Grace, Splendor, Snow, and Moonlight

The sounds around her vanished in an instant. The terrible, heart-stopping calm was smashed to pieces by a heavy blow. The fragments, like golden points of light, melted away as they danced through the air, ringing with a delicate, tinkling sound. The sound flowed upward from beneath her feet, then spiraled through her mind and became a golden tsunami.

Dai Zhuang's hand went limp. With a clatter, the mask fell to the ground and wobbled back and forth on the stone pavement.