Eldritch Horror Theatre

"How is it special?"

Though this was their first normal conversation in quite some time, the exchange flowed seamlessly.

Releasing her guiding hand to stand side by side, Fu Qian casually prompted the Witch for details.

Brother Zhao Ran had already contributed his worth, but the scientific research had to continue.

And in terms of professional expertise, the Witch was undoubtedly at least a magnitude higher.

In short, the true collaborative research was only just beginning.

"It is quite incomplete—almost a true corpse—but the nature of its power is indeed very special. Is this where you've been living?"

The Witch showed no signs of discomfort, casually strolling through the space as she answered.

Her final question made no attempt to hide her curiosity; she was clearly eager to see the place where the Knight had grown up.

Fu Qian shook his head, keeping pace with her casual stroll.

"Also, its state of existence in this world is very peculiar. It's isolated, yet still anchored in reality. Once you enter, any information regarding you in the outside world is erased."

"It appears to have existed for many years, but its cause is uncertain. My hypothesis is similar to yours—it's akin to the corpse of a higher entity."

Highly praising the Pope's sharp intuition, Fu Qian sketched out the four-armed pattern in the air.

"There are two relatively clear pieces of information at present. One is this symbol, which seems related to the essence of its power, and the other is a suspected honorific name: Other Shore."

"Other Shore... That matches what I've sensed quite well, though I haven't heard the name before."

Having listened quietly to the Knight's report the entire time, the Witch repeated the name.

"What about Furnace?"

Fu Qian wasn't disappointed in the least, simply offering another term to verify.

"No."

The Witch shook her head again.

"Angel of Comfort?"

Fu Qian pressed on, unfazed by successive failures.

"Never heard of that either, though the name sounds nice."

Expressing her lack of knowledge once more, the Witch tilted her head and offered a serious critique.

"Besides, I actually can't sense the outside."

...

"Your perception is limited to the interior of the Other Shore?"

The moment she appeared, the Witch had mentioned that her state of existence was unusual and wouldn't last long, so Fu Qian wasn't surprised.

A barrier wasn't so easily broken.

Setting aside the fact that this world was clearly under some kind of protection, keeping entities like the Mother of Gospel shut out...

Even on the Witch's side, where the Starry Sky Barrier was already broken, he still had to rely on a special existence like the Nightmare Corridor just to visit, suffering a backlash in the process.

He could deduce that the Bone Chain shared an essential connection with the Witch or the Dark Moon. By devouring and growing stronger, it could act as a sort of Anchor Point.

But the Witch standing before him was, to some extent, a true higher entity manifesting in person.

If sacrificing a mere Deity corpse could directly achieve this level of manifestation, it felt a bit exaggerated.

Now it seemed the special state the Witch spoke of was truly delicate.

It was likely the nature of the Other Shore's power that invisibly lowered the difficulty of her Descent, allowing her to manifest briefly and making this conversation between the Pope and the Knight possible.

"Mm... That chain has accompanied me since birth. While it doesn't have any overtly special effects, my connection to it is extremely close."

In the blink of an eye, the two had arrived at the edge of the Church. The Witch reached out to touch the crumbling wall, feeling it carefully.

"My original idea was to use it to strengthen our connection just enough for us to communicate normally.

"Though the cost would be quite steep, I estimated it was possible... However, what you fed it was truly special, which in turn reduced the resistance to this process."

Her slender fingers tapped rhythmically against the stone until she seemingly found a satisfactory spot, then she gave it a gentle push.

Incredibly, a door swung backward into the ordinary stone wall.

Because it was originally buried deep Underground, a long staircase leading upward naturally revealed itself behind the door.

Of course, all of this was still covered in the fractures spreading from the Stone Seat.

The cracks continued to crawl further back, spreading onto other buildings, the fog, and even the empty air itself.

"Based on what you've told me, this corpse likely retains the essence of its past power within, making it relatively independent from this world."

Gesturing for Fu Qian to walk ahead, the Witch seemed somewhat certain of the cause behind this delicate situation.

"But it still won't last very long. Fundamentally, what supports my presence here isn't the attributes of this place's power, but the sacrifice happening here—like the heat released from burning.

"Right now, I'm merely maintaining a balance, utilizing its destruction while slowing the process of its collapse."

The passage wasn't exactly narrow, but the Witch still watched Fu Qian accept her suggestion and walk up first before following him.

...

"Understood. So, how much longer can this last?"

Fu Qian naturally understood the reason behind her subtle gesture. He nodded, not even glancing back at the Witch.

Ethereal and elegant, resembling coral yet seemingly weightless, the twin wings on her back fluttered as she walked, creating a stunning visual effect.

Unfortunately, the Pope clearly did not wish to be wantonly stared at from behind.

"No more than half an hour."

Seemingly satisfied with Fu Qian's reaction, the Witch promptly delivered the pessimistic news.

"That's enough. This place isn't very large anyway."

Fu Qian didn't see an issue; in fact, he was quite satisfied with that timeframe.

"Oh? You don't want to look into your problem first?"

As they chatted, they reached the surface. The dark night, the Dark Moon... The scene before them was even more visually stunning.

The wildly swaying bone spikes and long tendrils, along with the omnipresent fractures, intertwined to transform the Other Shore into a densely woven nest.

Scanning her surroundings, the Witch finally withdrew her gaze from the nearby blood pool and looked at Fu Qian with a faint smile.

"Do you have a way?"

Fu Qian simply blinked at her.

"No. It's a completely unprecedented situation. Even with close contact, I can't think of how to address it right now."

The Witch sighed, frankly admitting that even after employing the four diagnostic methods of looking, smelling, questioning, and pulse-feeling, she still had no way to improve his condition.

"Exactly. Why waste time on it, then?"

Fu Qian was equally frank and casual, showing no trace of dissatisfaction.

One had to be reasonable. The Pope's actions this time had pushed her absolute limits. She had exhausted all her methods during their brief one-way communications, and in the end, she had unhesitatingly carried out a Descent in person.

Such grace was exceedingly rare in this world.

Her ultimate failure to find a solution was entirely because the trouble the Knight had stirred up was far too complicated.

Since that was the case, they might as well use this brief opportunity for interaction to investigate something more meaningful.

"Can you sense any living consciousness lingering in here?"

Like the "they" that the assassin Zhao Ran had mentioned.

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