The world twisted as Kai stepped into the chamber's core. The Memory Crucible burned with a strange violet flame, not hot, but humming with something older than spirit energy—memory. Not just his, but countless others that had touched this ancient artifact.
The flame reached toward him like a living thing, and the moment it grazed his skin, reality tore away.
Kai blinked.
He was standing in a body not his own.
Calloused hands, a warrior's robes, and the heavy scent of war filled the air. Screams echoed in the distance. He looked up to see a collapsing fortress, celestial beasts rampaging through the halls.
He wasn't Kai anymore.
He was... someone else. A cultivator who had once died protecting this land.
Before he could understand more, the vision changed.
Now he was a child, clutching a jade pendant in the darkness. Outside, a village burned. The pendant hummed with dormant energy—but the child was too afraid to use it. The fear, the guilt, the helplessness—they weren't his, but they seared into Kai's soul all the same.
One by one, the lives passed through him. Warriors. Scholars. Traitors. Saints.
Each time, a lesson carved itself into his mind. Regret. Courage. Sacrifice. Betrayal.
And through it all, one thing became clear: these weren't random memories.
They were all connected.
Each of them had been a bearer of the flame.
When he awoke, the chamber was quiet. The violet fire still burned—but now it shimmered faintly with gold.
A voice, ancient and tired, echoed in his mind.
"You carry their will now, Kai. And their burden."
His hands trembled as the jade flame etched a glowing mark onto his palm.
A sigil.
Not a reward—but a key.