During the golden autumn, a gentle breeze blew by, and the golden ginkgo leaves fell like rain from the branches, covering the red and white pedestrian path.

Two young women walking their dogs stood chatting by the Half Moon Fountain in the Ming Residence Garden.

"I heard that the young lady from Beijing who just moved into building No. 8 recently brought back a fallen girl," said a woman with bright red nails, slightly curled hair, and a plump face, pulling a slim cigarette from her case and handing it to her companion.

Her companion’s face showed disdain upon hearing this, her voice rising slightly, "It’s cheap. She gets a good reputation for free. Why not?"

"Yesterday, I saw her and her driver buy all the dog food from a nearby supermarket. It looks like she plans to feed the stray dogs nearby long-term. Truly, burning money. Now, many families in the community are keeping an eye on her, secretly inquiring about her family background, wanting to connect with her."

"Heh..." Her companion sneered, lit the cigarette and took a puff.

"What’s the situation?" the plump woman asked curiously.

"Have you ever seen a young lady from a powerful family in Beijing transfer schools to here?" Her companion glanced at her meaningfully.

The plump woman’s eyes lit up, "She transferred?"

Her companion glanced to the side and suddenly lowered her voice, "A few days ago, I accidentally heard someone beside her on the phone; it seems this young lady was abandoned by her family and ’exiled’ here."

"Really? She wouldn’t be..."

"Woof woof woof—woof woof woof—"

The urgent barking suddenly interrupted their gossip.

"Xiaoxue, what is it?" The plump woman ran over in surprise to find her normally good-tempered Samoyed barking madly at a certain ginkgo tree.

Beside it, a small Teddy was also howling, its voice trembling as if it had encountered something terrifying.

Her companion went up quickly, picked up the Teddy, and comforted it tenderly.

The little Teddy was shivering and urinating, its voice whimpering, clearly very frightened.

What on earth happened?

She was curious, involuntarily looking towards the base of the ginkgo tree.

There was a pile of fallen leaves, about half a meter high, and there seemed to be something black moving among the gaps.

"Oh my God, could it be a wild animal?"

Her companion backed away in fear, but the plump woman, being more daring, cautiously walked forward with the Samoyed.

"Don’t go..."

"Let me see what it is."

At this moment, the Samoyed’s barking grew louder, even trying to escape the leash.

The plump woman released the leash, gathering her courage. When she was about five steps away, she picked up a dry branch from the ground, ready to poke forward, "What’s pretending to be a ghost here?"

But suddenly her ankle sank, and when she looked down, she saw her timid Samoyed biting her trouser leg to hold her back.

"Damei, come back. Let’s quickly find security."

Her companion called to her in a trembling voice, and the plump woman instantly deflated, retreating with the Samoyed, "You’re right, let’s go find security."

Both left hurriedly with their dogs, completely missing the changes in the ginkgo leaf pile.

***

Ming Residence Garden is a well-known affluent neighborhood in Anhe City.

Beautiful environment, convenient transportation, surrounded by large malls, parks, and hospitals.

The community’s privacy and security are top-notch, with even the security guards being highly paid professional bodyguards.

When Bai Xiaotang arrived in Anhe City, she was arranged to live here.

"Miss, I’ve reported your recent rescue of the fallen girl to President Bai. President Bai is very pleased and praised you for having grown up." The chauffeur, dressed in a black suit, looked respectfully forward.

His features were serious, his hair meticulously combed, his posture straight, his suit smooth without a crease, his shoes polished and shiny.

At first glance, one might think he was an elite executive of a large company.

In front of him walked a young woman wearing a white dress, holding a recently born stray puppy in her arms.

Upon hearing, Bai Xiaotang turned happily, her delicate baby face showing an innocent smile, and her eyes filled with an expectation of recognition, "Really? Did Big Brother really praise me for growing up?"

The chauffeur managed a perfectly adequate smile: "Indeed, President Bai not only praised you but also believes your good deeds bring glory to Bai Group, asking you to keep doing good to pray for the deceased master and madam."

"Okay."

Receiving affirmation, Bai Xiaotang turned around, her steps lighter than before, her joyous mood almost making her feel like flying with wings.

The chauffeur’s mouth curled into a smile with an uncertain meaning.

Approaching the Half Moon Fountain, several shrill female voices caught her attention.

"Oh my God, how did this vagrant get into the community?"

"What are the security guards doing, letting a vagrant in?"

"Exactly, hurry and drive him away—"

Bai Xiaotang paused, curious, and looked over.

"Miss, it seems someone is in trouble." The chauffeur timely reminded.

Bai Xiaotang immediately handed the puppy to the chauffeur, "I’ll check it out. Take care of it."

Under the forefront ginkgo tree among the crowd sat a ragged young person of indeterminate gender.

She... he... hmm...

This vagrant is overly attractive.

The beautiful peach blossom eyes were slightly drooping, looking at the ground.

Deep-set brows, high nose, vibrant like a peach and plum yet strikingly wild.

The gaze carried a sharpness, easily deterring approach despite not looking at the crowd.

The short, disheveled hair had some crushed golden ginkgo leaves, with a corner flared up, revealing a bit of smooth forehead.

The hair barely reached the earlobes, faintly showing a silver earring.

The vagrant’s body was somewhat thin, the exposed arms bony, clearly malnourished.

The ragged black clothing was severely worn, with different colors in places.

Clearly patched up with scraps of fabric from poverty.

Even so, there was no sign of humility; the face was expressionless and lips lightly pursed as if pondering.

Bai Xiaotang had never seen someone so impoverished looking so destitute; her eyes suddenly welled up with tears. Before the security chased him away, she quickly ran in front of him, extending a hand, "My name is Bai Xiaotang. Come with me. I can support you."

The surrounding people’s eyes widened, seemingly disbelieving her words.

Sponsor a vagrant and take him home, she must be out of her mind?

The scene quieted substantially.

The crowd tacitly looked at the vagrant, waiting for his reaction.

But the vagrant didn’t move his gaze or his sitting posture, one leg bent, one straight.

From afar, it looked like an art installation.

Only when Bai Xiaotang extended her hand did the vagrant’s gaze sweep over her face.

After pausing momentarily, he asked, "Is there food?"

The homeless man’s voice was low and slightly hoarse, yet not unpleasant.

Bai Xiaotang assumed the homeless man was male, looked at the driver with sympathy, and said, "He’s so pitiful. I want to help him."

The driver pressed his lips together, his expression hesitant, but quickly nodded, "Okay."

The surrounding people unconsciously made way for the driver, their gazes now holding a slight respect.

The eldest daughter of the Beijing Bai Family had to seek his opinion, so this person must hold a significant position in the Bai Family, right?

The crowd pondered his identity, wondering if they should say a few words to connect.

Suddenly, someone asked, "Excuse me, who are you?"

The driver glanced at the person indifferently, didn’t reply, and looked again at Bai Xiaotang and the homeless man, "Let’s go home first."

The person felt their question was pointless, their curiosity growing even more.

The security guard saw someone wanting to take the homeless man away and, out of professional duty, stepped forward to stop them, "Sir, the community regulations state we cannot shelter suspicious people without identification."

The driver’s expression didn’t change, he just furrowed his brows slightly and raised his chin slightly, "You’ll have his information by tomorrow."

The security guard immediately showed respect, but inwardly sighed in relief, routinely verifying Bai Xiaotang and the driver’s owner information, and promptly let the three pass.

As long as the matter of the homeless man entering the community could be quickly resolved, they wouldn’t bother and risk upsetting the residents.

After all, those who lived in Mingfu Garden were notable people of Anhe City, capable of crushing ordinary folks like them effortlessly. Assigning a new identity to a homeless man on the spot was an easy task; they must not offend.

"Just let it go like that? But he’s a home..."

"Hush—he’s not a homeless man now."

Most of the owners gathered here rarely blocked further, only their eyes followed the backs of the three, each harboring their own thoughts.

***

After leaving the crowd, the driver stopped and spoke to Bai Xiaotang respectfully, "Miss, I’ll first take him to get his identity processed."

Bai Xiaotang trusts him completely, simply waved her hand, taking the stray dog from the driver’s hand, and cheerfully replied, "Go ahead. I’ll take Xiao Huang home first."

After Bai Xiaotang walked away, the respect on the driver’s face instantly vanished, with disdain in his eyes as he glanced at the homeless man, he harshly said, "Though we generously help you, it’s best you recognize your status. Don’t think you can latch onto us for a lifetime of comfort. My Miss is simple-minded, but I’m not easy to fool... hey... you... I haven’t finished speaking... where are you going?"

The homeless man, who was originally standing there, arranged his clothes and directly ignored him, walking away.

The driver had never encountered such a person before; for a moment, he was stunned, and when he reacted, he was so angry that his eyes widened, pointing at the uncooperative back of the homeless man, he shouted, "Hey, stand still! Don’t you want to enter the Bai Family gate? Believe it or not I’ll..."

The homeless man suddenly stopped, turned around, those beautiful eyes gazed straight into the driver’s eyes, the clear black pupils resembling a bottomless pool, empty yet profound, and the furious driver instantly calmed down, his expression gradually becoming dazed.

"Get lost—"

The driver’s body jerked, as if following a command, quickly lay down, and started rolling along the roadside.

His meticulously groomed hair and clean suit were instantly covered with dirty dust, yet he had no reaction.

The homeless man withdrew his gaze, hands in his pockets, and slowly walked in the direction Bai Xiaotang had left.

***

"Huh? Done so quickly?" Bai Xiaotang saw the homeless man catching up, glanced behind him, and talked to herself, "Didn’t Uncle He come along? Seriously, how could he let you find your way alone? What if you got lost?"

The homeless man stared at her coquettish face, and stiffly uttered four words, "My name is Ji Ning."

"Don’t worry, Uncle He will get you the identity information, and from now on, no one will stop you... What? What did you say?"

Ji Ning suddenly felt a bit exhausted, unsure if it was reliable to temporarily live with this well-meaning but perhaps not-too-bright "little saint."

She had been in this strange place for three days.

Initially a bit dazed, but after three days of eavesdropping, she roughly analyzed that due to some reason she was no longer in her original time and space, but had traveled to a peaceful world with no mutated creatures, no hunger, and no war.

Her previous world was in a time of turmoil; overuse of lethal weapons had left the world in ruins, people were homeless and starving.

The radiation from the weapons caused massive mutations in humans and flora and fauna, and most survivors’ bodies and minds had changed, some for the better, some carrying unknown viruses turning into mutated dead corpses.

Among those who improved, a small number naturally awakened superpowers, becoming significantly powerful superpower users.

She was one of those naturally awakened superpower users.

To survive, she wandered the chaotic world, gradually becoming the most feared female tyrant of the turbulent times.

After clearing most mutated dead corpses, she established the first human safety zone in Hua Continent, Anhe Base, with her three henchmen in her hometown Anhe.

She thought she could finally lead a peaceful retirement life, but unexpectedly, remnants of adversarial forces allied with powerful people from other continents to besiege the base, all to eliminate her as a threat.

To ensure the safety of the base, she alone lured them to the back mountain intending to resolve them directly, but suddenly the sky darkened, a massive explosion shockwave knocked her unconscious.

When she regained consciousness and opened her eyes again, she had traveled to this place, miraculously unscathed, incredibly eerie.

And the naive, sweet saintly young lady before her was the gossip protagonist she had been hearing about for these three days.

The person truly had money, but was also truly foolish, unable to discern whether people around her were loyal or deceitful, no wonder she was "exiled" here.

Nevertheless, such a person conveniently aids her in understanding this world.

"Ah... what’s your name? Is it Ji Ning? Did I hear wrong?"

Bai Xiaotang’s sudden scream brought Ji Ning back from her thoughts.

Ji Ning looked at the enlarged doll face in front of her, sharply scanning the hand holding her.

Suppressing the instinctual urge to act, she quickly stepped back two steps, shaking off her hand.

But Bai Xiaotang followed a step forward, closing in on her again.

"Oh my, your name is Ji Ning? You have the same name as my idol. But my idol is a woman, and you are a man..."

"Woman." Ji Ning stepped back two more steps, setting a safety distance from her.

What’s wrong with this girl, why does she get handsy right upon meeting?

"Ah... really, what a coincidence, I must tell Sister Xiaotong, she’ll be even more excited than me when she finds out."

Ji Ning looked at the "little saint" in front of her, jumping with joy and devoid of any delicate demeanor, for the first time doubting her own judgment.

Is it still possible to leave now?

At the long table that could accommodate more than a dozen people, Ji Ning contentedly finished the last sip of noodle soup, causing the little puppy at her feet to bark persistently.

Just as she put down the bowl, she met two pairs of shocked gazes that couldn’t be retracted in time.

With a guilty conscience from being caught, the "Little Saint" Bai Xiaotang quickly diverted her gaze, looking at the puppy at Ji Ning’s feet, pretending to change the topic: "Xiao Huang, don’t bite sister’s pants, okay?"

The other gaze belonged to a girl named Ye Tong, her face seemingly calm, but she had subconsciously swallowed three times and glanced at the pot five times.

"Is it enough? If not, I can cook more." Ye Tong asked politely, trying to alleviate the awkwardness.

She really can eat, can’t she?

It’s already the eighth bowl, and the soup in the pot has been consumed completely...

"I’m full, thank you."

Ji Ning put down the bowl, pretending not to notice their simultaneous sigh of relief.

As a powerful superpower user, this little bit of noodles only filled her about sixty percent, but it was also the most satisfying meal she had in years.

In chaotic times, lack of clothing and food is the norm; all survivors think about daily is how to survive tomorrow. Even superpower users can’t always find enough food to satisfy their hunger, so for her, these simple noodles were already a luxury feast.

Ji Ning glanced at the bowl, savoring the remaining taste on her taste buds, then withdrew her gaze.

Ye Tong promptly placed a glass of freshly squeezed hawthorn juice in front of her, worried she might feel unwell from eating too much.

Ji Ning nodded slightly at her, but both seemed somewhat constrained, as if unsure how to alleviate the sudden awkwardness.

"Ahem... What does your idol do?" Ji Ning coughed lightly, breaking the subtle atmosphere among the three.

Bai Xiaotang’s eyes lit up, instantly replenished, she called out to the air: "Xiao Zhi, Xiao Zhi, quickly introduce Commander Ji Ning’s life story."

Just as Ji Ning followed her gaze, a gentle female voice suddenly sounded from a certain direction inside the house: "Alright, my beautiful young lady."

Ji Ning instantly straightened up, sharply scanning the place where the sound originated.

The suddenly surging spiritual power gradually calmed down upon seeing a small piece of metal.

However, the two girls opposite her did not notice the danger from just a moment ago.

The gentle female voice continued: "Commander Ji Ning was a leading figure during the warring period, one of the three War Gods who quelled the chaos, along with Fu Huayu, Ye Jianxiu, and Li Zhan, known collectively as the Four Generals of Hua Continent..."

"Pfft... ahem... ahem... with whom?" Ji Ning almost spat out the hawthorn juice she had just sipped, staring incredulously at Bai Xiaotang and Ye Tong.

Did she hear that right?

Fu Huayu, Ye Jianxiu, and Li Zhan?

Are those three guys here too?

Opposite her, Bai Xiaotang, with her hands resting under her chin, nodded with a look of joyful sharing: "Yes, the former leaders Fu, Ye, and Li. The place we’re living now, Anhe City, was formerly Anhe Base, jointly founded by them and Commander Ji Ning, which is also Commander Ji Ning’s hometown."

Ji Ning quickly took another sip of hawthorn juice, suddenly feeling her blood reverse direction, rushing straight to her head. After a few seconds of daze, she asked, "What year is it now?"

"It’s New Century Year 120, which marks the 120th anniversary of Commander Ji Ning’s sacrifice. There will be a grand celebration at the end of the year in Anhe City." Bai Xiaotang didn’t notice Ji Ning’s oddity at all.

She even stood up, took several invitation cards from outside the dining room, and flaunted them to Ji Ning: "Tada! My brother previously gave me several invitation cards, so we can all attend."

Ye Tong, who was tidying up the dishes, praised Bai Xiaotang a few times with a smile, then turned her head, asking Ji Ning with a cheerful smile, "Ji... ah, I’m a bit awkward, I’ll just call you Anning. Anning, where is your hometown?"

Ji Ning glanced at her, her expression becoming restrained.

This girl has more wit than the "Little Saint."

"In the mountains."

"In the mountains?" Ye Tong didn’t expect this answer, paused for a moment, then continued her work as if nothing happened, her expression perfectly illustrating how to remain composed, "I remember Anhe City is surrounded by mountains on three sides, is it Jiuming Mountain?"

Ji Ning lowered her eyelids, "Nanling."

Ye Tong’s smiling face instantly froze, her gaze gradually becoming wary.

So it’s Nanling...

"Where is Nanling? I’ve never heard of it. Is it fun there?" Bai Xiaotang, in her curious mode, inquired.

However, it was rare for Ji Ning and Ye Tong to agree not to explain in detail, "Just a small place in the south."

For someone like Bai Xiaotang, a young lady unfamiliar with worldly matters, she naturally wouldn’t know some common knowledge among the lower classes.

Nanling, located at the edge of the Huazhou Safety Zone, is the most dangerous gray area in Hua Continent, a place that ordinary people wouldn’t want to visit in their lifetime.

Ye Tong couldn’t help but glance at Ji Ning, who appeared calm and composed, with complex emotions.

Anyone who had stayed in Nanling would more or less carry a bit of an uncomfortable ferocity on them, but the Ji Ning before her, apart from being a bit cold and hard to approach, didn’t make her feel threatened.

Yet, it is precisely such people who are inherently more dangerous.

She must be trouble too...

And Ji Ning, by observing Ye Tong’s micro-expressions, gradually concluded: this is still the world she knows, it’s just that 120 years have passed.

She must have traveled to the future.

The momentary silence made the gentle female voice inside the house seem a bit loud.

"...Although Commander Ji Ning passed away in the first year of the New Century, her deeds deeply influenced contemporary women. She is a spiritual mentor for liberating women’s minds, her inspirational stories spread widely across Hua Continent and even the world, with the ’War God’ series of films based on her being viewed over one trillion times globally, and the ’Ji Ning’ award named after her is the highest honor for women..."

Ji Ning’s brows gradually furrowed.

Spiritual mentor? Inspirational stories? Ji Ning award?

Are they talking about her?

Beside her, Ye Tong showed envy, sighing: "The ’War God’ series of films has always been a popular IP for adaptation, as long as it’s online, it doesn’t lack traffic, and the female leads in the adaptations usually become top stars overnight."

Bai Xiaotang nodded in agreement, still petting Xiao Huang, and added: "Naturally, Commander Ji Ning is an idol for women all over the world, but earning the ’Ji Ning Award’ is too difficult. Being an actor is somewhat easier. Sister Tong, I look forward to you becoming the female lead in the ’War God’ series."

Ye Tong’s fair face instantly turned red as she shyly glanced at Bai Xiaotang, hastily took Ji Ning’s noodle bowl, and hurried into the kitchen.

Bai Xiaotang turned her head to introduce to Ji Ning, "Sister Tong is an actress. Her biggest dream is to play the female lead in the ’War God’ series of movies."

Ji Ning didn’t know what the ’War God’ was, but at this moment, she wanted to figure out where exactly she was?

Although the names and place names matched, the "Ji Ning" they mentioned seemed to be a completely different person from her.

Is that "Ji Ning" her?

Ji Ning was somewhat uncertain.

After pondering for a moment, she asked: "What is the ’War God’ series of films?"