Eldritch Horror Theatre

The audience present could clearly see that Excellency Aike was looking for Professor Fu.

However, they didn't necessarily know exactly why she had come.

As for why she was in such a hurry to leave, that was even more intriguing.

Not long ago, Stoss and Su Gao had just returned to the Night Watchers, while Aike had stayed behind.

The reason was simple: the Ecstasy Project she oversaw had not yet officially concluded.

Yet, as had just been noted, she wasn't expected to disturb the Academy again anytime soon. So why had she shown up a few days later just to say goodbye?

Fu Qian lamented the impermanence of the world while maintaining his usual expression.

Aike must have gone to his place first, found it empty, and then tracked him down here at Professor Lisa's.

Given the close collaboration between their laboratories, this approach made perfect sense.

Thus, Fu Qian's immediate thought was that Excellency Stomach had run into trouble.

First came the exposure triggered by Yi'an, the former genius professor of the Linghui Courtyard, which caused severe adverse effects and claimed numerous victims—including his lover, Lily.

Then, some treacherous individual had pinned the blame for the Flame of Frenzy on the entity, making the Night Watchers even more vigilant.

More recently, incidents involving the Frenzied Flame had been occurring frequently. He could completely imagine the pressure the entity was under.

Yet in this situation, Aike—the person in charge of the specific project and who should have been the busiest of all—had suddenly ceased her activities?

Aside from headquarters making significant progress, what other explanation could there be?

Worrying about Lily's condition was an excuse brimming with humanitarian concern, but it was still just an excuse.

"I see. Actually, regarding what lies behind the Finger Orb, I've recently made a few vague discoveries of my own,"

Fu Qian said with a slight nod. Rather than questioning Aike's claim, he suddenly added that remark.

...

It was an excuse, but why go through the trouble of making one up?

After all, Excellency Aike clearly didn't even need to come to the Academy, yet she had still gone through the effort of tracking him down here.

The answer was simple: the matter was just that significant and sensitive. As a result, even a key technical supporter like him had to pass through a series of background checks.

Aike obviously hadn't expected to fool him with a casual excuse.

Quite the contrary; she was watching for his reaction.

Of course, the excuse she gave was indeed rather casual.

Fu Qian wasn't actually bothered by this. From the Night Watchers' standpoint, failing to do so would have been a dereliction of duty.

Therefore, faced with Aike's probing, his response was to show a touch of sorrow at their parting while simultaneously channeling his true nature as an academic by steering the conversation back to the project.

"Oh? What kind of discoveries?"

Excellency Aike was visibly moved and immediately expressed her desire to hear the details.

"Paradise. Although I don't know the entity's true name, it seems to be related to this common concept."

And Fu Qian truly didn't hold back, diving straight into his thoughts regarding the Realm of Bliss mission.

Excellency Stomach had been scheming for the Realm of Bliss; this had been confirmed long ago.

In fact, according to later intelligence from Chief Yuan, this behavior could be traced back to before the Long Night, when Eckhart, a devout believer in the sun, was corrupted.

Naturally, Fu Qian wouldn't sell out his allies by spilling these details, but he felt zero pressure when it came to selling out his enemies.

Regardless of whether the Night Watchers had already grasped this point, there was no harm in bringing it up now.

For one thing, his conflict with Excellency Stomach was a fight to the bitter end. Continuing to fan the flames of its conflict with the Night Watchers was practically an obligation.

For another, Aike's visit was nothing more than an attempt to gauge his attitude. So, he would give her one: on this matter, Professor Fu had always been actively exploring, and he wasn't stingy about sharing his findings.

As for the concern that speaking too much might make the Night Watchers suspect his motives?

What a joke—how could they not be suspicious?

Given Professor Fu's aggressively brilliant performance recently, it would have been strange if the Night Watchers hadn't started overthinking things.

Fu Qian had never considered covering his ears to steal a bell. When dealing with the Night Watchers, his core strategy boiled down to a single concept he had mentioned long ago: Merit Value.

Let them be as strong as they may. No matter how suspicious his origins, his identity, or even his true Rank might be, as long as he firmly grasped the key of serving the people, that was enough.

Looking across numerous incidents, it was clear that to hold this fragmented mess together, the Night Watchers maintained ambiguity in many areas, employing both overt and covert methods.

But overall, their core still lived up to the evaluation the Warehouse had once given them: justice.

Therefore, great skill requires no artifice. No meticulously crafted disguise could compare to simply letting the other party feel his stance.

And what if he was wrong, and 'justice' was merely a disguise for the Night Watchers?

That didn't matter either. Judgment was a two-way street.

Such in-depth exchanges perfectly helped him confirm his subsequent strategies.

...

He definitely had to visit the Night Watchers. Fu Qian had never entertained the thought of refusing Old Man Stoss's parting invitation.

In fact, the core of that invitation was that he could go later, at a 'convenient time.'

It was undoubtedly a gesture of goodwill in return for his outstanding performance.

But just as he had assessed then, it would undoubtedly be a Hongmen banquet.

And true experts never waited until they were sitting at the table to start introducing themselves.

Many conversations had actually begun long before.

This was an opportunity the Night Watchers were giving Professor Fu, and simultaneously, an opportunity Professor Fu was giving the Night Watchers.

Otherwise, if a massive slaughter broke out later only for both sides to realize they were on the same side, the scene would be far too awkward.

"Paradise..."

At this very moment, it was obvious that regardless of whether the Night Watchers possessed this information, Excellency Aike clearly did not.

Muttering to herself, her expression grew visibly solemn before she shook her head.

"I truly didn't know that before. I will take this information back with me. Would it be convenient for Professor Fu to share how he confirmed this?"

After frankly admitting her own ignorance, Aike pursued the details with great persistence.

"The White-Headed Sanctuary."

Fu Qian continued to be generous.

"I chatted with an acquaintance not long ago. He mentioned that he had once been to a place similar to Paradise... and inside, a building like the White-Headed Sanctuary could be seen."

The acquaintance naturally referred to Master Yuhun. They had indeed commented on the Realm of Bliss, though the latter half of the sentence came from Fu Qian's own experiences.

Although the White-Headed Sanctuary was already gone due to his own sabotage, Fu Qian genuinely wanted to know the relationship between Excellency Stomach, the Lord of Heaven, and even the Wheel That Cannot Be Looked Upon.

...An acquaintance who had been to Paradise?

Of course, his answer was still somewhat startling. Aike fell silent upon hearing it.

"I understand. Thank you for sharing, Professor Fu. If the opportunity arises, I will certainly seek your guidance again."

When Aike spoke again, she didn't voice any doubts. Instead, she expressed her thanks and took her leave decisively, even making a point to say goodbye to Professor Lisa and the others.

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