Multiple Personalities

The old man's face was covered with wrinkles, yet his eyes revealed a wise glow.

He looked at the three of them, smiling slightly, as if he had long anticipated their arrival.

"You have finally come," the old man said softly, his voice hoarse and deep but carrying an irrefutable authority.

Shen Jingqi, Renault, and Li Baiyu were taken aback; they did not know who this old man was, nor why he was here waiting for them.

"And you are...?" Shen Jingqi asked tentatively.

The old man smiled faintly and stood up. "I am the Guardian of this forest and the answer you have been searching for," he said, slowly walking towards the entrance of the cave.

Moonlight shone through the sparse leaves, casting mottled shadows on him, adding a layer of silver rim. Each of his steps seemed unusually heavy as if he was carrying the burden of a millennia.

"Long ago, this forest was a vibrant, harmonious, and peaceful place." The old man's voice was particularly clear in the silent night, each word echoing as if from ancient times, "However, an evil force quietly grew, greedily devouring all life, attempting to turn this forest into a desolate wasteland."

Shen Jingqi, Renault, and Li Baiyu listened intently.

"To stop this evil force, the creatures of the forest united, using all their strength, condensed into a sealable fruit." The old man stopped at this point, looking deeply towards the depths of the cave.

"And I am the one responsible for guarding this fruit."

Shen Jingqi and the others suddenly realized why the old man was waiting for them. Yet new questions arose: "Then why are we here? What can we do?"

The old man turned around, his eyes radiating wisdom. "You are the chosen ones, destined to come for the sealing. Your arrival is the call of the forest and the arrangement of fate."

Soon, it was dawn.

The old man returned to the City of Time with Shen Jingqi, Li Baiyu, and Renault.

Eric embraced the old man warmly.

"Make haste," the old man instructed.

Under everyone's gaze, Shen Jingqi placed the mystical fruit on the altar, and the fruit instantly burst into dazzling light, illuminating the entire room.

Li Baiyu, on the other hand, embedded the ancient gemstone into a specially made groove, and the gemstone began to emit stable and powerful energy fluctuations.

They followed the steps of the ritual, integrating the five materials into the seal one by one.

As the ritual progressed, the sealing power gradually strengthened, and a warm and peaceful aura filled the entire room.

Just when Shen Jingqi and Li Baiyu breathed a sigh of relief, thinking everything was settled, Renault suddenly noticed something amiss. He stared intently at the groove where the ancient gemstone was embedded, his brows furrowed. "Look, the gemstone's light is dimming!"

Hearing this, Shen Jingqi and Li Baiyu's hearts tightened sharply. They quickly looked over and indeed found that the once brilliant gemstone was now emitting a faint glow, as if it could extinguish at any moment.

"What's happening?" Li Baiyu's voice carried a hint of panic; she couldn't believe what was happening before her eyes.

Shen Jingqi quickly calmed down, analyzing the possible reasons. "Although the sealing power has strengthened, it seems to lack a crucial element, causing the gemstone to be unable to provide stable energy continuously."

"So, what should we do?" Renault asked anxiously, a sense of unprecedented crisis looming over them.

After pondering for a moment, Shen Jingqi's gaze suddenly fell on the mystical fruit. The fruit was quietly lying on the altar, emitting a gentle glow.

"Could it be... related to the fruit?" Shen Jingqi proposed a bold hypothesis.

Li Baiyu and Renault heard this, and a glimmer of hope flashed in their eyes. They quickly took action, carefully taking the fruit from the altar and holding it cautiously.

"Let's try combining the fruit with the gemstone to see if it produces new changes," Shen Jingqi suggested.

The three of them stood around the groove, with Shen Jingqi carefully moving the fruit closer to the gemstone. At the moment when the fruit touched the gemstone, a surge of intense energy erupted from between them, illuminating the room once again.

"We did it!" Li Baiyu exclaimed excitedly, seeing the gemstone's glow once again becoming dazzlingly bright, even more than ever before.

Shen Jingqi and Renault also smiled with relief.

However, just as they were about to leave, a more peculiar phenomenon occurred. The mystical fruit suddenly began to melt under the gemstone's light, transforming into a clear liquid that slowly flowed into the groove.

"This is..." Shen Jingqi watched in astonishment, unable to comprehend what was happening before him.

Li Baiyu and Renault stood there stunned, never having seen such a magical phenomenon, their hearts filled with confusion and bewilderment.

The liquid rapidly spread in the groove, intertwining with the energy fluctuations emitted by the gemstone, forming a new, more stable sealing power. The atmosphere in the room also became more harmonious and tranquil.

"It seems the fruit exists to strengthen the seal," Shen Jingqi finally understood the true purpose of the fruit.

"Get ready, the resistance will begin," the old man's calm voice rang out.

At this moment, the ground of the Sealed Land began to tremble, as if a giant beast hidden beneath the crust was awakening, carrying endless anger and resentment.

Shen Jingqi and the others struggled to withstand the force's impact, their figures faintly visible in the darkness.

Shen Jingqi clenched his fists tightly, his muscles taut, focusing all his strength on resisting the sealing power's impact.

Renault stood at the forefront, the long sword in his hand glinting with a frosty light. He took a deep breath, then exhaled violently.

The evil force surged from the seal, bringing with it endless coldness and darkness, as if it wanted to devour the entire room. It resembled a rampaging torrent, mercilessly impacting the defense line constructed by Shen Jingqi and the others.

"Hold on, we must endure until that power is exhausted!" Li Baiyu's voice, though weak, was full of strength.

Time seemed to stand still at that moment. Shen Jingqi and the others were locked in a stalemate with the evil force. Their sweat dripped down their faces, landing on the ground with a crisp sound. Their breaths became rapid and heavy, yet their gaze never left the source of the evil force.

Just then, a faint voice suddenly echoed in Shen Jingqi's ear. The voice seemed to come from a distant space-time, imbued with an indescribable mystery and majesty. "Remember, true strength comes from within. Only when you truly believe in yourself can you unleash your greatest potential."

Shen Jingqi was startled, raising his head abruptly, trying to find the source of the voice. However, besides the darkness and evil forces, there was nothing. But he knew that the voice was real, coming from a corner deep within his own heart.