One-Eyed Monster

Igor simply couldn’t hold it back. He had managed to restrain himself well enough, but for some reason, he still let the words slip out of his mouth.

”Igor, you’re definitely the most cautious fellow I’ve ever met!” Stan Sol hadn’t expected Igor to still be doubtful at this point. He had wasted so much breath on him. But time was of the essence, and he couldn’t afford to waste this precious commodity.

However, Igor was not cooperative at all and chose not to believe at this crucial moment. Stan Sol understood that Igor wasn’t distrusting his words, but rather the situation itself. Igor felt compelled to view Stan Sol as a fraud; it couldn’t be helped, as the controller in this Inner World could indeed do as they pleased. Igor had been a controller before, so he understood this quite well.

But for Stan Sol, the worst thing in the world was not being distrusted; it was not being able to influence someone’s actions in any other way. Though they were in total chaos now, it would not be easy to achieve a simple convergence of Spirit Power.

But currently, Igor stubbornly refused to go along with Stan Sol’s approach, leading to an awkward stalemate.

”Well, if that’s the way it is, I won’t insist. You go ahead your own way, Igor.” Stan Sol eventually gave up. He knew persuading Igor was tough. Rather than persisting with painstaking persuasion, it was better to let him act freely. Maybe this could work out well unexpectedly.

Sometimes, dispelling doubts doesn’t require persistent persuasion, a fact lost on many people who keep on talking without considering others’ feelings. In fact, the more they persuade, the more troublesome it becomes, and whether others even listen is another matter entirely.

In the Outer World, Igor had faced a similar crisis of trust but did not resort to verbose explanations (though he wanted to, he was not adept at it). He merely acted to clear Kuren’s suspicions. Actions speak louder than words, and facts are often revealed through practical actions. Of course, Igor didn’t grasp this concept; he just stumbled upon it successfully. And now, this same kind of accidental success was happening to Igor again.

Stan Sol gave Igor the power to choose entirely. He let Igor act freely, completely in his own way. The sudden power took Igor’s breath away.

Igor had no idea what he should do now!

He had come to this Inner World to find Stan Sol. But at that moment, he had found nothing and was almost assimilated by the darkness. When someone claiming to be Stan Sol appeared, he didn’t trust him, fearing the person was a grand deceiver. Now, this ’grand deceiver’ told him to go his own way, and he was even more confused. Firstly, he had no idea which way to go. Secondly, his heart began to waver. This wavering made him even more conflicted, mainly because he was indecisive. Fifty percent of him believed this was the deceiver’s delaying tactic, aimed at making him, with no way out, turn back and beg. The other fifty percent believed the person opposite him was the real Stan Sol, and everything he had just said was factual.

His wavering heart was becoming unbalanced. His appreciation for the other party’s gesture increased his belief that this was the real Stan Sol from fifty percent to fifty-two percent. Simultaneously, his overall trust in *this* Stan Sol increased by about five percent.

”My way... I can’t think of one...” Igor swayed; perhaps a fish’s brain couldn’t remember everything.

”Think about why you’re here and where you want to go, and you’ll find some answers,” Stan Sol continued. Since he couldn’t proceed according to his wishes, he might as well accumulate some Spirit Power for a while and wait for Igor to create a miracle. In the meantime, he just needed to answer Igor’s questions...

Step-by-step practical actions were significantly shifting Igor’s originally only slightly inclined heart. Now, his level of trust in Stan Sol had increased a little more.

This was important proof that practical actions had a clear effect on dispelling doubts. Igor had inadvertently experimented with this himself once before, and now he was experiencing it happening to him.

The oscillation in his heart had turned into a definite tilt. He was seventy-six percent sure that the person he was dealing with was not a deceiver but Stan Sol.

But, being too stubborn to admit he was wrong, Igor felt a little regret and embarrassment for previously calling Stan Sol a deceiver. He felt too awkward to face Stan Sol again. So, Igor couldn’t say it aloud; he wanted to find another way to re-engage with Stan Sol.

Igor himself was at a loss. The words he stammered out, however, gave him a certain inspiration. Although he was too embarrassed to acknowledge Stan Sol’s identity, he still felt comfortable asking questions. Since Stan Sol had answered his casual, irrelevant talk, Stan Sol should answer whatever he asked.

”You just said that this is a vortex and the controller cannot sense it, that it’s a blank space, right?” Igor asked after some thought.

”Yes, the controller overlooked this area. I spent a lot of effort to find a way to this Vortex Center.” As Igor had guessed, Stan Sol gave a straightforward answer.

An unintentional action gradually eliminated Igor’s doubts. That remaining twenty-odd percent of uncertainty also ceased to exist. Igor was now completely convinced that he had met Stan Sol. However, to save face, he still feigned composure and maintained his cautious demeanor.

”So if I release my Spirit Power here, it won’t arouse the controller’s suspicion, right?”

”That’s right. The blank space at the Vortex Center is hard to discover because many people can’t get there. It needs brave Adventurers to explore. Fortunately, the Adventurers have found a way. But our Inner World can’t reflect the firm steps of the original Adventurers.” Stan Sol was getting off-topic, mentioning aspects Igor hadn’t asked about.

”If I can release Spirit Power here, does it mean I can also expand my imagination? This is also my Inner World, wouldn’t it go unnoticed by the controller?”

”It won’t, but...” Stan Sol wanted to say something but suddenly felt something was off.

Did Igor plan to open his Inner World here?

After some careful thought, it seemed not impossible.

This approach of Igor’s was truly audacious!