Eldritch Horror Theatre

"What's going on—"

The sudden change came as a massive shock to the group, who had just barely escaped danger.

Having already endured too much, the Old Man, Huang Leji, couldn't help but cry out at these incomprehensible casualties.

One of the two collapsed men was the one who had just been yelled at to stop, but the other had simply been standing right beside him.

The logic of it was completely unfathomable.

The reality was even more terrifying. This was no simple coma—the two men on the ground had simply stopped breathing.

Sudden, unwarned death often brought far more crushing psychological pressure than a bloody slaughter, especially in a place like this.

Unsure whether they should move or stay still, the surviving team members—Huang Leji included—subconsciously patted themselves down.

The conclusion: they were completely unharmed.

Having witnessed this rapid sequence of events, Sha Ming—who had abruptly frozen in place—finally turned to stare fixedly at Fu Qian. His tone, however, sounded more like he was talking to himself.

"The bond is still there, it just can't be seen... We haven't escaped the mental projection. That was just an illusion..."

"But the Followers are definitely gone, and the rules don't seem quite the same... What on earth just happened?"

"You actually knew all along. That's why you stayed put..."

"You flatter me. I didn't actually know all along; I just have some good habits."

Faced with such a long string of reflections delivered in a single breath, Fu Qian found it hard to refuse the compliment and nodded modestly.

"For example, a relatively strong sense of empathy. Even when leaving things to others, I tend to put myself in their shoes to assess the feasibility. I try to avoid forcing people into impossible tasks."

...

How did one break a cage woven from laws?

Dayun Mingwang did not tell lies. Although he had decided early on to drag a fellow inmate over, Fu Qian had never stopped pondering this question.

And the simplest answer seemed to be overwhelming technique with brute force.

Using a sufficiently high Rank to confront the laws head-on and search for loopholes within them?

Or using some incomprehensible method of annihilation to simply detonate a nuclear bomb inside?

It was a simple and crude approach, and even with his currently limited knowledge, he couldn't completely rule out the possibility that someone out there could pull it off.

But Fu Qian, who always assumed the worst of his enemies, was hardly satisfied with such a simple answer.

What if the cage was truly perfect?

What if the laws comprising it didn't just lack loopholes, but were stitched into the foundational rules of the world itself, rendering them indestructible?

In that scenario, if a higher entity were thrown into the cage, what method would they use to escape?

Coincidentally, when pondering this question, the first entity Fu Qian thought of was Blazing Rainbow.

In their previous encounters, that entity had repeatedly demonstrated techniques that could only be described as "world-distorting."

To Fu Qian, this seemed like a plausible approach.

The laws themselves might be supreme and impossible to distort, but what about the elements that comprised them?

If the definition of "up" was altered, then no matter how indestructible the law "those who walk upward will be severely punished" was, could it truly bind anyone?

If that happened enough times, could the cage really remain flawless and airtight?

There were even methods similar to the Witch's, which could simply erase the concept of "up" entirely.

In Fu Qian's view, solutions that fundamentally dismantled the concept of the laws were far more reasonable than pure brute force.

So that burst of light just now—the spectacle that had swept away all the bizarre entities in an instant—hadn't convinced Fu Qian for a second.

It was a Deity, yes, but only a projection.

No matter how high its Rank was, its power had to be limited.

And yet it had used the simplest, crudest method to successfully crack the cage in a single second?

Fu Qian simply wasn't that optimistic.

That was one of the reasons he hadn't moved. As for the second reason—

"You knew I wasn't Him?"

The rainbow-colored humanoid figure, which had been perfectly still, suddenly turned around to look at him as it spoke.

"Of course."

Fu Qian sighed.

...

"Interesting."

The voice emanating from the humanoid figure suddenly sounded far less ethereal.

"The item you used just now clearly contained power originating from Him. Upon its activation, wouldn't it be perfectly normal for Him to follow the connection, track you down, and manifest?"

The entity clearly still sounded a bit skeptical of Fu Qian's claim.

"It is precisely because a connection could be made that it absolutely couldn't be Him."

Fu Qian replied without hesitation, even taking a moment to check on Sha Ming and the others.

Some looked doubtful, some sorrowful, some furious, but not a single one of them was paying attention to this conversation.

It was as if the exchange didn't even exist in their perception.

"The other side is a beautifully woven prison. If He sensed even a tiny bit of it through the connection, given that entity's style, how could He possibly step straight into a situation that so obviously looks like a trap?"

Adopting a much more relaxed posture, Fu Qian explained the specific logic behind his deduction.

"Hehehe... Well said!"

His conversational sincerity hadn't been wasted; a burst of utterly malicious laughter rang out almost instantly.

The blurred humanoid figure quickly condensed and sharpened into focus.

In just a few seconds, the indescribable rainbow colors completely vanished.

Taking their place was the shadowy face of a middle-aged man, topped with a smooth, bald head that was unforgettable at a glance.

And both of those traits were quite familiar.

"Excellency Patches, it's been a while."

The name that had practically leaped to his tongue from the laughter alone now became Fu Qian's greeting.

...

That's right, the Deity who had arrived was none other than Patches the Deceiver, whom he had cordially interacted with back on Ye Island.

Sure enough, He was a higher entity at the Deity Level.

In fact, according to the Lantern's introduction, He was even a Cosmic Deity.

Speaking of which, this figure had quite the sense of humor. In the brief moment before manifesting, He had decided to pull a reverse impersonation of the very power that had disturbed Him.

His reaction right now also proved that even though this was merely a projection, His level of control over it was quite high—for instance, He had clearly recognized Fu Qian.

"Is it? Time is indeed an interesting concept... Hehehe..."

Still as cheerful as ever, Excellency Patches hadn't stopped laughing since revealing His true form, and even praised Fu Qian's efficiency.

"However, the speed of your progress is indeed quite impressive. It seems this world is finally starting to get interesting."

"Your Excellency isn't too bad yourself. That move just now was brilliant."

Mutual flattery was a basic courtesy, not to mention that he still seemed to owe the other party a horse.

Fu Qian instantly nodded, returned the compliment, and gestured at their surroundings.

"May I ask how you pulled that off?"

"Is this the question you want answered this time? I thought you'd ask me for some ancient secrets."

Faced with Fu Qian's spirit of scientific inquiry, Patches sounded slightly surprised.

"If I asked about ancient secrets, would you answer?"

"No."

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