Chapter 5: Infinite Space and Unwelcome Guests

Chapter 5: Infinite Space and Unwelcome Guests

Back in the grand living room of Villa No. 1, Mira sat with her eyes closed, exploring the newly awakened dimension attached directly to her consciousness.

With a single thought, her mind entered the Infinite Space.

It was a vast, boundless subterranean dimension bathed in a soft, ethereal light. The ground beneath felt solid and smooth like obsidian, extending endlessly into the horizon.

As she tested the space, the system interface displayed its core rules and mechanics:

[Infinite Space: System Operating Rules]

 * Absolute Time Stasis: Physical, chemical, and biological decay are completely frozen. Boiling water will remain scalding forever; frozen ice will never melt; fresh-cooked food will never spoil or lose heat.

 * Instant Spatial Transfer: Items within a ten-meter physical radius can be stored or retrieved instantly with a simple mental command.

 * Environmental Isolation: Living creatures cannot be stored, but organic matter, seeds, liquids, fuel, and weapons are preserved in pristine condition indefinitely.

 * Spatial Categorization: Items stored automatically organize into distinct virtual grids for seamless tracking and immediate retrieval.

Mira let out a breath of pure satisfaction. In her previous life during the apocalypse, the biggest nightmare wasn't just finding food; it was keeping it fresh, defending it from scavengers, and carrying heavy supplies across ruined roads.

With this space, she could hoard millions of tons of fresh meat, clean water, medical supplies, fuel, and heavy ammunition without ever carrying a single bag or worrying about spoilage.

"First order of business tomorrow: massive hoarding," Mira murmured, her eyes cold with determination. "Food, medical gear, solar batteries, and weapons."

Meanwhile, inside the corporate office of Lin Enterprise, Julien sat behind his mahogany desk, staring at the financial report his head attorney had just slapped onto the blotter.

His face was contorted in disbelief.

"This is impossible!" Julien roared, slamming his palms onto the desk. "Twelve million dollars? In cash? Where did she get twelve million dollars?"

The family lawyer wiped sweat from his forehead. "Mr. Lin, we ran a full forensic check on Mrs. Lin's—excuse me, Ms. Mira's—personal accounts following the divorce filing. It turns out her late adoptive father placed a massive overseas private equity fund in her name twenty years ago. It matured three days ago, and the total yield transferred directly into her private single-woman account this morning."

"Twenty years ago?" Julien gasped, his throat going completely dry.

He felt as though someone had forcefully ripped his heart out. For five years, he had treated Mira like an uneducated, penniless orphan who owed her entire existence to his charity. He had systematically stripped her of her dignity, forced her to serve his family, and assumed he held absolute control over her life.

And all this time, she was sitting on an immense fortune that eclipsed his own company's liquid assets.

"My money," Julien muttered, his eyes bloodshot with sudden, violent greed. "That money should have been mine. If she had stayed married to me for one more week, that entire fund would have merged into our marital assets."

Just then, the office door burst open. Mrs. Vance rushed in, her face still bruised and swollen, followed by Chloe holding her young son, Leo.

"Julien!" Mrs. Vance shrieked, waving her phone hysterically. "Is it true? Marcus posted on social media that Mira bought Villa No. 1 on Mount Mist—the peak villa!"

"Mother, calm down—"

"How can I calm down?" Mrs. Vance screamed, her voice shaking with jealousy and rage. "Do you know who built that villa? Mrs. Gable's high-society sister. Every time I went to those country club teas, those snobbish women rubbed that mountain villa in my face. I've dreamed of living on Mount Mist for ten years. How can that miserable woman live in Villa No. 1 while we stay down here?"

Chloe clutched Julien's arm, tears brimming in her eyes. "Julien, if she has that much money, she'll destroy us. What if she uses her wealth to take Leo away? What if she ruins your company's reputation out of revenge?"

Julien's hands clenched into tight fists until his knuckles turned ghostly white.

His original plan had been completely shattered. He was supposed to watch her freeze and starve on the streets, begging on her knees for a crust of bread so he could force her back into submission. Instead, she was living in the most luxurious, impenetrable mansion in the entire city, looking down on him from the peak of the mountain.

"She tricked me," Julien hissed through gritted teeth, his expression twisting into something ugly and menacing. "She deliberately hid her wealth from me during our marriage. She used me to keep her safe until her fund matured, and then she threw me away."

He grabbed his suit jacket off the chair and shoved his way past his mother.

"Where are you going, Julien?" Mrs. Vance yelled after him.

"To get what's mine," Julien growled bitterly. "We were married for five years. That money is marital property. I'm going to bring that woman back to her senses."

Back at Villa No. 1, evening had fallen over the mountain.

Mira was sitting at her kitchen island, sipping a cup of hot chamomile tea while outlining a massive, multi-million-dollar supply list on her tablet: grain, canned meat, antibiotics, gasoline, winter gear, and water filtration units.

Suddenly, a harsh, violent pounding echoed from the heavy front door.

"Mira! Open this damn door right now!"

Julien's furious, muffled voice boomed through the reinforced entrance.

Mira didn't flinch. She took a slow sip of her tea, set the porcelain cup down on the marble counter, and wiped her lips with a napkin.

She walked calmly toward the grand entryway, where the high-definition smart monitor near the door showed Julien standing outside under the porch light. His tie was loosened, his hair was disheveled, and his face was contorted in a mixture of wounded male pride and unbridled greed.

Mira pressed the intercom button, her tone smooth, cool, and completely devoid of emotion.

"Julien," she said. "You're trespassing on private property."

Outside, hearing her calm voice through the speaker, Julien kicked the lower panel of the heavy oak door in a rage.

"What the hell is going on, Mira?" Julien screamed into the camera unit. "Where did you get twelve million dollars? You hid an inheritance behind my back for five years while living off my family's food and roof? Open this door right now. We need to renegotiate our divorce settlement!"