"Luyi-sama..."

"Sweet-smelling... soft..."

*Hehe...*

When Luyi woke, Alices had somehow burrowed back into her blankets again, curled up like a kitten.

Lost in some sweet dream, she murmured sleepily against the warmth and scent of her bedmate, a faint smile playing on her lips.

"...".

It was a rare weekend. Worried Alices might catch a chill, Luyi didn’t wake her.

After tucking the girl in gently, she slipped out of the room without a sound.

The morning air grew sharper with each breath.

Above, the blue of the sky had faded, drifting farther away.

Such was the sky in early autumn.

"Miss Luluie, you’ve arrived?"

Inside the library, the old man sat waiting in his usual spot.

Though he was the elder, he sat there now with devout politeness—like a diligent student awaiting his teacher.

A quiet understanding had formed between them.

Each morning, they met here to discuss ancient texts.

He shared records and insights gathered over decades; Luyi corrected his errors.

Her systematized notes spared her the trouble of sifting through countless tomes.

He, too, gained immensely—repeatedly stunned by the girl’s revolutionary interpretations.

Luyi was always right. Without exception.

Even when multiple ancient texts corroborated a view opposing hers, reality proved those texts wrong.

So young, yet her knowledge shamed him.

Sitting beside her, he often felt his long life had been wasted.

What shamed him more was how openly Luyi shared profoundly obscure knowledge.

Revealing even fragments of such content could shake the academic world!

Yet she seemed utterly indifferent.

Through their talks, he’d finally deciphered ancient fragments that had baffled him for half a century.

He’d once distrusted Luyi. Now he saw the pettiness had been his own.

The shame deepened.

And with it, the weight of owing her a debt he couldn’t repay.

What could he possibly offer Miss Luluie?

Apprenticeship?

In ancient scripts, she was more master than student.

Weapons? Combat techniques?

Unless they were relics left by the Dark Emperor himself, nothing in this academy would catch her eye.

Perhaps... only *that* could help her.

He made his decision.

"Miss Luluie, you seem fond of reading ancient texts?"

As she prepared to leave, still holding an old volume, he asked. The library was where she spent most of her time on campus.

"Not really," Luyi shrugged.

*Fond of these?*

*I’d rather admire my naked reflection in the mirror than read this garbage.*

*Way more interesting than these trashy books.*

"Then why do you come here?"

"I suppose... I’m searching for answers."

She answered offhandedly.

She needed to piece together the Demon Race’s history, the world’s changes over the years—

and the connection between the Abyssal Demons and the Demon Sovereign.

*Answers?*

*Does Miss Luluie mean answers about the Star Devouring Demon Emperor?*

Their thoughts diverged completely.

After a final hesitation, he spoke:

"Miss Luluie, sometimes answers are found not in books, but by stepping outside. A different perspective can reveal what was hidden."

He smiled at her.

"For example?"

"Even in ancient palaces untouched by light... gold is often buried, isn’t it?"

"Huh?"

When Luyi looked up, the old man was already gone.

*Answers where light doesn’t reach?*

*What a riddle-talker.*

Luyi scoffed inwardly.

Though puzzled, she filed his words away.

---

**Illusory Star Field**.

"L-Luluie-sama!"

Within the isolated space, the **Ancient Star Beast** bowed its head to Luluie.

Luyi gave a slight nod.

Aside from the library, the **Illusory Star Field** had become her most frequent refuge these past days.

Compared to the filthy **Abyssal Demon Realm**, the purer **Star Power** and **Source of Magic** here soothed her.

Here, she drained the Demon Realm’s strength faster than anywhere else.

"How’s your recovery?"

"Thanks to your grace, Luluie-sama, my wounds are eighty percent healed..."

The **Ancient Star Beast** answered truthfully.

She was a different creature from that night.

Her once pale, dull scales now shimmered translucent blue, pulsing with faint starlight.

Her pale feather-fur lay smooth and lustrous, accentuating her innate elegance.

*This* was the true heir of the Abyssal Demon Realm’s most noble bloodline—

a being even the **Dark Emperor** couldn’t force into becoming an **Illusion Beast**.

Yet before Luyi, she behaved like an obedient pet.

Her massive frame fawned over the girl like a dim-witted husky.

Even restored, she dared not show the slightest defiance.

The horrors witnessed in her bloodline during the **Star Abyss Claw**’s embrace—she never wished to relive them.

Besides, the **Source Core** had granted her unimaginable boons.

It hadn’t just healed her at lightning speed; it purified impurities in her bloodline.

Residual energy still hummed within her—

seemingly preparing her for evolution.

"Luluie-sama..."

At the thought of evolution, hesitation flickered in her eyes. She looked up at the golden-haired girl with pleading intensity.

"Hm?"

"I... have another request..."

Her voice dropped to a whisper. "Regarding... my evolution."

Evolution for magical beasts paralleled the ascension of divine authorities.

It amplified every attribute and awakened greater powers.

But the stronger the bloodline, the harder the breakthrough.

Success meant immeasurable growth.

Failure meant catastrophic loss.

Her first attempt had failed.

That was why she’d been so weakened before.

Now, with the **Source Core**’s aid, she should succeed.

Yet gazing at the starfield beneath her vast wings, an inexplicable dread coiled in her chest.

The stars were mysterious. Serene. Profound.

But sometimes, that serenity felt like the great stillness of universal extinction.

At the edge of that depth... lay a great terror.