The world was ending.
Liam didn't need a news broadcast or a warning siren to tell him that. He could feel it — in the way the earth trembled beneath his feet, in the distant rumble that never stopped, in the metallic taste of smoke thick in the air.
He stood alone on the rooftop of the crumbling apartment block, the city skyline glowing with fire. The sky was a twisted palette of orange and black, smeared with ash. Mushroom clouds dotted the horizon like obscene monuments. He hugged his arms close, not for warmth — there was none left — but for the illusion of comfort.
He was seventeen. He should've been worrying about exams, late homework, and what to wear to prom. Instead, he was watching humanity's final hour unfold.
The war had spiraled out of control. Politicians spoke of lines crossed, of deterrents activated. The bombs fell before anyone could take it back.
Liam didn't know what came first — the explosion or the silence. He only remembered the light. Blinding, pure, all-consuming.
And then—
Darkness.
Nothingness.
But hi thoughts did not cease.
'What's happening. Why am i still thinking'
'Am i still alive after being blasted'
He don't know how much time passed when everything changed.
----
World of Azure Sky Realm
Golden Crane Kingdom
Cloudveil city
Feng Family
Eastern courtyard
Unlike normal days, today was very busy day for everyone here as the Feng Lianhua, wife of 5th elder (Brother of head of family) who had already sacrificed himself while fighting the demonic beasts was giving birth.
Servants were running here to there. They had a nervous expression as their is a rumor that during pregnancy the lady had bleed and maybe child might be already dead. But it was never conformed nor does anyone let cultivators of family to examine the child with their Spiritual Qi as doing so in a will completely expose the lady to senses of the cultivation leaving her no privacy and lady did not agree to it.
Inside a room of the courtyard, it was well-lit by illuminating stones. A female was laying on the bed and looked like she was in pain. Few servants and a midwife was standing besides her and encouraging the lady to push. Midwife was also helping her by putting pressure on the stomach of the lady.
After sometime the baby was born. But it did not cry.
Just as everyone was thinking that the rumors were true, the baby started to cry loudly.
But no one knew what earthshattering in this case time shattering was happening at this time if you can call it at this time at although present was normal, past was changing creating new timelines.
-----
Liam's POV
Suddenly everything changed.
I started to feel thing. The first thing i felt was suffocation and pain.
I tried to scream but the only thing i heard was a baby's cry.
I tried to see my surroundings and open my eyes but what i saw made me scared i did not see like a normal person will see.
What i saw was fragmented and complete at same time.
I saw a like seeing a VR movie but this time it was different. Every instant it left behimd a projection and it continued to play.
When i tried to remove 1 of the projections, something odd happened. It was like the projection came to life. It also started to move and leave behind new projections.
Something more odd happened, I started to feel 2 bodies and 2 threads of thought, It was like there were 2 me. Both me were exactly the same not something like a clone or something.
Scared i tried to remove the projections again but they just kept coming to life. With every projection i gained 1 more body and thought process. After having 100s of them i calmed down and started to think, no longer trying to remove those projections.
"What are these projections and that VR like thing on which many women are speaking some unknown language. And it looks like a very close shot as they are apearing quite big."
As i calmed down the voice of baby also disappeared. I tried to raise my hands while trying to do it without making those projections come to life.
Then i saw small hand in the VR like thing.
"Had i reincarnated"
"I am i a baby"
"But what's with this type of vision. What exactly is happening"
Then i am given to a lady who is lying on a bed.
Then the lady hugged me gently and started to breastfeed me.
After some time i started to experiment by focusing my 1 thread of thought at 1 VR like thing each.
Then my vision shifted my every thread of thought saw like they were the baby themselves.
They tried to move the baby body differently and i found that i am able to move each body differently at same time while still feeling what was happening in with other bodies.
It is like there is only 1 consciousness but 100s of bodies and thought threads.
I also find that there is gap of time in between the bodies example, the gap between 1st and last projection is nearly 10 minutes. Is like i am seeing future through a different timeline.
Then i started to think using my 132 brains that i had counted.
"If i think of all cheats and beings i had read in comics and novels than maybe"
Liam is right now feeling very excited
"maybe"
"I am now a 4 dimensional being with the 4th dimension being time"
"Just like how a line contain infinite points, a circle contain infinite radius, a 3 dimensional space is made of infinite stack of 2d planes"
"I a 4d being can have infinite timelines'
"Yes"
"Yes"
"Yeeees"
"Hurray, this is my cheat"
"The best cheat"
"If someone in future is going to kill me then i can create a new timeline from any point of time in the past"
"Hahahahahah"
"Yeeees"