“Venna, you’ve been without sleep for six days now.”

Ansel, lounging on the sofa with one hand propping up his cheek, observed, “You seem to be faring poorly.”

“Two hours ago, I took a potion.”

Ravenna, her eyes bloodshot, stared intently at the furnace, oblivious to the weakness in her voice.

Ether, threadlike from her fingertips, slowly flowed into the furnace, wrapping around the hammered and scorched creation, meticulously and cautiously forging it in the direction she desired.

“Potions can replenish physiological and etheric needs, but they can’t alleviate the fatigue and burden of the soul. This isn’t good for the entire alchemical process.”

Ravenna seemed not to hear, her gaze on the furnace already somewhat scattered, almost instinctively manipulating the ether, sensing the changes within the furnace. Her lips moved, muttering complex and chaotic data, her entire being teetering on the edge of consciousness collapse.

The young boy muttered helplessly, “You didn’t even notice that I dragged the sofa into the workshop. Being this tense is utterly disastrous. Alchemy requires focus, not overload. If you continue like this, ninety-nine percent of the time you will—”

Boom!

The violent roar interrupted Ansel’s words, but fortunately, at the moment the entire furnace exploded, ether mixed with various energies causing a violent turbulence, he had already raised his hand and clenched his fist, gathering all the exploded furnace and all the invisible energy into a ball, eliminating a laboratory accident that could have destroyed the entire alchemy workshop.

“This is really…”

Looking at the unconscious Ravenna on the ground, Ansel crossed his arms and sighed helplessly, “Quite a handful.”

Half an hour later, Ravenna, lying on the soft sofa, woke up with a start.

She instinctively sat up, turning her head to look at the location of the furnace, and the debris on the ground silently told her the result of this forging.

“…”

The woman held her forehead, the heavy pressure brought by the high load of the soul made her head ache unbearably now, and the side effects of the overuse of various potions added fuel to the fire, making her so weak that she couldn’t even hold the alchemical carving knife steady.

“Awake?”

A familiar voice sounded in her ear, and Ravenna turned her head to see Ansel sitting next to her, looking at her with a smile.

“A heart-wrenching defeat,” he tossed the black scrap iron in his hand to Ravenna, his tone playful, “How does it feel?”

Ravenna caught the scrap iron thrown by Ansel and didn’t speak.

“I advised you to stop three days ago, but you insisted on going your own way. It’s not pleasant to work hard and get nothing in the end, is it?”

Ravenna met his sea-blue eyes, she was about to speak, but a violent cough uncontrollably seized her, from her chest and ribs to her internal organs, more than half of her body was in unbearable pain during the cough.

“Drink this first.”

The woman took the potion handed over by Ansel and drank it without hesitation. The cool sensation immediately flowed from her throat to her internal organs and limbs, greatly relieving the pain in her body, but the fatigue deeply embedded in her soul was still hard to remove.

“…There was no better choice.”

This was the first sentence Ravenna said after drinking the potion.

She caressed the scrap iron in her hand, trying to make her tone as calm as possible, “I caught a glimmer of inspiration from your description, and I would rather fail than let it disappear meaninglessly.”

“In these six days, I have come to understand the essence of matter, so it’s not that I’ve gained nothing.”

Ansel laughed dumbly, “You, a second-stage, actually claim to understand the essence, this is really…”

“You don’t believe me?” Ravenna raised her eyebrows slightly, “The Heavenly Road is not a rigid framework, not a rule that existed at the beginning of the world, but an extraordinary path opened up by humans.”

“Since it was created by humans, there is the possibility of change, moreover… the creator of the Heavenly Road did not limit the road, I don’t believe that I am the only one in this world who can do this.”

Upon hearing this, Ansel’s expression subtly hardened. He suddenly reached out, cradling half of Ravenna’s face in his hand, leaning forward so that his face was almost touching hers.

He gazed into her close, purple eyes, fell silent for a moment, then released his hand, as if unsure of what to say, he could only laugh and shake his head.

Ansel’s attitude seemed to displease Ravenna. She too reached out, pinching Ansel’s chin, turning his face towards her, and looking him in the eye, she said earnestly, “Ansel, is there something wrong with my choice?”

“Well… if you think there’s no problem, then there’s no problem.”

Ansel shrugged, “As for my reaction just now… you can interpret it as me being somewhat surprised by your decision. Although what you said is correct, the Heavenly Road does not limit change, but most people who embark on this path would not make the same choice as you.”

“If you were to make a mistake and fall into the abyss…”

He tapped his head, “There would be no possibility of redemption.”

“I never embarked on the path of transcendence for power, but to get closer to the truth.”

“The abyss and heaven, to me, there is no difference.”

This kind of talk, which would be considered madness by extraordinary beings, was spoken by Ravenna without any psychological pressure, and it didn’t seem like she was just spouting nonsense. Her expression and tone were all saying one thing — this is what she truly believed.

“If you’re so confident, then of course I won’t say anything. Moreover, I’m quite looking forward to seeing what you’ll do if you fall into the abyss, and also —”

The blond boy poked at Ravenna’s hand, which was pinching his cheek, “Could you let go of me before you continue speaking?”

–>