Chapter 363 - Letting Go of Myself

Belli Yiyeta is someone with a multitude of labels: a talented Alchemist, a slightly crazy Witch, a traitorous apprentice, the current head of the Sublimation Furnace Core... Despite her complexity, Belli has one identity that dominates all others.Scholar.

A Scholar with a fervent curiosity about all worldly knowledge.

Explorers see mountains and wish to climb, encounter deep seas and wish to dive; Scholars have the same desire, eager to solve all mysteries and learn all buried knowledge.

Belli is well-versed in many subjects, and few things pique her curiosity anymore. Those few that do, she currently lacks the ability to solve, much like Bologue.

Now, a brand new mystery has appeared, and it’s hidden right beside her, unnoticed.

"Behave, little junior sister, let your senior sister guide you."

Belli clung to Aimou like an octopus. Aimou tried to resist, realizing suddenly that Belli’s strength was surprisingly great; she couldn’t break free for the time being.

"Don’t bother, your senior sister here almost joined the Field Operations Department, you know."

Belli executed a perfect chokehold, pinning Aimou directly in the corner.

Bologue raised his hand, thinking it was time to stop Belli, but then Belli chuckled and said.

"You wouldn’t want Bologue to be without new Alchemy Armament, would you?"

His raised hand halted, Bologue petrified in place, remembering why he came to find Belli.

If it were Palmer, that bastard would certainly sell out his brothers for profit, but not Bologue—he wouldn’t abandon Aimou, his comrade in life and death.

"Alright, control yourself!"

Bologue called upon the Deceitful Snake Scale Liquid, and the Silver Hand grasped Belli, lifting her into the air.

As an Alchemist, no matter how fierce Belli was when forging, she was still somewhat lacking when faced with Field Staff; unwillingly, she clawed at the air but was still separated by the Silver Hand.

Bologue’s use of Secret Energy became more precise, the Deceitful Snake Scale Liquid stretching like multiple arms, placing Belli back in her chair while also helping Aimou to her feet.

As Bologue handed his coat to Aimou, he helplessly turned his gaze toward Belli, who was itching for action, seemingly ready to pounce on Aimou again given the opportunity.

"Mind your image, please, Madam Minister," Bologue emphasized.

"I’m bonding with my junior sister; what’s it to you?"

Belli cared little for so-called image.

Bologue was rendered speechless, unsure how to threaten Belli into behaving.

"You wouldn’t want Aimou to remain like this tin can forever, would you?" Belli turned the tables, smilingly threatening Bologue, "What do you think, little junior sister?"

The swirling halo in her eyes paused; Aimou knew she couldn’t escape this situation, and whispered, "I... I don’t have any objections."

"Are you sure, Aimou?" Bologue asked.

Falling into Belli’s hands meant being at her mercy; considering Belli’s craziness, Aimou might well end up with an indelible psychological shadow.

"I... I can."

Aimou, having just regained control over her body, needed some time to familiarize herself, her voice raspy, her stance shaky, struggling to keep steady.

As long as she was part of the Sublimation Furnace Core, she couldn’t escape Belli’s grasp; rather than anxiety and fear, facing her fear straightforwardly might be best.

"What do you want to do, senior sister?" Aimou asked bravely.

"Yo!"

Seeing this, Belli grew increasingly excited, while Bologue swallowed hard, considering whether he could report Belli’s inappropriate conduct.

Bologue always thought Belli’s usual Witch demeanor was the limit, but as he became more familiar with her, this crazy woman showed no restraint, becoming even more intense.

Now in retrospect, Belli’s usual crazy demeanor was already restrained, and now with no one around, she simply let herself go.

"Of course you know what I want, don’t you?"

Belli walked over, a head taller than Aimou, hugging her from behind, rubbing Aimou’s face hard. Unfortunately, without the coating now, the metallic sensation wasn’t very pleasant.

"Now, with the teacher missing along with the Alchemy Workshop, you basically have nowhere to go, only your senior sister here can take you in."

Bologue thought Belli would do well as a bandit with Palmer, the threat and coercion were executed seamlessly.

What exactly had she learned? Truly a misfortune for her sect.

"Teacher... disappeared?"

Aimou muttered, the halo in her eyes quickly cycling, seeking help from Bologue.

Bologue’s heart sank; indeed, it had come to this point. He began explaining.

"The Delusional one... is Teda, remember? This guy chased us all the way for the Immortal Heart."

Bologue gave a bitter smile. He and Aimou fell into the Abandoned Land, instigated by Teda. The guy was truly mad, striking with relentless force, strong enough to not even seem like an Alchemist.

"Teda seized the Immortal Heart and then disappeared, taking the Alchemy Workshop with him. That Void Realm has a certain ability to move, and now the Order Bureau is searching for its location."

Looking at it this way, Aimou indeed had nowhere to return.

"Is that so..."

Aimou lowered her head, having anticipated it long ago, but when it really happened, she still felt a pang of loss.

"Why did Master become like that..." Aimou muttered to herself.

"Don’t bother with that, anyway, the Field Operations Department will take care of this,"

Belli cheered again, shattering the melancholy atmosphere. It was unclear whether Belli did it on purpose or she was simply carefree and unconcerned about these things.

Grabbing Aimou’s chin, the cold touch made Belli frown, needing to find a way to first get Aimou’s coating on.

Without the bionic gel covering, Aimou was a size smaller than remembered, she seemed like a skeleton, and next, Belli needed to fill her shell with soft flesh.

But before that...

"Do you understand what I mean? Little junior sister, the Sublimation Furnace Core doesn’t support idle folks," Belli schemingly said, "You get what I mean, right?"

Aimou clenched her fists, a surge of grief and indignation rose in her heart, finally taking a deep breath, she turned her head to look at Belli.

"Alright... I agree with you, but you need to be aware of one thing, our senses will be shared, as will our emotions."

"Hmm? That seems like once using Shared Chord Body, there’s no privacy anymore, eh," Belli glanced at Aimou, then shifted her gaze to Bologue, "For both of us, it’s the same, right?"

"We can only vaguely perceive it, our thoughts are still isolated from each other, it’s not that bad," Bologue added.

"Hmm..."

Belli pondered for a few seconds, then loudly announced, "So what are we waiting for?"

Indeed, there was no escape after all.

Aimou looked at Belli with a complicated expression. For this so-called senior sister of hers, Aimou always felt quite helpless. From her understanding of Belli, once she learned about Shared Chord Body’s power, she would definitely want to try it, which is why Aimou had hidden it till now.

If it were just trying, that would be fine, but from previous dealings with Belli, this matter definitely wouldn’t end so easily.

"Don’t resist me."

"How could I, you’re my little junior sister after all."

As Belli watched, a gleam of light arose on Aimou’s body. Before Aimou could react, she directly embraced her.

The two couldn’t completely overlap, Belli didn’t resist, but Aimou did. She looked at Belli as if looking at a pile of unrecyclable garbage.

In utter helplessness, Aimou’s figure gradually merged little by little with Belli’s until Aimou completely vanished, overlapping with Belli.

At this moment, Belli’s eyes also reflected golden halos, with the abundant Ether flowing through her entire body.

"This feels not bad, the increase in Ether affinity, the enhancement of perception, and sufficient Ether reserves..."

Belli restrained her smile, like an expert, feeling the ability of the Shared Chord Body the moment they made contact.

"So, can I leave now?"

Aimou’s voice echoed in her mind; besides Bologue, this was the second person in Aimou’s Shared Chord Body, which felt very odd to her. She just wanted to leave quickly.

"Don’t be so hasty, I haven’t finished testing yet," Belli said, mentioning, "We can vaguely perceive each other’s emotions, right?"

"Yes."

"That sounds quite interesting."

Speaking, Belli sat back on her office chair, crossed her legs, and fell silent, saying nothing.

Bologue couldn’t understand what Belli was doing. After a few minutes, Belli gradually couldn’t contain her expression. A storm was raging in her mind.

Aimou had no idea she had already walked into a trap. After a few more minutes, a brilliant light flashed, and Aimou clumsily crawled out of Belli’s body, accompanied by wails.

"What the hell were you thinking!" Aimou loudly accused.

Even when facing Calamity with Bologue, Aimou wasn’t this flustered; Belli’s mind was practically filled with weird and filthy things.

The halos in her eyes continually flickered, Ether surged, as if it would overflow with scorching steam in the next second.

"Hehe,"

Belli didn’t respond, only kept sending strange laughter towards Aimou, excited like a monkey finding a new toy.