Chapter 59 – Beneath the Crossroads
> [System Objective Branch: Scythe Elimination Protocol]
Sub-Quest Activated: "Echoes of the Buried Flame" – Hidden Dungeon Unlocked
Target Entry: Tian Xue (Solo-Qualified, Companion-Assisted)
Location: Subterrain Flamewell | Access Code: Whisper Key – 'Starforge Knows'
---
Morning – The False Trail
Jiang Han crouched beside Bo Ren beneath the obsidian ridge, watching the flicker of Jin Moxian's cloak vanish into the crowd.
> "You sure about this?" Bo asked.
> "He's their leak," Jiang said. "But I don't want him dead yet."
He slipped a folded soul scroll into the ash trail behind Moxian's camp. It hummed softly—disguised, encrypted with false intel.
> [Flame Message Planted – 'Operation Moonfall: Starborn Hidden in Forge Ruins']
> "They'll bite," Jiang muttered. "They'll pull forces from the real locations. Maybe long enough."
> "Long enough for what?"
> "For Tian Xue to descend."
---
Midday – The Dungeon Unsealed
Tian Xue stood beside the flameleaf tree, her armor bound tighter, her expression unreadable.
Jiang handed her a thin strip of soulsteel etched with a rune that pulsed in rhythm with her heart.
> "This is your dungeon key. Whisper the phrase when you reach the well."
> "You're really sending me down there alone?"
> "With them," he said, motioning to the Phoenix Hatchling and a smaller second companion—one she hadn't seen before.
A Nightflame Lynx, sleek and black with silver rings of emberlight around its paws.
> "Yours. It bonded with you two days ago while you were sleeping."
Her mouth opened. Closed.
> "You planned all this, didn't you?"
> "I had a feeling you'd be ready."
> "And if I'm not?"
> "You will be," he said, holding her eyes. "Because if you fall now… we both burn."
She looked down at the flamewell below the ridge—its surface calm, deceptive, shimmering like a dark mirror.
> "And the password?"
> "Starforge knows."
She nodded.
Then leapt.
---
The Descent
> [Dungeon Entry Registered: Tian Xue – Echoes of the Buried Flame]
Difficulty: Mid-Tier Sovereign Trial | Adaptive Depth Scaling Enabled
Rewards: Unknown | Companion Sync Boost: Active
Objective: Awaken the Forgotten Flame Core – Survive all Echo Trials.
The Phoenix Hatchling flared once as they landed inside the forgotten world beneath Ember Crossroads.
Dust. Ruins. The remnants of a pre-collapse sovereign shrine.
Glowing glyphs lined the walls, flickering like heartbeat pulses.
Tian Xue drew her blade.
> "Let's test what Jiang's trust really means."
---
Meanwhile – The Web Tightens
Back at the ridge, Jin Moxian returned to his tent to find a new soul scroll under his cot.
He opened it.
His eyes widened.
He vanished into flame.
Watching from afar, Jiang's system pulsed.
> [Bait Consumed. Scythe Division Split – 2 Agents Redirected from Gate Watch to False Ruins. Time Gained: ~6 Hours]
> "Now," he murmured.
> "We see how far they'll chase shadows…"
---
Deeper Below
Tian Xue stepped into the trial chamber—seven flame pillars stood in silence. Each one bore the face of a fallen Sovereign candidate.
A voice echoed:
> "You who walk below the Crossroads… carry more than your flame."
"You carry the memory of someone who was never meant to fall."
One pillar cracked.
A figure emerged.
Not a monster.
A memory.
Her own reflection, dressed in the colors of Blue Star's palace.
And it raised a sword.
> "To prove you can lead, Tian Xue…"
> "You must survive yourself."