Wai had previously asked the alchemical puppet what counted as meeting the standard. The alchemical puppet had answered, "Touch Xixia's Casket with your hand, and it will tell you."
After Wai's attempt, Xixia's Casket did seem to possess some form of intelligence.
Now that he knew such an "entity" existed, even if the alchemical puppet had allowed Angel to pass directly, Angel would not have left. No matter what, he had to try communicating with it.
Just as Angel's hand touched Xixia's Casket.
The red light at the casket's opening flared brilliantly.
Yet strangely, Angel was not pulled into a pitch-black space like Wai had been. Other than being enveloped in red light, nothing around him changed. Even the Mind Tether Black Earl had constructed remained uninterrupted.
Just as Angel was finding this strange, his left earlobe suddenly felt as though it had been seared by fire, stinging and burning hot.
Had the Flame Mark Odecras left him been triggered? What was going on?
As Angel was puzzling over it, a crisp female voice sounded by his ear. "Hm? Such a familiar ripple..."
"Who are you?" Angel did not know who was speaking, so he simply asked aloud.
"Someone is speaking to you?" Black Earl looked over in confusion.
Angel nodded to Black Earl, then turned his gaze back to Xixia's Casket. "Was that you speaking? Are you this casket?"
"I cannot affect the outside world. If you want to know who I am, then seal away the things on you that can resist my power..."
It was still that female voice, but it was clearly growing weaker and weaker. By the end, it was nearly inaudible.
Angel wanted to speak with her again, but there was no further response. Even the red glow around him began to fade.
Watching