Eldritch Horror Theatre

As long as one stayed true to one's original aspiration, the pursuit of knowledge would always yield surprises.

What Fu Qian had done in that brief instant was very simple: he activated his Mythical Form, transformed into the King of the Abandoned Prison, and detonated the Calamity belonging to the White-Headed Sanctuary.

Clad in the Divine Skin and wielding the power of a Dream Dominator, he effortlessly showed the entity what it meant to command Calamity—even if the being behind this object possessed an absurdly high Rank.

As for why he had responded with such sincerity, it was naturally because the other party had shown theirs.

His core reason for accepting this job was that, having crushed the Carnival of Wicked Desires with his own hands, Fu Qian was inherently curious about the concept of Ecstasy.

On the surface, he was doing the Night Watchers a favor. But from another angle, the Night Watchers were using their vast resources to track down items with potential clues and delivering them straight to his door.

Even his subsequent tests on the item were perfectly justifiable, sparing him from any pointless suspicion.

In the end, this Finger Orb—despite its rather low Rank—had actually delivered quite a surprise.

It actually appeared to be something akin to a power Emblem of the Stomach.

Although he still didn't know the entity's exact title, the original request was merely to confirm the Finger Orb's threat level. This definitely counted as over-fulfilling the task.

And the conclusion was that it was extremely dangerous.

The Night Watchers were going to have their work cut out for them.

As for his theoretical gains, he had not only gained a deep understanding of the twisted nature of pleasure, but had also clarified the state the Ecstasy Collective had previously been in.

It even seemed to partially explain why his upgraded Visceral Attack had such a specific description.

Finally, the convergence of that massive amount of pleasure had clearly demonstrated the power this authority held over the mind. This was likely why Professor Yi'an could parasitize others so wantonly after reaching the Demigod Realm.

All in all, it was a bountiful harvest.

If he had realized the danger of the White-Headed Sanctuary earlier and immediately chosen to terminate the dream to conclude the project, he still would have overturned Professor Chang Mo's theories and taken them a step further. Handing in that result would have been absolutely fine, but how could that fit the vision of an academic pioneer?

"Did you write all that down?"

With that thought in mind, Fu Qian turned to his assistant and asked casually.

...

"I wrote it down..."

The series of changes over the last few moments had undeniably been a dizzying blur.

Fortunately, Classmate Liushuang had seen her fair share of grand scenes while following Professor Fu. After a brief daze, she quickly collected herself and gave an earnest nod.

For a split second just now, as that Emblem bizarrely materialized into a physical entity, her heart had been gripped by an overwhelming sense of danger, even if she couldn't comprehend the exact mechanisms behind it.

Yet in the blink of an eye, they were already back in the setting from before the Heart-Questioning Sword Prison was cast.

A crisis beyond imagination had been neutralized just like that, and Professor Fu hadn't even moved a muscle.

"Good. You'll be writing the report when we get back."

Amid her awe, she heard Professor Fu snap his fingers smoothly.

The scenery before her eyes didn't change much this time, but her intuition told her they had completely returned to reality—

Honma sat at the table with his head bowed, cradling the Finger Orb in his hands in a strange silence.

Professor Fu was casually flipping through the document. The rustling of the paper instantly reminded her of the task he had just assigned.

So, had he planned even this from the start...?

Was the whole purpose of bringing her along just to leverage her clerical experience?

"Is there a problem?"

While Classmate Liushuang marveled in silence, Fu Qian, having received no response, glanced up at her. A second later, he simply handed the report straight over.

"I don't quite understand some of the changes... Also, I'm not entirely sure what the key points are, or what should be left out..."

Faced with a gesture that offered no room for refusal, Ji Liushuang obviously didn't consider rejecting it either.

Obediently reaching out to take it, she blinked and earnestly confessed her difficulties.

"No problem. I'll outline the key points for you."

Professor Fu waved a hand, signaling her not to worry.

"Also, when the Emblem shattered just now, an unusually sweet scent leaked out. Don't forget to include that."

A sweet scent?

"Understood."

Taken aback for a moment, Ji Liushuang nodded in agreement and actually pulled out a notebook to jot it down.

Without a doubt, she had completely missed this phenomenon, despite observing carefully the entire time.

The reason was simple.

Although the situation just now was merely a projection, without the extra filter applied by the Dream Dominator, even a Mid-Tier Transcendent would likely have been unable to maintain their mental state so perfectly intact.

Given that the scent was clearly suspected of spreading the Seed of Ecstasy, Fu Qian had blocked it out immediately.

Aside from innovation and truth-seeking, safety protocols were always a top priority in scientific research.

...

"How should we handle this next? Take him back for treatment?"

Seeing Professor Fu stand up immediately after finishing his instructions, Ji Liushuang completed her notes and turned to look at Honma, who had remained silent the entire time and seemed completely unresponsive to the outside world.

"Theoretically speaking, his mind just fell into exhaustion after undergoing continuous self-Sublimation."

Fu Qian took two steps forward, plucked the Finger Orb from Honma's hands, tossed it casually to his assistant, and then snapped his fingers.

"Put it away. Don't touch it directly."

Following this action, Honma's body twitched. He raised his head and stared blankly at the two of them.

"Is the test... already over?"

A moment later, the light rapidly returned to his eyes. He frowned, looking down at his empty hands.

He appeared to have absolutely no concept of what had just transpired within the dream.

"It's over. Thanks for cooperating."

Fu Qian wore an amiable smile.

"I was merely forced to cooperate..."

Brother Honma, however, didn't look quite so pleased, emphasizing the point with a smile that didn't reach his eyes.

"But this second course of treatment seems to have gone pretty ideally, hasn't it? Don't you feel much more liberated?"

Unbothered, Fu Qian pointed at the soup bowl in front of Honma.

Frowning slightly, the latter followed his gaze. He immediately fell silent, as if carefully savoring the feeling in his heart.

He didn't say another word until Fu Qian and his assistant left.

...

"He did seem a bit more at ease, but was that fundamentally due to the influence of that Sublimation just now?"

In less than ten minutes total, the research team had finished the test and swiftly departed from Honma's residence. Ji Liushuang was the first to speak up.

"Yes."

"...To be honest, I find it a bit hard to judge whether this change is a good or bad thing for him. But once the report is submitted, I imagine the Night Watchers will definitely double-check his condition."

Looking at Fu Qian, Classmate Liushuang voiced her concerns.

"By their standards, some of his behaviors might have crossed the line."

"Yes. That's why they came to us."

Professor Fu's tone remained as placid as ever, affirming her statement once more.

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