Chapter 237: The Twin Pool and the First Tear

The cold stone floor pressed against Xiang Lingna's burning cheek, bringing a faint, weak clarity. Her mind felt as though it had weathered a storm; countless chaotic fragments of thought still buzzed, yet the final words of that ancient Elder Elf remained as clear as an engraving:

"... Successor... if you can hear... remember... 'Thirst' originates from... the World Tree's... sorrow... The Key of Purification lies... in the... 'Twin Pool'... find... the first... tear..."

The World Tree's sorrow? Could the root of this disaster be related to the World Tree itself, which the Elves worship? The Key of Purification... does it refer to a method to completely resolve the 'Thirst'? And where is the 'Twin Pool'?

She struggled to lift her head, looking at the new downward passage that had appeared in the center of the formation. That ancient, pure, yet faintly sorrowful energy fluctuation was surging endlessly from below. Unlike the life-filled energy of the Sanctuary Seed, this energy was more quiet and deep, as if settled with the memories of countless ages.

The answer perhaps lies below.

She checked her body. The intense energy clash just now had left her exhausted again, but it seemed to have caused no new severe injuries. The dark red brand on her right leg was still suppressed by the Thorn Formation, though its color seemed to have deepened slightly due to the recent impact, as if a sleeping beast had been disturbed, radiating an impatient restlessness.

She must go down as soon as possible.

She took a deep breath, gathered her strength once more, and crawled toward that small passage entrance.

Below the entrance was a short, steep stone staircase, its end shrouded in a soft, strange dual-colored light—one a clear sky blue, the other a warm milky white. The two lights intertwined, neither merging nor repelling, forming a harmonious and balanced beauty.

The sorrowful aura was even more intense, yet it did not feel oppressive; instead, it evoked a strange sensation of being purified and soothed.

Xiang Lingna descended the stone steps one by one, and the sight before her made her instantly hold her breath.

This was a natural cave not particularly vast, its ceiling hanging with countless glowing crystals resembling crystal stalactites, emitting a soft dual-colored light that illuminated the entire cavern.

In the center of the cave lay a crystal-clear pool. The pool water was very peculiar: half was a clear sky blue, emitting a slightly cool chill; the other half was a warm milky white, emitting a faint warmth. The two-colored waters formed a clear yet non-mixing boundary line in the center of the pool, flowing slowly and silently, as if possessing life.

The pool water emitted an indescribable pure energy fluctuation; that faint sorrowful aura was emanating from the water itself. Merely standing by the pool, Xiang Lingna felt her spirit become incredibly tranquil, and the dizziness caused by the chaotic thoughts in the Hall of Echoes had subsided considerably.

Is this the Twin Pool?

Then, where is the 'First Tear'?

Xiang Lingna approached the pool's edge and observed carefully. The water was incredibly clear, allowing one to see straight to the bottom. The pool floor was covered in fine white sand, with no debris.

She squatted down and tentatively extended her left hand into the milky white pool water.

Warmth. A gentle energy filled with soothing power flowed into her body through her fingers, calming her exhausted spirit and damaged soul, though it seemed to have little effect on the brand on her right leg.

She then dipped her fingers into the sky blue pool water.

Coolness. A clear energy with purifying and calming effects surged in, refreshing her spirit; the brand on her right leg seemed to contract slightly, yet it remained stubborn.

A single type of pool water seemed unable to completely solve the problem.

Her gaze turned to the clear boundary line in the center of the pool. Two utterly different energies converged and balanced there.

Could it be...

A thought arose in her heart. She recalled her journey thus far, and her identity as this 'contradictory vessel'.

She gritted her teeth and made a decision.

She carefully walked step by step into the Twin Pool. The water was not deep, just reaching her knees.

When she stood in the center of the pool, her left foot planted in the warm milky white waters and her right foot in the cool sky blue waters—

Buzz!

The entire Twin Pool suddenly fluctuated! Centered on her body, the two-colored pool water ceased to be calm and began to rotate slowly, forming a miniature vortex!

The milky white energy and the sky blue energy were no longer distinct; instead, they began to exchange and circulate through her body, extremely slowly yet profoundly!

Her left half was warm as spring, nourishing her soul; her right half was cool and tranquil, purifying the filth.

And the dark red brand on her right leg, under the combined action of these two energies which were different in nature yet perfectly complementary, finally underwent a significant change!

"Hiss... hiss... hiss..."

Even denser black smoke rose from the brand! That dark red color faded and contracted at a speed visible to the naked eye! The sensation transmitted from the brand was no longer burning and numbness, but a profound stinging and tingling, as if the root was being purified!

At the same time, a clearer and more complete memory image flooded her mind uncontrollably:

... A colossal World Tree, radiating a soft glow, stood between heaven and earth. Yet one of its main branches displayed an ominous withering and dimness, flowing down not the nectar of life, but a pitch-black liquid filled with pain and sorrow... (The World Tree's sorrow?)... Several Elder Elves stood by the Twin Pool, their expressions Heavy and Solemn. In their hands, they held that emerald seed; within the seed, there seemed to be a tiny black thread, originating from the withered branch of the World Tree... "... Must purify it... otherwise the 'Seed' will also be contaminated..." "... Only the 'First Tear' can wash away this initial sorrow..."... They began to perform a complex and ancient ritual, guiding the energy of the Twin Pool to converge toward the center of the water...... In the center of the pool, on that black-and-white boundary line, a crystal-clear 'water droplet', simultaneously containing blue and white halos and resembling a liquid gem, was slowly coalescing into form... That was... the First Tear?... Just then, disaster struck! Terrifying explosions and impacts echoed from outside! The entire cave shook violently! The ritual was interrupted! That droplet of 'Tear', on the verge of formation, trembled violently, seeming extremely unstable...... An Elf completely corrupted by dark red (the very one from the previous memory fragments!) rushed in madly, lunging at that 'Tear'! "... Mine! All mine! The endless Thirst... needs to be filled!"... Amidst the chaotic struggle and explosions, that 'Tear' shattered! Most of the energy dissipated; only the smallest core of faint light shot violently into the nearby emerald seed...... And that corrupted Elf seized a small, shattered fragment of the 'Tear', dyed dark red, and swallowed it madly... He let out a more painful and crazed roar, his body beginning to mutate violently...... The image finally froze on his mutated arm clawing fiercely at his own chest...

The memory image cut off abruptly.

Xiang Lingna snapped her eyes open, gasping for air, drenched in cold sweat.

So that was it! The root of the 'Thirst' indeed originated from some 'sorrow' or contamination within the World Tree itself! And this Twin Pool was the key to purifying it! The 'First Tear' was the Key of Purification!

But the Tear had already shattered! Most of the energy dissipated, the core merged into the seed, and another part of the fragments... seemed to have created the first 'Chaos Devourer'?

So now... what should be done?

As if sensing her confusion and realization, the rotation speed of the entire Twin Pool increased slightly. Beneath the white sand in the center of the pool floor, something seemed to be glowing faintly.

Xiang Lingna submerged and used her hand to brush away the white sand.

Revealed beneath was a small crystal fragment, no larger than a fingernail, irregular in shape, with an incredibly smooth surface, simultaneously emitting a faint blue and white halo...

The energy fluctuation it emitted was so similar to that 'Tear' in the memory, only a million times weaker.

Was this... the last remaining fragment after the 'First Tear' shattered?

The instant her fingertip touched this tiny fragment—

The fragment suddenly flashed with a soft light! An incredibly pure, incredibly ancient purifying intent flowed into her heart like a clear spring.

At the same time, the remaining trace of dark red on her right leg, which had already been largely purified, melted and faded rapidly under the light of this fragment, like snow under the sun!

Finally, only a faint, silver-gray mark, resembling a scar, remained on the skin. All burning pain, numbness, greedy suction, and that cold sense of being watched had completely vanished!

Did it succeed?! Although it was not completely eradicated (a scar remained), the will of the 'Thirst' had indeed been purified!

Xiang Lingna held that tiny fragment, feeling the purification power contained within it—scant in quantity yet of supreme essence—and was so moved she nearly wept.

But she also knew this was merely treating the symptoms. As long as the 'sorrow' root of the World Tree remained, and as long as that black thread lingered inside the seed, the 'Thirst' could potentially breed again.

This fragment was too small; it was utterly incapable of completing true purification.

Needed... more energy? Or... a way to make the 'Tear' reunite?

Gazing at the slowly rotating Twin Pool water, a vague idea gradually took shape.

Perhaps... it could be attempted?

She gently placed that tiny fragment on the boundary line of the pool water, then stood firm again, concentrating all her spirit, attempting to guide the energy of the Twin Pool water, just as those Elder Elves had done in the memory, to slowly infuse into that fragment.

The pool water rippled slightly, and the light flowed.

That fragment, like a parched sponge, began slowly absorbing the energy of the Twin Pool's water, and the dual-colored halo on its surface seemed to brighten by an extremely faint trace.

It works! But at this rate, it would probably take countless years of accumulation…

Just as Xiang Lingna felt a trace of discouragement—

The thorn imprint on her left arm, and the scar imprint on her right leg that had already turned silver-gray, seemed—because of this active guidance and the special environment of the Twin Pool's water—to resonate at the same time!

A wisp of faint silver energy and a wisp of faint silver-gray energy flowed uncontrollably from her imprints, like two tiny streams, merging into the Twin Pool energy she was guiding, and together pouring into that "Tear" fragment!

Hum!

The fragment jolted violently! Its absorption speed suddenly increased several times over! The light visibly brightened by a trace!

Xiang Lingna was stunned. Her power… could actually accelerate this process?

A contradictory vessel… both hope and risk…

Could it be that her very existence—her complex state that combined Order and Chaos (already purified), Life and Thorn—was itself the key to catalyzing the reformation of this "Key of Purification"?

The fire of hope once again kindled in her heart.

She no longer hesitated, continuously guiding the energy of the Twin Pool's water, and carefully, balancedly attempting to pour her two utterly different imprint powers into it.

The fragment's light, at a speed visible to the naked eye, slowly grew brighter bit by bit…

She did not know how long had passed, just as she felt her spiritual and physical strength about to be exhausted once again—

Plop.

An extremely faint yet incomparably clear sound of dripping water suddenly came from the center of the pool, beneath that fragment.

Xiang Lingna lowered her head to look.

She saw a crystalline, translucent bead of liquid energy, the size of a grain of rice, simultaneously shimmering with sky-blue and milky-white dual-colored halos, slowly condensing and dripping from beneath that fragment, merging into the pool water below.

Though tiny, it radiated a pure, incomparable aura of purification, of the same origin as that drop of "Tear" in her memory!

The original Tear… was beginning to be reborn?!

Though it was only a negligible single drop, it represented true hope!

Xiang Lingna watched that tiny drop of Tear merge into the pool, feeling as though the pool's purifying aura had strengthened by an imperceptible trace, her heart filled with an indescribable excitement and sense of accomplishment.

She had found her direction!

However, the very instant her mind relaxed—

Gurgle gurgle…

A sudden sound, not coming from the pool, abruptly came from some dark corner of the cavern behind her.

Like… the sound of something wading through water?

Xiang Lingna's whole body stiffened violently, instantly jolted awake from her joy, and she whirled her head around alertly!

She saw—at the edge of the cavern, in the shadowed waters that the dual-colored light could not reach—a human figure had, at some unknown moment, silently appeared standing there!

That figure seemed to have just emerged from the water, soaked through, a black combat suit clinging tightly to the body, outlining a vigorous and familiar silhouette. Her head was lowered, wet hair covering her face, one hand hanging limply, while the other… gripped a dagger flickering with the cold light of energy.

The style of that dagger was incomparably familiar to Xiang Lingna—that was Sister Ai Li's dagger!

"…Ai Li… sis?" Xiang Lingna uttered that name in disbelief, her voice dry.

Hearing the sound, that figure slowly, extremely stiffly, raised its head.

Revealing an incomparably pale face, eyes hollow and vacant, yet with a strangely twisted smile at the corner of the mouth—Sister Ai Li's face!

"…Found… you…" 'Sister Ai Li's' lips moved, emitting a hoarse and broken voice, those hollow eyes staring fixedly at the glowing "Tear" fragment in Xiang Lingna's hand, filled with a cold, undisguised greed!

"Doctor… wants me… to bring you… and that light… back…"