A month ago, when Xueji came into contact with the Great Shadow, Eva touched the core of the Authority of Creation within the high-speed world.
Amidst radiant blue light, Eva once again met the sea goddess who was like a mother to her.
“Little Eva, come to my side. I’ll teach you how to cross that step.”
“Mm!”
Eva moved her legs, not realizing she was now in the ocean, her whole body sinking downward.
“Mmph! Glub glub glub…”
In her panic, even though she shouldn’t have been able to drown, Eva somehow managed to anyway, flailing her arms and legs wildly in the water.
This made Thetis hurriedly help her control the water.
The whirlpool transformed into a pathway, carrying Eva into the simulated sea.
“Don’t be afraid. Within this azure expanse, you can do as you please.”
Under her guidance, Eva slowly grew accustomed to the feeling of being wrapped in water.
“Next, you must watch carefully at everything I do.”
Getting straight to the point, Thetis didn’t beat around the bush.
She held Eva’s hands from behind, guiding her hand in hand to recreate the scene of life’s creation.
“Humans once deduced the process of life’s birth—a miracle that emerged from the primordial sea.”
“It truly surprises me. Humans seem to possess endless wisdom, able to continuously explore the essence of the world.”
The azure sea goddess gently spoke of her impressions of humanity.
“Call me mother one more time. I really adore you as a child.”
“Mother Thetis, what’s wrong?”
Eva sensed something was off and tried to turn around, but Thetis held her in place, leaning against her back.
“Don’t panic. Nothing bad will happen.”
“Then what about you?” Eva asked, struggling.
Even Thetis herself didn’t know the answer to that question.
But she didn’t care. She wanted to give a gift to the one child she held dearest.
“Alright, stop fussing for now.”
A gentle, mysterious aura emanated from Thetis, channeled through Eva’s hands.
Within that cyan-crystal-like barrier, a small world was creating life.
Those tiny, microscopic specks, in the primordial seawater, were being stimulated by intense heat and lightning, gradually changing in a certain direction.
Time was stretched infinitely within that brief instant, and Eva was intoxicated by such a wondrous sight.
Every moment was etched so clearly into her mind that Eva felt her very soul resonating with this process.
As if she could do it too—as if she had always been able to.
Her hands reached out on their own, taking the Mirror of Creation from Thetis’s grasp.
In those young hands of hers, a crescent-moon-like silver light swirled.
Why the Authority of Creation couldn’t be used in the high-speed world—Eva now understood.
It wasn’t because of any problem with her. It was because life was born after the Laws of Time were established, and was thus inherently shackled by time from birth.
But with the help of Thetis—a genuine deity—she could now break free from time’s chains and witness an even more magnificent vista.
Thetis watched with great satisfaction as she took it all in.
Eva had gone from human to alchemical creation, and from alchemical creation back to human. The transformations involved in this—the conversion between life and magical constructs—already belonged to the domain of the gods.
Now, with Thetis’s help, just as an infant naturally knows how to cry, she had effortlessly learned the true art of creation.
That beating heart, in this process, resonated with the tides and transformed into a translucent Heart of the Sea.
“Child, you did very well.”
“Well then, let’s meet again next time, my little darling.”
When time flowed once more, Eva was alone in the vast, empty simulated sea.
“Thetis, where did you go?”
“Mother, where are you?!”
[Child, don’t panic. I am with you.]
Thetis’s voice came from the depths of Eva’s heart.
[We will meet again sooner or later. For now, let me help you in this way.]
The next day, after Eva left the simulated sea, the ocean that had raged for years finally began to gradually calm.
Similarly, thanks to Xueji and Lilith’s actions, the shattered world began to recover, and the broken laws were repairing themselves.
The crisis facing humanity—and indeed the entire world—had come to an end.
…
By the time Xueji awoke, it was already New Year’s Eve. It was time for the Spring Festival.
The whole world was ignited with passion for the arrival of the new era, and the festive atmosphere was intoxicating.
Xueji temporarily said goodbye to her reunited companions and went home for the first time in a long while.
Decorative lanterns and knot ornaments dressed up the streets, creating a joyful scene everywhere.
Was her last visit home a few months ago, or a few years?
Xueji’s sense of time had been thrown into disarray by constant emergency missions, and it felt like ages had passed.
The Spring Festival couplets at home had already been put up, and Xueji felt a dazed sense of having stumbled into somewhere unfamiliar.
She knocked on the door, and her parents were overjoyed to see her.
Sitting on the soft sofa, the relaxed atmosphere at home allowed her to temporarily set aside all the matters accumulated in her mind.
“Oh, come sit, come sit! Dinner’s ready too—Xiao Ji, you came back at just the right time,” her mother said with a smile, welcoming her.
Four dishes—white-cut chicken, pork belly with preserved mustard greens, steamed sea bass, and steamed cured sausage—with chicken soup for hot pot.
Xueji hadn’t tasted home cooking in a long time and dug in with gusto.
Seeing her about to choke, her father quickly poured her a drink.
Her mother gently patted her head and smiled softly. “You must have been starving, my good child.”
“Eat more—want another bowl of rice?”
“Yes!”
Xueji hadn’t eaten this well in ages. She sat on the sofa rubbing her slightly bulging belly.
After the family finished their New Year’s Eve dinner, they sat around the heater chatting about everything under the sun.
Her parents only asked a few questions about how she’d been doing—most of their questions were probing for information about the younger sisters around Xueji.
Her mother leaned in and asked quietly, “Hey hey, how come that Miss Ling didn’t come back with you?”
“Mom, what are you implying?!”
“Oh, come on. I know it’s not my place to say much, and sure, you’ve become the ‘cabbage’ yourself now, but you really shouldn’t be flirting around so much.”
“And you can’t run from the responsibilities you should bear!”
Her mother’s advice was earnest and heartfelt, and Xueji’s face grew redder and redder as she listened.
“I—I know. Once my business is settled, I’ll take responsibility.”
“Then Mom can rest easy.”
Only then did her mother get up smugly and head to the kitchen, while her father leaned in next.
The sudden formality made the atmosphere inexplicably fall silent.
“Xiao Ji, did something happen that made you come back so suddenly?”
Her father’s gaze was restrained yet sharp. In this atmosphere, there was no need to hide anything.
“Dad… I really did run into some trouble.”
“Even you’re calling it trouble? Sounds like something far beyond what I could imagine.”
“But since you chose to come back here, I think you want to talk to me about it.”
“Yeah. Someone very important to me has disappeared. I’m going to find her.”
“You don’t have to say it—I can guess the road ahead won’t be easy. But what your dad wants to tell you is: go. Go quickly and come back quickly.”
Xueji nodded, her chest filled with surging courage.
She would definitely bring Lilith back!
