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Chapter 178: The Mirror of the Eternal Memory
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Act I: A Chamber of Living Echoes
The Gallery opened into a chamber where every wall shimmered with faint inscriptions, glowing like memories carved into light.
Ne Job stepped forward, Twinkle buzzing softly, its hum resonating with echoes of the past.
Ao Bing muttered, "This place feels… remembered."
Taiyi Zhenren scribbled quickly. "The mirror here does not forget. It preserves."
At the center stood a mirror woven with countless reflections, each one showing fragments of lives, vows, and miracles.
It spoke in a voice layered with remembrance:
> "I am the Mirror of the Eternal Memory. I hold what endures, what is carried, what is never lost."
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Act II: The Weight of Remembrance
The interns gazed into its surface.
Visions unfolded, showing memories that shaped their journeys.
- Ao Bing saw comrades who had fallen, their courage preserved in memory.
- Taiyi Zhenren saw scrolls written long ago, wisdom carried forward through generations.
- Ne Job saw miracles forgotten by mortals, yet alive within the Registry.
Twinkle pulsed brightly, resonating with the echoes.
The mirror whispered:
> "To guard me, you must remember without fear."
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Act III: The Mask's Intrusion
From the shadows, the Mask of Misrule hissed.
> "Memory is mine to corrupt. I will twist remembrance into regret, and regret into chaos."
The Mirror of Endless Deception flickered, shards gathering again.
The Mask reached toward Eternal Memory, trying to fracture its echoes into sorrow.
Ao Bing staggered. "I feel haunted by what I lost!"
Taiyi Zhenren trembled. "My scrolls blur into grief!"
Ne Job steadied them. "Memory is not regret. It is truth carried forward."
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Act IV: The Trial of Memory
The Mirror of the Eternal Memory spoke:
> "Intern, to protect me, you must remember."
Ne Job gazed into its glowing surface.
He saw himself faltering, afraid of being trapped by the past.
He whispered:
> "I remember. Even when sorrow weighs heavy, I carry. Even when forgotten, I endure."
The mirror glowed brighter, its echoes steady.
Twinkle pulsed strongly, harmonizing with the remembrance.
Ao Bing's fists steadied.
Taiyi Zhenren's scrolls aligned.
The Mask recoiled, his corruption faltering.
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Act V: The Clash
The Mask screamed, hurling shards of deception.
Illusions tried to twist memory into despair, scattering the interns into grief.
Ao Bing staggered. "My courage fades in sorrow!"
Taiyi Zhenren trembled. "My wisdom dissolves in regret!"
Ne Job stood firm. "Memory is not despair. It is truth eternal."
The awakened mirrors — Patience, Friendship, Courage, Sorrow, Endless Paths, Forgotten Names, Silent Echoes, Shattered Promises, Hidden Truths, Eternal Doubt, Living Light, Boundless Hope, Unbroken Unity, Eternal Harmony, Final Resolve, Infinite Resolve, Last Question, First Dawn, Endless Return, Forgotten Future, Silent Dawnfall, Eternal Song, Endless Silence, Forgotten Flame, Eternal Return, Eternal Choice, Hidden Dawn, Endless Oath — joined with Eternal Memory.
Their glow struck the Mask's illusions.
Grief became clarity.
Deception dissolved.
Twinkle hummed, resonating with the Miracle Registry.
Ao Bing laughed, fierce and kind.
Taiyi Zhenren footnoted every memory restored.
Ne Job stood firm, remembrance and truth united.
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Act VI: The Mirror's Gift
The Mirror of the Eternal Memory calmed, its surface shimmering with radiant echoes.
It whispered:
> "Intern, memory is not chaos. It is truth preserved. Guard it well."
Ne Job bowed.
Twinkle pulsed softly.
The Gallery shimmered, stable once more.
The Mask of Misrule retreated into the shadows, his voice echoing faintly:
> "You may resist memory today. But forgetting always waits."
The Gallery fell silent.
The mirrors glowed.
And Ne Job walked on, ready for what lay ahead.