Chapter 359: Chapter 359: The Master of Matter_1
The hair, clothes, skin, and bones all transformed into an indescribable liquid, with only the lantern that had been knocked to the ground remaining unchanged.
A Spirit illusion? A homunculus? A devil’s pact?
Several possibilities flashed through Joey Lawson’s mind, and before he could draw a conclusion, his hand had already moved.
The short Magic Wand pointed at the still-burning lantern as he began to chant a spell, "Add fuel to the fire."
The faint flame suddenly intensified, transforming into a fireball that leaped towards the melting "Sophie Carter" and engulfed it.
No matter what that thing was, it was best to disable its ability to retaliate first—this was a lesson Joey had learned from past battles.
The Elemental Magic that amplified the flames could enhance any fire source and allow for brief control. It was a common attack magic used by mages—although for the purpose of merely killing, it was not as practical as firearms improved over generations.
The liquid wrapped in flames did not change much, only becoming more fluid, as if it had thinned out.
Then, the mass of liquid rapidly reshaped itself, tightened slightly, and in the next second, broke through the flames and shot straight at Joey.
Not a creature, nor something flammable, Joey instantly concluded.
In a crisis, using Dark Magic for defense was tantamount to testing his fate, so Joey spared no effort in playing his trump card; he pressed the Magic Wand against his throat and cast the Alchemy of Life to transform his vocal organs.
Unintelligible words spilled out from his mouth, and his domain rapidly expanded, "Wordless Code" at work!
For a moment, he was the master of all matter within his domain: electricity, light, fire, ice, gravity, and repulsion... He could manipulate the state and interactions of matter at will, even warping portions of natural physical laws.
An invisible air barrier appeared in front of him out of nowhere and explosively expanded from him as the center, forcefully pushing the liquid mass back.
The liquid scattered by the air pressure fell to the ground like splashed water, then gathered together again.
Joey realized that physical damage was ineffective against this thing, and ordinary levels of electricity and fire could not cause it sufficient harm.
But Joey did not continue to focus his attention on the "slime monster"; instead, he turned his head and began to search his surroundings.
It was of little use to focus on destroying such man-made creatures; only by uncovering the person pulling the strings could he truly get to the root of the problem.
Under the manipulation of "Wordless Code," the air seemed to take on a faint glow, lighting up the domain as if dawn had arrived.
Joey expanded his domain to its utmost limit, but despite searching for several seconds, he found nothing, not even a shadow of a person.
Remote manipulation... or some kind of clever concealment technique?
No matter what, the enemy was hidden while he was exposed, and he still had absolutely no idea what the adversary was capable of—it was best to escape from this place first!
Joey dared not linger in battle and prepared to retreat, but the slime monster suddenly transformed into the likeness of Sophie Carter once again.
"Don’t flaunt that appearance in front of me!!" Joey suddenly felt a wave of irritation. To his eyes, this monster incessantly impersonating Sophie Carter was an unending taunt.
Arcs of electricity weaved into a net, enveloping "Sophie Carter." In the flashes of lightning, Sophie Carter’s form rapidly disintegrated, swirling and flowing like a vortex, while emitting a brilliant light.
At that moment, a command resounded out of nowhere in his mind, "It is forbidden to manipulate and change the natural properties and states of matter with thoughts; violators shall be punished with flogging."
The thought of "Do not defy this command" instinctively arose, and the electrified phenomenon abruptly ceased. The faint glow that shrouded the entire area dimmed down, and Sophie Carter’s transformed monster, as though it had lost its guiding force, melted onto the ground and turned into a large pool of silver liquid.
Everything returned to its natural state, the serene night, the deserted riverside, as Joey felt the evening breeze brush against his cheek—this signified the protective barrier of wind pressure around him had vanished.
In the darkness, Joey felt as if a vast, icy hand had gripped him, pulling away his authority over the manipulation of matter.
He did not know where this power originated from, but he was very clear that the command came from some authoritative force.
And the person using this power... obviously was closer to the authority itself!
This was not an opponent he could handle; he should not have been lured out so easily!
Upon realizing his situation, he abruptly turned to flee, only to find a skinny, masked figure had mysteriously appeared behind him.
Aiden had changed his own shape and voice and donned a mask to hide his identity.
"I had intended to observe and understand a bit longer, but it seems like you’re about to break my toy..." Aiden said calmly, "Nice to meet you, Mr. Lawson."
"Your toy?" Joey Lawson squinted his eyes, glanced back at the pool of silver liquid, "Is this annoying thing yours?"
"That’s right," Aiden replied.
The one who had transformed into Sophie Carter to lure Joey out was not him; it was a Mercury Golem.
He knew the Mercury Golem stood no chance against Joey, but out of caution, he still brought it along, even if just to serve as a meat shield to take damage at a crucial moment.
Joey Lawson had an unusual obsession with Sophie, so upon seeing "Sophie Carter," he would surely follow to find out more.
However, once he determined that the person before him was unlikely to be the real Sophie, the likelihood that he would suddenly launch an attack became much greater. Of course, Aiden was not about to test these waters himself, so he had bestowed the "substitute" power onto the Mercury Golem, allowing it to temporarily take Sophie Carter’s place.
This was also a trial of implementing the divine word of "existence" in actual combat.
But now the Wordless Code’s effect also extended to the Mercury Golem, which had returned to its natural state without the interference of Abigail’s divine words.
"Who exactly are you—"
Joey immediately began to question, but Aiden cut him off, "The right to ask questions lies with me, Mr. Lawson. You should be very aware of the gap in power between us. I have been tasked with stopping your obsessive behavior towards a certain individual, and if possible, I would prefer to keep things simple."
"Keep things simple?"
"Transfer all of your divinity to me, then turn yourself in, confess your past illegal acts truthfully, and stay in prison," Aiden said slowly, "Do this, and I shall spare you."
