'Ghost's prank!?'
Zhou Zaizhi upon seeing that he couldn't move his body, closed his and tried to regulate his breathing against his wildly beating heart.
But after half an hour, he still couldn't move.
Sensing something was wrong, he carefully opened his eyes, and sure enough, the figure was still there.
It was a tall, handsome man who seemed to be in his thirties. He wore a blue flowing silk robe that fluttered in the wind, adorned with a shoulder mantle made from metal forged in a flowing cloud pattern. A flowing cape extended downward from his back, fluttering every time there was a small breeze. On his head was a small white jade crown set with a hair pin equally made of jade.
To the stupefied Zhou Zaizhi, the man looked just like a celestial or an Immortal being out of a painting.
After examining the man's face, Zhou Zaizhi found that he could move again. He was so shocked just now that he hadn't had time to check the state of his body.
'It's not the body of that small lizard, did I die and transmigrate again? Damn it… must have died from lack of sleep, again.'
Zhou Zaizhi cursed his life again and again in his mind, his thoughts flashed like lightning.
'It looks like a python, but with four small limbs, a type of dragon perhaps? Why didn't I notice that my body doesn't belong to humans this time? Strange… Did I get used to it?'
Although frustrated, Zhou Zaizhi did not forget the current situation he was in. He was about to speak words of thanks followed by cautious questions when suddenly, his body voluntarily hissed.
He felt the action coming naturally, like a reflex, like that's what he should do.
'Wait, that wasn't me!'
Zhou Zaizhi was about to speak but found that he couldn't. No matter how he tried, no words would come out of his mouth. He couldn't even make a sound.
But the body he was in was the opposite. It continued to hiss and bare its fangs at the man, prompting a burst of laughter in response from the man.
The handsome flowing blue robe took one step forward, then two, then three, before stopping in front of the python with four legs.
Then he bent down slightly and said:
"Truly, the ignorant knows no fear, a wild beast is still a wild beast."
The man spoke with what seemed to be underlying anger in his tone, which made Zhou Zaizhi feel chills all over his body.
But contrary to his tone, the man's face was full of smiles, not a hint of anger in those pairs of green eyes and vibrant lips.
The closer the man's face was to him, the more intense the chills Zhou Zaizhi felt. Although his body still continued to hiss and warn the man, mind was secretly terrified. The more those pairs of green eyes looked at him, the more suffocating he felt.
"What should I do with you little beast… oh?"
The man mumbled to himself when suddenly something seemed to catch his interest as his gaze shifted.
If before he was looking at the python as a whole insignificant being, then now he is looking straight at its eyes.
The man was surprised to find that this strange python with four legs possessed the same emerald green eyes as him, its eyes held intelligence in them.
Inside those pairs of eyes, he saw something, a light. A light of fear, a light rebellious confidence, a light of hunger.
"You… you're just like us back then." The man's eyes grew cloudy, as if he was lost in a mist as he mumbled, "You and I… we are like the weeds…"
For a moment, the man seemed utterly lost in thoughts, a hint of sadness appeared on his handsome face.
But it was only for a moment.
The man smiled even wider than before when he looked at the small python, "This stroll is truly worthwhile, I'm glad I came out."
Then he calculated with his fingers, crouched down and took something out of his sleeve, a round object.
The object was smooth and round, with even the tiniest scratch on it. It was pure black in color, utterly and truly, black.
Zhou Zaizhi looked at it and was reminded of the blackest paint on Earth. It was a specially made paint to be so black that it absorbed light, with not even a reflection on it. If one were to shine light on it, they wouldn't see a reflection like normal paint, it would just be utterly black.
That was how black the object was.
Just as Zhou Zaizhi was captivated by the round object, he heard the sound of that handsome man talking before him:
"It is your greatest fortune to have met this Venerable One. Since it is fate that we met, I shall leave this small gift for you. Here, take it." The man extended his hand before the strange python.
But the python did not take it.
It looked at the round object curiously left and right, stuck out its tongue several times. It repeated these motions many, many times until it was sure that there was no harm. Only then did it extend its claw and take the round object.
The man maintained his smiling face and patience. His eyes held a hint of endearment as if dealing with a new born child. What's wrong with waiting and playing with a baby? A little waiting did no harm to anyone.
After the four legged python took the round object, the man in blue stood back up, fixed his robe, then made a turn. The man walked away without any hesitation, leaving behind echoing words:
"A tiger father never gives birth to dog sons, a mighty dragon is no serpent. A flood dragon like yourself should not act like a python."
The moment his claws touched the round object, Zhou Zaizhi felt endless mysteries flooded his mind, all its secrets laid bare to him. These profound mysteries came crashing waves after waves unceasingly.
Zhou Zaizhi felt his mind reeling, his head dizzy. He could hear the man's words clearly but failed to understand their underlying meaning.
Feeling that the strange python might have not understood his words, he stopped and turned his head to look back, leaving behind two more sentences:
"I've pointed you the way and left you a torch, the rest is up to your efforts."
Then the man turned back, his facial features disappearing one by one from his eyes to his nose, his form disappearing into thin air.
All that was left was a smile on his face before it, too, disappeared with the wind.
"Don't disappoint me."