Eldritch Horror Theatre

Faint light illuminated the dark room, the red shadows of the candles flickering.

The already dim Lantern flickered on the verge of going out almost instantly.

But it only flickered. Just as he had sensed earlier, the flame corresponded to a vigorous vitality that far exceeded the Lantern itself.

Even after he activated Pseudo-God Incarnation and entered a special state of Dislocation and disconnection, its connection to him was no longer as tight.

However, as a top-tier flesh expert, retaining just a few percentage points of that connection was more than enough to produce a considerable effect.

Specifically, as he blew on it now, no matter how much the flame was compressed, it continued to flutter without going out.

Fortunately, Fu Qian had plenty of breath to spare.

Facing the flame's stubbornness, he didn't hesitate at all. He maintained the action, keeping his airflow incredibly steady.

"Are you crazy?"

With his eyes glaring so hard they were almost bleeding, Olinter's voice spiked in pitch after he confirmed what the other man was doing.

"If the lamp goes out, you die! Are you even listening to me?"

Completely unable to hold back his raging emotions, he practically roared.

Clearly, despite preparing numerous contingencies for this meeting, his imagination was still challenged by the scene before him.

Faced with a newly acquired fatal weakness, the other man wasn't just failing to protect it—he was directly targeting it himself.

Even though it had nothing to do with him, watching that flickering flame almost gave Olinter a heart attack.

"Do you think I'm bluffing? Can't you feel it yourself? That special connection?"

Unfortunately, his desperate, hoarse warnings received no response.

...

"Are you trying to scare me?"

Olinter's reaction was swift.

After his futile roaring, his expression actually grew a fraction calmer.

"Judging from our previous interactions, I refuse to believe you're truly a lunatic courting death. I won't fall for the same trick twice..."

"It's not that you can't feel the connection between you and the flame, but rather that you feel it too clearly... You know it won't go out easily, so you're betting that we want to capture you alive?"

"I have to say, you're being far too cautious."

Fu Qian still gave no response, but Olinter had already begun to sneer, clearly growing more and more certain of his own judgment.

"A live target is certainly better than a corpse, but like I said, the sole focus today is delivering this gift to you. If you want to leave, I truly won't stop you... There's absolutely no need to probe for an opening like this."

"I know you won't believe me, but it doesn't matter. I've suddenly grown curious to see when you'll stop. I hope you can show me something extraordinary next. Don't disappoint me—"

As he spoke, Olinter actually sat down with a smile, brimming with confidence.

But in the very next moment, he gave a perfect demonstration of shooting up like he'd been electrocuted.

His rear had barely brushed the seat when he leaped straight up, as if startled by the sudden dimming of the light.

That was right—the Lantern in Fu Qian's hand had finally succumbed to the abuse and gone out completely, causing the brightness in the room to plummet.

The sheer impact of witnessing the very thing he was absolutely certain wouldn't happen was simply too massive.

Click!

What was even more shocking was that the crimson-eyed man in question was still standing there perfectly fine. He even casually closed the Lantern, as if he had just done something completely insignificant.

The only change was that his already pale skin had grown entirely bloodless for a moment.

...

"Thanks for the hospitality."

Taking a deep breath, Fu Qian even smiled as he offered his thanks.

"That's impossible..."

"Why is it impossible?"

Fu Qian asked casually as he set the Lantern back down.

"The Heart Flame shares the life of its target. If it goes out, you will definitely die... This is absolute, a Law witnessed by the starry sky... Nothing can be immune to it..."

Olinter's emotions were clearly spiraling out of control.

"I can understand how you feel. However, the facts are right in front of you. I suggest you accept them and think about the reasons why."

"What reasons?"

Olinter asked almost subconsciously.

'Simple. It couldn't find its host anymore,'

Fu Qian thought to himself.

This was arguably his biggest gain of the night.

Activating Pseudo-God Incarnation just now naturally wasn't an attempt to raise his Rank in order to gain immunity to the Heart Flame's effects.

Fu Qian didn't believe that, in the face of the Star Law, Pseudo-God Incarnation held a more transcendent status than the Dimensional Poison.

The latter, after all, had been completely cleansed.

The true significance of Pseudo-God Incarnation lay in the instantaneous shift in Rank, rather than the Rank itself.

Considering the Star Law was a seemingly supreme target—and one he was tasked with destroying—Fu Qian had never stopped testing its limits.

The Dimensional Poison had been one such attempt. This gift that The Order had carefully prepared for him by playing along with his scheme was another opportunity he couldn't pass up.

The sequence of events just now had actually been very simple.

After stepping into their trap, he had "unwittingly" ignited the Heart Flame.

Right then, he activated Pseudo-God Incarnation. His Rank instantly skyrocketed, and the "bond" between himself and the Heart Flame immediately suffered significant color loss, fading substantially.

In the end, when the flame went out, he sustained a certain amount of trauma, but he was far from meeting his demise.

Throughout all this, the Law's performance had been somewhat strange—he was still the same person, yet just because his Rank increased, his sentence had been reduced from a beheading to forty lashes?

It essentially failed at the most basic principle of all men being equal before the Law.

Fu Qian's understanding of this bizarre loophole was that redefining him after his Rank shifted required time.

Simply put, to the Star Law, his transformed self was akin to a brand new, vastly more complex entity.

A precise Law required precise definitions. It needed to fully digest and process this new information before it could take full effect on him.

Fu Qian had no doubt that if he had just given it a little more time, the extinguished Heart Flame would have been able to kill him.

But through his continuous efforts, it seemed he had finally found an alternative limit.

"Isn't it obvious? That's an absolute statement directed at reality. If you aren't in reality, then the problem ceases to exist."

However, Fu Qian was in no rush to share his insights. Instead, he continued to play up his persona as a Dark Moon Apostle.

"Are you saying... I'm dreaming?"

Olinter clearly refused to accept such a claim.

"People are truly strange. You don't even fear death, yet you're terrified by the idea that you aren't in reality."

Fu Qian let out a string of low chuckles, withdrawing his gaze from Olinter's Lantern.

"What a pleasant conversation. Send my regards to the others."

Without giving Olinter a chance to voice further doubts, a surging blood fog erupted, shrouding his entire body.

Bidding his farewell, Fu Qian activated his Blood Crusade for the very first time.

And sure enough, it was different. In the next moment, he 'looked' down at his own body.

Upon activation, he wasn't pulled into a special dimension like before. He remained right where he was, his body seemingly transforming into a mass of deep, crimson fog.

It was certainly far more fitting of the Blood Clan's image.

Moreover, his method of traversal also seemed to have become somewhat unconventional.

Following a strange sensation the very next second, Fu Qian's figure vanished from the spot, reappearing inside an unfamiliar room.

A female member of The Order was looking his way in slight panic.

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