Legend of the Embroiderer

Chapter 462 The Mystery of the Temple

The blinding light receded like the tide, and the fused being felt dizzy and nauseous, as if its internal organs had been kneaded and re-kneaded.

She staggered and steadied herself against the guardian, her fingernails digging deep into his damaged armor before she could barely maintain her balance.

When her vision finally cleared, the sight before her made her hold her breath—the three of them were in an ancient temple suspended in a sea of ​​stars.

The temple is like a dazzling crystal pearl, constructed from translucent crystals, each crystal refracting a dreamlike halo.

Inside, silvery liquid starlight flows, like a galaxy cascading down, meandering into mysterious patterns on the ground.

The runes engraved on the ground emitted a faint light, resonating with the blue crystal on Xiaoying's chest. Golden ripples spread out like waves, casting swaying light and shadow on the crystal wall, as if countless mysterious eyes were watching them.

"Is this the Temple of Time?" The guardian's voice was hoarse and wary. The silver mark on his arm still flickered irregularly, each pulsation accompanied by a slight twitch in his body, as if an electric current was coursing through him, causing him to frown.

Before the words were finished, a piercing scraping sound came from above. The temple dome seemed to be torn open by an invisible giant hand, and twelve bronze giants holding spears slowly descended.

With each step they took, a tremor was set off, and the runes on the ground glowed with a blood-red light as they shook, as if an ancient curse had been awakened.

Eerie purple flames burned in the giant's hollow eye sockets, and black slime seeped from the cracks covering his body, emitting a nauseating stench. The slime dripped onto the ground, instantly corroding into pits that emitted black smoke.

"Trespassers shall die."

The leading giant spoke, his voice like boulders rubbing against each other, carrying an ancient sense of vicissitude and coldness.

The spear in his hand suddenly grew larger, its tip pointing directly at the fused entity, moving with lightning speed. The fused entity hurriedly condensed a light shield, and a tri-colored light shone in front of her, but it became extremely unstable, flickering like a candle in the wind.

The light shield swayed violently under the impact of the spear, its surface rippling with a hissing sound, threatening to shatter at any moment.

Worse still, the guardian's body suddenly lunged uncontrollably toward the giant, the silver mark resonating with the cracks on the giant's body, emitting a piercing buzz.

His sword began to greedily absorb the black slime seeping from the giant. With each drop he absorbed, his eyes grew increasingly crazed, and his reason was gradually swallowed by darkness.

"Guardian! Wake up!"

The fusion entity shouted anxiously, its voice trembling with tears.

She rushed forward and grabbed his armor, but was violently thrown away by a powerful force, falling heavily to the ground, a trickle of blood spilling from the corner of her mouth.

At this critical moment, Xiao Ying suddenly broke free from her embrace, and the blue crystal shone brightly, illuminating the entire temple.

The light projected a huge star map onto the ground. The location of the Chaos Sphere was marked in a striking red on the star map, while a golden dot of light flickered at the core of the Temple of Time, as if guiding something.

With her tender steps, Xiao Ying stretched out her little hand and pressed it against the spot of light. With a loud "boom," the temple floor cracked open, revealing a stone tablet inscribed with the words of the first observers.

The inscriptions on the stone tablet suddenly lit up under the illumination of the blue crystal, and a long-forgotten memory surfaced like a tide:

In ancient times, the Sage of Time, in order to control the Infant of Chaos, exhausted his efforts, using half of his own essence to forge the Blue Light Crystal, and the other half to inject into the core of the Temple of Time, building a powerful defense.

Over the long years, the gatekeeper's mind was warped by the power of chaos. He stole the "method of rebirth of chaos" recorded on the stone tablet, attempting to use the power of the Chaos Infant to reshape the order of the universe, plunging everything into darkness and chaos.

At this moment, the sphere in the gatekeeper's hand is frantically absorbing energy from various timelines. Once completed, the Chaos Infant will be reborn with the gatekeeper as its leader, bringing about a devastating catastrophe.

"So we've all been tricked!" The fused entity's voice was filled with anger and resentment, its eyes red-rimmed.

She endured the pain in her body and poured the power of her starry eyes into the stone tablet, attempting to activate the temple's defense system and turn the tide.

But as soon as he circulated his power, he felt an unfamiliar force resisting him. The star-shaped mark on his chest was covered by a layer of dark purple patterns. Every time he exerted his strength, he felt a tearing pain, as if countless steel needles were piercing his heart.

The guardian's body was completely covered in black slime, his eyes were completely consumed by madness, and he swung his sword to sever the fusion's shaky light shield, the blade pointing straight at her throat.

At the critical moment, the stone tablet suddenly burst forth with a dazzling light, and within the light, the phantom of the Sage of Time appeared.

The phantom's face was kind yet tinged with worry. He raised his hand and touched the guardian's brow. The silver mark instantly burst forth with intense light, the radiance like a sharp sword, evaporating all the black slime.

"His bloodline contains the dual powers of observer and gatekeeper, which are currently in conflict."

The Sage of Time's voice, tinged with a sigh, echoed throughout the temple, "And you, fused being, your starry eyes are not only the key to unlocking the seal, but also the crucial element in balancing chaos..."

Before the Sage of Time could finish speaking, the temple suddenly shook violently, as if a strong earthquake had occurred.

The gatekeeper's voice came from all directions, full of mockery and smugness:

"Think finding the stone tablet will turn the tide? Too late!"

The power of the Chaos Sphere pierced through space and time, tearing a huge rift in the sky above the temple. Darkness surged out from the rift like a tide, and countless black tentacles reached out from it, like a group of hungry monsters, frantically wrapping around the stone tablet.

Xiaoying's blue crystal resonated with the crack, and her body began to fly uncontrollably toward the crack, her eyes filled with terror and confusion, her little hands waving helplessly in the air.

The fusion rushed towards Xiaoying without regard for its own safety, but was bounced back by a dark purple barrier and fell to the ground.

As she looked at her hands, which were gradually being covered by dark purple patterns, she suddenly remembered the crazed version of herself inside the sphere, and a chill ran through her.

Deep within the rift, the gatekeeper appeared with a twisted smile, his black robes fluttering in the darkness like the wings of death.

On the surface of the sphere in his hand, the face of the Chaos Infant had fully taken shape, and it was slowly opening its eyes, which exuded an aura of destruction. Wherever it went, space began to distort and deform.

The illusory figure of the Sage of Time gradually dissipated in the light, leaving only the last words: "Remember, the key to balance lies in embracing all possibilities..."

The temple began to collapse amidst violent tremors, its crystal walls shattering and silvery liquid starlight scattering everywhere.

The fused entity, the guardian, and Xiao Ying were drawn closer and closer by the pull of the rift, while the first cry of the Chaos Infant quietly rang out from the other side of time and space. That sound was like the horn of doomsday, foreshadowing a cataclysmic change that would overturn all understanding...