Empathy
In the void world, a red-clothed figure was speeding along with Eight of Clubs on his back!
All the "arrows" were spinning out of control. The burning woman roared malevolently, following closely behind the two. Even though Chen Ling pushed Cloud Steps to the extreme, he could only barely keep pace with her.
Buzz——!
A hum came from the void, and in the darkness above Chen Ling's head, strands of halo gradually rippled out.
These halos condensed into lines, gradually spreading out in all directions, bit by bit outlining mysterious patterns, like a reflection cast from an extremely far place. It seemed close at hand, yet out of reach.
Seeing these patterns, Chen Ling suddenly felt a bit familiar.
"This is... the relief on that door? Why would it appear here?"
"It's the Second Hall." As a member of the Hall Masters, Eight of Clubs naturally understood what was going on. "He's borrowing the Divine Path Foundation of the Path of the Arts in 'Guernica' to open the entrance to the Domain left by the Chief. No wonder he made the whole painting chaotic..."
"Don't underestimate that door. It was forged by the Chief and the first batch of Floating Life Painting Hall Masters together back then... Without the key, even if a Demigod came, they couldn't easily open it." Eight of Clubs looked at the relief patterns outlined in the void and continued,
"This door can be considered the crystallization of the first batch of Hall Masters. Not only is its defensive power extremely formidable, but after activation, it can also let consciousness cover the entire Red Dust Domain. However, normally only the Second Hall and Third Hall have the authority to do this."
Hearing this, a look of understanding appeared in Chen Ling's eyes.
In the Red Dust Domain, there was the saying that "Divine Beings are three feet above your head". Moreover, the residents in the Domain seemed to associate the Floating Life Painting with the sky... Chen Ling clearly remembered that when encountering a Gray Realm Convergence within the main city previously, the Second Hall's gaze seemed to fall from above the heavenly dome, and he even used it to seal all the Convergence Points in one breath. Furthermore, no matter which corner of the Red Dust Domain the Floating Life Painting members were in, as long as they reported their coordinates, the Third Hall's Ink Lightning could strike down accurately...
Looking at it now, this Grand Relief Gate itself was the secret weapon for the two Hall Masters to macroscopically control the Red Dust Domain.
"But I don't understand..." Eight of Clubs frowned tightly. "What kind of thing exactly happened outside that would require the Second Hall to open the door so urgently?"
"About this, I should know a bit..."
Chen Ling briefly described the news of the Realm War to Eight of Clubs. Ever since Eight of Clubs arrived at the Red Dust Domain, he had been locked up here, completely unaware of matters regarding the Wuji Domain. After listening, he was incomparably shocked.
"Realm War?! Is the Lord of Wuji crazy?!"
"Now is no longer the time to discuss this." Chen Ling's gaze swept over the surroundings, only to see that apart from the burning woman, two more out-of-control Roles were pouncing towards them. "What we need to think about now is how to save our lives."
"'Guernica' has already fallen into disorder, and the painting itself has begun to reject us. We have no other way except to delay as much time as possible."
At the same time, Chen Ling's peripheral vision locked onto several approaching Roles. He slipped through the gaps at the limit, the Great Crimson Theatrical Robe grazing through the void like an afterimage, while several massive giant shadows roared and closely followed behind!
"Aren't you a Sixth Stage? You have no way to deal with these things?"
"They are formed by the painful and resentful souls in the painting and are not affected by any external forces. Let alone me, even if the other Hall Masters came, they couldn't harm them in the slightest."
"Damn it... Then there's no other way? If things go on like this, we'll be surrounded sooner or later."
Eight of Clubs stared at his palm for a long time, gritting his teeth:
"I'll lead the way for you."
"To where?"
"There is one Role whose existence is very special... It won't move, and it has a suppressing effect on other Roles, so other Roles don't dare to easily approach it. Although its emotional influence is the strongest here, if we enter its area, at least we can ensure we won't be torn to pieces."
"Alright, which direction?"
Chen Ling didn't have the slightest hesitation and chose to believe Eight of Clubs' plan. Compared to some intangible emotional influence, saving their lives was definitely the most important. He didn't have enough Audience Expectation Value right now, so he absolutely couldn't die.
Under Eight of Clubs' guidance, Chen Ling maneuvered around the Roles chasing behind him while rapidly approaching a certain place in the void.
And Eight of Clubs, clearly having been mentally tortured to the brink of collapse, despite being a Sixth Stage, didn't even have the strength to run in the void at this moment. He could only obediently lie on Chen Ling's back, like a youth whose oil lamp had run dry.
"By the way, why aren't you affected by the emotions of those things?"
"Who said I'm not affected." Chen Ling focused entirely on running for his life while responding, "It's just not as serious as yours."
"But this of mine is the reaction of a normal person in 'Guernica'."
"Are you saying I'm not normal??"
"You..." Eight of Clubs paused, but still spoke, "You are indeed not quite normal, at least in terms of emotions."
"...Perhaps it's because my empathy ability is poor." Chen Ling thought about it. "Ever since that thing appeared in my body, I rarely empathize with others... Maybe this is considered 'being cold by nature'?"
"No wonder." Eight of Clubs glanced at Chen Ling's Theatrical Robe attire and half-complained, "You truly are 'Actors Are Heartless'."
"You can't really say heartless. My other emotions are fine, it's just very hard to resonate with other people's emotional changes... It's like... like..." Chen Ling tried to describe his feelings to Eight of Clubs, but somehow couldn't find a suitable description.
"Like an 'Audience'?" Eight of Clubs suddenly spoke.
These words fell into Chen Ling's ears like a flash of lightning. He was stunned for a long time before nodding stiffly.
"Mm... yes."
Eight of Clubs didn't press further. He just lay on Chen Ling's back, took a deep look at Chen Ling, his gaze incomparably complex.
"Whatever the case, your 'cold nature' is our life-saving straw right now," Eight of Clubs said. "I once tried to approach that Role, but failed... I couldn't bear its emotions, nor could I leave a mark on it. If I faint later, I can only rely on you."
"I'll try."
While the two were talking, another two or three Roles surrounded them. Now behind the Great Crimson Theatrical Robe, a dense patch of abstract Roles followed closely. Some were horses pierced by spears, some were giant faces with malevolent expressions, some were Mothers holding children... They gathered together in malevolence and pain, the surging emotions like monstrous waves, about to drown the two within.
Finally, just as Chen Ling was about to exhaust his strength, a massive figure gradually appeared in his line of sight.