Eldritch Horror Theatre

'They really are working overtime!'

Fu Qian concealed his aura, silently observing what lay ahead.

Before him stood the Night Watchers Base.

After parting ways with Wen Li, he hadn't returned to The Bookstore. Instead, he had made his way back here.

Night had fallen, yet the base remained brightly lit.

People continuously hurried in and out, the atmosphere even more tense than it had been during the day.

Clearly, news of the incident at the banquet had reached them, jolting the massive organization into full gear.

Fu Qian rubbed his face, his facial muscles rapidly shifting and adjusting.

He obviously wasn't here just to watch the show.

Passive waiting had never been his style; seizing the initiative was the only way forward.

And he already had a plan.

As Sun Tzu's Art of War suggested: fishing in troubled waters.

When the environment was disadvantageous, you muddied the waters.

That was right—he was going to explore the Materials Repository again.

As Henrik.

Under the current circumstances, he possessed far less information than the Night Watchers, leaving him at a distinct disadvantage.

His opponent was a massive machine: incredibly strong, fully staffed, and impeccably organized.

If he wanted the upper hand, trailing behind them wouldn't cut it. He needed to generate new intelligence that no one else knew, manufacturing his own advantage.

Something like: 'Henrik has infiltrated the Night Watchers Base again, and he seems to be looking for something.'

That tidbit alone would be enough to make a lot of people scratch their heads.

Including Henrik himself.

And when the time came, he would be the only one who actually knew the truth.

After a few minutes of adjustment, Fu Qian's facial features had completely transformed.

Of course, he hadn't taken on Henrik's appearance.

Judging from their clash at the banquet, Henrik clearly possessed the ability to change his looks.

As a wanted man, any idiot could guess that he would use a disguise to sneak back into the Night Watchers Base. Wearing Henrik's real face would only draw suspicion.

As for whose face to wear, Fu Qian had already solved that problem.

While lying in wait earlier, he had locked onto a Night Watcher leaving the premises.

The man wasn't particularly strong—only around Tier 8—which perfectly matched Fu Qian's current state while wearing his mask.

Moreover, the man clearly belonged to the lowest echelon of the Night Watchers.

Logically speaking, as a grunt, he would definitely be running errands late into the night, so there was no fear of him returning anytime soon.

Having adjusted his features to match the man's face, Fu Qian decisively stood up and walked toward the base.

The guard at the gate merely glanced at the ID in Fu Qian's hand before letting him through.

'Just as I expected!' The security checks to enter the base weren't strict.

This made perfect sense. Setting aside the massive flow of personnel constantly coming and going, no sane criminal would ever think of sneaking into a place like the Night Watchers Base.

As for the ID in his hand, he had naturally swiped it from his imitation target.

As a dignified Tier 4 Transcendent, if he got caught doing something so simple, he'd be better off quitting entirely.

Once inside, Fu Qian strode forward with unbothered calm.

When he visited that afternoon, he had taken mental note of the base's general layout.

Combined with his time lurking outside, he had roughly categorized the various sectors and locked onto a few suspicious locations.

To him, any of these spots could potentially house the Materials Repository. However, due to limited information, he couldn't narrow it down any further.

And he didn't need to!

He was just here to strike the grass to startle the snake, not to actually steal anything.

If he delved too deep and got trapped, things would get extremely awkward.

By then, his only way out might be using Transcendence.

Following his pre-planned route, Fu Qian bypassed the sector where he had been detained earlier, making his way to the far side of the Black Spire.

Compared to the opposite side, this area was much more desolate.

Fu Qian swept his gaze around and quickly spotted an entrance.

Inside was a spacious hall, where a girl in a Night Watchers uniform sat alone.

Behind the hall stretched a corridor, ending at a pitch-black set of double doors flanked by two guards.

He had to admit, the setup looked incredibly legit. Even if it wasn't the Materials Repository, it was definitely an important location.

And for his purposes, as long as he could stir up trouble, it would do.

Without hesitation, Fu Qian stepped through the entrance.

The girl noticed him immediately, tracking him with a vigilant gaze all the way to her desk.

"You're heading down?"

Fu Qian flashed his ID. Surprisingly, instead of relaxing, the girl's eyes grew even more wary.

"That's right."

"Anyone below Mid Tier requires special authorization to enter the Sealed Zone. Where is your permit?"

The young woman looked him up and down for a long moment.

'Not the repository?'

'A Sealed Zone, restricted to anyone below Mid Tier.'

'Is there something incredible down there?'

Fu Qian mused internally, though his expression remained perfectly natural.

"My permit? I forgot where I put it. Let me check,"

Fu Qian said casually, smoothly patting down his pockets.

Naturally, he didn't have a permit. Nor did he expect to fool her like this; he only wanted to act suspiciously enough to draw the two guards over.

His actions undoubtedly heightened the girl's alarm. Beneath the desk, she subtly signaled for backup.

The two guards in the distance had already been keeping an eye on them. Upon receiving the signal, they quickly closed in.

'They're being far too cooperative!'

Fu Qian silently gave the girl a thumbs-up in his mind.

"No entry without a permit. Log your information and head back."

The guards were far less polite than the young woman. Pacing up on either side of him, they boxed Fu Qian in, their tones icy.

"Don't rush, of course I have my permit—ah, found it!"

Before the guards could even finish speaking, Fu Qian cried out in realization, pulling his hand out of his pocket.

For a split second, all three pairs of eyes locked onto his hand.

Yet in the next moment, Fu Qian opened his palm. It was completely empty.

Her pupils shrinking sharply, the young woman instinctively reached for the alarm.

But halfway through the motion, an invisible, tremendous force struck her chest.

With a dull thud, the powerful impact launched her several meters backward. She passed out cold.

Simultaneously, Fu Qian's arms abruptly extended, his fists instantly slamming into the guards' faces.

Wham! Wham!

A berserk surge of power erupted, blasting both men away and leaving them unconscious.

Compared to the girl, these two were significantly stronger, both seemingly around Tier 6.

Yet at such close range, against Fu Qian's ambush, they had absolutely no ability to fight back.

Having dropped three people in under a second, Fu Qian wasted no time and walked straight toward the double doors at the end of the corridor.

The black doors were made of metal and incredibly heavy, but they weren't locked.

Fu Qian slowly pushed them open, revealing a spiraling staircase that descended deep underground, seemingly ancient in its construction.

Amidst the creaking, Fu Qian observed his surroundings as he headed down, soon finding another metal door at the bottom.

There weren't even any guards stationed in front of it.

Without standing on ceremony, Fu Qian pressed his hand against the surface and slowly shoved it open. The space before him abruptly widened.

'What is that smell?'

'It reeks!'

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