Floating life reflects two lotuses

Xiao Jinlian stood in the study, her gaze fixed on the runic artifact on the table, her brows furrowed. The artifact, brought back from the Spirit Offering Secret Belt, had originally emitted only a faint runic glow, but since a few days ago, its aura had become strange and uncontrollable.

The candlelight in the study flickered. Xiao Jinlian placed her palm near the antique and could feel a cold aura gradually encroaching upon her, as if something was awakening from the runes.

"Princess!" A hurried call broke the silence of the room. Silan rushed in, her expression anxious.

Xiao Jinlian turned around, her eyes calm: "What's wrong?"

“Something strange has happened.” Silan’s face showed undisguised panic. “The maid who was cleaning the study just now suddenly started talking nonsense, her hands and feet became stiff, and she fainted.”

Xiao Jinlian's heart sank, and her gaze returned to the ancient rune artifact. Since bringing it back from the Spirit Offering Secret Ground a few days ago, similar strange phenomena had been occurring intermittently in the mansion. First, the plants in the garden withered, then the birds in the yard flew away for no apparent reason, and now, these strange occurrences were beginning to affect people.

She walked quickly to Silan and said, "Take me to see her."

In the side room, Xiao Jinlian saw the maid who had fainted. The girl was pale, her hands and feet were cold, and she was muttering incoherent words. Silan squatted beside her, trying to wake her, but to no avail.

Xiao Jinlian approached and looked at the girl's slightly open eyes, which seemed to faintly reflect the patterns of runes and emit a dark light.

“These lights…” Xiao Jinlian murmured softly, a chill running through her heart.

Silan asked anxiously, "Princess, is its power... already starting to spread?"

Xiao Jinlian was silent for a moment, then nodded: "Yes. Although the power of the runes is weak, its curse seems to be slowly seeping in."

She turned to Silan and said, "Temporarily evacuate all servants from the mansion to the outer courtyard, and forbid anyone from approaching the study."

Silan nodded, but still hesitated: "But, Princess, ...you can't continue to touch it either."

Xiao Jinlian's gaze shifted slightly, but she immediately shook her head firmly: "No, I must find a way to break this. If I don't confront it, no one can stop this disaster."

Nighttime, in the study.

Xiao Jinlian sat alone at the table, staring at the rune fragments. Silan had already evacuated everyone as instructed, but she vaguely sensed that the cold aura was gradually eroding the entire mansion.

"Is this the power of a curse?" she murmured to herself, her fingers trembling slightly as she slowly approached.

Just as her fingers were about to touch the runes, a sharp pain shot through her wrist. She jerked her hand back, staring in astonishment at her palm. Faint traces of runes had appeared on it.

Her heart pounded, and the scene of the Spirit Offering Secret Land and the legends about the taboos of the Spirit Valley involuntarily surfaced in her mind.

“This is…” she murmured.

Just then, footsteps sounded outside the door. She looked up and saw Li Heng push the door open and enter, a hint of worry on his face: "What are you doing here all alone? Why were the people outside evacuated?"

Xiao Jinlian did not answer, but instead held up the back of her hand under the lamp, indicating that he should look at the runes on it.

Li Heng's face immediately darkened. He strode up to her, grabbed her wrist, and asked with obvious concern in his voice, "When did this happen?"

“Just now,” Xiao Jinlian’s voice was calm, but tinged with weariness, “I tried to get closer, but it… seemed to be fighting back.”

Li Heng's gaze fell on the antique on the table, and his brows furrowed even deeper: "This was brought back from the Spirit Offering Secret Belt. Why don't you leave it here for me to investigate? I'm afraid it might endanger you."

“Li Heng.” Xiao Jinlian raised her head, looked directly into his eyes, and said earnestly, “It’s no use. Its power is spreading. If we don’t find a solution soon, everyone in the mansion will be affected.”

Li Heng's expression was complicated. He looked at her hand and said in a deep voice, "This thing must be destroyed. Its existence will only cause greater disasters."

“It cannot be destroyed.” Xiao Jinlian quickly interrupted him, her voice tinged with urgency. “If it is destroyed, the curse may become even more uncontrollable. We must unlock its secrets and find a way to break it.”

Li Heng was silent for a moment, then finally sighed softly: "Okay, I'll help you figure out a solution. But you have to promise me you won't take any more risks alone."

The two carefully examined the runic artifact. Xiao Jinlian turned it around and discovered a line of extremely small characters at the bottom. These characters were engraved in an ancient script and faintly emitted a ghostly light.

“This is…” Li Heng stared at the characters, his tone tinged with doubt, “These are ancient Lingjian characters, which may record the origin of the spell.”

“Lingjian…” Xiao Jinlian repeated the name in a low voice, recalling the taboos of Lingjian that Silan had mentioned before, as well as the core of the “Land of Offering Spirits”.

She picked up a brush and carefully copied down the text, then turned to Li Heng: "These characters may be clues to breaking the curse. I need to consult more books to find their meaning."

Li Heng nodded, his expression still solemn: "No matter what, I will always be with you. But you must promise me that if you encounter any danger, you will tell me immediately."

Xiao Jinlian smiled slightly and nodded gently: "Thank you, Li Heng. With you here, I feel more at ease."

The candlelight flickered in the study, illuminating the weariness in Xiao Jinlian's eyes. She stared at the ancient runic artifact on the table, her palms slightly warm. The stinging sensation she had felt when she approached it earlier had unsettled her.

The door was pushed open, and Li Heng walked in. His gaze swept over her, then fell on the dark, ancient object on the table, his brows furrowing instantly: "You're still studying this thing?"

Xiao Jinlian looked up at him, her tone calm: "Its power is spreading, and I must find a way to control it."

Li Heng's eyes flickered. He took two steps closer, gently placing his palm on the back of her hand and moving it away from the antique. "If you continue like this, it will only erode faster. Your hand..." He stopped mid-sentence, his gaze falling on the faintly visible runes on the back of her hand, his voice suddenly turning cold, "...it has already begun to affect you."

Xiao Jinlian subconsciously withdrew her hand, lowered her eyes, and did not refute him. He was right; the erosion by these runes was a fact she could not ignore. But she knew even more clearly in her heart that this was not just a matter of a curse, but the only clue to unlocking the secret of the runes' power.

“I can’t give up,” she whispered. “If we don’t find a way, the power of this curse will spread throughout the entire mansion, and even further afield.”

Li Heng sighed, his voice tinged with suppressed anger: "Why are you always so stubborn? You've already paid too much for these things; you shouldn't take any more risks."

Xiao Jinlian raised her head, her gaze resolute: "If I don't face it, who can solve it? You know, only I can crack it."

Li Heng listened to her words with a complicated expression. He slowly withdrew his hand, remained silent for a moment, and then said in a low voice, "Fine. If you insist, then I'll go with you."