# Chapter Two:
Kai Lin woke to the sound of raindrops falling on his small room's window. His body ached, and his head spun, as if a thousand invisible hands were tampering with the pathways of his mind. Yesterday's images were still vivid in his memory: the wooden box, the stone eye, and the screams that tore through his consciousness. It wasn't a dream; it was reality. The stone eye, which Mr. Wu had called "the Eye of Perception," lay on the table beside his bed, emitting a faint glow, as if watching his every move.
Kai Lin rose with difficulty and walked towards the window. Celestia's alleys looked gloomier than ever. The shadows were deeper, and the sounds more chaotic. He felt as if the city itself was breathing, and every stone in it whispered ancient secrets. His "Fragmented Perception Disorder" had reached its peak, making him see layers of reality he had never perceived before. He saw faint auras around passersby, and lines of energy intertwining in the air, as if the whole world was a complex web of hidden forces.
"Am I crazy?" Kai Lin wondered softly, as his eyes roamed the room. The whispers in his head grew stronger, but they were no longer screams. They were words, incomprehensible words, but they carried a strange rhythm, as if part of a forgotten language.
He remembered Mr. Wu's words: "Such things choose their owners." Had the stone eye chosen him? And what did that mean? Was he cursed? Or was this the beginning of something else?
Kai Lin decided to return to Mr. Wu. He was the only one who seemed to understand what was happening to him. He picked up the stone eye, feeling a strange coldness run through his hand. It was unexpectedly heavy, as if it carried a weight far greater than its size.
When he arrived at Mr. Wu's shop, he found it closed. A "Closed" sign hung on the door, and dust covered the facade. Kai Lin felt disappointed. He had hoped for answers, but found himself alone again.
"Are you looking for Mr. Wu?" a rough voice asked from behind him. Kai Lin turned to find another old man, sitting on a wooden chair in the corner of the street, smoking a pipe similar to Mr. Wu's. The man wore ragged clothes, and his eyes held a wise gaze.
"Yes, do you know where he went?" Kai Lin asked.
"Mr. Wu? He disappeared. Like many others. They appear, then they disappear. That's how this world is, my son. Nothing lasts." The old man said, exhaling smoke into the air.
Kai Lin felt his heart clench. Mr. Wu disappeared? Was it because of the stone eye? Was something chasing him?
"What do you mean by 'others'?" Kai Lin asked, as the whispers in his head grew stronger, as if trying to tell him something.
"Those who see. Those who understand. Those who dare to look beyond the veil. They are few, but they exist. And the world doesn't like them. The world likes to remain in its ignorance." The old man said, staring at Kai Lin with piercing eyes. "You are one of them now, aren't you?"
Kai Lin was shocked. How did this man know? Did he see what he saw?
"Don't be afraid, my son. It's a gift, not a curse. But it's a gift that comes with a price. And the price is that you will never see the world as others do. You will be alone in your perception." The old man said, then slowly rose and walked towards a dark alley. "Seek the truth, my son. It's there, waiting for someone to dare to uncover it."
The old man disappeared into the darkness, leaving Kai Lin alone in the street, holding the stone eye, and whispers filling his head. He no longer felt fear, but a strange sense of responsibility. There was a hidden world, a world others didn't see, and he was now a part of it. The stone eye was not just an artifact; it was a key, a key to a new world, a world full of mystery, danger, and the truth he had been searching for his entire life. His journey had just begun.