The archive team gathered at the long table for a final check of the research copy. Ena read each page label. Daro compared them against the original shelf list. Lian kept the entry record, noting every sheet the travelers would carry and every original that remained behind.
The copy began with Yun Cang’s work on harmful cultivation feedback. The notes described a practitioner’s own circulation being redirected into a beneficial result. The cylinder transcript supplied a broken sentence about a catalyst. The index listed a sealed shard later classified as inert material.
Nothing showed where the shard went after the central bureau. Nothing identified it with certainty as Yun Cang’s catalyst.
Ena placed the catalog mark beneath the lens again. The final stroke could be a one or a seven. She wrote both readings on the copy and left the original unchanged.
“Gu’s Ashfall number is a separate reference,” Daro said. “It may match either reading. It does not correct the island entry.”
He attached Gu’s note to the packet as an external comparison, marked pending confirmation. The catalog record remained as it had been found.
Qinghe reviewed the transcription against Yan’s account. The personal conversion described in the notes was consistent with what Yan experienced. The words did not suggest another person paid for his benefit. They also did not name Yan or a future recipient.
