Eldritch Horror Theatre

Indeed, it was a heinous crime.

Judging by Old Man Li's tone, there seemed to be rather subtle underlying reasons why he and Excellency Ji Ning—two High-Tier Transcendents—were willing to accept the invitation and attend the banquet at the same time.

This was likely one of his few opportunities to legitimately meet with her.

However, it seemed this rare opportunity had still been ruined by the excessive actions of Luyi and whatever stood behind him.

Of course, Fu Qian had gone even further—Excellency Ji Ning's blood was still fresh on his hands.

Although this was only a bizarre, unreal predicament, their earlier state of mental suspended animation had failed to help them escape. As a result, the mortal terror that erupted from Ji Ning in that moment was almost entirely undiluted, successfully completing the relay with Aike.

Fu Qian was absolutely certain that he was now examining his surroundings from the vantage point of a higher Rank.

Even the marks of the Order of Blood on his body had dissipated.

Fear, anger, anxiety, and despair.

Just as he had noted earlier, the window of time was extremely short; the opportunity would be gone in a flash.

Whether it was Aike or Excellency Ji Ning, the reason he had dealt the killing blow was that it yielded the highest consensus output per unit of time.

Of course, Fu Qian admitted this wasn't his sole purpose.

Everyone was playing the game. It was common knowledge that using a ladder to climb higher than the rest was merely the first step to winning the competition.

The second step was applying reverse thinking—such as burning the ladder to cut off the opponents' chances.

And his actions just now could theoretically be called the perfect fusion of these two steps, the ultimate embodiment of execution.

No personal grudges; strictly business.

Yet despite facing an opponent who had taken the lead, Excellency Luyi didn't seem anxious in the slightest.

"Absolutely brilliant!"

As Fu Qian turned to look, loud, rhythmic clapping rang out.

Having made no further moves after his initial attempt to disrupt Fu Qian's actions with the Imprint of Order failed, Luyi now offered his praise without hesitation.

......

"I must say, I now share the same curiosity as Excellency Aike."

In stark contrast to Old Man Li—who had attacked furiously just moments ago but was now standing frozen like a statue, his thoughts inscrutable—Luyi's demeanor had suddenly become lively. His commentary flowed with the highest praise.

"Not just because of your strength, Excellency, but your decisiveness in action is truly impressive."

"Once things here are settled, I will also try to uncover your true origins, as well as what exactly transpired here at the Ehm Palace. Heh... liberating the mind."

"You flatter me. So, after those two died inside, have they returned to reality now?"

Faced with his competitor's acknowledgment, Fu Qian appeared remarkably humble.

The decisiveness Luyi spoke of naturally referred to more than just the killings.

The core of it lay in his swift, ruthless destruction of the aesthetic—abandoning a cultural victory to funnel all resources into sheer martial force.

Essentially, this was the unspoken mutual flattery of capitalists.

As for emphasizing strength in his very first sentence, that was purely a matter of staying true to his original aspiration.

As previously mentioned, the trio might hold some utility for a Demigod, but for a Tier 2 to still be using them to get things done simply didn't make logical sense.

Even though Fu Qian's cover story appeared on the verge of bankruptcy, Luyi hadn't forgotten to stab it one more time.

In light of this, Fu Qian acted quite unabashedly, not minding in the least that his questions revealed his lack of familiarity with their predicament.

"What did you tell them before?"

"It's simple... Until all of this concludes, their subsequent fate remains in an unknown state."

Luyi was clearly not the sort to expect others to hand him ammunition, but he wasn't about to stand on ceremony when they did. He continued to explain with a smile.

This sort of thoroughly mystic, charlatan-like answer was usually the most detestable kind.

Unfortunately for him, what he didn't know was that the opponent standing before him was a professional charlatan himself. Fu Qian's ability to process such ambiguous information had long since reached the state of perfection.

The fate of the characters within the notes depended on the fate of the notes themselves?

Fu Qian gave a slight nod, looking thoughtful.

His understanding of this statement was that for all the victims dragged into this place, death didn't simply mean waking up from a Nightmare. Instead, it depended entirely on how this story—fundamentally driven forward by a collective of wills—would ultimately end.

Fascinating indeed.

"So why don't you kill me, and use that to decide how all of this ends?"

Fu Qian hadn't voiced any doubts at all, which seemed to pique Luyi's curiosity. In the very next moment, he took the initiative to ask.

......

"Because I am still contemplating what state your death would take."

Luyi's question was undoubtedly direct, and this time, it was Fu Qian's turn to employ a profoundly mystic style.

"And the result?"

The facts proved that Luyi was also an expert at this game. His immediate reaction wasn't confusion but pleasant surprise, as if he had realized something.

"Hard to imagine."

Fu Qian remained as candid as ever.

"...I must say, Excellency Anke, you truly have given me one surprise after another."

Luyi's laughter grew almost unbridled.

"Your intuition is correct. Killing me isn't quite that easy. As long as the Order of Blood remains, I will remain."

"It's just a pity that you should have realized this sooner, Excellency, rather than trying to be clever."

"But there's no need to be too discouraged. You can still try to think of a way to continue elevating yourself, so you might obliterate the Order of Blood along with me."

Coexisting alongside a power akin to a Deity's authority?

Luyi's friendly tip was naturally driven by a desire to press his advantage, not out of good intentions.

Fu Qian was perfectly aware of this, just as he was aware of how difficult Luyi claimed to be to kill.

With a long-premeditated home-field advantage, how could he possibly lack a means of self-preservation?

He had factored this possibility into his considerations as soon as he first suspected a mastermind behind these events.

Right now, having upgraded, he was merely confirming it on a sensory level.

Luyi hadn't been lying. Although he was only at the Demigod Rank, his very essence of existence clearly shared a special connection with the omnipresent erosion.

Even if he were truly smashed to pieces, he would still be a long way from actual death.

Unless his source of existence was crushed along with him.

And to achieve that, a simple Tier 2 was likely no longer enough. He would need a higher level of power—though, in truth, he didn't actually need to elevate himself further.

Having considered this possibility yet still choosing to act as he did, he naturally had a countermeasure prepared.

For him, having undoubtedly restored his False God form, briefly incarnating as the King of the Abandoned Prison no longer presented any theoretical obstacles.

But the reason he still hadn't made a move was that, just a moment ago, Fu Qian had felt this predicament rejecting him—right after he recovered his Tier 2 strength.

No wonder the Warehouse had made him enter in an incomplete form.

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