The Needle was more than a monument; it was the world’s new nervous system. But as the people of Jiangnan learned to live within the green embrace of the great tree, they discovered that the branches didn't just lead up—they led out. At the highest point where the wood met the thin, cold air of the upper atmosphere, a new structure had begun to grow, shaped by the Architect’s final gift and Xin’s Level 10 sacrifice. It was called the Sentinel Gate.
For months, the Gate remained dormant, a massive ring of living wood and silver star-steel woven into the very tip of the Needle. It looked like an unblinking eye staring into the cosmos. No one knew how to open it until the first day of the New Year, when the stars aligned with the ley lines Xin had woven between the 99 Earths.
Xin stood be
