An abnormal emotion wantonly sprouted in Xia Li’s heart, and the gap from deceit, disappointnt, repression, anger, and malice turned into vivid red poison thorns, stabbing out from the pitch-black mire, rooting into her young heart.
The Devil’s voice lingered by her ear, like countless people murmuring around her.
"It’s not what you think!" The Owl raised their voice, "If I didn’t say this, you simply wouldn’t be willing to leave with us!"
"Ask yourself, isn’t that true?"
"You have no opinions of your own, always dependent on others, like a burden needing soone like a nanny to make every choice for you..."
"You’re just a burden, a scourge."
These weren’t the Owl’s words, nor did Xu Xiaoyou speak then, but Xia Li heard those words, her fragile spirit imagining them at any mont, turning the Devil’s whispers louder and louder until they beca a piercing noise.
The twisting air seed to form lines and lines of vivid red text like seals, layer upon layer, covering the space above the small figure.
These words stabbed into the depths of consciousness like thorns, staining vision with blood-like crimson.
Pieces of painful mories were stained with blood, slamd forcefully in front of her like a rag!
Countless hands pulled at her consciousness, pain, tearing, broken, blurry mory fragnts swirling in the storm of awareness, shattered and reassembled. Childish hands picked them up, innocently giggling, assembling them into blood-red scenes.
She saw herself on the operating table, slashed and bleeding, saw herself trapped among countless falsehoods unable to find a direction, thought of the suffocating self feared of negation, feared of abandonnt, day after day.
"Stop it, stop it."
"I don’t want to leave, I don’t want to leave again..." Xia Li’s eyes were bloodshot, grabbing her own arm, clawing out bloody marks, "I can’t be this selfish, without an antidote, the doctor will die, everyone will die, I can’t just watch Grandma lia and Uncle Aleksey die."
"A bit of pain doesn’t matter, if a bit of pain can help everyone..."
"Burden, burden, burden."
"Scourge! Scourge! Scourge!"
Demons and monsters around laughed with squinted eyes, filling her entire mind with the broken and chaotic consciousness, reason sinking into a black mire, heart crushed by seals made of vivid red text.
Whispers roaring, whispers roaring!
"Xia Li!" The Owl shouted at the girl for the first ti, "Do you know how much effort we’ve put into escaping, how many days and nights we’ve hoped for sothing that’s about to happen, what exactly are you thinking?"
At this mont, the Sparrow and Night Owl found an opportunity, simultaneously swung their weapons, charging towards Xu Xiaoyou.
The Owl was quick-eyed and dexterous, stepping forward swiftly, grabbing Xia Li’s hand, pulling her away from the blonde girl.
Xu Xiaoyou was in an extrely weakened state, the adverse effects of severe injuries combined with the deepening infection level left the already chaotic thoughts as if strings were snapping one by one, Power, agility, and physique all dropping below 0.1.
Yet even in this state, her rich combat experience easily dealt with children who rely swung weapons wildly.
In just a few moves, she took down the Sparrow and Night Owl at close range, picked up the heavy iron rod from the ground, used it to knock away the weapon from the Owl’s hand, cornering the latter against the wall, with calm breathing, looking back at Xia Li hiding in the corner.
"Co back with , I won’t deceive you." The blood dripping from her forehead contrasted with her calm expression. "When the antidote is developed, everyone will be safe, you will see flowers blooming on the ruins."
"Don’t trust what this guy says, rember what she’s done!" the Owl struggled with all their might, lunging forward, suddenly hugging Xu Xiaoyou’s waist, crashing against the wall with her.
"Xia Li, she’s the one who always brought us harm!"
"Stop it, I don’t want to hear..."
"We are family; other people’s lives have nothing to do with us. Why should others’ salvation be built on our pain and sacrifice? Don’t hurt yourself for those irrelevant people; they never considered thanking us. They don’t deserve to be saved!"
"Stop fighting..." Xia Li trembling hands grasped a small knife, raising it towards the two fighting, as if it could make them stop.
"Follow your own thoughts, don’t be swayed by others’ words." Xu Xiaoyou said, raising her elbow, hitting the Owl’s back.
The Owl was equally unyielding, entangled with her, grabbing the iron rod that had fallen to the ground, sweeping it with force, but Xu Xiaoyou blocked it with a raised forearm, taking the opportunity to twist the shoulder and throw to the ground.
"Haven’t you always been afraid of making choices? What are you hesitating for, we’ve already helped make the better choice for you!" The Owl, knocked dizzy, struggled to rise forcefully, breaking free from Xu Xiaoyou’s constraint.
"We will take you to a better place!"
"Even if they’re not lying to you, who can assure you that the words of nobles are credible?" Xu Xiaoyou interrupted.
"Think carefully, could they really be kind enough to empathize with the long-suffering lower class?"
Xu Xiaoyou consistently rationally analyzed the problem, presenting the crux directly through words, giving Xia Li the decision-making power.
"It’s a trap set by the nobles."
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