Eldritch Horror Theatre

In theory, there was no need to be so accommodating. A simpler method existed.

Force was mutual. Although the Transcendent Tier often ignored the laws of physics, Fu Qian could at least sense the targets tearing at him.

Driven by excessive anthropomorphism, he even felt a maddening sensation of gazing upon the truth of the universe and gradually comprehending everything.

Blowing up Stars wasn't a first for him, either. Faced with such a scene, fully charging up a Calamity to fire a reverse greeting was only human nature.

Yet the King of the Abandoned Prison displayed a rare good temper today. Not only did he allow the insignificant creatures to tear at him, but his footsteps were so gentle it was as if he didn't wish to disturb them...

He had to admit, seeing it up close only made it more compelling.

Halting before the "pile," Fu Qian paid no further attention to the Stars. He simply used the remaining duration of the Burial Scroll to carefully study the creation before him.

At this distance, that strange impression felt undeniably stronger.

As for what exactly lay beneath this pile, Stargazer No. 3's words were starting to feel vividly real.

Although he saw no rampant flows of blood, rot, or burning ash, Fu Qian felt as if he could truly sense some invisible substance erupting from these imposing stone pillars.

There was even a path to follow.

After a single glance, Fu Qian started moving again.

Though gaps existed within the pile, they were too tight for an adult's body to squeeze through.

This was where the advantage of an accommodating physical form revealed itself.

Having almost completely transformed into a mollusk, Fu Qian's tentacles effortlessly slipped through the crevices, pulling him steadily inward.

Throughout the process, he even engaged in a complex tangle of resistance to ensure the tearing force from the Stars wouldn't ruin the pile's structure.

There was actually a hole?

...

His professionalism was swiftly rewarded.

He encountered no resistance along the way. Sure enough, even after transforming into jellyfish, the Stargazers continued to steer clear of this place.

And when Fu Qian swayed his way into the center of the pile, he actually found something that perfectly matched the term "drop point."

It wasn't absurdly large, nor was it shaped like a crater. It looked more like the ground had collapsed to reveal a bottomless abyss.

Standing at the edge of the "abyss" and peering down, however, Fu Qian noted that the abyss did not gaze back into him. There was only sheer emptiness and an unadorned bend.

Wasn't this drop route a bit complicated?

Snark aside, coupled with this latest discovery, the crisscrossing pillars above suddenly made much more sense—

They truly were decorations. They hadn't been piled up here as garbage after losing their original function; this was the very place they were meant to decorate.

Decorating some sort of origin point.

And without a doubt, Fu Qian was very interested in this origin point.

For instance, might a giant head or brain be sitting deeper inside the hole?

Adjusting his body, Fu Qian boldly crawled further into the hole.

[SAN Value -1]

At that exact moment, a startling prompt abruptly appeared.

...

A direct, forced drop in SAN Value?

Since becoming the mechanically remastered version of the King of the Abandoned Prison, this was the first time he'd encountered something like this.

Fu Qian confirmed he hadn't suffered a direct attack. It seemed to be a pure environmental effect.

Although he suffered a slight loss, this development was undoubtedly a pleasant surprise. It was enough to prove this place was far from simple—

[SAN Value -1]

It seemed the loss was more than slight.

Before the prompt could even fade, another deduction appeared.

[SAN Value -1]

Followed by another...

At that moment, it felt as though a red countdown timer was flashing frantically in his eyes. In the blink of an eye, the loss had already hit double digits.

However, considering his recent expenditures had been low, his SAN Value reserves were still quite substantial. As long as this hole wasn't too long, he could still explore a bit further, even if his movement speed was somewhat affected. And indeed, it wasn't long.

The moment he turned the corner, the exploration seemingly came to an end.

It was truly just a bend; the end of the hole was right in front of him.

There was no bottomless abyss, no Angel head, no brain, and no erupting chaos...

There was only lifeless ash, forming four seamless walls.

Uh... so the danger of the drop point simply referred to losing SAN Value?

The Stargazers were terrifying to this degree—they could even calculate this?

His footsteps didn't halt. Fu Qian continued forward with a sigh, his mind racing.

He had to admit, although it was a bit abstract, once he followed this line of thought, Stargazer No. 3's words became incredibly thought-provoking.

The Stargazers had calculated the drop point and determined that it was highly dangerous. Yet, they couldn't calculate exactly how it was dangerous, no matter what they tried—because this was a danger that specifically targeted an outsider?

Because they had factored in the wrong subject, their calculations never added up?

Abstract children had simple joys. Fu Qian mused that, from a purely logical standpoint, the theory suddenly seemed to hold water.

Though this also raised a new question: seeing as there was clearly nothing here, why would it pose such a danger exclusively to an outsider?

Even an outsider who had arrived here as a higher entity.

Having reached the end, Fu Qian reached out and touched the wall in front of him, confirming there was no brain matter smeared on it.

But then again... who said there was nothing here?

A sudden thought drifted into his mind.

Hadn't there been a brain inside this hole the entire time? His own.

...

One's thinking shouldn't be rigid, but an overly active imagination could sometimes lead to rather terrifying answers.

After applying the concept of an outsider to explain the Stargazers' research, Fu Qian wasn't satisfied with his current conclusion. He took it a step further, and the situation immediately turned eerie—

Nothing had dropped at the drop point, yet it possessed a negative effect specifically targeting an outsider...

Even if the outsider had already reached the end of a certain path to becoming a God in this world, they were still not exempt. Furthermore, they couldn't perceive the source of the danger—because they themselves were the source.

Did the drop point only have meaning because of his arrival? Was he himself the fallen Angel?

His SAN Value loss was already nearing fifty. The image the Blasphemy Monarch had once shown him back at Silver Mist Manor surfaced in his mind once more.

It seemed to match up again, didn't it? Even if things were getting increasingly bizarre.

The only potential piece of good news was that the Stars tearing at him were rapidly losing their strength—though Fu Qian had actually been looking forward to a bit more of a tug-of-war with them.

In the very next moment, he even took action.

The Stars were shifting their gaze away, but Fu Qian suddenly grew enthusiastic, staring right back at them.

...

In a mere instant, the Stars, the Ruins, the cave, and even the physical deformations on his body completely vanished.

Fu Qian stroked the Burial Scroll in his hand, discovering that there was still nothing around him but the hollow sea.

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