The heavy stone doors behind them ground shut with a muffled thud, sealing the vaulted chamber in heavy silence.
In the center of the vast circular room stood five massive bronze cauldrons arranged in a precise pentagram, their tarnished surfaces covered in ancient coiled serpent glyphs.
Deep within the hollow bases of the vessels, ancient iron gears began to turn with a heavy, rhythmic clanking that vibrated through the flagstones beneath their boots.
CLANK. CLANK. CLANK.
"The air is changing, Ye Chen," Lin Xi whispered, her fingers tightening around the hilt of her left rapier. "I smell sulfur and bitter almond."
"Do not inhale through your mouth, Lin Xi," Ye Chen said, stepping in front of her with his right arm extended. "This is the Trial of the Five Venoms. The chamber is an aut
