Eldritch Horror Theatre

[SAN Value -5]

[SAN Value -5]

[SAN Value -5]

...

The moment the Sea of Light appeared, a dense barrage of prompts flooded his ears.

It felt as if a heavy hammer had smashed into Fu Qian's mind. Countless streams of chaotic information surged through his head, threatening to iron the very folds of his brain perfectly smooth.

Even with his prior preparation, it wasn't until the prompts had chimed nearly ten times that Fu Qian managed to force his body to move. Reaching out, he casually slapped the dazed Yuan Shan's head to the side.

Invisible black barriers were rapidly manifesting all around the chief of the Shangjing Night Watchers.

Yet against the torrential surge of light and fire, those shields could not hold out for even a millisecond, instantly melting away like ice and snow.

This was absolutely no mere Mental Shock!

For that one instant, it was as if the sun itself had descended to the earth.

As his sanity recovered slightly, Fu Qian patted himself down, finding traces of scorching and melting everywhere on his body.

Even his physical vitality was suppressed; his recovery speed was far slower than normal.

Once his vision cleared, Fu Qian glanced over and saw Yuan Shan staggering to her feet. Her flesh was littered with glass-like craters, melting so deep her bones were exposed.

If mere bystanders were reduced to this state, then Old Man Logan...

Behind them, the Sea of Light had already receded, finally fading into total stillness.

Fu Qian looked back and spotted the completely unrecognizable Ariel, alongside a twisted mass of flesh beside him.

The facts were clear: Logan's Mask could not block a sanity shock akin to directly facing a Deity. The old man could no longer even maintain his physical form.

Deep, golden-red ravines scored across Logan's remaining flesh. They thrashed as if alive, his muscles and bones writhing violently to force his body back into its original shape.

Unfortunately, every attempt ended in failure, only twisting him into something even more deformed.

The light radiating from Ariel had similarly dimmed. The illusory spheres of light that made up his body could only clump together like frog spawn, and the golden flames atop his head were nearly entirely extinguished.

"This... is impossible. How could he dare? To allow a concept bordering on a True God to manifest directly upon himself in the form of a Descent..."

Having recovered slightly, Yuan Shan stared blankly at the scene before her in sheer disbelief, muttering subconsciously.

"And to do it so fast... this completely defies common sense!"

So something really did use Ariel as a vessel just now?

Fu Qian confirmed his own theory.

Yet before he could voice his thoughts, Yuan Shan suddenly realized something. She lurched forward, nearly tripping over herself.

"What are you doing?"

Fu Qian grabbed her to keep her steady.

"What descended just now was a True God. It doesn't distinguish between friend and foe. Facing it directly destroys one's sanity, but the host's own will is crushed right along with it."

Yuan Shan spoke quickly, struggling against his grip.

"Now is our chance to eliminate him."

Really? I don't think it's quite that simple.

Fu Qian gazed out at Ariel in the distance.

"Wait."

Under Yuan Shan's confused gaze, Fu Qian took two steps forward. His right arm flicked, and a long, black-red whip lashed out violently toward Ariel.

The whip slashed through the air. The instant it brushed against Ariel's body, the countless bubbles making up his form erupted into blinding light once more, annihilating the black-red whip inch by inch.

In the next moment, the spheres of light surged and reconnected, molding into the outline of a human figure. Then, the light shattered and dispersed, revealing Ariel's original body.

Every trace of his injuries had vanished. He even radiated a gentle white glow, making him look ethereal and completely pristine.

"I misjudged you. To think you actually saw through my act."

Ariel fixed his stare on Fu Qian.

"It's not like I wanted to. I was just planning to be a bystander enjoying the show, but you nearly blinded me."

Under Yuan Shan's utterly horrified gaze, Fu Qian replied lazily.

A bystander enjoying the show...

Ariel fell silent for a few seconds. Saying nothing more, he kept his smile in place and took a slow step forward.

"I apologize. Though this was not part of my plan, I'm afraid both of you will have to remain here today."

"How is that possible..."

Seeing that Ariel's sanity was completely intact and all of his wounds had already healed, Yuan Shan let out a textbook sigh of a salted fish.

So his appearance just now had been an act, all to wait for her to deliver herself right to his door and wipe them out in one fell swoop?

But that made absolutely no sense. How could anyone endure the Descent of a True God without suffering the slightest side effect?

And how did Fang Xun know Ariel was faking it?

Too bad there was no time to figure it all out!

Glancing over at the still-struggling Logan, Yuan Shan's gaze hardened with resolve.

"You can leave now. The situation has spiraled completely out of control. There's no point in throwing your life away."

Looking back at Fu Qian, she spoke quickly.

"I made preparations for the absolute worst-case scenario before I came. Let me buy some time."

"You look like you're going to die."

Fu Qian cast an expressionless glance at her.

"I know."

Yuan Shan stared at the manor, the vast majority of which had been reduced to scorched earth. Black ribbons began to manifest around her.

"But there's no point in you staying either.

"In our current state, killing an unharmed Divine Emissary is utterly impossible. If he triggers another Descent, we'll all end up exactly like Logan."

"That sounds like certain death with zero chance of survival."

"It doesn't just sound like it—it's the truth! Stop wasting time!"

"If that's the case..."

Fu Qian ignored her entirely. With a flick of his wrist, he produced a snow-white whistle.

Yuan Shan stared at him in shock. Did this guy still have some kind of trump card hidden away?

Under her gaze, Fu Qian raised the Insect Whistle to his lips and blew a soft note.

Screech!

Following that eerie, faint chime, Yuan Shan looked toward Ariel in utter confusion.

No reaction?

Yet in the very next instant, stark terror seized Yuan Shan's face. She launched herself into the air as layered black shields manifested all around her.

At the same time, a massive insect bristling with jagged teeth erupted from the exact spot where she had just been standing. It clamped its jaws onto the shields, completely shattering the supposedly sturdy barriers in an instant.

Already covered in brutal injuries, Yuan Shan coughed up a mouthful of blood as fresh, bloody fissures tore open across her body.

Fortunately, the momentary resistance of the shields afforded her a brief window to evade, and she narrowly avoided being swallowed whole.

Having missed its strike, the giant insect didn't pursue her. Instead, it shrank back down and slowly dissipated.

Has that guy gone completely insane?

Before she even hit the ground, the deeply bewildered Yuan Shan instinctively searched for Fu Qian. A second later, a sharp pain erupted from her back.

Glancing down, she saw a razor-sharp, black-red claw protruding straight through the front of her shirt.

"You..."

Yuan Shan's consciousness slowly faded to black.

Retracting the long claw, Fu Qian casually tossed the dying Yuan Shan to the ground. His gaze never wavered from Ariel.

One, two, three, four, five...

Roughly five seconds later, a look of genuine shock finally surfaced on the other man's face.

There really is something fundamentally wrong with this guy's condition!

Taking all of this in, Fu Qian wiped a hand over his face, transforming into the appearance of Lu Ming.

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