The New Zealand safehouse perched on a cliff overlooking the Tasman Sea, its cedar walls kissed by salt spray, the air alive with gulls and the crash of waves. Ruoxi sat on a woven mat, the phoenix blood book open before her, its golden script pulsing softly, a beacon of the pact—"choice, sacrifice, heart to bind". Her face scar from Nadia's claw was faint, healed by rest, but her heart bore Mali's weight—Lian's sacrifice, Xingxing's fall, Wei's loss. The phoenix tattoo glowed steadily—heart-driven, balanced—its fire renewed by Mei and Einar's sparks, though a new purpose stirred, sparked by global Keeper enclaves.