Chapter 95: The Eve of Ascension and a Vow of Vengeance

Bai Yu absorbed the knowledge from the books, knowing she had to assimilate all of it before nightfall.

The Witch’s formidable talent granted her an almost photographic memory, every piece of information she encountered etching itself firmly into her mind.

This was precisely why Bai Yu had not rushed to extract the knowledge from the books; the closer she drew to the ascension ritual, the more potent the absorption of knowledge became.

Most, however, lacked Bai Yu’s remarkable eidetic memory, necessitating a much longer period of preparation.

Books rapidly flipped through Bai Yu’s hands, page after page sweeping past her eyes.

Innumerable fragments of knowledge imprinted themselves upon Bai Yu’s mind, and at this moment, she had completely entered a state of profound absorption.

According to Bai Yu’s calculations, the precise moment she finished reading all the books would coincide with midnight.

By then, her [Evernight] spiritual core would be operating at its peak, ensuring a smoother breakthrough.

****

Within the room, Bai Yu had fully immersed herself in study, and Tianyu, aware of Bai Yu’s impending breakthrough, refrained from disturbing her.

To preempt any potential disruptions, Tianyu settled in the living room, effectively acting as Bai Yu’s protector.

Although, as a seasoned Arcanist, one would typically prepare their own tranquil conditions for a breakthrough.

Yet, as Bai Yu’s mother, how could Tianyu possibly remain unconcerned?

However, one point alone left Tianyu perplexed: Bai Yu’s breakthrough speed was simply too astonishingly rapid.

When she had returned to the Dragon Summer Nation, Bai Yu was already at Tier 1, and even then, Tianyu had noticed the unusual pace of her advancements.

Ordinarily, an Arcanist’s breakthrough speed was measured in years, whereas Bai Yu’s seemed to be calculated in mere days.

Her speed wasn’t just a little faster; if anyone in the official circles learned of Bai Yu’s breakthrough rate, she would undoubtedly be etched into history.

‘Could it be because Bai Yu awakened her spiritual core so late?’

Tianyu could only attribute it to this reason, as virtually all Arcanists awakened their spiritual cores at the age of twelve.

Those who awakened later were exceedingly rare, and most achieved little, struggling to ever surpass Tier 4 in their entire lives.

Bai Yu, however, seemed to be an exception among exceptions; Tianyu had originally believed Bai Yu would live an ordinary life, given that there had been no changes at all when she turned twelve.

Yet, against all expectations, Bai Yu had now blossomed to a degree Tianyu could scarcely have imagined.

Tianyu sighed, merely marveling at the swift turn of events.

She was genuinely delighted by Bai Yu’s exceptional brilliance.

‘One might even say she’s truly her son… ah, no, her daughter, of course.’

Tianyu’s expression darkened momentarily; aside from Bai Yu’s transformation into a girl, which admittedly displeased her somewhat, there seemed to be no other flaws.

Perhaps it was precisely because Bai Yu had awakened her spiritual core at eighteen that her advancement had been so extraordinarily swift.

After all, Bai Yu had fallen a full six years behind others.

Naturally, this calculation assumed an equivalent lifespan.

In truth, when an Arcanist broke through to Tier 4, Tier 7, and Tier 9, their lifespan would dramatically increase; a Tier 9 Arcanist could even live for a thousand years.

However, this was not immortality; apart from the gods, no life could ever attain true eternal life.

Tianyu sighed once more, acknowledging that there was little she could do to aid Bai Yu, given that her own current standing was largely a product of luck and talent; beyond combat experience, all they could offer Bai Yu were Dragon Summer coins.

After all, she had indeed accumulated substantial resources during her many years within the Hunter Guild.

Now, she simply wished to retire in Xian City.

Of course, there was one final matter: finding the individual responsible for Bai Yu’s transformation.

At this thought, Tianyu’s expression instantly turned grim.

While Bai Yu had not suffered any harm, that was purely due to good fortune, and certainly not a reason to excuse the culprit.

As for that person, she had already uncovered their identity.

“Kareila.”

Tianyu gritted her teeth.

It was an old acquaintance of hers, and to her dismay, that individual still harbored malicious intent.

To her knowledge, that person had acquired something from the Witch Council.

As for the specifics, Tianyu was in no mood to dwell on them; her sole objective was to find the person and eliminate her.

It was as simple as that.

Regarding the Witch Council, Tianyu currently had no intention of acting against them.

The reason was straightforward: she couldn’t defeat them.

Moreover, Tianyu vaguely suspected that those individuals harbored some other scheme.

After all, Bai Yu’s current state could entirely be considered a beneficial evolution for her, and the Witch Council had no reason to use such a valuable asset as a means to harm someone.

There was only one explanation: Kareila herself had been manipulated by the Witch Council, merely a pawn in their game.

This was sufficient; Tianyu only needed to deal with the actual perpetrator.

Vengeance was her code of conduct.

****

Time flowed onward, and the sky had completely darkened, moonlight illuminating the land.

At this moment, Bai Yu’s room was crammed with books, piled densely everywhere; she had lost count of how much knowledge she had absorbed, only feeling a slight throbbing in her head.

This was the absolute maximum she could absorb in one sitting, given her current state.

As the final book closed, Bai Yu began to arrange the sublimation ritual in the clear space of her room.

Naturally, the ritual’s instructions came from Moweila; Bai Yu herself could never have known how to prepare such a thing.

Bai Yu first retrieved a massive container from her magical artifacts, then began tossing various unidentifiable materials into it.

Though Bai Yu did not know what these items were, she could distinctly sense their immense value.

They were so precious that even gold and silver were relegated to mere scraps, deemed unworthy of the main stage.

Many were things Bai Yu had never even seen before, yet she discarded them into the massive container as if they were refuse.

[Ignite the flame.]

“Ignite what?”

Bai Yu was bewildered; they were indoors, after all—what if the entire house caught fire?

[Stop chattering, hurry.]

Having no other recourse, Bai Yu used a basic fire spell from [Fantasy World] to ignite the bottom of the container.

Contrary to Bai Yu’s expectation of an immediate blaze, Moweila took control of Bai Yu’s body, enveloping the flames below with spiritual energy.

Concurrently, she used spiritual energy to intensify the flames’ temperature.

This process rapidly depleted Bai Yu’s spiritual energy, nearly draining her reserves completely.

Bai Yu was astonished; ordinarily, her spiritual energy reserves were at least ten times that of an Arcanist of the same tier, yet they had been emptied with such ease.

As the flame’s temperature steadily rose, the liquid within the container shifted colors repeatedly, finally settling into a dazzling, night-sky purple.

Within it, lights shimmered like the starlight of the Milky Way.