Eldritch Horror Theatre

He had felt something was off just a moment ago.

The face in the mirror was slightly gaunt, looking a bit older than he actually was.

Fu Qian touched his face, feeling a thin layer of material covering it. It wasn't real skin.

It had to be some sort of special mask, but it blended flawlessly. He couldn't find a single seam, leaving him to wonder how it had even been put on.

So this time, he was Fu Qian, wearing Fang Xun's mask, and moving under Ding Yi's forged file?

Wasn't that a few too many layers of identity?

Under the current circumstances, however, there was no need to take it off.

According to what Qin Feng had just said, the Night Watchers' intelligence had identified him as the transcendent Fang Xun, impersonating Ding Yi to run the bookstore here.

Although that was a minor violation, Fang Xun was a solid identity.

He hadn't noticed it earlier, but feeling it now, the aura he gave off was indeed different from before—it was suppressed to around Tier 8.

As for why, it likely had something to do with the mask on his face. It was an excellent disguise.

From now on, then, he was the bookstore owner, Fang Xun.

Of course, none of that was a pressing priority.

He still had a Night Watcher's headless corpse in his shop.

Attacking a Night Watcher in Shangjing? Wasn't that a little too bold?

Given the blast radius just now, if he had only been at the level of a low-tier transcendent, he almost certainly would have perished alongside him.

Whoever orchestrated it must have intended to take him out in the blast, too.

While mulling this over, Fu Qian tidied himself up slightly and washed his face.

If the Night Watchers' influence in Shangjing was truly as formidable as described, they would be arriving shortly.

He didn't intend to run away; doing so would practically shove him straight into the prime suspect's seat.

If he ended up targeted by the Night Watchers at every turn, the difficulty of his mission would spike drastically for no reason.

Although he was suspected of forging his file, according to Qin Feng, plenty of others had done the same thing—it wasn't a major crime.

The most likely reason they had come knocking today was that the Night Watchers were conducting a sweeping investigation following a theft.

...

A few minutes later, Fu Qian sensed a piercing killing intent tearing through the sky, charging straight toward him.

Crash!

With a deafening bang, the front doors of the bookstore were smashed to pieces.

The next moment, two figures barged in, one after the other.

Truly worthy of being the Night Watchers' main hub; these two were at least Tier 7.

Observing the arrivals, Fu Qian evaluated them silently.

The newcomers were a man and a woman of similar age, both looking to be in their thirties.

Although the intensity of their auras was slightly weaker than Qin Feng's had been, they were definitely at the Tier 7 level.

The two of them stared at the mess covering the floor. Upon seeing Qin Feng's headless corpse, their expressions turned exceptionally ugly.

"What is the meaning of this?" the man barked sharply, glaring at Fu Qian, who was sitting off to the side.

"That's what I'd like to ask, too."

Fu Qian pointed at Qin Feng's corpse with a look of deep bewilderment.

"About ten minutes ago, this gentleman barged into my shop, claiming to be a Night Watcher and stating he needed to verify some details with me.

"However, while we were having a pleasant conversation, he suddenly looked to be in excruciating pain. Right after that, his head exploded. Not only did he ruin my shop, but he also nearly injured me in the process."

"And now you two have come and smashed my doors. Could you explain what exactly is going on here?"

"Are you trying to tell me that the two of you were just talking normally, and then his head suddenly exploded?"

The man stared coldly at Fu Qian, looking entirely unconvinced.

"That's right."

Fu Qian nodded.

"Then why are you completely unharmed?"

"I'm rather agile. I managed to run away a bit faster."

...

The man glared intensely at Fu Qian, his fists clenched so tightly it seemed he might lose control and strike at any second.

"Fang Xun, is it?"

At that moment, the woman pressed a hand against his shoulder, signaling for him not to act rashly.

She pulled out a booklet and flipped through it. It looked very similar to Qin Feng's, except the latter's had already been blown to bits.

"That's correct."

Fu Qian nodded.

"You need to come with us."

The woman snapped the booklet shut and exchanged a glance with the man before speaking coldly.

...

Under the murderous glares of the man and woman, Fu Qian was "invited" all the way to the Night Watchers Base in Shangjing.

It was obvious that both of them were in a foul mood, but they didn't ask any further questions. They hardly even spoke to each other along the way.

This truly lived up to its reputation as one of the cities with the strongest Night Watcher presence.

Looking at the architecture before him, Fu Qian nodded to himself.

Enclosed by towering walls lay a vast complex of gray buildings. Right in the center stood an ancient-looking spire.

Although it appeared ancient, the spire's sharp and imposing structure still pierced the heavens like a blade.

It truly deserved to be called a base.

However, the atmosphere at the base was noticeably tense right now.

Not only were people rushing about everywhere, but many also wore livid expressions.

It seemed someone sneaking into the Night Watchers Base to steal something had infuriated them immensely.

Being escorted into the base by two Night Watchers drew curious glances from quite a few people along the way.

The two led Fu Qian directly to a place that looked like an Interrogation Room.

After gesturing for Fu Qian to enter the room, the woman operated a panel on the wall. The metal door slowly slid shut, embedding itself seamlessly into the wall.

The interior became a completely enclosed space.

From the walls to the floor beneath his feet, everything was constructed of identically colored metal, without a single window anywhere.

On the wall directly opposite the electronic door was a huge, long mirror—most likely a two-way glass window.

Aside from that, the massive room contained only a set of metal tables and chairs bolted firmly to the floor.

The two Night Watchers didn't even use any restraints on Fu Qian.

Most likely, in their eyes, such measures were completely unnecessary.

Even without restraints, who would be so foolishly suicidal as to start a fight inside the Night Watchers Base?

In truth, Fu Qian didn't intend to start a fight, either.

His mission this time was to find something, and there was no rush on time.

Considering the lack of information, he didn't even know what the Blood of Thorns looked like yet. For now, it was best to stick to a cooperative, mutually beneficial approach.

In the enclosed space, time seemed to drag on endlessly.

After a long while, accompanied by a quiet beep, the electronic door slid open once more, and someone walked in.

It was a woman whose age was difficult to discern.

Her curvaceous figure was hidden beneath a white robe, and her facial features were delicate. At a passing glance, she appeared fragile and timid, but upon closer inspection, she exuded an indescribable sense of authority.

Her crystalline eyes scrutinized everything before her from a lofty height, as if no secret could hide from her gaze.

Just from being looked at for a second, Fu Qian felt a faint stirring in his blood and qi—the instinctual reaction to a deadly threat.

Hiss!

Fu Qian drew in a soft breath.

Another demigod!

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