About an hour later, the collected scale powder was enough to make more than twenty Scale-Powder Crystal Pouch. The Fire Language Clan Elder and Loran together painted fire pattern totems all over the rocks around the lava spring—the totems were spiral-shaped, one end facing the lava spring and the other end facing the flame crystal cluster. "The fire pattern can draw the fire energy of the lava spring into the totem, then heat it up through the Scale-Powder Crystal Pouch, and finally flow into the flame crystal cluster."
As the Fire-Pattern Ritual began, A Yan and his tribesmen, holding fire-starting staffs, circled the totem, chanting deep prayers. With each prayer, the fire-pattern totem gradually glowed with an orange-red light, and the fire energy from the lava spring slowly climbed upwards along the totem's patterns. A Mu placed the Scale-Powder Crystal Pouch at the totem's turning point. Upon contact with the fire energy, the pouch immediately emitted a pale orange light, and the Star Core Fragments inside began to absorb the fire energy. The scale powder acted like a film, enveloping the cold and fire energy together, slowly transforming it into gentle warmth. This warmth flowed slowly along the patterns at the other end of the totem towards the adjacent flame crystal cluster. The dim crystals were gradually enveloped by the warmth, and the stagnant fire energy within began to flow; tiny new crystals even slowly grew from the cracks.
"Quickly replenish the energy of the most broken flame crystals!" A Ya shouted. A Mu quickly picked up a Scale-Powder Crystal Pouch and placed it directly on a nearly collapsed flame crystal cluster—as soon as the heat energy from the pouch seeped in, the crystal stopped cracking, and the internal fire energy became active again, emitting a soft orange light. The Fire-Dwelling Butterfly, smelling the heat energy, flew over and danced around the flame crystal cluster, their powder falling on the crystal surface, like coating the flame crystal with a protective film.
Just then, the lava spring suddenly gurgled, releasing a large cloud of bubbles. The fire energy intensified dramatically, and the totem's light became blinding—the excess fire energy rushed along the totem towards the flame crystal cluster, causing the newly recovered flame crystals to overheat again. "Use the Scale-Powder Crystal Pouch to absorb the excess fire energy!" A Mu immediately reacted, instructing A Ya to place the remaining crystal pouches next to the totem. The pouches instantly lit up, like tiny sponges, rapidly absorbing the excess fire energy. The lava spring's fire energy gradually stabilized, and the totem's light returned to its gentle glow.
When the last flame crystal cluster regained its glow, the surface of the lava spring became calm, shimmering with only a faint orange-red light; Fire-Dwelling Butterfly danced among the flame crystal clusters, forming streaks of orange-red light; the air inside the cave was no longer scorching, only a warm atmosphere remained. The Fire Language Clan cheered and raised their Fire-Attracting Staffs, the flame crystals at the tips resonating with the surrounding flame crystal clusters, emitting a crisp "ding-dong" sound, like the song of fire.
A Ya took out her paintbrush and painted this scene on a heat-resistant ceramic tile—glowing clusters of flame crystals, fluttering Fire-Dwelling Butterfly, and Fire Language Clan circling the totem. She also added a note next to it, "Flame Crystal Symbiosis in Flamelight Cave requires the complementary interaction of three elements: the cold energy of the Child Crystal Core (absorbing excess fire energy), the Fire-Dwelling Butterfly scale powder (converting to warm energy), and the fire energy of the lava spring (supplying energy). The temperature energy is calibrated periodically using the Fire-Pattern Ritual."
The Fire Language Clan Elder held A Mu's hand and handed him a small flame crystal inlaid with Fire-Dwelling Butterfly scale powder. "This is a ' Warm Crystal,' which can sense the balance between fire energy and warmth energy. Wear it when you adjust it in the future. If the crystal's light is warm but not hot, it means it's balanced." A Mu took the Warm Crystal, and the crystal transmitted a comfortable warmth to his palm, forming a gentle hot-cold resonance with the fragment of the Child Crystal Core at his waist.
Suddenly, the fire-patterned totem in the center of the lava spring emitted a light, which condensed into a line of words on the surface. "Next adjustment point, Crystal-Word Ruins." Loran looked at the words and pondered, " Crystal-Word Ruins sounds like it's related to crystal cores. It might hold clues to the origin of Child Crystal Core. We need to prepare something to decipher the crystal patterns in advance."
On their return journey, the twilight outside the cave had turned into deep night. The Fire Language Clan saw them off at the cave entrance, the light of the Flame Crystal Cluster shining through from within, as if edging the entrance with an orange-red border. The Icefield Wolf carried a piece of scale powder dropped by Fire-Dwelling Butterfly in its mouth; the powder shimmered pale red in the moonlight, like a souvenir from the cave. A Mu touched the Warm Crystal in his palm and suddenly understood: balance is not about eliminating the difference between hot and cold, but about allowing cold energy and fire energy to each take what they need, using a medium to transform the difference into complementarity—just as the Child Crystal Core absorbs the excess fire energy, Fire-Dwelling Butterfly converts cold energy into warm energy, both ultimately used to nourish the Flame Crystal Cluster.
As night deepened, A Mu placed the cave's "Adjustment Records" into the Guardian Bookshelf—the record's title page depicted a complementary diagram of "Flame Crystal - Fire Butterfly - Lava Spring," with the words "Balance is the complementary symbiosis of different elements" written beside it. The twenty records on the shelf, ranging from "Restoring Vitality" to "Complementary Symbiosis," each refreshed the understanding of "Guardianship." Moonlight shone through the gaps in the tent onto the records, reflecting off the nearby Warm Crystal and Fire-Dwelling Butterfly scales, as if telling a story: True protection is not about making all elements the same, but about allowing different elements to find their point of need, forming a more stable closed loop of vitality through complementarity.
The story of " The Qilin of Falling Maple " is now heading towards the Crystal-Word Ruins, carrying with it the understanding of "complementary symbiosis." There are no thrilling confrontations, only the guidance of fire energy, the collection of scale powder, and the calibration of the balance between heat and cold—these seemingly gentle actions, like the flame crystal clusters in the Flamelight Cave, are unassuming yet full of power, gradually weaving a "net of balance" that covers the continent, protecting every pair of complementary symbiotic life relationships.