The ancient book lay open before them, and the mark on Sunri’s palm warmed, glowing brighter—

  like a miniature dawn rising beneath his skin.

  Mo?Dou hopped lightly onto the stone dais.

  Its golden eyes fixed on the patterns across the page, and with a graceful sweep of its tail—

  the entire chamber shuddered.

  The stone tiles beneath their feet began to rotate, emitting a deep, rhythmic mechanical hum,

  as though some slumbering colossus beneath the earth had awakened after ages of silence.

  The star?patterns on the walls dimmed at once.

  In their place, flowing copper lines lit up—

  like molten gold crawling through the cracks of the stone, sketching out unfamiliar gears and pipes.

  The air grew heavy and damp, thick with the scent of machine oil, coal smoke, and overheated metal—

  the breath of another world.

  “Hold on!” Sunri barked, pulling Pardy into his arms.

  The book burst with golden light—

  but this time it wasn’t gentle.

  It yanked at them with brutal force, as if invisible gears were locking into place in the void,

  dragging them toward a roaring, grinding elsewhere.

  Lin Che’s ears throbbed, pressure shifting like a sudden ascent.

  Instinctively, he adjusted his breathing—medical training kicking in.

  Ye Lingyun tightened his grip on his sword, inner force circulating to steady his stance.

  A flicker of astonishment crossed his eyes.

  This wasn’t movement explained by lightness arts.

  This was space itself folding.

  Mo?Dou’s silhouette blurred in the golden radiance,

  yet its golden eyes remained sharp and clear.

  The moment the light receded—

  the ground dropped beneath them.

  Not a landing.

  A tremor—

  as if the entire city they stood upon was shaking.

  A distant alarm boomed, slow and heavy,

  each pulse striking their chests like the heartbeat of a giant.

  Pardy’s face went pale, as though something unseen had pricked him.

  Mo?Dou landed with effortless grace.

  No bristling fur, no hiss—

  just a slight narrowing of its golden pupils.

  For a heartbeat, it seemed as if the entire world’s noise had funneled into its ears.

  Ye Lingyun suddenly clutched his chest with a muffled groan.

  The Azure?Cloud Sword trembled faintly, as though suppressing some restless impulse.

  Lin Che noticed, but said nothing.

  They looked up.

  The sky above them was cracking—

  fine fractures spreading like the ceiling of the stone chamber.

  The citizens on the street were startled,

  but orderly—

  clearly, this wasn’t their first time.

  Then the smell hit them:

  Coal smoke.

  Grease.

  Scorched metal.

  And the damp heaviness of fog.

  “Brace yourselves,” Sunri warned.

  The next second—

  the sky truly split open.

  Not a thin seam—

  but a massive black rift large enough to swallow buildings.

  Purple?black arcs crackled along its edges, expanding like a festering wound.

  People gasped but did not panic.

  They retreated swiftly beneath reinforced metal archways—

  a practiced evacuation drill.

  Pardy clung to Sunri’s collar, eyes reddening.

  Mo?Dou lifted a paw and pressed it lightly to the ground—

  a motion as elegant as plucking a zither string.

  The earth vibrated faintly beneath its touch.

  It was listening to the pulse of this world.

  From deep within the rift, something writhed.

  Bigger.

  Thicker.

  More malicious than the one in the stone chamber.

  “Void rift! All citizens, take shelter immediately!”

  Steam pipes along the street surged with pressure.

  Copper tubes vented thick white vapor,

  and the entire city seemed to inhale—

  then brace itself like a giant preparing to strike.

  A heavily armored figure leapt from a tall building,

  landing with enough force to crack the pavement.

  He raised an arm—

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  steam tanks on his back igniting with white flame—

  and shot into the air like a launched projectile.

  “Raaah—!”

  His fist slammed into the shadow’s core.

  The darkness compressed, twisted—

  then burst apart into black smoke,

  sucked back into the rift.

  The edges of the tear began to heal,

  but not completely.

  A thin thread of purple?black energy lingered in the air,

  floating like a venomous serpent refusing to disperse.

  Pardy stared at it, eyes watering.

  Mo?Dou flicked its tail as if swatting a fly,

  but its ears twitched—

  alert.

  Sunri’s sun?mark flared hot.

  The ancient book trembled in his arms—

  not updating,

  but warning.

  “…This world is marked by the Void too,” Sunri murmured.

  When the rift finally vanished, Hero City returned to order with startling efficiency.

  Only then did the four truly see the city:

  Broad streets.

  Milky steam seeping from cracks in the stone.

  Buildings wrapped in copper and iron pipes.

  Gas lamps glowing dimly through the fog.

  A distant clock tower chimed,

  sending a flock of iron?winged ravens into the air—

  their metallic feathers glinting.

  Ye Lingyun stared, dazzled.

  “What… manner of mechanism is this?”

  Lin Che frowned.

  “The air quality is terrible. Pardy’s respiratory system needs protection.”

  Pardy burrowed deeper into Sunri’s arms, nose wrinkling.

  This gray world, devoid of greenery, pressed on him instinctively.

  Mo?Dou walked ahead, light and unhurried,

  as if familiar with the place.

  Occasionally, it tapped the ground with the tip of its tail—

  as though confirming an invisible path.

  Lin Che studied the steam clouds rising from distant chimneys.

  “Boiling water produces high?pressure steam, which drives pistons and connecting rods…

  But at this scale, the engineering precision must be extraordinary.”

  Ye Lingyun shook his head.

  “The doctor always speaks in riddles. If it moves, it moves. What more is needed?”

  Lin Che replied calmly,

  “If you only care that something works and never ask why, how will knowledge advance?”

  “I need only know that a blade kills. Why ponder how steel is forged?”

  “Which is why you’ll never forge a new sword—

  only wait for others to make one for you.”

  “You—!”

  “Look ahead,” Sunri cut in.

  They walked along the street, hoping to gather information.

  In previous worlds, they always encountered key figures quickly.

  But this time, half an hour passed—

  and nothing happened,

  aside from curious glances from passersby.

  “Strange,” Sunri muttered.

  “Usually something happens right away.”

  “Perhaps the moment has not yet come,” Ye Lingyun said.

  They stopped before a clothing shop.

  Elegant suits and dresses filled the window display,

  their fabrics glowing softly under gaslight.

  “Let’s take a look. We should change clothes,” Sunri said.

  They stepped inside.

  The shop was bright and tidy.

  The clerk looked up—

  saw coarse cloth, ancient robes, a stained white coat, and a child—

  and his brows pinched instantly.

  “Welcome,” he said, tone strained.

  Sunri reached out to touch a fabric.

  Lin Che examined material and stitching.

  Ye Lingyun studied the joints of a mannequin.

  Pardy tugged at a silk scarf.

  The clerk’s face darkened.

  “If you’re not buying, please don’t touch the merchandise.”

  Sunri withdrew his hand awkwardly.

  “Sorry, we’re just looking—”

  “Looking is fine. Keep your distance.”

  The clerk’s gaze lingered on Ye Lingyun’s sword.

  “These are custom pieces. If you damage them, you can’t afford to pay.”

  Ye Lingyun, still studying the mannequin, murmured,

  “The structure is ingenious. If used for a puppet mechanism—”

  “Let’s go!” Sunri dragged him out.

  Pardy nearly toppled a rack with the scarf.

  The clerk snatched it back and grabbed a broom.

  “Don’t come back! Strange people!”

  Outside, Ye Lingyun blinked.

  “Why was he angry? I was merely observing—”

  “In his eyes, we were suspicious and rude,” Lin Che said.

  Sunri suddenly froze.

  “Wait… we don’t have money for this world.”

  Ye Lingyun pulled out a pouch.

  “Gold and silver are universal, are they not?”

  Before Sunri could retort, a gust of wind slapped a newspaper onto his face.

  He peeled it off—

  and to his shock,

  he could read it.

  The headline blared:

  “Steel?Vein Brotherhood Betrays the City!

  Chief Engineer Kyle Roan Attempts to Seize the Power Core!”

  “City Guardian Jackson Leads Heroic Suppression!”

  The black?and?white photo showed a heavily armored man standing amid wreckage,

  surrounded by fallen mechanical constructs.

  The article overflowed with praise for the Guardian

  and condemnation for “traitor Kyle Roan.”

  Sunri frowned.

  This was clearly the central conflict of this world—

  yet they had not been drawn into it.

  “Looks like we’ll need to seek out clues ourselves,” Sunri said.

  “Let’s find a place to stay first.”

  The clock tower chimed again,

  sending iron?winged ravens into the gray sky.

  They flew toward the far side of the city—

  where chimneys rose like black spires,

  belching smoke.

  Mo?Dou suddenly turned,

  golden eyes fixed on the direction of the clock tower.

  Its tail swayed.

  It had heard something.

  Beneath the turning gears of this steam?driven world,

  there was a faint, discordant sound—

  a crack hidden beneath the roar.

  Lin Che disagrees.

  Sunri refuses to comment.

  Pardy was still holding the scarf—

  until the shopkeeper snatched it back.

  (A moment later, the shopkeeper yelped,

  as if something had sliced his ankle.)

  MoDou walked past slowly,

  its claws retracting one by one.