The central mountain of the Azure Cloud Sect towered above all the others.
Its summit pierced the clouds, and at its heart stood the **Hall of Ancestors**, a solemn temple built from white jade and black stone. Countless tablets bearing the names of past Sect Masters lined its walls.
Normally, only elders were permitted to enter.
Tonight, however, the sacred hall stood eerily empty.
The battle outside raged on.
The temple itself remained silent.
Lin Mo, Chen Yu, and Han Qiu raced up the long stone path.
Behind them, flashes of spiritual techniques illuminated the night sky.
The roar of spirit beasts mixed with the clash of swords.
"Hurry!" Chen Yu shouted.
"The barrier won't hold much longer!"
They reached the massive bronze doors.
As Lin Mo pressed Elder Han's jade token against the lock...
**Click.**
The doors opened by themselves.
Inside, hundreds of ancestral tablets rested upon towering shelves.
Incense still burned before them.
Despite the chaos outside, not a single grain of ash had fallen.
Han Qiu frowned.
"Something feels... wrong."
Lin Mo nodded.
"It feels too quiet."
Just then—
**Tick...**
The silver watch pulsed.
His **Chrono Sense** activated.
The world transformed into countless streams of silver light.
Every thread flowed naturally...
Except one.
A single crimson thread extended beneath the largest ancestral tablet.
"There."
Lin Mo pointed.
"There's something underneath."
The three of them pushed aside the massive stone tablet.
Beneath it lay an ancient bronze plate engraved with twelve circles.
At its center was a keyhole.
Lin Mo slowly inserted the silver key given to him by the historian.
The instant it turned—
**BOOOOOOM!**
The floor shook violently.
The bronze plate split apart, revealing a spiral staircase descending into darkness.
A cold wind rushed upward.
It carried a scent unlike anything they had ever experienced.
Ancient.
Forgotten.
Timeless.
"I'll go first," Lin Mo said.
Chen Yu shook his head.
"We go together."
The three descended cautiously.
Each step echoed through the darkness.
The deeper they traveled, the colder the air became.
After several minutes...
The staircase ended before an enormous underground chamber.
All three disciples stopped in disbelief.
The cavern was larger than the entire Hall of Ancestors above.
At its center floated a gigantic silver bell suspended by twelve glowing chains.
It was unlike any bell they had ever seen.
Runes flowed endlessly across its surface.
Each rune resembled the markings inside Lin Mo's watch.
"The Ancient Time Bell..."
Lin Mo whispered.
The moment he stepped closer—
The bell rang by itself.
**DONG...**
The sound wasn't loud.
Yet it resonated deep within his soul.
Visions flooded his mind.
He saw the Twelve Keepers standing beneath this very bell.
He saw the Guardian placing his hand upon it.
He saw an infant wrapped in silver cloth...
Carried away through a burning battlefield.
The infant wore...
The same silver watch.
Lin Mo staggered backward.
"No..."
"That child..."
"...was me."
Before anyone could speak—
A slow clap echoed through the chamber.
"Wonderful."
A familiar voice emerged from the shadows.
The crimson-eyed man stepped into the light.
Behind him stood dozens of black-robed cultivators.
"So the hidden chamber really existed."
He smiled at Lin Mo.
"I should thank you."
"You opened the way for us."
Chen Yu drew his sword.
"You used us!"
The stranger laughed.
"Of course."
"I knew the heir would eventually find the key."
Suddenly—
Another figure descended from above.
An Azure Cloud Sect elder.
His white robes fluttered gently as he landed beside the invaders.
Chen Yu's eyes widened.
"E-Elder Zhao?"
The elder slowly removed the jade badge from his chest.
Then he crushed it beneath his foot.
"I abandoned that name long ago."
For an instant...
His eyes turned crimson.
Han Qiu clenched his fists.
"The traitor..."
The elder smiled.
"I've served the Eclipse Court for over three hundred years."
"My mission was simple."
"Wait."
"And when the heir appears..."
"Open the path."
Outside, another deafening explosion echoed.
The sect's protective barrier finally shattered.
Cracks of black lightning spread across the heavens.
The Azure Cloud Sect was no longer protected.
Back inside the chamber, the crimson-eyed man looked toward the floating bell.
"Break the chains."
Immediately, the black-robed cultivators attacked.
Spiritual techniques crashed against the twelve glowing chains.
The chamber trembled.
One chain...
Snapped.
**CRACK!**
The Ancient Time Bell released a wave of silver light.
Lin Mo instinctively shielded his eyes.
Then—
The silver watch around his neck floated into the air.
Its hands began spinning wildly.
**Tick... Tick... Tick...**
The Guardian's voice echoed from within the watch.
> "Lin Mo..."
> "The First Seal has been broken."
> "The Trial of Time... begins now."
At that very moment, the floor beneath the bell split open.
A colossal stone staircase emerged, descending into an abyss that no light could reach.
The crimson-eyed man smiled.
"So the legends were true."
"The **Tomb of the Twelve Keepers**."
Without hesitation, he stepped onto the staircase.
Lin Mo looked at Chen Yu and Han Qiu.
Neither of them spoke.
They didn't need to.
Together, the three friends followed the enemy into the darkness below, unaware that the true secrets of the Chrono Heart—and the fate of Lin Mo's parents—awaited them in the depths.