Seeing an unfamiliar death-row inmate living in the cell that once belonged to him, Yaxiu could not help but feel a wave of emotion.
Never in his wildest dreams had he imagined that one day he would revisit this place.
Even less could he have imagined that he would actually feel a twinge of nostalgia for this prison...
In truth, his dozen or so days in Shattered Lake Prison had taken place only a few months ago, yet it felt as though an eternity had passed.
He walked past the cafeteria and saw the table where he, Igola, Harvey, Langna, and Ronald had often gathered to discuss their plans. It was now occupied by two ogres who were busy devouring their meal.
He walked past the death-match arena and saw an old man shimmering with the luster of diamonds savagely beating a goblin. Clearly, "Diamond" Taige was playing the pig to eat the tiger again.
He walked past the library and saw a young man writing a novel. After skimming a few lines, Yaxiu immediately remembered who this person was—the writer who had been thrown onto death row before he could even write his book, purely because the subject matter was far too illicit. Well, they certainly hadn't arrested the wrong guy.
After wandering for a while, Yaxiu realized that he didn't actually have many fond memories here. What he was nostalgic for wasn't Shattered Lake Prison itself, but rather that bewildered, naive period right after his transmigration—much like the beef brisket fried-sauce tossed noodles he used to eat as a child, or the first serving of Lalafell he had eaten here.
By comparison, the situation within the dream bubble intrigued him far more.
Analyzing various details, it was not difficult to deduce that this bubble reflected Shattered Lake Prison long after his escape. After all, Igola and the others weren't here, and the combat league championed by Financier was already up and running.
The question was: whose dream bubble was this?
Sword Princess had mentioned that dream bubbles were generally believed to be the lingering dreams of deceased sorcerers. Precisely because they were dreams, they didn't necessarily match reality completely. Various anomalies would arise based on the sorcerer's thoughts, such as the appearance of people who shouldn't be there, or the presence of rules that shouldn't exist—the latter being the affixes.
In other words, could this dream bubble belong to some unlucky wretch from the Blood Moon Trial?
Wait, there was still someone he hadn't checked on.
Yaxiu suddenly recalled someone and walked toward the treatment room from his memory. He didn't hold out much hope, though. Before his prison break, 222 had mentioned that she would soon be leaving. Now that so much time had passed, she was probably...
Yaxiu turned into a corridor and caught sight of a figure flashing past at the far end, pushing a wheelchair before quickly disappearing from view. He took two steps forward, but instantly realized something was terribly amiss, and dashed after them at full sprint!
That person wasn't a prisoner—she wasn't wearing a prison uniform!
Not only was she not an inmate, but she also had a layer of downy fuzz covering her forearms like bracers!
That girl seemed to be the very one Yaxiu had met before!
Someone who should never have appeared in this prison!
Yaxiu was this agitated not only because he realized that the secret truth of the Distant Sky Realm might be hidden here, but also because he wanted to see how the Veela was doing lately, and to ask which heroine won in the grand finale of *100% Sorcerer*.
He rushed to the corner, found no trace of the Veela, and continued charging into an adjoining corridor—
*Smack!*
The moment before they collided, both body sorcerers instinctively reached out to grab each other and spin around, attempting to use the counterforce to maintain their balance. However, their thoughts coincided perfectly; each grabbed the other's shoulders, and both went tumbling to the floor together.
"Huh...?"
Yaxiu found himself lying on his back, locking eyes with Sonia perched on top of him. His hands rested on Sword Princess's shoulders, and her hands rested on his.
Rather than looking like two people who had accidentally collided, they looked like a shameless couple caught embracing without regard for time or place.
Sonia instinctively pushed against him to get up, but after a second thought, she gave up. Instead, she lay sprawled across his chest like a kitten; Yaxiu could almost imagine a tail swishing behind her.
After waiting for a moment, Yaxiu couldn't help but say, "Aren't you going to get up?"
"No rush," Sonia said, her gaze drifting evasively before she opened her eyes wide and stared directly at him. "I have something to tell you."
Yaxiu blinked. He instinctively started to speak, but upon seeing the shyness and determined courage in Sword Princess's eyes, he held his tongue and quietly waited for fate's favor.
Sonia was intensely nervous as well. She had been planning this moment ever since the Meteor Tribulation and had prepared countless scripts; Weise's words had merely helped solidify her resolve. After all, she had watched so many romantic dramas and studied how to capture a man's heart. It was time to show her true skills!
Should she use the queenly style—*From now on, you belong to me*? The vulnerable maiden style—*You have to protect me well*? The reckless yet endearing style—*Why don't you like me yet*? The tsundere style—*It's not like I like you, I just can't live without you*... or perhaps the scene etched forever in her memory—*I will become your wings, and you must become mine*?
However!
However!
Sonia parted her lips, only to find that she couldn't utter a single one of her rehearsed lines. Her heart pounded wildly, and the village girl felt as though she were about to faint.
Where was the acting skill that never faltered before the cameras? Where was the composure that proudly accepted the cheers of the arena?
Steeling her resolve, Sonia reached out and wrapped her arms around Yaxiu's neck, pressing her cheek against his and breathing softly into his earlobe: "I—"
*Clack!*
From the farthest reaches of the realm, a colossal noise resembling interlocking gears suddenly ground through the air.
Then, like a candle melting over a flame, the walls of the entire Shattered Lake Prison began to liquefy, and the ceiling warped.
Most terrifying of all, Yaxiu clearly felt a shift in his inner emotions. His joy, anger, sorrow, and delight... were all reversing, bit by bit.
He caught a bizarre scent in the air, noticed disorienting lines of sight crisscrossing the space, and heard the distant grinding noise... All of the cues coalesced into a single notification:
"Love-Hate Reversal: A gaze cast down from the summit of Ruby Mountain seeks to shatter the senses of the Four Pillar Gods. All outsiders will be affected, experiencing a complete inversion of all emotions. Furthermore, all living beings will actively attack outsiders. Should an outsider die, they will suffer severe soul damage. You must survive for 30 minutes to depart this bubble."
Yaxiu turned his head, his eyes meeting Sonia's.
Though the scene was identical to moments before, the emotion in their eyes had transformed into fierce, murderous intent.
*Boom!*
The instant the two pushed apart using their Sanctuaries, they drew their longswords and clashed violently, fighting with all their might to slaughter each other!
Very quickly, however, Yaxiu realized he was no match for Sword Princess. After dodging a ferocious strike of "Blood Moon Shattered Lake," he activated "Heart Pen" and retreated while drawing barriers, trying to keep Sword Princess from closing in and gain some breathing room!
Sonia naturally refused to relent, her eyes locked solely on Yaxiu's head. Just then, crowds of inmates and prison guards poured out from every corridor. Having somehow broken free of the prison's restraints, they wielded various weapons and attacked both of them!
Yaxiu tore through the condemned prisoners while retreating, with Sonia relentlessly pursuing him. He attempted to shoot a "Wrath Sword" at her, only for her to unleash "Meteor Tribulation" mid-stride; the space-crossing slash nearly severed Yaxiu's neck!
Fortunately, this was the Void Realm. In reality, his throat would have already been slit!
Before long, Yaxiu reached the spacious Central Hall. Diya was currently backed into a corner, struggling to defend against a swarm of death-row inmates. The moment she saw Yaxiu arrive, she carved a bloody path forward and combined sorcery spirits including "Witness," "Fast-Forward," and "Void Slash" to manifest a miracle capable of briefly tearing through Sanctuaries—"Empress's Gaze"!
Wherever the Empress's gaze falls, all is the sovereign's domain, and none are not her subjects!
There was no way Yaxiu could evade a gaze that traveled at the speed of sight. The Witch pulled her hands taut, pinning him rigidly in place!
Sword Princess soared through the air, drew her blade, and slashed downward, unleashing a cascading wave of Blood Moon Shattered Lake straight toward him!
Chapter 573