Eldritch Horror Theatre

During his night visit to the Vampire Clan, Eternally Lucid Mind had already been used once, and far less than twenty-four hours had passed since.

Yet the moment he entered the mission, Fu Qian had checked and confirmed it was already available.

Based on his experience dealing with Ariel in Dunis, Eternally Lucid Mind's cooldown state seemed tied exclusively to the passage of time within the specific world.

One piece of evidence was that after a mission reset, the item automatically became usable again, rather than tracking his personal timeline to enforce a strict twenty-four-hour recharge.

Of course, this raised an interesting question: if the interval between this mission's timeframe and his later night visit to the Vampire Clan was less than a day, would Eternally Lucid Mind still be usable?

In any case, as the crisp ring of the Bell echoed, the Nightmare Guards clearly felt its persuasive power. His little display had not been wasted.

Swish!

In a single instant, aside from Fu Qian, no one else in the Stone Chamber remained seated.

Even Madam Xia behind him abruptly stumbled a step back, her face completely ashen.

Amid a bizarre tearing sound, four savagely shaped finger-guns burst from Fu Qian's hand, pointing with flawless precision directly at the center of the four guards' foreheads.

Their speed was so blinding that it completely smothered any thought of dodging.

And the sheer power contained within them left no doubt that they could effortlessly pierce their skulls.

But Fu Qian did not do so.

Instead, once he confirmed the four had gotten a good look, he slowly withdrew the finger-guns.

Even so, in the very next moment, the guards' bodies were quickly engulfed by a dark light starting from their faces, which rapidly condensed into pitch-black Armor.

...

A remarkably fast recovery. The Rank of power bestowed upon the guards was clearly quite high, which likely explained how they could contend with the Law.

Unsurprised by their reaction, Fu Qian silently offered his evaluation.

But it still was not fast enough.

The reason he could point at their faces so instantly just now was simple—right before ringing the Handbell, he had spent another ten points of SAN Value to activate Pseudo-God Incarnation.

Forcibly elevating his Rank had bolstered his resistance against Eternally Lucid Mind, successfully creating a time difference. This maximized his opportunity for a dimensional strike, serving as a display of sincerity.

"Relax, this cannot be used again for a while."

Facing the four guards who were now in combat stances, Fu Qian remained firmly seated. He even displayed Eternally Lucid Mind once more, frankly admitting its cooldown time.

"I wonder, is that persuasive enough?"

...

The Stone Chamber remained silent for over five seconds.

As Fu Qian toyed with Eternally Lucid Mind, four pairs of eyes involuntarily tracked his movements. In the end, no attack came.

"Call me Frankie. So, Mister Grimshaw, what do you want to know?"

Instead, the guard who had previously asked how Fu Qian intended to make them answer spoke up in a deep voice.

Faced with this sudden shift in attitude, not one of his companions voiced an objection.

Up until now, this Dark Moon Apostle who had suddenly intruded—an unforgivable blasphemer—was perhaps no less detestable to them.

But they had to admit that what he had just done held undeniable persuasive power.

With the aid of that strange Bell, he appeared fully capable of killing all four of them in a single strike.

Under those circumstances, it was hard to say whether their immortal traits would have even saved them.

Yet he had simply demonstrated that power, even openly admitting that it could not be used again in the short term.

He had the ability to kill them, and although it was a one-time use, he had shown it to them without actually killing them.

It was truly hard to say what could better demonstrate his sincerity to communicate.

...

"Why do you loathe the Stars?"

Highly satisfied with Frankie's reaction, Fu Qian getting straight to the point raised his question.

"That is right... we do loathe them. But are you not the same?"

As Frankie pondered, a guard beside him could not resist answering with a question first.

"I am. So you can assume I am looking for common ground,"

Fu Qian replied casually.

"I admit your actions just now were truly shocking, but are you not worried that, having lost your means to threaten us, we might just keep you here? Especially after you heavily injured one of our members."

The only woman in the room who had not yet spoken also could not help but chime in.

"For one, I just heard that you were very interested in chatting."

Fu Qian smiled, pointing at Madam Xia behind him as he spoke.

Madam Xia, who had already dropped her combat stance, bore a complicated expression for a moment.

"For another, the Bell indeed cannot be used, but whether I have similar methods is also a question, is it not?"

Honesty was never a derogatory term. A good communicator, most of the time, did not need to rely on deceit; they only needed to help the other party clearly recognize the situation.

"You are right. Fundamentally, we are not completely repulsed by your presence here."

Frankie, who had clearly been listening to the exchange, quickly made up his mind and let out a long breath.

"You are undoubtedly unique. We have never heard of a Dark Moon Apostle... Of course, beyond that, there is another reason. Do you know what it is?"

"Because I ate that thing?"

This question hardly required any thought. Fu Qian answered casually.

"Yes. Because you swallowed the fragment."

Even with the preceding setup, Fu Qian's grasp of the situation still visibly surprised Frankie.

"That is a crystallization of sublime power, far higher than anything we possess."

"Theoretically, nothing should be able to do that. Your soul and body should have collapsed in the first instant."

"My apologies. I did not mean to frighten you."

Seeing Frankie's palpable disbelief, Fu Qian offered a modest, smiling apology.

...

This reaction left the four of them utterly speechless once again.

It was clearly their side's meticulously planned assassination method. Not only had it been discovered, but the target was actually apologizing for scaring them.

But regardless, he truly did not seem to have come for revenge.

"Mister Grimshaw, please come with us."

In that indescribably bizarre atmosphere, the four guards exchanged glances. Ultimately, Frankie did not choose to sit down and talk; instead, he made a gesture of invitation.

"Regarding your question, given our differing stances, a simple verbal exchange has limited meaning."

"You appear to be a smart person. If you are not worried about the risks, we can provide an opportunity for you to personally experience the answer to this question."

What a familiar phrasing. Had he not just discussed the limitations of verbal expression with Lady Raven not long ago?

Facing Frankie's invitation, Fu Qian could not help but marvel at how fortune takes turns. Readily accepting good advice in the next moment, he stood up.

"Of course not. Lead the way."

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