Eldritch Horror Theatre

A Church without an object of worship.

Never mind here in the peculiar City of Bliss; even if he encountered such a place on the outside, Fu Qian wouldn't mind digging into its background.

Just as he was considering where to begin, a perfect tool like the Brotherhood delivered itself to his doorstep. How could he not use it?

Of course, given the omnipresent Dislocation and absurdity within this city, analyzing the results would be a bit more complicated.

But that was fine. If things were going to be complicated, everyone would suffer the complication together, and his own intentions would become even harder to grasp.

Muddy waters were always the best for catching fish.

"You aren't joking? Our people are very busy."

Brother Thick Eyebrows looked somewhat tempted now. He was clearly weighing the claim's credibility.

‘What could you possibly be busy with?’

Naturally, the man's words only provoked Fu Qian's silent mockery.

"Just now, there was a little disturbance."

Before Fu Qian could say anything, Brother Thick Eyebrows actually offered an explanation.

"Oh? What kind of disturbance?"

It was easy to assume this referred to the bloody massacre he had just caused himself, but Fu Qian highly doubted the Brotherhood actually cared about such a thing.

"A girl not only didn't get paid, but had her entire day's hard earnings robbed. I need to find that special consumer and have a little chat."

Sure enough, Brother Thick Eyebrows confirmed his judgment in the very next moment. It really was related to the special service workers.

But it sounded like the Brotherhood was quite dedicated to their jobs—they took the money and actually got things done.

"Perhaps that person just wanted to experience a different kind of karma."

While silently marveling at their work ethic, Fu Qian offered the comment, trying to understand the freeloader's mindset.

"Then he has experienced it."

Wearing a face so amicable it practically glowed, Brother Thick Eyebrows let out a string of cold sneers.

"I don't know where he got such an idea, but since he chose the Brotherhood's turf, whatever happens next should also be within his expectations."

Such an overbearing aura!

Faced with such a dedicated performance, Fu Qian did not skimp on his praise.

With such a jarringly discordant style, he wondered if shooting a silent film here in the City of Bliss would result in something particularly abstract.

In fact, a few unconventional ideas even sparked in his mind as he pictured the scene.

"Trust me, what's in front of you is much more worth experiencing."

Of course, he would never forget the main order of business. Fu Qian quickly pivoted, re-emphasizing their current situation.

"So what is it exactly? Can't you just share it directly?"

Brother Thick Eyebrows was clearly more focused on this matter as well, responding almost instantly.

"This is my way of sharing."

Unfortunately, when it came to being deliberately mystifying, Expert Fu never took a back seat to anyone. He smiled immediately, his words laden with profound meaning.

...

As mentioned earlier, because of the omnipresent Dislocation and absurdity within the City of Bliss, interpreting any words or actions required a bit of extra effort.

Therefore, Fu Qian's explanation undoubtedly spawned even more interpretations.

It could be taken literally as: ‘I clearly understand it in my heart, but I simply won't say it.’

Or it could be taken on a deeper level: understanding that the thing being grasped was nothing else but the very ‘karma caused by the act of sharing’ itself, which had already been displayed to everyone.

It was the profound of the profound. This mind-bending effect was exactly what he wanted.

Seeing the gang members led by Brother Thick Eyebrows fall entirely silent for a moment, the smile on Fu Qian's face deepened. He even purposely cast a glance at his female tail from earlier.

The sheer power of the effect was glaringly obvious on her.

In the beginning, she had clearly been somewhat bothered by being used. Now, however, faced with this chaotic situation, she seemed to have quietly given up on thinking altogether, silently staring blankly at the spot where a divine statue should have been.

"Very good. It has been many years since this place was so lively."

And in the very next moment, a stir truly did occur in the spot she was watching.

It wasn't the sudden manifestation of a divine miracle, but rather—a priest?

Fu Qian followed her gaze and confirmed that it was an old man dressed in a style similar to his own, only in significantly more gorgeous colors.

With snow-white hair and beard, and wearing a bizarre tall hat, the old man was looking over with a gratified gaze.

"Of course, what is even more gratifying is that you were able to comprehend this."

...

It was indeed quite normal for a Church to have a priest.

And since he was a priest, it was equally understandable for his style to be a bit charlatan-like.

Driven by his abundant empathy, Fu Qian smiled back at this timely elder—

Even though he had no idea what he had supposedly comprehended, it was fine as long as the old man knew.

Since the Old Man Priest actually knew, that meant he really had comprehended it.

And since he had comprehended it, if the gang members failed to comprehend it, that was their own problem.

Look at that—the profound of the profound, nothing more than this. The logic was already perfectly clear.

Amidst his sighs that the path of wisdom was as vast as the open sea, noble righteous energy surged and swelled around Fu Qian, making the Brotherhood members not dare to look him in the eye.

‘Be enlightened, it is indescribably wonderful.’

"For many years I have come here to repent, more than once. Was it just self-pity all along?"

As it turned out, certain phenomena quickly became contagious.

Within this peculiar atmosphere, Brother Thick Eyebrows took a deep breath at some point, muttering to himself as if recalling his momentous past.

"Thinking back on it, I never even knew who I was repenting to... Thus, I knew nothing, comprehended nothing, and even now it's the same—"

"And so what? Do not mistake the point. Repentance itself is what matters most."

However, his gradually lowering voice was interrupted in the next moment by the Old Man Priest.

The latter maintained his free and easy posture, raising a finger to point at everyone, including the fellow who had been one of the original three sitting there—the one whose emotions were so stable he still hadn't left.

"Everyone comes here merely to repent for the sins they have committed, thereby seeking the Awakening of the soul. Does it really matter who the object of repentance is?"

Truly, people cannot be judged by their appearance. This old man could be called the most cheerful person encountered in the Realm of Bliss so far, and his words sounded remarkably open-minded.

"Even I don't know whose Church this is, yet haven't I cultivated here for all these years?"

Hmm... wasn't that a bit too open-minded?

The old man's attitude was admirable, but the latter half of his statement was excessively shocking.

So the layout of this Church really wasn't just to keep a low profile, was it?

As the manager, you didn't even know who it was you worshipped?

In that moment, even Fu Qian marveled at the fierce sparks struck from this collision of ideas.

His bluffing act just now had only been going with the flow, yet he never expected it to align so perfectly with this Church's philosophy.

Peeling away the layers of profundity, the core was ultimately discovered to be emptiness.

At first glance, it was somewhat appalling, but when combined with this place's special nature—having bliss as its bones and extreme evil as its guise—having such a place of worship inside the city suddenly felt inexplicably harmonious.

He had truly experienced the local culture deeply—but it wasn't enough.

His goal, after all, was ascension.

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