A few minutes after Albion and Fenriri left the orphanage, the skies gradually darkened as Estelle Xiao came out to call the orphanage children in for dinner.

“What are you all loitering around outside for? It’s getting dark already. Do you want to get abducted by bad people again?” Estelle Xiao warned before saying, “Come in and let’s eat together!”

“Okay! Wuxin and Sally are not afraid of bad people! Boss will come back and beat them all up!” Little Wuxin answered.

“Yeah! With Boss around, there won’t be any other bad people around!” Little Sally chimed.

“Yeah, yeah, your boss is so strong, bad people don’t dare to stick around,” Estelle Xiao smiled wryly before wondering, “But why did you two suddenly bring up your boss?”

“Because Boss was just here!” the two answered.

“Here?” Estelle Xiao furrowed her brows and glanced around the vicinity with suspicions before asking, “Why did your boss come?”

However, Wuxin and Sally shook their heads in response.

They did not know the reason.

“I see… Well, forget it then.”

Estelle Xiao didn’t put too much thought into the matter and simply assumed the person dropped by to check on the kids.

“Where’s Armin, Ren, and the others?” Estelle Xiao noticed the other kids were still missing before asking, “Were you still playing hide and seek?”

“Yeah!” the two little girls answered.

“Can you go and call them inside for me?” Estelle Xiao requested before saying, “Big Sister needs to check on Mother Stacy for a bit.”

“Ay, ay!”

Wuxin and Sally saluted before running off to look for the other orphanage children hiding in the area.

Estelle Xiao saw that they didn’t wander too far off before she re-entered the orphanage with peace of mind and headed towards Mother Stacy’s room.

However, she suddenly noticed a weird smell as she approached the room, and not long after, she discovered the door was left open.

“Why is there a smell of blood?” Estelle Xiao was taken aback.

An ominous feeling emerged in her heart before Estelle Xiao immediately rushed into the room before she witnessed the horrific sight of scattered blood and gooey chunks everywhere.

Mother Stacy laid peacefully in bed in the midst of all that.

“Mother!” Estelle Xiao cried.

She rushed to Mother Stacy’s side and held her body in her arms, feeling suffocated by overwhelming sadness.

“Why did this happen? Why?! Mother Stacy dedicated her whole life to helping orphans find a home while raising those who couldn’t, as her own. So what wrongs did she commit to being brutally murdered like this!?”

“Ugh…”

As Estelle Xiao bawled her eyes out, a groan escaped Mother Stacy’s mouth, causing her to freeze suddenly.

“Hm? Estelle, my child. Why are you crying?” Mother Stacy reached out her hand to pat Estelle Xiao on the head and console her despite complete unawareness of the situation.

“I-I thought you were murdered… It’s so great that you’re alive!”

“Murderer…? Why would I be…”

Mother Stacy took a moment to notice the state of the bedroom before her body spasmed and her eyes widened with shock and horror.

“O, merciful lord. Your servant has been faithful and devout, praying to you daily, and dedicated her life to a life of virtue with a good cause. How can you send her to hell?”

Mother Stacy prayed.

However, not long after, she realized she was alive and well, still within the realm of the living and not the underworld of the dead as she had initially assumed.

Furthermore, all the pain in her body was gone as if she had been reborn anew.

“O, merciful lord. Please forgive your servant, for she had sinned and doubted your divine grace. Your servant is grateful for the new lease on life.”

“Mother, are you all better now? Are you not in pain anywhere?” Estelle Xiao inquired with looks of concern.

However, Mother Stacy shook her head and said with a warm smile, “I have never felt so alive in a long time. This must be a divine miracle, an act of God…!”

“This is great! I’m so happy!” Estelle Xiao hugged her mother with joy before suddenly separating and saying, “We should get you checked at a hospital, mother!”

“But first, let’s get you cleaned and out of this room!” Estelle Xiao added.

It looked like all the cancerous cells in her mother’s body had been expelled by some act of God, but the most noticeable change was the radiant glow on her mother’s face, a clear contrast from before.

As such, she didn’t doubt her mother was feeling better.

But… was it really an act of God?

Estelle Xiao was different from Mother Stacy and never believed in any god; such an omnipotent being shouldn’t let their followers suffer.

But now, she began to believe in one; the one who saved her mother was her god.

…

…

…

Meanwhile, the culprit arrived at his home, the hilltop mansion on Skylark Hills, with Fenriri after a fulfilling meal in the city.

“I’m going to be busy for the next hour,” Albion stated before saying, “You can go play, look around, or work hard on your cultivation.”

“Understood, Master!”

Fenriri saluted solemnly, but then she ran into the mansion, full of curiosity, to explore it.

Shortly after, Albion expanded his senses and surveyed the overall layout of his mansion for a moment before muttering, “Time to get busy.”

<Divine Energy: 117/1000>

<Spiritual Energy: 94300/100000>

After checking his energy reserve, Albion opened the system exchange and began spending his divine energy to learn some necessary skills instantly.

Ding!

<You have learned Basic-level Art of Formation>

<You have become a Rank 1 Formation Master>

<You have learned all Rank 1 Formations>

<Divine Energy: 97/1000>

Shortly after learning formations to set up a simple Rank 1 Spirit Gathering Formation around his home, Albion proceeded to raise the mastery level of his pill refining technique and fire control technique for alchemy.

Ding!

<You have learned Intermediate-level Nine Divine Shifts>

<You have learned Expert-level Pill Nine Divine Shifts>

<You have learned Intermediate-level Hundred Fire Threads>

<You have learned Expert-level Hundred Fire Threads>

<Divine Energy: 77/1000>

…