“What is she trying to do?”
Wang Yue sensed something was wrong. Granahl’s demeanor was casual, even flippant. She seemed distracted, not like someone coming to inspect the state of the Fetal Monstrosities.
If that wasn’t why she was here, then…
Her nerves stretched to the breaking point, Wang Yue reached out to pick up the lemon tea on the table. Her hand shook so violently that the cup felt as heavy as a mountain. She had to use her other hand to steady it, barely managing to bring it to her lips. It tasted terrible.
Absolute rotten luck.
No. I have to do something.
Her eyes remained wide, fixed on the images of the Blue Lake and the woman on the screen.
A sudden flash of inspiration struck her.
Before a person commits an evil act, there is often a moment of internal struggle or regret. As they walk toward the abyss, perhaps there is a part of them that wants to be saved—wants to be stopped.
The crow left its hiding place and flew toward the woman in red, landing beside her.
Granahl didn’t even move her eyes; she had clearly noticed the little creature long ago.
She smoothed her skirt and sat down, bracing her hands behind her on the ground. She looked like an ordinary woman out for a picnic by the lake, leisurely enjoying the natural scenery.
“Good afternoon, Teacher Granahl,” the crow said, tilting its head and feigning a relaxed tone.
“Oh, it’s student Wang Yue!” The woman turned her head and offered a smile.
Wang Yue’s heart sank. This was bad.
Judging by the woman’s relaxed and genuinely pleasant expression, she wasn’t feeling a shred of struggle or regret. On the contrary, she was enjoying every second of this.
The “heart-to-heart” approach had failed before it even started.
It was just like that famous line from Joker—some people just want to watch the world burn.
Besides, for a cold-blooded conspirator who had spent countless nights tossing and turning, planning every detail, how could a few words of comfort possibly change her mind? it was simply unrealistic.
Before Wang Yue could decide on her next move, Granahl spoke first.
“Did you know? I’ve already found a vertical privilege escalation vulnerability through black-box testing. Lila doesn’t have the highest authority, and the ‘Mentor’ isn’t at the school… No one can stop me now.”
Wang Yue was struck with a wave of absolute shock!
If what Granahl said was true, then control over the Fetal Monstrosities might have been seized much earlier than she realized!
This meant the conspiracy had already entered its final phase!
“Witness me! I shall ring the bell for a new era! Let it echo through the future!”
Granahl stood up and extended her thin arms toward the lake. Within the ethereal Blue Lake, inside the thick, dark-green membranes of the Fetal Monstrosities, several curled demon larvae seemed to sense their approaching doom. They struggled desperately, but they were still torn apart into fragments!
Jet-black protoplasm stained the amniotic fluid into a murky sludge. Then, the membranes burst, and massive plumes of ink-like stains bloomed across the surface of the Blue Lake!
Granahl spread her arms wide and leaned forward, plunging into the lake!
Wang Yue watched, unable to intervene. As a mere observer, she could only stare in futility.
The black water churned and surged. Clusters of red crystals resembling rhodochrosite rose from the surface, climbing upward with a sound like cracking ice, gradually growing into a twisted rose formed from offset, overlapping crystalline discs!
The rose was pure and bright, bathed in an eerie glow like pomegranate seeds. Through the crystalline petals, one could vaguely see a petite, illusory figure being nurtured within.
Seeing this, Wang Yue’s breath hitched. She felt a chill run through her entire body. She suddenly realized that the Restorationists’ goal wasn’t to give the demons independent consciousness—that wouldn’t serve their interests. Their true purpose was to devour the Fetal Monstrosities to become beings close to gods!
Wang Yue remained firm in her resolve. Through her extensive studies and the knowledge she had acquired, she possessed a degree of understanding regarding divine power. She was capable of making an accurate judgment of the situation—eight Fetal Monstrosities were not enough to make Granahl a deity.
Godhood was not merely an accumulation of quantity. Only by deducing a “Truth” could a qualitative change occur, allowing one to become a god.
The power of faith or emotional energy harvested from humans was used specifically to deduce these Truths.
Wang Yue hypothesized the process went like this:
Generate power from human “love”—use oneself as a computer to calculate Truth using that power—master enough Truths—become a god.
Of course, this path did not apply to Outer Gods.
Primordial gods were the manifestation of Truth itself, while secondary gods were merely crude imitations created by intelligent life after exploring and mastering those Truths.
Therefore, since Granahl had absorbed eight Fetal Monstrosities created from Apostle remains, her power level was only comparable to that of an Apostle.
In this critical moment, Wang Yue’s mind raced. In an instant, many of her lingering doubts were cleared.
She understood why Granahl had collaborated with the Church.
Apostles were not invincible. At this very moment, an Apostle was being hunted down by the powerhouses of humanity.
Even if she became an Apostle by devouring the embryos, she would still face a crusade and a reckoning afterward. Granahl knew this well. She had allied with the Church to counter the forces of Evernight and hold Lhouctoug’s Aperture. Only then could she survive.
Although the Church had grown complacent over hundreds of years in their “Sunlight Farm,” they still had some foundation left. Besides, even among “huskies,” there are powerful ones who haven’t lost their wolf-like nature.
Now, Wang Yue faced a difficult choice.
The absorption of the Fetal Monstrosities was irreversible. Should she continue to resist and fight to the death, or should she prepare early to cushion the impact?
She hesitated, so she contacted the two Lantern-Bearers via her crow to report the situation.
“The demon embryos are lost? The Church is at the gate?” Aminata asked in a heavy voice.
“Yes,” Wang Yue confirmed.
“Then there is no need to hold our ground. Our priority now is to protect the young witches in the Academy. I will prepare to destroy the Demon Tree’s consciousness and evacuate with the Lord of the Origin.”
“Let Lilith handle it; she will cooperate with you.”
“Understood.”
***
Lilith strolled through the campus, feeling as though she couldn’t bear to put down her new toy.
Since she was a child, she had loved cutting things open to admire the texture of the cross-sections and the fluids that seeped out.
She loved bladed weapons—the sharp edges, the beautiful shapes, and the feeling of a pointed knife in her hand acting as an extension of her own will.
The greenery along the path suffered for it. She hacked at the bushes indiscriminately, and the severed branches oozed with abundant sap.
She cut off the stone animal heads from the school’s fountain one by one. Holding one in her hand, she laughed incessantly at the smooth, severed neck that was still spraying water.
Of course, this was a front. She was feigning madness to stall for time, avoiding an early confrontation with the Lantern-Bearers.
Now, she received another instruction from Wang Yue. It was time to act!
She casually tossed the stone head aside and dashed straight toward the coordinates in her mind!
Lilith smashed through a wall, kicking up a massive cloud of dust as she appeared in the hallway, leaving a human-shaped hole behind her.
Teacher Vida, who was holding her lesson plans and preparing for class, jumped in fright at Lilith’s sudden intrusion. She yelled angrily, “Lilith! What are you doing?!”
“Oh~ if it isn’t ‘Teacher Vida Who Never Grows Up’?” Lilith’s tone was flippant. She leaned forward, her slitted pupils glowing with mocking light.
Vida’s mouth hung open in shock. She hadn’t expected Lilith to use that nickname to her face!
Last time, a student had let that slip in the classroom before class. She had overheard it from the window, and that student ended up crying while writing a five-thousand-word self-reflection.
“You’re dead! Get ready to write fifty thousand words and have it serialized in the school journal!” Vida clenched her fists, her small body trembling with rage.
Lilith leaned down and pinched the loli-teacher’s pink, chubby cheek. A playful smile tugged at the corner of her mouth as she challenged, “What? You got a problem with that?”
“Ah—!” Vida screamed, pulling out her wand. “I’m going to teach you a lesson!” she yelled furioiusly.
The wand was instantly snatched away, snapped in half, and tossed to the floor.
Lilith grabbed Vida’s cowlick and yanked upward. The little teacher winced in pain, tears welling in her eyes, but she remained stubborn.
“Apologize right now! It’s not too late! Any longer and I… I’ll expel you!”
Lilith didn’t let go. Instead, she used her other hand to keep teasing her. Vida’s face turned bright red as she cried out in panic:
“Help! A student is hitting a teacher! Where is the justice?!”
“Hahahaha!”
Lilith let out a string of wild, uninhibited laughter. She had wanted to do this for a long time. It felt absolutely amazing.
Wang Yue didn’t see this scene. She had already withdrawn her crow and was planning her next move.
Don’t let me down, Lilith.
