Chapter 53 Ring Domain Allocation (2) This is our first encounter with her...
Xia Ying and her friends' leisurely time did not last long. A few minutes later, the tremors in the auditorium interrupted their conversation.
Just like at the opening ceremony, the walls collapsed backward, and an arc-shaped stone platform with the emblem of the Ring Domain on all four sides rose up carrying the creatures of the abyss. The new students in the auditorium still received attention from the stands, but they were no longer the prey to be chased.
Xia Ying's gaze swept across the stands one by one. She saw that the four demon leaders had all transformed into non-human forms, hovering at the front of the stands. Different colored magic particles intertwined and flowed like a galaxy, displaying the distinct characteristics of the four ring domains more directly and vividly than the emblems.
The dragon's gaze paused, locking onto the succubus girl in the hall. A cluster of dragonfire drifted down, suddenly blooming into a burning golden-red rose as it approached Xia Ying, leaving a dazzling, firework-like moment in her eyes.
Xia Ying gasped softly at the strange sight and couldn't help but reach out to scoop up the slowly scattering rose embers.
Floating above the Shadow Scale Ring, Charybdis couldn't help but emerge from the whirlpool. He glared at Fafnir, who had somehow learned to play tricks, with shock and anger, and then looked down at Xia Ying's reaction.
Upon seeing the smile on her face, the siren, not to be outdone, plucked a wave, sealed it with a bubble, and the wave condensed into a pale blue double-petaled lily within the bubble, gently swaying away and hovering in front of Xia Ying.
Xia Ying reached out and touched it; the bubble burst instantly, and the double-petaled lily inside shattered into dust. A crystal-clear pearl rolled from the flower's stamen into Xia Ying's hand, shining brightly in her palm.
Xia Ying showed a look of surprise and carefully put away the pearl... Charybdis looked at Fafnir triumphantly, unilaterally declaring his victory.
"This is outrageous." Qilin, who witnessed the whole thing, said with a deep frown, "As the king of the Ring Domain, he was actually toyed with by a succubus."
Qilin said in despair: Destroy it, this Cocytus is beyond saving.
After the four ring domains were unveiled, it was finally time for the new monsters to take their seats.
Inside the four-sided, arched stands, there is a ring of relatively low tiered seats.
Xia Ying felt a pull on her waist, and her body was thrown up. Then she felt a pain in her tailbone. In the blink of an eye, she was sitting steadily on the inner step.
She quietly rubbed her tailbone, watching as a large number of magical tendrils extended from the surrounding seats, forming a white trajectory from top to bottom in the auditorium. The monsters were bound one by one, flying around in the air and being pulled to their respective seats.
In no time, the auditorium was empty, and all the new monsters were seated. The whole process was brutal, fast, and orderly.
Cerberus's seat was right next to Xia Ying's. She leaned closer to the demon hound, just as she was about to whisper a few words to him, the platinum throne belonging to the master of Cocytus suddenly appeared in the center of the hall and slowly rose upwards. Xia Ying watched as it gradually passed over the steps and the stands, reaching an unreachable height.
Then, the sky suddenly darkened, and the six-winged demon ruler appeared and took his seat amidst the gazes of all the demons.
His gaze swept over his subjects below, and he lazily snapped his fingers: "Begin, Jormungandr."
A white-haired, dark-skinned serpent demon appeared in the center of the hall. He waved his double serpent staff, and the serpent heads swam to the top of the staffs, unleashing a powerful magical wave.
The floor of the auditorium began to ripple like water, and a strange texture gradually emerged. After the light faded, Xia Ying peeked out and saw her own reflection in the ripples.
The bottom of the auditorium has been transformed into a bright mirror.
Jormungandr turned to face the newborns.
"Next, please enter the [Mirror of the Horned God] one by one, the summoned new students."
As the allocation of the ring domain officially began, a thin thread extended from the mirror, reaching towards the tiered seating and connecting to one of the abyssal creatures within.
Next, the humanoid demon beast with the Great Xia Dragon Sparrow Blade at its waist landed on the ground, followed by the thin threads to the center of the hall, and then its body began to sink, quickly disappearing completely into the mirror.
“The first one is Miss Qiongqi,” Xia Ying whispered to Cerberus beside her. “Cerberus, where do you think she’ll go?”
Cerberus replied, "It must be the Crimson Crown Ring, that battle maniac."
“In that case, Ke'er might become classmates, wouldn’t that be…” Xia Ying said, then thought for a moment and changed her words, “Okay, maybe Miss Qiongqi won’t be very happy.”
Ke'er erupted in anger: "I won't be happy either, okay?!"
They exchanged only a few words before Qiongqi reappeared in the mirror. After a brief silence, the emblem of the Crimson Crown Ring appeared on the mirror's surface.
Loud howls erupted from the stands belonging to the Crimson Crowned Ones. Qiongqi was not surprised by this result. She slightly raised the corners of her mouth, turned around, and walked directly towards the area where the Crimson Crowned Ones were located.
Next, the fine threads in the mirror selected the next abyssal creature...
To onlookers, these newcomers merely entered the [Mirror of the Horned God] and soon emerged again. Then the mirror announced its affiliation to the ring domain. What happened in between was unknown to outsiders.
So, after watching it with great interest a few times, Xia Ying gradually began to feel bored and unconsciously leaned on Cerberus's shoulder and dozed off.
As the ring domain allocation reached its second half, another abyssal creature stepped onto the mirror surface. Cerberus unconsciously leaned forward, and Xia Ying was startled awake by this slight movement, rubbing her eyes as she looked down.
"Ah, it's Fenrir!" she exclaimed, slightly excited. "Where will Fenrir go? Is it also a crescent moon?"
This possibility made Cerberus's face darken: "I don't want to."
“Fenrir and I do share the same mother,” Cerberus said, “but unlike me, he grew up alone in the Nibelungs.”
Xia Ying recalled the geography of the demon realm that Cerberus had taught her in the past: "I remember Cerberus belongs to the Netherworld Court, and Cerberus's mother was a lord. I remember her name was..."
“Typhon.” Cerberus continued to gaze at the mirror, even though Fenrir had not yet emerged from it.
“…Do you think you were just a guest at my house and my mother came in to deliver fruit, so you greeted her or something?” Cerberus turned his face away speechlessly. “I’m a deserter from the Demon Realm, and my mother and I are mortal enemies.”
“That’s true, sorry.” Xia Ying skillfully changed the subject, “What about Fenrir? Why isn’t he in the Underworld Court?”
“Because he was abandoned by his mother,” Cerberus replied. “Between me and Fenrir, his mother chose me.”
"..."
This sounds like a very, very complicated family relationship.
Xia Ying realized she had chosen the wrong topic again and was unsure whether she should continue to ask questions.
Fortunately, Fenrir reappeared on the mirror at that moment, breaking the strange silence between the two.
Fenrir belongs to the Tomb Ring.
Xia Ying said in surprise, "Fenrir is so good at fighting, I thought he must be a Crimson Crown Ring like Qiongqi."
The demon hound did not answer, seemingly lost in its own thoughts.
Fenrir walked toward the stone platform of the sealed tomb ring, and a new thread was drawn from the mirror, this time rapidly approaching the direction where Xia Ying was.
Just when she thought it was finally her turn, the thin thread changed direction and flew towards Cerberus beside her.
"Wow, we've reached Kernel!" Xia Ying exclaimed excitedly, clenching her fists. "Go, Kernel!"
"I don't understand what they're trying to cheer me on for," Cerberus muttered, standing up from his seat and rudely flying over the heads of the abyssal creatures into the auditorium.
He tried stepping on the mirror and found it to be more solid than he had imagined... Cerberus's body suddenly sank, and without warning, he sank into the world within the mirror.
After entering the other side of the mirror, the demon dog continued to fall downwards, and this persistent feeling of weightlessness reminded him of his experience when he escaped to the human world.
He was severely injured during Typhon's pursuit and had exerted all his strength to cross the spatial barrier, so much so that he was extremely weak when he entered the human world and could not even maintain his human form.
The feeling of losing his power made him uneasy, and the unfamiliarity of the human world only intensified his fear. Cerberus would curl up in the dark every day to lick his wounds, and only leave his small shelter at night to search for food on the deserted streets.
It was in this setting that a human girl named Xia Ying entered his world for the first time.
Cerberus stopped falling and suddenly opened his eyes.
What came into view was a pitch-black sky, with dim yellow light leaking from the dirty and broken lampshades of the streetlights, and tiny mosquitoes buzzing around the light source.
That's right, this is the street Cerberus will never forget.
He looked toward the dimly lit street corner, seemingly waiting subconsciously for something.
Footsteps approached from afar, and a shadow silently swept in.
Then, Xia Ying appeared.
"This is where we first met her."
A voice suddenly rang out beside him. Ke Er turned his head and saw a face that looked exactly like his own.
Cerberus, known as the Shadow, looked at the "Xia Ying" walking towards them and continued, "But that thing is not her."
"That's right, I'm not the person you're thinking of."
"That's what the girl who walked over slowly said."
"'I' and the place where you are right now are the images and scenes reflected in the mirror, the ones most deeply connected to the desires in your heart."
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Author's Note: Oh, little dog
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