The Inner Odyssey - Chapter 132: Catharsis

Hunter Cha Eui-jae, who was dispatched to seal a rift that appeared over the West Sea, was flung out as soon as he closed the rift. When he came to his senses, he was lying in a garbage dump.Starving, he was drawn like a zombie is to blood to a hangover soup restaurant, where he realized that he had fallen into South Korea, eight years in the future.In this era, disaster alerts notify people of rift openings in advance, ASMR videos of slimes gathered from dungeons were trending, and idle hunters livestream unboxings of A-rank longswords.Unlike the past, where people trembled in fear of an impending apocalypse, the future was surprisingly peaceful, leaving Cha Eui-jae feeling empty. Since things had turned out this way, why not start a second chapter of life as a part-timer at the hangover soup restaurant, rather than being a hunter?“That’s strange.”“…”“Have we met somewhere before?”Cha Eui-jae’s plan to quietly spend his remaining days as the only part-time worker at the decades-old hangover soup restaurant goes awry when he encounters a mysterious, gas-masked individual…DISCLAIMER: The story isn't mine

aira swore she’d keep her heart locked until her final year ended. No distractions. No love. Just goals.But then he walked in—arrogant, mysterious, and dangerously charming.One wrong glance turned into late-night texts. One shared secret became a stolen kiss.And suddenly, the future she’d planned… didn’t seem so clear anymore.Can she graduate without breaking her heart? Or will love ruin everything before the last bell rings?

Sometimes. You face a choice in your life

“Choose. Between the two of them. Whom will you save, Michael Aroa?”

You look back into your life and wonder how you ended up here

“Michael please!! Save your mother!! Not me. Michael you don’t need to make a choice here!! Michael! I love you! I won’t hate you for your choices!! Please save your mother!!”

You question the path that you took that brought you to this point

“Son. She is your wife! She has your child. It’s not one life over another but two over one. I am already old but she has a long life. You are smart enough to make the right decision, Son, aren’t you?”

Since it hurts, you wish you could stop time and have some time to think

[Activating Ability: Temporal Pause!!]

[Activation failed!! Not enough Energy!!]

You wish to go back into the past and change everything that led you to here

[Activating Ability: Time Reverse!!]

[Activation Failed!! You don’t have the Requirements to use this ability!!]

And then when nothing works as it shouldn’t.

[Are you sure you want to use this ability?]

You make a decision that you had never thought you would

[Activating ability!]

And then... Chaos ensues

[Ability Activated]

[God Power: Time Collapse]

Xu Shulou dreams she’s a character in a bizarre storybook.The male lead is Long Aotian, a man with a “Dragon Overlord” script: treasures fall into his lap, beauties vie for his heart.The first heroine is his delicate junior apprentice sister. The second, the Demon Sect’s saintess. The third… the fourth…Where does Xu Shulou rank? She flips through the plot and realizes—despite being Long Aotian’s official fiancée, she’s nothing but a disposable pawn.In the story, her sect elders dote on her fragile junior sister.“Shulou, yield this treasure to your sister. She’s weaker and needs it more.”“Shulou, don’t be unreasonable. Your gentle sister deserves care.”Even Long Aotian prefers the junior sister. He’s a flirtatious mess, forcing Xu Shulou to compete with other women, her jealousy twisting her into a villain. Meanwhile, the junior sister blossoms into a pristine lotus.But Xu Shulou refuses to play along.When the script demands she and her junior sister be kidnapped, Long Aotian saves the “weaker” girl, saying, “Shulou, you’re stronger—you’ll understand.”In reality? Long Ao Tian arrives just in time to see Xu Shulou slaughter the villains, scoop her sister into her arms, and vanish into the sky—without sparing him a glance.When demons attack, the story expects Long Aotian to leave his fiancée and lovers in the sect’s care. The elders protect only the junior sister, letting Xu Shulou be humiliated.In reality? The elders sneer: “Our senior sister dominates the cultivation world. Why would we need you to worry about her?”When the story’s Long Aotian coaxes the Demon Saintess into betraying her clan for him…In reality, the Saintess timidly asks Xu Shulou: “You’re a righteous heroine. I’m a hunted demon. Why would you want to befriend me?”In the script, Xu Shulou claws at other women in jealous rage.In reality, she’d rather live in peace—until Long Aotian pushes too far. Then she draws her sword.In the story, Long Aotian reigns supreme, surrounded by beauties.In reality, Xu Shulou steals his allies, hoards his treasures, and occasionally beats him up—while he sulks.“My sword saves the world and shields the innocent. It’s not for fighting over men.”“See? Dreams lie. I’m the one holding the Dragon Overlord script.”