As Xixia appeared, the surrounding Dark Mist seemed to disperse rapidly as well. However, it only receded some twenty meters around Xixia; farther away, everything remained shrouded in darkness.
Yet the space revealed by the retreating mist made Angel's brows rise slightly.
He had originally thought the pitch-black fog concealed a barren wasteland, but to his surprise, the place had been built with considerable refinement.
The floor was smooth marble arranged in a checkerboard pattern. Several elegant stone pillars stood nearby, simple in appearance but carved with hidden patterns. Above them were palace-grade decorations and stained-glass windows.
Though the center of the vaulted ceiling was obscured by mist, Angel could more or less guess what sort of place this was.
"Earlier, I thought this space was some kind of empty consciousness-like realm. But the fact that it can summon this Origin Fire is something a consciousness realm cannot accomplish, so this is a real space?" As Angel spoke, he looked around. "It is as exquisite as a palace, yet beneath the skin lies another world. That alchemical flavor is impossible to hide."
As he said this, Angel looked at Xixia. "Am I inside your shell right now?"
Xixia said, "Rather than 'shell,' I would prefer to hear its full name—Xixia's Casket."
"Wai entered your... mm, Xixia's Casket before as well. In his perception, a long time passed, yet from outside, we never saw Wai leave, and he recovered very quickly. Why was that? Is it Xixia's Casket's ability? Does it have something to do with time?" Angel asked curiously.
If it truly had something to do with time, that would be an unexpected delight. Angel had always wanted to study alchemical tools related to time, but so far, he had never encountered one.
He had, however, seen a mysterious object