Chapter 8: Destiny

　　Section 1: The Mist of Time　　Sister Molly was enveloped in a patch of mist. It was black and frigid. Parting it, she saw looming, shadowy figures! She rushed forward and, in the distance, saw a tall elder in magnificent robes standing on a high platform, chanting. Below, a circle of people knelt around him, performing some mysterious sacrificial rite. Suddenly, the tall elder pointed to the sky and leaped! The people below stood and cheered! Then, six familiar figures—wearing fisherman's hats and dacron jackets—materialized behind the mist. Their movements were a bizarre, jerking dance as they advanced towards the high platform to a discordant rhythm, escorting a man bound hand and foot. The next moment, the platform instantly transformed into a pool of molten lava. The priests vanished. The six figures raised the man high, as if to offer him as a sacrifice to the fiery pit!　　"Professor! Save me!" the pitiful "offering" cried out to Sister Molly.　　"Xiao Xu? Xiao Xu!" Watching Xiao Xu about to be cast into the fire, Sister Molly charged forward! But the six were quicker. Right before her eyes, they threw Xiao Xu into the flames...　　"Xiao Xu!" Sister Molly's eyes snapped open. Beads of sweat rolled down her forehead.　　"It was just a dream..." Leaning back, a wave of relief washed over her. But before her thoughts could fully detach from the ominous dream, a heart-rending scream tore through the distant darkness.　　Following the sound, Sister Molly soon found Xiao Xu in a shadowy passage. He was kneeling before a swirling patch of black mist, clutching his right arm and wailing in agony.　　"Xiao Xu! What's wrong?" Sister Molly sprinted to him. Her flashlight, flung aside, hit the wall, flickered, and died.　　"Professor... don't come closer! Don't touch the mist!" Xiao Xu used his own body to block her path, terrified she might accidentally contact the swirling black vapor.　　Sister Molly paid no heed. She immediately took his arm to help him up, only to find his right hand was gone! The stump of his wrist was coated in frost, white bone starkly visible...　　"Your... your hand? Xiao Xu! Where is your hand?" Sist