Chapter 675: Good Things Happen

Hearing the black-haired girl's words, even Bai Liqing's expression shifted slightly. She looked away with a touch of awkwardness. "...That was in the past."

"Yeah, back then you were just a wyrmling," the black-haired girl said, that faint smile still lingering on her face. "Even though you always had that stern look even then, your personality was better than it is now."

Bai Liqing turned her head to look at the girl before her—the "Director" of the Borderlands, who wore the face of a young woman but had lived through long ages—and met those pale gray eyes that were blinking.

After a long moment, she let out a soft sigh. "Xue, get out of 'Hong's' face."

"Oh."

Bai Lixue acknowledged, and those pale gray eyes wobbled as they drifted off to the side. The corner of Hong's mouth, which had remained tightly shut, seemed to twitch slightly. Then she turned her head a little, "looking" at Bai Lixue floating in midair. "...Was it fun?"

"I didn't mean to," Bai Lixue said. "Who told you to have a body temperature as low as the steel around you?"

Hong didn't speak for a while. She just continued "observing" those translucent eyes floating in the air with her own closed eyes. After a while, once they finally descended all the way to the ground, she turned to Bai Liqing. "When did she start changing like this?"

Bai Liqing knew what she was talking about. "Since the first time she came into contact with Yu Sheng—humanity gradually awakened, and the degree of loss of control dropped rapidly."

Hong frowned slightly, looking thoughtful. "Again, it's related to that 'Yu Sheng'..."

"Inanimate objects affected by him exhibit signs of life, phantoms gradually grow humanity, and an immortal twilight angel died, then achieved 'rebirth' in a new form. Based on my analysis, this should be some kind of power that interferes with the boundary between life and death," Bai Liqing said slowly. "But his ability to 'open doors' seems to belong to a completely different system. If anything, those 'doors' feel more like 'realm bridges' to me... Of course, that's just a feeling. I have no evidence yet, nor can I explain it theoretically."

"Boundary between life and death, and 'realm bridges'—power from two systems..." Hong rubbed her chin, then suddenly looked down at Bai Lixue, who was stealthily moving along the ground trying to hide. "What about you? Have you noticed any changes in yourself?"

Bai Lixue instinctively scrambled toward the wall, moving as quickly as she could while saying, "Changes? What changes? I feel fine..."

A nearly transparent ice barrier blocked her path, and countless interlocking mirrored surfaces immediately emerged on its surface. Bai Lixue's floating eyes were trapped in an infinite mirrored space, trembling as they remained caught in layer upon layer of reflections.

The ice shattered, and the mirrored space dissipated.

Bai Lixue quickly retreated.

"Alright, my sister says I've been changing lately—but I don't feel much different. I think I've always been like this," her voice echoed in both Hong's and Bai Liqing's minds, sounding somewhat honest. "It's just that when I occasionally recall the past... I feel like I was a bit dazed back then, doing a lot of things purely out of instinct. And now it's more like... more like..."

She seemed unable to find the right word, until Hong suddenly spoke: "Became enlightened?"

Bai Lixue: "Probably?"

"...Interesting," Hong said softly. She 'looked' at Bai Lixue's eyes, and even the smile on her lifeless pale face seemed much more real. "If only you'd been this honest when you first appeared."

The air rippled with layers of mirrors. The black-haired girl laughed softly and sighed, slowly retreating into the mirrors as her figure gradually dissipated in that overlapping, concealing mirrored space. "Then, I won't disturb the time you sisters spend together—I still have many things to handle before the distant coordinates are lit."

The mirrored space dissolved silently.

Bai Lixue's illusory eyes stayed on the ground for a long time, only floating back up once she confirmed Hong had really left. She wobbled back and forth in the air, looking very angry. "I don't like that vampire! I don't like that vampire! I..."

Bai Liqing raised an eyebrow, seeming in an unexpectedly good mood. "Alright, alright, I get it. So what?"

"...Nothing. I'm just saying. Don't tell her."

...

Deep within the Darkfall Star Sector, the Sanctuary.

Under the sky, halls stood among clusters of mountains. The grass and trees were evergreen. The magnificent, carefully customized scenery basked in the morning glow, adorning the terraces and windows of every holy temple.

This was a beauty beyond the imagination of the barbaric residents and lowly slave laborers who lived elsewhere in the Darkfall Star Sector.

In this vast, dim nebula, in this lawless star zone divided and ruled by warlords, gangsters, and military megacorporations, there were plenty of heavily polluted industrial planets, depleted barren worlds drained of resources, and war planets burned over and over again by conflict—toxic atmospheres, industrial pollution, resource scarcity, endless warfare—these were the norms of this star sector.

There were few places in the Darkfall Star Sector that could be called "habitable"—and it was precisely because of this that the "Sanctuary" seemed so... aptly named.

The main meeting hall of the Supreme Sanctum was located on the highest mountaintop. The entire hall was almost an "open structure" in appearance. One hundred and twenty solemn pillars stood around the square-like hall. Between the pillars, towering arches were wide open. The hall had no roof, only a layer of hazy light covering the air. This light then cascaded down along the pillars like a curtain of holy radiance, encircling the entire building and blocking the mountain winds outside.

Thus, the clergy standing in the meeting hall of the Supreme Sanctum could overlook the land below and the sea of clouds in the distance, feeling the Hermetic Order's control over the entire planet.

Without a doubt, living in such an "artificial paradise" made it all too easy for people to compare themselves to gods.

But even the "clergy" who lived in the mountain sanctuaries were not all in the mood to appreciate the beauty around them—at least, the one in the wheelchair wasn't.

Columbander bowed his head slightly. Although he tried to maintain the same dignity and pride as usual, although he had meticulously groomed his clothes and the ornate crown symbolizing the "Great Sage," an indescribable... awkwardness and shame weighed heavily on his heart, making it difficult even to maintain a normal breathing rhythm.

The wheelchair, made with cutting-edge technology, produced almost no sound as it moved. The advanced intelligence and comfort system caused no bodily discomfort. The lower half of his legs had been amputated below the knees, and synergizers and neural implants had resolved the troublesome phantom pains—but none of this brought any psychological comfort to the Great Sage. Instead, it seemed to remind him constantly of his failure, his mutilation, and the indelible shame along the "Path to Reverence."

Even the sound of wind blowing through the valley seemed to him like a sharp, piercing mockery.

Though in truth, no one here ever brought up his matter—His Holiness had summoned the Great Sages and Living Saints to discuss important affairs, and everyone's attention was on more pressing issues.

Still, Columbander could occasionally catch glances directed at him, though the gazes quickly averted.

Whether those looks were ridicule, pity, or something else, they were unbearable.

"Columbander," a gentle voice came from not far away, miraculously clearing away the irritation and resentment in his heart. "Did you have something to say?"

Columbander looked up hastily—he saw His Holiness standing not far away, looking at him.

He was a tall, golden-haired man with a gentle smile. His powerful psychic abilities seemed to keep a layer of light perpetually around him. His age was difficult to determine, and his facial features seemed to shift at any moment. Those who met his gaze could hardly remember his appearance or voice, but when he spoke, his voice, like a charm, carried a gentle psychic resonance. His noble will could almost be directly imprinted on one's heart.

The Great Sages stood in a circle before His Holiness. Two Living Saints, their features obscured by psychic power, stood beside him. Now, all eyes were on Columbander.

"I..." Columbander opened his mouth. His earlier distraction left him feeling annoyed and ashamed. "I was just..."

"Contemplation and reflection are fine qualities; do not be afraid," the golden-haired man said softly. "But now we should focus on the matter of the Eden Gate and the twilight angel. Also, Columbander, do not dwell too much on your own temporary difficulties—the Path to Reverence is a noble path. The sacrifices you have made and the pain you have endured for the great cause are, on a higher dimension, also part of the journey toward perfection."

Columbander was stunned for a moment before hastily lowering his head. "I am grateful for your enlightenment."

He felt much better, and a realization dawned within him.

After encountering that bizarre "puppet" and losing the ability to stand and walk due to a curse, he had still retained the status of "Great Sage," been allowed to stay in the sanctuary, and attend meetings here. This had once puzzled him, but now he understood.

It was all a trial along the Path to Reverence.

It was suffering that had to be endured temporarily to achieve ultimate "perfection."

Columbander let out a soft breath, and even the wheelchair felt more comfortable.

Standing on the steps of the sanctuary, "His Holiness" swept his calm gaze over the figures before him. His eyes lingered briefly on Columbander again, a gentle, unchanging smile at the corner of his mouth.

"We have arrived at the critical crossroads of fate," he continued in a gentle tone. "Although there have been some disturbances recently, the final dawn has arrived—the warriors sent to the border have successfully brought back the crucial final piece.

"The Angel Catalyst—fragments from the collapse of the realm bridge, more suitable than the Shadowless Bones as fuel for the 'Eden Gate.'

"Now, they are already on their way back."

Columbander lifted his head abruptly. At this encouraging news, he was stunned for a moment before finally revealing a long-lost smile.

Ah, after all this bad luck, something good was finally happening.

(End of chapter)