Eldritch Horror Theatre

That's right. The very Punished Consort whose eye currently rested in his hands.

Fu Qian had always dabbled in abstract art.

The item inside 1-330's square box had already answered his earlier question to some extent.

It truly possessed a clockwork winder, and it even looked like a bride.

Putting everything together, calling it Clockwork Xi'er seemed perfectly appropriate.

But armed with the rich experience he had accumulated across many projects, plus his outstanding artistic appreciation, Fu Qian easily deciphered even more.

If he remembered correctly, Excellency Nepheli had once shared the lore behind the Eye of the Punished Consort.

Supposedly, the two eyes could resonate with each other because a certain revered person who had endured endless torture had been so full of remorse that she desperately wanted to witness her own dismemberment.

Given how perfectly all the elements aligned, Fu Qian immediately wondered if the Doll had been modeled after that very person.

If this guess held true, it was undoubtedly another shocking revelation.

Sure enough, not a single one of these higher entities was ever idle. One by one, they had all left their marks on history.

He could even hazard a guess as to how Excellency Father's Amnion had left a beacon in the sea of mind.

He couldn't forget that the main body of this Containment Object was the "Punished Consort."

Was it possible she was the one who had helped pull off the smuggling?

Not only was she a revered person fraught with misfortune, she was even the pawn of an Ancient Higher Being...

If that were truly the case, it was nothing short of deeply tragic.

And it finally explained the "royal consort's" final actions, which ordinary people found so difficult to comprehend.

Beyond that, there was another detail: the small, jeweled crown on the Doll's head looked faintly familiar.

It wasn't an exact replica, but he felt it shared distinct elements with the Crown he had given Professor Lisa.

Yes, the Crown of the Laria Family.

...

So the revered person who suffered that torture was also a royal consort of the Laria Family?

Imagination was truly a beautiful thing. Just a mere silhouette catching his eye was enough to give him the sensation of successfully connecting the neural dots.

Fu Qian felt all the scattered information from his past encounters suddenly click into place, leading him to formulate an even more staggering hypothesis.

Within the ancient Laria Royal Family, he actually knew of a royal consort with particularly notable deeds: the Mad Consort, the newlywed wife of Don Juan Laria.

Both Eldest Miss Wen and Professor Lisa had confirmed to him that not long after her wedding, she had gone mad from "torture," and her husband had died even earlier.

Their grand wedding had even sparked another major historical event—the Blood Wedding.

The large number of noblewomen who attended the event had gone home and slaughtered their own husbands.

Professor Lisa had cited Cass's explanation for this, theorizing that the noblewomen must have been exposed to some sort of overflowing pollution at the wedding, and its source was Don Juan's Divine Human Family bloodline.

So the Mad Consort's tragedy was also linked to that pollution?

It was a possibility that couldn't easily be ruled out, and combined with the discoveries from this mission, the implications were staggering.

The Mad Consort, the Punished Consort... If the two were truly the same person, and Clockwork Xi'er was indeed modeled after her, didn't that mean the pollution from back then was inextricably linked to Excellency Father's Amnion?

Then there was his predecessor, Ji Feng.

From the Bronze Madam that He had hidden in the Real World, Fu Qian had obtained the Bronze Circlet—an item clearly related to Bloodline Power—and had personally experienced a magically altered version of the Blood Wedding.

That had led him to suspect that Old Senior Ji might have intervened in the affairs of the Laria Family through a mission... Had He also crossed paths with Excellency Father's Amnion?

And it didn't even end there. What had he seen at the Witch's place last time?

The most famous Face of Gods and Men in the Laria Family's history supposedly bore a striking resemblance to the Witch's mother, the Primordial Dark Moon.

...

He felt like he was truly grasping what a bloodline curse meant.

A single, tiny bridal crown had actually connected so many events and formidable figures together.

Considering that at least three higher entities were theoretically involved, that royal family—which outwardly seemed to have met a peaceful end—appeared to have been the converging point of a terrifying storm, truly recording history in their very bloodline.

And it was well known that Bloodline Power possessed abstract attributes at the Transcendent Tier.

So what exactly had all these involved higher entities manipulated within those abstract attributes... and why?

For a moment, Fu Qian's curiosity regarding the historical Blood Wedding spiked once again.

What a pity. Excellency Ji Feng really hadn't been in a chatty mood lately, and the Warehouse had lost its ability to project him back several hundred years.

Having instantly woven a conspiracy theory enveloping many years of the ancient family's history, the only thing Fu Qian regretted was how troublesome it would be to verify it.

But an academic worker couldn't constantly emphasize the difficulties. It wasn't hard for him to think of a few roundabout methods—

For example, he could stick to his previous plan and investigate Ji Feng's operations regarding the Ji Clan or the Yuan Clan, hoping to uncover relevant secrets.

Or he could start with the Witch, using her relationship with the old Dark Moon to see if he could bring her something to analyze.

In short, even while holding down the fort in Shangjing, there were still many things he could push forward.

Accompanied by the final whimper from Clockwork Xi'er, Fu Qian placed the Doll, its stored energy now depleted, back in its place and casually covered it up.

Very nice. A bountiful harvest.

Completely satisfied with his day's work, he let the Ribbon remain tangled around his fingers as he donned the Emissary Mask he had been holding.

...

What a rich and colorful day.

Having cleansed himself in advance using the Decree of Return, Fu Qian unsurprisingly sat up on the second floor of The Bookstore a moment later and stretched lazily.

Observing the completely darkened night outside, he felt quite pleased with his gains today.

More than one important subject had seen a breakthrough in a short period of time. Only an academic worker could truly understand this kind of comfort.

Of course, in comparison, most people would probably focus on the unfortunate fates of the two Excellencies: Rom and Father's Amnion.

It was understandable. After all, the successive murders of two higher entities within a dozen or so hours was presumably quite rare.

And even if it did happen, there wouldn't be many who could actually perceive it.

This was fine, too. If any special incidents occurred later, it would be much easier to pinpoint whoever was reacting under stress.

Naturally, even after achieving a little success, guarding against arrogance and rashness was still necessary.

For example, the evening lights had only just come on, and Shangjing's beautiful nightlife was just beginning.

As a member of the cultural industry chain, how could he slack off at a time like this?

Amid the creaking of the wooden stairs, Fu Qian made his way down to the entrance of The Bookstore and switched it to an open-for-business state.

Heaven Rewards Diligence, so he would contribute his own share of strength to Shangjing's nightlife.

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