"Splash!"
The lake rippled outward as Xi Yao and Qi Yan plunged beneath the surface, sinking as if into an endless dream.
Yet in the next instant, they were violently flung back, landing hard on the shore in a flurry of scattered peach blossoms.
"Cough—!" Xi Yao gasped for air, pushing herself up on unsteady arms. "I didn't even have time to hold my breath!"
Qi Yan shook out his soaked sleeves, glaring at Mirror Spirit. "Are you toying with us?"
Mirror Spirit crouched by the water's edge, chin propped lazily on one hand. "I hadn't finished speaking before you jumped. So impatient."
Xi Yao gritted her teeth. "You couldn't have said that earlier?"
"If you had entered the lake, you would have been transported into trial realms—like undergoing tribulations. A mortal heart must endure three trials before it can be made whole again."
Xi Yao frowned. "Trial realms? What do you mean?"
Mirror Spirit explained, "This lake reflects the soul and reveals the heart's shadows. Your memories shattered, and your divine heart sank to its depths. To reclaim it, you must enter three trial worlds and awaken three 'remnants.'"
"What remnants?"
"The remnant of obsession, the remnant of love, and the remnant of sorrow. Only when these three are reunited can your divine heart return." Mirror Spirit's voice was calm. "Each trial is an unresolved knot in your heart—buried feelings, hidden griefs. Once inside, you will become the 'you' of that lifetime, living as though it were real."
Qi Yan arched a brow. "What about me? Do I change too?"
"If you wish to accompany her, you must enter as well. The bond between you may alter the trials." Mirror Spirit's gaze lingered on him meaningfully. "Perhaps with you there, she will find those remnants more easily."
Xi Yao narrowed her eyes. "This sounds suspiciously like being forced into scripted reincarnation."
Mirror Spirit shrugged. "A god's memories are far more complex than a mortal's."
Xi Yao sighed. "Then how do we enter?"
Mirror Spirit lifted a hand, and at the center of the lake, a glowing door rose from the water, its surface fractured like a mirror, light swirling within.
"Step through, and the first remnant will begin."
Qi Yan studied the door, uncharacteristically solemn. "Can we return after entering?"
"If the remnants remain unclaimed, your divine heart cannot return. If they are gathered, you will naturally emerge."
Xi Yao pressed further. "And if we fail?"
Mirror Spirit's tone turned grave. "If you fail, you will be trapped in the trial forever—your current consciousness consumed by those memories. You will become that version of yourself, losing who you are now."
Xi Yao gazed at the lake, her voice soft. "Which remnant is the first trial?"
"I do not know."
"…Alright." Her eyes dimmed slightly.
Qi Yan took her hand. "Don't be afraid. We'll go together."
She nodded. "Mn."
Hand in hand, they stepped through the luminous door rising from the heart's lake. Light enveloped them instantly, the world spinning as if upended.
Behind them, Mirror Spirit murmured quietly, "May you find your original heart… and never forget where you began."
As their figures vanished, the lake stilled once more, leaving only a scattering of petals drifting across its surface, carried away by the current.