Eldritch Horror Theatre

In the quiet of the night, the perception of time passing easily became distorted.

"I'll head to the Academy first."

Though she hadn't stayed up all night, Classmate Liushuang still rose quite early.

Coming downstairs into the dim morning light, she saw her leader leaning back to rest after a grueling night of contemplation. This time, she didn't even invite him to breakfast.

"All right."

Opening his eyes and seeing the documents in her hands, Fu Qian nodded in approval.

Just as he had hoped, she hadn't bothered him for another review after finishing the revisions. These days, an employee who executed a leader's arrangements this flawlessly was a rare treasure indeed.

"I'll be there before noon as well."

He then offered the brief addendum.

Her early departure was clearly to accommodate his upcoming schedule.

Given how completely the contents overturned their previous findings, there was zero chance he—as the person in charge—would escape questioning.

Submitting it this early ensured it was less likely to disrupt his later plans.

Theoretically, as a Lifetime Professor who had just pulled off another miracle, he had every right to sit right here and wait for Li Weixuan to come seeking answers.

But there was no need for that.

He didn't have much on his plate today anyway, and Brother Weixuan was burdened with the Academy's many essential affairs. It was obviously much more convenient for Fu Qian to stroll over and run rampant—ahem, pay a visit to the Sword Comprehension Institute.

True academics didn't need to put on airs. Their academic achievements were all the posture they needed.

"Understood."

Classmate Liushuang clearly grasped his meaning. She gave a very earnest nod, let her gaze linger for a moment on the extravagant seat beneath him, and then hurried off without another word.

As the Laboratory's personnel on duty during this period, she knew for a fact that this magnificent chair had appeared out of nowhere.

While curious about its origins, she had to admit that Professor Fu looked remarkably natural sitting in it.

...

A formidable youth indeed!

His judgment proved perfectly sound. For the rest of the morning, he comfortably slipped into a state of stealing a half-day of leisure from a fleeting life.

After that brief rest, Fu Qian kept his word, arriving at the Sword Comprehension Institute just before noon.

As the branch of the Academy where effort was most easily quantified, the moment he stepped inside, he could almost feel the vigorous, upward atmosphere in the air.

Along the way, Fu Qian picked up on more than one familiar aura. For instance, he sensed that rising star from the Huang Clan—the one with the extraordinary bone structure from the Anle Angel Exploration Team.

Though the Sword Comprehension Institute was named for the sword, it wasn't as narrow as the weapon itself, just as Old Man Li He had demonstrated back then. In a broader sense, it was a fusion of various cultivation methods.

Of course, after a bit of observation, it was still obvious that the sword cultivators carried themselves with the most flair.

"Professor Fu."

As one of the Academy's most prominent faculty members lately, making such an open visit naturally drew countless stares, which came as no surprise.

Compared to the many students and instructors along the way who only dared to gaze from afar, one familiar face finally found it impossible to feign ignorance and spoke up to greet him.

Meticulous hair, a sharp gaze, and a grim expression—it was none other than Jian Jingzheng, whom he had once cooperated with to track a killer.

Given how unpleasant their previous interactions had been, the complexity of this man's emotions was even higher than that of the others.

"Hello, Professor Jian."

Of course, as the image representative of the Apocalypse Branch, Professor Fu's posture remained as elegant as ever, and he returned the greeting with a smile.

"Is Your Excellency here to see Dean Li? I will show you the way."

As the saying goes, taking shame as a spur to courage, Jian Jingzheng realized his demeanor was actually being outclassed by the Apocalypse Branch. He quickly schooled his expression and took the initiative to guide the way.

"I'd appreciate that."

Feeling the warmth of the Academy family, Fu Qian didn't bother standing on ceremony.

...

"Professor Chang is here too, I see."

It proved to be a good day. Under Professor Jian's highly efficient guidance, Fu Qian arrived at his destination in no time.

After exchanging greetings with Li Weixuan, who had specifically come to open the door and welcome him, Fu Qian looked over his shoulder and surprisingly spotted Chang Mo peering back from inside.

Only, her expression at this moment was even more conflicted than Jian Jingzheng's.

It wasn't hard to understand why. Greeting them and stepping forward, Fu Qian easily spotted a familiar report resting near Chang Mo's hand.

In fact, the report's author, Classmate Liushuang, was sitting right next to her at this very moment.

And the final face in the room belonged to someone he had also seen not long ago—Yuan Fang, the person in charge of the Night Watchers near the Academy.

He had arrived quite quickly.

Judging by everyone's posture in the room, they had evidently been discussing the contents of the report for quite some time.

Given the camaraderie Li Weixuan and Yuan Fang had displayed, calling him over to discuss such a new discovery instead of directly submitting the final draft was indeed a more reasonable approach.

In fact, Fu Qian had arrived these few hours late precisely so he wouldn't have to sit around waiting with them.

It wouldn't have bothered him personally, but staying here too long could easily have an adverse effect on the mental health of the Sword Comprehension Institute's staff and students.

Professor Chang Mo, for instance, was clearly brewing with intense emotion.

"Professor Fu, we were just looking at the contents of the report... Did that kind of materialized Sanctuary really appear?"

After Fu Qian finished exchanging greetings with Yuan Fang, she was already the first to speak, unable to wait.

...

Truly worthy of the Sword Comprehension Institute's elite.

As the former head of the project, it was perfectly normal for her to harbor doubts when faced with such groundbreaking results.

Especially since they had been reached in less than a day.

But Fu Qian's praise stemmed primarily from the content Chang Mo chose to focus on right away.

Under his instructions, Classmate Liushuang had included a rather detailed description of the testing plan.

The sheer extremity of the methods wasn't far from scandalous. Yet, Professor Chang showed zero intention of nitpicking that point, focusing directly on the core issue instead.

Though they put on airs a bit, the academic atmosphere at the Sword Comprehension Institute was still proper.

"Yes. It's hard to say for sure if it exists as a physical object; it might be more of a conceptual projection."

In view of this, Fu Qian, bearing the image of the entire Apocalypse Branch, didn't keep her in suspense at all, offering a brief and professional reply.

"The specific properties are exactly as described in the report. I suspect it's the direct cause behind why it was effective on certain targets at the Return to Chastity Assembly."

"And if we bring in more people to test, I believe there is every probability of reproducing the scene."

In the very next moment, Fu Qian unabashedly put forward the suggestion to continue testing.

"...Thank you, Professor Fu. We honestly had no idea the situation could be this severe."

It was a pity that under this excessively extreme scale, even Li Weixuan found it hard to comment. After a brief silence, Yuan Fang, who had been listening on the side, took the initiative to take over the conversation.

And his attitude appeared quite earnest and impartial.

"However, considering how intense the testing process was, there are a few things I still need to specifically confirm with Your Excellency."

Pausing, Yuan Fang glanced around the room.

"May I have a private word with Professor Fu?"

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