Eldritch Horror Theatre

Despite his holy, exalted appearance, Brother Sanxun seemed to have retained his humanity surprisingly well.

For instance, his self-righteousness and the kind of petty schemes entirely unfit for the Hall of Great Elegance.

His initial materialization from behind had felt natural enough.

Given the limited conditions, it made sense. At a glance, this place looked like a freshly dredged sewer, and a conservatively sized one at that. There wasn't much room for a grand entrance.

Deeply bound to this domain as he was, his ability to perceive and exploit its unseen rules was hardly surprising.

But scoring a critical hit with a backstab and then immediately vanishing instead of pressing the advantage? That felt a bit too theatrical.

Experiencing a sudden, inexplicable amplification of an injury was enough to throw even a mentally prepared person into a panic. Combine that with his refusal to deliver a swift end, and it certainly maximized the psychological torment.

But that was for a normal person.

After their previous encounters, Fu Qian was confident the Third Follower no longer held such a naive view of his opponent.

The most logical way to deal with someone like him was to unleash maximum damage the second they met, without wasting a shred of emotion.

Therefore, Fu Qian preferred to interpret Brother Sanxun's hit-and-run tactic as theatrics serving a separate purpose.

For instance, guarding against exactly what was happening now: Fu Qian suddenly turning around mid-sentence and deducing the new rules entirely too quickly.

"Very good. Your reaction is even faster than I imagined."

"I am confident you will increasingly come to understand the true nature of power."

Sanxun, having failed to land his final backstab, did not seem overly annoyed. He even offered magnanimous praise.

"What exactly are you doing? Don't tell me someone in there is talking to you right now."

Before Fu Qian could even reply, Huang Leji, rattled by his erratic turning, let out a low growl beside him.

So it really was information only he could perceive?

"Yeah."

Having already suspected as much, Fu Qian found the bizarre situation unsurprising.

He didn't even try to hide it. Instead, he gave Huang Leji a solemn nod.

"I'm guessing you are referring to those omnipresent rules, the ones that become increasingly stringent the deeper we go."

Without waiting for Huang Leji to respond, Fu Qian turned back around and resumed his conversation with the Third Follower.

Only he could receive the entity's messages, but he could certainly share his own half of the conversation to broaden everyone's horizons.

"But since you're so intent on guiding people toward the light, why not just tell me what they are so I can strictly follow them?"

"Heh... Rules aren't just meant to be followed. Breaking them and suffering the punishment is another way their existence is made manifest."

Faced with Fu Qian's overly familiar suggestion, Sanxun seemed to have no desire to linger. With a cold chuckle, he rapidly dissipated.

...

"What did he say?"

Manipulating people was an art form. It was obvious that Old Man Huang Leji had no desire to join in this madness, but the content of Fu Qian's question had overpowered his restraint. He had to know.

"He said that while it's all well and good for us to be law-abiding citizens, making mistakes and getting punished for them is just as delightful."

Fu Qian didn't hold back, genuinely sharing Sanxun's reply.

As he spoke, however, his eyes were fixed on Sha Ming, who had been silent for some time.

Due to his withered features, the man's expression was unreadable.

Fu Qian had little doubt that Sha Ming couldn't see Sanxun.

But that raised a question—if others couldn't perceive the Third Follower conversing exclusively with him, was it possible he was equally blind to some other Follower conversing with them?

It was an extremely simple bit of reverse logic, yet dangerously easy to overlook.

Fortunately, lunatics tended to think outside the box. Although Sha Ming was his complete opposite and had displayed no bizarre behavior whatsoever, Fu Qian refused to rule out the possibility that an invisible Follower had been interacting with the man this whole time.

As countless shonen manga preached: always believe in the power of your teammates.

Not to mention, Brother Sha Ming had already proven himself to be quite extraordinary.

"Regardless, it seems we should continue our descent."

Meeting Fu Qian's gaze, Sha Ming opted to forcibly pivot the conversation, dragging everyone's focus back to the immediate reality.

This...

Huang Leji clearly wanted Sha Ming to elaborate, but the situation had visibly spiraled beyond his control.

He was caught between two entities: on one side, a mysterious figure utterly unfazed by death; on the other, an enigma harboring countless secrets, carrying the distinct stench of a mastermind.

And as the team's person in charge, he found himself entirely bereft of leverage to rein them in.

"It is time to move on! No one hangs back!"

However, his hesitation lasted only a few breaths. Hardening his resolve, Huang Leji bellowed at his bewildered subordinates.

"But..."

The psychological weight of marching into a place of no return was no small burden. The previously obedient squad finally buckled, unable to hide their hesitation.

"Idiots! Use your brains! At a time like this, the further you shrink back, the faster you'll lose your lives!"

Naturally, this earned them a ruthless reprimand from Old Man Huang.

...

Paradoxically, charging to the front offered the greatest chance of survival.

Driven by the instinct to survive, the human mind tended to operate in overdrive.

So, while Huang Leji's logic sounded counterintuitive at first, several pairs of eyes soon lit up with realization. Subconsciously, their gazes drifted toward Fu Qian and Sha Ming.

The recent displays from these two men had undoubtedly struck a severe blow to the squad's morale.

One had inhumanly ignored the lethal threat posed by their mutual bindings, while the other had outright demonstrated the ability to sever those bindings entirely. It made the remaining team members feel as though they had lost all their bargaining chips.

But was that really the case?

Were they completely devoid of options, reduced to mere lambs for the slaughter?

Deep in this perilous Underground, if one person met an untimely end, Sha Ming might simply handle it the way he just had. But what if a whole group met with disaster?

Before he could sever the bindings one by one, wouldn't the sheer influx of death channeled back to him be enough to cause his collapse?

Considering that, a group actively pushing to the vanguard would force him to abandon treating them like disposable fodder. Instead, he would have no choice but to keep them alive.

The truest form of finding life through death.

"Understood."

In a flash, Old Man Huang's new philosophy found traction among the ranks.

One man didn't even utter a word before charging straight toward the only exit in the cramped space.

"It seems we should depart as well, Excellency Follower."

Brother Sha Ming possessed a rather impressive level of composure. Facing this spectacle under Old Man Huang's intense gaze, he still managed a smile as he extended the invitation to Fu Qian.

Even if that final title sounded a bit too meaningful.

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