Chapter Three: Light Sent Seven Years Ago

“You saved me,” she said. “Then I betrayed you.” White masks poured through the six false doors. Xingyao fired. Silver light passed over Shen Yan and struck the sundial behind him. The dome cracked, and winds from both worlds rushed through. She ran forward and pressed the silver disc into Shen Yan’s palm. The observatory emblem marked one face. On the other, a countdown diminished: 6 days, 23 hours, 59 minutes. “Find the seven anchors before the next aurora ends,” she said. “Otherwise Zhou Jibai will overlap the cities forever.” “What did your warning mean? Who should I trust?” Xingyao glanced at Li Wu, not with hatred but profound guilt. “Trust no one. Especially me.”