As the team gets closer to the core of the Time Maze, the surrounding environment becomes increasingly unstable. The flow of time becomes turbulent, and sometimes they experience centuries of change in a matter of seconds.
"Everyone, be careful," Akash warned, "the flow of time is accelerating. We must remain vigilant."
At this moment, a dazzling light suddenly appeared in front of them. A huge hourglass shadow appeared in the light, and the sand grains flowed at an incredible speed.
"That's the Heart of Time!" Brigu and Vasista exclaimed at the same time.
However, just as they were about to approach, a powerful force pushed them away. The team members were forced to disperse and fell into different time vortexes.
Ebert finds himself in an ancient kingdom. Surrounded by magnificent palaces, people in gorgeous costumes come and go. He realized that this could have been the scene thousands of years ago.
"I have to find the others," thought Ebert, "but first, I need to figure out what era this is."
He moved carefully through the palace, trying not to attract attention. Suddenly, he heard a familiar singing voice. Following the sound, he came to a garden and saw a young woman playing the veena.
"Saraswati?" Ebert whispered in surprise.
The young woman looked up with a confused expression. "Sir, who are you? Do we know each other?"
Only then did Ebote realize that although the woman in front of him looked exactly like Saraswati, she was not the person he knew. This could be Saraswati's past life, or just an illusion created by the maze of time.
"Sorry, I got the wrong person," Ebert said, "Excuse me, where is this place? What era is it now?"
The young woman smiled and replied: "This is the royal palace of the Kingdom of Magadha. This is the period when the Chaldean dynasty ruled."
Ebert was shocked, and he realized that he might have arrived at the time of Buddha. This realization made him both excited and worried. He must tread carefully to avoid changing the course of known history.
"My name is Ebert," he introduced himself, "and I am a traveler from the future."
The young woman looked at him with interest, her eyes sparkling with curiosity. "From the future? How amazing. Why are you here?"
Ebert said frankly: "I have been looking for Saraswati, my love. I heard that she left traces in the past, so..."
He paused and asked hesitantly: "Excuse me, do you know Saraswati?"
The young woman smiled slightly, and her eyes seemed to contain some deep secret. "Saraswati? That's a familiar name."
She did not answer Ebert's question directly, but asked: "How much do you know about Saraswati?"
Ebert thought for a while and said: "She is a kind and beautiful goddess with the magic of healing and vitality. She is also my guide and guardian."
The young woman nodded, seemingly satisfied with his answer. "So, do you believe in fate?" she asked.
Abbott was stunned. He had never thought about this problem seriously. He has always believed that his destiny is in his own hands.
"I don't know," he answered honestly, "but I believe we met for a reason."
A glint of admiration flashed in the young woman's eyes. "Very well," she said, "since you believe in fate, let me tell you a story."
She slowly told a story about love, sacrifice and reincarnation, a story about Saraswati's past life.
Ebote was fascinated by what he heard. He seemed to have seen Saraswati in her previous life, saw her bravery in saving all sentient beings in the war-torn era, and also saw her tragic sacrifice of everything for her lover.
By the time the story was finished, Ebert was in tears. He finally understood that the woman in front of him was not an illusion. With the new concept of time in 1943, this might be a parallel universe.
"Thank you," he said to the young woman, "thank you for letting me know Saraswati better."
The young woman smiled and shook her head. "You're welcome," she said. "This is just part of your destiny. Now it's time for you to continue your journey."
Ebert nodded, knowing that he could not stay here for too long. He said goodbye to the young woman, turned and walked out of the palace.
He didn't know what would happen in the future, but he knew that he would keep searching for Saraswati until he found her, forever.
At the same time, in another time and space, Saraswati found herself in a highly developed future world. Flying cars whizzed overhead and holograms filled the streets.
"Is this... the future?" Saraswati muttered. She felt dizzy, and everything around her felt strange and uneasy.
Just then, she noticed an old man on the street corner looking at her intently. Those eyes felt strangely familiar to her.
"Excuse me," Saraswati mustered up the courage to step forward and ask, "can you tell me where this is?"
The old man showed a mysterious smile, "Hello, Saraswati. I know you have many questions, but the most important thing now is that you have to trust your intuition. It will guide you to find the way home."
Saraswati's eyes widened in surprise, "You...how do you know my name?"
The old man didn't answer, just shook his head slightly, and then disappeared into the crowd. Saraswati wanted to catch up, but the surrounding scene suddenly began to distort. She realized she was about to jump back in time again.
"Ebert, everyone, where are you?" Saraswati called in her heart, while concentrating, trying to feel the mysterious power that guided her.
At the same time, Akash found himself in a primitive forest. Huge ferns blocked out the sunlight, and strange animal noises were heard in the distance.
"It seems that I have arrived in ancient times," Akash thought to himself, "I have to be careful of those dangerous creatures that have become extinct long ago."
He moves cautiously through the forest, trying to sense the flow of time. Gradually, he began to notice some strange phenomena. Some trees appear to be growing rapidly, while others are rapidly aging.
"The flow of time in this place is very unstable," Akash realized. "I have to find a way to control it, otherwise we may never leave this maze."
Just then, he heard a loud noise in the distance. Akash turned around warily and saw a huge saber-toothed tiger rushing towards him.
"Oops!" Akash secretly yelled and dodged quickly. At the critical moment, he suddenly felt a powerful surge of time energy. Acting on intuition, he directed this energy towards Sabretooth Tiger.
A miracle happened. The saber-toothed tiger's movements suddenly became extremely slow, as if he was stuck in a quagmire. Akash took the opportunity to escape from the dangerous area.
"Did...did I manipulate time just now?" Akash looked at his hands in surprise. This new discovery excited and confused him. He realized that if he wanted to survive in this time maze, he must master this ability as soon as possible.
Brigou and Isabella found themselves at a strange intersection of time and space. It seems to be a patchwork of fragments from countless eras, with ancient pyramids coexisting with futuristic space stations, and medieval castles next to modern skyscrapers.
"This place is incredible," Brigou marveled, "but we have to find a way to get out of here and find other people."
Isabella nodded, her eyes flashing with concern. "I have a bad feeling," she whispered. "This place... seems to be absorbing our life energy."
Brigu felt it carefully and found that his physical strength was slowly but continuously losing. "You're right, we need to act fast. Isabella, can you detect anything with your dark powers?"
Isabella closed her eyes and concentrated. Dark energy spread from her body like filaments, exploring this strange space. Suddenly, she opened her eyes with a surprised expression on her face.
"I felt a powerful energy wave," she said, "in that direction. It might be the heart of time, or it might be some kind of trap."
Brigou thought for a moment, "Whatever it is, it's our only clue. We have to take a chance."
The two of them cautiously moved towards the source of the energy fluctuations. Along the way, they had to travel through various fragments of time and space, sometimes suddenly appearing in dangerous environments, such as erupting volcanic craters or ongoing ancient wars.
"Brugu, be careful!" Isabella suddenly shouted. An arrow shot from nowhere struck Brigu's ear.
Brigu reacted quickly and pulled Isabella to hide behind a boulder. "Thank you," he gasped, "it seems we have stumbled into some ancient battle."
Isabella nodded, "We have to get out of here as soon as possible. I can create a shadow barrier to cover our progress."
Protected by Isabella's dark magic, the two successfully crossed the battlefield. However, as they get closer to the source of the energy fluctuations, the surrounding space and time becomes increasingly unstable.
"We're almost there," Isabella said, "but..." Before she could finish her words, a sudden burst of bright light flashed, and the two found themselves standing on a huge circular platform.
In the center of the platform stands a huge hourglass, and the sand inside flows at an incredible speed. Even more surprising, they saw that their other teammates - Ebote, Saraswati and Aakash were also here.
"It's great that everyone is okay!" Abbott said happily.
However, their reunion didn't last long. A mysterious voice suddenly sounded in the air: "Welcome to the core of time. You have passed the first test and proved that you are qualified to accept the real challenge."
"What does this mean?" Akash asked warily.
"It means," the voice continued, "that you must face your past, present and future. Only by truly understanding the nature of time can you gain the right to leave here."
As soon as he finished speaking, the huge hourglass suddenly began to rotate, releasing powerful energy. The team members felt dizzy and began to lose consciousness.
As Ebert struggled to stay awake, he saw Saraswati reaching out to him. He desperately tried to hold on to her, but the distance between them felt further and further away.
"Saraswati!" Ebert shouted, but his voice seemed to be swallowed up by the torrent of time.
Before losing consciousness, Ebert heard the mysterious voice finally say: "Get ready to face the most important moment of your life. Remember, the past has shaped you, but the future is in your own hands."
When Ebert opened his eyes again, he found himself back in his childhood, standing in his father's laboratory. This was a turning point in his life and the starting point for his adventure.
Meanwhile, Saraswati finds herself transported back to the day when she first manifested her divine powers. She sees herself as a girl, looking with confusion and fear at the magical flower that suddenly blooms.
Akash went back to the night when he decided to leave his family and follow his ideals. As a young man, he was packing his bags and preparing to embark on an unknown journey.
Brigou sees himself experiencing the battle that changed his life, while Isabella returns to the altar where she received the power of darkness.
Everyone faces a critical moment in their lives and must re-examine their choices and decisions. This is not only a review, but also an opportunity for self-awareness and growth.
As time goes by, they gradually realize that the real purpose of this test is not to change the past, but to understand how the past has shaped who they are now and how it affects future choices.
In this process, everyone experienced inner struggles and epiphanies. They see their strengths and weaknesses and understand their fears and desires. This is a profound journey of self-discovery.
When they finally woke up from this time journey, they found themselves back on the huge circular platform. But this time, there was more determination and wisdom in their eyes.
"Looks like we've all had an amazing journey," Akash said, looking around at his friends.
Ebert nodded, "Yes, this experience has made me more sure of my own path."
Saraswati held Ebert's hand tenderly, "Me too. I finally understand the source of my power and mission."
At this moment, the mysterious voice sounded again: "Congratulations on passing the test. You have proven that you are qualified to move forward. Remember this experience, it will be your guide on the road to the future."
As the sound disappeared, the huge hourglass began to collapse, and the surrounding space and time began to distort. The team members hold each other's hands tightly and prepare to face the next challenge.