Chapter 231: Whose Acting is Better
Madam Rouge continued teleporting Xiao Nanfeng away. They quickly evaded the lengths of red rope chasing after them.
Along the way, Xiao Nanfeng saw the carcass of a giant whale, then a crab, and even a squid.
"What an unusual habitat. Can sea creatures enter the mirror too?" Xiao Nanfeng asked.
"The draconic race used to use this mirror as a prison. Within it are detained all manner of convicts that the dragons have caught, and sea spirits are only a portion of them. Within the last two centuries, however, their souls have been consumed by the red rope instead, leaving only their carcasses behind," Madam Rouge wrote back.
They quickly arrived at a mountain on the plains, one carved out of red crystal. It shone with a lustrous gleam and illuminated the area nearby in red.
"What's up with this mountain?" Xiao Nanfeng asked.
Madam Rouge ignored Xiao Nanfeng. She took her time inspecting the crystal mountain. Black smoke wafted from her body, a sign of her rage.
"They're over there! I see them!" a shout came from afar.
"Madam Rouge, they're catching up!" Xiao Nanfeng cried out.
Madam Rouge teleported away with Xiao Nanfeng in tow. They vanished in an instant.
Xiao Nanfeng looked around in shock. They had appeared in the middle of a desert.
"Madam Rouge, you teleport so far within this world of the mirror. You must have traveled ten thousand miles in an instant—we're in the middle of a desert!"
"That was the first layer of the mirror world. The fact that the crystal mountain is completely red means that the red rope cursed king has fully taken control over it. No wonder it was unwilling to drag you inside," Madam Rouge wrote.
"Oh?" Xiao Nanfeng replied curiously.
He followed Madam Rouge. Along the way, they saw the carcasses of more spirits.
"These carcasses are larger than the ones we saw on the first layer, and they seem stronger as well..."
"Of course. The mirror world has eighteen layers, each boasting stronger and stronger spirits."
"Eighteen such small worlds?"
Madam Rouge was clearly very familiar with the mirror world. She teleported him from place to place. They quickly arrived at another red crystal mountain.
"Damn that cursed king! He's taken over the second layer, too?"
She teleported Xiao Nanfeng to a tundra next.
"This must be the third layer." Xiao Nanfeng glanced curiously at his surroundings.
Within this third layer, there were spiritbeast carcasses and even the corpses of a few cultivators.
"The red rope must have grown stronger after feasting on all these souls for two centuries..." Xiao Nanfeng murmured worriedly.
"They're countless times stronger than the red rope in the Ancestral Dragon's Hall," Madam Rouge wrote back.
They again found a crystal mountain emanating red light, frustrating Madam Rouge to no end.
She continued teleporting farther and farther with Xiao Nanfeng, from one layer to the next. Along the way, they found the corpses of even more cultivators, some of whom had carved their wills on flat planes on nearby mountains. However, he had no time to investigate thoroughly. Madam Rouge continued dragging him toward the next crystal mountain.
Only when they reached the eighteenth and final layer of the mirror world did something stand out.
The crystal mountain before them wasn't red all over; it was only pink.
Madam Rouge seemed unbelievably excited. She touched the pink crystal in excitement.
"Is there anything special about the pink crystal? What use does it have?" Xiao Nanfeng asked.
"We're short on time. The red rope cursed king has already gained control over seventeen layers of the mirror world. It might catch up to us at any moment. Guard me and defend this crystal mountain to the best of your ability," Madam Rouge wrote quickly.
Then, she reached forward and caused a pink glow to spread from the mountain. It reached Xiao Nanfeng's body, causing it to radiate a tremendous quantity of pink light.
"That's not an issue, but what's with this pink glow?" Xiao Nanfeng frowned.
Madam Rouge was so short on time that she didn't bother speaking further. She stepped deep into the mountain, which began to rumble. The crystal mountain was suddenly growing smaller and smaller. At the same time, the pink glow radiating from it intensified. The entire layer of the mirror world seemed to be illuminated in a shade of pink, and everything began to quake.
"This crystal mountain must control the world somehow..." Xiao Nanfeng murmured to himself.
"Has the mirrormaster returned?" a tremulous voice asked from behind.
Xiao Nanfeng whirled around to see a gigantic crocodile spirit make its way over to him.
"Who are you?" Xiao Nanfeng asked warily.
The crocodile spirit looked toward Xiao Nanfeng and smiled. "I am the crocodile king. Lad, you seem to be rather close to the mirrormaster."
"The mirrormaster? Madam Rouge?" Xiao Nanfeng asked curiously.
"It is she. Were you unaware?"
Xiao Nanfeng shook his head. "I don't know anything about this place, only that we're inside a mirror's internal world. What do you know about this mirror?"
"This mirror is a cursed effigy—or, more accurately, the spiritual avatar of a cursed effigy," the crocodile spirit explained.
"Another cursed effigy? Doesn't the draconic race know better than to use a cursed effigy as a prison?" Xiao Nanfeng gasped.
"The dragons learned of this when they came into possession of the mirror, but no one knows where the cursed effigy's soul is," the crocodile spirit replied.
"Oh?" Xiao Nanfeng was rather surprised, but he was still cautious and guarded with respect to the crocodile king. "What are you doing here, Elder?"
"I was tricked by the old dragon king. He invited me for a banquet at the draconic palace, but instead detained me along with the red rope cursed king within this mirror. Allegedly, he intended for me to deal with the red rope from this internal world. To think I thought the dragon king was my friend—but he wanted me dead!" The crocodile king suddenly roared in outrage.
Xiao Nanfeng cocked his head. From the looks of it, the dragon king wasn't anyone virtuous.
"Elder, you must be exceptionally strong to have survived for two centuries down here."
"Strong? Against a cursed king? Hardly. I don't dare to face them, and I've never come into contact with the red rope. If I hadn't used all my strength to reach the eighteenth layer of this internal world and to hide from the cursed king, I would be done for by now."
"Oh?"
"The red rope cursed king has never made it here, and it won't be able to. The only one who can find this place is the mirrormaster. That's how I knew that the mirrormaster had returned the moment you arrived here. Is her name Madam Rouge? Once she takes control of the mirror again, we'll be safe!" the crocodile king cheered.
"Let's wait a little, then," Xiao Nanfeng replied.
The crocodile king shook its head. "I'm afraid that won't do. When Madam Rouge merges with the crystal mountain, a commotion will be felt all over the mirror world. It will shatter my protection around this part of the eighteenth layer of space. If the red rope cursed king catches wind of this, we'll all be done for."
"Oh? What should we do, then?" Xiao Nanfeng frowned.
"Hand my inner core to Madam Rouge and have her stabilize my protections in the region." The crocodile king spat out an inner core glowing with golden light. The core seemed to be engraved with countless runes, and it looked like an arcane artifact.
"Elder, your inner core is far too precious for the likes of me. Why don't you pass it to Madam Rouge yourself?" Xiao Nanfeng replied.
"This crystal mountain is exceptionally rigid. It's a specialized cursed spiritual avatar, and only cursed spirits may enter within it. I cannot get inside. The pink light that Madam Rouge covered you with is a measure of her trust in you. Only you can get into the mountain, ignoring its defenses, thanks to the pink light around you," the crocodile king stated.
Xiao Nanfeng nodded, claimed the crocodile king's inner core, then walked toward the crystal mountain.
"Madam Rouge, have you heard what the crocodile king elder said?" Xiao Nanfeng asked.
However, the crystal mountain only continued to shrink in size. Madam Rouge didn't respond.
"You should bring it in. While she's combining with the crystal mountain, I wouldn't expect her to be able to hear you," the crocodile king suggested.
Xiao Nanfeng nodded and was just about to bring the crocodile king's inner core within when he suddenly halted.
"What's the matter?" the crocodile king asked.
"I have a few treasures of my own. I intend to bring them in together and lend them to Madam Rouge. Please wait," Xiao Nanfeng replied.
"Treasure? What treasure could you possess? She has to face the red rope cursed king. Ordinary treasures will do no good," the crocodile king criticized.
Xiao Nanfeng retrieved a bundle of yellow cloth.
Upon seeing that cloth, the crocodile king gasped. "Is that the scroll of Heavenly Dao?"
"It is! It's rather convenient for carrying things around, isn't it?" Xiao Nanfeng nodded approvingly.
The crocodile king goggled at Xiao Nanfeng. Is he trying to brag to me?
Then, Xiao Nanfeng retrieved a storage ring from within the bundle.
A divine purple rock appeared before him.
The crocodile king's eyes widened. "Is this the divine purple rock of the Eastern Sea Draconic Palace? How could this be? How can you move it?"
"It's just a rock. Why wouldn't I be able to move it? I have plenty of artifacts of this caliber," Xiao Nanfeng replied.
The crocodile king glanced at Xiao Nanfeng in shock. He is bragging to me, isn't he?
The crystal mountain grew smaller and smaller, until it was only about ninety meters tall. Xiao Nanfeng attempted to lift the mountain with his hands. With a rumble, perhaps owing to the pink glow surrounding his body, the crystal mountain didn't resist him. He managed to lift it up.
"What are you doing with the crystal mountain?" the crocodile king asked, frowning.
Xiao Nanfeng tossed the crystal mountain aside, causing it to vanish.
The crocodile king was astounded. It leapt forward in rage. "What have you done?"
Xiao Nanfeng suddenly flung the crocodile king's inner core aside. The inner core transformed into a red rope and launched itself toward Xiao Nanfeng along with the crocodile king. However, Xiao Nanfeng and his possessions had all vanished. The only thing that remained was the gigantic divine purple rock. The crocodile king smashed into it with surprising force, but it remained perfectly immobile.
The crocodile king merged with the red rope. It howled, "Lad, you've tricked me again! Where are you? Get out here!"
From where he stood within the interior of the divine purple rock, Xiao Nanfeng let out a disdainful look. "This red rope spirit king transformed into a crocodile spirit in an attempt to trick me, but its smile was just like the smile it made when it pretended to be my reflection. How does it think it can trick me with such horrible acting skills? Ha!"
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