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Lan Luo tipped his head back and flashed a brilliant smile. "It's fine."

Qi Chao believed him, smiling as he reached out to straighten the headband he had knocked crooked.

Good thing the system was not here, or there would have been another round of wailing.

After dinner, Qi Chao wished Doctor and the two dolls good night in turn, then went down to the basement to work.

Usually, the first thing he did upon arriving in the basement was feed Mental Power to the Mother Stone. This time, however, he did not. Instead, he turned on the Light Brain and searched for auctions.

Most of the diamonds at auctions came from private collectors. Whether in quality or collectible value, they far surpassed ordinary diamonds. Doctor would probably like them.

The nearest diamond auction was tomorrow evening. Without hesitation, Qi Chao bought two tickets, one for himself and one for Moss.

If the two little dolls at home knew he was picking out a gift for their father, they would definitely scramble to come along.

However, Lan Luo went to bed promptly at eight every night. The auction would take too long, and Qi Chao would not let the kid stay up late. Moss needed sleep too, but as far as Qi Chao knew, he usually did not sleep until after ten, so he could naturally go to the auction with him.

Barring any surprises, he would bid on a suitable diamond as a gift for Doctor.

As for Moss's apology gift, Qi Chao already had a rough idea, though he still needed time to prepare it.

Having considered the matters concerning father and son, Qi Chao began his daily work.

First, he carried the fish tank to his desk, tapped on the glass, and chatted with a stone about what had happened that day. It was Qi Chao's habit. Though there was no evidence that Mother Stones were conscious, it was better to be safe than sorry. If the little one was already conscious, prenatal education was essential.

Only after finishing the day's story did Qi Chao focus, close his eyes, and try to guide the Mental Power from his sea of consciousness toward the Mother Stone.

Countless gleaming green orbs of light danced around the Mother Stone. Unlike the way it had slowly devoured them before, this time an invisible magnetic field seemed to surround it. The moment the light orbs approached, they were swept into the field.

Qi Chao could not see Mental Power, nor could he see this scene, but he still sensed that something was wrong. Transferring his Mental Power was far more exhausting than before.

At first, Qi Chao did not think much of it, assuming he was simply not in the best condition today. But then a series of cracking sounds reached his ears, and he realized something.

Holy shit! Was this for real?!

The cracking of a shell breaking grew clearer and clearer. Qi Chao suppressed the excitement in his heart and focused even harder.

If Lan Luo had been here, he would have seen the magnetic field around this Mother Stone—which had never lacked Mental Power since its mark had been carved—spinning continuously and gradually forming a spatial vortex. The vortex split into two, then four, constantly dividing and expanding until it filled the entire room.

Like a spoiled beast, it greedily demanded Mental Power from its father to strengthen itself. This appetite had long exceeded what an ordinary person could endure. If it had been anyone else, they would have been sucked dry into a human husk.

Yet its father merely felt a little tired. Such reserves of Mental Power could no longer be described as powerful. They were utterly terrifying.

On Blue Star, only a small number of Puppet Masters knew that Mother Stones did not inherently have grades. Every Mother Stone was an uncut gem; the difference lay only in the Puppet Master. If a Puppet Master's Mental Power was strong enough and he was devoted enough, he could bring out all of a Mother Stone's potential.

That was why the Mother Stones Shen Yuxi selected could all be used to create high-level dolls. One could imagine that once a Mother Stone with such an overwhelming display was made into a doll, that little one would certainly not be weak.

Qi Chao could handle it at first, but later, even he began to struggle. He let out a breath and gritted his teeth as he persevered. A layer of sweat beaded on his forehead. After an unknown amount of time, the cracking abruptly stopped. Qi Chao opened his eyes and looked toward the fish tank, where a translucent flash of red entered his vision.

Qi Chao picked it up and turned it over in his hands. After shedding its shell, the stone actually looked rather like red crystal. It was heart-shaped too, and quite beautiful.

Red indicated that the Mother Stone was of superior quality.

After Doctor had praised the Mother Stone yesterday, Qi Chao had guessed that its grade would not be low. Yet when he truly saw the red Mother Stone, he was still delighted.

A red Mother Stone meant a longer lifespan.

Qi Chao's thumb stroked the smooth crystal. He smiled and played with it in his hand for a while before placing the Mother Stone back into the fish tank.

Just as expected, his little beauty was exceptional.

Qi Chao had originally wanted to modify the clay model according to Doctor's suggestion, but when he picked up the carving knife, he realized that his left hand had been trembling nonstop. What he needed most now was to go to bed and rest.

He did not force himself to continue. After putting away the carving knife, he stood up, wished the red Heart-Shaped Mother Stone good night, and walked out of the basement.

The next day at breakfast, Qi Chao told the three of them that the Mother Stone had been activated.

Doctor had already expected it. He smiled faintly and said gently, "Congratulations."

Moss did not react much at first. Later, as though he had recalled something, he followed after his father and offered his congratulations.

Lan Luo remembered that the Mother Stone had been fun to play with, and now that it had finally been activated, he immediately said, "I want to go see it!" With that, he ran out.

Seeing this, Doctor seemed to grow interested as well. After quietly offering an apology, he followed him out.

Moss remained seated in his chair, without any extra curiosity. Qi Chao was at ease letting the father and son go to the basement and had no intention of getting up. Only the two of them remained in the living room.

"Moss, do you want to go to the auction with me tonight?" Qi Chao asked with a smile.

"An auction?"

Moss's lips tightened beneath his bandages. Because he had lowered his head, Qi Chao did not see his black eyes suddenly constrict, as though he had remembered something frightening.

"Yeah." Qi Chao smiled. "I want to pick out a diamond as a gift for your father. Do you want to come with me?"

A gift for Father?

Moss lifted his head and stared straight at Qi Chao, as if trying to see whether he was telling the truth. After several seconds, he nodded in agreement. "When?"