Rise of the Otherworld.

Everyone gathered around the ever-changing text on the screen, seemingly caught in a thrilling intellectual storm, racking their brains to decipher it. The mysterious man, intently watching every shift in the text, used his spiritual power to trace intricate patterns on the ground, attempting to discern a clear logical thread from these seemingly chaotic shifts. His eyes were as sharp as an eagle, capturing every nuance. Beads of sweat gradually formed on his forehead, yet he remained oblivious.

Zhang Hao meticulously recorded the changes in form, order, and time intervals between each character. He firmly believed that these trivial details, like pieces of a puzzle, would eventually piece together the complete picture that solved the mystery. Every stroke was imbued with his unwavering pursuit of the answer.

Lingyu paced back and forth, his steps quick and powerful, muttering to himself, "Judging from the frequency of the text changes and the characters that appear, it seems to be related to some ancient counting method." His thoughts were like a nimble bird, shuttling between various possibilities. Suddenly, he stopped, a glint in his eyes, as if he had caught a fleeting inspiration.

The woman slowly closed her eyes, shutting out all external distractions and focusing her heart on the spiritual energy emanating from the words. Her expression was focused and serene, as if she were one with the world. After a long pause, she slowly opened her eyes, a look of conviction in her eyes: "The spiritual energy emanating from these words has a rhythm, perhaps related to rhythm." Her voice was like a heavenly sound, bringing new insights into the tense atmosphere.

The old man stroked his beard, lost in deep thought. Time had etched its mark on his face, but it had also imbued him with a wealth of experience. After a moment, he spoke slowly, his voice steady and powerful: "I've heard that ancient puzzles often relate to the interplay of the elements of heaven and earth, the Five Elements. We might as well start from this perspective." Everyone was moved by this, believing the old man's words to be profoundly true. They quickly turned their attention to the Five Elements, carefully analyzing the potential connections between the changes in the text and the Five Elements.

As time quietly passed, their efforts gradually paid off. They gradually discovered clues. Each time the characters shifted, a specific character in a specific position corresponded to an element from the Five Elements, appearing sequentially according to the order in which the Five Elements generate each other. Wood generates fire, fire generates earth, earth generates metal, metal generates water, and water generates wood—this ancient cycle seemed to be reflected in these mysterious shifts.

"Found it! According to this pattern, the next character should correspond to the element 'earth,'" Zhang Hao said excitedly, his voice filled with uncontrollable excitement. Everyone followed his line of thought and saw that the text was indeed changing in the direction they had suspected. The previously tangled puzzle now seemed to be gradually taking shape.

However, simply knowing the next character wasn't enough; they needed to combine its appearance with the other characters to arrive at a solution that would pass the test. The mysterious man once again cast his gaze across the entire light curtain, his eyes etched with concentration and persistence. He carefully observed the connections between each character and their distribution on the light curtain. Finally, he discovered that when the character corresponding to the element "earth" appeared, the surrounding characters cleverly formed a simple yet profound puzzle.

"The answer to this riddle should be 'hard,'" the mysterious man said, his tone a hint of cautious certainty. Everyone gathered around and, after a lively discussion, analyzing the riddle from different angles, ultimately agreed with his answer.

So, with trepidation, Zhang Hao gathered his spiritual energy and used it to write the word "Jian" (Solid) on the light curtain. As the spiritual energy flowed through his fingertips, the word "Jian" emanated a soft glow and slowly merged into the light curtain. The light curtain trembled slightly, its light flickering, as if conducting a silent judgment. Everyone stared at the light curtain nervously, not daring to breathe, their hearts pounding in their throats.

After a moment, the words on the light curtain gradually disappeared, replaced by a soft and warm light, and the light curtain slowly dissipated. The light was like the breaking light of dawn, illuminating the path forward for everyone.

"We did it!" Lingyu jumped up excitedly, a beaming smile on her face. Everyone else's faces also broke into gratified smiles; this was the fruit of their wisdom and teamwork. They looked at each other, their eyes filled with pride and tacit understanding.

They passed through the point where the light curtain disappeared and entered the ruins' entrance. Inside was a narrow passage, its walls inlaid with glowing gems. These gems emitted a soft glow, like stars, illuminating the path ahead. An ancient and mysterious aura permeated the passage, a breath that seemed to have been etched in time, a call from the distant past, both welcoming them and warning them of the unknown challenges ahead.

The group moved cautiously along the passage, taking every step with extreme caution. Their hearts were filled with anticipation for the treasures hidden within the ruins, which might hold the power to change their fate. At the same time, they remained vigilant against unknown dangers, knowing that within these mysterious ruins, even the slightest misstep could lead to irretrievable destruction. They had no idea what awaited them at the end of this passage, but their eyes were filled with determination, for they believed that, united as one, they could overcome all difficulties...