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Chapter 217: The Mirror of the Eternal Tower
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Act I: A Chamber of Ascent
The Gallery opened into a chamber where towers of light rose endlessly upward, each spire glowing with radiant strength. Their height seemed infinite, piercing the veil of the heavens.
Ne Job stepped forward, Twinkle buzzing with a steady hum, its rhythm echoing the pulse of ascent.
Ao Bing muttered, "This place… it feels like ambition itself has taken form."
Taiyi Zhenren scribbled quickly. "The mirror here does not fall. It rises."
At the center stood a mirror framed by radiant towers, its surface shimmering with eternal ascent.
It spoke in a voice lofty and resolute:
> "I am the Mirror of the Eternal Tower. I hold what rises, what endures in ambition, what carries truth into height."
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Act II: The Weight of Ascent
The interns gazed into its surface.
Visions unfolded, showing truths carried by towers.
- Ao Bing saw battles where courage meant climbing higher despite storms.
- Taiyi Zhenren saw scrolls preserved in lofty chambers, wisdom carried upward.
- Ne Job saw miracles rising into silence, inscribed into the Registry as heights eternal.
Twinkle pulsed brightly, resonating with the chamber's ascent.
The mirror whispered:
> "To guard me, you must rise without fear."
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Act III: The Mask's Intrusion
From the shadows, the Mask of Misrule hissed.
> "Towers are mine to corrupt. I will twist ambition into arrogance, and ascent into collapse."
The Mirror of Endless Deception flickered, shards gathering again.
The Mask reached toward Eternal Tower, trying to fracture its height into ruin.
Ao Bing staggered. "The towers crumble around me!"
Taiyi Zhenren trembled. "My scrolls scatter into dust!"
Ne Job steadied them. "Tower is not arrogance. It is resolve."
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Act IV: The Trial of Tower
The Mirror of the Eternal Tower spoke:
> "Intern, to protect me, you must rise."
Ne Job gazed into its towering surface.
He saw himself faltering, afraid of ambition that might collapse.
He whispered:
> "I rise. Even when storms rage, I endure. Even when shadows press, I carry forward."
The mirror glowed brighter, its towers steady.
Twinkle pulsed strongly, harmonizing with ascent.
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 tower into arrogance, scattering the interns into despair.
Ao Bing staggered. "My courage fades in collapse!"
Taiyi Zhenren trembled. "My wisdom dissolves in ruins!"
Ne Job stood firm. "Tower is not arrogance. It is truth carried 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, Eternal Memory, Eternal Threshold, Eternal Light, Eternal Shadow, Eternal Balance, Eternal Dawnfire, Eternal Storm, Eternal Ocean, Eternal Sky, Eternal Flameheart, Eternal Songfire, Eternal Silenceflame, Eternal Starfall, Eternal Horizon, Eternal Root, Eternal Crown, Eternal Gate, Eternal Anchor, Eternal Bridge, Eternal Labyrinth, Eternal Flame of Truth, Eternal Spiral, Eternal Compass, Eternal Lantern, Eternal Seed, Eternal River, Eternal Mountain, Eternal Tree, Eternal Star, Eternal Dawn — joined with Eternal Tower.
Their glow struck the Mask's illusions.
Collapse became clarity.
Deception dissolved.
Twinkle hummed, resonating with the Miracle Registry.
Ao Bing laughed, fierce and kind.
Taiyi Zhenren footnoted every tower restored.
Ne Job stood firm, tower and truth united.
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Act VI: The Mirror's Gift
The Mirror of the Eternal Tower calmed, its surface shimmering with radiant ascent.
It whispered:
> "Intern, tower is not chaos. It is resolve eternal. 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 towers today. But collapse always waits."
The Gallery fell silent.
The mirrors glowed.
And Ne Job walked on, ready for what lay ahead.