As morning light crept over the Reverse Scale Squad's hovercar in Tokyo Bay, the navigation screen suddenly flashed blood-red text: "Glyph Sanctuary coordinates activated—please proceed with Reverse Scale Core."
"This is..." Xiaotao's star meteorite bracelet burned hot, deep blue energy condensing into the same spiral glyphs as the Reverse Scale Core on the screen. "Mentioned in Xiaokui's father's research logs!"
A Jiu's shadow crows burst from her hair, circling the window. Dark purple mist seeped from their feathers, sketching an ancient star map in the air—at its center, a cloud-shrouded mountain peak held a stone structure carved with spiral glyphs, resembling an enlarged human heart.
"That's..." Sakura's Cherry Glyph glowed pink as her fingertip touched the window. "I've seen it in ancient texts! The 'Symbiotic Sanctuary' of ancient Glyph Masters, legend has it the birthplace of Glyph Origin."
Lanye clenched his Reverse Scale Core. Its dark gold glyphs visibly resonated with the star map, answering a millennium-old call.
"Let's go," he told the team. "This time, we meet the 'mother' of glyphs."
—
As the hovercar pierced clouds, the sea below roiled. Countless glowing fish leaped, each scale etched with Reverse Scale spirals. They formed a silver light ribbon, guiding the hovercar to land on a platform before the sanctuary.
Above the sanctuary's lintel, weathered ancient characters read: "Glyphs are not tools; human hearts are their guide."
"Welcome to the 'Symbiotic Sanctuary'." A white-haired elder greeted them, his Glyph Core embedded in a chest bone ornament, spiral glyphs matching the sanctuary walls. "I am Ming Yuan, 'Sanctuary Guardian', waiting here for three hundred years."
Ming Yuan's voice carried age without weariness. His fingertip brushed the stone wall, activating holographic images: in ancient times, humanity faced extinction from natural disasters. Seven Glyph Masters used their lives to condense heaven-earth energy into the "Glyph Origin", sealed in the sanctuary. The Origin split into seven "Glyph Seeds", gifted to guardians with the vow: "Guided by love, bonded by heart, glyphs shall forever protect the world."
"Were those seven guardians..." Lanye's voice shook, "including Xiaokui's mother?"
Ming Yuan's bone ornament shrieked. His fingertip touched Lanye's core, switching the image: a woman in a white coat held infant Xiaokui in a lab. Her Glyph Core resonated with the Origin, and dark gold glyphs like the Reverse Scale Core appeared on the baby's wrist.
"Xiaokui is the seventh guardian's descendant," Ming Yuan said with relief. "Her mother sealed Origin fragments in her to prevent the 'Symbiotic Experiment' from stealing its power."
A Jiu's crows wailed. Her shadow mist tugged another memory from the image: Xiaokui's father in a lab, a gene test tube oozing black slime. His Glyph Core resonated with the tube, revealing files for the "Glyph Enhancement Plan".
"So that's why..." Su Li's voice trembled as her Cherry Glyph resonated with the Time Glyph cocoon. "Xiaokui's father wasn't forced—he was an accomplice."
Ming Yuan's ornament shimmered silver. Another image appeared: on a stormy night five hundred years ago, seven guardians held a "Glyph Resonance Ceremony" in the sanctuary. One guardian (similar to Wu Wang) went berserk, his core rejecting the Origin and trying to consume others. The remaining six sealed him with their lives, shattering the Origin into seven seeds.
"Therefore..." Lanye gripped his core. "The Star Beast remnant, Mirror Turbulence, Time Contamination—all because polluted Origin shards seek hosts?"
Ming Yuan nodded: "The Glyph Origin is the world's 'heart of life'. When shattered, each shard carried its creator's will. Some chose protection (like Xiaokui's mother), some consumption (like the Star Beast), some distortion (like Mirror Tech). And you, Reverse Scale Squad," his gaze swept them, "are heirs to the seven guardians—Lanye's Blazing Flame, Su Li's Cherry, Xiaotao's Star Meteorite, A Jiu's Shadow Crows, Sakura's Healing, Wu Wang's Mirror, my Time—exactly the seven Origin glyphs."
The sanctuary quaked. Wall spirals peeled back, revealing dark gold chains—seals set by the berserk guardian's core three hundred years ago.
"Not good!" Ming Yuan urged. "Origin shards sense contamination, awakening the berserk guardian's remnant!"
The ground cracked, spilling black slime. Translucent figures emerged: Xiaokui's father in a lab coat, the Mechanical Glyph Master, Star Beast remnant, Mirror Symbiote... Their cores resonated with the Reverse Scale Core, merging into a dark purple giant core.
"This is..." Lanye's core trembled. "All polluted shards are trying to reform the Origin!"
Ming Yuan's ornament shrieked. He touched the sanctuary's central platform, where spirals glowed gold: "Now! Press your Glyph Cores to the Origin! Use your love to awaken its original will!"
Lanye's core blazed gold. He held Xiaotao's hand, pressing her star meteorite bracelet to the Origin; A Jiu's crows dissolved into dark purple mist, binding the Mechanical Glyph Master's remnant; Sakura's Cherry Glyph bloomed into a pink orb, wrapping the Mirror Symbiote's consciousness; Su Li's glyph merged with the Time Glyph cocoon, touching the Star Beast's chains; Wu Wang's ornament shimmered silver, freezing the berserk guardian's time with Time Glyph resonance.
"In the name of the Reverse Scale," Lanye's voice pierced the roar, "By the oath of comrades,
"Awaken the true self, return to the light!"
Seven Glyph Cores lit up—gold, pink, deep blue, dark purple, snow white, silver, dark gold—weaving a net around the dark purple core. It quaked, cracking as polluted shards struggled and yearned for redemption.
"Remember our original hearts?" Lanye looked at his team. "Xiaotao, to protect your mother's smile; A Jiu, to never lose someone important; Sakura, to spread warmth; Su Li, to fulfill your mother's wish; Wu Wang, to guard time's truth; Ming Yuan, to return glyphs to love... "
His gaze fell on his own core: "And we, to prove—glyph power isn't for consumption or control, but connection and protection."
The core's cracks healed. Dark purple faded, revealing a snow-white Origin inscribed with ancient characters: "Love is symbiosis; the heart is eternal."
Sanctuary walls smoothed, spirals glowing warm gold. Ming Yuan's ornament chimed as he touched the Origin, which split into seven lights merging with their cores.
"Congratulations," he said warmly. "You've completed the seven guardians' 'Symbiosis Ceremony'. From today, the Reverse Scale Core is no longer single—it's the collective will of seven guardians, remembering your love and passing it to all in need."
Morning light pierced the dome, gilding them. Xiaokui's pendant floated from Lanye's palm, resonating with the core in a clear ring.
"So that's it..." Xiaotao teared up. "Glyphs' meaning is to remember: love is the mightiest glyph."
A Jiu's crows circled, dark purple mist forming "Hope". Sakura's petals floated to the Origin, weaving a new totem.
Wu Wang's ornament shimmered: "Glyph power isn't a tool—it's the human heart. When we choose to connect with love, glyphs naturally protect the world."
Ming Yuan reinserted his ornament, tears in his wrinkles: "Three hundred years ago, I failed to stop the berserk guardian. Today, you showed me glyphs' most beautiful form."
Lanye felt global glyph fluctuations gain a warm pulse—a "protection net" woven by seven guardians' will and ordinary people's love.
"Next," he turned to the team, "we'll go everywhere to show: glyphs aren't weapons—they're the heartbeat connecting us to the world."
As the hovercar started, its glyph trail stretched long in the mist. The squad's glyphs shone together—star meteorite blue, cherry pink, crow purple, time silver—weaving a new totem like a star track to the future, unfurling between heaven and earth.