43. Your Substitute Yae Sakura Has Logged Back In

Elysia analyzed it in a very serious manner.

"What use is my allure! Am I supposed to seduce Theresa so she'll devour me...?"

Xia Ling retaliated by burying her head in Elysia's chest and rubbing against her. Unlike Theresa, this time Xia Ling received a very comfortable tactile feedback.

"Elysia, my dear Elysia, please stop teasing me..."

Looking at Xia Ling, who was nestled against her chest and acting coquettishly, Elysia reached out and stroked her hair before uttering some extremely heartless words.

I wasn't teasing you~

"Since you made a mistake, you have to bear the consequences yourself."

Xia Ling's body stiffened abruptly. She suddenly realized that she seemed to have overlooked a possibility.

Although she felt that she had sent plenty of meat pigeons around, Elysia should have been used to her injuries by now.

However, this seems to be just "her opinion".

"Um, that..."

Xia Ling asked cautiously.

"Ai, Elysia... you won't... either..."

"Hmm~"

"I'm not in such a bad mood, after all, I haven't been angry for long and a cutie has already come knocking on my door, right?"

"So, I've walked right into a trap?"

Xia Ling felt like crying but had no tears. She felt a pair of hands already on her lower back and gradually moving upwards.

"That's right?"

Elysia smiled gently as she looked into Xia Ling's eyes, making Xia Ling clearly feel her seriousness.

"I remember telling Little Xia Ling this before, and more than once, that even if she could be resurrected, she shouldn't be so careless with herself."

"It seems Little Xia Ling hasn't remembered what I said at all~"

"But it's okay, this time I'll make a deep impression on Little Xia Ling!"

"Hey, hey? Elysia, don't suddenly pick me up!"

"My toes, my toes can't touch the ground anymore, ugh..."

Before she could even struggle, Xia Ling's eyes widened suddenly, and the mournful cry she was about to utter was abruptly cut off.

A moment later, the steam princess, who seemed to be radiating heat, slumped limply onto the sofa in the system space.

Beside her, Elysia gently touched her lips, her face turning slightly flushed.

"Oh my, I didn't expect Little Xia Ling to be even more shy than I thought..."

"So, will you dare to neglect yourself again in the future?"

"You'll do it again next time!"

Xia Ling suddenly perked up.

"Hehehe... If this happens again next time, will I get punished by Elysia again...?"

"Why have you suddenly turned into a little fangirl...?"

Seeing Xia Ling's silly expression, Elysia couldn't bring herself to be angry. She sighed, sat down next to Xia Ling, and let the girl rest her head on her long, slender legs encased in black stockings.

"Don't you still understand why Theresa is so angry?"

"No... actually, I guessed a little bit later..."

Xia Ling patted her flushed cheeks, trying to clear her head.

"However, perhaps because of my ability to be resurrected, I naturally cannot consider myself and Theresa and the others as beings of equal weight..."

"It's not as simple as Theresa thinks... I know I shouldn't take everything on myself, and I know I can't be so 'aloof' as to take the risks for them."

"But... I can't bear the consequences of losing any of them. I can't even imagine what would happen."

"If that scene actually happened in front of me, I'm afraid I would lose control and go crazy..."

"So, I'd rather Theresa stay angry with me forever, but next time, I'll still do it..."

Xia Ling rested her head on Elysia's lap, murmuring to herself.

"Anyway, that's it... I'm a very stubborn person, and once I've made up my mind, I won't change it."

"No matter how angry you are, or how you punish me... I will not change my attitude."

"Well..."

"What a silly little thing?"

Elysia pouted in dissatisfaction. "Always making such capricious demands, it will really bother other people."

"But... never mind, what can I do? You're Xia Ling."

Deep within Elysia's eyes, the diamond-shaped pink mark began to glow faintly.

Xia Ling stared at Elysia with a puzzled look, then gradually became attracted by those beautiful eyes, and slowly... drifted off to sleep.

"Xia Ling's abilities... seem to have a very high compatibility with Origin Authority..."

"It hasn't even undergone the Origin's Legacy yet, and it's already starting to combine with authority on its own...?"

A thoughtful look appeared in Elysia's eyes.

"Then can I...?"

Chapter 43 Your Substitute Yae Sakura is Back Online

"Hmm..."

Xia Ling groggily opened her eyes and found that everything in front of her had turned pitch black.

She felt as if she were holding a petite body, and there was no doubt that she was lying next to Theresa.

Xia Ling was able to tell that she was definitely in reality at this moment, or rather, she was taking a nap with Theresa.

"Wait... I remember I wasn't..."

Somewhat puzzled, Xia Ling covered her head and recalled her experience in the system space.

She remembered that Elysia had severely "punished" her for her behavior, and afterwards she lay on Elysia's lap as a pillow, pouring out her innermost thoughts to Elysia...

Then, it seems she fell asleep?

Yes, it seems she was looking into Elysia's eyes, and then she accidentally fell asleep.

Her memory of what happened after she woke up was a bit hazy. She vaguely remembered that Elysia had told her that she had asked Vill-V to make a wheelchair for her, and that Kal'tsit would find an opportunity to give it to her later.

Hmm... Is this really the important thing? I have a feeling that my attention has been subtly diverted.

Xia Ling couldn't quite remember.

Forget it, I don't want to think about it anymore. Anyway, Elysia would never hurt me... Elysia must have her reasons for doing this.

In short, I went to see Elysia at noon, but not only did I not get any guidance from Elysia, I also got myself into trouble...

Xia Ling suddenly felt a bit overwhelmed.

"Miss Xia Ling, are you awake yet?"

A gentle voice came from beside me.

"Yae Sakura?"

Xia Ling was slightly taken aback. Yae Sakura's voice was very distinctive, and she recognized her immediately.

"I didn't expect Miss Xia Ling to remember my voice. I heard that Miss Xia Ling was seriously injured before, and I have been wanting to come out and visit her for a long time."

"However, because Theresa kept clinging to you, it was inconvenient to disturb her, so it was delayed until now."

"It's okay, it's okay. I was also very busy the past few days... although it might not have been anything serious."

Xia Ling sighed. So much had happened during this time that she didn't know where to begin.

"Oh, by the way, Yae Sakura, how is Rin doing in the Stigmata Space?"

Xia Ling suddenly remembered that after her "death," it seemed that the bell had severed its connection with the Elysian Realm.

Although the Corrosion Virus can transmit messages to some extent, given my familiarity with Ling before I left, it would probably be much more complicated.

"Ling? She's doing very well in the Stigmata Space."

Yae Sakura paused for a moment, then replied, "To some extent, it was because Xia Ling severed the connection with the Stigmata Space that Ling had to accelerate her learning of how to control the Corrosion Virus."

"As a result, her learning efficiency is more than twice as fast as before. Now, even just considering the powers she forged with the virus, she can rival Hiyomaru."

"As for communication with the Elysian Realm, she hasn't cut off communication. Speaking of which, Ling and I should be among the first to know that you're actually not dead."

"As soon as you lost contact with the Stigmata Space, Ling started asking Mobius about your situation. Later, after Elysia confirmed that you were not dead, she was relieved."

"However... Elysia specifically instructed us not to reveal that you are not dead, so I haven't said anything either."

"I see..." Xia Ling said gratefully, "Thank you, Yae Sakura. Given my condition at the time, it was indeed not suitable for me to be exposed to the outside world."

"It's alright, it's just my duty."

"So... do you need another implantation of the Stigmata Space mark?"

Yae Sakura took Xia Ling's hand.

"Of course." Xia Ling nodded seriously. "Later... I might even need to use Kishinuma."

"This period without Kishinuma has been so inconvenient..."

After imprinting the mark of the Stigmata Space onto Xia Ling's hand once more, Yae Sakura quickly left.

Her purpose in appearing here seems to be to restore Xia Ling's connection with the Stigmata Space.

After all, Xia Ling's physical condition is not good right now. If she really encounters any danger, having this mark means she can summon Yae Sakura to fight for her at any time, which would make her much safer.

Shortly after Yae Sakura left, Xia Ling felt Theresa slowly waking up beside her.

Xia Ling gave a wry smile. Based on yesterday afternoon's situation, this afternoon would probably be another afternoon of being "displayed" with a collar on her neck.

It's okay... This kind of life will only last for a week at most. Once she regains her sight, she can have a little more freedom.

Xia Ling, who was lifted up by Theresa and placed in a wheelchair, is also finding joy amidst her suffering today, looking forward to her life after recovery.

Meanwhile, in Changkong City.

Rita, who had been investigating the intelligence network for two days, finally received her reward today.

A movement trajectory that almost perfectly overlapped with Xia Ling and Kiana's appeared on her terminal screen.

This basically confirms that the murderer who killed the Jackal was indeed on Xia Ling's side, rather than being the result of a self-directed act by the World Serpent or an internal power struggle.

"Finally found you!"

Rita looked at her test results, and the gloom of the past two days vanished instantly.

God knows how conflicted she was when she was checking this route; she even verified all the wrong options because she was unsure.

There's no way around it, this murderer is just too relaxed.

From the time her movements were recorded, apart from always staying within a kilometer of Xia Ling, her daily routine could be roughly described as eating and playing, playing and eating.

Rita could somewhat understand the act of eating and drinking, but what Rita couldn't understand was that the murderer had actually gone out of his way to visit a pet market and lingered for quite a while in a cat tree shop.

Rita thought this specialty store was some kind of secret rendezvous point, and even asked the Schicksal authorities to investigate it for her. As it turned out, it was just a normal pet supply store.

No, how could this person have the time to buy things for their pet while on a mission? Rita couldn't help but sigh, people who are associated with Xia Ling really can't be judged by common sense.

"So..."

"Based on subsequent tracking, this person's location should be here..."

Rita looked at the location displayed on the terminal and couldn't help but hesitate.

"If the terminal's location is correct, then this person is now in... the safe house where Xia Ling was originally located?"