This time, Qingsai stood at the center of the pool and closed his eyes. Instead of trying to control the water, he opened his heart.
He remembered:
Sandora laughing when she mispronounced his name.
Yuwen standing on the back of Ruisu, waiting.
The day he caught fish by the river in Lotus Basin.
Warmth, regret, hope.
The water shimmered—and this time, it rose with him. Spirals of liquid formed a halo around his body, moving in rhythm with his breathing.
Selari watched, lips curling into a soft smile.
> "Now, you are listening."
Qingsai turned his hands and let the water form wings—one made of memory, one of flow.
> "This is the first lesson," Selari said. "The Mirror Current is never mastered. It is remembered."
As the water coiled around him like living silk, Qingsai whispered, "Thank you…"
> Selari nodded. "Now, you are ready to learn the second path: Tidepulse—the song of motion."