Eldritch Horror Theatre

It wasn't that Fu Qian had forgotten to send Wen Li away.

While knowing too much was usually a bad thing, sometimes a little extra knowledge brought unexpected benefits.

Keeping Wen Li here made it harder for Yuan Shan to gauge his exact relationship with her.

Furthermore, knowing too much meant the Night Watchers would have no choice but to protect her.

Right now, for instance, Yuan Shan definitely wouldn't want her falling into Ariel's hands.

It served to bump up the unlucky kid's safety factor in Shangjing.

"So what was your original plan?"

Fu Qian offered no explanation and asked directly.

"I wasn't planning to rush things."

"Ariel is highly suspicious, but if he really is just testing the waters, a strong reaction would play right into his hands. Plus, gathering my people takes time. So I was going to pretend I hadn't noticed Ming Yue's problem to avoid alerting him."

"I just didn't expect the Chen Family to suffer an incident so soon. Not only is the Chen Clan in chaos, but quite a few families in Shangjing are watching closely. It would look abnormal if we didn't act now."

That aligned with his own thoughts. It was also obvious that Yuan Shan believed Ariel was responsible for Chen Du's death.

Fu Qian nodded.

"In chaos, huh? Shouldn't Chen Xing step up to take charge?"

"That's because when the Chen Clan came to report the case, they also stated that Chen Xing was missing and asked for our help to find him."

Yuan Shan glanced at him, speaking bluntly.

"Of course, Chen Xing isn't missing. He's dead."

"Dead?"

Wen Li gasped from the side, but Fu Qian showed little surprise.

Chen Xing closing his doors to guests had been incredibly bizarre to begin with. Rumors were flying everywhere, and the idea that something had gone wrong and he was already dead was definitely among them.

Acting too shocked right now would only look forced.

"Yes."

Yuan Shan looked at Fu Qian for barely half a second before averting her gaze.

She knew her priorities and had already given up on probing him.

"Then why don't you just go through the motions and pretend to search? Over the years, there must have been plenty of unsolved cases, right?"

"Of course. Plenty."

Yuan Shan sighed.

"But this time is different. Setting aside the massive impact of losing both Chen Du and Chen Xing, the biggest problem is that the killer left behind obvious clues..."

Oh?

Fu Qian frowned slightly. That wasn't too surprising.

From what he had seen so far, Ariel was clearly arrogant. Making this kind of tightrope-walking probe wasn't entirely unexpected.

But by the time they actually traced things back to him, the man would likely have a perfect alibi, and he would use the Night Watchers' next move to gauge exactly how much they knew.

Seeing that Fu Qian already understood the underlying dynamics, Yuan Shan continued.

"Under these circumstances, not only can we not sit back and do nothing, but the members of the Chen Clan have already started following the clues on their own. They wouldn't just sit still after their family head was murdered."

"Are you worried that if they actually find the culprit, things will spiral out of control?"

"Exactly! Dealing with the fallout then would be even more troublesome."

"So we have to seize control of the situation."

Yuan Shan stared at Fu Qian without blinking.

"You want..."

Fu Qian could roughly guess what Yuan Shan was thinking.

"That's right. I want you to play the killer, draw their attention, and buy me time to rally my people."

Yuan Shan said with absolute seriousness.

I knew it!

Fu Qian shot her a glance, his expression unchanged.

"Although it sounds a bit crazy, it's not impossible."

Seeing Fu Qian stay silent, Yuan Shan continued explaining.

"Given the strength of both Chen Xing and Chen Du, finding just anybody to play the killer would hardly be convincing."

"The biggest advantage right now is that very few people in Shangjing know you're a demigod. You just need to find an opportunity to show off your strength."

"At a time like this, a demigod suddenly popping out of nowhere is incredibly sensitive. We won't even need to deliberately guide the narrative; the effect will be excellent."

"Besides, you should have the ability to alter your appearance, right?"

"That part is easy."

Fu Qian replied.

To be fair, Yuan Shan's idea really was somewhat viable.

The reason was simple: he was the perfect actor for the job.

An unknown demigod who could change his appearance at will and had dealings with the Chen Clan, the Night Watchers, and the Origin Council.

And most importantly, he really was the fucking killer who murdered Chen Xing!

It was a complete stroke of luck.

"I'll mobilize the Night Watchers to coordinate with your actions. The entire situation absolutely won't spiral out of control."

"This should buy us a few days—enough time for me to coordinate my forces and minimize the risk of Ariel, that ticking time bomb."

"Faced with such a twist, he'd normally be a bit confused. But without knowing for sure if he's been exposed, he shouldn't take any more extreme actions in the short term."

Should being the operative word.

Fu Qian thought.

"I agree to your plan."

"Really?"

Yuan Shan's eyes instantly brightened like morning stars, seemingly not expecting Fu Qian to agree so readily.

"It's a reasonable plan with little risk to me. Why not?"

Fu Qian gave a profound smile.

An erratic Tier 2 Transcendent and a Divine Emissary capable of causing a catastrophe—just as Yuan Shan said, he was an uncontrollable time bomb.

It was still necessary to keep him within a certain range of control.

Furthermore, this guy gave off a very peculiar vibe, and Fu Qian didn't mind dealing with him a bit more—in the name of the Night Watchers.

"That's fantastic!"

Yuan Shan beamed at Fu Qian.

"Don't worry, I won't let you work for free."

"After this, you can browse any files within my clearance level at any time, with no limit on the amount."

"Also, the Night Watchers have collected many mystical items and materials over the years. I can arrange a time for you to take your pick."

Not bad at all.

Fu Qian nodded repeatedly as he listened. Chief Yuan really knew how to do business.

"Even..."

Yuan Shan paused in thought.

"If there are any Night Watchers you're interested in, I can also think of ways to create opportunities for you..."

"Male or female."

"What an irresistible offer!"

Yuan Shan's shameless remark drew a heartfelt sigh from Fu Qian.

Clearly, this woman was quite the pragmatist.

"Just trying to show my sincerity!"

Yuan Shan replied as if it were only natural.

"So it's a deal, then? There's no rush. You just need to figure out a way to show your face around the afternoon. Any earlier would actually look suspicious."

"Don't I need to reference the clues left behind?"

"There's no need."

Yuan Shan looked utterly confident.

"An unknown demigod making an appearance is enough. I'll handle the rest. You have to understand, many clues are often left simply to mislead..."

Great minds think alike.

Fu Qian strongly agreed with Yuan Shan's reasoning.

"Even so, it still feels a bit contrived. That guy might still suspect someone is pulling the strings from behind the scenes."

"It can't be helped. We'll buy as much time as we can."

Yuan Shan's tone turned a little helpless.

"Or do you have a better idea?"

"I do."

Fu Qian said casually.

"With Chen Du dead, who's currently in charge of the Chen Clan?"

"Right now? There's no one competent left in their generation. The one running things is Chen Pingxian, who retired behind the scenes long ago—wait, what are you plotting?"

Midway through her sentence, Yuan Shan realized something was wrong.

"Exactly what you're thinking."

Fu Qian stroked his chin.

"If we're going to put on a show, we might as well go all the way. It would make much more sense if I just went and sent this old man to his grave."

...

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