Wu Yi is on a remote island far out at sea?
“Then… can you be more specific about the location?” Kefulu asked.
“Sorry,” Luoye rolled her eyes, “in the era I lived in, the entire coastline was surrounded by magical prohibitions. Even knowing there are storms in the far sea is already forbidden knowledge dug up from ancient tomes. As for the exact coordinates, you’ll have to figure that out yourself.”
“Mm.” Kefulu was visibly disappointed. “Then what about her preferences, or weaknesses…”
“Preferences? She liked too many things.”
Luoye raised her hand, and the shelves in the exhibition hall began to shift and rearrange themselves automatically.
Rows and rows of densely packed shelves stretched out endlessly, each one filled with a dazzling array of “desires.”
“These are all her discarded wishes. From things like ‘squatting all day to watch ants move house,’ ‘getting up ten minutes late,’ ‘eating something sweet,’ to ‘having a good cry’… She had too many fascinating little wants. If she hadn’t become the leader of the Resistance, she might’ve been an artist.”
These countless desires—so numerous they defied calculation—were a source of fascination for Luoye.
This girl held a burning love for life.
She longed to savor its tiniest details, to grasp at even the smallest joys. Unfortunately…
She was the leader of the Resistance.
“Anything more intense?” Kefulu asked, staring at the endless shelves with a mix of admiration and a headache. “Like a life-defining preference?”
“A life goal, you mean?”
“Yes.”
“Come with me. Conveniently, it’s sealed together with her weakness.”
Luoye waved her hand again, and a trapdoor in the floor swung open.
Beyond it, the walls twisted and shimmered like the inside of a kaleidoscope.
The three women continued downward, descending into what resembled a vast subterranean palace.
“Woooow~” Wu Yi let out another wide-eyed gasp like someone who’d never seen the world.
In the center stood three massive crystals, each as tall as a three-story building.
Within each crystal, a swirling “Stone of Thought” was sealed.
“Based on my years of research,” Luoye explained, pointing, “the one on the left contains her weakness. The one on the right, her preferences. The one in the center—unknown. Don’t doubt me, it’s all verified by spectral analysis. Can’t be wrong.”
“Why are they sealed?”
“They weren’t sealed by me, of course. These three thoughts are the foundation of Wu Yi’s personality and her dreamscape. They’ve existed since her consciousness first took shape.”
“Can’t be opened?”
“Not by me.” Luoye fluttered her bat-like wings with an exaggerated sigh. “I’m just a little nightmare spirit, okay? What more do you expect from me?”
Kefulu gently set down the little girl in her arms.
She stood in front of the crystal that sealed Wu Yi’s “weakness” and stared at it for a long moment.
After some hesitation, she ultimately turned toward the one holding “preferences.”
“Step aside.”
She raised her fist.
“I’m warning you, no one knows what’ll happen if that crystal is shattered,” Luoye said quickly—though her expression was one of barely concealed excitement.
She had devoted her life to studying Wu Yi’s dreamscape, and yet these three ultimate riddles had always eluded her.
These crystals held all the answers.
If they could be opened, they might reveal Wu Yi’s deepest secrets—
Why she became the leader of the Resistance, why she was so determined to defeat the God-King…
Unlock the core code that shaped her identity, and everything would finally make sense.
Boom—!
Kefulu’s soft pink fist didn’t look powerful, but it was imbued with half her dream-controlling strength.
Crack—
A fine line appeared in the crystal—barely perceptible.
“It cracked! It actually cracked!” Luoye gasped. “Just who are you, that you could even damage a sealed crystal like this?!”
Controlling dreams was one of Kefulu’s most basic, yet most proficient abilities.
Even so, she’d only managed to make a minuscule crack.
A ripple of unease crept through her.
She raised her fist again, gathering all her remaining strength this time.
Boom—!
Crack—!
The sound was crisp, and another sliver of damage appeared.
But compared to the massive, intact crystal, the progress was pitiful.
Her strength was quickly depleting.
Kefulu felt herself growing faint, and leaned against the crystal, panting softly.
As expected, taking on Wu Yi alone was far too ambitious—even here, in the dreamscape where she had the upper hand…
Kefulu felt a pang of frustration.
If only the other sisters had already been born, she thought.
Then we might truly stand a chance against Wu Yi.
“Oooh~”
While her thoughts swirled, Kefulu didn’t notice the little girl beside her mimicking her movements—clumsily raising a tiny fist.
There was no purpose behind her innocent face, just pure, instinctive mimicry.
Puff, puff, puff~
Her little fists tapped at the crystal, making no real impact—only soft sound effects that Wu Yi added herself.
Kefulu and Luoye couldn’t help but laugh.
Luoye shrugged. “I know a brain specialist who deals with this kind of behavior all the ti—”
Crack—!
Suddenly, a sharp, crisp crack rang out from the crystal, freezing both their smiles in place.
Starting from where the little girl’s fist had tapped, a network of glowing fissures rapidly spread outward across the entire surface.
Like lightning streaking through the crystal, more and more cracks formed until—
Boom!
A deafening explosion filled the chamber.
Kefulu instinctively pulled little Wu Yi into her arms, shielding her with her back against the blast.
No matter what, this girl was her little priestess.
She had promised to protect her and that wasn’t some lie to trick a naive child.
The exploding shards weren’t nearly as lethal as they looked.
When they hit, they merely stung a little before dissolving into energy in the air.
A thick mist spread through the underground hall.
And where the crystal once stood—the one that sealed Wu Yi’s “life goal”—a glowing orb of light finally emerged, free at last.