As Feng Qi spoke softly about his past, Mu Yan's expression gradually changed. Initially indifferent, she soon grew serious, nodding occasionally in acknowledgment.
Time flowed quietly.
In the eternal night of the northern frontier, there was no way to distinguish between day and night. No one could tell how much time had passed.
Lost in the memories woven by his own words, Feng Qi found himself unable to escape the depths of reminiscence.
By the time his story reached its end, a single tear slipped from the corner of his eye.
When he came back to his senses, he realized Mu Yan was already standing beside him, grinning as she ruffled his hair.
"Qi-zai, you've been through a lot."
Feng Qi swatted her hand away, rolling his eyes. He had chosen this path himself; he didn't need anyone's pity or sympathy.
He took a deep breath before speaking.
"Mu Yan, now it's my turn to ask questions."
Mu Yan gave an exaggerated nod. Taking a seat across the table, she resumed eating heartily.
"Go ahead. I won't hold anything back."
"What exactly is your identity?"
Mu Yan swallowed her food, took a sip of wine, and then spoke nonchalantly.
"Your guess was right. My situation is very similar to that little fatty Mo Yue. He is a split consciousness created by Mo Yue's true form, and I am a fragment of the Solar Consciousness. We use these vessels to walk the world."
Feng Qi fell silent.
After gathering intelligence from previous timelines and analyzing Mo's origins with the Mist Lord, he had already formed a theory about Mu Yan's identity. Her answer was not unexpected.
He continued asking,
"There's something I still don't understand. Why did you create the Path of Ascension, sending humanity's most promising warriors there? I get that it serves as a barrier against domain forces invading the human world, but by year 1500, the Path of Ascension had lost its meaning for humanity. Wouldn't it have been better to withdraw those warriors and establish a city like Star City, fortified by the strong fighters from the Path of Ascension? That way, humanity would have more room to develop and might even grow into a force strong enough to rival the superpowers of the domain world."
Mu Yan took another sip of wine, a look of pure contentment flashing across her face.
Then, she explained,
"The Path of Ascension was created primarily to buy time—to delay the inevitable invasion of the human world."
"When the Great Momentum arrives, the only way for domain forces to survive is by invading the human world. No matter what, they will choose to invade. The power of the human world alone is not enough to withstand the domain world. The Path of Ascension can only slow down the invasion, but it can't stop it completely."
Feng Qi frowned.
"Then why keep the Path of Ascension? Wouldn't it be better to retreat and fortify human territory—to have those Ascended warriors protect the cities and give humanity time to grow?"
Mu Yan shook her head.
"You're wrong. Without the Path of Ascension, humanity wouldn't get development time—it would be facing a future without hope.
"Maybe they could hold out for a few centuries, but in the end, humanity would be doomed."
Feng Qi's gaze sharpened.
"Explain."
Mu Yan set down her cup.
"Think of the human world and the domain world as two adjacent walls. One is painted red, the other gold.
"When the red wall starts to collapse, it has no choice but to invade the golden wall to survive.
"For every section the red wall takes over, it turns gold into red.
"In the end, gold disappears entirely, and red takes over everything.
"The domain world completely devours the human world, replacing it."
Feng Qi's pupils contracted.
"So, you created the Path of Ascension because you didn't want to be swallowed by the domain world?"
Mu Yan chuckled, her eyes twinkling with amusement.
"Do you think I'm selfish?"
"Maybe… you had no choice but to do this?" Feng Qi didn't give a definitive answer.
Having seen glimpses of Mu Yan's past, he knew she had always held goodwill toward humanity.
Mu Yan nodded.
"If my true form perishes, even if human civilization still exists, it will have no room to develop. In the end, it will be destroyed. Humanity will never reach the level where it can stand against the domain world's strongest forces."
"Why?"
"Humans were born under the laws of the Sun, while the domain world follows different rules.
"At best, humans can be compatible with domain laws, but they can never fully integrate.
"If the domain world completely devours the human world, even if humans survive, they will lose everything.
"Their entire cultivation system would become obsolete.
"Everything they've worked for would be wiped out.
"They would have to abandon their current cultivation paths and find a new way to adapt to the domain world's rules."
Feng Qi's mind reeled at the implications.
Feng Qi suddenly recalled a key piece of intelligence he had gathered from the earliest timelines.
Back when he investigated the Dark Era caused by the Dawn Army, he had uncovered several crucial facts.
First, Mu Qing had established the Dawn Army and later betrayed humanity, choosing to stand against them.
Second, Mu Qing led the Dawn Army in city massacres, resulting in immense devastation.
Third, Mu Qing heavily promoted the Rune Enhancement Project, reviving an experiment that even the Crimson Research Institute had planned to abandon. As a result, a large number of Rune Warriors emerged within the Dawn Army.
Connecting this information with Mu Yan's recent explanation, Feng Qi suddenly understood why Mu Qing had aggressively advanced the Rune Enhancement Project in the future.
It was obvious—Mu Qing had learned the truth from Mu Yan.
If the existing cultivation system was ultimately doomed to extinction, the only way for humanity to adapt to the domain world's rules was through Rune Modification—a project that the Crimson Research Institute had initially designed to transform humans into lifeforms similar to domain creatures.
Mu Qing was also one of the experimental subjects of the Rune Enhancement Project.
Thinking back, it was clear—Mu Qing had not implemented Rune Enhancement simply to create more powerful warriors, as history had painted it. Instead, she had been searching for a viable future for humanity.
Feng Qi snapped back to reality and looked at Mu Yan, who was enjoying her meal with a look of pure satisfaction.
If Mu Yan's explanation was the truth, then humanity's future was inextricably linked to her true form—the Sun.
Their fates were intertwined. If the Sun perished, humanity's development would be permanently stunted.
It was just like a Dawn War game, where both sides had a Main Crystal Base—if the base was destroyed, the entire team would fall.
That explained why the Path of Ascension was so crucial.
The Path of Ascension wasn't just about resisting domain invasions; it bought time for humanity to develop and evolve into something capable of survival.
Mu Yan had clearly foreseen the worst possible outcome.
To prepare for it, she and Mu Qing had pushed the Rune Enhancement Project forward.
Feng Qi took a deep breath and asked,
"I understand the importance of the Path of Ascension now. But what I don't get is—why didn't you leave some powerful warriors behind for humanity? Why did you send them all to the Path of Ascension, leaving the rear completely exposed?"
Mu Yan, who had been happily eating, suddenly fell silent.
After a long pause, she chuckled and explained,
"Actually, I did cultivate many human warriors in the past.
"For example, Ye Huang, whose name is probably still in your history textbooks.
"They were the ones who led humanity's resistance against the domain forces and established the five great cities you live in today.
"After the Turbulent Era ended, humanity entered a phase of rapid development. Everything was flourishing, and the pressure from the domain world's invasion temporarily lessened.
"But on the Path of Ascension, the situation only grew worse.
"So, I sent them there."
Mu Yan sighed.
"It was a no-win choice.
"If I had kept those warriors in human society, they could have helped humanity develop in the short term.
"But that stability wouldn't have lasted long.
"Without the Path of Ascension, all that progress would have been meaningless.
"When the domain world fully covered the human world, all their sacrifices would have been for nothing.
"The extra time we fought for—it wasn't just about surviving a little longer.
"It was about buying enough time to create a new power system capable of standing against the domain's peak races."
"I hesitated, too," she admitted.
"I even discussed it with Ye Huang and the others.
"At the time, human society was relatively stable.
"Sure, there was external pressure, but it wasn't at a level that threatened total extinction.
"But on the Path of Ascension, the invading domain forces were growing stronger by the day.
"The human world's space was being devoured at an alarming rate.
"If I didn't send more warriors, the invasion would have accelerated even further."
"So, I took batch after batch of Miracle Warriors to the Path of Ascension.
"They carried the burden for humanity, fighting to win more time for development."
Feng Qi fell into deep thought before asking,
"You haven't returned to human society in a long time, have you? Otherwise, you wouldn't have let the five great cities be infiltrated by the domain forces so easily."
Mu Yan nodded.
"I've been gone for a long time.
"I never came back, so those domain infiltrators got away with it."
She gritted her teeth, clearly furious at the thought. She clenched her fist, as if itching to punch something.
Feng Qi finally understood.
If Mu Yan had still been around, she definitely would have noticed something was wrong. There was no way she would have let the domain forces infiltrate so deeply into human society.
No wonder she was so clueless about the current situation.
"Where have you been all these years?"
"I went to the Void Realm."
"The Void?"
This wasn't the first time Feng Qi had heard of the Void Realm.
During one of his future dream timelines, he had once stepped through a phantom teleportation array and arrived in Shadow City, which had been built by the Shadow Lord and floated within the Void.
The narration at the time had described the Void as a special space attached to both the domain world and the human world.
The environment was extremely hostile—far too dangerous for ordinary flesh-and-blood lifeforms to survive in.
Shadow City had only managed to exist there because the Shadow Lord had spent an enormous amount of resources to construct a spatial barrier protection layer around it.
But now, Feng Qi was deeply curious—what exactly had Mu Yan been doing all these years in the Void?
He immediately asked,
"Mu Yan, why did you go to the Void Realm?"
Mu Yan chuckled.
"There's a ruined floating island in the Void Realm.
"It holds many remnants from the previous era's civilization.
"That's where I discovered the truth about the world.
"But I ended up trapped there for years.
"I only just managed to escape."
Feng Qi was stunned.
"The previous era?
"You mean the era of the Pillar Gods?"
Mu Yan swallowed the food in her mouth and nodded solemnly.
"Yes, it's very likely that the ruins belonged to the era of the Pillar Gods. I learned a lot about the truth of this world there."
"You never had any direct contact with the Pillar Gods?"
"Of course not. That was the previous era—or even several eras before mine. I was born in this era. Naturally, I've never encountered a Pillar God."
Hearing this, Feng Qi was momentarily stunned.
He had wanted to ask Mu Yan for more information about the Pillar Gods, but he hadn't expected that she would be just as clueless about them.
"Then do you know the origin of Miracle Artifacts?"
The origin of Miracle Artifacts had always been one of the biggest mysteries that plagued him.
If Mu Yan couldn't provide an answer, he had no idea where else to look for the truth.
"I found some fragmented pieces of information on that floating island of ruins. From what I could piece together, Miracle Artifacts should be relics left behind by the beings of the Pillar God Era, meant for the lifeforms of this era."
Hearing that Mu Yan had knowledge on this subject, Feng Qi immediately became more alert and pressed further.
"Tell me everything in detail."
Mu Yan didn't answer immediately. Instead, she continued eating, puffing her cheeks as she mumbled,
"You know, I once had the same doubts as you—wondering whether this world was a game or a real world.
"There are too many aspects of this world that resemble the online games that were developed before humanity's great catastrophe."
"What confused me the most was the fundamental relationship between the domain world and the human world. But then, I found an answer in those old network games...
"If you've ever played a game, you'd realize that the domain world and the human world work in a very similar way."
After a brief pause, Mu Yan continued,
"The human world is like the main world for players.
"The domain world is like the dungeon or the instance worlds—separate from the main world but still connected.
"Each domain is like a different difficulty level, with different races, and clearing them yields different resources."
Hearing this, Feng Qi furrowed his brows.
His skepticism about this world's authenticity stemmed largely from the nature of Miracle Artifacts—their absurd abilities that made the world feel artificial.
Now, hearing Mu Yan's explanation, he felt that the chances of this world being a designed construct had increased significantly.
If the domain world truly functioned as dungeon instances, then...
"What's your final conclusion?"
Mu Yan shook her head.
"I don't know for sure.
"But Mo Yue once studied the fundamental rules of this world and concluded that it's most likely real."
"You and Mo Yue were close?" Feng Qi asked in surprise.
"We used to be.
"I would often visit the domain world for extravagant feasts, and he would visit the human world for fun...
"Until he decided he wanted my place and tried to devour me."
Feng Qi frowned.
"But from what I've observed, Mo Yue isn't that strong. With your strength, shouldn't you be able to kill him outright?"
"I can only kill his consciousness avatars.
"If I want to truly kill him, there's only one way—I have to shatter every single domain field in the domain world.
"It's just like what you described in the timeline 1,500 years later—when Mo Yue turns the entire world crimson.
"For him and me, there's only one way for either of us to die: complete territorial assimilation."
Hearing Mu Yan's words, Feng Qi suddenly had a much clearer understanding of the relationship between the human world and the domain world.
Mu Yan was the consciousness avatar of the Sun, while Mo Yue was the consciousness avatar of the domain moon.
They each represented their respective worlds.
But when comparing them, Mu Yan's role was clearly more significant than Mo Yue's.
Both were world consciousness avatars, but Mu Yan represented the entire human world.
Meanwhile, Mo Yue couldn't fully represent the domain world.
Even if Mo Yue disappeared, there were still many different domains, each with their own rules and consciousness.
However, humanity could not exist without Mu Yan.
If Mu Yan were to fall, the human world's rules would collapse entirely.
This explained why Mu Yan had said that if the domain world completely overtook the human world, human growth potential would be permanently stunted.
They would no longer be able to develop a unique cultivation system suited to them.
This also made sense of why Mu Qing had made the Rune Enhancement Project one of the core pillars of the Dawn Army's development.
That path might not have been the ideal choice, but it was a necessary one.
If the Path of Ascension's defenses collapsed, and the domain world completely invaded, humans without the Sun's influence would have no way forward.
With that realization, Feng Qi couldn't help but nod inwardly.
Even so, he still had many unanswered questions.
Looking at Mu Yan, he asked again,
"Mu Yan, in one of my past timelines, I encountered Mo Yue. He once said that 'humans are the vessels of the supreme beings' seal.'
"What does that mean?"
"Oh, that's something Mo Yue and I speculated when we explored the floating ruins.
"We found some ancient fragmented information there.
"I'm not sure how long that data had been preserved, but we managed to decipher the general meaning."
Feng Qi's gaze sharpened.
"Explain it in full detail.
"Any information you give me could influence my next timeline's strategy."
Mu Yan nodded.
"When Mo Yue and I explored the ruins, we discovered a piece of information that hinted at the origins of human beings.
"Based on our interpretation, humans were never meant to exist in this world.
"Rather, they were created to act as sealing vessels for an entity so powerful that even the gods feared it."
Feng Qi's heart pounded.
"Who or what were they sealing?"
Mu Yan took a sip of wine, then grinned.
"That's the part we couldn't decipher fully.
"But based on the remaining records, this entity was something even the Pillar Gods feared."
Mu Yan said that according to Mo Yue, the information they discovered was likely left behind by the fallen Pillar Gods.
Before their demise, the Pillar Gods sought a way to pass down their knowledge and power to the next era. However, they encountered a major obstacle—they couldn't find a means of preservation that would withstand the test of time.
Feng Qi frowned. "I don't understand."
Mu Yan smirked. "Let me put it this way. Suppose you wanted to leave behind a piece of information for your grandchildren. How would you do it?"
"I'd write it down in a notebook," Feng Qi answered decisively.
"That's one way, and it's not wrong. But think about it—how much can a notebook hold? The knowledge of the Pillar Gods was vast, beyond anything a simple record could contain. Even if they wrote on every scrap of paper in the world, it wouldn't be enough.
"Even worse, how long would that paper last? Ink fades, pages decay—eventually, everything would be lost to time."
Mu Yan's tone grew serious.
"Even the most advanced human record-keeping methods are useless against time. Hard drives, databases, stone tablets—these things might preserve knowledge for centuries, or even millennia.
"But stretch the timeline to one hundred million years, a billion years, ten billion years—everything will crumble into dust.
"Even beings as powerful as the Pillar Gods could not find a method to preserve knowledge indefinitely."
Feng Qi felt a growing unease. "And what does this have to do with humans?"
Mu Yan leaned forward, her voice calm but firm.
"It has everything to do with humans.
"Our research—mine and Mo Yue's—suggests that humans were originally created by the Pillar Gods.
"And not just created… but engineered as the continuation of their existence.
"Humans might be nothing more than vessels—a repository for their knowledge and power."
Feng Qi's expression turned blank as he processed this revelation.
Mu Yan continued, "The Pillar Gods realized that the only thing capable of resisting time's erosion was life itself."
She gave a small smile.
"Here's something you'll understand: 1 gram of DNA can store 455 exabytes of data.
"The human body's DNA can store an astronomical amount of information.
"But the key isn't just storage. DNA is passed on—one generation after another, continuously replicating itself across countless lifetimes.
"This is what we call biological inheritance. Each time life is passed down, the knowledge is preserved.
"With every new birth, a new carrier is created."
Feng Qi was stunned.
"DNA mutates, though! Over generations, genetic information gets scrambled. How could this be a reliable method of preservation?"
Mu Yan chuckled.
"Mutations don't mean the loss of information. Think of it like a password lock that changes periodically.
"The surface layer might change, but the core data remains intact.
"And even if the genetic code shifts over time, the original information can still be retrieved—like decrypting an ancient language through systematic analysis."
Feng Qi's heartbeat quickened. "So you're saying… the Pillar Gods knew they were going to die.
"And they engineered humans as a way to store and pass on their knowledge?"
"Exactly," Mu Yan said. "They created humans as a form of biological storage.
"And to ensure this knowledge wouldn't be lost, they implemented various failsafes—such as humanity's instinctive drive to reproduce.
"Think about it. The more humans there are, the more 'storage units' exist.
"This would also explain why some humans are born with Miracle Artifacts while others aren't. The knowledge was fragmented, scattered across countless lives."
Feng Qi felt a chill run through him.
Suddenly, Mo Yue's words made sense—humans were vessels for a seal.
They weren't just ordinary creatures. They were containers.
"Do you have any other information?" Feng Qi asked.
Mu Yan nodded.
"Mo Yue had a theory. He believed that humans weren't just data carriers.
"Rather, humans were the Pillar Gods' attempt at self-preservation.
"The Pillar Gods knew they wouldn't escape the cycle of destruction.
"So they encoded their souls, knowledge, and power into genetic structures—what you humans call ribosomes and nucleic acids—and passed it on.
"Over countless eons, this evolved into modern humans."
Feng Qi's breath caught.
"So you're telling me that the Miracle I've been looking for… is humanity itself?"
Mu Yan smiled.
"Bingo.
"My research with Mo Yue led us to discover a way to activate the hidden power within human DNA.
"But it doesn't work on everyone—only those with latent potential.
"The so-called 'Miracle Artifacts' are just triggers—catalysts that awaken what's already inside."
Feng Qi finally understood.
The so-called legends—the powerful figures like Tian Shu, Ye Huang, Wei Wei—weren't just born strong.
They were partially activated carriers of the Pillar Gods' inheritance.
And Mu Yan? She was simply accelerating their awakening.
That's why she had spent centuries searching for Miracles rather than just creating Miracle Warriors.
She wasn't looking for external power—she was looking for the right carriers.
A new thought flashed in Feng Qi's mind.
"If humans are carrying fragments of the Pillar Gods' power… then what are Miracle Artifacts?
"Are they just pieces of that power—separated from the body?"
Mu Yan hesitated. She nodded, then shook her head.
"I'm not sure.
"By the time I was 'born,' both humans and Miracle Artifacts already existed.
"But according to what I found in the ruins, not all the Pillar Gods' power was successfully preserved.
"It's possible that those who failed to pass on their inheritance transformed their remaining power into Miracle Artifacts.
"But since they lacked biological hosts, their energy slowly degraded over time.
"That's why most Miracle Artifacts today are either damaged, incomplete, or fragmented.
"Given enough time, all of them will eventually disappear—merging back into the world's natural cycle."
Mu Yan's explanation made Feng Qi fall into deep thought.
It was clear that Mu Yan's understanding was based on limited clues, forming only a theory.
The true answer remained uncertain, even to her.
After all, Mu Yan was born in this era, while the Pillar Gods belonged to the previous era.
By the time Mu Yan came into existence, Miracle Artifacts had already appeared.
She and Mo Yue were both seekers of the world's truth.
At that moment, Feng Qi suddenly thought of Mist Lord.
Mist Lord also possessed a Miracle Artifact, one that had been passed down through his bloodline.
Even Mist Lord himself had been unaware that an artifact lay dormant in his lineage.
What puzzled Feng Qi, however, was why Mist Lord's ancestor had been able to obtain knowledge by licking the blood of a fallen Pillar God.
With this question in mind, he immediately voiced his doubts to Mu Yan.
Hearing the question, Mu Yan pondered for a moment before replying:
"Actually, most of the Miracle Artifacts in the outside world are in a damaged state. The few intact ones may have simply survived the corrosion of time.
"Back then, the Pillar Gods had no way of knowing when the next era would be born. Their best bet was to preserve things for as long as possible.
"Life inheritance was the most reliable method.
"The other Miracle Artifacts were left to time's erosion—perhaps they would last until the new era, or perhaps they would fade into nothingness."
Feng Qi nodded upon hearing this.
Mu Yan's analysis made sense.
Perhaps the Miracle Artifacts scattered across the world were simply the abandoned knowledge and power of the Pillar Gods—left to chance, whether they survived or not.
That might explain why most Miracle Artifacts were in a damaged or fragmented state.
Feng Qi didn't dwell on the matter for long. Instead, he looked at Mu Yan and asked another crucial question:
"Do you know how you were born?"
Mu Yan shook her head. "I have no idea.
"When I first became aware, I found myself floating above the human world.
"Back then, the world was already populated by early humans.
"Mo Yue was the first person I met during my exploration of this world.
"He was just like me—uncertain of his origins.
"We both suspected that we might have been created by the Pillar Gods, just like humans."
Feng Qi narrowed his eyes.
"Why do you think that?"
Mu Yan sighed.
"During our time on the Miracle Island, Mo Yue and I decoded a fragmented message.
"It said something like this:
'Our continuation will rise again in another form to challenge the unknown.'
"I interpreted it as follows—the Pillar Gods knew they would die.
"But instead of submitting to fate, they decided to pass their power and knowledge onto the next era.
"Their goal was for their successors to reignite the challenge and attempt to overcome the unknown."
Feng Qi nodded slowly.
"So the 'unknown' you mentioned—you're referring to the Arrival of the Great Momentum, right?"
"That's what Mo Yue and I believe.
"The Pillar Gods may have faced the Arrival of the Great Momentum before our era even began.
"And they failed.
"So, instead of vanishing completely, they left behind countless inheritances for the next era's successors.
"It's likely that Mo Yue and I are part of that inheritance."
Feng Qi fell silent for a moment before speaking in a low voice.
"Even the Pillar Gods couldn't resist the Arrival of the Great Momentum…
"Do we really stand a chance?"
Mu Yan grinned.
"We'll probably lose.
"But we shouldn't just sit around and wait for it.
"We should fight."
As she spoke, she bit off a chunk of chicken, yanked out the bone, and swallowed the rest whole.
Feng Qi stared at her, then laughed.
"You're right. Even if we fail, we won't surrender."
Their eyes met, and at that moment, a silent understanding formed between them.
He realized that Mu Yan was just like him.
The only difference was that she never stopped smiling, no matter how grim the reality was.
"Any more questions?" Mu Yan asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Of course… Oh, right." Feng Qi's expression changed.
"Can you extend my lifespan?"
Mu Yan paused, then scratched her head.
"Uh… probably not.
"Wei Wei has long life because she naturally had the potential.
"I didn't give her longevity—it was already in her genes."
"So… yeah, you get it."
Feng Qi smirked.
"How about you check my potential? Maybe my genes secretly hold some Pillar God inheritance.
"Maybe I can unlock it and live longer, like Wei Wei or Tian Shu."
Mu Yan studied him for a few seconds, then shook her head.
"Nope. You're completely normal.
"You're not a potential carrier. Just give up."
Feng Qi: …
Hearing Mu Yan's flat-out rejection, Feng Qi sighed.
He knew that, in the end, he was just a mortal.
There was no escaping death.
Instead of dwelling on it, he shifted the topic, ready to gather more information from Mu Yan.
He still had many unanswered questions.
"Mu Yan, what's the origin of the Scarlet Rune Crystal inside Mu Qing?"
Mu Yan blinked.
"Who's Mu Qing?"
Feng Qi's lips twitched.
"Do you remember giving a Scarlet Rune Crystal to the first director of the Crimson Research Institute?"
Mu Yan paused, frowning as she tried to recall.
Feng Qi continued:
"The Crimson Research Institute spent centuries searching for a suitable host for that Scarlet Rune Crystal.
"Over the course of many experiments, they failed countless times.
"But after all this time, only one person turned out to be a perfect match—Mu Qing.
"She is the only true Scarlet Adaptation—the rightful inheritor of the Scarlet Rune Crystal."
Mu Yan's eyes widened.
She stood up abruptly, her entire aura shifting.
Her eyes gleamed with excitement.
"Wait.
"You're telling me… the Scarlet Rune Crystal finally found an adaptation?"
"Yes," Feng Qi confirmed. "It has."
Mu Yan took a deep breath.
Then, she grinned.
"Well, well… now this is interesting.
"So tell me…
"Do you really want to know what the Scarlet Rune Crystal is?"