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[Scene: Outer Sanctum – Threshold of the Sealed Library]
The tunnel narrowed into an obsidian corridor, ending at an enormous door embedded with circular celestial mechanisms, each layered like interlocking rings of constellations. At its center lay the same symbol the spirit once conjured — overlapping concentric rings with radiant glyphs spiraling outward.
The sealed library.
It didn't hum. It didn't threaten.
It waited.
Lian Yue stepped closer, her fingertips brushing the stone's cool surface.
"It's not locked in the normal sense," she whispered. "It's asking… to be understood."
Max's Origin Eyes flickered, catching faint strands of qi flowing through the glyphs.
The constellation-like rings weren't static — they subtly shifted, aligning with the rhythms of someone's soul rather than any manual input.
A mental puzzle. A riddle of resonance.
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[Scene: The Puzzle Mechanism Activates]
As Max laid his palm gently against the door, a pulse of spiritual light surged outward, initiating a projection of spinning celestial rings suspended in mid-air.
Then came the first riddle, carved across the air in glowing script:
"I mark your beginning,
I shadow your end,
In every breath I linger,
Yet cannot be held in hand.
What am I?"
Max's eyes narrowed. Lian Yue whispered,
"That's… almost poetic."
His Origin Eyes surged.
He saw through the glyphs—not in answers, but emotional echoes.
Fear… reverence… birth… silence…
Max breathed.
"Time."
The moment he spoke, one ring shifted, unlocking its first rotation.
But many more remained.
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[Scene: Meditation and Cultivation Break]
The mental strain from solving the first riddle was palpable. They pulled back, setting up camp a short distance from the sanctum wall.
Lian Yue focused on cycling her qi, entering a deep meditative state. Her skin glowed faintly, spiritual essence condensing around her like morning mist.
Max sat beneath a protruding shard of broken sanctum stone, his Origin Eyes still faintly illuminated.
He opened his palm. The celestial glyph from the door flickered in his vision, lingering in his memory.
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[Scene: Origin Eyes and the Attempt to Pierce Deeper Mechanisms]
He activated the Origin Eyes again, trying to penetrate deeper into the puzzles.
Symbols bled across the stone like ink from another world.
He saw not the answers… but threads of intention from the original architect.
"It's not just a key…" he muttered. "It's a test of memory and identity…"
The door's rings pulsed in response. It was reacting to his realization.
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[Scene: The Flashback – A Vague Memory Emerges]
Then it hit him.
A sudden pain flared behind his eyes, and the world around him dimmed.
He fell backward, into darkness.
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[Vision Begins]
A gentle garden, wreathed in violet wind chimes and soft golden sunlight.
A woman's voice laughing—soft, blurry. A deeper voice humming a lullaby.
And a little girl.
Bare feet. Bright smile. A red ribbon in her hair. She turned, laughing as she ran toward him.
"Big brother!"
Max's breath caught. He tried to reach out.
But her face blurred. Time fractured. And the memory shattered into stardust.
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[Scene: Return to Reality]
He awoke with a jolt.
Lian Yue leaned over him, her expression tight with concern.
"You were unconscious. You… you called someone."
Max's voice was hoarse.
"A girl. I saw a girl… I think she knew me."
He looked up at the celestial door again. The second riddle had appeared during his blackout.
"Born from silence, keeper of loss,
I sing without voice,
My pain is your cost.
What am I?"
Max stared at it in silence.
Then whispered,
"Memory."
The second ring rotated and locked in place.
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[Scene: Chapter Close – The Door Stirs]
With two rings aligned, the door began to glow, runes pulsing like a sleeping heart awakening.
A soft rumble echoed behind the walls. Ancient mechanisms within the sanctum stirred for the first time in millennia.
Lian Yue stood beside him.
"Whatever lies inside… it's waiting for you."
Max whispered, half to himself,
"And something else is watching."
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End of Chapter 13