Chapter Fifty: The Other Side of Doomsday, Her Voice
A violet figure materialized within the apartment.
Dark golden eyes opened slowly.
Luo Ling sensed the spider silk mark she had left in the twilight Kingdom, confirming she could travel back and forth freely, then reverted to her original form.
The tall figure shrunk slightly, the reflection in the full-length mirror now a black-haired girl with a cold expression, faint grotesque scales adorning her face.
“Unexpectedly, Naraku’s ability worked perfectly this time…”
Luo Ling carefully examined herself, checking for any worsening of her Grotesquery transformation, then nodded in satisfaction.
“It seems that within a limited scale, ‘Ensnare’ isn’t completely unusable. I just need to be careful.”
As for the twilight Kingdom, Iris herself had said that the Kingdom reset could erase all traces of the experiment. She didn’t seem to be exaggerating, so it should be… fine, right?
Overall, it had been a successful tea party. Luo Ling counted her gains. She had obtained twenty-four petals from selling information on the path to godhood.
Five petals were spent on purchasing information on the Realm of Nothingness from the Leader, three on the contract with Iris, and with the one she already had, she now possessed seventeen petals.
A complete floral pattern, formed by ten petals, seemed to have some special use. Luo Ling could sense that it could merge with her Inspiration, causing some kind of change.
But doing so would likely consume the pattern.
Unsure of its effects, Luo Ling didn’t dare to try, not knowing whether it was beneficial or harmful. A complete floral pattern was valuable…
“I should ask the Leader about its use… but even asking would probably cost some petals.” Luo Ling hesitated, then set the matter aside.
Besides the petals, there was also the gift from Grandma Camellia, a living, phenomenon-type Grotesquery.
Only high-order Grotesqueries wielding Authorities were called “Gods” by Apostles and Agents. Those below the top fifty Sequences were still considered Grotesqueries, used by the Grotesque-side forces to create Sacred Relics and Sacred Medicines.
However, compared to the human factions, their research in this area was far more advanced, even capable of capturing and containing living Grotesqueries.
So far, the only living, contained Grotesquery Luo Ling had encountered in the present world was the Forgotten River Child, nurtured by Performer at the cost of her own flesh and blood. Even the Grotesqueries within Elsa were dormant.
Luo Ling carefully took out the crystal bottle. The Grotesquery within, sensing the presence of the present world, thrashed violently, as if trying to escape.
But its struggle ceased instantly when Luo Ling transformed into her White Witch form.
As her grey-white eyes peered into the bottle, the Grotesquery recoiled, as if trembling in fear.
—It was terrified.
A faint, alluring aura emanated from the stable core, like a seductive dream.
“A Nightmare path Grotesquery? I could give it to Elsa, but… how should I handle a living Grotesquery? Crafting it into a Sacred Relic seems wasteful. But if I don’t, is it safe…?”
Luo Ling frowned, lost in thought.
The Grotesquery within the bottle seemed to understand her words, squirming uneasily, yet still terrified of the White Witch’s aura, burying itself deeper into the bottle, as if submitting to Luo Ling.
“Hmm, it seems docile enough. In that case…”
Luo Ling pondered. She hadn’t thoroughly investigated Elsa’s unique constitution as a Grotesquery vessel, mainly due to the trauma Scientist had inflicted.
Elsa used to have nightmares, screaming in terror, even though the White Witch’s power had suppressed the Grotesqueries within her.
Recently, perhaps because she had been sleeping with Luo Ling, Elsa seemed more at ease, her nightmares subsiding, seemingly recovering from that traumatic experience.
Besides, Scientist was dead, her remaining Sacred Relic absorbed by Luo Ling, contributing to her Naraku form’s second stage advancement.
“I’ll discuss it with Elsa later. Perhaps her constitution has other untapped potential, and this living Grotesquery could be useful.”
Luo Ling made up her mind. The Grotesquery within the bottle, sensing its reprieve, relaxed slightly.
After storing the crystal bottle in her hair, Luo Ling’s expression turned serious as she considered the sealed memory fragment from the Leader, hesitating whether to examine it now.
She was worried about being interrupted by her teammates’ return, and Elsa wasn’t here to handle them.
However, after glancing at the time, Luo Ling didn’t hesitate any longer.
“Huh, it’s only been ten minutes…”
Luo Ling was certain she had spent at least half a day, if not eight or nine hours, within the Kingdom, the experiment itself taking a considerable amount of time.
Yet, only ten minutes had passed in the present world.
However, after comparing it to her previous Kingdom experiences, Luo Ling gave up on calculating the time dilation. It was too erratic.
She had entered a Kingdom three times. The first time, she had stumbled in with her team, the second time, she had been taken to the tea party from the twilight Kingdom, and the third time was today.
The time flow within Kingdoms seemed unstable, each time different, with no discernible pattern.
Perhaps there was a pattern, but it was beyond her current understanding.
“Since it’s still early, I don’t have to worry.”
Luo Ling composed herself. The team’s work hours ended at 7:30 pm, though they usually worked overtime. They were regular Company employees, not freelancers like Luo Ling, required to be present even without a commission.
However, Luo Ling’s base salary was practically nonexistent, her payment technically considered performance-based, according to her contract.
Therefore, if Luo Ling didn’t provide sufficient value, the Company could stop paying her without violating their contract with Order.
Luo Ling hadn’t initially understood the concept of performance-based pay, only realizing it later after Cen Xiangyun’s explanation, feeling tricked by the Company…
—Truly a bunch of capitalists.
But Luo Ling didn’t need their paltry salary. Any item on her person was worth more than their entire payroll.
Besides, although the privileges granted by the three directors were a form of control and manipulation, others didn’t know that, at least not the finance department.
In their eyes, Luo Ling was practically on par with the board’s secretary, and Melissa’s status at headquarters was undeniable.
Therefore, with Luo Ling’s perceived importance, they wouldn’t dare to underpay her, likely even overpaying.
After preparing herself, Luo Ling carefully unsealed the memory fragment, then, in her original form, used the White Witch’s hair to activate her second ability, “Read.”
First, she scanned the memory, ensuring there were no traps or hidden messages from the Leader, before accessing it.
Luo Ling closed her eyes. When she opened them again, she was surrounded by an endless void, everything seemingly nonexistent.
“The Realm of Nothingness?”
Luo Ling was familiar with this sensation, having traversed the Realm of Nothingness countless times.
However, while familiar to her, it was a unique experience for others, only truly experienced within such memories.
“Is this all the Leader gave me?” Luo Ling’s lips twitched. “If so… my five petals were wasted.”
Experiencing the Realm of Nothingness was easy. She could simply jump into any Boundary’s edge, a far more vivid experience, no need for someone else’s memory.
However, the Leader didn’t know about Luo Ling’s ability, so offering this memory for five petals was… reasonable, right?
…Bullshit!
She would demand a refund!
As Luo Ling considered whether the tea party allowed refunds, the long silence was finally broken. The Realm of Nothingness… was no longer empty.
“Hmm?”
As a faint light flickered in the eternal darkness, Luo Ling’s expression turned serious, watching intently.
She seemed to perceive something more about the Realm of Nothingness.
—Although the Leader’s prices were high, she always delivered.
This was the consensus among all tea party members who had dealt with her.
And it remained true.
The faint light grew, like in an instant, yet also like an eternity, expanding into a palm-sized spot of light.
As Luo Ling’s gaze shifted, she noticed countless other points of light scattered throughout the Realm of Nothingness.
These lights, like pieces of a puzzle, slowly converged, merging together.
Then, sounds appeared.
And wind.
Sunlight, trees, buildings…
In a blink of an eye, the sullen, black-haired girl found herself amidst a bustling crowd, the previous eternal void… like a dream.
She was in Victoria.
“This is… a Boundary?” Luo Ling looked around, her breath catching in her throat. “Just now, was that… the birth of a Boundary?
“Can an annihilated Boundary be reborn?”
No, wait…
Luo Ling recalled the sensation, her mind calming slightly.
It was a Boundary collapse.
A Boundary, having progressed to a certain point in time, under some undeniable force, would collapse to a previous era.
And in that previous era, what should have been the Realm of Nothingness was now occupied by the collapsed Boundary.
This process…
Luo Ling, having experienced it through the memory, seemed to grasp something.
She closed her eyes, no longer experiencing the Realm of Nothingness memory, but entering a familiar yet rarely visited place.
The depths of her consciousness space.
Opening the door at the end of the ancient corridor, she was met with an eternal void, and within this void, she saw herself.
Her usually tied-up, shoulder-length hair flowed freely, her half-closed eyes tinged with dark gold, faint red patterns at the corners.
Her arms, wrapped around her knees, were covered in blue scales, extending across her entire body, like a demon from the underworld, yet exuding a deep sadness.
Luo Ling reached out, gently embracing herself.
The girl slumbering in the void slowly awakened.
But her open eyes held only eternal sorrow.
[Doomsday – ???]
The girl walked the Path of Doomsday, towards the end of the world, everything returning to nothingness.
Only now did she know… that within the void, there wasn’t only Doomsday.
From the Realm of Nothingness, through a Boundary collapse, a new Boundary was born. Luo Ling, having experienced the entire process through the memory, understood this perfectly.
No one, not even the Leader who possessed this memory, could surpass her understanding.
Because they didn’t walk the Path of Doomsday.
“All Paths have two sides.”
Luo Ling reached out, as if sensing something within the void, a smile appearing on her lips, yet her sorrow lingered.
“The other side of Doomsday is Transcendence.”
—The Path of Transcendence.
The other side of the Seventh Path, Doomsday.
The Realm of Nothingness devoured everything, yet it could also create everything.
Therefore, the culmination of Transcendence…
Luo Ling trembled, an irresistible urge welling up within her.
Like the Realm of Nothingness, she had also devoured many beings, some becoming her power, while others she kept within her heart, unable to forget, unable to let go.
She was a vessel, preserving a lingering warmth.
“Sister…”
Countless images flashed through Luo Ling’s mind, each carrying a gentle smile.
She looked at her hands, the grotesque blue-black scales and sharp claws now shedding their darkness, turning a holy, pale gold, though the scales remained.
[Transcendence – ???]
Silver hair, tinged with gold, cascaded down, but Luo Ling’s gaze wasn’t on herself. She stared into the void, or rather, at the being she had “transcended” within the void.
Her sister’s memories, her emotions, her consciousness, everything…
It was all here.
Finally.
A gentle, unassuming woman materialized, dressed in a simple white dress, her hair loosely tied up, her face beautiful, yet unforgettable.
She opened her eyes slowly, seemingly seeing Luo Ling, a gentle, almost terrifying smile appearing on her lips.
“Xiao Ling…”
She looked at Luo Ling, her eyes filled with love and longing, just like that day.
In her world, there had always been… only her beloved younger sister.
She was no longer the Puppet Ballad.
She was Su Wan.
Luo Ling’s sister.
“Sister always knew, Xiao Ling has been working very hard.”
“Sister is watching…”
She smiled, walking towards Luo Ling.
But as she was about to embrace her, the light outlining her form scattered like butterflies, fading away.
The holiness and elegance vanished, the darkness and grotesqueness returning, her face turning demonic.
“But it’s not enough.” Luo Ling stared into the void. “My efforts aren’t enough.”
Luo Ling had only glimpsed the Path of Transcendence, not yet embarked on it.
This… was merely a miracle, nearly impossible to replicate.
Only by walking the Path of Transcendence, wielding an Authority similar to “Devour,” could she truly achieve her goal.
But regardless…
“There’s hope now, isn’t there?”
Luo Ling smiled softly, a smile only her sister could see.
She opened her arms, embracing the void, even though it contained… nothing.
But her sister had been there, hadn’t she?
Her efforts had been acknowledged by her sister… hadn’t they?
Even this much… was enough.
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