DEEMED WORTHY

"The way out?" Li Hao wondered aloud, studying the impossible structure.

"More than that," Li Wei replied, his scholar's insight picking up subtle patterns in the light. "It's an acknowledgment. The labyrinth is showing us our path forward—not just out of here, but beyond the Sixth Realm itself."

Li Hua touched the nearest step, feeling its solid reality despite its ethereal appearance. "Together, then?" she asked, though she already knew her brothers' answer.

They ascended as one, their footsteps leaving brief afterimages of light on each stair. The higher they climbed, the more the air changed—becoming clearer, lighter, filled with the promise of dawn. Above them, stars began to appear in what had seemed like mere darkness, forming constellations they had never seen before.