Eldritch Horror Theatre

"Hmm..."

Brushing it off as a joke clearly wasn't the most appropriate explanation.

However, while a relaxed Wen Li didn't hide her confusion, she didn't dwell on it.

After all, based on her understanding of his style, an answer like that simply meant it wasn't important.

"I need you to do something for me."

Seeing his volunteer listening so attentively, Fu Qian stopped provoking His Excellency Arakiel and got straight to the point.

Unfortunately, those words stirred up another ripple.

It seemed he was just asking for a favor, showing zero intent toward physical corruption. To Arakiel, the positive value of keeping this dream going was simply too minor.

This exchange wasn't just under surveillance; the plug could be pulled at any moment.

Fu Qian's next question, however, managed to settle the ripples.

"He is."

It seemed Wen Li had paid extra attention to anything involving Dayun Mingwang. She answered almost instantly, her tone certain.

"Excellent."

Fu Qian didn't hold back his praise.

"I expect him to seek out his old rival Jiang En today to catch up and confirm a few things. Are you confident you can track him without being discovered?"

"I am."

Eldest Miss Wen's reply was as resolute as ever.

Of course, this was partly because Fu Qian's question leaned conservative. She was, after all, a Psychic Type combatant just below the Demigod Realm. Dealing with a vampire who had barely reached the Mid Tier was practically a dimensional strike.

...

"When they meet, Taylor will likely beat around the bush, trying to confirm whether that recent corpse-picking incident in Shangjing was his old rival's scheme."

Since Eldest Miss Wen was so reliable, Fu Qian didn't hesitate to continue.

"Or even a grander conspiracy to destroy Shangjing."

At that last sentence, the ripples clearly flared up again. The dream could be terminated at any moment.

Obviously, Arakiel would not allow any more information regarding the King of the Abandoned Prison to leak out.

"By the way, how is your training with the Kaleidoscope going?"

As a master of knowing the limits, how could Fu Qian fail to sense this? He immediately changed the subject, turning his attention to Wen Li's cultivation progress.

"Not bad."

Despite the abrupt pivot, Wen Li played along, evaluating her progress modestly.

"My emotional control has improved drastically since my promotion, and the transitions are much more natural."

"Hmm... You haven't been randomly throwing in anger anymore, right?"

Fu Qian rested his chin on his hand, deep in thought.

...

Unsurprisingly, Wen Li blushed at his words. She naturally remembered the time he'd acted as her sparring partner and the safety advice he had given.

"Actually, you did quite well back then. Let me think..."

Fu Qian seemed to be recalling the exact same scene. Frowning, he tapped his fingers lightly, as if trying to remember a specific melody.

A moment later, a smile surfaced on his face, and he began rapidly shifting through a variety of emotions.

In just over ten seconds, he displayed a flawless run of exaggerated facial expressions.

Naturally, this included the anger he had just mentioned.

"Was this the sequence?"

Once his performance of the Beautiful Girl Kaleidoscope concluded, Fu Qian asked with a beaming smile.

"You have a great memory, Mr. Fu..."

Having watched the entire display, Wen Li genuinely seemed to compare it against her own memories before her expression settled into deep admiration.

"Goes without saying!"

Fu Qian put on an arrogant face, clearly soaking in the praise.

"Anyway, I need you to use your emotional manipulation abilities to guide their conversation."

He hadn't forgotten their real business, however, and quickly adopted a serious tone.

"Right now, Taylor isn't very confident about the things he wants to verify."

"You need to influence Jiang En's emotions so that he immediately confesses when probed. No matter what is brought up, make him admit it. Can you do that?"

"That shouldn't be a problem."

Although usually careful and cautious, Eldest Miss Wen never shied away from stepping up at crucial moments. She thought for a second before nodding firmly.

"But given the relationship between those two, Taylor might not believe it even if Jiang En confesses. Do I need to guide Taylor's emotions as well?"

"No need. Him not believing it is exactly what we want."

Approving of Wen Li's careful thinking, Fu Qian waved off the concern.

"You're right. Given Taylor's personality, Jiang En openly admitting to everything will only make Taylor think his rival is mocking him and refusing to cooperate. A firm denial, on the other hand, would make him feel like he'd caught a slip-up and prompt him to probe further."

Fu Qian pointed at himself.

"In that first scenario, Taylor will do exactly what you did—he'll come find me, the one who gave him the intel, for confirmation."

"Understood."

Pure-hearted and exceptionally perceptive, Eldest Miss Wen grasped the intent instantly.

Though the explanation was brief, the intent was crystal clear: confuse Taylor so he would attempt to enter the dream once more for confirmation.

"Got it all down?"

Judging by Mr. Fu's tone, the task was extremely important.

"Yes, I'll get started right away."

Wen Li nodded earnestly, signaling she would move immediately.

"Thanks for the hard work."

In a split second, Fu Qian reverted to his usual lazy, carefree posture, gesturing that she was free to go.

...

"Uh..."

Unfortunately, in the next moment, she frowned.

"What is it?"

Fu Qian immediately checked on his volunteer.

"A minor issue... I'm not sure why, but this state feels much more stable than before. It might take me a little time to get out."

Wen Li explained her situation seriously.

'Stable. I can guess the reason for that.'

Fu Qian blinked.

'Even though the corruption is difficult, His Excellency Arakiel still isn't willing to give up easily.'

"Uh—"

The next second, Fu Qian opened his mouth and let out a strange noise. What he had originally intended to shout was "King of the Abandoned Prison."

As expected of a higher entity in decent condition. While maintaining the dreamscape and attempting to corrupt Wen Li, he still managed to prevent Fu Qian from transmitting sensitive information—it was truly an airtight defense.

'Since the safe word is off the table, I'll just have to think of another way.'

Tapping the table to catch Wen Li's attention, Fu Qian pointed at his right eye.

Under Wen Li's bewildered gaze, he reached up, dug into his socket, and directly popped his eyeball out.

...

She had truly grown. Despite turning pale, Wen Li actually managed to suppress her scream.

'This bit of shock isn't enough.'

While silently praising her, Fu Qian rolled the eyeball in his hand, turning its back toward Wen Li—

It didn't look anything like the back of a normal eye. Instead, it was covered in rows of fine, dense legs, as if the eyeball were formed from coiled centipedes that were merely disguised perfectly from the front.

Beneath Wen Li's frozen stare, Fu Qian casually flicked it. The structure at the back of the eye, which resembled an optic nerve, writhed and thrashed like a worm.

Seeing this, he extended his index finger, letting the thing climb onto it and coil itself into the shape of a spring.

"Ah—!"

Eldest Miss Wen finally shrieked, and everything before their eyes shattered.

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