"What's wrong?" Blue Bird asked alertly.

"This logic chain..." Leng Ningxue's voice carried a rare trace of fluctuation,

"One of the encryption algorithms... has a 47% similarity with the resonance protocol of the Emerald Sea's star track network."

Zi Yuan's pupils constricted. "How could technology from the Emerald Sea appear here?"

"It's not that the technology is similar." Leng Ningxue withdrew her hand. The formulas on the mirror had been solved, and the left passage slowly opened,

"It's that the design philosophy is similar. The underlying logic of the star track network likely borrowed some part of the original architecture from the Nest of a Thousand Mirrors."

She looked deep into the passage, where more complex mirror puzzles floated.

"We always thought the Emerald Sea was a natural evolution from a fragment of the Lord of the Sky's authority.

But what if... it was designed this way from the very beginning?"

Blue Bird gasped. "You mean..."

"Keep moving." Zi Yuan interrupted them, her long blade pointing toward the passage, "

The truth lies deep within the maze. No matter what the origin of the Emerald Sea is, it is now the home we protect. That's enough."

The three of them rushed deep into the Seventh Level.

Along the way, the mirror puzzles became increasingly complex.

From mathematical formulas to philosophical paradoxes, from historical deductions to future predictions. Leng Ningxue's mental load approached its limit, and bloodshot streaks began to seep from the edges of her icy eyes.

But she didn't stop.

When the thirty-first puzzle was solved, they reached the exit of the Seventh Level.

A giant door, ten meters high, assembled from countless tiny mirror fragments.

A person stood before the door.

Or rather, a mirror duplicate.

That person's appearance, clothing, and even the shape of the long blade in her hand were exactly the same as Zi Yuan's.

The only difference was that the mirror Zi Yuan's eyes were pure silver, like polished mercury.

"Cognitive Mirror Image," the mirror Zi Yuan spoke, her voice identical to Zi Yuan's own, yet with an added mechanical texture,

"Defeat me, or... acknowledge me. This is the only rule to pass to the next level."

Zi Yuan gripped her blade's hilt, the blade humming.

Blue Bird wanted to step forward but was held back by Leng Ningxue.

"This is a solo trial," she whispered. "The maze rules force a one-on-one lock."

The mirror Zi Yuan revealed a smile filled with madness, identical to Zi Yuan's.

"Let's see, between the original and the duplicate..."

"Whose blade is faster."

The moment the words fell, two purple blade lights exploded simultaneously within the mirror corridor!

The Shandora Underground Sacred Treasury.

The light of the golden crystals had already covered the entire hall. Runes emerged from within the crystals, slowly rotating in the air.

The thunderous light from Garel's right eye and the Solar Holy Words from Aurora's staff continued to pour in, and fine cracks began to appear on the surface of the crystals.

"Progress 40%," Aurora sensed with closed eyes. "But abnormal fluctuations are coming from the sun core. The Observer Council has begun its attack."

The dome at the top of the hall suddenly became transparent, revealing the scene above:

Above the Shandora Golden City, twelve silver data stars appeared.

Each star shot out a slender beam of light, accurately hitting the surface protection of the sun core.

Countless otherworldly characters flowed along the light beams—erosion commands at the data level.

"They are trying to rewrite the operational logic of the sun core."

Cold sweat broke out on Aurora's forehead. "If they succeed, the faith network of the Golden Land will collapse from within."

Lu Duo's emerald radiance had expanded to every corner of the hall, the life network operating at full capacity to stabilize the energy transmission.

"Yu Nian, strengthen the Pure Heart Domain! I need you to block the mental interference caused by the data attacks!"

Yu Nian nodded, and the milky-white glow of the pure heart vine suddenly intensified.

She bit her fingertip, and a drop of blood containing pure kindness fell onto the base of the vine. The glow turned into a physical barrier, enveloping the entire sacred treasury.

But the attacks grew more violent.

The twelfth data star suddenly exploded, turning into billions of silver specks of light that poured down like a rainstorm.

The light specks penetrated the visual projection of the dome, acting directly within the hall. They were trying to erode the golden crystal itself!

Garel let out a roar, and thunderous light erupted from his right eye, forming a lightning shield around the crystal.

The light specks slammed into the shield, erupting in piercing electromagnetic noise.

"We can't hold out like this for long!" Aurora's staff struck the ground heavily. "Solar Holy Words, Chapter Nine: Light's Protection!"

Golden characters surged from the tip of his staff, weaving into an ancient sacred text in the air.

The sacred text merged into the lightning shield, instantly tripling its strength.

However, the attacks from the data stars were also escalating.

The remaining eleven stars began to merge, eventually condensing into a massive silver eye. The

eye's pupil reflected the image of the golden crystal, and... inside the crystal, that 'core of inheritance' that was slowly taking shape.

"Target locked." The giant eye emitted Thousand Faces' emotionless, layered voice. "Experimental interference source confirmed. Executing purge protocol."

A silver pillar of light, a hundred times thicker than before, crashed down!

The hall shook violently, and cracks appeared on the dome.

The lightning shield and the sacred text barrier groaned simultaneously under the unbearable weight.

Lu Duo spat out a mouthful of blood, her emerald radiance flickering. Yu Nian's vines began to wither, and the milky-white glow grew thin.

Garel knelt on one knee, the light in his thunderous right eye weakening.

"Just... a little bit more..." He gritted his teeth, looking at the golden crystal.

Cracks had already spread to the core of the crystal, and the outline of the core of inheritance was clearly visible.

But there wasn't enough time.

The silver pillar of light was about to pierce the barrier.

At this critical moment.

In the corner of the hall, the golden light egg that had been attached to Yu Nian's vine suddenly cracked open.

Elune's figure emerged from the light egg.

Her light wings had not yet fully recovered—only three pairs could unfold normally—but her divine radiance remained pure.

"The guardian spirit of the Pillar of Life is not just a support character who only knows how to heal."

She raised her hand, and the phantoms of twelve light wings appeared behind her. Although most were illusory, the ancient pressure originating from the Kingdom of Gods was very real.

"God Kingdom Legacy Technique: Everlasting Green."

Emerald ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) light surged from her palm. It wasn't healing energy, but... time.

The moment the silver pillar of light touched the emerald light, its speed became extremely slow.

No, it wasn't the pillar of light slowing down, but the flow of time in that area was forcibly altered!

"I can only maintain this for ten seconds," Elune's voice was weary. "Hurry!"

Aurora and Garel exchanged a look and simultaneously released all their power!

Lightning and holy words poured into the golden crystal like a tsunami.

Crack!

The crystal shattered completely.

A fist-sized, diamond-shaped crystal, with golden lightning and solar runes flowing inside, floated in mid-air.

The core of inheritance, awakened.

Almost at the same time, deep within the distant Thunder God Island and the Nest of a Thousand Mirrors.

The oath core and the resonance core also sensed this call.

The three fragments began to resonate.

At the site of the old Golden Bell Tower in Shandora, the pedestal that had been silent for a thousand years shimmered with light for the first time.