It turned out the children of the Ditar family were all devils. Falling into their hands meant certain doom. The little sprout had a good portion of its fluff plucked away, and the little sprout on its head was askew. If Nineteenth Sister hadn't been so weak, and if its sprout—which weapons of war couldn't sever—hadn't been so resilient, it might well have been reduced to dust on the floor by now.

On top of that, they frantically searched for its openings, as if trying to inflate it.

Once it was utterly limp, they decisively used it as a cushion under the youngest DD's bottom. The youngest brother was only two, sucking on his bottle, only capable of reaching out for cuddles, and crying if he wasn't held. He squirmed on top of it, pressing the little sprout's face flat.

The little sprout was utterly fed up.

It felt as though it had experienced every agony the world could offer in a single day: kidnapping, mutilation, mistreatment... It silently logged the names of everyone involved, especially the youngest twins, Triss and Swhite, even secretly snapping their pictures.

When Ziye arrived, it would have its revenge, absolute revenge!

Finally, at eight in the evening, led by Mother Ditar, the children retired to their rooms one by one, but the little sprout remained unreleased. Nineteenth Sister still held the sprout on its head in her fist.

After the girl was soundly asleep, Mother Ditar gently pried open her hand, retrieved the little sprout, placed it on a nearby chair, and quietly slipped out.

The little sprout was finally freed from disaster and instantly expanded its body. Before Mother Ditar could shut the door, it rendered itself transparent, unfurled its wings, and zipped out over her head.

Breathing free air once more, it couldn't help but sigh, "I used to be the happiest Light Brain in the world, now I'm the Light Brain that has endured the most torture in the world—what a life of dramatic ups and downs!"

Confirming An Junlie's location, the little sprout channeled power into the sprout on its head, bending the misshapen sprout back into place. Ensuring its appearance was presentable for the audience, it leisurely flew toward An Junlie.

An Junlie was not yet asleep.

He was reviewing the construction report for the Siatu passage to the Silver Talisman interstellar orbit in his room.

The lines of the room were starkly resolute; even the sofa was angular. His own posture was perfectly upright, sitting on the sofa with his spine still ramrod straight.

He gazed at the data on the virtual screen, seemingly lost in thought.

The little sprout decided to tease him, shooting out a quick spark of electricity with a "whoosh." An Junlie snapped his head around, and it landed with a "thud" on the coffee table before him, laughing heartily, "Hi, alien."

An Junlie froze!

The brilliant and mighty Archangel CEO, Comrade An Junlie, actually stood stunned the moment he saw the little sprout!

The little sprout felt a faint wave of melancholy.

This was absolutely not the reaction it had imagined.

An Junlie extended his hand. "Little Sprout, come here."

"Hmph, I don't want to," the little sprout retorted with a sassy glance, nimbly hopping onto a vase holding roses—the only decorative touch in An Junlie's room.

An Junlie stood up, looked at it deeply, strode to the door, and yanked it open.

No one was outside.

An Junlie struggled to describe his mood. He had assumed that when the little sprout arrived, the rascal would surely be waiting outside the door.

The initial surge of wild joy and surprise at seeing the little sprout vanished before he could savor it, and his heart instantly cooled.

The rascal hadn't come!

An Junlie refused to give up, turning back to ask, "Little Sprout, where is the rascal?"

The little sprout finally found a satisfying outlet for its feelings, giggling and making faces, "You don't know, how would I know?"

An Junlie resettled onto the sofa, leaning back, a flicker of exhaustion finally touching his stern face. "She doesn't want to see me?"

The little sprout blinked, internally struggling—should it answer yes or no?

An Junlie pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. "It doesn't matter if she doesn't want to come. Tell me where she is, and I'll go to her."

The little sprout genuinely didn't know how to answer.

What was the original purpose of running away from home? After this grueling journey, it had completely forgotten its initial motivation. Now that An Junlie was asking, it clearly remembered that Ziye absolutely did not want to see him. What way could it trick him into going? The little sprout turned to look at him; he was watching it with expectant eyes...

"Waaah, alien, the children in your legion are terrifying!" The little sprout precisely jumped onto his thigh and rubbed against him, "Look how many of my little fluff bits they pulled out; I'm not pretty anymore. And I'm all dirty; you need to clean me up."

An Junlie couldn't help but chuckle.

Was this thing haggling with him?

He truly couldn't fathom how such a lively little doll had been raised by someone as stoic as the rascal.

An Junlie extended his open palm. "Up."

The little sprout happily hopped into his palm.

It had to be admitted, An Junlie's hand was the largest and safest hand it had ever rested on; it was so steady, there was never a worry about falling.

An Junlie supported it and walked toward the laundry room. The little sprout twisted its head around, gasped in shock, and leaped from his hand, "I don't want to go to the laundry room; I want to go to the bathroom!"

It was absolutely certain that An Junlie intended to toss it into the washing machine to spin.

An Junlie reached out and gently squeezed its body, nodding. "That's right. Light Brains can't go in the washing machine; they might break."

The little sprout instantly wanted to shock him—did that sound like something a person should say?

"If you put me in the washing machine, I'll tell the rascal you bullied me," the little sprout grumbled, then paused, adding a supplement, "And I'll tell her to spank your butt."

Seeing its proud demeanor, An Junlie suddenly found it endearing. He pinched its cheek. "Fine. But you’d better bring me to her, and I promise I won't bully you again."

The little sprout, however, didn't want to discuss it further. With a "sizzle," it leaped into the bathtub. "Water, water."

An Junlie complied helplessly.

In some ways, the little sprout was much smarter than any child, and since it desired nothing, there was no way to bribe it. An Junlie felt a slight headache coming on because of it. He squatted down, watching it splash in the water.

Seeing it here made him feel like the rascal was close by.

Thinking closely, it had been half a year since they left Silver Talisman Star. Perhaps they had already found a route out, and he simply hadn't noticed.

An Junlie stared at the Silver Comms device on his left wrist. He had always hoped that one day the Silver Comms would ring, and people from Silver Talisman Star would tell him they had made it out.

But so far, it had remained silent.

When he tried calling out, the connection failed.

The interstellar orbit he had painstakingly built was largely intended to ensure their safe exit. Now, if someone suddenly told him they were already out, his entire fervor would instantly cool.

An Junlie felt a pang of dejection.

Before, he had constantly worried that the rascal was not faring well on Silver Talisman, that she was starving and growing gaunt. Now it seemed, at the very least, she hadn't starved herself unconscious there.

Was that something to celebrate?

Why did he feel such a strange, faint sadness? Because he realized he might not be as important as he thought...

He gathered his thoughts and asked, "Where is the rascal now? I want to treat her to a big meal; I'll cook it myself."

The little sprout silently recorded his words.

When it returned and saw Ziye, it could use his words to threaten her—hahaha! The little sprout could barely contain itself from putting its hands on its hips and laughing; it was simply brilliant!

Seeing its silence, An Junlie asked again, "Has she lost weight? Has she kept up her exercise routine? Where is she? Take me to see her?"

Questions came one after another.

An urgent desire to know everything about her, and most importantly, to know if she was living well.

The little sprout silently recorded the audio, while on the surface, it continued splashing merrily, kicking up water spray.

An Junlie guessed it likely wouldn't tell him, and he couldn't help but sigh. Sometimes, questioning a Light Brain was more taxing than interrogating a criminal. He could only concede repeatedly. "At least tell me the rascal's Ultra-Comms number." As long as he could contact the rascal, a major worry could be set aside.

In the best-case scenario, he could even have a heartfelt drinking session with her.

Besides that, An Junlie harbored a slight ulterior motive.

His construction of the interstellar orbit was never just about allowing the Silver Talisman people to escape their cage.

Ziye had once taken him to the central force field of Silver Talisman. It was a natural devil's training ground. After traversing it once, and then piloting his mecha, he felt significantly lighter. His physical condition, mental acuity, and control skills had all seen tremendous improvement.

If that force field could be utilized and paired with a supporting training system, the Angel Legion's forces could certainly reach new heights.

However, this concept required consultation with the people of Silver Talisman Star.

If he could build the interstellar orbit, bring them out, and then discuss this matter with them, he was ninety percent sure of success. Now that they were out, if he went in himself, it might look like he was usurping their territory.

Among the Silver Talisman inhabitants, his relationship with the rascal was the closest.

Therefore, this matter still needed to be broached with the rascal first.

Through her, he could also locate the others from Silver Talisman and gather everyone to discuss his proposal for establishing an Angel Legion training base.

Among those who held authority, the rascal was the youngest, yet she possessed considerable prestige.

In that harsh and meager environment of Silver Talisman Star, the ability to construct mecha and repair machinery made one an awe-inspiring figure. Even today, the legion's technicians highly praised her technical skill.

An Junlie felt a headache coming on.

Perhaps he could trace the path the little sprout took to arrive and thus find the rascal's location?

The moment this thought occurred, he immediately dismissed it.

The fact that the little sprout could appear before him silently indicated it possessed the ability to evade all surveillance equipment.

The little sprout finished washing its fluff and was finally satisfied. It released a burst of airflow into the water, causing all the water to fly up and drench An Junlie's head. It then shot out with a "whoosh."

Hit by a cascade of cold water, An Junlie instantly felt a chill run through him.

He reached up to wipe the water from his face, suddenly considering a possibility: What if the rascal was deliberately avoiding him?