She Was Sentenced to Life Imprisonment [Unlimited] - Chapter 73

Chapter 73: Absolute Believer [One]

Being respectfully insulted.

Jiang Nan was personally sent to the fourth level of the Stairway to Heaven by He Nas. She ignored the system’s prompt and only listened to what the person said to her.

“Little Jiang Nan, this time might be a little different.”

The other person’s voice became more and more ethereal. It wasn’t until the touch on her hand disappeared that only the lingering warmth proved that He Nas had once held her hand and led her in.

Jiang Nan looked up and suddenly saw herself in a huge mirror. A white dress that reached the floor fit her thin body perfectly. Her silvery hair was draped over her shoulders, and a golden woven wreath sat on her head. She wasn’t sure if it was her imagination, but she felt as if a faint halo surrounded her, making the melancholy in her eyes look more like that of a compassionate deity.

She raised her hand and touched the person’s face in the mirror, but to be more accurate, she was checking if the mirror was a pillar.

“Why are there so many mirrors?” Jiang Nan murmured.

She looked around. The person in the mirror followed her movements. Countless mirrors reflected countless versions of her, making her a little dizzy and unable to tell where the exit was. The architecture was Western-style, with a hint of a church, but the place that was supposed to be sacred looked more like a maze meant to trap people because of the walls and pillars made of mirrors.

She lowered her head and looked at the clothes on her body. This outfit was personally chosen by He Nas. At the time, she thought it was exaggerated, but now it seemed to fit this place perfectly. Every time He Nas changed her clothes, they matched the background of each dungeon, as if she knew in advance which dungeon she was going into. Since He Nas was still on the main god’s side, there was no need for Jiang Nan to delve too deeply into her having some privileges.

“Saint.”

Jiang Nan’s brows furrowed as she was respectfully cursed. She looked in the direction of the voice. Soon, a second person appeared in the mirror.

The person had her head bowed, holding a mirror with its back facing her. She was also wearing a white dress, but the fabric was obviously rougher and the style was simpler. She looked like a maid here.

“Are you calling me?” Jiang Nan asked, still frowning. The title of “Saint” sounded like an insult. Maybe the main god was deliberately disgusting her.

The maid thought she was angry and knelt down in a hurry, but she carefully placed the mirror she was holding behind her to the side. Her voice was trembling with fear. “It’s my fault for making the Saint angry.”

The person kneeling on the ground was trembling slightly. This made Jiang Nan, who was standing, look like she was lording over the other person.

“I’m not angry. Get up,” Jiang Nan said calmly. Her flat voice made it impossible to tell her emotions. Her gaze fell on the mirror the maid had placed on the side. Although she could only see the back of it, the golden edge was extremely delicate, not like a defective product that couldn’t be used for reflection.

The maid heard Jiang Nan’s words and slowly stood up, holding the mirror reverently in her hands. “Saint, I was sent by the bishop to bring you to the main hall.”

This maid was here to guide her. Jiang Nan nodded, and the maid led the way.

“Let me borrow your mirror.” The maid stopped. Her tone was respectful. “Do you want to fix your appearance? Although you are already very proper, since you want it, I will not refuse.”

Jiang Nan had thought that the other person was holding the mirror with its back facing her and that she held it like a treasure, so she was afraid the other person would refuse, but she didn’t expect it to go so smoothly. Jiang Nan followed the maid’s words. “Yes, I feel like my hair is a bit messy.” She said, fiddling with a lock of hair in a similar manner. This reason was obviously not valid since there were hundreds of mirrors all around them.

But the maid would not disobey her or question her. She quickly turned the mirror to face Jiang Nan. She, herself, still kept her face turned away from the mirror. Jiang Nan leaned close to the mirror until she could see herself clearly, and she didn’t find anything wrong with the mirror. Her fingertips lightly touched the mirror’s surface. The cool touch and the only difference from a regular mirror was the golden edge.

“Okay, I’m done.” She motioned for the maid to put it away. The maid’s movements were very careful, as if she was afraid of accidentally seeing herself in the mirror with a single movement.

Suddenly, a black shadow flashed in the mirror. A pair of bewitching eyes looked at her.

“Wait!” She reached out to stop the other person from putting the mirror away. But this time, no matter how hard she looked, she could only see herself and the countless versions of herself made of mirrors behind her. It was as if the figure was just a hallucination of her own.

Because of her movement, the maid immediately became flustered. She bowed her head even lower, avoiding the mirror, not daring to let her figure appear in it.

“What’s wrong? Is there anything I can help you with?” The maid asked Jiang Nan respectfully, despite her fear.

Jiang Nan saw her reaction. Her eyes drooped, and she was lost in thought.

“It’s nothing. I’m sorry.” The maid quickly shook her head, her voice full of panic. “You are a noble Saint. Even if you haven’t been baptized with the holy water and blessed by the gods, your status is still superior. So you don’t need to apologize to me.”

Jiang Nan looked at her deeply and then took her hand off the mirror. The maid immediately held the mirror carefully, but she was stunned when she heard Jiang Nan’s next words. “Are you all so afraid of mirrors?”

When the maid came just now, she had her head down all the time, as if she was afraid of the walls and pillars made of mirrors. If they were so afraid, why did they use mirrors to make the palace?

The maid came to her senses and quickly shook her head. “No, we’re not afraid. It’s just that only pure Saints can face mirrors. But for people as dirty as us, we’ll only see an unbearable version of ourselves in the mirror.” Her words all implied that they were not worthy of looking in the mirror.

Jiang Nan thought about it for a moment and changed the subject. “You just said that I need to go through the holy water and be blessed by the gods to become a true Saint?”

The maid was walking in front, and she nodded when she heard Jiang Nan’s words. A hint of admiration appeared in her voice. “Yes, if you become a successor to the gods, I will be happy to have served you. Of course, I am happy now, too.”

Hearing this, Jiang Nan fell into deep thought, not noticing that they had already reached their destination.

“Saint, we’re here. The Bishop is waiting for you.” Jiang Nan looked up and saw the old, kind-faced old man, who was happy to see them arrive.

The players had already arrived one after another. Jiang Nan glanced at them but didn’t see He Nas. A hint of unnoticeable loneliness flashed in her eyes before she stood in a corner of the crowd. Since she was already thin, her quiet presence made her even more inconspicuous. But even with her trying to minimize her presence, she was still noticeable to the people who had specially pulled some strings to get in.

A woman with a gentle face looked in Jiang Nan’s direction and then excitedly whispered something to the person beside her. Jiang Nan, on the side, was already secretly observing the place.

It was still the same as the place they came from. All the walls and pillars were made of mirrors, as if someone was watching them from all angles. This made Jiang Nan feel uncomfortable. After suppressing the discomfort, she carefully observed the place again.

It was certain that there were no statues of gods here, so this was not the main hall of a church. The place where the bishop was standing was covered by a curtain. But whether it was hot or cold steam rising from it, it was misty. Jiang Nan thought that the place should be the holy water the maid mentioned.

After the person beside the bishop whispered something to him, he scanned all the players with his eyes. He smiled kindly, which made people ignore the hint of dark calculation in his eyes. He spoke, and his old but authoritative voice echoed in this huge place.

“Although you are all Saints chosen by the gods, you should know that only by crossing the holy water can you truly be blessed by the gods and have a chance to become a successor to the gods. This is a supreme honor, and I believe all of you will do your best to achieve it.”

“Behind me is the holy water. It will cleanse your souls and lead you to the gods.” He said, then scanned everyone again, with a smile that was unreadable. “But remember, only by having infinite trust in yourself and becoming your own believer can you avoid being dragged to hell by the evil god reflected in the mirror.”

The bishop’s words made the players a bit confused. As themselves, how could they not trust themselves?

“No wonder there are so many mirrors. It seems they’re used to examine ourselves.” The woman in the white dress said to the person beside her. The person seemed to be a woman of few words, but she still responded with a “mm.” The woman seemed used to it and didn’t mind, continuing to share her thoughts with the other person.

At that moment, the system’s mechanical and cold voice sounded.

[Welcome, players, to the dungeon.] [The name of this dungeon is: Absolute Believer.] [The current mission is to cross the holy water and be blessed by the gods.]

Hearing the mission the system had given, and without a sarcastic closing remark, the players understood that crossing the holy water was just the first step. They looked at the clear pool of water behind the bishop. The faint golden light made it look incredibly sacred, and the cold mist rising from it made it look as ethereal as a fairyland.

The players were random and didn’t know each other. So even if they had doubts, they didn’t discuss anything with the people next to them. If the system was going to force them to take a mission, no matter how beautiful the holy water looked, there must be a danger in it.

The players were waiting. No one wanted to be the first one to step up. A very large man looked around. He finally set his eyes on a smaller person next to him, and he pushed that person violently. He commanded her with a harsh voice, “You go and check it out.”

Jiang Nan, who was suddenly pushed out: …

Jiang Nan staggered backward from the push and barely managed to stand still. A few muffled laughs rang out around her. She looked back at the person who pushed her with a dark expression. In the end, she didn’t say anything and walked toward the pool of holy water.

The bishop watched her, smiling, and politely made way for her. As she approached, a cold aura rushed toward her. The misty vapor enveloped her figure. The moment she stepped into the pool, she paused.

The others saw her stop and thought there was something down there. They craned their necks to see what was there. But they didn’t know the real reason why Jiang Nan stopped: the water was too cold.

She felt countless eyes on her, and finally, she calmly stepped in.