Outer Perimeter of the Gray Domain – Entry Layer
Three hours after Lu Feng's successful awakening of the Second Chain, he and Kaelin stood at the very edge of the Gray Domain's true threshold.
This place had no name.
The air shimmered like broken glass. Space bent in unnatural curves. Here, reality blurred, and even spiritual laws began to dissolve.
Behind them, the Bureau's escort team held their position. Only soul-bonded pairs could pass through the threshold.
"I'm ready," Kaelin said softly.
Lu Feng turned to her. "You're still recovering."
"I'm not afraid."
They stepped forward together—into the breach.
Within the Rift – The Mind's Mirror
Almost immediately, the world shifted.
For Kaelin, the landscape warped.
Suddenly, she stood in her old office.
Except it wasn't real.
On the walls hung endless disciplinary reports, stamped with accusations:"Cold-blooded." "Overstepped authority." "Emotionally unstable." "Unfit for bonding."
She froze. "No... this isn't—"
The wall melted.
A shadow stepped forward.
She recognized the face.It was hers.
But twisted. Cold. Dressed in a black cloak. Empty-eyed.
"Who are you?" Kaelin demanded.
"I am the Kaelin you never let speak," the shadow said."I am the one who never trusted love. Who watched people die and decided feeling nothing was safer."
Kaelin trembled.
"You're not me."
"I am.""I'm the reason you don't believe Lu Feng will survive.I'm the reason you're ready to run again."
Chains of light lashed from the walls, wrapping around Kaelin.Her soul chain began to shudder.
Her bond was fracturing.
Reality – Outer Chamber
"She's slipping!" Chen Xi shouted. "Her soul resonance is splitting again—this time at the core!"
"She's being dragged into emotional collapse," Zhao Ting muttered.
Lu Feng didn't hesitate.
He reconnected his soul thread.Not by force—But by memory.
He let their shared moments flow across the link:The first time she patched his wounds.The time she stood in front of him during a Bureau interrogation.Her words, whispered after a long mission:
"I'll protect you even if it ruins me."
Within the Mind Mirror
Light pierced through the dark Kaelin.
She flinched.
Then—Lu Feng's voice echoed around her:
"You don't have to win.You just have to come home."
Kaelin took a shaky breath.
She looked at her shadow-self.
"You protected me for too long," she whispered."But I want to live now. Even if it means feeling everything."
She stepped forward—and embraced her darkest self.
The chains broke.
The mirror shattered.
Reality – Chamber
Kaelin awoke, gasping. Her eyes focused on Lu Feng, who was holding her tightly.
"I met her," she whispered.
"The version of me I hated most."
"Is she gone?" he asked.
"No. She's part of me now."
"But I can live with her."
Lu Feng smiled, brushing hair from her face.
"Then we'll move forward—together."