Ah Yin Agrees to the God of Kindness's Terms

The God of Kindness's words were like a blunt knife, slowly cutting open a wound Ah Yin had kept buried for more than a decade.

Ah Yin's phantom clutched her head and sank into a crouch. Blue light shook violently around her, and she could barely hold her human form.

"Stop... please, stop!"

Her voice was no longer cool and ethereal. It came out hoarse, thick with tears.

Her roots curled up inside the Jade Box, as though trying to hide in its deepest corner.

Her son did not even know she existed.

"Would it make any difference whether he knew?"

The God of Kindness's question echoed through her mind, a thorn driving deeper with every repetition.

She's right. Tang Hao never asked what I wanted.

He thought hiding her away meant protecting her, but he had never considered what a Blue Silver Emperor truly needed.

Ah Yin crouched there, her phantom curled into a ball. Its blue glow flickered like a candle in the wind.

She wanted to argue, to tell the God of Kindness that Tang Hao loved her, but the words stuck in her throat. She was no longer sure of it herself.

The God of Kindness looked down at her for a moment, then clicked her tongue softly.

"Suit yourself. After tonight, I won't appear again."

White light flashed. Her phantom vanished, and silence returned to the room.

Ah Yin crouched alone above the Jade Box, her blue glow faintly flickering.

After a long while, she raised her hands to her face. Her shoulders shook.

No sound came, but the trembling light grew more violent, as if she were desperately holding back tears.

Half an hour passed.

The blue light on the table had dimmed almost to nothing. Only a faint glimmer lingered between the seams