Master Yuan led them to the chamber beneath his residence—a circular room carved in polished stone, lit by a single lantern that flickered with spiritual flame. The ritual circle had been expanded. Two jade basins sat across from each other, their patterns reflecting phoenixes in flight.
Lin Hao stood with the male phoenix in his hands. Qingyue held the female one, her grip firm despite the subtle tremble in her fingers.
Yuan turned to them.
"I was wrong to think these sculptures were just relics. The Qi inside them... it resonates. Together."
He gestured to the circle.
"Sit. Place them at the center, facing each other. This is no ordinary awakening. Because of their harmony, the process may guide both of you toward deeper spiritual resonance."
Lin Hao looked at Qingyue. She nodded. They stepped forward together and placed the phoenixes on the altar, the tips of their wings nearly touching.
A faint hum filled the room.
Yuan formed a seal with both hands. "Let it begin."
Lin Hao and Qingyue sat cross-legged on opposite sides. Their knees nearly touched the edge of the circle.
They closed their eyes.
The humming grew louder.
Then heat bloomed—not from the flames, but from the sculptures.
Two tendrils of light rose from the phoenixes. The shapes twisted and grew. Qi flowed like smoke and fire, forming shimmering illusions of the twin phoenixes.
The two birds soared above them, circling the room, wings wide and tails trailing embers. Lin Hao's heartbeat slowed. He could feel the pull—not just from within, but toward the presence across from him.
Qingyue.
It was like gravity—unfamiliar, but not unpleasant.
As the birds circled tighter, they twisted together, becoming a single ribbon of spiraling fire. The Qi split again—half diving into Lin Hao's brow, the other into Qingyue's.
A sharp pressure pulsed in Lin Hao's head, like something ancient pressing against the inside of his skull.
And then—
Silence.
A sudden, perfect stillness.
Then clarity.
His awareness expanded. A cool presence bloomed in his mind—a glowing seed, soft and vibrant, pulsing with energy. He could sense thoughts more cleanly. Sound, breath, space—everything sharpened.
Across the circle, Qingyue opened her eyes at the same time.
They stared at each other, both startled, both faintly flushed.
Yuan approached, his expression curious.
"What color?"
Lin Hao blinked, then answered. "Purple."
Qingyue echoed softly. "Purple."
Yuan stroked his beard. "As expected. Those relics held more Qi than any I've handled."
He turned away, half speaking to himself. "Two purple Mind Cores in one generation. Remarkable."
But Lin Hao and Qingyue stayed quiet.
Because it wasn't the whole truth.
Lin Hao had felt it—right at the end. As the phoenix Qi entered him, and his awareness connected to hers for that brief instant... the color of the core had shifted.
Not violet.
Gold.
He looked at her.
She nodded once, subtle, a silent confirmation that she'd seen it too.
Then Master Yuan paused mid-step.
"…Wait."
He turned.
"You two. Come closer. Just stand side by side."
They obeyed.
As soon as their shoulders nearly aligned, a faint pressure filled the room.
The torches flickered.
Yuan squinted, eyes glowing faintly as he looked at them—not with his eyes, but with Qi-sense.
He staggered back.
"…Gold?"
Neither of them answered.
"You—your cores… change when you're near each other?"
They nodded.
Yuan took a deep breath, stunned.
"I've read a hundred scrolls on awakening rituals. I've seen purple. Once. Decades ago. But this… I've never heard of this."
He looked at the phoenix relics again, now quiet on the altar.
"A pair of relics from the ancient era... perhaps left behind by cultivators who shared something beyond power."
He turned back to the two children.
"I don't know what this bond means. But whatever path lies ahead, it will not be ordinary."