The sacred warship slowly docked at the cloud-sea platform at the foot of Qilin Radiance Peak. The platform was paved with ancient stones that glowed faintly gold, each edged with tiny Qilin runes. The runes flickered in the purifying currents, as though welcoming visitors from afar. Loran was the first to disembark. The moment his feet touched the stone, a gentle, warm energy surged through his ankles into his body, and his three elemental powers stirred involuntarily-this was the sacred land's source power, naturally compatible with his own.
"The energy here is so pure!" Snow Spirit Qilin bounded onto the platform. The ice talisman around its neck suddenly flew into the air, its luminous white light resonating with the runes on the stones. A pale golden stairway of light extended from the platform to the summit, with translucent Qilin phantoms floating on either side. "The ice talisman is guiding us! This stairway leads to the purification pool, but... there's a runic barrier halfway up. We have to unravel it to get through."
Everyone looked up. Sure enough, a pale golden runic barrier hovered halfway up the stairway. The Qilin runes on it intertwined into a complex formation pattern, with three recesses at its center, as though waiting to be filled with some kind of energy. Liya hurried forward and brushed her fingertips over the barrier. The Illustrated Catalog of Plants automatically turned to a blank page, and the formation pattern passed through her fingertips onto the paper, becoming a decipherable runic diagram. "This is the Ancient Qilin Three Powers Formation. Three kinds of core energy must be placed in the recesses separately-fire, ice, and water, corresponding to the Qilin Clan's Flame Qilin, Ice Qilin, and Water Qilin inheritances. The barrier will only open when all three energies are balanced."
"I'll handle the fire element!" Lei Lin leaped to the left recess. Golden-red flames condensed into a fiery pattern and slotted precisely into it. The instant the flames met the runes, the Qilin phantom on the barrier's left side became distinct, as though about to step out of the stairway. Snow Spirit Qilin immediately followed, condensing luminous white frost mist into an ice pattern that filled the middle recess. The Ice Qilin phantom lit up, echoing the Flame Qilin phantom from afar.
Only the water-element recess on the right remained empty. A Ze took a deep breath, stepped up to it, and gathered the purest water energy in his palm. Unlike its previous defensive forms, the water energy now became a flowing water pattern bearing the water-language runes of the Swamp Spirit Clan's inheritance, slowly settling into the recess. The instant the water pattern merged with the barrier, the Water Qilin phantom finally lit up. All three phantoms let out low roars at once, and the runic barrier receded like a tide, leaving the stairway completely clear.
"Let's go! The purification pool is at the summit!" Loran waved everyone onward, and they climbed the stairway of light. The sea of clouds flowed slowly on either side. Occasionally, motes of light bearing runes drifted past, turning into warm energy when they landed on their bodies and dispelling all fatigue. The Icefield Wolf walked beside Loran, its golden eyes full of curiosity, its nose twitching constantly-it could smell the pure aura coming from the summit, a purifying power more concentrated than the purifying currents.
At the top of the stairway, a spacious platform came into view. At its center stood a circular pool, its water glowing luminous white. Diamond-shaped crystals lined the bottom, with pale golden energy patterns flowing between them-this was the "purification pool." Behind it stood a ten-meter-tall Qilin statue carved from a single piece of starfall jade. Red gemstones were set into its eyes, as though it could see into people's hearts. A line of ancient writing was engraved on its base: "When source powers align, all evil and corruption disperse."
"This is the place!" Elder Aila's voice, transmitted through the ice dove, suddenly rang out in Loran's mind-when they had parted earlier, she had given him an elven voice-transmission talisman. "The purification pool's core is the Qilin Heart Crystal at the bottom. You need to awaken it with your three elemental powers, then place the Evil Bone Core in the pool. Only with the Lotus Heart Crystal, the Holy Spring Crystal, and Tree of Life sap can you completely remove the matriarch's consciousness fragments!"
Loran nodded and took the Lotus Heart Crystal and Holy Spring Crystal from inside his clothes. Liya opened the jade bottle and sprinkled the Tree of Life sap evenly around the edge of the purification pool. As the sap seeped into the water, its luminous white glow instantly brightened. The Qilin Heart Crystal at the bottom flickered as well, golden patterns spreading along the crystals and linking with the runes on the platform.
"Chief Tongchui, sorry for the trouble, but please guard the stairway entrance with the Water Speaker to prevent any mishaps. Snow Spirit Qilin, Icefield Wolf, keep watch around the purification pool and notify me immediately if anything unusual happens. Liya, use your power of nature to help me stabilize the core. I'll awaken the Qilin Heart Crystal." Loran gave his instructions methodically, then lifted the sealing chamber and walked slowly toward the purification pool.
The moment the sealing chamber approached the pool's edge, the water suddenly churned violently. The Evil Bone Core inside the chamber began emitting a pale purple light on its own, resonating with the Qilin Heart Crystal at the bottom. Loran took a deep breath, pressed his palm against the sealing chamber, and slowly poured in his three elemental powers. Pale white, pale gold, and emerald-green light shone through the chamber walls, intertwining with the Holy Spring Crystal's golden light and the Lotus Heart Crystal's green light. With a click, the chamber door opened on its own, and the Evil Bone Core slowly rose into the air and flew toward the center of the purification pool.