Chapter 108: A Shared Secret and a Mother’s Legacy

Liyang understood the implications of his words perfectly. The power of an evil god resided within Yalin, a secret unknown even to Celeste, who had grown up alongside him since childhood. Liyang alone bore the weight of this knowledge. Should she choose to expose it, Yalin would inevitably be driven to ruin, and Carol might even become entangled in the fallout.

After a moment of silence, Liyang spoke, “Back then, did you truly intend to kill me?”

Yalin pondered for a while before nodding. “Yes,” he affirmed.

Liyang bit her lip. Though she had anticipated his answer, hearing it directly from Yalin’s lips still sent a sharp pang through her heart.

“But then, why did you save me later? If you had just let me die there, no one would have ever known…”

“Who knows? Perhaps it’s my turn to ask now. Why didn’t you kill me back then?”

“Eh?”

Liyang froze, utterly unprepared for the sudden counter-question.

“At that time, I was fighting that monster. You could have seized the opportunity to strike. If you had frozen me, I certainly wouldn’t have survived.”

“I…”

“Even now, you could still kill me. To be frank, I can no longer use the evil god’s power. At this distance, you could easily freeze me, and I would be utterly unable to resist.”

Yalin rose from the sofa, blocking the overhead light. His shadow fell, enveloping Liyang’s form and causing her body to tremble almost imperceptibly.

“I am not immortal. While I possess strong regenerative abilities, if deprived of breath, I would quickly suffocate. If you wish to kill me, there will be no better opportunity than this.”

Yalin spoke calmly.

He moved closer to Liyang, took her wrist, and pressed her palm against his own chest.

“Well, what about this distance? Still not going to act? With just a thought, I’d be instantly frozen into an ice sculpture, utterly unable to react. I…”

Liyang’s pupils constricted. Fear surged through her like a tide, threatening to drown her completely.

“I was truly serious about killing you back then, you know? Your only chance to kill me is now. You won’t get a second.”

Her body’s protective mechanisms caused a faint layer of frost to involuntarily bloom on her fingertips.

After only a moment, Liyang ultimately closed her eyes in anguish.

“I… I can’t…”

Tears streamed incessantly from the corners of her eyes, crystal drops falling one by one onto Yalin’s hand. She spoke, her voice thick with sobs.

“Even knowing you wanted to kill me… I can’t bring myself to take your life…”

Whenever danger arose, Yalin had always risked his life, standing before her.

When she was lost and heartbroken, it was Yalin’s guidance that had pulled her through.

How, then, could she possibly steel herself to kill Yalin?

“Is that so?”

Yalin slowly released her hand, settling back onto the sofa. “You can’t bring yourself to kill me,” he murmured, “and in truth, I am the same.”

Liyang slowly raised her head, tears still clinging to her eyelashes, her eyes wide with disbelief.

“You… what did you say?”

“It’s strange, isn’t it? I feel the same. I can cut off the heads of those people without a second thought, yet at the crucial moment, I couldn’t bring myself to harm you…”

“So, may I ask you for a favor?”

Yalin sighed, a wry smile touching his lips. “Can you help me keep this secret? Please, don’t tell anyone.”

Late at night, moonlight spilled through the window like cold water, bathing the room in a silvery glow. The world outside was silent, save for the occasional chirping of insects.

In the guest room, Liyang had fallen into a deep sleep. The events of the past few days had been overwhelming, far exceeding her capacity to process. Both her body and mind were utterly exhausted.

Due to his unique constitution, Yalin didn’t require sleep, leaving him with ample free time to pursue whatever he wished.

Pushing open the door to his mother’s study, Yalin found the air thick with a faint layer of dust. The room had long been cleared, its empty bookshelves revealing nothing. It seemed his mother’s manuscripts were truly lost.

Yalin approached the desk, lit a candle, and drew a scroll from his pocket. It was the item a woman, who called herself Crow, had given him on the airship.

As he unrolled the scroll and smoothed it flat on the table, Yalin’s eyes suddenly widened. The elegant handwriting, the ancient Runic script, and the intricate magic patterns—he recognized them. These were his mother’s former manuscripts. It seemed the woman who claimed to be his mother’s student had indeed been telling the truth.

Yalin pulled out a chair and sat down, quietly poring over the old manuscript. His fingertips traced the words, and his gaze grew increasingly profound. The candlelight flickered, casting a dim glow on his face and throwing a faint, shifting shadow.

“So that’s it…” Yalin murmured softly. ‘This certainly reveals some interesting things. Secrets she had kept tightly guarded, like seeds within a pomegranate.’

He retrieved the shattered magic crystal that had fallen from Will’s body and placed it on the table. Under the candlelight, a few faint gleams still seemed to linger within the red crystal.

Yalin took out a small knife, made a shallow cut on his fingertip, and allowed a drop of blood to slowly fall onto the crystal.

Crack—The crystal fractured even further, seemingly having expended all its remaining power. With a soft pop, a drop of thick, black viscous liquid oozed from the cracks and began to writhe its way towards the scroll.

The instant the liquid touched the scroll, it transformed. It rapidly coalesced, spread, and took shape, its outline gradually sharpening until it became the figure of a woman. She wore a distinctive mask, one Yalin was intimately familiar with, having seen her recently on the airship.

“Oh? That was quick.” Crow swung an arm, appearing quite surprised.

“And the power is much weaker than I expected, too. You didn’t use the [Eye of Oblivion], did you? What a cautious fellow… but it doesn’t really matter.”

“It’s you?”

Yalin said, his brow furrowed.

“Well, that’s just how the scroll was set up, isn’t it? Amazing, right?” Crow covered her mouth, chuckling softly.

“However, my suspicions were correct! Lady Tiyera’s bloodline runs within you! Lady Livia, do you see? Our plan is about to succeed!” She joyfully raised her hands, cheering like a child.

“Tiyera? Who is that? An evil god’s name?”

“How rude! Lady Tiyera is no evil god; she is the supreme deity who brings love to all!”