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Chapter 195: The Mirror of the Eternal Tower
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Act I: A Chamber of Ascent
The Gallery opened into a chamber where a vast tower rose upward, its spire vanishing into clouds. Each stone glowed faintly, inscribed with sigils of endurance.
Ne Job stepped forward, Twinkle buzzing with a steady hum, its rhythm climbing like steps.
Ao Bing muttered, "This place… it feels endless, like we're meant to climb forever."
Taiyi Zhenren scribbled quickly. "The mirror here does not descend. It rises."
At the center stood a mirror framed by the tower's stones, its surface reflecting ascent without end.
It spoke in a voice lofty and resolute:
> "I am the Mirror of the Eternal Tower. I hold what rises, what endures in striving, what carries truth upward."
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Act II: The Weight of Ascent
The interns gazed into its surface.
Visions unfolded, showing truths carried by towers.
- Ao Bing saw battles fought step by step, courage built through ascent.
- Taiyi Zhenren saw scrolls stacked high, wisdom preserved in layers.
- Ne Job saw miracles rising upward, inscribed into the Registry as pillars eternal.
Twinkle pulsed brightly, resonating with the climb.
The mirror whispered:
> "To guard me, you must rise without fear."
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Act III: The Mask's Intrusion
From the shadows, the Mask of Misrule hissed.
> "Towers are mine to corrupt. I will twist ascent into arrogance, and striving into chaos."
The Mirror of Endless Deception flickered, shards gathering again.
The Mask reached toward Eternal Tower, trying to fracture its climb into ruin.
Ao Bing staggered. "The height overwhelms me!"
Taiyi Zhenren trembled. "My scrolls collapse under weight!"
Ne Job steadied them. "Tower is not arrogance. It is endurance."
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Act IV: The Trial of Tower
The Mirror of the Eternal Tower spoke:
> "Intern, to protect me, you must climb."
Ne Job gazed into its lofty surface.
He saw himself faltering, afraid of heights, afraid of falling.
He whispered:
> "I climb. Even when heights terrify, I endure. Even when steps falter, I carry forward."
The mirror glowed brighter, its ascent steady.
Twinkle pulsed strongly, harmonizing with the tower.
Ao Bing's fists steadied.
Taiyi Zhenren's scrolls aligned.
The Mask recoiled, his corruption faltering.
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Act V: The Clash
The Mask screamed, hurling shards of deception.
Illusions tried to twist tower into arrogance, scattering the interns into despair.
Ao Bing staggered. "My courage fades in height!"
Taiyi Zhenren trembled. "My wisdom collapses in weight!"
Ne Job stood firm. "Tower is not arrogance. It is truth carried in endurance."
The awakened mirrors — Patience, Friendship, Courage, Sorrow, Endless Paths, Forgotten Names, Silent Echoes, Shattered Promises, Hidden Truths, Eternal Doubt, Living Light, Boundless Hope, Unbroken Unity, Eternal Harmony, Final Resolve, Infinite Resolve, Last Question, First Dawn, Endless Return, Forgotten Future, Silent Dawnfall, Eternal Song, Endless Silence, Forgotten Flame, Eternal Return, Eternal Choice, Hidden Dawn, Endless Oath, Eternal Memory, Eternal Threshold, Eternal Light, Eternal Shadow, Eternal Balance, Eternal Dawnfire, Eternal Storm, Eternal Ocean, Eternal Sky, Eternal Flameheart, Eternal Songfire, Eternal Silenceflame, Eternal Starfall, Eternal Horizon, Eternal Root, Eternal Crown, Eternal Gate — joined with Eternal Tower.
Their glow struck the Mask's illusions.
Arrogance became clarity.
Deception dissolved.
Twinkle hummed, resonating with the Miracle Registry.
Ao Bing laughed, fierce and kind.
Taiyi Zhenren footnoted every ascent restored.
Ne Job stood firm, tower and truth united.
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Act VI: The Mirror's Gift
The Mirror of the Eternal Tower calmed, its surface shimmering with radiant ascent.
It whispered:
> "Intern, tower is not chaos. It is striving eternal. Guard it well."
Ne Job bowed.
Twinkle pulsed softly.
The Gallery shimmered, stable once more.
The Mask of Misrule retreated into the shadows, his voice echoing faintly:
> "You may resist towers today. But arrogance always waits."
The Gallery fell silent.
The mirrors glowed.
And Ne Job walked on, ready for what lay ahead.