Eldritch Horror Theatre

It was definitely different, but each had its merits.

Even Fu Qian had to admit that the apostle's display looked far more like a dragon than his own.

At the same time, the sheer dissonance was overwhelming, plunging straight into the uncanny valley.

It was so close, yet just one step off, twisting it into a blasphemy against the very concept of a dragon. Actually, there was nothing wrong with that—didn't the Dragon King do the exact same thing?

Fu Qian remained highly open-minded. He didn't see anything wrong with Brother Apostle's approach.

The Dragon King lacked scales and pulled stunts akin to wearing a wig, so wouldn't it be perfectly fine for its followers to just go bald?

In contrast, the follower's actions were far more jarring.

What kind of apostle casually gnawed on the object of their devotion until their mouth dripped with grease?

"Hmm... If it is you, that is fine too."

The scales were fake, the Dragon King was fake, the apostle was fake, and even the lines weren't original...

"This is blasphemy."

The only comforting thing was that the apostle's faith seemed very genuine.

Faced with Fu Qian's approval, the other party decisively expressed his disapproval in return, his tone severe.

Additionally, he had to admit that the transformation made a real difference; even his voice was far more majestic.

"It is."

Moreover, as Fu Qian recalled everything he had personally done to the Dragon King, he deeply felt that the reprimand wasn't nearly severe enough.

"However, I still believe that this power is closer to it."

Even so, Fu Qian didn't simply back down. Changing the subject, he insisted that his own power was the orthodox lineage of the Dragon King.

...

He could tell this guy knew his stuff.

Although it had just been a fleeting pose, the shock caused by the Dimensional Poison left an unforgettable impression on the man.

In the wake of Fu Qian's casual counterattack, the turbulent emotions churning behind the apostle's ferocious face were obvious, yet the man stubbornly refrained from lashing out to execute the heretic.

Of course, achieving such an effect had technical backing.

Dimensional Poison was one of the Dragon King's core abilities. It usually wouldn't even use it in order to avoid exposing its identity—this was all intelligence provided by the Warehouse.

Even during the recreated Night of Regicide, the Dragon King had confirmed this with its own actions.

It was precisely because of this sequential corroboration that Fu Qian decided to use it to pose as an orthodox believer.

He even had to factor in the other party's mental and cognitive state to avoid casting pearls before swine.

All in all, it was purely an act of dancing on a knife's edge; kids at home definitely shouldn't try this.

Fortunately, it looked like he had run into someone with a discerning eye.

This unbelievable hatred was quite classic in Fu Qian's eyes.

Anyone who fancied themselves orthodox would often react exactly like this when they discovered someone even more orthodox than they were.

And the very first thing they would want to do was question the other party's lineage.

"Is that so? Then let us see who is truly closer to it."

Sure enough, the apostle proved this point the next moment, completely failing to question why a mere handful of teeth were closer to the Dragon King than his own full-body transformation.

Instead, he turned to look at the Dragon King's cenotaph. His expression turned solemn in an instant as he raised his two claws, one high and one low.

...

He actually seemed genuinely devout?

Fu Qian stared at him the entire time, refusing to miss a single detail. The apostle's movements were undoubtedly bizarre.

Right hand above and left hand below, pointing at his forehead and lower abdomen respectively. Then, he slowly curled his hands into a gripping motion, finally bringing them together at his chest.

Aside from observing this action, Fu Qian was actually far more curious about the man's reactions from the very beginning up until now.

When conducting a scientific expedition in such a bizarre place, the biggest taboo was taking things for granted.

The other party claimed to be a Dragon King Apostle, but did that mean he was definitely one?

The Mind Violation Technique seemed to have been highly successful, thoroughly shocking the man and deliberately stoking his anger along the way.

But Fu Qian had never ruled out the possibility that the other party was merely putting on an act to test his reactions.

There were two reasons supporting this. First, his behavior upon making his entrance.

As an apostle, feasting so heartily on a higher entity was, after all, a bit much.

Second was the location where the man had appeared.

That's right—specifically, the Deity Burial Ground.

Whenever a stranger with a normal human appearance and a normal state of mind appeared in a place like this, Fu Qian's first reaction was to associate him with the Night Watchers.

Especially since this Blood Lake seemed to be one of their key observation areas, not to mention the case of the fellow inmate he had previously seen with his own eyes.

However, after carrying this suspicion throughout their exchange, he had to admit that the other party's performance truly had the flavor of a religious fanatic.

Furthermore, although Fu Qian had never seen this gesture before, he actually understood its meaning—the Umbilical Cord.

At the Dragon Peak Inn, on that auspicious annual day, everyone illuminated by the Soul Butterfly Wings would have worm-like Umbilical Cords emerge from their bodies. And the locations were precisely the center of the brow, the chest, and the lower abdomen.

He had once confirmed with Sunny, a Dragon King Oathbound, that the method of sealing a covenant was to firmly grasp all three of these Umbilical Cords.

From this perspective, Brother Apostle's gesture suddenly became incredibly evocative.

Not to mention that during his research into the covenant, he had reached another conclusion early on: specific actions could hold crucial significance, so one shouldn't strike poses recklessly.

If this rule also applied to the Dragon King's side, then as the inventor of the covenant, it was perfectly normal for certain special prayer gestures to have developed over years of worship.

And Brother Apostle genuinely seemed to know this gesture.

...

Had he actually encountered a Dragon King Oathbound, or rather, a believer? Was Sunny's senior disciple brother here?

Thanks to his excellent research habits, Fu Qian seemed to arrive at a conclusion right then.

Although Brother Apostle showed no intention of communicating, he unexpectedly kept his eyes on nose, nose on heart as he maintained that posture.

Fortunately, he didn't need to say anything; Fu Qian completely understood his meaning.

They were transcendents, after all—why would they need to use their eyes to see?

Whatever actions he took would definitely be under the man's constant surveillance.

And now that he had given a demonstration, the other party was waiting for his reaction.

You say you are closer to the Dragon King, so prove it to me.

This gesture was naturally easy to imitate, but as mentioned before, the meaning behind it could be somewhat extraordinary.

Furthermore, choosing this method of verification gave reason to believe that even if Fu Qian simply copied him, the apostle would still have a way to distinguish the truth.

Not to mention the massive risks of blindly copying it. In theory, one careless mistake could establish a connection and let him see the Dragon King—but seeing the Dragon King was exactly what he wanted. Otherwise, what was the point of coming here?

Snorting coldly, Fu Qian followed suit without the slightest qualm, his movements utterly impeccable.

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