Infinite Mana In The Apocalypse

Chapter 3928: Quintessential Tyranny! III

Alexander wanted to see exactly what else would occur in this increasingly complex situation as he watched like many others!

Pyrion found himself trapped in a position that would have been comical if it weren’t so politically dangerous.

His expression reflected the weight of someone who had been publicly disrespected but now faced the impossible choice between maintaining his dignity and avoiding offense to a being who was an Honored Living Existence!

The realization that this seemingly insignificant Fold Dweller possessed backing at the Honored level transformed the entire dynamic of their interaction.

His golden flames dimmed slightly as calculation overtook personal fury, though the transition was clearly painful for someone accustomed to absolute dominance within his sphere of influence!

Noah allowed the silence to stretch just long enough to be uncomfortable before speaking with the same nonchalant tone.

”I am here to buy. Will you sell?”

WAA!

The Living Elemental controlled himself at these words as he breathed out.

”What...can you even offer?” Pyrion demanded, his voice carrying undertones of frustration and barely contained resentment. ”I will only sell for something of equivalent value that I need, or something even more valuable!”

Things had to be of equal value!

What could a Fold Dweller from Paradoxical Folds possibly possess that would interest a Living Existence who had access to treasures from across the Doorways of the Loom?

For this challenge, Noah smiled with the expression of someone who had been waiting for exactly this moment to arrive.

He closed his eyes briefly, his consciousness reaching across impossible distances to touch upon the wonders that were there on the Early Veiled Shore.

The place that contained treasures that would drive Living Existences to madness with desire!

He didn’t even consider the Sacred Mead of Existence- that golden elixir was something that even Early Creatures sought after!

If he brought even a single droplet to this place, even if he diluted that droplet into Early Sacred Waters by a factor of a million, it would cause a commotion that would draw attention from across the breadth of existence itself.

Instead, his awareness settled upon the multiple Glass Woks that dotted the Shore, each one filled with Early Sacred Waters and the cut up bodies of Early Living Marine Lifeforms.

The sight of them brought a smile to his lips as he selected one particular Wok with cut up meat whose contents would serve his current purposes perfectly, and it disappeared from thr Early Veiled Shore.

The musings of Early Creatures were very obscure. He knew something as minor as a bit of Sacred Water and pieces of an Early Living Marine Lifeform...would be a good tool to utilize without causing issues!

Entanglements, yes.

He was also doing it with a certain goal in mind as it related to...Sigrid!

When Noah opened his eyes again in Aeternitas Concordia, he waved his hand casually.

A Glass Wok materialized in the space before him, its crystalline surface reflecting the golden light of the surrounding towers while steam rose from its contents in spirals that seemed to carry their own inner radiance.

Within the vessel, surrounded by Early Sacred Waters that pulsed with their own gentle luminescence, rested the prepared form of an Early Living Marine Lifeform whose complexity had been refined through utter wonder!

The moment the Wok appeared, the very weavings of Existence nearby trembled in response to its presence!

BOOM!

The concentration of Living Existential Authority in the immediate area exploded upward in a cascade of transformation that left everyone present struggling to process what they were experiencing.

A glorious scent spread outward from the Wok like ripples across the surface of still water, carrying with it essences so profound and complex!

Every being within range, Fold Dwellers and Living Existences alike felt their very existence buzzing with want and need. A need bordering on obsession.

The effect was immediate and universal. Fold Dwellers who had been gazing with fascination suddenly found themselves rising to their feet in shock, their attention captured by sensations that promised transformation beyond their wildest dreams!

Living Existences who had been observing the confrontation with detached amusement now stared at the Wok with expressions of barely contained hunger and shock!

But none were affected more profoundly than Pyrion Aureus himself.

None.

The Living Elemental’s body began to shake as his existence buzzed in ways it never had before.

Every fiber of his being was screaming that he needed to acquire the contents of that vessel, that his very survival depended upon gaining access to whatever miraculous substance it contained.

”I’ll take it! I WILL take it! We trade!”

His eyes blazed with astonishment and greed as the words erupted from him without conscious thought.

The careful negotiations and measured considerations were swept aside by the overwhelming urgency of his need!

But Noah simply shook his head with the patient expression of someone who had expected exactly this reaction.

As he began to speak, a simple bowl materialized in his hands, a vessel that seemed almost mundane compared to the glorious Wok that had captured everyone’s attention.

”Impatience,” Noah began, ”is the mark of those who have never learned to distinguish between want and need, between desire and necessity. You look at what I offer and immediately demand everything, like an Inevitability... tasting the sweetness of a Living Existence for the first time.”

His tone carried the kind of gentle condescension that made his words cut truly fucking deep!

”With such qualities, this hasty grabbing, this inability to consider consequences or negotiate with wisdom...you may find yourself dying much sooner than later. Existence...has little patience for those who cannot exercise patience themselves.”

BOOM!

Noah lifted the bowl slightly, its simple ceramic surface somehow managing to capture and hold the attention of everyone present.

”No, my offer to you is not this entire Wok. You... will get a single bowl. You will accept this bowl. You will thank me for getting this mere bowl.”

...!

The pronouncement struck the assembled crowd like a shattering Wheel of Existence!

A single bowl!

The magnitude of what he was withholding, the vast majority of whatever miraculous substance the Wok contained, sent tremors of shock through beings who had never been denied anything they truly desired.

Pyrion Aureus trembled at such words, his golden flames flickering with the irregular rhythm of desperation.

Yet even as his rational mind recoiled from the words, his existence continued to buzz with tremendous yearning for even that reduced portion!

He wasn’t alone in his reaction.

Multiple Living Existences had begun moving forward through the surrounding areas, their eyes shining with the same desperate hunger as they calculated whether they might be able to negotiate for their own portions of this incredible treasure!

Noah observed Pyrion’s hesitation with calm patience, then allowed disappointment to color his expression as if watching a promising creature fail an important test.

”Have you learned nothing from me, Little Elemental?” he asked with reproach. ”You hesitate? Even now, faced with an opportunity that may never come again, you allow doubt to cloud your judgment?”

The purple light of Tyranny began to shine around Noah with tremendous intensity as he his musings of Tyranny reached unprecedented levels!