"So this is Li Ji?"
In Murphy's room aboard the armed airship, Triss raised an elegantly arched brow after reading the ridiculous note. She glanced at the unconscious dragon girl on the bed and murmured, "Mannis is quite something. It managed to smuggle a demigod into the material world without anyone noticing. Looks like it was bound by the power of time. I'm curious how it pulled that off. I thought the Endless One's power had been sealed by the Eastern Celestial Spirit?"
"Ao only restricted its use of its own power. When luck is on its side, it can still roll a powerful form capable of running rampant across the astral plane. As for how it did it... look at her tail."
Murphy pointed to Li Ji on the bed.
Her delicate little dragon tail hung over the edge of the bed. At first glance, it looked like a giant green serpent covered in jade-colored scales, with a goldfish-like flourish at the tip. The organ was strikingly beautiful, even seductive. But as Murphy had said, an amber-colored lock was attached to it.
It looked like a mere ornament, but the lock hovered above the dragon tail. When Triss touched it, ripples of light shimmered across it like flowing sand.
"This is a seal."
After examining it carefully, the Blood Vulture Grand Duke withdrew her finger and said, "It's extremely intricate and advanced. It folds Li Ji's time in a way I can't yet understand, trapping her in a faulty loop and forcing this demigod to remain in such a weakened state. No wonder she could be hidden in the material world.
"While this seal remains intact, Li Ji can barely use even a third of the power she had as a demigod."
"That's a variation of the 'Seven-Star Cloudmist