If it weren't for his urgent mission, Eddie would have pretended not to hear and listened further to understand the situation. However, any delay might doom Old General Ma and his troops.
Eddie hastily shouted, "Excuse me, I accidentally stumbled into this Mirage Sea. My original teleportation destination was the imperial teleportation array in the palace. I deviated due to carrying someone. Please let me out first... I have an urgent mission that involves human lives. I must see Emperor Hua Xur of Tianluo. If you wish to punish me, please wait until I've met the emperor. Then, I'll accept any penalty."
Although unsure whether Mirage Sea was a war beast or a dimensional space, Eddie believed those capable of owning it must be extraordinary. Perhaps they even had a connection with Emperor Hua Xur, and considering his urgent request, they might not trouble him.
As expected, after Eddie spoke, the two mysterious voices fell silent. After a while, the gentle female voice asked, "Who are you, young man? How did you end up in the Mirage Sea and hear our conversation?"
Sweating inwardly, Eddie realized his third-level wise eyes were useless here, but his ears could still hear clearly. The Mirage Sea was indeed strange.
Thinking this, he quickly replied, "I'm a student from the Great Xia Ivy College, named Titan. Recently, I went to the Despair Abyss for training and unexpectedly encountered an attack by Demonic Temple's fallen warriors in Hope Town. Hope Town is in dire straits, surrounded by endless giant spiders, with thousands of flying beasts looming in the sky. General Ma personally sent me to break through and seek help from Emperor Hua Xur of Tianluo. I request you to release me quickly, as I must urgently meet with Emperor Hua Xur."
The gentle female voice playfully retorted, "Aren't you afraid we're from the Demonic Temple, telling us all this?"
"If you were from the Demonic Temple, you would recognize Heiran Vihan, the Tianluo traitor I was carrying. You wouldn't be questioning me; instead, you'd have killed me immediately," Eddie confidently replied, certain they weren't from the Demonic Temple. It was unlikely for the temple's members to be near the palace, and if they were, they wouldn't waste time talking but would have attacked him directly.
"You can't be too sure. Maybe the Demonic Temple people like you, a naive young man, thinking you have potential. Why would they care about Heiran Vihan? He's just a pawn used by the three great demons for publicity, a statement for the Demonic Temple. Do you think he's really worth their rescue? You're different; you have potential. If I were from the Demonic Temple, I'd choose you, not him," the gentle female voice countered, inadvertently proving she wasn't from the Demonic Temple.
"Please let me out quickly due to the urgent military situation. I'll accept any punishment after meeting Emperor Hua Xur of Tianluo," Eddie urgently pleaded for release. He felt he was in a dimensional world, boundless with endless waters, where teleportation scrolls were useless. Knowing he couldn't leave without the owner's permission, Eddie prioritized escaping first and dealing with consequences later.
Oddly, neither person seemed surprised or reacted unusually when he repeatedly mentioned Emperor Hua Xur, leading Eddie to speculate they might be royals or nobles.
The gentle female voice chuckled, "You think you can just meet Emperor Hua Xur whenever you want? And talk of accepting punishment later? I'm not releasing you. You'll stay here in this water prison for a lifetime!"
Eddie was baffled and frustrated by this response.
"The two Guardian Gods and three Elder Custodians of Tianluo have already been dispatched by Emperor Hua Xur," said the authoritative male voice. "Your concern is noted, but anyone who enters the Mirage Sea must stay for an hour before leaving, and that's beyond our control. You'll be free after an hour."
Eddie was sweating bullets, wondering if this man could be Emperor Hua Xur himself, who seemed surprisingly indifferent to his urgent report.
The playful female voice laughed, "He's clueless about the Mirage Sea, what a fool!"
The man left abruptly, leaving Eddie in bewilderment.
Left alone, Eddie floated in the water, puzzled and uncertain. Why had he ended up in this Mirage Sea when trying to reach the palace? And why was there only water here? He dove underwater, searching for anything unusual but found nothing, not even a single fish.
Emerging from the water, Eddie heard the playful female voice near his ear, teasingly asking, "So, did you find anything interesting?"
"I found nothing," Eddie replied, while the woman chuckled incessantly.
"Planning to escape as soon as the Mirage expires?" Despite her playful nature, she was astute in reading people and guessed Eddie's intention to flee immediately.
"I don't have a teleportation scroll, so I can't escape even if I wanted to," Eddie feigned innocence, fearing the mischievous girl might play a trick on him.
"Ha! Clumsy little liar, do you think I'm a three-year-old? I know that ring on your finger, the Lich Ring, has teleportation scrolls. And that little object on your wrist, I know what it is too. It's hilarious that it's an attack-type beast, yet you've turned it into a bracelet. Who's your master, teaching such a silly student?"
The woman's revelation startled Eddie. He hadn't realized the mysterious metal beast on his wrist was an attack-type beast. As for turning it into a bracelet, it wasn't his doing but the beast's own transformation.
"I don't have a master!" Eddie quickly played the pity card, keeping secret the fact that his actual master was the Sword Spirit.
"You can't fool me. With your abilities at such a young age, you must have a master! You don't? Really? Impossible, someone must be secretly teaching you."
The woman said, suddenly offering, "How about I become your true master? Just call me 'Master' sincerely and obediently follow my instructions, then I'll teach you to become my foremost disciple!"
"A master is acceptable, but only if she's beautiful!" Eddie had his principles.
"Don't worry, I'm even more beautiful than you can imagine. Having me as a master is a fortune of three lifetimes," the woman confidently boasted about her looks.
"If you're to be my master, you must possess both beauty and wisdom. I won't accept a mere pretty face as my master. What abilities do you have?" Eddie joked, as if selecting a beauty pageant winner.
"My abilities?
Plenty. I know over two hundred languages, can write in over a hundred scripts, read various secret texts including summoning runes, identify over a hundred thousand beasts including the unique 'Heaven-reaching Beast' on your wrist.
I can break various seals and barriers, even restoring ancient sealed equipment to its former glory…" The woman rattled off her skills for about ten minutes, leaving Eddie almost speechless.
"Who is this woman? She's unbelievably incredible!" Eddie was astounded. Several of her skills were exactly what he urgently needed to learn, such as identifying the unique 'Heaven-reaching Beast', deciphering summoning runes, breaking seals and barriers, and understanding ancient artifacts.
These skills would be indispensable for exploring the ruins of the gods.
Seeing an opportunity to learn, the shameless transmigrator couldn't help but reveal a sincere smile, radiating warmth and charm.
"Master is truly amazing. May I know your esteemed name and identity?" Eddie, eager to acquire the knowledge he sought, shamelessly addressed her as Master.
"Too late, I've changed my mind. I think it's okay to be indiscriminate about food, but definitely not about disciples. So, you should find someone else as your master!" The playful female voice laughed teasingly. Just as Eddie was about to protest, she added a condition: "If you reach the sixth floor of the Heaven-reaching Tower and obtain the 'Source of Life' and 'Dream Emerald,' then I'll consider accepting you as my disciple!"
"If I can reach the sixth floor of the Heaven-reaching Tower, why would I need you as a master?" Eddie almost lost his temper at the absurd condition.
"You might be confident in yourself, but let me tell you, even at your current level, I can easily defeat you with just a finger," the soft voice said, startling Eddie. Initially, he thought she might be a mischievous princess or noblewoman, but her immense strength was truly frightening.
Good thing he had his innate ability to disguise his true strength; otherwise, she might have seen through his recent ascension to the Innate Realm.
Who was this woman?
"Who are you, exactly?" Eddie's heart raced, hoping she wouldn't realize he was a novice in the Innate Realm.
"You can call me by my title, 'Empress of Night,' if you wish to show me some respect," the woman replied, sending a metaphorical bolt of lightning crashing down on Eddie. "You're one of the three great protectors of Tian Luo, the Empress of Night who seriously injured Purple Gold Marquis in just one move?"
"Two moves, actually. It took me two moves to defeat Purple Gold Marquis," she corrected him.
"My kidneys!" Eddie was terrified. If she could overpower the formidable Purple Gold Marquis in just two moves, how powerful must she be?
Regretting his life choices, Eddie lamented his unfortunate fate. "There shouldn't be a power outage at night. If I don't fall asleep, I guess I'll have to stay up all night to make up for the lost time. I hate power outages…"