The tea house was eerily quiet after Wei's trade with the Vessel of Echoes. Though the artifact had stopped pulsing, its presence lingered in the air, like a shadow that refused to fade. Wei sat at the table, his hands trembling slightly.
"Are you okay?" Mei asked, her voice tinged with worry.
Wei nodded but didn't look at her. "I'm fine. Just… trying to process what happened."
Lin leaned forward, examining the Vessel. "It worked. The artifact is stable, for now. But we need to be cautious. It's not just a tool; it's alive in its own way."
Wei glanced at her. "You're saying it can think?"
"Not in the way we do," Lin replied. "But it has instincts. It knows how to take, how to lure people into giving more than they should. You were lucky this time."
Mei's expression hardened. "Lucky? He just gave up part of himself. That's not luck—it's reckless."
