Eldritch Horror Theatre

Even with the God of Wealth's blessing, you still had to buy a lottery ticket to win the jackpot.

Coming here to drink in the middle of the night might very well be the result of Excellency Ji Feng's guidance.

But Fu Qian had never intended to rely entirely on that man's efforts, just sitting around waiting for the next clue.

The question was, if he wanted to stir up some action, what was the best way to go about it?

As he pondered this, the title of 'Lord' naturally came to mind.

Up until now, that fellow had seemed innocent enough.

He might belong to the evil faction, but judging actions not intent, the man had actually been out dispensing justice earlier.

Perhaps he had received some enlightenment from the Unseen Hill, prompting him to make such an uncharacteristic change.

But in the grand scheme of the Darkest Night Plan, he felt like an even more peripheral figure than the Black Doctor.

In fact, it was precisely the complexity of his role that made Excellency Lord perfectly suited to stir the pot at this exact moment.

He wouldn't even need to appear in person; just mentioning his title should be enough to tug at everyone's nerves.

Lord...

For instance, even with all of Akasha's experience in the jianghu, she couldn't seem to figure out what Fu Qian was plotting at that moment.

Moreover, her meaningful—rather than confused—gaze seemed to prove once again that their every move had indeed been watched by that syndicate.

Akasha wasn't exactly surprised that he had brought up the Lord; she was merely puzzled by his underlying motives.

And she certainly wasn't the only one. After draining the dregs in his glass, Brother Holler kept his eyes fixed on the liquor bottle, but finally stopped pouring.

"Hard to say, but he should arrive before dawn..."

Listening closely, Fu Qian heard Akasha finally speak up in a slow drawl.

She hadn't questioned why he was asking, and her words carried a profound underlying meaning.

...

It really was the perfect topic to stir the pot.

Fu Qian felt deeply satisfied.

The current situation was incredibly delicate; calling it the calm before the storm wouldn't be an exaggeration.

As for the eternal night plan's team, based on his earlier analysis, Akasha could have easily left the moment she delivered her message. She didn't need to stay and monitor him.

Yet she had still taken the extra risk to stay behind, which naturally fueled further speculation about their team's dynamic and the nature of their collusion.

And thanks to the topic of the Lord, this hidden ambiguity seemed to sharpen.

Whether the Lord was part of that team or not—as he suspected—the simplest answer for Akasha would have been to just claim ignorance.

Although her reputation with the Justice Faction was mediocre at best, playing dumb would have kept her out of it better than digging herself deeper, aligning perfectly with the stance she had maintained all along.

Instead, she had actually started talking in code, joining him in muddying the waters.

Even the phrase 'arrive before dawn' wasn't pure nonsense; it clearly implied that this night wouldn't pass peacefully.

Of course, Akasha's excellent performance was mostly due to his own superb choice of subject.

If he had chosen Crystal—someone both she and Holler knew well—the atmosphere probably wouldn't have remained so relaxed.

As for the Justice Faction, the Lord's reputation was clearly quite terrible.

Bringing him up now, even a man as decadent as Holler would inevitably draw a few connections, especially combined with what Fu Qian had just discussed with Akasha—

"You went behind that door?"

Before Fu Qian could even respond to Akasha's answer, Holler spoke up on his own.

"I did. Unfortunately, it wasn't some Gate of Freedom."

Fu Qian shared generously.

...

The attitude was a bit too generous, and the answer was entirely too explosive.

Faced with Fu Qian's claim, Holler remained silent for a moment.

But Fu Qian could practically hear the glass being squeezed to the verge of shattering.

Crack!

Something actually did shatter.

While trying to pour out the rest of the liquor, Holler had finally failed to control his strength, crushing the bottle to pieces.

"Sounds like it's not just the two of you who know?"

Staring at the mess on the table for a moment, Holler finally seemed to abandon his late-night drinking. He turned his head, scrutinizing Fu Qian and Akasha meaningfully.

"That's right. Like the Black Doctor, whom I killed."

Fu Qian continued to be generous.

"And she strongly advised you against doing that."

With his gaze resting on Akasha's face, Holler casually admitted to eavesdropping on their conversation, well aware that the two were only cooperating on the surface.

"This city seems much livelier than I imagined... Fortunately, as a return favor, I think I have a bit of information to share regarding the Lord you mentioned."

Oh? It wasn't just a good choice of subject—had he hit the jackpot?

Though Holler's last statement lacked any rousing ambition, it carried a sense of returning a favor, instantly sparking a feeling of anticipation.

"Actually, not long before you arrived, the Lord had just left."

Holler didn't keep them in suspense, revealing it directly.

...

It was obvious that even Akasha was shocked for a moment. She seemingly couldn't understand how those two had ended up together.

Though considering the man sitting across from her had a poor opinion of her, she didn't rush to comment.

"Looks like he didn't win you over."

But that wasn't an issue. Deep in thought, Fu Qian casually threw out a remark.

At a time like this, having one demigod playing the decadent hero was enough. The Lord couldn't have just come here for a drink too, and Brother Holler sitting here was glaringly conspicuous.

Besides, considering the Lord's earlier righteous act of ridding the people of a menace, it wouldn't be too out of place for him to seek further contact with the Justice Faction.

"Yeah, he did invite me to collaborate on an operation, but in the end, he only warned me that things are quite dangerous right now... Turns out he wasn't spouting nonsense."

Seeming slightly surprised by Fu Qian's statement, Holler nevertheless admitted it the next moment.

"Of course not. Right before he came here to find you, he smashed something over my head."

Shaking his head slightly, Fu Qian looked up at the ceiling as he spoke, as if a massive block of ice were falling from above, bringing endless chill—wait, it actually did feel a bit cold.

Taking a deep breath, he felt the sensation of ice spikes drilling into his lungs. Fu Qian shifted his gaze downward, landing on his left side.

A human body, sharp fangs, pupilless eyes... It was Excellency Crystal, whom he had parted ways with not long ago.

Amber's judgment was flawless. This person didn't seem to be significantly affected on this side of the door.

As for why she was here—

"I notified Crystal a moment ago. That's not a problem, is it? She's been looking for you."

Before Fu Qian could even ask, Holler straightforwardly confessed, indicating he was the one who had called her over.

Akasha had been absolutely right. The Ash Emissary and Crystal really were well acquainted.

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