Wang Yao always believed that even an immortal, whether as an immortal or as a human, must have a basic moral compass.
"If I find myself lacking in self-reflection, even if I wear coarse clothes and am of modest means, I will not be afraid. If I find myself lacking in self-reflection, even if there are thousands of people against me, I will go forth." The words of the sage are not some supreme state of life, but rather the most basic ability that every person with independent thinking should possess to determine their own actions.
This is the very essence of a person's freedom: the ability to recognize and correct one's mistakes, and the ability to persevere and sacrifice for the cause one believes in.
To ask Wang Yao to give up all of this and willingly become a puppet, he would rather die than submit. The only regret was... familiar faces flashed before Wang Yao's eyes, but he immediately tossed his head and smiled at Aunt Tian.
"What did you say?" Aunt Tian was clearly shocked by Wang Yao's decision; she never expected that he would actually be so determined to die.
"I told you so!" The little girl turned to look at Aunt Tian, her face showing an expression of certainty. "If he can't overcome his psychological barriers, letting him out will only lead to trouble."
The girl then turned to look at Wang Yao: "You're quite good. You've made me think more highly of immortals, but only a little. You ruined my important plans, and I must make amends. When you've figured it out, just call out to Aunt Tian in your heart."
As she spoke, she waved her hand, and the lotus pond, pavilion, and goddess all vanished in an instant. Wang Yao found himself in a boundless desert, with the scorching sun burning overhead and the lotus-viewing couch beneath him replaced by rough, gritty sand, as if he had been fried in a hot pan.
In no time, Wang Yao's back was covered in blisters from the scorching heat.
Not far away was a white bone pointing towards the sky, quite similar to those in the Swamp of Sorrows. This should be the remains of an ancient god, looking like the remains of a large prehistoric animal. A blackish-purple scorpion slowly crawled out from the gap between the bone and the sand.
Under Wang Yao's watchful gaze, it slowly made its way to Wang Yao's forehead, then crawled up his nose to his lips. Suddenly, the scorpion's tail lashed out, stinging Wang Yao's lips hard.
Wang Yao couldn't help but grin, his lips swollen and red. This Lord of Sea Reclamation was indeed just a child. He himself had undergone forging and had tried all sorts of disgusting things. He had even been torn apart by inferior demons. What use were a few little scorpions? They weren't even good enough to tickle him.
It was probably the scorpion that signaled to its companions that there was a huge amount of food in the area, because more and more scorpions gathered on Wang Yao's body, until they covered his entire body. The scorpion tails rose and fell, constantly stinging Wang Yao, who then fell into a deep sleep.
No one knows how many days have passed, but it was certainly far more than thirty days. Wang Yao was just lying in the desert, his body turned into a withered log by the scorching sun. During this time, scorpions, snakes, ants, lizards... all sorts of disgusting creatures came and left Wang Yao's body riddled with holes.
Wang Yao was just sleeping there. Although immortals don't need to sleep, what can an immortal without spiritual power do besides sleep?
More than once, strong winds swept through the desert, burying Wang Yao deep into the sand dunes. He thought he would be forever buried in the sand, but after a while, the sand dunes on his body would always move away, exposing him to the scorching sun.
The enormous skeleton not far away was gradually eroded by the combined effects of time and wind. At first, tiny cracks appeared on the outer white shell, and then the cracks seemed to come alive as they slowly extended and expanded.
Finally, the outer shell began to peel off piece by piece, revealing the rough, porous texture inside.
As the outer shell eroded more and more, the bones quietly crumbled. Finally, one day, Wang Yao discovered that only a small section of the once enormous skeleton remained protruding from the sand, while he himself was still bathed in sunlight. This made Wang Yao quite frustrated.
The only thing that was changing around him was about to disappear, like the last fallen leaf outside the window. Someone painted the last fallen leaf outside the window, but Wang Yao could only watch helplessly as his bones gradually disappeared and were eventually buried by the desert.
Day and night cycle endlessly. The sun and stars appear and disappear silently in Wang Yao's eyes. One day, a sudden downpour began in the desert. The rain never stopped, falling day and night, with lightning and thunder. No one knew how long it lasted, but the desert was flooded.
Wang Yao was immersed in the water. At first, his nose could still stick out, but soon he could only see the seemingly endless rain pouring down on him through a curtain of water. Later, Wang Yao could no longer see what was happening outside. He could only watch the fish playing around him.
The creatures that had been afflicted by the hibernation of Wang Yao have transformed into bizarre aquatic animals and ferocious-looking fish. Water plants have gradually grown on Wang Yao's body, and they drift slowly with the water, as if dancing.
After an unknown amount of time, Wang Yao's surroundings became as black as ink. The fish, water plants, and everything else had disappeared. However, every now and then, Wang Yao could feel something move around him, and then his body would feel an intense itch or a sharp pain.
He couldn't see what it was at all.
Suddenly one day, with a loud bang, a scalding hot current enveloped Wang Yao and rose up. This hot current was very similar to the boiling liquid spiritual energy during forging, also reddish, but much more viscous. While burning Wang Yao's body, it effortlessly sent him to the surface of the water.
The crimson torrents flowed wildly, branding huge, ugly scars onto the black earth. Thick smoke billowed, the sky was filled with low-hanging clouds, and lightning danced in the dark clouds, much like elves welcoming the end of the world.
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