Chapter 193

There was no violent conflict, no painful struggle, as if merely pressing a switch, opening a few windows, and a soul completed its metamorphosis on its own.

At that moment, Ti Bao lowered her hand, took a few steps forward, came before Heimu, and then—opened her arms and gently embraced Heimu.

"Mother."

She buried her face on Heimu's shoulder, her voice muffled.

Heimu's body tensed: "... ah?"

She was completely stunned.

Wasn't she liberated? Wasn't her cognition restored? Why is she still calling "mother"?

When did Wa get hooked?

However, before Heimu could sort out her thoughts, Ti Bao had already let her go, stepped back, a relieved smile on her face, her clear eyes looking at her, and she said in a light tone:

"Just a joke, Black Curtain Lady."

She tilted her head, a flash of long‑missed liveliness in her eyes, then turned into sincere gratitude, "And... thank you. Really."

Heimu: "..."

She looked at the girl before her, whose aura had become completely different, bearing intelligence and a hint of playfulness, and recalling the earlier hug and joke, her mouth finally couldn't help but twitch several times.

"Clack."

The door behind was pushed open again.

Ke Xia walked in, having already put away the solemn demeanor at the doorway, returning to his usual seriousness.

He glanced at the dramatically changed Ti Bao, his gaze lingering a moment on her clear eyes, then nodded and gave a brief assessment: "Seems there's no problem now."

Ti Bao looked at Ke Xia, her smile brighter: "Thank you, Mr. Anaksgoras."

Her tone was naturally friendly, with sincere gratitude.

Ke Xia merely let out an ambiguous "hm" from his nose, as a response, but his gaze softened considerably.

Heimu watched the smooth, familiar interaction between the two, placed a hand on her forehead, feeling the amount of information was a bit overwhelming.

"Can anyone explain to me what on earth is going on?"

She looked at Ke Xia, intuition telling her that this guy was the key.

Ke Xia crossed his arms, this time not to act cool but as a habitual motion.

He met Heimu's gaze, his face again showing that "I know a lot but will say it piece by piece" expression, his voice deliberately elongated, sounding very... hmm, "stylish":

"No rush—"

Heimu's eyebrows twitched.

Ke Xia seemed not to notice, continuing in that tone: "—and also."

Heimu: "...?"

Her expression finally was no longer blank.

"What situation? And also?"

Ke Xia didn't answer directly, just turned sideways and made a "please" gesture toward the doorway.

Starrail Train.

Soft light filtered into the carriage, the atmosphere peaceful.

Only the group seated in the carriage at this moment seemed slightly strange.

Black Curtain Lady sat on her usual sofa, holding a freshly brewed CoffeeCup from the system, gently sipping, her gaze scrutinizing.

And Ke Xia, sitting boldly on the single sofa in front of Heimu, legs crossed, elbows on the armrest, finger against his chin, again looking like "I'm pondering an important issue."

And Da Ti Bao stood before the Observation Window, slightly leaning forward, curiously surveying the distant star‑cloud specks outside, her azure eyes full of novelty, a relaxed smile on her face.

She seemed to have fully adapted to the spatial shift, even enjoying the feeling of being "outside."

In the corner, a figure wearing a wide hood crouched on the floor, looking left and right at the small table with a potted plant.

Under the hood, a pair of fluffy cat ears twitched occasionally out of curiosity, and a similarly fluffy cat tail with ringed markings swayed gently behind.

She extended a gloved hand, cautiously touching the plant's leaves, then leaned in to sniff the train's air vent, uttering a "tsk tsk" of wonder, as if seeing these ordinary things for the first time.

It was Sai Fei Er.

The Jie Zu Ze Xing.

She was actually brought out as well.

Heimu withdrew her gaze, gently placing the CoffeeCup on the coffee table, the ceramic striking glass with a crisp "ding".

She leaned forward slightly, her violet‑black eyes locked on him, her tone calm yet unyielding:

"Alright. Explain, Ke Xia."

"How did you do it? In less than two days, you successfully Persuasion and liberated two Golden Descendants with rather special conditions?"

Ke Xia, hearing this, lowered his crossed leg, the deliberately deep expression on his face easing a bit, though his brows still held a hint of satisfaction.

He didn't speak immediately, but leisurely slipped his hand into his sleeve, fumbled for a moment, then produced a palm‑sized complex polyhedron whose surface swirled with miniature starlight, gently placing it on the low table before him.

Heimu's gaze followed, instantly recognizing it— it was the simplified "Simulation Universe" entry device she had earlier placed into Ke Xia's ConfinementSpace.

It lacked the full capabilities supported by the Supercomputer Array in the Black Tower Space Station, resembling more an interactive "sandbox" and Encyclopedia Terminal with customizable basic parameters, intended to help Ke Xia quickly grasp this universe.

"Time."

Ke Xia pointed at the device, succinctly uttering two words.

Heimu understood.

The Simulation Universe, as a great creation of the Black Tower by Genius Club members, has among its core features the controllable adjustment of internal Time Flow Rate.

This point was indeed mentioned in her plan and the system's proposed scheme; theoretically it could accelerate the trapped one's "learning" or "adaptation" process, but...

"You used it to deliberately slow the internal perceived time relative to the external main space's flow rate."

Heimu stated, fingertips lightly tapping the sofa armrest, "Using an extremely brief external 'instant' to exchange for a prolonged internal 'time' to conduct... communication?"

Na Ke Xia's head tilted back ever so slightly, chin lifted a touch, her gaze seeming to pierce the carriage ceiling and stare toward an invisible monument of merit.

He said nothing, but that posture plainly said, "Exactly, that's it."

Heimu watched his demeanor, his mouth twitching uncontrollably.

"You…"

She weighed her words and decided directness was better, "Your brain's fine, right?"

From the moment at the doorway, his aura exuded an indescribable… stiffness.

As if striving to appear profound and illustrious, yet always feeling a bit over‑done.

"Pfft—"

A suppressed chuckle drifted from the corner.

The cat‑ear girl—Sai Fei Er—who had been crouching there studying a potted plant, at some point rose lightly and strolled over.

Her cat eyes beneath the hood glittered with mischievous yet joyful light, Tail swaying leisurely behind her.