The final results of the Examination were announced.
Dolosa firmly held first place, followed by Asterys.
Asterys glanced at Dolosa.
Dolosa turned to look at Asterys in return.
She had expected to find jealousy or anger in the other’s eyes, but there was nothing—only a faint, indifferent gaze.
This struck Dolosa as strange, even a little eerie. She always felt that this pair of twins would never truly get angry no matter what happened—or if they did, they never showed it.
People like that were the most terrifying.
As for Dexilensi, she came in second.
Her smile froze on her face, tinged with a hint of confusion. She looked up at the Examiner, Sidric, and quietly asked, “I feel like I performed the best.”
At those words, Sidric lowered his head and looked at her.
“You did perform the best, but you didn’t follow our instructions. In the final step, you made a mistake.”
He didn’t say Dexilensi’s performance was too ruthless, only that she hadn’t obeyed their directions.
That was already telling—they tacitly accepted Dexilensi’s ruthlessness, because absolute justice sometimes required cruelty, but they could not tolerate her disobedience.
In other words, she had defied the Church’s arrangements.
As one of the future heirs to the papacy, these children were expected to fully obey the Church’s orders.
This was just a small reprimand.
To be honest, Sidric was quite optimistic about Dexilensi.
There was a kind of cold detachment about her—this lack of emotion made people feel at ease, like a perfect candidate to inherit the papacy.
But Dexilensi needed to be reprimanded.
She looked at the examiners in a way that was both half-confused and half-smiling, nodded, and bowed deeply.
“Thank you. I’ll take your guidance to heart.”
At that moment, Liang Lai came over to meet Dolosa, Asterys, and Dexilensi.
“Little Dex!” Liang Lai waved at Dexilensi.
Dexilensi immediately brightened, ignoring the examiners and turned to run a few steps before leaping into Liang Lai’s arms.
“Mom, I want to eat some Transforming Candy today! My mouth feels like it has no flavor!” Dexilensi coquettishly whined.
Liang Lai ruffled the child’s hair. “Of course you can. You performed so well today, you can eat whatever you want, but not too much—too much will upset your stomach…”
Liang Lai took the children and gradually walked away.
After putting some distance between them and the examiners, Dexilensi turned back and curled a small smile at them.
Must obey them?
She turned to Liang Lai.
Why obey them? Who were they? She only listened to the Saintess.
Dexilensi gazed adoringly at the woman who had taken her in—the gentle, warm woman who was the only source of comfort in her life.
Liang Lai radiated maternal warmth, mature feminine charm, and kindness that shone vividly, captivating Dexilensi completely.
She liked this woman so much!
No.
No!
It was already love!
She had fallen in love with this woman!!
Although she didn’t understand what love meant, this possessiveness was probably love.
However, after returning home, Liang Lai beckoned Dexilensi over.
“Little Dex, come here for a moment. Mom has something important—something serious—to talk to you about.”
Dexilensi was puzzled, but then her eyes lit up.
She happily scampered over to Liang Lai, following her into the room.
She thought it might be some great reward for her excellent performance, so she wagged her tail like a little puppy and hugged Liang Lai.
Seeing the clingy child, Liang Lai helplessly straightened Dexilensi’s body.
“Little Dex, we’ll play later. Right now, I have a very important and serious matter to discuss with you.” Liang Lai tried hard to look stern.
But to Dexilensi, that expression seemed more like adorably impotent anger.
Still, she sat up straight and focused intently on the woman before her.
“Okay, Mom, I’m listening!” she said like a well-behaved puppy.
Liang Lai cleared her throat and asked about the daytime Examination.
“When you were taking the test today… why did you smash that crystallized object directly?”
“Huh?”
Dexilensi tilted her head, confused.
She couldn’t even remember what she’d done. After a couple of seconds of thought, it dawned on her.
“Oh! So Mom is asking about that!”
She struck a pose of sudden realization, raising a finger.
“Because smashing it is more fun than restoring it! Why restore it? Once it’s crystallized, just break it apart~”
Liang Lai was at a loss for words. If this was just a child being playful, it would be fine.
But if she behaved like this toward a person… the consequences would be unimaginable.
Dexilensi noticed Liang Lai’s hesitation and suddenly had an idea.
“Mom, is it because I didn’t listen to the examiners today?” she asked, as if she finally understood.
So if she listened to the examiners, the Saintess would be happy and praise her? She regretted not obeying sooner, scratching her head sheepishly.
“No, no, I didn’t mean that. It’s good you have your own thoughts… although you should listen during the Examination, but I’m not blaming you for that.” Liang Lai waved her hand quickly.
“Then what do you want to say?” Dexilensi asked.
“Cough.” Liang Lai cleared her throat again, brushing back some stray hair.
“I want to ask you another question. What if you did that to a person?”
“Huh?”
This question stunned Dexilensi again.
Then she smiled innocently and grabbed Liang Lai’s hand.
“If it’s to Mom, I would never do that! I’d only use harmless Crystallization Ability on you… if it could deepen our bond!”
Liang Lai didn’t know whether to praise her for being filial or scold her for missing the point.
So she had to make it clearer.
“I mean, what if it’s not me? What if it’s your sisters? Or someone other than us?”
Liang Lai looked at the blonde girl nervously, afraid she might say something terrifying.
Dexilensi lowered her head, a light flickering in her eyes.
So the Saintess was testing her.
Had she been revealing too much lately? She should have pretended more… No, she absolutely couldn’t let the Saintess think she was a bad child.
“I would treat my sisters just like I treat Mom!” Dexilensi lifted her head again, a naive smile on her lips.
“And as for others, of course, I’d use my Crystallization Ability on bad people, but not on good people!”
The last sentence was true—she had only ever killed those with ill intentions toward her, never the innocent… except for Dolosa.
She really didn’t want to share Liang Lai with anyone else; that tenderness belonged only to her.
So that’s how it was!
Liang Lai finally exhaled in relief and returned her gentle smile. She rewarded Dexilensi with a small rub on her head.
“Good! I’m really happy you think that way. Keep it up.”
After talking with Dexilensi, Liang Lai felt a heavy weight lift from her heart.
What she didn’t know was that Dexilensi spoke whatever the listener wanted to hear, adapting her words like a chameleon.
Night fell.
Liang Lai once again opened the Diary left by the original owner.
She still hadn’t fully understood the previous contents, nor knew when she would.
More than three months had passed, yet no breakthrough.
This Diary was strange.
Only after fully comprehending the Crystallization Ability in one chapter would the next chapter’s content appear.
So Liang Lai could only read it every night, contemplating and trying to grasp its deeper meaning while working on changing her mindset.
Her fingers lightly traced the gold-embossed patterns on the parchment.
Moonlight filtered through the window lattice, scattering delicate patches of light over the pages.
She stared at the three floating runes, unconsciously furrowing her brows.
“I clearly understand the theory…” she murmured, condensing a silver crystal in her fingertip, “so why does it still…”
The crystal suddenly shattered in her palm, scattering into tiny shimmering dust.
Liang Lai stared at her empty hand, suddenly realizing something.
“I see now…”
She slowly stood and walked to the dressing mirror. The white-haired girl reflected back at her, dark circles faintly shadowing under her eyes, lips pale from blood loss.
Liang Lai reached out and touched the glass, fingertips meeting her reflection.
“I’ve been saying to love myself,” she whispered almost inaudibly, “but I can’t even give myself the most basic rest.”
Memories surged like a tide.
She had stayed up all night tending to the children’s wounds, teaching them even while she was sick, and now, at her physical limit, still forcing herself to study Crystallization Ability…
“This isn’t self-love. It’s self-abuse.”
She suddenly laughed, a trace of self-mockery in her voice.
Turning back to the desk, the parchment seemed to sense something and began to emit a soft golden glow.
“‘Self-love is not a slogan.’ ‘It’s allowing yourself to be vulnerable.’ ‘Accepting your limits.’ ‘Fill yourself up before giving.’”
She took a deep breath. This time she didn’t rush to touch the runes, instead pouring herself a cup of hot tea.
The warm liquid soothed her parched throat, offering her weary body a small measure of comfort.
When Liang Lai tried to activate the Crown of Kindness again, she didn’t force the power like before.
The golden light flowed naturally from her fingertips, weaving into a warm net in the air.
“So this is the difference…”
She could feel the power flowing through her body, no longer accompanied by the tearing pain she was used to, but moving as naturally as breathing.
The withered rose on the desk was touched by the golden light; its petals slowly unfurled without any sign of decay.
Liang Lai looked at her hands in surprise, the crystalline light beneath her skin glowing a healthy pale gold.
She tried activating the Prism of Truth simultaneously, and a transparent crystal formed clear images before her eyes, revealing every hidden danger around her.
This time, no nosebleed, and the sharp pain in her temples had vanished.
The three runes spun harmoniously around her, intertwining without conflict.
“Balance…”
Liang Lai finally understood. She had always thought balance was a skill, the precise control of power.
But true balance came from within—when she stopped pushing herself and no longer ignored her body’s warnings, her power naturally achieved perfect harmony.
New text appeared on the parchment:
“Intermediate Resonance Completion: 62%”
“Side Effects Reduction: 89%”
“Reminder: Maximum use per day is 3 times. Please adhere strictly.”
Liang Lai gently closed the Diary, not forcing herself to study further.
She walked to the window, letting the night breeze clear the heavy scent of blood from the study.
Under the moonlight, her fingertips no longer trembled, and the crystallized parts softened.
“Tomorrow,” she smiled at the stars, “I’ll make the children a hearty breakfast.”
“Of course~ This isn’t self-abuse; it’s just a celebration of my victory!”
Finally, she could open the next page and learn new knowledge!
Liang Lai flipped to the next page, and a new title slowly emerged on the parchment:
“Intermediate Resonance • Heartfire Tempering”
“Using Hope as Fuel”
“Using Resilience as the Furnace”
“Forging the Crimson Flame of Despair”
Her fingertip just touched the words when a wave of heat surged forth.
Unlike the previous gentle runes, this time a flickering flame-shaped crystal appeared, glowing with flowing crimson-gold light.
“Hope and Resilience?” Liang Lai whispered, brow furrowed.
It sounded more abstract—and more dangerous—than the earlier concepts of Truth, Kindness, and Beauty.
Following the instructions, she held her hands over the flame crystal.
A sharp sting shot through her palms, tiny burns appearing on her skin.
Liang Lai gritted her teeth and persevered, trying to understand its meaning.
“Hope is not wishful thinking,” she murmured, “but the courage to continue despite hardship…”
Everyone understood such truths, but whether they could truly grasp them was another matter.
The flame crystal suddenly flared, bathing the entire study in a crimson glow.
Her vision was engulfed by the fiery golden-red.
She saw:
Dolosa curled up in the Underground Sanctuary, blood from her nails digging into her palm.
Asterys, bullied by the Shadowborn, yet stubbornly protecting her sister.
Iluce, beaten by her parents, her eyes holding a faint light of unwilling surrender.
“Cough!”
Blood rushed up her throat. Liang Lai hastily withdrew her hands.
The flame crystal vanished instantly, leaving a charred mark in her palm.
She wiped the blood from her lips and saw a new warning on the parchment:
“Heartfire Overload: Untempered Hope is but an illusory bubble.”
Liang Lai smiled bitterly and shook her head.
“Again, understanding the concept but unable to truly apply it.”
She noticed her right hand beginning to crystallize, her fingertips turning translucent red.
This backlash was faster and fiercer than before.
She dared not continue; if she did, her body might be completely crystallized, and that would be a disaster.
“Looks like I need to try a different approach.”
Liang Lai closed her eyes, recalling her journey since crossing over.
The warmth of the children relying on her, the joy of seeing their progress, and the determination to protect them.
When she opened her eyes again, the flame crystal floated before her.
This time, she didn’t touch it directly but whispered,
“Hope is not passive waiting, but actively creating possibilities.”
The flame crystal suddenly scattered into countless sparks, forming a picture in the air:
Liang Lai patiently teaching Dolosa to use her ability, gently mending Asterys’ doll, attentively bandaging Iluce’s wounds…
“I see now.” Liang Lai’s eyes shone with insight. “This is my furnace.”
She slowly reached for the flame, and the burning sensation transformed into warm acceptance.
The crimson-gold light flowed into her veins, tracing glowing patterns beneath her skin.
When Liang Lai tried to release this power, the ink bottle on her desk instantly vaporized, its glass melting into crystallized red liquid.
The force was so strong it startled her.
“So this is… the power of Heartfire Tempering?”
New evaluations appeared on the parchment:
“Heartfire Resonance: 41% (Unstable State)”
“Warning: Each use consumes 1% emotional reserve”
“Current Emotional Reserve: 83%”
Liang Lai wiped the blood from her nose and looked at her restored fingers with a resigned smile.
“Time for a new phase of understanding, huh? Unstable state… Looks like the power I just felt was temporary. I need to fully comprehend it before I can use it completely.”
She closed the Diary and gazed out at the starry sky.
This time, she didn’t force herself to continue but decided to rest well.
Just as the Diary advised: love yourself.
“Tomorrow,” she whispered, “I’ll ask the children what ‘Hope’ looks like to them.”
Turning, she didn’t notice new text quietly appearing on the parchment:
“Final Trial: When emotional reserves are depleted…”
The rest of the words were deliberately blurred by some unknown force, leaving only a dangerous dark red question mark.
Then the text vanished without a trace.
The next day.
After finishing her work, Liang Lai returned home and made a sumptuous dinner.
“This is to celebrate…” she said to Dolosa, “my first half-year as a mom! Consider it an anniversary~!”
It felt quite ceremonial.
Dolosa was deeply touched by Liang Lai’s gaze.
As the first child the Saintess had taken in, she was included in this celebration.
Dolosa opened her lips, wanting to say something heartfelt, but she still wasn’t very good with words.
So in the end, she said nothing, only quietly grasping Liang Lai’s hand beneath the table.