Recaps

Long Tian and Yu Jin learned that the marked coordinates lay near the end of the southeastern ocean-current channel, beyond Longfish Bay. After returning to shore, Long Tian extended the silk map’s route toward the location, and they planned to gather supplies before setting out again.

• Long Tian told the man at the stern the coordinates and direction shown on the light-screen map, and the man recalled drifting through those waters before.
• The man at the stern identified the location as near the end of the southeastern current channel, a little farther out from Longfish Bay toward the Great Abyss.
• Long Tian and Yu Jin returned to Longfish Bay and went ashore.
• Long Tian extended the route on the silk map, marked the location, and put the map away.
• Long Tian said he and Yu Jin would prepare supplies and fresh water before setting out for the marked location.

Long Tian and Yu Jin traveled south along a warm current until they reached a broad paved structure on the seabed. Long Tian found a circular recess in the paving and saw a faint metallic gleam beneath its sediment.

• Long Tian prepared his supplies and map, and Yu Jin repaired his boots before they set out.
• Long Tian and Yu Jin sailed south from Longfish Bay, and Long Tian directed the boat along a subtle warm current.
• Long Tian noticed a dark band of color in the sea, where the boat slowed over a vast, level paved surface.
• The man at the stern found grayish-white powder in the water, and Long Tian confirmed that the paving matched the material beneath the keel.
• Long Tian swam down to inspect the paving and found a circular recess with a metallic gleam beneath the sediment.

Long Tian discovered that a circular metal plate beneath the water was part of a larger network embedded in the paved surface. After he activated a second plate and the groove connecting it to the first, he and Yu Jin set out to trace where the network led.

• Long Tian uncovered a dark metal plate in the paving and used the Origin Return Pearl to make a glowing ring appear on its surface.
• Long Tian found that the paving was divided into a regular grid, with grooves aligned around the plate at an intersection.
• Long Tian reported his findings to Yu Jin, who suggested that plates at the other intersections could form a network.
• Long Tian mapped the possible plate locations and guide lines on the silk map, then activated a neighboring plate and the groove connecting it to the first.
• Yu Jin said that connecting the next plates might reveal the network's destination, while Long Tian marked the direction and distance between the plates.

Long Tian mapped five light-triggered discs on the submerged paved surface and used their alignment to determine the direction of the larger layout. He decided not to search for more discs and set the boat toward the arc’s convergence, leaving the paved surface behind.

• Long Tian activated four discs underwater and marked their positions on the silk map.
• Yu Jin noticed an unusually wide gap between two points, and Long Tian found and activated a fifth disc buried beneath sediment.
• Long Tian added the fifth point to the map, completing more of the arc and confirming its direction toward the marked point on the light-screen map.
• Long Tian decided that confirming more discs would waste time without changing their conclusion.
• The person at the stern raised the anchor and steered the boat along the arc’s projected direction as Long Tian watched from the bow.

Long Tian followed the arc’s line across the sea and found a vast man-made structure stretching sideways beneath the water. He anchored beside its exposed edge and planned to examine its full extent after daybreak.

• Long Tian traveled for nearly four hours along the line extending from the arc, checking the water and the Dragon Shadow’s direction.
• Long Tian noticed a patch of unusually transparent water and steered the boat toward it.
• Long Tian saw a long, straight structure emerge ahead and approached its exposed edge.
• Long Tian used the Dragon Shadow’s light to inspect the structure and recognized its surface as matching the underwater paving and the floors of the Qi chamber and secret room.
• Long Tian anchored the boat beside the structure, described it as a man-made wall, and planned to assess it more fully after daybreak.

Long Tian and Yu Jin discovered that the structure beneath their boat was a long wall with evenly spaced grooves hidden under sealing patches. Long Tian mapped the grooves and confirmed the wall nearly aligned with the extended line on the light-screen map, then continued following it toward its distant endpoint.

• Long Tian examined the wall's surface and used Dragon Shadow's light and the Origin Return Pearl to uncover a sealed patch hiding a shallow groove.
• Yu Jin found another groove ahead and concluded that identical transverse slots repeated at even intervals along the wall.
• Long Tian uncovered five grooves, checked their spacing, and marked their positions on the silk map.
• Long Tian compared the wall's direction with the extended line on the light-screen map and found that the two nearly overlapped.
• Long Tian adjusted the Origin Return Pearl and the new core to keep Dragon Shadow's light steady as the boat continued along the wall.

Long Tian and Yu Jin discovered that several shallow grooves in the wall held patterned tracks that reacted to the Origin Return Pearl’s Qi and pulled the dark gray sphere downward. Long Tian marked the grooves on the silk map as the boat continued along the unbroken wall.

• Long Tian found that the seventh through tenth shallow grooves had engraved patterns matching the teeth on the keel marker disc.
• Long Tian guided the Origin Return Pearl’s Qi through a patterned groove and detected a faint response from its structure.
• Yu Jin’s dark gray sphere glowed and sank slightly above successive grooves as an evenly spaced force pulled it downward.
• Long Tian let the sphere descend until it hovered steadily above a groove, and Yu Jin sensed the energy transmitted through it.
• Long Tian returned to the boat and marked the patterned grooves on the silk map while the wall stretched onward.

Long Tian and Yu Jin followed the wall’s growing directional pull to a fitted projection and used the dark gray pearl to open it. Long Tian entered the concealed opening and found a firm surface below.

• Long Tian found that the patterns in the wall’s grooves grew deeper and the pearl’s pulling force strengthened as he advanced.
• Long Tian followed the wall as it gradually curved to the right, matching the curve to the direction of the patterns.
• Long Tian and Yu Jin examined a crosswise projection and discovered a recess shaped to fit the dark gray pearl.
• Long Tian placed the pearl in the recess, causing the projection to light up and rise to reveal an opening.
• Long Tian probed the opening, stepped onto the surface below, and bent down to pass through.

Long Tian and Yu Jin explored a dry corridor inside the wall and found a chamber with a disc that responded to the Origin Return Pearl. Long Tian traced an energy path to a springy metal sheet set into a groove, but the sheet blocked the energy and the chamber went dark again.

• Long Tian entered the corridor and found evenly spaced vertical grooves in its walls.
• Yu Jin followed Long Tian through the corridor as they reached a wider chamber with a disc embedded in the floor.
• Long Tian activated the disc with the Origin Return Pearl, causing a halo to spread across it.
• Long Tian maintained the energy flow and formed a path from the disc to a shallow groove in the north wall.
• Long Tian found a warm, springy metal sheet at the bottom of the groove and discovered it blocked the Origin Return Pearl's energy.
• Long Tian withdrew the energy, and the disc and groove returned to darkness.

Long Tian used the Origin Return Pearl and his Light and Dark Twin Martial Souls to activate a hidden plate and connect it to the Dragon Bone Marker Disc. The chamber revealed its full map and a dragon projection, which the Origin Return Pearl absorbed, before Long Tian restored the plate and confirmed the structures matched his map and marker disc.

• Long Tian channeled the Origin Return Pearl's presence and both Martial Souls into the plate, causing it to rise from the shallow groove.
• Long Tian read the mirrored ancient characters on the plate and placed it at the center of the Dragon Bone Marker Disc, where it fit seamlessly.
• Long Tian activated the joined plate and disc, lighting up routes and patterns across the chamber's walls, including a complete coiled dragon on the southern wall.
• Dragon Shadow approached the dragon pattern, and a ball of light emerged from its mouth and expanded into a three-dimensional disc-shaped projection.
• Long Tian touched the projection, and the Origin Return Pearl absorbed it.
• Long Tian returned the plate to the shallow groove, causing the wall patterns to fade, then confirmed that the revealed structures matched his map and marker disc.

Long Tian absorbed the light and shadow from the chamber into the Origin Return Pearl, and its energy settled into his body. As the boat continued along the wall, he marked the coiled-dragon pattern on his map and decided to return after examining the wall’s end.

• Long Tian waited for the Origin Return Pearl to absorb the chamber’s light and shadow, then returned to the boat with Yu Jin.
• Long Tian examined the deepening gray-gold patterns on his hand and confirmed that his fingers moved freely.
• Long Tian marked the coiled-dragon pattern on the silk map and sensed a transition layer forming inside the Origin Return Pearl.
• Long Tian said they could head back after the wall’s end and its terminal structure came into view.

Long Tian reached the precisely cut end of the wall and found a circular mark with a slot embedded in its face. He recorded that the face pointed southeast, then returned with Yu Jin to Longfish Bay, leaving the route beyond the wall’s end unresolved.

• Long Tian found the wall’s smooth end face and examined the circular mark and its vertical slot.
• Long Tian used the Origin Return Pearl to test the mark, then recorded the wall’s endpoint and the face’s southeast direction on his silk map.
• Yu Jin said the direction the end face pointed should lead to the final location, though only open sea remained beyond the wall.
• Long Tian reviewed the route’s clues and confirmed their sequence and directions were consistent as the boat returned.
• Long Tian and Yu Jin reached Longfish Bay before daybreak and left the harbor by the dirt road.

Long Tian confirmed that the chamber wall, silk map, and ancient characters pointed toward a location on the open sea, and he decided to investigate it. Before setting out, he confirmed that the Imperial Seal, Origin Return Pearl, and new core had settled together without conflict.

• Long Tian aligned the end face of the chamber’s long wall with the endpoint of the path on the silk map.
• Long Tieshan asked Long Tian about the map’s direction, while Yu Jin reinforced the strap on his bundle.
• Shen Mo reported that an old fish-skin transcript added two characters meaning roughly “entrance” and matching wavy-line markings after the chamber-wall inscription.
• Long Tian used the added characters and markings to locate a spot farther along the open sea and told Shen Mo he planned to visit it.
• Long Tian confirmed that the Imperial Seal, Origin Return Pearl, and new core pulsed together without interfering, then packed the silk map.

Long Tian followed the end face’s direction across a pale, altered stretch of sea and discovered a hidden chamber beneath a whirlpool. After using the imperial seal’s Qi to open a concealed door, he illuminated the spacious room beyond.

• Long Tian and Yu Jin departed before dawn, and Long Tieshan gave Long Tian a parcel of dry rations.
• Long Tian guided the boat toward the end face and noticed the sea grow lighter while its water took on an unusual texture.
• Dragon Shadow indicated a faint whirlpool, and Long Tian found a toothed circular stone marker beneath its surface.
• Long Tian sent the Origin Return Pearl’s Qi into the marker, opening a passage to a small stone chamber.
• Long Tian used the imperial seal’s Qi to open a concealed door in the chamber wall, revealing a spacious room beyond.

Long Tian explored the main hall beneath the sea and activated its mechanisms with the thin piece and the Origin Return Pearl. The stone platform sank into the floor, leaving a recess where the fused Imperial Seal formed a steady column of light.

• Long Tian discovered that the stone platform bore a pattern matching the Dragon Bone Marker Disc, and Yu Jin examined it with him.
• Long Tian inserted the thin piece into a slot in the northern wall, causing the hall's floor to darken and a layer of light to form around the platform.
• Long Tian passed through the layer of light and pressed his palm against the platform's central mark, synchronizing the Origin Return Pearl with the Imperial Seal merged into his body.
• The illuminated platform sank into the floor, leaving a circular recess at its center.
• Long Tian filled the recess with the fused Imperial Seal's light, which rose into a steady column and remained suspended.

Long Tian studied the light’s map of the underground routes and memorized a final marker before leaving the main hall. He and Yu Jin returned by boat and reached the stone house, where Long Tieshan was heating water.

• Long Tian matched the column of light’s route markers to the path he had traveled and the silk map, then noted a final marker before the image vanished.
• Long Tian left the main hall, passed through the membrane, and surfaced from the whirlpool as the sun slanted westward.
• Long Tian and Yu Jin boarded the boat and sailed back along their incoming route through the pale gray sea.
• Long Tian kept the silk map rolled up as the boat reached shore the following afternoon.
• Long Tian and Yu Jin walked back to the stone house, where Long Tieshan continued heating water by the stove.

Long Tian returned to the vortex after learning the final entrance’s conditions and reactivated the pillar of light with the Origin Return Pearl. A beam rose from the sea as a beacon, leaving the final step unfinished.

• Long Tian recorded the structure and final marker on the map while Long Tieshan and Yu Jin stayed nearby in silence.
• Shen Mo told Long Tian that the completed passage said the Imperial Seal beneath the sea eye was the key and that someone with light and darkness sharing an origin would open it.
• Long Tian and Yu Jin left Longfish Bay and traveled by boat to the vortex, where Long Tian reentered the main hall.
• Long Tian used the Origin Return Pearl, the new core, and the Imperial Seal within him to reactivate the pillar of light.
• Long Tian touched the final marker, causing it to expand and send a steady beam through the sea to the sky.

Long Tian and Yu Jin followed a pillar of light across the sea to a sealed, submerged chamber, where Dragon Shadow illuminated a mark matching the one on its forehead. The Origin Return Pearl, Long Tian’s new core, the Imperial Seal, and the lights from Dragon Shadow and Yu Jin aligned with the mark, completing their final connection.

• Long Tian and the person at the stern steered the boat along the pillar of light across the sea.
• Long Tian swam to a toothed, curved structure and used the Origin Return Pearl to activate its opening.
• Long Tian entered the dry chamber, and Dragon Shadow followed and illuminated its vast circular hall.
• Long Tian saw a mark at the dome’s center that matched Dragon Shadow’s forehead mark as the Origin Return Pearl, his new core, and the Imperial Seal synchronized.
• Yu Jin joined Long Tian beneath the mark, and the lights from Yu Jin and Dragon Shadow formed a continuous band around it.

Long Tian and Yu Jin discovered that the pillar of light concealed a chamber beneath the hall, then opened a passage to a lower circular room containing a relief that absorbed the Origin Return Pearl’s energy. The relief appeared to be the lowest component of the structure’s system, but its purpose remained unknown.

• Long Tian tested the pillar of light and found a hard surface and a deeper chamber beneath it.
• Yu Jin used the dark gray orb to confirm that the space beneath the pillar was hollow.
• Long Tian sensed a chamber with a Dragon Bone Marker Disc-shaped recess and found a seam around the pillar’s base.
• Long Tian traced the seam to release the pillar’s lock, lifted the pillar away, and exposed a square opening.
• Long Tian descended into a circular room and found a toothed relief matching the mark on the dome.
• Long Tian touched the relief with the Origin Return Pearl’s presence, and the relief absorbed the energy without reacting.

Long Tian and Yu Jin opened the relief’s hidden cavity and uncovered a light core. Dragon Shadow drew the core into its chest, and Long Tian surfaced with the core embedded and the underwater light functioning more steadily.

• Long Tian used the Origin Return Pearl to probe the cavity beneath the relief and sensed a warm enclosure inside.
• Yu Jin brought the dark gray orb to the cavity, and Long Tian synchronized the Origin Return Pearl, the new core, and the Imperial Seal to open the flexible partition.
• Long Tian found a fist-sized light core floating inside the cavity and discovered that it absorbed the Origin Return Pearl’s emanation before returning to its original brightness.
• Dragon Shadow connected to the light core and drew it through the opening in its forehead into its chest.
• A new layer of light spread along Dragon Shadow’s spine as the core settled into place, and Long Tian felt the Origin Return Pearl’s transition layer stabilize.
• Yu Jin said the light core was inside, and Long Tian replaced the pillar base, left the underwater chamber, and surfaced beneath the stars.

Long Tian and Yu Jin returned by boat to Longfish Bay after the light core settled steadily into Long Tian. They reached the stone house, where Long Tieshan welcomed them with hot water.

• Long Tian told Yu Jin that the light core had settled without rejection or affecting the Origin Return Pearl's rotation.
• Long Tian and Yu Jin arrived at Longfish Bay at dawn and walked toward the stone house.
• Long Tian noticed Dragon Shadow's scales still held a faint sheen in the morning light.
• Long Tieshan saw them return, poured hot water into two bowls, and sat beside the stove.

Long Tian discovered that Spirit Hall had placed observation posts along the southeast coast routes he had traveled, and Tang San traced the order to the same Elder Hall signatories involved in the Iron Guard files. Long Tian decided to pause sea operations for three months and return inland to avoid being tracked.

• Long Tian practiced with Dragon Shadow for three days until the light core circulated on its own in synchronization with Yu Jin's orb.
• Shen Mo told Long Tian that Spirit Hall had stationed observation posts along key routes between Longfish Bay and the Great Abyss.
• Long Tieshan learned that Spirit Hall's own personnel, rather than local forces, staffed the posts.
• Tang San told Long Tian the redeployment order came from the Elder Hall signatories who had handled the Iron Guard files and that the posts would remain for at least three months.
• Long Tian decided to suspend sea operations until the observation posts began to thin out, then left with Yu Jin and Shen Mo to remain inland.

Long Tian set out with Yu Jin and the man from the stern after learning that the coastal observation posts had withdrawn, then crossed the light-colored band toward the Dragon Shadow. He confirmed the arched bulge remained unchanged and stopped beneath the light core as fluorescence rose from the sea.

• Shen Mo told Long Tian that two coastal observation posts had withdrawn and the remaining three had moved north, leaving a route outside their effective range.
• Long Tian packed the map, tide records and fragment, finished his provisions, and left with Yu Jin while Long Tieshan stayed behind.
• Long Tian and Yu Jin reached Longfish Bay, boarded the man from the stern's boat, and sailed through the light-colored band without encountering observation posts.
• Long Tian inspected the arched bulge at the end of the long wall and confirmed its grooves and surface were unchanged.
• Long Tian guided the boat beneath the light core's projection and felt the warm fluorescence welling up from the deep.

Long Tian examined the Light Core underwater and found that the Origin Return Pearl's pulse had connected with its outer and middle layers, while its innermost core remained independent. He returned to the boat, where Yu Jin said an additional trigger might be needed to complete the connection and would have to be investigated on Long Tian's next dive.

• Long Tian dove beneath the glowing water and found the Light Core in the same position as three months earlier, now shining more brightly.
• Long Tian used the Origin Return Pearl's Qi and Dragon Shadow's light to open the Light Core's shell and connect with its pulse.
• Long Tian observed that the outer layer was connected, the middle layer was more than half penetrated, and the innermost core still operated independently.
• Long Tian surfaced and told Yu Jin what he had found in the Light Core.
• Yu Jin concluded that the final connection needed an additional trigger and said they would investigate it on Long Tian's next dive.

Long Tian synchronized the light core’s inner layer with the Origin Return Pearl, completing the core’s structure and establishing a lasting phase lock. As dawn came, the fluorescence faded, and the boat turned back along its route.

• Yu Jin suggested that Long Tian connect the light core’s outward pulse with a matching external pulse to complete its inner layer.
• Long Tian adjusted the Origin Return Pearl’s pulse and entered the water to direct its Qi toward the light core.
• Long Tian brought the two pulses into phase, causing the light core’s inner and outer layers to merge into one continuous structure.
• Long Tian confirmed that the light core and Origin Return Pearl remained synchronized as he returned to the boat.
• Long Tian described what he had observed, and the person at the stern turned the boat back along their route.