Eldritch Horror Theatre

Truly astonishing.

The situation had changed in a flash. Fu Qian hadn't stepped back an inch, but he didn't hold back his praise either.

Was there really a group of "them"?

Somewhere out of sight behind them lurked something invisible—a terrifying prospect guaranteed to make anyone's skin crawl.

And while that thing still hadn't shown itself, the Long Halberd had clearly struck its target. Judging by the splatters on the ground, it had bled profusely.

Given such a decisive outcome, it was easy to conclude that the plan was actually working.

Through contact with the Stone Seat, one could form a deeper connection with the entire Furnace, thereby exposing the "them" hiding within it.

"I was wrong after all..."

By then, Zhao Ran had already rushed forward. He retrieved the Long Halberd and fell into a cautious, defensive stance.

"Oh? Where did you go wrong?"

Given the man's current mental state, for him to actually take the initiative and admit a mistake was another astonishing feat. Curiously, Fu Qian pressed for confirmation.

"That mark doesn't belong to 'them'... Instead, it was left for us."

The spray of blood had dyed the tip of one of the "hands" almost perfectly red. Zhao Ran's gaze trailed from that spot all the way to the Stone Seat.

"I don't know who made it—whether it was those 'failures' or someone else—but this thing clearly gives us a sliver of power to fight back... Could you see it just now?"

...

His meaning wasn't hard to grasp: he had the symbol's origins completely backward.

It wasn't an external manifestation of "them," but rather a countermeasure devised by the numerous victims.

This actually made more sense. Otherwise, the origins of the graffiti in that special space would be rather hard to explain.

After all, it couldn't be that "they" gathered there to rest like a flock of bats, right?

By comparison, it made much more sense if the multitude of "failures" had drawn them to warn future arrivals, even if that still didn't explain why the marks moved.

"Nothing at all."

Having offered his silent critique, Fu Qian gave a very honest answer.

"...It's a pity, but something was there."

He seemed to have expected this, but having proved his previous foolishness yet again, Zhao Ran's face darkened.

"I can't describe its exact appearance, but it was clearly some sort of living creature, and walls couldn't stop it. I should have sat on this thing much earlier."

By the end, he made no effort to hide his regret, clearly feeling that he had overthought things before.

While painful, the seat wasn't a trap; quite the opposite, it was a rare asset.

"You. Go sit on it."

But he wasn't finished. Before Fu Qian could respond, Zhao Ran seemed to think of something else, and his gaze turned instantly icy.

"Why?"

Given everything that had just happened, this was a perfectly reasonable suggestion, but what was with that attitude?

Fu Qian couldn't help but be curious.

"Because I don't trust you that much."

The man's response was incredibly blunt.

"You know too much, but I can't figure out how you know... Besides, sitting there isn't a bad thing anyway—unless, of course, that seat is actually a trap for you."

Even though Brother Zhao Ran's emotional regulation was on the verge of total bankruptcy, his analysis was actually quite sound.

They had talked quite a bit since their encounter, but it was hard to say there was any real trust between them.

Knowing that the seat was actually meant to target "them," forcing Fu Qian to sit on it was an obvious way to clear him of suspicion.

If Fu Qian truly had nothing to do with "them," he would have no reason to be afraid.

"Hurry up."

The assassin was already urging him.

"Sure, thanks for sharing."

It was hard to turn down such hospitality. Unbothered by the man's poor tone, Fu Qian stepped forward and took his place on the seat once more.

...

"Did you see it?"

Such straightforward compliance finally eased Zhao Ran's expression, though only for a brief moment.

Already losing his patience, he couldn't help but quickly check the results.

Of course, part of his impatience might have stemmed from how overly natural Fu Qian's demeanor was.

It couldn't be helped. Fu Qian wasn't feeling particularly emotional right now; he was completely immune to such a minor Mental Shock.

"I don't see anything."

Fu Qian shook his head, responding honestly.

"You really don't see anything?"

Zhao Ran refused to believe it, his brows tightly knitted.

"I really don't."

Fu Qian continued to shake his head.

"Oh—you really can't see me?"

Staring intently at him through the air thick with Suffocation, Zhao Ran's icy expression suddenly relaxed into a bizarre smile.

...

That was a lot of information to unpack.

A breakdown in emotional regulation didn't look like this. Such a complete one-hundred-and-eighty-degree shift in attitude clearly meant there was a hidden motive.

Like the most literal interpretation possible—that "they" was him.

"Heh, I originally wanted to toy with you a little longer, but I didn't expect you to be so efficient."

Before Fu Qian even had to ask, Zhao Ran voluntarily laid it bare. His entire being radiated an unbridled, arrogant aura.

"I don't know how you managed to leave the last time, but I regret to inform you that you'll never have the chance to get out again!

"You're not entirely losing out, though. The story was fun, right? I certainly didn't get that kind of VIP treatment back then. I had to rely entirely on myself."

Glancing around the room, Zhao Ran freely fell into reminiscing.

"There was absolutely nothing here. No clues, no way out, not even a single thing that could speak a human language... I had to find everything myself. I had to search, scrambling and hiding everywhere...

"By the third day, I swore an oath. If anyone showed up to lead me out of here, I would grant them the most agonizing Death. Hehehe..."

His final laughter was bizarre, yet it carried a strange, infectious quality to it.

"And you arrived several months after that. Do you know what that means?"

Leveling his Long Halberd at Fu Qian, Zhao Ran's expression turned vicious in an instant.

"I have a rough idea."

Fu Qian remained seated quietly.

"So you also know where that blood just now came from?"

"Your performance? It's obvious that 'they' actually refers to yourself... You've integrated perfectly with this place. You can even borrow its power to conjure up illusions, can't you?"

Despite the man's emotional instability and the erratic leaps in his logic, Fu Qian's comprehension proved sharp once again as he effortlessly summarized what Zhao Ran was trying to say.

"Smart as expected... If you'd come a few months earlier, I might have welcomed you differently. It's a pity you can't even begin to imagine what I've endured these past days."

Throwing his head back with a roar of laughter, Zhao Ran looked as if he were on the verge of some monstrous transformation.

He had already said that exact phrase once before. Mental healthcare truly couldn't wait!

Faced with this spectacle, Fu Qian could only sigh inwardly.

It really was wise of him to take time out of his busy schedule for a project inspection. If he had waited any longer, communicating with this guy would have been completely impossible.

"Why can't I imagine it?"

Fu Qian sighed.

"Why do you think I thanked you for sharing earlier?"

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