"What am I feeling?"
Mara pushed the thought aside. Faral had told her not to search, but to feel. She stopped trying to understand what she was sensing and simply listened.
Her spiritual mana brushed gently against Zhu's consciousness. It was remarkable how her modest reserve could perform such delicate work without depleting. Steadily, she released faint wisps of mana into Zhu's body.
Minutes passed in silence. Then—
Thump.
Mara's eyes opened slightly. There. She felt it. Not a physical heartbeat, but something deeper: a faint pulse traveling through Zhu's spiritual presence.
Thump. A wave of spiritual energy spread outward.
Thump. Another followed.
Mara's lips parted. "I found something."
"Don't move," Faral responded immediately.
"I can feel it." Mara closed her eyes again. "It's faint. Almost like..." She searched for the words. "...a heartbeat beneath water."
Faral was silent for a moment. "That is it."
Mara's breath caught. She could feel it clearly now—not just the pulse, but the spaces between them. The subtle changes. The way Zhu's spiritual energy expanded and contracted, and how it seemed to recognize Mara's own mana, slowly responding to it.
Mara smiled softly. "I can feel her."
For years, Mara had been told what she couldn't do. Ranked as an F-rank, she was dismissed as weak and useless. Her family had sold her off, believing it was the only way to make her profitable. Healers were often treated with reverence, but a healer with barely enough mana to treat minor injuries was viewed as a disappointing, money-losing waste.
She still remembered the looks after her classification: the pity from the assessors, the disappointment from neighbors, the quiet conversations that hushed whenever she walked into a room. And eventually, the cold disgust from her family before they traded her away. She had learned not to expect much from herself; dreams were dangerous when everyone had already decided you were incapable.
But now... she was standing inside an ancient spiritual array in the ruins of Hollowveil. An ancient guardian was trusting her. Herkid had relied on her to help execute his carefully constructed array. And Zhu was trusting her with the most intimate part of her existence—her mind.
Mara's eyes burned. She quickly blinked away the moisture gathering in them. I'm really doing this.
"You are nervous," Faral's voice interrupted her thoughts.
Mara let out a tiny laugh. "Very."
"There is no shame in that. You are doing well," Faral praised.
"Thank you." Mara looked toward Zhu. "I'm happy." It felt safe to admit that here; she had come to truly trust these people.
Faral's presence grew quiet.
Mara smiled. For the first time in her life, she felt it: she was not useless. Faral had given her a gift—without him, she never would have known her mana could work like this. A wave of motivation washed over her.
Her mana continued pulsing gently against Zhu's spiritual rhythm. "I want to help you, Faral. I really do."
"Then continue," Faral answered quietly.
Mara nodded and closed her eyes once more. The nervousness didn't vanish, but it no longer controlled her. She had found Zhu's rhythm, and now she would follow it.
The sanctuary fell perfectly still. Soft silver light slowly emerged from Mara's chest. Unlike ordinary mana, it wasn't overwhelming; it felt warm, gentle, and peaceful.
Zhu watched the light drift through the air like flowing moonlight and instinctively relaxed. "It's beautiful..."
"I've... never seen it like this before," Mara whispered.
"You are seeing it through your own spiritual awareness," Faral explained. "Continue."
The silver light flowed into the rune array. Immediately, the ancient symbols awakened. One after another, golden runes illuminated beneath Zhu's feet. The circles connected, and lines of light raced across the stone floor until the sanctuary seemed to disappear beneath an ocean of glowing symbols.
Herkid's eyes widened. "They're activating..." He noticed one section glowing unevenly. "The third junction..."
Without hesitation, he knelt and adjusted a hand-drawn correction mark beside the rune. The light stabilized instantly. "It worked," he breathed, quiet amazement in his voice.
Inside the array, Zhu felt something completely unfamiliar. Her heartbeat slowed. The sounds around her faded—the trickling fountain, the rustling leaves, Mara's breathing. Everything grew distant except Faral's voice, which echoed clearly in her mind.
Do not resist.
I'm trying not to.
Good.
The silver light reached Zhu's chest. Rather than entering her physical body, it wrapped around her consciousness like gentle hands lifting something delicate.
Zhu gasped. "I..."
Her physical body suddenly felt impossibly heavy, while something deeper inside her became weightlessly light.
"I can feel her..." Mara murmured.
"Continue," Faral instructed.
"It's strange," Mara said. "It feels like... I'm holding someone's hand."
Zhu smiled weakly. "I think... that's me."
The silver light flared brighter and brighter, until the sanctuary dissolved into endless white. Then, everything shattered—not violently, but gently, like mist dissolving beneath the morning sun.
The white faded. Beneath her feet, black glass stretched endlessly to every horizon. Above her, rivers of starlight drifted silently through the darkness. The familiar void welcomed her, but for the first time, she had entered her mindscape willingly.
She looked around in wonder, a smile spreading across her face. "I did it."
Faral's blue-white spiritual light appeared nearby, glowing brighter than ever. Welcome back, Zhu.
This time, she hadn't fallen in by accident. She had opened the door herself.
Of course, she hadn't done it entirely alone—Mara was holding the connection steady, while Herkid monitored the rune circle outside for instability. He had carefully inspected every line, correcting small imperfections in the drawn patterns before they could interfere. Only after confirming the array was stable did he give the quiet signal.
Stepping fully into her consciousness, Zhu felt the world welcome her. Every step sent ripples across the smooth, dark surface beneath her feet. Above, stars burned across deep violet and indigo clouds, nebulas shifting colors as she moved.
Before she could take it all in, two floating orbs approached her—the Twin Blood System. One glowed crimson while the other pulsed with deep violet light.
[Host.]
"Yes?"
[We have completed the analysis.]
Zhu raised an eyebrow. "Analysis of what?"
[Your consciousness,] the crimson orb replied. [This space is not merely a consciousness projection.]
"What is it, then?"
The two orbs stopped. For a moment, the entire domain fell silent.
[A world,] the Twin Blood System answered. [A closed personal domain existing within your consciousness. The laws of this domain are influenced by your will.]
Zhu looked down. Just by thinking about the floor, the dark surface beneath her feet turned transparent, revealing a vast, floating landscape beneath it. She lifted her hand, experimenting.
A small stone materialized above her palm. Then a wooden box. Then a sword, followed by a book, each object floating in perfect suspension.
"I can control everything in here..."
[Correct,] the crimson orb pulsed. [Matter introduced into this domain can be stored, organized, manipulated, and retrieved according to the Host's will.]
Zhu's mind immediately raced through the tactical possibilities: storage, weapons, food, medicine, supplies. Anything brought into this space could remain indefinitely.
[There is more,] the violet orb added, drifting closer. [This domain does not merely store objects. It can control them.]
The sword hovering above Zhu's palm moved on its own, spinning through the air before stopping directly in front of her. It moved exactly as she envisioned.
"So if I bring something in here..."
[You may manipulate it through consciousness.]
Zhu smiled slowly. "And if I understand the structure of something..."
[You may alter it.]
Silence settled over the impossible space. Zhu looked at the floating objects, the endless glass floor, and the galaxy overhead.
"This isn't just a storage space," she realized aloud. "It's a workshop."
[Correction,] the system responded as both orbs glowed brighter. [It is a strategic domain. A location where the Host can prepare without external interference, accumulate resources without occupying physical space, and perform controlled experiments. Weapons, formations, medicines, and constructs can be fully prepared before deployment.]
Zhu's expression hardened with focus. The plans they had been discussing outside weren't limited by what they could physically carry anymore. They were only limited by what they could build.
"Then we can build everything here," Zhu said. "Store it all, without anyone outside knowing."
[Correct.]
Zhu closed her hand, and the sword, box, and book vanished back into the darkness. She laughed softly. "Then let's get to work."
The Twin Blood System's orbs floated beside her, glowing with intense light.
[And when the time comes... we unleash everything at once.]
Above them, the stars shifted, and Zhu's world began to change.