Muo arranged a route through three rooms to test whether Yan could gather separate information without confusing it. A painted fish hung in the first room. The second held a ledger mark on a slate. In the third, a brass chime rested beside an open window.
“Read what you see and report the order,” Qinghe said. “We’ll check each description against the object.”
Yan formed a projection at each prepared lantern. The fish was painted blue, with a red tail. The mark on the slate was a three-line tally. The chime had a split down one side of its bell. He held the three locations apart in his attention, then named each in sequence.
Qinghe checked the rooms. “All correct.”
Han asked him to recall the projections. The three views withdrew smoothly. Yan felt the same strengthening cohesion that had followed each complete division. His energy remained steady.
“Let’s change the rooms,” Han said.
While Yan’s projections were withdrawn, she turned the fish painting upside down and replaced the ledger mark with a red cord. She left the chime where it was. The attendants made no sound while the room was reset.
Yan divided his awareness again. He saw the fish upside down and noticed the cord where the tally had been. He identified both changes. The chime remained in its place.
