Eldritch Horror Theatre

Just what I was afraid of!

Feeling the chaos coursing through his body, Fu Qian thought to himself.

Even after practicing for so long, he still needed at least a minute to fully sort out this internal disarray.

But the oil lamp was nearly full, and the guard could turn around and leave at any second.

If he missed this chance, he would likely have to wait another day.

While that would give him more time to adapt, it would also increase the risk of discovery.

To seize this opportunity, he had to untangle his disordered nerves in under ten seconds.

Unfortunately, that was impossible!

Fu Qian knew perfectly well that he was still far too unfamiliar with this body.

He couldn't wait any longer!

Fu Qian forced himself to his feet and threw a punch.

It looked like a desperate attack, but due to his chaotic lack of physical control, he couldn't generate any real power.

The strike was completely toothless, and the overextension nearly threw him off balance.

Still, gritting his teeth, Fu Qian used the element of surprise to land his fist squarely on the guard's back.

Wait, this thing isn't human?

A second later, Fu Qian felt a jolt of surprise.

The impact felt exactly like punching solid granite.

It was incredibly hard, lacking any of the natural give of skin.

If he hadn't lacked the strength, his wrist probably would have snapped.

That feather-light punch had obviously done no real damage, and the guard whirled around almost instantly.

Cold metal flashed as the guard raised his weapon without hesitation, thrusting it straight at Fu Qian's chest.

The thrust wasn't blindingly fast, but it was still too quick for his current body to dodge.

As the weapon tore through the air toward him, Fu Qian forced his body to twist, protecting his vitals and taking the blow directly on his left shoulder.

Crack!

The weapon carried an astonishing amount of force. With a sharp snap, Fu Qian's arm went completely limp.

Despite taking a heavy wound, Fu Qian didn't retreat. Instead, he lunged forward, choosing to force a close-quarters brawl.

This suicidal tactic left him covered in injuries within seconds.

Blood flew and bones cracked continuously. In less than ten seconds, his entire body was battered to the point where only a single arm could still move.

Perfect, this is enough!

Fu Qian took a deep breath.

As everyone knew, chaos usually stemmed from having too many variables.

Untangling the misfiring nerves of an entire body was incredibly difficult. But with only a few variables remaining, adapting to them would be far easier!

The next moment, Fu Qian raised his only functioning arm and threw a punch.

Unlike before, this strike successfully exploded with real power.

The paralysis across most of his body made it far easier to focus everything on a single point.

Thud!

With a sudden burst of speed, Fu Qian's fully powered punch slammed right into the guard's jaw.

The moment it connected, Fu Qian felt like his remaining arm had been ruined, too.

The creature's jaw was just like its back—punching it felt exactly like hitting a boulder.

Because he had thrown every ounce of his strength into the strike, the sheer force of the collision instantly broke several of his fingers.

But the injury was well worth it.

Along with a heavy boom, the sound of shattering crystal rang out.

The guard's masked head was blown clean off its neck.

The headless corpse immediately froze before toppling stiffly backward.

Just as he had suspected, the creature possessed extreme hardness but lacked resilience.

As long as he wasn't afraid of getting hurt and could output enough raw force, killing one wasn't actually that difficult.

Fu Qian sat on the floor panting, looking at the severed head nearby.

The mask had been knocked away, exposing the true face beneath it.

It did indeed have human features, but it was as rigid as a statue, and its skin was coated in a dense layer of fine crystals that sparkled like diamonds in the lamplight.

Fu Qian glanced at the ragged stump of the neck. He could see red flesh and white bone, yet even with the major arteries completely severed, not a single drop of blood spilled out.

This place was truly bizarre in every possible way!

After a brief look, Fu Qian turned his attention back to himself.

Following that desperate brawl, his body was riddled with wounds.

The most severe injuries had actually been caused by his final burst of strength. Pushing the body past its limits, combined with the backlash of punching solid stone, had taken a massive toll.

It really is too easy to get used to luxury!

His current fighting style was largely a choice born from growing accustomed to a body with incredible regenerative abilities.

Waiting silently for the nerve chaos to subside, Fu Qian stood up and limped over to the door.

This place is massive!

Fu Qian poked his head out. The lighting outside was just as dim, suggesting he was somewhere underground.

From a rough glance, the sheer scale of the area was absurd—at least the size of five football fields.

There was also more than one level above and below, densely packed with identical cells.

Massive stone pillars supported the cavernous space, with rows of prison corridors linking together.

No wonder no one had shown up for so long. For a place this massive, how many guards would it even take to staff it?

The cell doors used a primitive sliding bolt mechanism. However, since there wasn't even a small slot for delivering food, breaking out would be incredibly difficult. At least from the inside, there was no conceivable way to unlock it.

It seemed this place never intended to feed its prisoners in the first place.

Having confirmed his current situation, Fu Qian slowly pulled the door back into place, leaving only a small crack before retreating inside.

Calculating the angle, he braced his arm against the wall to pop the dislocated joints back into place, then slowly began bandaging his other wounds.

Fortunately, the round scales that had grown over various parts of his body provided some decent protection; otherwise, his injuries would have been far worse.

To his relief, while it couldn't compare to his original body, this body's recovery rate was still astounding.

Sitting on the floor, Fu Qian could clearly feel his wounds rapidly healing and his stamina returning.

At this rate, he would be able to move freely in an hour at most.

After making this silent assessment, Fu Qian turned to study the corpse on the floor.

Perhaps due to some mutation, the headless corpse was still absurdly heavy.

It took quite a bit of effort, but Fu Qian finally managed to strip off its robe and put it on himself.

Sure enough, the skin beneath the robe was also coated in that diamond-like crystallization, feeling exactly like solid rock.

Apart from the robe, Fu Qian retrieved two items from the corpse.

An octagonal black iron plaque, and a massive Key.

The Key was covered in a layer of rust, obviously unused for a very long time.

Fu Qian tucked the two items away, along with the scrap of iron and the stone he had found earlier.

Testing his strength and finding it somewhat recovered, Fu Qian dragged the corpse over to the corner where he had initially woken up.

Propping it up against the wall, he retrieved the severed head and placed it back on the neck.

With that done, he strapped the guard's mask over his face. Picking up the weapon and the oil lamp, Fu Qian slowly pulled open the cell door.

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