Chapter 185: Lost Language

Ryzek moved first.

He rose carefully from the floor, testing his weight on his injured leg before taking slow steps across the white surface. His four amber eyes swept the room in measured passes, checking the walls, the ceiling, and the floor for any hidden mechanisms. The space was beautiful in a cold way — pure, seamless, and completely silent. Every footstep sounded too loud against the quiet.

He stopped in front of the three tall frames.

The silver script running along their edges caught the soft light. Ryzek leaned closer, crystalline ridges along his arms shifting as he raised one hand and traced the air just above the markings without touching them. His eyes narrowed. After a long moment he shook his head once and pulled a small scanning device from his armor. He activated it and held the device near the nearest frame, letting the blue light sweep across the worn silver lines.

The device chimed.

Error. Language not found.

Ryzek stared at the result, then ran the scan a second time. The same message returned.

Lian watched from where he sat, still letting the recovery pills work through his body. Elara remained quiet beside him, eyes moving between Ryzek and the rest of the room.

“What did it say?” Lian asked.

Ryzek turned slightly, still holding the scanner.

“It cannot read the script. The language is not in any database I have. This is a lost language. Ancient. Older than most records in the lower universe.”

Lian exhaled slowly and looked down at the white floor. His mind turned over the problem. They had come this far, forced their way through the living gate, and now stood in front of something they could not understand. After a few seconds the answer surfaced.

Lirien.

She was ancient. Older than anything they had encountered so far.

He closed his eyes and reached out the way she had taught him during the quieter days on the ship.

Lirien.

No answer.

Lirien.

Still nothing.

Please answer me. I know I’m not supposed to disturb you, but I need your help. There are patterns and scripts here that we cannot read. Can you help us?

A low, irritated sound brushed against his mind. Then her voice came through, sharp and clear.

Go closer to it and scan it. I will see it.

Lian opened his eyes, pushed himself to his feet, and walked toward the frames.

Lian walked across the white floor.

Each step left a faint dark print behind him from the blood and sap still clinging to his boots. The soft light of the room made the three frames stand out clearly against the far wall. Up close, the dull mirror-like surfaces inside them looked even less like ordinary glass. They seemed to hold depth, as if something existed just behind the surface but refused to show itself.

Ryzek stepped aside without comment, giving him space. Elara stayed a few paces back, watching.

Lian stopped in front of the middle frame. The silver script along its edges was finer than it had appeared from a distance. Some of the lines were worn almost smooth. Others remained sharp and deliberate. He raised the Nexus device on his wrist and activated a full scan, holding it steady so the blue light could pass slowly across every marking.

The device hummed.

Data began feeding into his vision, but most of it came back as fragmented symbols and incomplete translations. The language remained locked. After a moment the scan completed its first pass and stored the raw images and energy readings.

Lian kept the device raised.

Did you get it? he asked through the link.

Lirien’s voice returned, quieter than before but focused.

I have the image. Do not move the scanner yet. Run it again, slower. Include the edges of the frame and the surface inside.

He adjusted the device and began a second, slower sweep. The blue light traced the silver script from top to bottom, then moved across the dull mirror surface. Faint energy fluctuations registered on the scan — old, stable, and tightly bound to the frames themselves. The platform in the center of the room also reacted slightly, a low pulse that traveled through the floor and into his boots.

Ryzek’s eyes narrowed at the shift in energy. Elara straightened, one hand resting near her blade.

Lian finished the second pass and held position.

Well? he asked.

There was a longer pause this time. When Lirien spoke again, her tone had changed. The irritation was gone, replaced by something closer to recognition.

Power Scale / Cultivation Realms (Quick Reminder)

Foundation Realm (Layers 1–9): Body forging, no external Qi.

Circuit Awakening Realm (Early–Peak): First Qi loop, internal bursts.

Core Condensation Realm (Early–Peak): External Qi release, short flight.

Stellar Circuit Realm (1–9 Stars): True flight, Qi armor, energy projection.

Nebula Dominion Realm and higher: Domain control, galaxy-level power, etc

Power Scale Reminder

Lian Yu: Stellar Circuit Star 1.

Elara Voss: Core Condensation Peak

Keep it as reminders