, disproportionate presence. Seeing such a thing out of nowhere in the time tunnel was enough to trigger the uncanny valley effect.

A goatee, frozen like frost, clung to his chin. Beneath a dark black beret, a pair of inhuman eyes were hidden beneath white, graying eyebrows. The man's face was covered in wrinkles and age spots; it wouldn't seem strange if his face were to crack open at any moment.

This wasn't the first time Nobita had seen strange things in the time tunnel, but the ever-present danger emanating from the newcomer far surpassed that of Medusa, who had chased them that day. With Medusa, Nobita could at least sense a sliver of human emotion, but this guy…

It's more like a monster that has completely lost its humanity and is wearing human skin.

Considering the other party's floating state, it's hard to say whether he is even human.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

……

Asur's expression instantly turned serious; she gleaned more information from this unpredictable ghostly figure.

“…Eye technique!” The girl clicked her tongue, turned her head, and shouted, “Don’t look into his eyes!”

The shadow that had shrouded the newcomer's face vanished instantly. Before he could even close his eyes, Da Xiong witnessed a pair of eyes that seemed straight out of a horror movie—blood gushing from their sockets, filling their entire eye sockets. In the terrifying crimson, countless dark voices seemed to echo in his ears, disturbing his mind. A surge of inexplicable hatred rose within him, his pupils reflecting a hint of blood red. His teeth clenched, unconsciously sharpening, as if instinctively wanting to devour something.

“Buzz——!”

Two golden halos rose in Da Xiong's pupils, and in an instant, all the illusions surrounding him crumbled.

Upon regaining his senses and savoring the lingering remnants of hatred, Nobita broke out in a cold sweat. Shizuka, on the other hand, managed to close her eyes in time, escaping unscathed.

Perhaps the initial attack had failed to work, for the floating ghostly figure remained silent for a moment before its inhuman pupils widened again. Its expression was incredibly stiff, like a puppet that had been stored backstage for countless years, maintaining the same expression. Without it uttering a word, a chilling, venomous voice came from all directions, enveloping Da Xiong and the others along with the seeping blackness.

"So that's how it is, you who possess divine blood... do you also want to break my prophecy?"

"I don't even know you!" Da Xiong shouted at the top of his lungs.

"I am the 'Prophet of the End of the Century'—Michel de Notdam!" The strange, ghostly figure stretched out its withered, bony arm, swung it sharply, and said coldly, "The fate of the centuries has been written in the book..."

"You will not be allowed to change a single word!"

Chapter 159: Nostradamus's Great Prophecy

Despite their seemingly unrelated conversations, Nobita basically deduced the prophet's subtext—he knew what his group was going to do and intended to stop them. Given his unique appearance, it would be hard to believe he wasn't a villain.

"Wait a minute, this outfit looks familiar." Shizuka seemed to have a memory awakened, her face showing a troubled expression as she racked her brains for a moment, "Nostradamus... the prophet, and this strange big beard..."

Her memory has always been excellent, like a summer lightning bolt, she can accurately capture fragments of memories.

"He is Nostradamus!"

Perhaps it's modern urbanization that has gradually made people wealthier, and the relatively stable social environment has allowed most people to live above the poverty line, without worrying about food or war. Living too smoothly can lead to creating problems for oneself, becoming fascinated by dangerous stories, among which the "doomsday theory" has found a considerable market. Novels and movies related to the apocalypse always manage to resonate with contemporary young people, becoming wildly popular. And incredibly, a portion of people genuinely believe that the world might collapse at some specific point in time.

Before merchants unearthed the Mayan prophecy of the 2012 apocalypse, 1999, the year before humanity entered the new millennium, was widely regarded as a symbol of the end of the world.

The reason for this trend is that, nearly 600 years ago, an astrologer made an incredibly accurate prediction: in the summer of 1999, the King of Terror would descend from the sky, and human history would come to an end.

It's clearly a terrifying thing, but after being structured in layers, it has become a popular topic of conversation among modern people. Around the turn of the millennium, the doomsday frenzy did indeed last for a long time, and even Shizuka and her friends, who were still in elementary school at the time, couldn't escape it.

Nobita accidentally discovered Doraemon's diary, which was full of unproductive activities. When he took it out to discuss it with Suneo, Suneo, who was always on the lookout for the latest trends, interpreted it as a prophecy of the end of the world, which caused quite a commotion.

(From "The Great Prophecy: The Day the Earth Is Destroyed," this episode is clearly a reference to the famous prophetic book "The Centuries." Because Doraemon's diary entries happen to match some recent news clippings, Suneo interprets them as signs of the end of the world, which is ultimately proven to be completely unfounded.)

If Dekisugi were here, he would definitely stick his neck out and say with absolute certainty, "Superstition, it's all superstition!" But Nobita is, after all, a seasoned adventurer who has seen a lot in the world. He could tell from the other side's appearance that he was not to be trifled with, and his right foot was already on the gas pedal.

Are you also a member of the Apairon Foundation?

In his final moments, Nobita still actively sought a possible dialogue, saying, "Give up! Changing history at will will only lead to bad consequences!"

Nostradamus fell silent. Like a pre-programmed machine, he slowly extended his right hand. His black fingernails had detached from their human form, transforming into some kind of twisted, sharp claw, appearing far harder than human fingernails. Nobita had no doubt that if this claw were to land on a person, it could tear off five chunks of flesh.

Lightning gathered at his fingertips and was released much faster than Nobita had expected!

Asur remained calm, opened his right hand, and with a sudden yank, tilted the time machine nearly ninety degrees to the right. Thankfully, there were only three people on board this time, so there was something to grab onto. If it had been overloaded like before, this single movement would likely have thrown some people off…

She shouted urgently to Nobita, "Don't just stand there like an idiot! Either fight or run!"

As the lightning flashed, illuminating his pupils, Nobita unconsciously processed a wealth of information from his years of adventurous experiences: fighting in a time tunnel, the possibility of being shot down like last time, and the predicament of his companions being scattered across different eras. He knew nothing about the prophet before him, whose abilities and motives were terrifying. To rashly engage in battle without sufficient information would easily lead to a rout. Conversely, traveling back to 2004 and preventing them from altering history was the only real solution.

"boom----!!!"

With no more doubts, he stepped on the gas, and the time machine activated its hidden backup power. Two cone-shaped flames roared out, and with a strong push in the back, it accelerated instantly, rushing past Nostradamus.

"Ha, you arrogant little mouse, you think you can..."

Like a broken doll, his head creaked and twisted 180 degrees backward, staring at Nobita as he brushed past him.

With its hands outstretched, the ten fingers, now unmistakably those of a "monster," spread wide, unleashing a piercing roar.

"Escape from me—?!!"

"Boom-!!"