Ultimate Note · Conversa

The story picks up immediately after the events of *The Heavenly Palace on the Clouds*. Wu Xie takes his unconscious Third Uncle to the hospital, guarding him every step of the way, only to nearly let his faking-unconscious Third Uncle escape. Holding a photograph of the Xisha archaeological team from back in the day, Wu Xie confronts Third Uncle, demanding to know if he caused Xie Lianhuan's death. Just as uncle and nephew are at a standstill, Wu Xie receives a package containing two old-fashioned videotapes, sent by none other than Zhang Qiling—the enigmatic Xiao Ge—who has already walked into the bronze gate of Mount Changbai. After playing the tapes, the eerie footage leaves everyone utterly horrified: one tape shows Huo Ling from 19 years ago, not only showing no signs of aging but mechanically combing her hair; the other tape was sent to Ah Ning under the guise of Wu Xie's name, showing a disheveled figure crawling on the ground who, upon closer inspection, turns out to have Wu Xie's own face! Once he calms down, Wu Xie discovers a key and a note with the address "Golmud, Qinghai" hidden inside a blank videotape. Determined to find the truth, Wu Xie ignores Third Uncle's attempts to stop him and travels to Golmud alone. There, he finds an abandoned sanatorium, discovers a room identical to the one in his crawling video, and is nearly attacked by Huo Ling, who has turned into a monster. At the critical moment, Zhang Qiling and Black Glasses step in just in time to save Wu Xie. Afterward, Wu Xie officially joins Ah Ning's expedition team as the six-person squad assembles, embarking on a perilous journey toward the Taklamakan Desert.