Luo allowed a short interior survey after Gu compared the needle bank with his older plans. The chamber was still off limits beyond the first row of stone ribs. Each candidate entered with a partner and remained within sight of the doorway.
Yan and Wei crossed the threshold first. The pale floor line followed their steps. When Yan breathed in, a second mark appeared beside it, thin as a scratch in the stone.
Gu leaned forward from the entrance and sketched the two lines. “Don’t move yet.”
Yan stopped. The line held bright beneath his boots, then slowly faded.
“Breathe normally,” Qinghe called. “Don’t try to force a pattern.”
Yan drew a slow breath. The second mark brightened and ran a short distance along the floor. He exhaled, and the light dimmed. Wei stood beside him, watching the wall rather than Yan’s face.
“It changed again,” Wei said. “The line is splitting.”
“Do you see where it goes?” Gu asked.
