Eldritch Horror Theatre

An interesting trick. It would likely prove endlessly useful in a fight.

Watching the tiny flame cling to the wall like a glob of snot, Fu Qian offered generous praise.

The opening strike that had hit that Scarlet Angel earlier was clearly the work of this same trick.

While it wasn't particularly stealthy, a better adhesive effect would obviously cause considerable trouble for anyone it hit.

It packed a decent punch, too.

Boom!

Even as he evaluated it, the tiny flame detonated just as abruptly as before, erupting with a destructive force completely disproportionate to its appearance.

It even defied what they had experienced previously.

Everyone present was a sharp-eyed transcendent, and they all recognized the trick from before.

The entire stone wall—which looked remarkably thick and durable, and even bore an extra layer of enchanted ice—was torn apart as easily as paper, sending a shower of sharp gravel flying at their faces.

"There's a passage here that's been hidden this whole time... Are the travel restrictions really this strict?"

Jill reacted quickly. Hurrying forward a couple of steps, she peered into the massive hole behind the shattered stone and voiced her disbelief.

Faint light seeped through, illuminating a flight of stairs leading down.

"It isn't always like this, but you can think of it that way."

White had paused only for the split second of the explosion. Even as he spoke, he was already moving forward and descending the stairs.

His meaning was simple: not every route was restricted enough to require this method, but the general level of strictness was roughly the same.

"There are other routes we could take, but this way is much closer."

...

So far, the man was the picture of professionalism.

As the last one down the stairs, Fu Qian met White's hostile glare with a smile, giving the man a fair, objective mental review.

He couldn't let his own position cloud his judgment. Thus far, White was completely living up to the trust the survivors had placed in him.

He demonstrated crisp and decisive action, highly purposeful guidance, and the ability to forge a new path while providing crucial information none of the others possessed.

And, of course, he maintained vigilance against suspicious individuals—like Fu Qian himself.

As someone with self-knowledge, Fu Qian was acutely aware that he was absolutely the most discordant element in the team.

His attitude was only a trivial part of it. White's words and actions were far from polite, and his domineering posture toward the group still carried a strong hint of a head jailer.

Yet despite all that, White's abrasive manner grated on their nerves far less than Fu Qian's did.

Not only was his background suspicious, but his calm, easygoing demeanor in the face of a lethal crisis made him look like a tourist. No matter how one looked at it, his behavior could only be explained by ulterior motives.

Ever since this path to survival opened up, the rest of the team had undoubtedly been keeping an eye on his reactions. With White present, they simply didn't need to make it too obvious.

To be perfectly honest, their judgment wasn't wrong. His goals here were fundamentally different from theirs.

The curse of the Crimson Frenzy was indeed spreading across his body.

Fu Qian could even confirm that the curse's corrosive effect on him—a Tier 2—was far more intense than its effect on the survivors.

If he truly just ignored it, the physical symptoms would eventually become quite a spectacle.

That was the fascinating thing about this affliction. It was as if no matter how massive your Health Bar was, it inherently drained your vitality by a set percentage.

This trait alone proved that the transcendents' fear of it was entirely justified.

Even so, it wasn't an exaggerated threat.

After all, theoretically speaking, he still had a true predetermined death condition to contend with: failing to find Virgo before the Descent of the Four Knights of the Apocalypse.

As for why he was still traveling with the team under these circumstances?

It was because among three people walking together, there is always one who can be my teacher.

It was hard to imagine that the entity he was looking for would simply be hiding in a random cell.

As a newcomer lacking any real understanding of this place, his best move was obviously to consult the professionals for information.

Moreover, the threat to their survival meant their proactive drive had already been pushed to the absolute limit. He didn't even need to use Lucid Dream to squeeze them for effort.

As for the team's suspicions, Fu Qian had a wealth of experience in handling such matters.

It didn't matter if his calm, easygoing attitude put them on guard. He just needed to remain calm and easygoing enough.

The core purpose behind forming this team was simply that there was strength in numbers, increasing their survival rate.

If someone tagged along with the team, voicing no opinions and causing no trouble, taking him out preemptively over paranoid suspicions was foolish. It was far wiser to simply keep him around and make him take the front line at critical moments—like right now.

Ah—

This lower floor was noticeably darker and more claustrophobic by comparison.

As a result, the agonized scream that immediately rang out echoed repeatedly through the space, lingering for a long time.

This sudden development instantly caused the group, who had been trying to get their bearings, to look over, taking their cues entirely from Head Jailer White.

"...Let's go check it out. We were going that way regardless."

To run into this kind of commotion the moment they came down... White finally withdrew his gaze, his expression growing even more severe.

...

"Here?"

The source of the scream wasn't far away. If it had been, Fu Qian wouldn't have anticipated a commotion so soon.

The stairs had deposited the group into a spacious, curved corridor. Its exaggerated height stretched straight to the ceiling, making it look as though it wrapped around the prison area they had just left behind.

They hurried forward until they reached a fork in the path that easily played tricks on the eyes, at which point White immediately called for the group to halt.

This time, however, Li didn't wait for White to act. He took the initiative to step forward and confirm their target.

It wasn't hard to spot the anomaly. Although the building materials matched as closely as possible, a section of the wall on one side clearly lacked any decoration. It possessed a dull industrial style, and faint light even seeped through from behind it.

"Break it."

White looked quite satisfied by the team's initiative. He gave the order instantly.

Boom!

Almost instantly, Li rammed straight through the sturdy-looking stone wall, shattering it.

Unlike White, he demonstrated pure brute physical strength, which suited his image perfectly.

"He seems to still be conscious, but something's off... He's one of your men."

As the shattered debris flew, Jill—who was just slightly behind Li—peered behind the wall and made a quick assessment.

Her last sentence was directed at White.

Under the classic prison-style lighting ahead, a man lay on the ground, his limbs contorted into thoroughly unnatural angles.

He was clearly the source of the recent scream. Yet bizarrely, even though he appeared to still be in excruciating agony, he made no further sound as he struggled.

Furthermore, despite some minor stylistic differences, the man's clothing was clearly the same style as White's.

"He's one of my men."

White gave a cold grunt of acknowledgment and strode forward without breaking his pace.

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