16. A Masterpiece: [garbled text] / 17. Playing Lovers in a Dream?

"I found this child in Changkong City. She was covered in injuries and couldn't transform into human form. After I healed her, I used your name to bring Bella back."

"I hope you won't be upset that I picked out a pet for you."

"How could that be... Rather, when I see Bella, I do feel a sense of familiarity and warmth from the bottom of my heart."

"If I were in Bella, I probably would have made the same choice..."

Kiana couldn't help but stroke Bella's hair, a gentle smile playing on her lips.

Although Kiana saw Bella's appearance when experiencing Sirin's past in Changkong City, it was Bella as a child.

She was genuinely surprised to see Bella now, looking like a young girl.

However, even though there is a conflict between her and Sirin, Kiana can't bring herself to dislike Bella at all.

"I'm glad you like it. Oh, by the way, I'll come to see you again tonight. Remember to open the door for me then."

"Tonight? Okay..." Kiana paused for a moment, but didn't ask any further questions.

"Bella, you can stay a little longer and have a good chat with Kiana, but don't bother Kiana for too long."

Xia Ling winked mysteriously at Kiana, waved her hand, and left the room instead of continuing to talk about Changkong City as Kiana had expected.

After all, Xia Ling knew the whole story. The experiment of Schicksal would be completed soon, and after the experiment was completed, Mei, who had successfully transformed, would immediately close the Imaginary Singularity.

More than that, she was concerned about Kiana's condition.

Next, she needs to go see Theresa again...

Just as Xia Ling stepped out of the room, she saw Mei leave the captain's cabin not far away.

"Mei?"

Mei didn't seem to hear Xia Ling's voice, and instead walked away dejectedly in the opposite direction.

"Could it be...?"

Xia Ling had some guesses in her mind. It seemed that this must be the time when Mei learned that Kiana's life was nearing its end, and Anti-Entropy was helpless in the face of this.

Judging from this, Mei will probably quietly leave the Hyperion tomorrow to go to World Serpent to find a way to save Kiana.

Fortunately, we were able to deal with Sirin's problem before the Elegy of the Sinner...

"Theresa, I just saw Mei go out. She seemed very heavy-hearted?"

"Yes, I felt that this kind of thing shouldn't be kept from her, so I told her the whole story about Kiana's physical condition."

Theresa sighed, "Besides, this kind of thing can't be kept secret for long, so it's better to say it sooner rather than later and let's all think of a solution together."

"By the way, have you seen Kiana? What are your thoughts?"

"It's hard to say. Kiana's body is still very fragile, so I didn't dare to interfere too much."

Xia Ling shook her head. "However... more than her physical problems, I'm worried that she might sneak out to solve the problems in Changkong City."

"You're right to worry. I know her too well. She really could do it."

Theresa slumped on the table, looking distressed. "I can't possibly tie Kiana up with Judah too, can I?"

"?"

Xia Ling was drenched in sweat.

"If I heard you correctly, did you just say 'also'?"

"Excuse me for asking, but who was the person you originally planned to kidnap...?"

"Hehe~" Theresa tilted her head. "Teriri doesn't know~"

"... Anyway, I'll sleep with Kiana for the next couple of days. On the one hand, I'll monitor her physical condition, and on the other hand, if she tries to slip away, I should be the only one who can detect it."

"Hmm, that is indeed a good idea." Theresa didn't suspect anything. "But you're not planning to sneak away with Kiana, are you?"

"How could that be? Although I often take risks on my own, I have never taken anyone else on an adventure with me."

"Coming from you, those words really do carry weight..."

Chapter Sixteen: World Famous Paintings: Dequn Teases Liu Qiu Er Er Shan Si (8) Ba Lisa is Sleeping

"Huh? So, Sister Xia Ling meant this morning that she was going to sleep with me tonight?"

Kiana waited for a long time without seeing Xia Ling, who had said she was coming to see her. Just as she was about to go out to check, she ran into Xia Ling floating at her door with a pillow in her arms.

"Yeah, what's wrong? You're not welcoming me?"

"No, no, no, I mean... Sister Xia Ling, don't you need to go accompany the headmaster?"

Kiana shook her head repeatedly. Who wouldn't like Xia Ling's fragrant and soft body? Back in Changkong City, she had slept in the same room with Xia Ling a few times, and the comfortable feeling was still fresh in her memory.

Even after meeting Xia Ling this time, Kiana noticed that Xia Ling had an indescribable feeling about her, as if she was inexplicably attracted to her. When she was around Xia Ling, she felt a strange sense of security.

Although she had felt this way before, it became particularly strong after seeing her this time. She didn't know if it was because she had changed or because Xia Ling had changed in some way.

However, Kiana guessed that this was most likely Xia Ling's problem, since apart from the fact that the fusion degree of the Herrscher Core might have increased a bit during this period, nothing else should have changed for her.

"I've already spoken to Theresa. Your condition has been unstable these past few days, so I'll keep an eye on you for a while."

Xia Ling hugged her pillow and said, "I remember your blankets in this room are pretty big. You don't mind if I share a blanket with you, do you?"

"I don't mind, of course I don't mind." Kiana quickly shook her head. "But... I'm not that fragile, Headmistress is overthinking it."

"Heh, I wonder which guy was that pitifully telling me he didn't want to go back to the Hyperion." Xia Ling roughly rubbed Kiana's cheek and said, "Theresa was even afraid that you might do something rash and sneak away in the middle of the night."

"Well..."

Kiana silently looked away.

"You actually thought that way!"

"No... I did think about sneaking away if I got caught, but after coming back and seeing you guys, that thought naturally disappeared."

Kiana scratched her head, looking a little embarrassed.

"That's more like it." Xia Ling opened her arms. "Put me on top, it's a little inconvenient for me."

"Okay, sure."

Kiana quickly scooped up Xia Ling's delicate body and placed her on the bed.

"Sister Xia Ling... I have a question."

"You... did you really only come here to prevent me from sneaking away?"

"?"

Although she didn't want to admit it, Xia Ling felt that her current expression had already betrayed her.

"Does your Kaslana family possess some kind of skill that suddenly increases intelligence?"

Xia Ling said with a long face, "First Theresa, and then you, how come you all guessed what I wanted to do!"

"Hehehe... Actually, as long as you stand in Sister Xia Ling's shoes and wholeheartedly consider things for us, you can easily see that Sister Xia Ling is different from usual."

"So, what does Sister Xia Ling need? Is there anything I can do to help?"

Kiana sat on the bed, looking at Xia Ling with sincere eyes.

"No, not at all. You idiot, just go to sleep. That's the biggest help you can give me."

Xia Ling, annoyed, pressed Kiana down onto the bed and snuggled into her arms, willingly becoming her body pillow.

There's no way around it; given her size, only Theresa can be her body pillow. Both Kiana and Elysia use her as a body pillow.

"Huh? You really don't need me...?"

"No need, just get some sleep and things will be better tomorrow."

"Okay, fine..."

Feeling the warm touch on her chest and the warmth of Xia Ling's body pressed against her, Kiana's weariness gradually overcame, and she soon drifted off to sleep.

A moment later, Kiana's door opened gently.

Bella cautiously entered the room and, upon seeing the two people inside, couldn't help but smile knowingly.

She quietly climbed onto the bed, hugged Kiana from behind, and closed her eyes.

At this moment, within the system space.

"Hi, Xia Ling, you've finally arrived!"

"Flame Willow and the others all went to do the trials, I'm so bored~"

Elysia sat on the sofa in the living room and greeted Xia Ling with a smile.

Then she noticed that Xia Ling walked straight up to her and stared intently at her.

"Hmm, what's wrong?"

Elysia tilted her head, puzzled.

"Elysia, Origin."

Xia Ling succinctly reminded Elysia with just two words.

"Uh... hehe?"

"What are you 'hey' about!" Xia Ling said angrily, pounced on Elysia, and rolled around on the sofa.

"Elysia, why didn't you tell me something this important sooner... I'm not even Herrscher, how could I inherit the power of the Origin?"

Elysia saw many things in Xia Ling's eyes: surprise, confusion, but mostly fear.

She was afraid she couldn't bear the weight of that word, afraid she couldn't do it... Even though Little Xia Ling had already done so well, she always harbored an almost stubborn inferiority complex about herself...

Ugh, it's all Kevin's fault. He must have accidentally let it slip. Seriously, next time we go out, I'll definitely teach him a lesson...

Seeing Xia Ling's somewhat aggrieved expression, Elysia's eyes couldn't help but show a hint of pity.

"Because Xia Ling has never really believed in herself. If I told you beforehand, you would put a lot of pressure on yourself, wouldn't you?"

"No way... If Elysia had told me sooner, I definitely would have refused outright..."

"No way~" Elysia shook her finger. "Xia Ling, you might do anything, but you will never refuse."

"You've never refused any of my requests, whether they were reasonable or not, right? Not even Kiana, Theresa, or anyone else."

"In this situation, if I told you in advance, you would only force yourself to take on this responsibility, and then start to feel anxious about it, while doing some riskier but more rewarding things to try to improve yourself quickly, wouldn't you?"

Elysia pressed her finger against Xia Ling's cheek and then poked it in, pushing the girl's puffed-up face down.

"I know you best, Xia Ling. So when I gave you this power, I didn't tell you at all. Look, it hasn't been long, and your ability has already begun to resonate well with the power of the Origin."

"Yes, really...?"

"Of course~, do you think that the cores that have been fully activated by Honkai Energy can be sealed off so easily? If you forcibly seal them off, just like when you first used your ability, those cores will regain their vitality the moment your ability disappears."

So, don't underestimate yourself...

Elysia touched the corner of Xia Ling's mouth with her fingertip and pulled it upwards, forcing a smile onto Xia Ling's distressed face.

"You've become... incredibly amazing!"

Chapter Seventeen: Playing Couples in a Dream?

"Ahem, let's put the Origin Authority aside for now..."

Feeling a little embarrassed by Elysia's compliments, Xia Ling quickly changed the subject.

"I'm going to contact Rin soon to start constructing the dream, Elysia, are you ready?"

"What's there to prepare for... Didn't you say that we just need to follow our hearts when the time comes?"

Elysia's face was beaming with smiles, showing no sign of worry whatsoever.

"I believe Sirin will be a good child, and I also believe in your plan, Xia Ling... In fact, I've already started thinking about how to comfort Sirin after this dream."

"But Little Xia Ling, I have a feeling... you're actually hoping for something completely different."

"Yes, really? I don't think so..."

Xia Ling silently looked away. "Anyway, let's hurry to the Stigmata Space now. Kiana seems to have fallen asleep. According to observation, Sirin should also fall asleep at the same time."