The stone bridge led into a narrow corridor walls glowing with faint red light, pulsing like a heartbeat. The moment they passed through the arch, the temperature shifted. Warmer. Humid. The scent of crushed orchids returned, stronger now, tinged with something sweet and dangerous.
Yan Mei paused.
"Do you feel that?"
Li Fan nodded. "It's not just heat. It's... intent."
The passage opened into a chamber unlike any they'd encountered. A circular room with crimson jade embedded into every surface walls, ceiling, even the floor. A pedestal sat at the center, atop which rested a small vial of glowing red liquid. Around it, petals floated in the air like snow.
An inscription hovered above the pedestal, written in twin scripts:
"Crimson Jade Elixir; a kiss shared under its influence binds two souls for eternity."
Yan Mei stared. "This... is a vow trial."
Li Fan approached cautiously. "More than that. It's a trap disguised as a test."
"How so?"
He pointed to the floating petals. "They're soaked in spiritual aphrodisiac. One breath too deep and your Qi will spiral."
Yan Mei crossed her arms. "So, what's the trial want?"
"A shared kiss," he said, reading the inscription again. "Voluntary. Willing. No fake passion. It has to trigger resonance between our core energies."
Yan Mei's expression didn't change, but her eyes flicked to his lips. Just once.
He pretended not to notice.
"We've fought demons, survived soul trials, seen echoes of a forgotten past," she said quietly. "But this... this is the hardest part."
"Why?"
"Because it's not about skill. It's about trust."
Li Fan took a slow breath. "Then we do this on our terms."
He raised a palm, drawing a barrier formation in the air to suppress the elixir's aura. The petals slowed, their effects muted.
"No tricks," he said. "We decide what this means."
Yan Mei stepped forward, close enough that he could feel her breath. "And if we fail?"
"The tomb closes. We're buried alive."
She smirked. "Motivating."
He raised the vial, uncorked it. The scent hit him like fire and silk.
He hesitated just for a heartbeat.
Then he drank.
Color flushed to his cheeks. The room spun slightly. His heart thundered not from desire, but from the raw, spiritual overload as his core began to hum.
Yan Mei took the vial from his hand, sipped, and dropped it.
It shattered.
They stepped into each other's space.
Silence stretched.
"Still time to back out," she murmured.
"I'm already in."
She leaned in slowly, like a blade being unsheathed.
Their lips met.
It wasn't soft.
It was pressure and fire. Controlled power wrapped in vulnerability. His hands found her waist as hers curled around his collar. The kiss deepened, their Qi twining instinctively. A swirl of heat surged from their cores rising through their meridians and pulsing outward.
The jade chamber exploded in light.
Petals burned in mid-air, swirling into a spiral of crimson energy that wrapped around them both. Glyphs lit up along the walls, harmonizing with their combined Qi.
Their souls had linked briefly but irrevocably.
They broke the kiss, breathing hard.
Yan Mei was the first to speak.
"We passed," she said flatly.
"Yes."
Another pause.
"That was... efficient," she added.
Li Fan chuckled. "Dangerous technique. We might need to test it again."
She slapped his chest lightly, but didn't pull away.
Before they could speak again, a faint rumble echoed through the chamber.
The jade walls cracked.
At the far end, a hidden door slid open leading downward, into complete darkness.
A voice whispered from below:
"Only the soulbound may enter the Mirror Tomb."
---
In the Citadel, the observer stared at the burning mirror.
"They bonded," he said.
The woman behind him drew a dagger.
"I'll go," she whispered. "Let me end them before they remember what they were."
He shook his head.
"No. Not yet. I need him to awaken." He looked up.
"Send in the Ash Puppets. And prepare the Echo Prison."