The Star Tunnel pulsed like a river of living energy. Radiant currents surged from every direction, instantly pulling Sophia, Elias, and Zhou Yuchen into a swirling vortex of time and space.
Only those who carried the blood of the Stone of Destiny could enter this ancient passage. But Elias's face was growing pale.
"She knows we're coming," he whispered.
Sophia turned toward him. "You mean... Bai Yunshuang?"
He gave a bitter smile. "Not just her."
The trio emerged on a red sand dune, wind howling around them. The air reeked of metal, sharp and sterile. On the horizon loomed a ruin cloaked in shadows—the remains of the Polaris Red Crystal Core Laboratory.
As they approached, Sophia's pendant began to shake violently. Her foot slipped, and she was pulled—body and mind—into a hallucination forged by the corrupted crystal.
She found herself in a church, dressed in a white wedding gown.
Marcus Lu stood at the altar.
Zhou Yuchen stood in the corner, blank-eyed, hollow.
And Elias glared at her with freezing contempt. "You were willing to die for your enemies."
Sophia cried out, her voice raw: "No! This isn't real!"
She tore the illusion apart with sheer willpower—but the red crystal wasn't finished. It flooded her with replays of pain, betrayal, and death. Each one a cruel mockery of her journey and her revenge.
Outside the illusion, Elias stood guard over Sophia's unconscious body. Zhou Yuchen set up a protective barrier across the ruined grounds.
From within the shadows, a red silhouette emerged. The face beneath her mask... was a perfect likeness of Su Lan in her youth.
Elias's eyes narrowed. "You're not her."
The figure removed her mask, revealing an eerie perfection.
"I am Bai Yunshuang's second consciousness," she said. "They call me Red Echo."
She raised her hand. A crimson crystal chain burst from her palm and pierced Elias's chest, sending him flying. Blood sprayed across the sand as he crumpled.
Red Echo stepped toward Sophia, who lay still in the dirt.
"She will make a perfect new vessel. The true Stone of Destiny requires a soul for activation."
Just as Red Echo prepared to absorb Sophia, the pendant fragments on her chest burst into radiant light—gold and blue intertwining like fire and sky.
First Fragment: Memory Carrier
Second Fragment: True Name of Blood
Third Fragment (New): Soul Ignition
Sophia's eyes snapped open. In their depths shone the echo of her mother's spirit.
"Child," Su Lan's voice echoed from the memory, "you are not a container. You are the key."
Sophia's voice rang out, fierce and clear:
"I am no one's pawn!"
She pressed her palms together. A pillar of light erupted from the pendant, tearing through the illusion and hurling Red Echo backward.
Elias rose unsteadily, blood seeping from his wound. A glowing star sigil shimmered across his right hand. He stood beside Sophia.
"Now that you're awake," he said, "let's change the game—for real this time."
He activated the remnant data of their mother's soul, linking it with Sophia's pendant.
Brother and sister joined forces.
Their starborn bloodlines resonated. Energy surged into the ruins.
The ground split open. From beneath the sands, a massive device emerged—its surface pulsing red.
The Red Crystal Core. The true Mother Core.
But with its awakening came another revelation.
Bai Yunshuang had found them.
The ground vibrated violently beneath their feet.
Zhou Yuchen received a desperate transmission from Chen Mo:
"Sophia, get out now! Red Echo is only the receiver consciousness of the Mother Core! She's bait—meant to trick you into activating the main system!"
Too late.
A klaxon blared across the ruin.
Self-Destruct Protocol: Engaged.
Remaining Time: 47 hours.
Sophia clutched her pendant. Her voice was firm.
"No. I'm not leaving.
I have to recover the last memory fragment of our mother—before it's lost forever."
She turned to Elias and Zhou Yuchen.
"Will you take this risk with me?"
They exchanged a glance.
And nodded—without hesitation.