Even with a small ventilation port designed in the direction of Tongshengleumei, the air in the underground room remained stagnant.
Su Ling sat inside the metal cage, using the faint light from the vent to bring the translucent bracelet in her hand closer to her eyes. Her fingertips brushed against the pink beads, made of a material she did not recognize.
This was the bracelet Tii had given her when they parted. After several rounds of Sista’s punishment, Su Ling finally had the chance to take it out and examine it closely.
“If you can escape this place, take this, and we will surely meet again…”
Tii had left Su Ling with those words, but Su Ling still did not understand their meaning.
‘Why did she say that? Is there something special about this bracelet?’
She curled her fingers, slipped them through the bracelet, and then opened her hand. The cold beads slid down onto her slender wrist.
After fiddling with it for a while longer, Su Ling still felt it was just an ordinary piece of jewelry. She could not help but let out a long sigh.
Life in the underground room was exceptionally dull. Aside from eating and washing every day, Su Ling had nothing to do.
To manage her daily life, Sista had specifically assigned a Palace Maid to deliver her meals. This made Su Ling feel even more like a completely useless person.
‘So this is what it means to be a caged bird…’
Feeling listless, she leaned against the iron bars and closed her eyes for a while. Drowsiness hit her in waves, and before she knew it, Su Ling drifted into a deep sleep.
While she slept, the pink bracelet on her wrist gradually became translucent, emitting a faint, ethereal glow.
Today’s dream felt somewhat different from usual.
Su Ling found herself very conscious within the dream, with physical sensations that were identical to the real world.
She dreamed she was walking down a street she had never seen before. Rows of two-story houses, common for this era, lined the roadside, but their appearance was different from the buildings within the capital.
The exterior walls of these houses were painted with various coats of arms. Upon closer inspection, she noticed most of the patterns were related to herbaceous plants.
The steep roofs were covered in black tiles, and the side windows below were quite large. The steps in front of the doors were built very high.
Su Ling did not know where this was, but judging by the street scenery, it seemed to be a southern region with abundant rainfall and lush vegetation. It was also filled with a thick, religious cultural atmosphere.
She wandered down the street as if out of curiosity. People coming and going were dressed in various styles, with thin, colorful gauze scarves draped over their heads and silver bracelets around their wrists and ankles.
Just then, a familiar voice came from behind her.
“Little Su Ling.”
She froze for a moment and quickly turned around.
A red-haired girl wearing a fringed long dress stood smiling in front of a tea house, holding a wicker basket in her hand. Su Ling recognized those clear, emerald-green eyes instantly.
“Tii!”
Even though she knew this was a dream, Su Ling could hardly control her excitement and rushed over.
Tii smiled and opened her arms to embrace her.
“It’s great… Little Su Ling, it’s truly wonderful that you’re alright.” She stroked Su Ling’s silver hair. “I’m sorry. I didn’t think I would be caught and involve you…”
“Tii?”
Su Ling felt something was a bit off.
‘Is this dream too realistic? Do people in dreams really say things like this?’
“It isn’t a dream, Little Su Ling,” Tii said in a gentle voice, as if she had read her thoughts. “You put on the bracelet I gave you, right?”
Su Ling was shocked. She pulled back from Tii’s embrace and, after a long pause, slowly nodded.
“That is a Heart Stone Bracelet with the Memory Transmission talent. It was crafted from the Heart Core of Alice — Prince Mandara’s sister.”
“The two of them were twin Blood Clan members. Therefore, this Heart Core can resonate with the Blood Wave of Prince Mandara within my body. Little Su Ling, you can perceive my Conscious World.”
Hearing this, Su Ling immediately felt a chill at the back of her head, as if a slug had crawled down her neck.
“Ten thousand years ago, Alice Mandara was captured during the silver soldiers’ invasion of Valivadan. Black Feather ordered me to end her life, and that was when I obtained this Heart Core.”
“However, I didn’t hand it over to the Organization in the end. I kept it for myself.”
Facing Su Ling’s confused gaze, Tii smiled faintly.
“It’s a good thing I kept it. Now it’s being put to use.”
“So… so you’re saying I’m currently inside Tii’s memory?” Su Ling asked stutteringly, her brain working at full speed.
“Correct.”
As she spoke, Tii held the wicker basket out to Su Ling. With a soft snap of her fingers, the basket became filled with fresh flowers.
“Everything Little Su Ling sees is a scene I have constructed with my consciousness. In other words, you are sharing my imaginary world.”
Su Ling cautiously took a blue rose from the basket. When her fingertips touched it, the texture of the petals felt incredibly real.
“How miraculous…”
“This is the power of the Blood Clan,” Tii explained. “Alice’s Heart Core is one of the few in the Blood Clan that can affect humans without the need for experimental implantation, although the effect is very slight.”
As she listened to Tii’s explanation, she looked down. Even in this dreamscape, the pink bracelet was still wrapped around her wrist. A bell the size of a grain of rice shimmered in the sunlight.
“Why would Tii give something so important to me?”
She actually wanted to ask why Tii hadn’t given the necklace to Black Feather, but her intuition told her that Tii might not want to discuss that topic.
“Because Little Su Ling is my most important person.”
Tii smiled brightly.
“With this, we won’t lose contact. I want to see you again.”
“Tii…” Su Ling looked at her face. “I don’t want to lose contact with you either…”
“However, your body still needs to adjust to the Heart Core for a period of time,” the red-haired girl continued.
“So during this time, Little Su Ling should wear the bracelet as much as possible to gradually adapt your physical state within my Conscious World.”
Su Ling gripped the bracelet lightly and nodded.
“I understand. I will do that.”
Although the origin of the bracelet made her feel a bit uneasy, Su Ling would do her best to overcome her psychological barriers if it meant she could continue to see Tii.
After all, she was truly worried about Tii’s safety.
“By the way, Little Su Ling, I’ve been very worried. After we were separated, what exactly happened to you?”
At that question, Su Ling fell silent for a moment.
“I’m fine. Sista took me back and then restricted my movements.”
She did not share too many details, offering only that brief summary. Telling Tii the truth now would be useless; it was better to let her worry less.
“I’m sorry…” The red-haired girl showed a look of disappointment and apologized again. “It’s all my fault that you were caught, I…”
“I don’t think it was Tii’s fault.” Su Ling patted her shoulder, interrupting her. “No one could have predicted those events. I’m already satisfied just to see that you are safe.”
“Little Su Ling…”
In a complex swirl of emotion and apology, Tii could not suppress her internal impulse. She threw herself at Su Ling again, holding her tightly in her arms. Su Ling smiled faintly, feeling a bit helpless, but she still reached out her arms to respond to Tii’s warm embrace.
The two of them hugged quietly, as if the entire world had disappeared, leaving only each other’s body heat and heartbeats intertwining in the air.
After a long time, they slowly let go.
“Tii, what about you? Were you caught by them later?” Su Ling asked.
Tii shook her head.
“They didn’t catch me. Others from the Organization came to reinforce us, and I later returned to Valivadan.”
“You weren’t injured, were you?”
“I won’t get hurt. Didn’t Little Su Ling see it clearly in front of the Castle? My body is an Undying Body. No matter how severe the trauma, it can heal itself.”
“That’s good…”
“Hehe, don’t worry about me! I went back to my hometown after that — look, it’s right here in front of you. Come wander around with me.”
As soon as she finished speaking, the red-haired girl took a step back and spun around with open arms on the sun-drenched street. Her chestnut-colored skirt bloomed like a flower.
“Little Su Ling, welcome to the Kingdom of Humans — Valivadan.”