A Ya took out a rubbing paper with crystal patterns and pasted it on the blurry area of the stone tablet. Then, she gently smeared it with a brush dipped in resonance ink. The rubbing paper gradually absorbed the energy of the stone tablet, and the blurry crystal patterns slowly appeared: seven Child Crystal Core symbols surrounded the Mother Crystal Core, forming a "Big Dipper" arrangement. Each symbol had a corresponding energy frequency label next to it. " The Star Core Fragments corresponds to the Tian Shu position, the Forest Heart Crystal Fragments corresponds to the Tian Xuan position..." A Mu referred to the rubbing paper and placed the Child Crystal Core fragments one by one into the corresponding grooves on the stone tablet.
As the last Molten Fire Crystal Fragments returned to its place, the crystal patterns on the stone tablet suddenly lit up. The Ice Spirit Clan in the illusion seemed to sense this, their movements becoming clearer—they raised their hands, channeling energy into the stone tablet, and a rhombus-shaped "energy key" symbol appeared at the top. "Just one last step!" A Wen shouted, "We need something that can 'connect the source,' allowing the fragments' energy to merge into one, to activate the key!"
A Mu suddenly remembered the New Sprout Sword on his back—the scabbard had resonated with multiple Child Crystal Core, and at this moment, the scabbard's seven-colored light echoed the crystal patterns on the stone tablet. He untied the sword and placed the scabbard on the Mother Crystal Core symbol in the center of the stone tablet. Instantly, the scabbard resonated with all the fragments of the Child Crystal Core. The energy of the fragments flowed into the scabbard along the crystal patterns, and then fed back to the stone tablet from the scabbard, forming a closed energy ring.
"Buzz--" The stone tablet emitted a deep resonance, and the key symbol at the top gradually materialized, revealing a rhomboid crystal shimmering with seven colors—the " Origin Key." As soon as the key left the stone tablet, the spatial distortion in the stone chamber ceased, and the crystalline illusions slowly dissipated, leaving only the clear crystalline patterns on the stone tablet, as if telling the truth of a thousand years ago.
Holding the key, A Wen's voice trembled. "The fragment says that the key can bring the Child Crystal Core back to the same frequency as the Mother Crystal Core. What you were adjusting before was actually making the fragments gradually approach this frequency..." He pointed to the crystal patterns on the stone tablet and explained, " The Child Crystal Core is not a 'branch' of the Mother Crystal Core, but a 'clone'. The splitting a thousand years ago was to prevent the Mother Crystal Core from self-destructing due to excessive energy. The adjustment now is to make the clones 'recognize' their master again."
A Shi quickly drew a diagram in the crystal pattern record book. "So all the previous adjustments were preparations for the 'final anchoring of the Mother Crystal Core '?" Loran nodded, took the key and examined it carefully. "The crystal patterns on the key point to the sealing location of the Mother Crystal Core in the Permafrost Icefield —this should be the key to the final step."
Just then, the Origin Stele suddenly emitted a light, projecting the image of the key onto the ceiling of the stone chamber. The image displayed a map of the Permafrost Icefield, with the words "Requires seven Child Crystal Core fragments + Origin Key for simultaneous activation" marked at the center of the map's Mother Crystal Core seal. "So, we're still missing two of the Child Crystal Core fragments we found earlier," A Mu said thoughtfully, looking at the image. "The next place should be where we can find the remaining fragments."
On the return journey, A Wen gave A Ya the Fragmentary Crystal Pattern Records: "You need this; there are still clues on it that haven't been fully deciphered." The Icefield Wolf held a small crystal chip that had fallen from the stone tablet in its mouth. The chip was pale blue and of the same origin as the Mother Crystal Core symbol, like a "certificate" given to them by the ruins. A Mu held the Origin Key, and the seven-colored light of the sword sheath resonated with the key. He suddenly understood: protection was not only about balancing the energy of the present moment, but also about tracing back to the origin and making up for the regrets of a thousand years ago—to let the separated "avatars" return to the "mother".
As night deepened, A Mu placed the "Records of Tracing the Origins" from the ruins into the Guardian Bookshelf. The title page of the record depicted the crystal pattern arrangement of the Origin Stele, and next to it, a corner of a rubbing of the crystal pattern was pasted, with the words "Guardianship is the journey back to the origin." The twenty-one records on the bookshelf, from "Restoring Vitality" to "Tracing the Origin and Returning to Position," each approached the ultimate truth of the crystal core's protection. Moonlight shone through the gaps in the tent onto the records, reflecting off the Origin Key and the chip next to them, as if telling a story: True protection is not about repeated remedies, but about following the threads of history, allowing all things to return to their proper state, and letting separated energies reunite into complete vitality.
The story of " The Qilin of Falling Maple " is now heading towards its final anchorage in the Permafrost Icefield plains, carrying the Origin Key and clues to the crystal patterns. There are no thrilling confrontations, only the interpretation of the crystal patterns, the tracing of history, and the exploration of the origin—these seemingly quiet actions, like the Origin Stele of the Crystal-Word Ruins, are silent yet profound, gradually weaving a "net of return" to the final guardian, awaiting the moment when the Child Crystal Core and the Mother Crystal Core reunite.