A Luo searched haphazardly for a way out. Behind her, the Life Stone fell silent for a moment before finally demanding, unwilling to let it go:
"When did you realize I was lying to you?"
A Luo laughed, pinching the little piece of black stone she had obtained as she said smugly:
"The moment I first laid eyes on you, you big lump of rock, I knew something was off."
The Life Stone asked, "Why?"
A Luo lowered her head.
"Because no matter how convincing your imitation is, you still don't understand human emotions! My dad always forced his dreams on me, and he was an arbitrary, stubborn, overbearing tyrant."
The little girl's eyes slowly reddened.
"But he was still my dad! You probably wouldn't understand. All these days, I haven't forgotten a single moment of what happened the day disaster struck our family. I've replayed that day countless times in my head and in my dreams. Especially what Dad said before he died. I even remember every little furrow of his brow."
"No one in this world knows better than I do whether he meant those words, whether he said them for my sake or had some other intention. He said you weren't a treasure. Quite the opposite-you were something sinister... so there's no way you could be anything good."
"That's why I was on guard against you from the moment I pushed open that door. I went over every word you said several times in my head. All it took was a little thought to see that the story you used to trick me contradicted itself and was full of holes. If I still fell for it, wouldn't that make me even stupider than a clueless rock like you?"
The Life Stone sputtered, "You!"
In all its years