Eldritch Horror Theatre

Snake fangs had always been a highly intimidating weapon, and coupling them with the attributes of a beautiful serpent-girl only exaggerated the effect.

Having been teammates on a previous operation, Fu Qian hadn't just witnessed the power of Professor Lisa's venomous fangs—he also knew they functioned like a renewable Talisman.

It had been some time since their last exploration of the Bone Spirit Realm. Her fangs should have mostly grown back by now, right?

"What did you say?"

The person in question, however, had a rather strong reaction.

After clearly hearing Fu Qian's request, Professor Lisa wore an expression so stiff it almost made one suspect she was being mind-controlled again.

"Don't be polite, and don't hold back."

Fu Qian simply pointed to his own neck.

Of course, he wasn't indulging some masochistic tendency—this was purely in the spirit of academia.

And since even Casi had been affected, it was highly likely this effect was tied to the concept of the Land of Melia's Kin.

Add to that the fact that Fu Qian himself possessed Melia attributes.

Step by step, the logic was perfectly sound.

If the hypothesis held, there was a chance Professor Lisa could interact with the concept of Melia.

Thus, even setting aside the perception factor, having her interact with him to observe the results was a completely valid experiment.

Moreover, this interaction needed to be on a relatively fundamental level. Simple punches or kicks would likely yield poor results, which was exactly why he chose to have her bite him.

Even if Professor Lisa were forced to reveal her true form, he believed those fangs would be one of the last elements she retained.

The only hurdle left was the psychological barrier of the subject.

"Do as Professor Fu says."

Fortunately, the highly respected Dean Casi was right beside them, clearly sensing Professor Fu's determination.

"All... right."

With the encouragement of one of the Two Giants of Apocalypse, Lisa finally seemed to realize that poisoning a Demigod to death wouldn't be easy for her anyway.

"Then I'll begin?"

Though she inevitably still gave Fu Qian a strange look.

"Much appreciated."

Fu Qian's reaction was downright eager. To keep her from getting nervous, he even deliberately turned his head.

This both avoided eye contact and exposed his vitals more clearly.

Pfft!

The next moment, a spray of blood erupted from the spot.

As an academic with years of practical experience, Lisa was finally spurred to decisive action by Professor Fu's sincerity.

From the corner of his eye, he clearly saw a familiar Spike shoot from her mouth and land a solid hit.

Almost the instant it made contact, it shattered into numerous fragments. Combined with Professor Fu's active cooperation, the strike successfully produced a gory, mangled mess.

Not bad at all.

Gently stroking the wound and silently savoring the sensation, Fu Qian turned his head to look at Lisa, who was now missing another tooth—

"What happened to your neck?"

She was looking back at him with concern. However, she was standing some distance away, her hand resting on the Laboratory door as though she had just pushed it open.

"Nothing. For a second there, I thought I was poisoned."

Fu Qian lowered his hand and gestured for her to sit, signaling that she shouldn't worry.

...

He hadn't been poisoned; he had just suffered a brief mental episode.

As Professor Lisa walked over with a highly suspicious expression, Fu Qian quietly confirmed two things.

First, there were no wounds or venomous fang fragments in his neck. Second, the Tyrant's Mechanical Fist he used for timing had reversed.

Between the two, it was incredibly easy to explain why Professor Lisa was suddenly at the door and why Casi had vanished—the Etched Intellect had triggered.

The timing had been perfectly synced, occurring the exact moment she pushed the door open.

And the Casi who had been sitting there discussing things with him hadn't been real.

"You're actually afraid of being poisoned?"

Lisa still looked rather anxious, and was only further baffled by his remark.

She eventually accepted the invitation to sit, though she rolled her eyes at Professor Fu's explanation, clearly feeling his words were a bit sarcastic.

"Why not? It's dangerous when it gets too close to the head."

Fu Qian merely chuckled and tapped his own skull.

Though their conversation was on completely different wavelengths, his words weren't nonsense.

The condition had already flared up three times in a short period. Perhaps this was due to the Academy being a place of illustrious people and blessed land, but what was truly astonishing was how natural the episode had felt.

Unlike his previous experience with the Old Lady Demigod, the sense of incongruity during this recent exchange had been genuinely low. He had practically completed an entire academic discussion and experiment with a straight face.

Even the content they had discussed—that "the Claudora Flesh carries deep implications"—was highly fitting for the current situation.

After all, the Etched Intellect gained from swallowing the flesh could truly make one experience the chaos of this world from the bottom of their heart.

But that didn't matter. He had already deduced a new rule—

The characters that appeared during his delirium could attack him and cause damage, but that damage wouldn't carry over into the Real World.

And another thing—

"Are you feeling alright? How are your fangs growing back?"

Leaving Professor Lisa speechless, Fu Qian flipped the script and expressed concern for her condition.

"This way of greeting me... what does it have to do with my fangs?"

Professor Lisa was only left more confused, her brow furrowing deeply as she touched her face.

"Looks like they're doing pretty well."

Her reaction couldn't have been more obvious. Fu Qian nodded, moving on to his next conclusion—

Professor Lisa's venomous fangs clearly hadn't decreased in number, which meant that the events within the Etched Intellect were completely independent of the Real World.

For the characters he couldn't distinguish as real or fake, any injuries they suffered or resources they expended wouldn't reflect on their actual counterparts.

From that perspective, its nature was quite pure.

Next time, he could try launching some conceptual attacks—like a Visceral Attack—to see if they would pierce through that barrier.

He wasn't troubled by the experience at all. On the contrary, Fu Qian felt extremely satisfied.

...

"For a true expert, neither reality nor illusion affects their professionalism."

This was something he had told Su Gao a long time ago.

If anyone else had gone through what just happened, they would have found the experience deeply unpleasant.

But Fu Qian was only focused on the value he could extract from it, and his conclusion was that it was highly interesting.

The legacy left by Professor Claudora could certainly be considered a curse, but it also provided him with an additional perspective from which to examine the world.

In comparison, a little trouble distinguishing between reality and illusion was nothing.

"Of course I'm doing well..."

The only unfortunate aspect was that Professor Lisa seemed to be struggling to handle this barrage of abstract dialogue.

As she muttered to herself, however, she finally seemed to muster the courage to state her purpose for coming.

"But I'm a little worried about Casi. Something is off with him."

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