After returning Kurosaki Satsuki to her bedroom, Chu Lian looked at the white-haired girl with her lips pressed tightly together, unsure what to say.
After staring at her for a long while, all her tangled emotions turned into a single sigh. "When she wakes up this time, she'll probably return to normal. I just wonder whether eliminating that demonic shadow will affect the speed of her strength growth. Still, I'd rather she grow more slowly than be tainted by something like that."
"It seemed capable of devouring the soul and contaminating everything," Inori said, bending down to place the two blades on the bedside cabinet. She frowned as she looked at Chu Lian.
"Yes. The Endless Abyss is no good place. Everything there carries intense corrosiveness. Whether body or soul, it can inflict tremendous damage—like an ordinary person accidentally taking drugs. In the end, they lose control of themselves completely and become polluted by the Endless Abyss."
With the system's information, Chu Lian had some understanding of that place.
"What kind of world is it?" Hearing her words, Inori grew curious. She sat sideways at the edge of the bed, looking at Chu Lian beside her, wanting to know more.
"The Endless Abyss, simply put, is a place inhabited by beings whose hearts have been corrupted. That corruption means drowning in boundless negative emotions. Perhaps sinking helplessly into an ocean of lust, or harboring resentment toward the heavens and wanting to destroy everything, or seeking to toy with life and seize every world in their hands.
"Of course, those are only a small portion. The rest—we'll talk about them if we ever encounter them. Anything driven by malice, anything purely harmful and without benefit, can be counted among them."
Chu Lian closed her eyes, slowly recalling the records of that far from pleasant world. Her cherry lips moved gently as she spoke everything she knew.
"The demonic shadow that tried to corrupt Satsuki belonged to the type filled with resentment, wanting to destroy everything. In life, it died with endless fury and killing intent. After death, it sought revenge. So it searched for a body with extraordinary talent that could bear its power, intending to use her as a successor. When the time was right, it would either devour or expel her soul, seize the body, and complete its rebirth."
"I discovered that demonic shadow back when we were in Japan. Since it had its own hardships and hadn't yet made a move against Satsuki, I allowed it to remain for the time being. I had planned to find an opportunity later to let it reincarnate and then deal with it properly—expel it, nothing more."
"I didn't expect its obsession to be just as deep as Satsuki's. Once it realized I knew of its existence, it feared being driven away or worse, so it acted against her. If it had won this time—or even just stalled a little longer—it would have succeeded."
"As long as it seized Satsuki's body, considering my personality, I would never kill her. At that point, it could have done whatever it pleased. Of course, it may have considered the possibility that I'd imprison her. But why not gamble? In the end, it lost the bet. That's all." Chu Lian shook her head with a bitter smile. In truth, she herself had been the catalyst for all of this.
"Are those things all humanoid?" Inori recalled the shadow she had seen earlier. It had taken a human shape and wielded a katana. Were all beings of the Endless Abyss like that?
"No. They aren't humanoid—at least not at the beginning. They have no fixed form. Souls filled with countless negative emotions fall into the River of Yemo and transform into the forms of Abyss natives according to their most dominant negative emotions.
"They might become maggots, rotting corpses, beasts of the sky or land, or all kinds of strange humanoid races. In any case, nothing normal. Perhaps precisely because of that, they become even more twisted, even more terrifying.
"If the world we live in contains many negative things, then in the Abyss, those negatives are simply their daily life.
"Betrayal, deception, slaughter, lust, massacre, devouring, extermination—these happen every moment. Whatever life enters there will eventually be assimilated. Very few beings of the Abyss can leave and return to normal."
"That sounds like hell," Inori murmured, recalling the legends. The resemblance was striking.
"No. Hell has order. The Abyss has none. Hell stands united yet divided within structure, while the Abyss remains forever in chaos." Chu Lian shook her head. With that, she had essentially explained the nature of the Abyss.
No matter what happened in the future, it was best to avoid anything related to the Abyss if possible. Otherwise, one would only end up hurting oneself.
"Then Satsuki... she'll be fine, right?" Inori reached out and held the white-haired girl's delicate hand, worry in her eyes.
"She should be. I think the most likely outcome is that this misfortune will turn into a blessing." Chu Lian studied Kurosaki Satsuki's face for a moment. Seeing no signs of danger, she took Inori's hand and stood. "Let's go outside and give her some rest. After what just happened, even if she wakes up, she won't want to see us so soon."
Chu Lian's spiritual sense was incredibly sharp. If she couldn't understand the girl's thoughts at this moment, she wouldn't be able to manage the relationships around her properly.
"Mm." Inori responded obediently. Before leaving the room, she quietly glanced back at the white-haired girl, then gently closed the door.
"Chu Chu should be back soon. Let's go downstairs and wait. Dinner, dinner... We've been eating Western food every day lately—it's awful. And there's neither the time nor the conditions for me to cook what I like. So frustrating," Chu Lian's voice drifted away down the hallway as she complained.
The white-haired girl's long lashes trembled faintly before her eyes slowly opened. The setting sun slanted in, its golden light falling at the foot of her bed. She stared at it, bitterness filling her heart.
In the end, I couldn't resist her temptation. I almost let my soul be corrupted and fall into the Abyss.
Thank you for your understanding. Right now... I don't know how to face any of you.
I understand very clearly. My path is one no one can truly guide. I have to explore it bit by bit on my own.
But my eagerness to grow stronger and seek revenge made me fall into that temptation. That was my own lack of resolve.
She's gone now. Yet she left me with so much combat experience.
No wonder she chose me as her successor. She had once practiced the Shun Prison Sword Style as well. But a soul completely twisted had already lost its former brilliance.
Now, I am half her successor. I will make myself stronger.
If those people in the Otherside were my obsession, the force driving my revenge, then those in the Abyss were your obsession—the force that drove you to come to this world only to return for vengeance.
Don't worry. I'll help you. I'll help you kill every last one of them. If possible, I'll start from the beginning of the Abyss and slaughter my way to the end. Every creature that dared despise you, insult you, bully you, or torture you to death—I'll wipe out their entire race.
She raised her head and looked at the two katanas resting on the bedside cabinet. Her thoughts drifted once more to that moment on the rooftop when she fought Chu Lian. That bearing of a true powerhouse was what she should learn from.
Thank you... all of you, for helping me find my path.
Since I cannot slaughter freely while trapped in darkness, then I'll step out from the dark and carve a road of my own through killing.
She lifted one hand high, fingers spread wide, peering through the gaps at the pure white ceiling. With a faint sigh, she murmured, Chu Lian, I will take you as my goal and become a true powerhouse. Since you believe I can become someone worthy of being your rival, then I'll accomplish it. This is my conviction. No matter how much danger this world holds, nothing will shake me again.
A powerhouse? I'll use time and my own strength to show you that I am a true powerhouse.
She remembered every word Chu Lian had spoken, every action she had taken. Precisely because of that, she had to tell herself to become a genuine powerhouse—someone worthy of Chu Lian, someone who could force her to fight with all her abilities.
But... I'm so hungry...
Normally, the white-haired girl rarely felt hunger. Unfortunately, after this rampage, her spiritual power had been utterly overdrawn. To restore her body, she had consumed too much nutrition, leaving her weak and empty now.
Yet for Kurosaki Satsuki to cast aside her pride and admit she was hungry and wanted food—that was an exceedingly difficult thing.
Perhaps it was only an illusion, but after that demonic shadow had been destroyed, she seemed to be showing more of the temperament a girl her age ought to have.
Maybe that was an unexpected blessing.
Turning her head, she saw Tybaulk sitting blankly at the bedside. Kurosaki Satsuki knew it was actually worried about her. The clumsy bear simply didn't know how to show it, so it could only sit there and watch.
"Tybaulk..."
Reaching out, she picked it up and hugged it. She seemed to recall the gentle look on Chu Lian's face when she had first given her this teddy bear. At this moment, it became an unforgettable and moving memory in her mind.
"Chu Lian..."
The girl's thoughts drifted like mist. No one knew what she was truly thinking.
"Hey, Anna, come here. Mommy wants a hug~"
After coming downstairs, Chu Lian saw Anna quietly watching television on the sofa. She walked over, scooped the little girl up without another word, set her on her lap, kissed her cheek, and asked, "Did you miss Mommy?"
"I did. And I missed big sister Inori too."
To Chu Lian's surprise, the little girl answered with a bright and cheerful smile, and for the first time addressed Inori with such respect.
"Ah, looks like Anna's become much more obedient. Go on then, what reward do you want?" Chu Lian's face was full of delight. If the child could change, that was a wonderful thing. A reward was only fair.
"Well, sleeping with Mommy already happened, and bathing with Mommy already happened too. Can Anna go to school with Mommy?"
Anna raised her head, her golden eyes fixed on Chu Lian, filled with longing.
"School..."
Chu Lian froze for a moment, just about to answer, when the front door burst open and Chu Chu's shrill cry rang out:
"Big Sis!!!!! Chu Chu missed you so much! Chu Chu missed you to death! Chu Chu missed you the most!"
Before she could react, someone had already thrown themselves onto her back. Soft, warm fullness pressed against her. Other than Chu Chu, who else could it be?
Damn huge boobs!
Grumbling inwardly, Chu Lian rolled her eyes and said to the girl, "Can you let go of me first? Also, Mom is home and you didn't greet her first—you greeted me instead. That's terribly rude."
"Chu Lian..."
Just as Chu Chu pouted after being scolded, even more voices called out from behind. She turned around and smiled softly.
"You're all here?"