Act as A Lord

This pure nonsense came from Mao Nianzu's mouth. To be honest, the red wisp indeed looked like a soft, squishable ball at a glance. So, he was being reasonable here.

Drip.

'This lord treats my soul as a mere ball! I'll be dead!'

The middle-aged man was drenched in a cold sweat. One visible bead of water dropped onto the ground as the man thought that. So, he hurriedly explained.

"Please spare my soul! This lowly one is willing to be useful, even sacrificing himself for my lord. One thought is enough to summon me!"

'I see. That wisp is a soul.' Intentionally, Mao Nianzu paused for a moment in this thought. The thrill of acting as a lord was exhilarating!

"Look at me in the eyes." With a firm tone, Mao Nianzu commanded him.

"Please spare me!" The man shuddered in fear. 'What have I done?... I never meet a lord, but when I do, this lord asks me to finish myself. Seeing the lord's eyes is definitely… NO! I can't see it!'

Naturally, Mao Nianzu did not realize the internal conflict within this man. He only stood — waiting for the man to lift his head.

With a hint of interest, Mao Nianzu opened his mouth as he said: "You have the guts to deny me."

"M-my lord! Looking at your eyes is a blasphemy. Thi-this lowly one begs y-your mercy!"

Blood started to stream, smearing the face as the man knocked his forehead on the ground a few times.

Although this scene was rather bloody and cruel, Mao Nianzu did not feel any emotion in the slightest. Instead, he continued pouring his curiosity.

"No point in hitting your head. If you like hitting it so much, I can suggest many ways." Mao Nianzu chuckled. "Anyway, you already rejected my words many times. It seems like I have to make something clear. First, I won't punish you. Second, you obey my words without question."

The man secretly engraved the word and decided to be obedient. He trusted the Lord so much that he dared not to question anymore. The Lord was already benevolent enough not to kill him!

"This lowly one is at your command."

Hearing the answer, Mao Nianzu finally heaved a sigh of relief.

Then, he organized his thought more, thinking about which one should be the first question while looking around this narrow, dark room which was like a room in a demonic cult.

Mao Nianzu noticed a four legs chair made of bones and sat on it. He crossed his legs as he tilted his cheek, propped by his hand, looking rather lofty and aloof. Of course, he had no idea when this chair appeared.

"Tell me about this room," said Mao Nianzu.

"This room is a separate space inside my sea of consciousness. Only an entity such as my lord is capable of entering and leaving as he pleases."

The man answered, then paused to make sure whether his answer satisfied the Lord. A second after that, he felt unease and hurriedly added.

"This lowly one got the room after defeating an Abyss creature. This lowly one has done his best for a hundred years to develop the room. Currently, the room functions as a summoning, offering, and contracting place."

Listening to the explanation, Mao Nianzu seriously pondered and digested it. He assumed that not all people owned this dark room — the man only got it after fighting Abyss' creature.

He had questions regarding the explanation, but Mao Nianzu put it aside for now, hence the following command.

"Tell me what you see in my eyes."

Engraved within his ears, the words forced the man's brain to recall the scene in the auditorium. That brief moment when their eyes met and everything before his view turned rather bizarre as he forcefully pulled into his own sea of consciousness. Horrible.

"Boundless darkness. Squirming sea of eyes. Myriad creatures were kneeling before your presence. Staring it too long will make this lowly one lose himself." The man said respectfully.

'That's rather…weird. When I woke up, I looked in the mirror. My eyes and mouth are normal. Do people see differences in my eyes now? But that gentleman in the workplace casually talked to me in the eyes. He's safe and sound. Hm…'

Mao Nianzu fell into his thought after listening to the man's words.

If his eyes truly changed, wouldn't it give the same reaction to whoever stares into his eyes? Lest impacted them, such as fear like the man had now.

"Mortals meet my eyes. Mortals live well until now," Mao Nianzu said. He hoped the man understood what he meant; explaining too much did not sound fit in his position now.

"Please forgive the narrow sight this lowly one has! I only know that those who have a connection and those you allow are honored to know the vastness of your unfathomable power."

Tapping the bones chair, Mao Nianzu tried his best to comprehend this answer. He looked at the trembling middle-aged man and sighed with complicated feelings.

At first, he wanted to learn what cultivators wanted to do. Witnessing the fire-water halo brilliantly shining behind the man's back, Mao Nianzu was gasped in admiration. Now, the former mighty man in his imagination kneeled before him. Just…what kind of situation is this?

However, Mao Nianzu already put his heart into the current situation and went with the flow as he tried to extort some information.

Now, he had enough materials to be digested—time to wrap it up.

"Not bad," Mao Nianzu said. "Return and continue your performance on stage. Prepare one summary."

Of course, Mao Nianzu still desired the knowledge of fundamental cultivation. At the same, he wanted to try using the red wisp; he had no single idea where that red wisp had gone to.

Generally speaking, he thought someone with a 'lord' image would never summon with no reason; thus, the summary was perfect for the summoning reason later on.

The man obeyed Mao Nianzu's command.

A black blindfold appeared out of nowhere, floated towards the man, and wrapped his eyes as he slowly got up. He respectfully said: "Let this lowly one have the honor to escort my lord outside."

Mao Nianzu stood up as he faced a dark wall that gradually turned bright, showing a world with a sea of golden clouds. Many treasures floated, and some dived between the clouds.

There was an eyelid trembling when Mao Nianzu passed through it.

"This lowly one is embarrassed for showing such an unworthy sea of consciousness." The man said. He trembled, worried about displeasing the Lord.

Listening to this man, Mao Nianzu shook his head inward.

Inside his heart, Mao Nianzu genuinely thought this was a place straight out of a fairy tale—those divine lights and priceless treasures. Just by witnessing it already beneficial to broaden his horizon.

"You did well. Only time will tell."

Mao Nianzu said as his vision turned white, overlapping with the auditorium, and everything went normal. However, he heard a distant voice, full of gratitude.

"Only time will tell… thank you for the guidance!" said the man inside his own sea of consciousness.

Mao Nianzu quickly composed himself. He was worried if things went wrong or if people suspected him.

"How long does he last?" Mao Nianzu asked one youth next to him.

"Haish… you feel it long, right, uncle? He's in that state less than an incense stick of time." The youth furrowed his brows in worry.

Mao Nianzu heaved a sigh of relief and expressed his thanks for answering. Apparently, the conversation inside the darkroom went on for a brief moment.

After that, he threw his gaze on the stage. The fire-water halo was on the verge of breaking. Some parts already invaded each other as though a war was happening.

The brilliance lights dimmed. Visual phenomena vanished. Causing experts to be wary of the worst.

Mao Nianzu saw some audiences packed themselves, and many seats were vacant. People acted rather quickly and efficiently to save their lives in that short moment.

Boom!

Shoosh!

Explosive sounds rang out loudly as though lava had collided with a tsunami. The temperature near the stage shifted from hot to cold. Shortly after, cold to hot.

The dazing man's eyes gradually turned vivid as they showed visual phenomena with more bright lights.

"Hmrph!" the man's body shook as a visible change occurred on the fire-water halo. It looked surreal, like rewinding time as the collided element steadily returned to its former state, transforming it into the perfect halo again.

The onlookers gasped in disbelief and amazement.

"Awaiting tribulations," the man opened his mouth and looked rather ethereal and divine. He continued, "there's no end ahead. The future is uncertain. Only by moving forward will we achieve the unreachable. If one falters due to a slight obstacle, one must reflect his entire life."

There was a long silence.

People tried to comprehend the event revealed before their eyes. Some discussed among themselves through transmission.

"That's impossible! He manages to subdue the chaotic state, perfectly control the situation without damaging his cultivation!"

One elder transmitted his thought to his friends.

"And the elements! He uses fire and water. A slight imbalance will cause fatal impacts. It requires enormous talent and concentration to create the halo, let alone repair it!"

Another elder carefully contemplated through transmission. He witnessed the impossible, possible.