The Cornflower Witch

Chapter 83: Returning to the Present World

Seeing the illusory and formless 'Meleranke Praying in the Lake' in her hand, even though Sylutia didn't understand many things about this world, she knew this was an extremely precious and important item, probably something that could be considered the inheritance artifact of a faction.

By the way, she had originally planned to step onto the path of a gardener with the 'Verdant Nectar' Aspect, but now this inheritance artifact she had obtained was guiding her onto the path of 'Luminous Moon'.

This kind of test left her in a dilemma. However, now was not the time to choose between 'Tsinghua' and 'Peking University'. What she needed to focus on now was how to leave this place first and return to the normal world.

According to the revelations in the book 'Meleranke Praying in the Lake', if she wanted to return, she either had to reach the Third Tier and learn the moon-attribute Aspect's [Moon Reflection Traversal Method], or she had to find an extremely rare space-time fold rift and pass through it to return to the continent above the sea of clouds.

Advancing to the Third Tier in a short time was simply impossible, so her only option was to find another space-time projection fold rift. Only then could she return.

"According to the records in the book, these space-time projection rifts are exceptionally weak. The vast majority cannot allow passage; they can only reflect some anomalies of the Shadow World, causing 'haunting'-like strange events," Sylutia analyzed, lowering her head.

"Unless a lifeform possesses the 'Alien Star' Aspect, can they easily traverse such weak space-time rifts without being affected." Reading this, Sylutia understood why she had entered the Shadow World so easily back then.

So this was the side effect of the 'Alien Star' Aspect; she was just too proficient at traversing space-time.

In that case, as long as she advanced again and obtained an Aspect tier, then she could rely on her [Star] talent to obtain the 'Alien Star' Aspect of the same tier. This way, she could use a certain minute space-time rift to traverse it and return to the Cloud Sea Continent.

The [Dew Prayer Method] and [Branch Grooming Method] she had learned before were integrated into her Fate Card and were destroyed and dissipated when facing the Grotesque Black Cat. The [Flower Blooming Method] was similar; they were all damaged.Now, she simply didn't have the time or resources to relearn the [Dew Prayer Method]. So, the only thing she could rely on was the [Breathing Technique]. That meant she first had to step onto the path of the 'Bloodline' Aspect, rely on this to escape, and then consider other methods to dissipate or transform the 'Bloodline' Aspect.

After clarifying her thoughts, Sylutia stood up, looked at this gray-white world, hesitated no longer, and began to focus her spirit to advance.

In her Fate Plate, the only remaining Ability Card, also the first ability she learned, [Breathing Technique Lv.3], began to operate after a long interval, greedily absorbing the faint Aspect power contained within Sylutia's blood, sending out ripples.

She felt her heartbeat becoming more and more pronounced, an intangible pulse rhythm slowly spreading.

Her blood began to circulate faster, nourishing every cell in her body, greatly increasing their vitality. At the same time, this Aspect power was gradually transmitted by the [Breathing Technique] to the [Slumbering Maiden] at the center of the Fate Plate.

In the image, the originally blue Cornflower began to be dyed with the bright red of blood, spreading from the edges of the petals slowly towards the stamen.

Finally, the grass where the girl in the painting stood was set against a field of bright red Cornflowers, and then the entire card once again radiated with brilliance, causing it to transform.

[Slumbering Maiden] (Aspect: None) → [Girl Amidst the Scarlet Flowers] (First Tier · Bloodline)

- Effect [Discernment Eyes Lv.3]: Originating from a special talent and physique, you can distinguish colors imperceptible to ordinary people, as well as part of the essence of things. (When you raise the tier of your Fate Card, this ability will also be enhanced accordingly.)

- Effect [Balanced Physique Lv.3]: Adjusted by the Breathing Technique, your body has gradually adapted to the flow of 'Bloodline'. Strength, perception, agility, and speed are all enhanced. (Influenced by the moonlight baptism, Balanced Physique Lv.2 → Lv.3)

So the effect of that baptism in the dream earlier was enhanced here. Sylutia roughly understood now.

At this moment, she activated her [Star] talent ability once again, transforming [Girl Amidst the Scarlet Flowers].

A meteor flashed across the night sky. The scarlet Cornflowers gradually receded to the corners of the card, allowing the sky full of silver stars to appear.

[Girl Amidst the Scarlet Flowers] (First Tier · Bloodline) → [Girl Under the Starry Sky] (First Tier · Alien Star)

- Effect [Discernment Eyes Lv.3]: Originating from a special talent and physique, you can distinguish colors imperceptible to ordinary people, as well as part of the essence of things. (When you raise the tier of your Fate Card, this ability will also be enhanced accordingly.)

- Effect [Alien Star Perception Lv.2]: Tainted by Alien Star power, your observation of all things is more insightful. You can see five colors difficult for ordinary people to perceive, discovering unknown secrets.

Ability Card: [Breathing Technique Lv.3]

Not long after, the power that had filled her body dissipated. However, compared to before the advancement, some part was still retained. Sylutia guessed she at least maintained a physique of [Balanced Physique Lv.1]. Because the enhancement to physical constitution from the Bloodline Aspect was partly permanent; even if the Aspect dissipated, some part would remain.

Trying to swing the Black Steel Short Sword in her hand, Sylutia felt she could still adapt. Now she could also begin searching for the path home.

Having the explanations and guidance from 'Meleranke Praying in the Lake', she could now use [Alien Star Perception Lv.2] to distinguish which traces were space-time rifts leading to the Cloud Sea Continent.

And so, Sylutia once again began to run and traverse through the gray-white world.

...

About half a day later, standing under a large tree, Sylutia once again saw a familiar aura between the tree branches.

That was it. Passing through there would lead back to the Cloud Sea Continent.

She leaped up, felt the rhythm within, and then closed her eyes.

Everything before her eyes began to twist and shake, just like that day. Not long after, she took a step forward and once again fell from the tree.

The grass stained with morning dew, the verdant green large tree, the azure blue sky, and the familiar mountain air at the tip of her nose filled Sylutia's heart with immense joy.

Finally, finally she had returned to the normal world.

The unease and tension that had been suppressed in her heart all this time were released at this moment, making her feel as if a heavy burden had been lifted.

Although these past few days she hadn't shown much panic and hadn't given up, after all, she was in a completely unfamiliar and unknown environment. It was impossible not to feel any panic at all. It was just that reason told her panic wouldn't solve the problem, so she consciously tried not to think about those pessimistic things.

Now that she had finally escaped, the unease in her heart from before completely dissipated, making Sylutia want to jump up and shout loudly. However, the restraint in her personality made her ultimately not shout out, only transforming it into a lighthearted hum as she walked nimbly through the mountains.

She was finally back. From now on, she decided never to casually wander into the forest again.

But then her footsteps paused as she suddenly understood something.

Since she had once again suddenly appeared in a certain corner of the forest this time, then back on that day...

She must have also, for some reason, traversed a space-time rift and landed in this forest.

Well, was this finding another piece of the puzzle? But now she had many concrete clues and wasn't as anxious as before. With her mother's powerful 'Aster' characteristic, she definitely wouldn't be an unknown figure. So, using this as a basis and clue to find her own origins and background was just a matter of time.

Come to think of it, living outside on her own seemed quite good too. Recalling fragments of memories from her childhood, she felt that wherever she went, there was a group of maids from her family following her, which sometimes she really didn't like.

By the way, since her mother could rely on the empowerment of the 'Aster' talent to achieve such high accomplishments, could she also rely on the empowerment of the 'Cornflower' talent to recreate the miraculous scenes she witnessed as a child?

Her mind, which had been wavering between 'Verdant Nectar' and 'Luminous Moon', once again leaned a bit more towards 'Verdant Nectar'.