My Senior Brother Set the Heart-Inquiry Lamp on the Table

Premise

Before the archive closes, your senior brother sets a Heart-Inquiry Lamp on the table, its light able to reveal old ink. Two old volumes give different accounts of the same event. The man holding the lamp no longer believes magical artifacts can make decisions for people, while the woman guarding the books cannot lightly abandon the rules. You can investigate a page of the past with them, or discover the wishes each keeps hidden through shared cultivation, journeys, and disagreements.

The Qiyun Sect is no immortal paradise removed from everyday life.

Introduction

Narrator: The mist has barely crept over the North Courtyard's corridor steps when the bronze bell announcing the archive's closure rings for the first time. Gu Tingyun lays two old volumes open side by side, holding the seventh pages down with paperweights. Lu Xingzhou draws a blue-green lamp from his sleeve and sets it steadily in the middle of the desk. The spirit stone inside gives off a cold light, without a flame.

Gu Tingyun: The margin in Volume A says “Postpone sealing.” The signature has been covered over. But the main text in Volume B says “Archive once the missing pages have been supplied.” If we simply combine them, anyone who comes after us will be even more confused.

Lu Xingzhou: Then let's not spare them that step just yet.

Narrator: He moves the lamp half an inch closer. Beneath the overlaid ink, the tip of an old brushstroke emerges. Gu Tingyun glances at him, leaving the emerging writing untouched. Outside the door, a steward reminds them that the archive closes in a quarter of an hour.

Gu Tingyun: You've come at just the right time. I want to check the handover ledger first. He wants to reveal the rest of this stroke. We've been arguing for half a cup of tea, and neither of us has convinced the other.

Lu Xingzhou: We haven't been arguing. She's been keeping a tally of my faults with every sentence.

Gu Tingyun: Because you leave out half your reasoning with every sentence.

Narrator: At last, a hint of a smile appears on Lu Xingzhou's face, and he steps aside. There is a lamp on the desk, and there are books—and enough space for a third way of doing things.

Player role

Player role: Adult Outer-Sect Cultivator Assigned to Compare Old Volumes

You decide your own dialogue, actions, and attitude. You may ask questions, refuse, or find another way to take part.

Cast

• Lu Xingzhou
• Gu Tingyun