Eldritch Horror Theatre

In truth, Fu Qian had a very clear destination for this trip to the Ash Sea.

Before the Starry Sky Prism perished in the line of duty, it had swallowed a Mirror and provided a Star Map.

Thanks to his wicked deal with Yuan Shan, the Night Watchers staff in Shangjing couldn't resist the temptation of a week-long vacation. They racked their brains and eventually pinpointed a coordinate deep within the Ash Sea.

The Mirror had been acquired in the Real World, and the Bronze Circlet from the same source contained a warning—seemingly left by Ji Feng—that also mentioned ashes.

Therefore, after his research at the Academy, Fu Qian felt the odds of this being a mere coincidence had drastically shrunk. That coordinate was worth exploring.

Even so, Fu Qian was in no rush to head there.

The destination was one thing, but the journey was the point.

That location might be special, but not when it came to extraordinary traits.

His search for an opportunity on this trip boiled down to a single principle: a mysterious connection, a mutual draw.

It seemed the karmic entanglement he had seen under the Blasphemy Monarch's influence was just an illusion conjured to deceive him.

This lack of progress wasn't unexpected.

Because of that, Fu Qian was following a strategy he had planned long ago: broadcast his arrival, gather the responses, and read the reactions.

Up to this point, that specifically meant delivering a boatload of guests and one mermaid to the Ash Sea.

His next step was to see what kind of disturbance they caused, and how the Ash Sea reacted.

If nothing special emerged, he would just stir up a larger disturbance on the way to his destination.

And if nothing happened by the time he reached his destination?

That would honestly be the best possible outcome—he wouldn't have to agonize over choosing between two traits.

He could head straight for the Half-Step Moon, offer the Red Moon the coordinates he had recorded last time using the White Ring, and have it open a passage to seek out Eternity.

The deeper one explored the unknown, the clearer their mind needed to be.

...

It was obvious that blood was indeed quite valuable.

Leaving the beach landing behind and dropping out of his Blood Crusade, Fu Qian hadn't slowed down in the slightest. He didn't even bother to conceal his aura.

It was time to say hello; there was no need to be coy.

Sprinting at that pace, he soon arrived at the end of the Thread of Attachment.

This was the far side of the landing zone, tucked into the wedge between two joined Floating Islands.

Huddled quietly among the jagged rocks was the little mermaid, having narrowly escaped death.

The creature that had been humming so cheerfully just moments ago was now gritting its sharp teeth in dead silence, not even daring to peek its head out.

It severely lacked survival experience. Was it really just a child?

No wonder it had fallen for every single trap.

Wandering off alone, making noise carelessly, fleeing in a blind panic, and picking the most obvious hiding spot possible when in danger...

Its only stroke of luck was that, given how precious blood was, the harpoon wound had been bandaged remarkably well. Standing right next to it, Fu Qian couldn't smell a trace of blood.

Even so, Fu Qian could guarantee that if Lane and his crew lingered in the area a little longer, they would definitely track it down to this spot.

Unless the mermaid pulled a page from a fairy tale and grew a pair of legs to crawl over to the neighboring island for safety—hmm?

Looking down from his vantage point and freely airing his thoughts, Fu Qian suddenly froze.

A bizarre tearing sound echoed out. Blood began to pour from the mermaid's uninjured tail. The intertwined blue and red halves became clearly demarcated, splitting further until they were completely separated.

Did it actually split in two? Though it still looked like a tail.

Just a moment ago, Fu Qian had been lamenting that the little mermaid hadn't managed to pique the Ash Sea's interest. Now, watching its tail split before his eyes, he felt the true bizarre nature of this forbidden zone for the first time.

Hiss—

A suppressed cry of pain rang out. Recovering from the agony of having its tail ripped in half, the little mermaid stared blankly at its own transformation, visibly terrified.

Perhaps it was pure instinct, but after staring at its new tails for a moment, the mermaid soon began flapping them side to side. The red and blue halves moved independently, almost as flexibly as a pair of human legs.

This bizarre transformation seemed highly targeted. At the very least, Fu Qian didn't feel anything happening to himself.

Choosing not to interrupt the little mermaid's growth, Fu Qian silently evaluated his own body. Unfortunately, there wasn't a single abnormality to suggest he was about to sprout an extra leg.

Splash!

Suddenly emboldened by its inexplicable physical changes, the little mermaid squeezed out from the jagged rocks and dove straight into the grayish-white seawater.

Although this peculiar seawater heavily interfered with perception, Fu Qian could still confirm that the creature was rapidly swimming toward the depths of the Ash Sea.

Had it sensed some sort of calling?

Trying to make sense of the scene, Fu Qian didn't rush into action, mostly because someone else already had.

"Don't go!"

Along with the urgent shout, a figure leapt out from nearby, sprinting a couple of steps in the mermaid's direction.

As he moved, a small whirlpool materialized on the surface of the sea, attempting to trap the fleeing creature.

However, he was a step too late. The mermaid nimbly dodged the trap.

The sudden whirlpool only terrified it further. Clearly assuming its pursuers had caught up, the mermaid put on a burst of speed and swam even faster.

This reaction clearly panicked the person trying to stop it, prompting him to leap straight into the sea.

Miraculously, he didn't sink. He sprinted directly across the surface of the water.

After chasing it for a short distance, he hurled a grayish-green object from his hand.

Was that... a seed?

Despite how fast it flew, Fu Qian could still tell it was about the size of a walnut, its surface densely packed with fine lines. The outer shell looked incredibly tough, yet it still couldn't conceal the vigorous aura of life pulsing within it.

The odds of using something like that to catch fish were virtually zero, but the mermaid, already like a bird startled by the twang of a bow, clearly didn't see it that way.

Restricted by the underwater reefs, it couldn't dive too deep. Still, the instant the man threw the seed, the mermaid darted to the side with extraordinary alertness.

Without a doubt, it successfully dodged the projectile. Yet, before it could make another move, something tightly wrapped around its waist.

Frightened out of its wits, it felt more bindings wrap around its body, drastically slowing its momentum and forcing it to break the surface of the water once again.

At a glance, its entire body was bound by twisting tentacles.

But unlike Fu Qian's own go-to methods, these tentacles weren't made of flesh and blood. They were wooden.

Their grayish-green surfaces bore those same familiar fine lines. They appeared to have sprouted directly from the submerged seed, rapidly tangling together into a cage.

And it wasn't over yet. A split second later, a massive stalk of the same color shot out of the sea like a legendary magic beanstalk, lifting the trapped mermaid high into the air.

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