"Is this what General Jing Yuan had in mind with his wildcard?"
"I wouldn't dream of presuming. All I can say is that the Stellaron Hunters' prophecies outpaced even my own divinations. The futures Kafka chased are falling into place, one after another."
Stelle clutched her head, groaning. "Guess that's our only way through this mess..."
"I don't want to be anyone's puppet any more than you do. But treading a Path doesn't mean going it solo, cut off from everyone else. Our choices don't just carve our own roads—they push our allies forward too."
"The Grand Diviner's role is to chase down fortune and dodge disaster. I won't let my calls drag the Luofu into some dark ending."
Though the odds of that were about as slim as the Ichorflame Bowmasters ditching The Hunt to hunt Yaoshi instead.
"Anyway, back on track: killing the furnace without fallout—only you lot can swing it. What's the verdict?"
"Fine by me—even if the Grand Diviner skipped the 'please' this round, who else is gonna step up? Right?" March 7th was already buzzing with energy.
"Once the smoke lifts, I'll charge in. You won't be facing them solo."
"Ahem, maybe practicing my breath-holds now isn't the worst idea..." Fu Xuan mumbled to herself.
"We're still a hike from the furnace. I might not be an alchemy whiz, but even I know toxicity without a dose is just hot air."
"Hmph, doesn't matter—I'm still scared silly! I'm way too young to go mara-struck this early!"
"Never figured the Grand Diviner for such a straight shooter." As March 7th quipped, Stelle pulled her classic prank, shooting Fu Xuan a wide-eyed look of fake concern.
"What if the Grand Diviner flips out and goes mara-struck right now..."
"My fortunes teeter between lucky breaks and bad omens—bold moves keep me steady, so quit spooking me! I'll cling to my wits. The rest? That's on you."
To cut the edge, Stelle pivoted. "Oof... seeing the Grand Diviner this rattled is getting to me. That smoke really won't faze us?"
Fu Xuan's hackles rose. "Huh? Doubting me?" Her fingers twitched in the air for a beat before she reined it in.
"Ahem... If I admitted [I don't know], you wouldn't just nope out, would you?"
"Let's divine it."
"No dice—my matrix readings aside, my instincts nail it every time!" Fu Xuan puffed out her chest, brimming with assurance. "Alright, here's your worry-be-gone pill. You don't actually grasp what [mara-struck] means, do you?"
"Beats me..."
Stelle had been hopping between Disciples of Sanctus Medicus undercover gigs and scraps all over the Xianzhou these past few days—like a utility hammer, swung wherever the nail popped up.
So Fu Xuan hit them with the mara-struck crash course. "Healers tie it to memory overload. Long-life species rack up insane years, but memory's got a ceiling."
"Over centuries—or straight-up millennia—that emotional load just climbs and climbs. Memories fade and dull under the grind, until only the rawest, most brutal bits stick: the pains, the regrets..."
"Those are the hooks that snag you. For long-life folk, it's a slow bleed of joy and peace, scarred over with endless what-ifs."
"When the pressure cracks the foundation... that's mara-struck kicking in."
For a fleeting second, Fu Xuan envied the church crowd—their endless span came free of that mara shadow.
"Short-lifers? You skip the sweat. Feeling better?"
"Ah, yeah—I'm golden. I forget stuff anyway." Even with the fine print that short-lifers could crack too, March 7th shrugged it off—her scatterbrain was basically armor.
"No, you're glossing over it. Mara-struck isn't just memory—it's the emotional dam bursting... Eh, whatever, stick with the memory angle."
"Hey... any read on how many Disciples we've got left?" March 7th knew intel was battle prep 101. The pack they'd pinched at Exalting Sanctum? Tip of the iceberg.
"Not a horde—mostly brainwashed alchemists and medics. They can unleash beasts or pop enhancement pills... but head-to-head with Cloud Knights? No contest. That's why they're leaning on the poison fog."
"Such a lopsided fight, and they break cover now to revolt? Doesn't add up. They're banking on some big swing..."
Fu Xuan played coy, just stalling for Phantylia to drop the mask and strut in for her big reveal.
"Once the furnace croaks and the haze clears, I'll be on you like glue."
Fu Xuan spun away, sucking in exaggerated breath-holds for the whole squad to see.
"Sigh... I keep circling back to it: long-life species might stretch forever, but their heartaches? Same as us short-timers."
As March 7th pondered aloud, Stelle unclasped her hourglass necklace once more.
"Old-school valves have leak risks. What if a puff sneaks through?"
Missing her shot at siphoning the Ambrosial Arbor still stung a bit—this was payback time.
"Whoa—you're really turning that into a shop vac?"
Stelle ignored her. This was the all-mighty Eternity hourglass!
"March, feast your eyes on Eternity's finest!"
She smacked it down, and whoosh—every tendril of fog got slurped up in a heartbeat.
Fu Xuan, mid-hold a few paces off, nearly gagged on thin air at the spectacle.
"Br... brilliant! I'll rally the troops for backup!" she bellowed.
...
"The furnace... it's cold."
The Disciples of Sanctus Medicus ringleader loomed before the gutted, smoke-free forge, her voice shifting gears.
"No matter. What's fated to arrive is here." She clocked the footsteps crowding in from behind.
"It's you, Dan Shu..." Fu Xuan advanced with the crew. Unlike the script's beats, Stelle hadn't crossed paths with this Alchemy Commission head after her Exalting Sanctum deep cover.
"The chief's face to face with the Grand Diviner... and you don't look shocked."
"Hm, we always suspected the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus burrowed into the Alchemy Commission—the General and I both. But no hard proof meant no moves on the commissions. We had to wait for you to poke your head out."
Cloud Knights flooded the chamber the instant she finished, boxing Dan Shu in tight—no outs.
"Fair play. Luring the Stellaron's curse to the Xianzhou, waking the Ambrosial Arbor, baiting mara-struck... The Ten-Lords Commission will weigh those crimes, one by one."
"Crimes? If my deeds damn me, then the Endgame Xianzhou's forebears share the noose! They took Abundance's boon and forged their heirs into long-life stock..."
Dan Shu thrust her arm skyward, nodding to her fellow Disciples.
"The Disciples of Sanctus Medicus just echo their steps, chasing true transcendence. Where's the crime?"
"Back then, the Ambrosial Arbor's roots cradled the Luofu—like a breathing world. Our fleets owned the stars. Immortality for all, shape-shifting at will... Abundance's gifts blooming over the nine ships—what a dawn!"
"Now? The Xianzhou's a husk! Groveling to the demon's bow, hammered by Abundance hordes time and again, the Ten-Lords Commission even strong-arming us to spit on our longevity..."
"Then... friend, why not pivot to Eternity's faith?" Before Adrian could jump in, Stelle hijacked the moment, cutting Dan Shu off.
"Eternity...?"
Stelle stroked her chin. Brushing past her own Pathstrider cred, the actual Eternity Aeon was right there, eavesdropping. Pitch time!
"Sigh, that's your blind spot—you Disciples aim too grand. Eras shift; we can't chain ourselves to dusty feudal myths."
"Blathering fool, nameless wanderer... What makes you think you can lecture me?" Dan Shu's temples throbbed. Who was this spammer blasting ultimates in her grill?!
"Easy one: you've hounded Abundance for years—has Yaoshi ever spared you a glance?"
"Uh..."