The Observer Unbound by Time

That afternoon, Yin Shen met a friend at a teahouse restaurant.

From the second floor, Yin Shen waved and called out, "Over here!"

A man in the lobby spotted him immediately and walked up with a smile.

The buzz-cut man was an online writer and Yin Shen's university classmate. He was the type who knew a little about everything but never delved too deeply into any single subject. This made him the perfect person for a casual chat.

Yin Shen enjoyed talking with him. They would discuss everything under the sun, from science and science fiction to mythology and history, and from astronomy and geography to military affairs and folk tales.

It was not rigorous, just pure idle talk, but it was relaxing.

This time, the two started with history and moved to mythology. Then, from mythology, they chatted about strange tales and supernatural novels, mixing in some peculiar Western legends along the way.

Yin Shen suddenly leaned in. "You know, lately I've been getting this weird feeling every night around midnight. It's like another version of me just slips out of my body."

"And for the rest of the night, it feels like I'm just watching myself from a distance, right up until I wake up."

"It's kind of like..."

"I don't know, maybe it's like astral projection, or that spirit body stuff you write about in your novels."

"What do you think it could be?"

Instead of laughing at the absurdity of what Yin Shen said, the buzz-cut man thought for a moment, seriously organizing his thoughts.

"Alright, let's break it down. If humans really do have souls, what do you think they are made of?"

"Are we talking about matter, or some kind of energy?"

Yin Shen pondered for a moment before answering uncertainly.

"It seems like neither."

The buzz-cut man asked, "What about memory and consciousness? Are they part of the soul, or are they still in the brain?"

Yin Shen replied confidently, "They're part of the soul."

"My body feels like an anchor, just keeping my soul tied down here."

"I always feel like if I just struggled a little, I could break free, but there's this sense that something terrifying would happen if I did."

"The thought alone fills me with panic, so I never dare to go any further."

Yin Shen chuckled. "So, do you think I'm about to unlock some superpower, or maybe start cultivating immortality?"

The buzz-cut man shook his head. "Let's forget about whether what you're saying is real for a second. If humans truly have souls, and these souls are not made of matter or energy, yet can store memory and consciousness, then that is far beyond what superpowers or immortal cultivation could ever achieve."

"Things like astral projection or spirit body wandering are just concepts imagined by the ancients. Compared to what you're describing, the difference would be as vast as the heavens and the earth."

"Even the gods in historical mythology or the immortals in Taoist legends would pale in comparison to such an existence."

"Not even Pangu, who split heaven and earth, the Creator God, Brahma, Chaos, or Azathoth could contend with you."

Yin Shen was stunned. They had just been discussing human souls. How did the conversation suddenly jump to creator gods from different mythologies?

"Come on, isn't that a bit of a stretch? You're making it sound way too incredible."

The buzz-cut man leaned forward, his tone serious. "I'm not making this up. There is a logic to it."

"Think about it. The universe is made of matter, right? And time is just how we measure the movement and changes of that matter."

"If your soul isn't made of matter or energy, and your consciousness is tied to your soul instead of your brain..."

He paused for emphasis. "What does that tell you?"

"It means your soul and this universe are like two completely separate things. You could step outside this universe, and maybe even outside of time itself."

"Now, isn't that something to think about?"

Yin Shen asked, "So, if the soul breaks free from the body, it just leaves the universe entirely?"

"Could it go beyond time, move through space and years, and just drift along the timeline?"

"Maybe even visit different eras and change history?"

The buzz-cut man shook his head slightly. "Not exactly."

Yin Shen frowned. "Why not?"

The buzz-cut man replied, "Like I said, the soul you're describing and this universe are like two completely separate planes. They do not overlap at all."

"If you have no connection to the universe, how would you even perceive that it exists?"

"And if you can't perceive the universe, how could you possibly sense time, let alone travel through it?"

Yin Shen suddenly felt he understood the source of his fear.

"So you're saying that when the soul leaves the body, it's like a ship without coordinates, drifting away from the universe and maybe never finding its way back?"

The buzz-cut man nodded. "That's one way to look at it. But there's also the possibility that some kind of connection remains with the physical universe, like an anchor point."

"With that anchor point, you could still observe the universe even if you're outside of it. You'd become something like an observer, floating beyond the universe and time."

"If there were multiple anchor points at different times, you might even be able to do what you were talking about and travel along the timeline."

At this point, the buzz-cut man's tone grew somber.

"But there's another possibility," the buzz-cut man said thoughtfully.

"The moment you break away from your body's anchor point, you might be thrown into some unknowable place beyond the universe."

"It could be another universe, the source of time, another dimension, or something completely beyond human imagination."

"Maybe there's nothing there at all. It could be like a prison, where your soul is trapped for ten million, even a hundred million years."

"Even until... eternity."

A heavy silence fell over the table. For a long moment, neither of them spoke.

Suddenly, the buzz-cut man laughed, breaking the tension. He picked up the teapot and filled Yin Shen's cup.

"That's an interesting idea you've got there. It's pretty unique."

"I think I'll use it for my next book. Who knows? It might just turn into a bestseller."

The buzz-cut man clearly didn't take what Yin Shen said seriously. He treated it as just another one of their usual sessions of unbridled imagination and unrestrained speculation.

Yin Shen, however, was lost in thought. He stood up, ready to leave.

"Alright, I'm heading out."

"Hey, if you do end up writing about it, or if you come up with any new ideas, let me know. We can bounce them around."

Just as he was about to leave, the buzz-cut man called out, "Wait a second, Yin Shen."

He reached into his backpack and pulled something out with a grin. "Since you gave me such a cool idea, I've got something for you."

Yin Shen took the box. Opening it, he found an irregular stone with an intricate insect pattern on it.

"What's this? A fossil?"

The buzz-cut man replied, "Redlichia, a type of trilobite."

"This fossil might not be worth much, but just think about it. You're holding a creature from hundreds of millions of years ago. Isn't that amazing?"

"Take it home, put it on display, and just imagine what Earth was like back then. Think about those ancient creatures and everything they went through."

Yin Shen thanked his friend and left, looking down at the gift in his hand.

However, just as he reached the lobby, a car lost control on the street outside. It crashed through the glass doors at over a hundred kilometers per hour, a wave of shattered glass surging before it as it crushed toward Yin Shen.

Yin Shen, holding the fossil in his hand, was thrown like a rag doll.

Lying in a pool of blood, Yin Shen's vision began to blur.

"Who drives so recklessly that they can crash all the way from the main road into a restaurant lobby?"

As his vision cleared for one final moment, a sense of understanding washed over him.

"Oh, a Tesla... figures..."