The upper chambers were silent now, stained with blood and ruin. But deep beneath them, something ancient still pulsed.
The surviving disciples stood at the central obelisk, where the floor had shifted — revealing a spiral stairwell descending into black nothingness.
"This was never the true tomb," Fang Xi said softly. "It was a gate."
The others looked at him, but no one questioned it anymore.
Even Han Yuren remained silent.
🩸 The Descent
Step by step, they moved downward.
The walls grew smoother. The air colder. The mist thicker, humming with whispers that scratched at the edges of their thoughts.
As they walked, the Echo Mark on Fang Xi's wrist began to burn, not with pain—but with recognition.
Each breath carried fragments of Yun Zhao's voice:
"The world forgets. We remember. Memory is survival."
The others could not hear it.
This power was never meant for many, Fang Xi thought.
Only for one.
🏛 The True Vault
At the bottom, they entered a vast circular chamber, larger than any above.
The walls were covered with mural-like runes — thousands of overlapping inscriptions swirling like constellations. In the center stood a monument of bone and crystal, shaped like a coiling serpent consuming its own tail.
This was the Heart of the Echo Tomb.
Lu Shuwei's voice broke the silence. "This isn't a grave."
"No," Fang Xi whispered. "It's a prison."
The crystal structure pulsed faintly.
Shui Fang narrowed her eyes. "What is it holding?"
"Not what…" Fang Xi whispered.
"Who."
🧠 The Truth of the Crimson Tomb
The Soul Echo within Fang Xi surged as his mark resonated with the structure.
Visions flashed:
Yun Zhao, surrounded by his disciples, fracturing his own soul into 81 shards to evade destruction.
One core shard — the Heart — sealed beneath Ironwood long before the sect existed.
The righteous sects couldn't destroy him completely. They buried him.
This tomb wasn't built to honor him.
It was built to contain him.
The voice returned inside Fang Xi's mind, deeper now, colder:
"You have walked my path. Will you claim my chain?"
🌀 Fang Xi's Evolution
The Mark pulsed hard.
[Soul Echo – Stage II Unlocked: Fragment of Yun Zhao's Will]
Passive Ability Gained: Resonant Perception
Fang Xi can now briefly sense disturbances in spiritual fluctuations — detecting hidden Qi manipulations or concealed intent nearby.
But along with it came a warning.
The more you take… the closer you walk toward me.
Fang Xi smiled faintly.
That's fine. I don't need to resist. I need to control.
⚠ The Hidden Risk
Suddenly, cracks spread along the crystal serpent's spine.
The seal was weakening.
And from the far edges of the chamber — dozens of black cocoons pulsed.
Han Yuren's voice cut through:
"We triggered a full awakening."
The room trembled as bone shades began to break free from the walls — incomplete souls, feeding on the old blood.
Shui Fang shouted, "We need to retreat!"
But Fang Xi remained perfectly still.
Not yet.
Not until I've taken what I came for.