"Mm," Cyrene walked up to Hyacinthia at that moment, gently patting her shoulder,
"Hyacinthia is truly strong, carrying such a past and mission. But... let's keep moving forward, to face this final deity that needs to be challenged together. ♪"
Following Hyacinthia, everyone pushed open an immense, pale white door.
Inside was an extraordinarily vast, yet unusually dark, circular hall. The air was filled with a cold, stagnant atmosphere.
A faint glimmer of light emanated from the center of the hall, dimly illuminating the surrounding walls. The walls were not of ordinary material, but a kind of translucent, strange crystal.
"Is this... the Celestial Mural?" Hyacinthia recognized this ancient creation, her tone carrying a hint of uncertain doubt.
She glanced at Cyrene and Phainon beside her, who were still surveying the environment with confusion, and explained further: "This is one of the greatest miraculous creations of the Eye of Twilight."
"Legend says it was directly connected to the sky-canopy of the world Amphoreus. The images and weather phenomena displayed on the mural would directly transform into the corresponding weather in the real world. Clear skies, rain, wind, snow... all were once regulated from here."
"So it's like..." Phaethon mused, summarizing, "A giant, intelligent interactive screen that directly connects to and regulates the world's climate?"
"Little Snowy is so smart, understanding immediately!" Hyacinthia praised with a laugh.
"But it looks... not very bright now, does it? Most areas are dim." Phainon frowned, pointing to the few sporadic weak spots of light on the mural.
"Mm," Hyacinthia's brows also furrowed. "It should have ceased functioning during the upheaval a thousand years ago. After all, Okhema's dawns later relied on Kephale's Dawn Device to sustain them. But whether it can still affect reality or not..."
She looked around the darkness. "At the very least, having it light up to illuminate our path ahead would be good. But... I don't know how to reactivate it. The relevant knowledge has long been lost."
"At times like this," Cyrene suddenly smiled, her tone light and reliable, "we just need to borrow a little wisdom from our predecessors, right?"
Hyacinthia's eyes lit up. She immediately clasped her hands together, looking at Cyrene expectantly. "Mm, yes! Cyrie can dredge up memories from the past. Then I'll leave it to you, Cyrie!"
Cyrene smiled slightly and nodded. Closing her eyes, a gentle, ancient energy fluctuation rippled outwards from her fingertips like water waves.
In an instant, a multitude of vague, fragmented memory-lights and shadows began to materialize and intertwine within the silent hall!
Within the light and shadows, one could see people wearing attire of different styles, representing different tribes, arguing fiercely, even drawing swords against each other. Faint roars, the clash of weapons, and groans of pain were audible, painting a brutal picture.
"Just as the rumors say," Phainon watched the chaotic memories Cyrene had restored, his brow deeply furrowed. "This sky fortress was rife with strife and discord within."
Hyacinthia gazed at those lights and shadows, softly interpreting the information they contained:
"It sounds like... the root of the conflict seems to have been Aquila itself. Legend says, at a certain moment, it suddenly grew to detest cloudy and rainy days intensely, while favoring clear, cloudless skies."
"This shift in preference directly caused the complete eruption of conflict between the 'Sunfolk,' who worshipped the blazing sun, and the 'Rainfolk,' who revered thunder and rain."
Her tone carried a trace of sorrow: "The ascendant Sunfolk saw themselves as the deity's only chosen, becoming arrogant and oppressive towards the other tribes for a long time..."
"While the persecuted Rainfolk began to deeply resent the deity's unfairness and secretly plotted rebellion... Thus, the seeds of civil war were sown."
"Let's not get lost in these past conflicts for now," Phaethon suddenly spoke up, his sharp gaze fixed on a specific, repeating light-shadow sequence near an armillary sphere at the hall's center.
"Listen. In the memory, that Skyfolk Clan ancestor is trying to awaken the Celestial Mural! The phrase he keeps reciting—that must be the activation key for this mural!"
Hyacinthia immediately focused, listening to the intermittent, ancient prayer from a thousand years ago.
A moment later, a flash of understanding lit her eyes. "Mm, I see... I've memorized it all."
Without hesitation, she walked up to the armillary sphere that controlled the entire Celestial Mural. Placing her hands on the cold control interface, she took a deep breath, then recited the long-lost activation incantation in a solemn, clear tone:
"Wind, Snow, Rain, Dawn's Light..."
"In the name of the Hundred Eyes of the Sky, I bestow celestial phenomena upon the world."
"The Eye of Twilight turns, commanding the armillary sphere—"
"Awaken, Celestial Mural!"
As her final syllable fell, it was as if a switch dormant for millennia had been triggered!
*Hum——!*
The entire dim hall shuddered violently! Immediately after, the vast Celestial Mural covering the walls erupted with incredibly intense, pure light!
As if countless suns had been ignited within the walls! Vast radiance instantly dispelled all gloom and darkness, illuminating the entire hall with a brilliance fit for a divine realm!
Blazing glory poured onto the group without reserve, as if cloaking them in golden battle attire.
"What a magnificent sight—"
Phainon's exclamation of admiration was cut off mid-sentence!
For Phaethon's eyes flashed with cold light. The greatsword "Judgment of Shamash" in his hand had already transformed into a dark-red meteor tearing through the light, hurled with thunderous force!
Its target: the light-shifting Celestial Mural ahead—or more precisely, a sinister, coldly watching eye within the mural's imagery!
*Squelch!*
A sickening, muffled sound, as if something substantial had been pierced, rang out!
*"KYAAAA——!!!"*
Following that, a piercing shriek, utterly non-human, vibrated through the entire hall! The eye precisely impaled by "Judgment of Shamash" exploded in a distorted mass of dark-purple energy. Then, like a startled viper, it rapidly retracted from the mural's image, vanishing without a trace.
All that remained on the mural was a patch of twisted, scorched mark left by "Judgment of Shamash," sizzling with residual energy.
Everything happened too fast. It wasn't until the shriek faded that the others reacted.
"Phaethon, that was...?" Cyrene, still shaken, looked at the frowning Phaethon, instinctively clutching his sleeve.
"Aquila's 'Avatar's Mark,'" Phaethon's voice was icy, laced with regret for not achieving complete success. "A surveillance eye containing it's will and power."