Cheng Xi's heart raced as she stood in the suffocating darkness, the air heavy with tension. The voice that had called her name was unmistakably familiar, but the tone was distorted—cold, mocking, and distant. She glanced around, but there was nothing. The room felt vast, stretching endlessly in every direction, yet the weight of the silence felt oppressive, as though the darkness itself was closing in around her.
"Cheng Xi…" The voice echoed again, sending a chill down her spine.
She froze, her breath caught in her throat. There was no mistaking it—it was her mother's voice. But it sounded wrong—twisted, as though it were being pulled from the deepest corners of her subconscious.
"No... this can't be real." Cheng Xi whispered to herself, trying to steady her trembling hands. This isn't real. It can't be. Lin Yu—
A low chuckle reverberated in the air. "Oh, but it is, my dear. You were always so good at hiding from the truth."
Cheng Xi's breath caught again. "Who are you?" she demanded, her voice shaking with a mixture of fear and defiance. "Why are you here?"
The voice seemed to laugh again, growing louder, as if closing in on her. "You've run for so long, hiding behind the walls you built. But you can't run from your past. Not anymore."
Suddenly, the darkness around her began to warp and twist. Figures began to materialize out of the shadows—people she knew. Her mother, her father, even her childhood friends—all standing before her, their eyes blank, their faces devoid of emotion. They were distorted, unrecognizable in their stillness, but their presence was suffocating.
"You were never enough, Cheng Xi," her mother's voice echoed from one of the figures. The face was wrong, twisted with anger and disappointment. "You're weak. You'll never be what he needs. You'll never be able to protect him."
"No!" Cheng Xi shouted, stepping back, shaking her head. "I won't listen to you. You're not real. You're not her!"
But the figure of her mother stepped forward, her features changing, becoming more aggressive. "You will fail him. You will always fail."
The figures around her grew closer, their voices blending into a chorus of doubt and fear. Cheng Xi felt the suffocating weight of their presence—each word, each accusation striking like a dagger. She could feel herself crumbling under their pressure, her vision blurring as the weight of the past surged over her.
"You can't protect him. You'll never be enough for him."
"You can't even save yourself."
"Stop!" Cheng Xi cried out, her voice breaking. "You're wrong! You're not real!"
But the shadows only closed in tighter, the pressure building. She fell to her knees, her hands gripping her head as if she could tear the voices out. They wouldn't stop. The memories wouldn't stop. The doubt, the fear—they were all consuming her.
And then, in the midst of the overwhelming darkness, a single thought pierced through the fog of her mind. Lin Yu.
She thought of his face, his promise, his unwavering resolve to protect her, even when he had no reason to. Lin Yu had never given up on her. He had never stopped believing in her, even when she couldn't believe in herself. He had dragged her into a world she couldn't understand, but he had always been there, guiding her, protecting her.
With that thought came a rush of warmth—a light piercing through the darkness. Cheng Xi forced herself to her feet, her hands trembling but resolute.
"I am enough," she whispered, her voice steady, though filled with raw emotion. "I am enough, and I will protect him. I won't fail him."
The figures around her recoiled, their faces contorting with rage. But Cheng Xi stood firm, her chest rising and falling with each breath. The pressure that had held her in place began to lift, the dark figures dissolving into nothingness as the light grew brighter. She could feel the spiritual energy pulsing through her now—stronger, clearer than it had ever been before. She wasn't just a bystander anymore. She wasn't weak.
"I will protect him," she repeated, her voice gaining strength. "And I will fight."
The darkness around her began to break apart, the room shifting as the oppressive weight lifted. The figures vanished, leaving Cheng Xi standing alone, but not afraid. She wasn't the same person she had been when they first came here. She had found something inside herself—something she hadn't even known was there.
The air around her shifted again, and she found herself standing in the same chamber she had entered earlier, the echoes of her trial fading away. She was back.
Lin Yu was waiting for her, his face a mixture of concern and relief. His eyes softened as he saw her standing tall, the light of her resolve shining in her eyes.
"You're here," Lin Yu said, his voice filled with a quiet sense of awe. "You passed the trial."
Cheng Xi nodded, taking a deep breath. She wasn't sure how to explain what had just happened, but the overwhelming sense of fear and doubt had been replaced by something else—something she hadn't felt in a long time: confidence.
"I'm ready," she said, her voice steady. "I won't let you down."
Lin Yu gave her a small, reassuring smile, and for the first time in what felt like forever, Cheng Xi felt the weight of everything—her fears, her doubts, her insecurities—fall away. She was no longer just a bystander. She was part of this fight, part of the path they would walk together.
"We've got a long way to go," Lin Yu said, his voice firm with purpose. "But we're not alone anymore. We have each other."
The trials had tested them both, but they had come through stronger than before. The path ahead was still uncertain, and the forces that controlled this world would not stop their pursuit. But for the first time, Cheng Xi felt ready to face what lay ahead.
The storm was far from over, but Lin Yu and Cheng Xi were no longer just running from it. They were standing together, ready to face it head-on.