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Chapter 279: The Mirror of the Eternal River
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Act I: A Chamber of Flowing Currents
The Gallery opened into a chamber where radiant rivers coursed endlessly, weaving through luminous valleys of light. The air was fluid yet steady, as though every breath carried the weight of motion unbroken.
Ne Job stepped forward, Twinkle buzzing with a flowing hum, its rhythm echoing the pulse of continuity.
Ao Bing muttered, "This place… it feels like everything is moving, but never lost."
Taiyi Zhenren scribbled quickly. "The mirror here does not stop. It flows."
At the center stood a mirror framed by luminous waters, its surface shimmering with eternal current.
It spoke in a voice calm yet ceaseless:
> "I am the Mirror of the Eternal River. I hold what flows, what endures in continuity, what carries truth into passage."
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Act II: The Weight of Continuity
The interns gazed into its surface.
Visions unfolded, showing truths carried by rivers.
- Ao Bing saw battles where courage meant moving forward even when tides pulled against him.
- Taiyi Zhenren saw scrolls preserved in flowing archives, wisdom carried downstream across generations.
- Ne Job saw miracles coursing in silence, inscribed into the Registry as rivers eternal.
Twinkle pulsed brightly, resonating with the chamber's continuity.
The mirror whispered:
> "To guard me, you must flow without fear."
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Act III: The Mask's Intrusion
From the shadows, the Mask of Misrule hissed.
> "Rivers are mine to corrupt. I will twist continuity into erosion, and passage into despair."
The Mirror of Endless Deception flickered, shards gathering again.
The Mask reached toward Eternal River, trying to fracture its currents into floods.
Ao Bing staggered. "The waters drown me in chaos!"
Taiyi Zhenren trembled. "My scrolls scatter into torrents of ruin!"
Ne Job steadied them. "River is not erosion. It is passage."
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Act IV: The Trial of River
The Mirror of the Eternal River spoke:
> "Intern, to protect me, you must flow."
Ne Job gazed into its coursing surface.
He saw himself faltering, afraid of currents too strong to endure.
He whispered:
> "I flow. Even when shadows flood, I endure. Even when despair waits, I carry forward."
The mirror glowed brighter, its rivers steady.
Twinkle pulsed strongly, harmonizing with passage.
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 river into erosion, scattering the interns into despair.
Ao Bing staggered. "My courage fades in drowning waters!"
Taiyi Zhenren trembled. "My wisdom dissolves in torrents of ruin!"
Ne Job stood firm. "River is not erosion. It is truth carried eternal."
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, Eternal 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, Eternal Tower, Eternal Anchor, Eternal Bridge, Eternal Labyrinth, Eternal Flame of Truth, Eternal Spiral, Eternal Compass, Eternal Lantern, Eternal Seed, Eternal Mountain, Eternal Tree, Eternal Star, Eternal Dawn — joined with Eternal River.
Their glow struck the Mask's illusions.
Erosion became clarity.
Deception dissolved.
Twinkle hummed, resonating with the Miracle Registry.
Ao Bing laughed, fierce and kind.
Taiyi Zhenren footnoted every river restored.
Ne Job stood firm, river and truth united.
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Act VI: The Mirror's Gift
The Mirror of the Eternal River calmed, its surface shimmering with radiant continuity.
It whispered:
> "Intern, river is not chaos. It is passage eternal. Guard it well."
Ne Job bowed.
Twinkle pulsed softly.
The Gallery shimmered, flowing once more.
The Mask of Misrule retreated into the shadows, his voice echoing faintly:
> "You may resist rivers today. But erosion always waits."
The Gallery fell silent.
The mirrors glowed.
And Ne Job walked on, ready for what lay ahead.