The next moment, the little girl burst into tears without any warning, accusing while crying, "You've broken your promise time and again. I even had my aunt remind you last week, but you still forgot... boohoo!"

"Turns out you, you just don't care about me at all... boohoo!"

At this moment, Xiao Tian really felt like slapping himself. He hurriedly explained, "Stop crying, stop crying. I was just teasing you!"

But the little girl was wholeheartedly wiping her tears, not listening to Xiao Tian's explanation at all. No matter how much he tried to comfort her, it was no use.

Feeling the intense pounding on his chest and hearing the constant cries in his ear, Xiao Tian truly realized what it meant to suffer from one's folly!

——

Ghost Face was carefully examining the Five Elements crystal before him, holding a magnifying glass, observing every slight change in its energy, trying to find a solution from it.

Seeing Ghost Face so focused, Lin Bingxuan lightly pursed her lips. After a moment's hesitation, she spoke, "Sorry to interrupt!"

"If you have something to say, go ahead, I'm listening." Ghost Face replied without turning his head after a brief pause, his hands not stopping, clearly unwilling to miss any detail.

"What you and Xiao Tian just talked about, we... heard!" Lin Bingxuan enunciated each word, her voice exceptionally clear.

Seeing Ghost Face pause, Melinda quickly added, "We just hope you can tell us about his current situation, and if there are any targeted methods to help."

After a long pause, Ghost Face sighed, "Since you all heard, I might as well tell you. Xiao Tian's situation now is far from just bad!"

"As you saw before, just on the way here, from what I've seen, he's taken the Genetic Lock Pill three times. It's unknown whether he took any before that." Ghost Face frowned, "But based on his condition, he probably used it at least once before." 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

"Regarding the backlash and side effects of the Genetic Lock Pill, I won't say much. In short, it's not something to be taken multiple times in a short period."

Ghost Face continued, "You can calculate; in less than a month, he takes an average of one pill a week."

"And one of those times, he even took two pills in succession, with less than half a day's interval." Melinda added with her brows tightly knitted, her voice full of worry and concern.

Ghost Face nodded and continued, "That's the reason for the current situation. As for a solution..."

After a pause, Ghost Face directly pointed at the Five Elements crystal on the instrument, saying, "This is the only solution right now. If we can decode it thoroughly, it will not only restore his deteriorating genes but also allow unlocking the genetic lock without pills."

"By then, Xiao Tian's strength will be even more refined than at his peak!"

Listening to Ghost Face's encouraging words, Lin Bingxuan and Melinda showed no signs of happiness, and even Ghost Face himself spoke in a flat tone.

Indeed, everything Ghost Face said was true, but this all hinges on one premise—completely understanding the Five Elements crystal.

Without achieving this premise, everything else is just empty words.

"So, when can you fully decode the Five Elements crystal?" Lin Bingxuan cautiously asked, her eyes filled with tension, fearing an unfavorable answer.

After pondering for a moment, Ghost Face helplessly shook his head, "I'm sorry, I can't give you an exact time."

Seeing the expressions of the two women instantly turn grim, Ghost Face explained, "From my research over the past few days, I've realized I was too confident earlier. The Five Elements crystal is far more powerful and difficult to crack than I imagined!"

"But don't be too pessimistic!" Ghost Face consoled, "As it stands, if we consider the Five Elements crystal as a whole, cracking just the first third will be enough to resolve Xiao Tian's current predicament."

"As for the remaining two-thirds, the difficulty will exponentially increase, and it might require appropriate tools for supplementary interpretation."

Lin Bingxuan and Melinda simultaneously asked, "Then how long will it take to crack just that one-third?" They seemed to ignore Ghost Face's later words.

"It depends on whether it can help!" In the confused gazes of the two women, Ghost Face looked at a row of slender glass tubes before him, reaching out to take one, showing it to them.

Lin Bingxuan took it, somewhat puzzled, looking at the pale red liquid inside the glass tube, questioning, "What is this?"

"Xiao Tian's blood!"

Ghost Face explained, "The pendant that guided us to the Five Elements crystal has merged into Xiao Tian's body. If there's a component of the pendant in his blood, the matter will be much easier to handle!"

In Lin Bingxuan's Divine Sense Realm, a gorgeously dressed young girl, feeling the faint ripple from the glass tube in her hand, couldn't help but fall into deep thought...

——

Looking at the little girl still crying, Xiao Tian finally became a bit puzzled, carefully recalling what was amiss.

Soon, Xiao Tian found the source of the problem.

Just after he said, "I was just teasing you," the little girl's crying sounded somewhat strange, but he was too worried, caught up, and didn't notice it.

As the praises and compliments in his ear stopped, the little girl curiously peeked through her fingers, only to see Xiao Tian standing with his arms crossed, a smug look as if he had caught on to her act.

"It's alright, cry as much as you need. We can talk properly after you're done!" Xiao Tian indicated nonchalantly.

"You, I'm almost hoarse from crying, and you don't feel sorry for me at all!" the little girl said angrily, on the verge of crying again.

Xiao Tian couldn't hold it any longer and hurriedly stepped forward to beg for forgiveness, "I was wrong! I was wrong!"

Seeing Xiao Tian's distressed face, almost ready to cry just like her, the little girl finally felt somewhat satisfied and said, "See if you dare to trick me again!"

Thinking about how Xiao Tian was frantic, sweating bullets, and comforting her just now while she was crying, a bright smile appeared on the little girl's face. Then she pretended to be fierce and asked, "Tell me, do you dare to deceive me again?!"

Xiao Tian casually replied, "Of course!"

"What?!" The little girl's eyes widened immediately, threatening with clenched fists.

"I misspoke, I misspoke, I don't dare, I don't dare!" Xiao Tian hastily cupped his hands and begged for mercy.

"Do you care about me?!" The little girl pursued relentlessly.

"No..."

Xiao Tian instantly realized his mistake and quickly corrected himself, "I do care, of course I care, you're like the dearest thing to my heart!" In his mind, he couldn't help but complain, wondering why the girl wasn't following the script.

The little girl nodded, indicating she was fairly satisfied with the answer, then said, "Let's leave it at that for now. Now, give me the gift you got for me!"