"Three thousand years have passed..." A woman's voice echoed from the void—not spoken aloud, but directly in both of their minds. "Finally, someone has arrived."
Xing Yuanche stepped forward and bowed respectfully. "I am Xing Yuanche, a disciple of Qingmingzi. This is my companion, Ma Rao."
"Qingmingzi..." The woman tilted her head slightly, as if recalling something. "I've heard that name. Three thousand years ago, he wasn't called that."
Ma Rao was surprised: "You know Master Qingmingzi?"
"I don't know him," the woman—Chandan—said softly. "But I know of him. He was born after that war, one of the last to bear the Starbrand. That he's still alive... it's wonderful."
Her voice carried a hint of relief, tinged with fatigue.
Xing Yuanche's heart trembled. He had never dared to ask Qingmingzi's age, only knowing it was a very long time ago. But hearing it from Chendan's mouth now revealed just how far back it truly went.
"Senior, what happened here? What is the Star Gate? And who is the Eclipse Moon?" Xing Yuanche finally voiced all the questions he had been holding back for years.
Chan Dan's gaze grew distant, as if piercing through the crystal ball and transcending time and space.
"That was a long time ago..." she began slowly. "I was young then, serving as the High Priestess of Ancient Shu. One day, the sky tore open, and a massive spaceship descended through the rift. The people aboard called themselves 'The Dawnbringers.' They said they would help us grow stronger."
As she spoke, images materialized on the surrounding walls—not murals, but living scenes that seemed to rewind time,重现ing events from three thousand years ago.
The Enlightened taught us much: architecture, astronomy, and medicine. They selected individuals and bestowed upon them special powers—the Star Marks you speak of. Those chosen can command the winds and rains, move mountains and fill seas, and see into the future. This made ancient Shu unprecedentedly powerful.
Those chosen radiate light, ascend to the sky, move mountains and fill seas, and construct magnificent structures.
"But..." Xing Yuanche knew the story wouldn't be that simple.
"But..." Chan Dan's voice dropped. "The Awakened aren't gods—they're refugees too. Their world was destroyed by another civilization called the 'Eclipse Moon.' The Eclipse Moon pursued them to Earth, intent on wiping them out and seizing this new planet."
The scene shifts: behind the glowing Awakened, countless shadowy figures emerge. They draw closer and grow larger, blotting out the sky.
The Eclipsers didn't invade directly. Instead, they lured those who gained power from the shadows, promising them greater strength and dominion over this planet if they opened the Star Gates to let their army in.
Some people have lost faith.
A flash of pain crossed Chendan's eyes.
In the scene, some people have joined the shadowy figures. Their eyes turn blood-red, and the cinnabar mark on their foreheads turns black.
They betrayed the Enlightened and humanity itself. They opened the Star Gate. The Moon-Eater's army poured through, overwhelming all. The war raged for three years: the earth burned, rivers ran backward, and countless lives were lost.
The ground splits apart, cities turn to rubble, and bodies lie scattered everywhere.
In the end, the Awakeners chose to sacrifice themselves. Using their own lives, they forcibly sealed the Star Gate. However, the gate was not fully sealed—it was merely delayed. Most of those who opened it perished. Only a few remain trapped here, forever asleep.
The scene faded, and silence returned.
The echoes lingered in the vast underground palace, refusing to fade. Though the scenes from three millennia ago had vanished, their impact remained etched deep in both of their hearts—like ancient murals carved into stone walls.
Xing Yuanche fell silent.
After a long silence, he asked, "Will the Moon-Eater return?"
"Yes." Chandan's voice was soft but firm. "The Star Gate isn't destroyed—just sealed. When the constellation on the stone tablet aligns with the sky once more, the gate will reopen. And that's when the Eclipse Moon's army will return."
How much longer?
"I don't know." Chandan looked at the tablet in his hand. "But the tablet will tell you. When it begins to glow and leads you here... time is running out."
After she finished speaking, her eyes slowly closed, and the glow of the crystal ball began to fade.
"Senior!" Xing Yuanche stepped forward.
"I'm so tired..." Chandan's voice faded, "Let me sleep on... If you ever need me someday... come find me."
The crystal ball faded completely, and she fell back into slumber.
Xing Yuanche and Ma Rao stood there, silent for a long time.
After a long silence, Ma Rao asked softly, "Can we... stop them?"
Xing Yuanche gripped the stone tablet tightly, his voice low. "I don't know. But we have to try."
After they left, from the deep shadows of the underground palace, a mechanical figure emerged silently. Ji Canyingbu coldly watched the sleeping Chendan in the crystal ball, his eyes gleaming with greed.
"The Origin of Star Marks... the Secrets of the Dawnbringers..." Its voice sounded like grinding metal. "These things belong to me." It raised its hand, firing a thin laser beam at the crystal orb. But the moment the beam touched the surface, an invisible force repelled it, nearly striking the creature itself.
"Damn this seal..." Jican Yingshi cursed, turning to vanish into the darkness. "One day, I'll find a way to break it."
Base Shadow Booth exited the underground palace and returned to his spaceship. He sat alone in the darkness, mechanical tendrils hanging limply.
"23rd century..." it suddenly spoke, its voice low and raspy. "The sunlight that year... was truly beautiful."
Fuzzy images flickered in its mechanical eye: a young man standing in sunlight, smiling at the camera. It was him from the 23rd century, unaware of where fate would lead.
"I want to go home..." it murmured, a single streak sliding down the young face—oil or tears, no one could tell.
But soon, that half-face turned cold again. It stood up, and the mechanical eyes flared red once more.
No, I have no home left. Only... destruction.
It launched the spacecraft and vanished into the darkness.