Chapter 251: [My Mother] Letting Go and Accepting
The surrounding scene of the instance collapsed bit by bit.
Replacing it was a crimson, blood-red world.
It felt like a living entity, as though they were situated inside the body of a certain being.
Oh, perhaps they truly were inside Mother Han’s body.
The Tai Sui resting in her hand stirred restlessly.
It emitted signals of desperate craving.
Bai Cha paid it no mind; before securing sufficient confidence, she held zero intention of allowing it to grow unless absolutely necessary.
She could discern the shift in Han Hongmei—she was going mad.
Truth be told, provoking Han Hongmei yielded no more than two potential outcomes.
One was success, forcing her to realize that the obsessions she clung to were meaningless, and that she would be far better off treasuring the present to share a final farewell with her daughter.
The other was failure, after which Han Hongmei would inevitably go wild and seek to slaughter everyone.
Yet since she sought excitement, she might as well see it through to the absolute end.
“Are you angry?”
Bai Cha looked at Han Hongmei, whose surrounding aura grew steadily more formidable.
“Are you angry at yourself? Angry that you lack the capability to provide what your daughter wants—yet is that truly what your daughter wanted? Why don’t you lower your head and take a look?”
Han Hongmei locked her gaze onto Bai Cha instantly.
Bai Cha utilized Flower of Lies.
“Mom, I am Ying-ying.”
In a single second, she switched to a teary-eyed, pitiable child.
[System Notice: Lie has taken effect. Active duration: 30 seconds.]
A dazed, absentminded look filled Han Hongmei’s eyes instantly.
“Mom, when I went to school, my teacher shared a saying with us: It is natural and right for one to act in self-interest; if one refuses self-interest, heaven and earth will destroy them. Do you know what that means?”
“Living a life means becoming oneself and being oneself—that is natural and right, and no one can stop it.”
“If one fails to become oneself and abandons oneself, they are destined for extinction, because even you refuse to want yourself.”
“Just like how I abandoned myself for your sake, and ended up dead as a result.”
The thirty seconds drew to a close.
Bai Cha switched back to a hateful, sharp facade instantly.
“Han Hongmei, you constantly ask whether your daughter resents or hates you—what kind of answer do you actually want to hear? If your daughter says she doesn’t resent you, your heart feels miserable, believing you failed completely; if your daughter says she resents you, you’ll feel she lacks filial respect.”
Han Hongmei’s expression turned contorted once more.
This crimson world pulsated in tandem as well.
Was this… a heart?
“Mom, I am Ying-ying.”
Another thirty-second lie.
She fixated a soft, gentle stare onto Han Hongmei once more, forcing Han Hongmei—who was about to strike—to halt her movements in midair.
“Mom, no matter how you treat me, in my eyes you will always be my mom. I’ve never thought of demanding what kind of mother you should become; I simply hope Mom can cherish yourself a little.”
“I am the precious treasure held in Mom’s palms, but Mom is the precious treasure held in my palms too. I can’t bear to see my beloved treasure suffering harm constantly.”
Han Hongmei closed her eyes in sheer agony.
The thirty seconds ended.
Yet Bai Cha maintained her posture as Han Yingying.
“Mom, lower your head and take a look at me.”
“Stop struggling in agony like this. I know that the pain you felt when transfusing power into me must be the exact pain you suffer every single moment.”
“It hurts so much—my heart hurts so much.”
Han Hongmei stood locked in a stalemate, her hands clutching the box from start to finish without letting go.
Yet she simply refused to lower her head.
Pondering for a moment, Bai Cha utilized her third lie.
“Han Hongmei, look—the daisy in the box moved.”
[System Notice: Lie has taken effect. Active duration: 3 seconds.]
Han Hongmei lowered her head at long last.
Upon the daisy inside the box rested a few red, bloody tears.
Those were shed by her earlier.
At this exact moment, the daisy swayed subtly.
It unfolded its leaves.
“Mom…”
Han Hongmei could no longer hold out, her massive body collapsing onto her knees on the ground.
Standing to the side, Bai Cha froze in surprise.
This wasn’t her doing.
She caught the sound of Han Yingying’s voice as well.
Nor did that daisy halt after three seconds; instead, it drifted gently up from the box.
And descended onto the ground.
Han Hongmei instinctively wanted to block it, yet facing her current cold, rigid state, she restrained herself just as she was about to touch it, terrified of harming the daisy’s fragile roots.
The daisy took root regardless.
Seventeen-year-old Han Yingying reappeared before Han Hongmei just like that.
She still wore the school uniform she wore before her death, her hair tied in a low ponytail.
Blood no longer covered her face, revealing a delicate, clean features.
Inside this crimson world, only her frame radiated a faint white light.
“Mom, I’m back.”
Han Yingying stepped forward, wrapping her arms around her demon mother.
“Mom and I will be together forever, alright?”
Holding her in intense excitement, Han Hongmei wept tears of joy.
“Ying-ying, my Ying-ying! Mom missed you so much—Mom missed you so very much!”
“I missed Mom very much too.”
Enfolded in Han Yingying’s embrace, Han Hongmei’s body gradually restored to its normal human form.
Standing to the side, Bai Cha still maintained her young Han Yingying state.
She looked at Han Yingying with a thoughtful stare.
Han Yingying turned her head back to look at her at this moment as well.
“Thank you, Sister. You may leave now.”
Han Yingying squeezed the hand of Han Hongmei beside her.
“I don’t want her to suffer so terribly. If she is unwilling to wake up forever, then don’t wake her up.”
Not everyone in this world could be awakened.
Even if they understood the principles deep down, they remained willingly immersed in their personal world.
It was painful, yet it served as a comfort zone all the same.
Waking up brought equal agony.
Some could achieve a complete rebirth upon waking up, whereas others would simply perish upon waking.
Because waking up was one matter, while accepting was an entirely different beast.
Bai Cha let out a soft sigh.
“Very well. At any rate, I originally intended merely to ask your mother where you should be delivered. Since this is your choice as well, I respect you both.”
She shrugged her shoulders.
“But how do I clear the instance? May I ask, Ms. Han Hongmei, am I the child you are most satisfied with?”
Han Hongmei raised her head.
She uttered not a word.
She was locked in hesitation and internal struggle.
“Mom, let Sister leave,” Han Yingying tugged at her gently.
Han Hongmei looked toward Han Yingying.
Her daughter’s face carried a soft smile, appearing so clean and bright—the sole beam of light inside this dark, blood-red world.
Her heart throbbed as if carved by a blade.
Because this place was her heart.
The daisy planted atop her heart brought no pain, continuously supplying her with warm energy instead.
Yet all she could feedback in return was pure agony.
Han Yingying’s power was finite.
When that finite power neared exhaustion—much like Bai Cha earlier when she required a replenishment of power—all Han Hongmei could offer her was the exact same force she forced onto Bai Cha.
How could she ever forget the sight of Bai Cha spitting up blood in agony while collapsing in her arms? That was her own daughter’s appearance.
Raising her arms, Han Hongmei pulled Han Yingying into her embrace; by now, Han Yingying had grown taller than her.
She pressed a gentle kiss onto her daughter’s forehead.
Sensing her intent, tears fell uncontrollably from Han Yingying’s eyes in the end, yet swiftly dissolved into floating white specks of light.
Reduced to the absolute final sliver of soul power, she possessed no real tears left.
“Kill me. Kill me, and you will clear the instance. You are not my child, and I cannot bring myself to acknowledge you.”
Han Hongmei turned her gaze onto Bai Cha, her eyes filled with absolute resolve.
She remained incapable of letting go and accepting for herself, yet she could let go and accept for her daughter’s sake.
