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"Xia Xia, do you remember?" He said without looking up. "Grandfather wrote in his diary that the Light Stone can only seal once. When the seed takes root and sprouts, our child will be the new offering." In the moment the dagger sliced through his palm, he looked up at her, his eyes reflecting the shadows hanging from the garage ceiling—a little girl with a birthmark resembling dried leaves smiled at them.
Xiao He let out an inhuman shriek from her arms, and Lin Xia looked down to see her daughter's birthmark writhing, black liquid seeping from the brown lines. The child's eyes turned pure black, and her mouth twisted into an unnatural grin as she hoarsely repeated, "Go home... back to the old house..."
A thunderous rumble echoed from a distance, followed by the sound of shattering glass from the direction of the living room. Lin Xia rushed inside with the child, only to see the Sophora Tree outside the floor-to-ceiling window growing wildly. Blood-red flowers bloomed on its withered branches, and its roots broke through the ground, winding across the floor like a map leading to the basement. At the junction of the roots, the Black Seed had grown into a towering Meat Tumor, its surface wrinkled with human-like features, emitting a sigh reminiscent of Grandfather's.
"You took away the Light Stone back then but left behind the seed that carries the curse," the Meat Tumor suddenly spoke, its voice grinding like rusty gears. "We have waited five generations for a pure-blooded offering." The surface of the Meat Tumor split open, revealing a curled figure inside—it was Twin Self, who had vanished in the basement five years ago, now reaching out with root-covered hands toward Xiao He.
Lin Xia instinctively recoiled but collided with a suddenly appearing bookshelf. The shelf collapsed with a crash, revealing a hidden compartment behind it where half of the lost Light Stone lay quietly—Grandfather had secretly hidden this fragment all those years ago, and the growth of the seed had activated its response.
She grabbed the fragment; light surged forth once more, though dimmer than five years ago. Xiao He screamed in agony as the black liquid at her birthmark began to boil, while the Meat Tumor roared in fury. Chen Mo appeared behind her without her noticing, his cold hand resting on her shoulder. "Don't struggle; this is our family's fate."
Just as the fragment was about to extinguish, Lin Xia suddenly recalled Grandfather's whisper before he passed: "The seed needs an offering, but an offering can also become a host." She looked at Xiao He's gradually transparent body and finally understood the true meaning of "substitute"—the "another self" in their old house was actually a cursed ancestor's soul, and Xiao He's birthmark was a mark of reincarnation.
"If you want to take her away, you must take me first!" Lin Xia pressed the fragment against her chest; light spread along her birthmark as she felt something burning within her. The Meat Tumor let out a piercing shriek as its roots thrashed wildly but turned to ash upon touching the light. Chen Mo screamed and fell to the ground; madness faded from his eyes as he returned to being her familiar husband.
When the light dissipated, the Meat Tumor had shrunk into a Black Seed that rolled onto the ground. Xiao He's birthmark returned to a light brown hue as she slept peacefully. Lin Xia picked up the seed and discovered new curses etched on its surface—Grandfather's handwriting read: "When bloodlines are severed, only then will the curse cease."
She looked outside; that suddenly sprouting Sophora Tree was rapidly wilting, its blood-red flowers crumbling into black powder. In the distance came a muffled sound from the direction of their old house, as if something ancient had completely collapsed.
Three months later, Lin Xia stood at the edge of a cliff watching as the Black Seed slipped from her hand into the surging waves below. Chen Mo held Xiao He behind her; their family shadow stretched long in the sunset. In this seemingly tranquil scene, Xiao He unconsciously rubbed her palm with her fingertips—there appeared once again a faint brown mark resembling a seed.
Meanwhile, miles away in the ruins of their old house, a stone slab inscribed with complex curses suddenly emitted a soft glow. Beneath it in the soil lay a Black Seed soaked by seawater quietly splitting open; droplets of dew forming at its tip reflected Xiao He's sleeping face.
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