When Huai Shi put down the teacup, he felt as if the world had suddenly become clear.
It was uncertain whether to describe it as a weight being lifted or as having attained some sort of enlightenment. He was calm, as if he were a monk in deep meditation. There wasn't the slightest ripple in his heart, as if he had achieved great enlightenment and seen through Red Dust.
Soon, he reacted. He lowered his head and looked at the ripple of purple in the teacup. "What is this?"
"A special Terrestrial Anesthetic."
Raven lifted a wing, pointing to the tube remaining on the side of the table. "I scraped off some scraps from the Crying Snake's horn and made two tubes of it by chance. I thought I'd give you one as a gift."
"An anesthetic?" Huai Shi asked. "What is it used for?"
"Let me think how to put this..." Raven pondered for a moment. "If a physical anesthetic blocks pain, then this one helps you temporarily let go of desires. After taking it, for a short while, you will not feel anger, hesitation, or sadness; at the same time, you won't feel joy, happiness, or pleasure either. According to the creator of the Potion, what hinders humans from seeking enlightenment are their inherent instincts and emotions. Only by losing all of these can one acquire calmness from nothingness and attain true reason."
"And then?"
"Then just do whatever you need to do." Raven shrugged. "It's just a sedative. What miraculous effect could it have? However, sometimes this undisturbed calmness is the most precious thing. At least choices made in such a state won't lead to regret. As for other effects, they are secondary."
Huai Shi nodded in understanding. "So it's a 'Regret Pill,' then?"
"It should be called the 'Non-Regrettable Drug,' I'd say," Raven inquired. "How do you feel?"
"Very well."
Huai Shi let out a long sigh, found a more comfortable position on the chair, and slowly relaxed. He finally felt tired and sleepy.
It was three o'clock in the morning; it was time to sleep.
"So—" Raven asked, "did you gain anything?"
"Nothing, except for this."
Huai Shi tossed the ring onto the table. The platinum ring, embedded with diamonds, rolled a few times on the table before stopping. It settled, revealing the two names engraved inside.
"My parents are probably dead."
In the silence, Huai Shi lowered his head to gaze at his parents' wedding ring, finally accepting this reality.
Raven shook her head. "Maybe it was pawned?"
"Yes, it's possible."
"Or maybe it was lost?"
"There's that possibility."
Huai Shi nodded. "Thank you for the drug. I feel much more at ease now."
"No need to thank me," Raven shook her head. "Just consider it part of a Contractor's job."
"I'm going to sleep now. Will you keep busy?"
"I'll probably have to work overtime a bit." Raven turned to look at the faint glow slowly rising in the reaction vessel. "The last stage is almost finished. You should rest, Huai Shi. Get a good sleep. Everything will pass."
"Okay."
Huai Shi got up and headed towards the bedroom. But as he stepped onto the staircase, he saw the white mark on the wall where the family portrait used to hang, and his footsteps halted.
For a long while.
He said, "I really miss them."
"I know."
Raven, her back to him, said nothing more. Only the sound of his footsteps gradually faded away.
She quietly watched the boiling metallic light in the Crucible, listening to an echo that seemed to roll like a sea tide. Like a patient farmer, she waited for the moment of ripeness.
A miracle from the Abyss was silently brewing in the vessel.
It wouldn't be long before Huai Shi's developmental period would come to an end.
This was the final step among all the restorative Potions, laying the omnipotent foundation for the Stigma.
If development is always accompanied by growth, then what grows is often pain. This pain is worth remembering and experiencing. It will eventually be engraved in the body, along with the miracle.
"Sleep, Huai Shi," the black bird whispered. "I promise, this is the last cruel lesson. After this, you will have a bright future."
As for that uninvited guest... Leave it to 'the master of the place' to deal with.
「Half an hour earlier, within the collapsed sacrifice site.」
In the inner chamber filled with rocks, King Ocean's corpse suddenly twitched.
The dagger pierced through his heart quietly shattered, turning into black dust that merged into the cold blood.
Thus, from the remains of the dead, a viscous fluid slowly oozed, gradually coalescing into an ephemeral shadow.
Like a moth struggling out of its cocoon, it writhed. It greedily drew in the blood from the ground, undulating unpredictably as it devoured the corpses on the ground, screeching in agony.
"It's all... your fault..."
A lamenting voice emerged from its throat, shrill and piercing. "It's all... your fault... Dead... We... will all die..."
The Gluttony Seed implanted in this shell since its baptism finally sprouted in death. The Border Variant, composed of Source Substance and bearing its host's final hatred, was born from death.
Just as the Lord had once said to King Ocean.
The Sacred Spirit's final mercy descended upon this place.