OUTSIDE OF TIME

569 The World in the Painting (2)

“Every mural is a small world! These 33 small worlds are the cells in Area C!”

As soon as Ghost Hand spoke, a strange glint appeared in Xu Qing’s eyes. Previously, when he saw the murals, he had a guess, especially since he had experienced the Great Void World. Hence, he wasn’t completely ignorant of existences like small worlds.

However, he was still shocked by the abilities of the Prison Department.

‘Using the 33 small worlds as the cells in Area C, then what will Area B and Area A below be like?’ Xu Qing took a deep breath.

As for the old man’s words, they were still echoing.

“This old man is the prison lord of the first world of the 33 worlds. I lead a group of Pawns of the first world of Area C to guard this world!”

“Your duty is in the first world. However, your cultivation level hasn’t reached the Nascent Soul realm and it’ll be difficult for you to withstand the power of laws of a world on your own. I’ll bring you to this world first and let you experience it.”

As the old man spoke, he spat out a mouthful of black fog at the murals.

As the fog landed and spread in all directions, the colors of the murals became livelier.

It was no longer dark but more colorful. In the end, it became colorful and lifelike.

“Let’s go.”

The old man placed his hands behind his back and walked toward the murals that had regained its color.

Xu Qing followed behind and stepped into the mural with the old man, entering the first world of the 33 worlds.

What appeared in front of Xu Qing was an endless void.

In the depths of the void, there was a gray continent covered with a red barrier of light.

It was filled with countless runes formed by array formations and restrictions, forming an astonishing seal that enveloped the entire continent.

Moreover, those runes flickered with a certain pattern, causing at least a million runes to flicker at the same time and circulate eternally.

As the array formation seal rotated, four illusory statues appeared in the surroundings of the continent.

These four statues were incomparably huge and looked extremely different from humans. They looked more like ferocious beasts.

Their heads were the size of the continent. They were lined up in the north, south, east, and west. They lowered their heads at the same time and stared at the continent.

Their gazes gathered and transformed into the sun and moon.

As the array formation runes shone, the four figures slowly changed directions. Hence, the sun and moon alternated.

Such a majestic scene caused Xu Qing’s emotions to fluctuate intensely.

“This is the first world. The void here was extracted by the first Palace Master from the Void World and fused into this place to hide the aura of the first world.”

In the void, the old man stood in front and spoke in a deep voice.

“You can see the runic seal on the outer shell as the laws of this world that were refined by my Sword Holding Palace. Those four statues are the four original Heavenly Dao bodies of this world.”

“Now, leave your mark in the array formation. This way, you won’t be suppressed by the rules after you step in.”

As he spoke, the old man took a step forward and landed in the array formation’s seal. He shuttled over and directly landed on that continent.

When Xu Qing heard this, he performed a series of hand seals and imprinted his mark into the light shell array formation before walking over.

As the continent became clearer and clearer in his eyes, their figures passed through everything and appeared in the clouds in the sky.

Below him was the mountain range of this small world.

“The moment this world was transformed into a prison, the rules were set. Outsiders can’t reproduce here.”

The old man slowly spoke and continued walking.

As Xu Qing followed, he noticed that the range of this world wasn’t small. The overall terrain was mainly deserts and wilderness, and the spirit qi was extremely thin. In fact, as soon as he arrived, he felt as though he was about to suffocate.

It was as though his entire body was bound by an invisible force and suppressed by endless mountain peaks. His strength was severely restricted and he couldn’t unleash all of it.

Fortunately, very soon, as the array formation in the external world circulated, he instantly returned to normal and felt relaxed.

This experience allowed him to gain a better understanding of this prison.

The weather in this world was extremely harsh. From his high vantage point, he could see sandstorms sweeping across some places. The wind inside possessed the power to cut bones.

In some places, poisonous rain poured down, and every being could only cry in misery.

There were also places where magnetic storms filled the air. Many Heavenly Daos descended and killed everything.

“In the 33 worlds prison, countless races and bizarre entities are imprisoned. They are all tortured in the small world and their lives are not up to them. All the rules here are controlled by our Prison Department.”

The old man waved his hand and the desert on the ground instantly changed. Mountains rose from the ground and the terrain actually became a crisscrossed mountain range.

This wasn’t the end. He waved his hand again and the mountain range here was instantly erased. Endless water vapor gathered and a large amount of seawater seeped out of the ground. At the next moment, this place actually transformed into a sea.

Moving mountains and overturning seas, all the changes were within his grasp.

When Xu Qing saw this scene, his expression turned solemn.

“Xu Qing, do you know why prison makes people feel fear?” The old man looked at Xu Qing.

“Because of deprivation,” Xu Qing replied solemnly.

“That’s right. Deprive them of what originally belonged to them and turn what they were used to into something they dreamed of but couldn’t have again. The pain formed by this contrast is the most heart-wrenching.”

The old man looked at the sea below and his voice echoed.

“The principle of the 33 worlds prison is to use the laws of the small world to transform it into a cage, allowing all the Nascent Soul cultivators imprisoned in this prison to be attacked by this world.

“We don’t restrict their cultivation levels. They are still Nascent Souls but they are Nascent Souls of small worlds.”

“The four life fires Foundation Building realm in the Wanggu Continent is almost comparable to the Nascent Soul realm in a small world. The power of one palace Golden Core realm is almost the same as the mid-stage Nascent Soul realm.”

“As a result, the prisoners, who were accustomed to wielding great power with just a single technique in the ancient continent of Wanggu, now experience a sharp decline in their power. The feeling of being bound by the heavens and earth will make them, who have experienced the beauty of the outside world, more desperate and more miserable.”

“The simplest thing that once belonged to them has now become the most extravagant desire.”

“This is the prison of Area C of the Prison Department.” The old man looked at Xu Qing and spoke in a low voice.