Eldritch Horror Theatre

Not bad. It even matched the account of the record-keeper, Old Man Mosson.

Fu Qian didn't pay much mind to the hidden dangers behind the Attending Physician's praise.

As he looked at the secret passage that had yet to be closed, the sequence of events leading up to this point suddenly made perfect sense.

As a sudden intruder, Lasik had been caught between the Harbinger and Servis, forced into the role of a billiard ball knocked back and forth between them.

The Harbinger used prophecies to drive her actions, manipulating her into springing the trap set for him—which in turn only bolstered his absolute confidence in his own prophetic abilities.

The Attending Physician, meanwhile, played along with those prophecies while constantly maneuvering in the background. His goal was to drag the Harbinger into it and force him to use the Abyss Notes personally, thereby proving his so-called prophetic powers were a sham.

This treatment method sounded a bit nonsensical at first, but to Fu Qian, this kind of "immersive reality correction" actually made a lot of sense.

Simply luring a patient here to face a lone doctor in a white coat who calmly stated, "Your prophecies are fake; I was just playing along," wouldn't necessarily work on someone whose paranoia was already deeply ingrained.

The sheer brilliance of this setup lay in the fact that a genuine miracle tool actually existed.

This immediately placed the Harbinger in a very awkward position.

If he denied the object's miraculous nature, he would be denying the transcendent altogether.

But if he denied the transcendent, what did that make his own prophetic abilities?

Thus, he would be forced to acknowledge the item's power.

Of course, it was merely an awkward position; there were still loopholes he could exploit.

For instance, he could argue that while the object was undeniably a transcendent item, its output was entirely untrustworthy.

He could claim its validations were not necessarily true, but rather designed to maliciously deceive and plunge the user into absolute confusion.

Flawless in theory. The Harbinger could absolutely comfort himself with that logic.

But this approach wasn't without its own pitfalls. If another transcendent element couldn't be trusted, was there anything else left in the entire Sanitarium that could be?

As the person caught in the middle of it all, he would inevitably spiral into nihilism.

Consequently, aside from a faint trace of inner stubbornness, he would completely lose the Anchor Point for his self-identity.

This would undoubtedly take a severe toll on his sanity.

In short, Servis's strategy was quite ruthless. It was an open scheme designed to corner his opponent no matter which path they chose.

Unfortunately, Lasik had been too fragile a billiard ball. She eventually buckled under the pressure and deflated, allowing the Harbinger to temporarily gain the upper hand.

But this advantage was fleeting, so much so that the Harbinger needed to constantly burn through intruders to maintain his momentum. That was why the Columnist had been selected next.

"So, what do you call this thing?"

While piecing the many events together in his mind, Fu Qian shifted his gaze back to the notebook, gently patting this absolute core.

"The True Word Notebook... Is that different from what you know?"

Servis answered without a hint of hesitation, seemingly having known that Fu Qian would ask about it, while also showing a trace of curiosity himself.

"A bit different. The one I know of is called the Abyss Notes."

Fu Qian shook his head.

"The Abyss Notes... It sounds contradictory at first glance, but it actually seems quite fitting."

Servis muttered the name to himself. He was highly receptive to it, immediately agreeing that it was a good name before casually emphasizing a point.

"Believe it or not, it has actually been here the entire time. It has never left."

...

Never left? That made it sound as if its very existence was bound to the Sanitarium.

Servis's final remark seemed abrupt at first, but Fu Qian still grasped its core meaning—

Regardless of whether the claims about the Abyss Notes were true or false, Servis was guaranteeing that this one was real, while also advising him not to get any ideas about it.

"Don't worry, I already gave the other one away. So, you're the one who found this?"

Embracing this mutual understanding, Fu Qian casually reassured him before probing for more details.

"In a way. But I prefer to think that it found me..."

The fact that the other party had supposedly given away a similar item—even if it was just an empty claim—still couldn't help but offer a measure of relief.

Servis looked highly satisfied with Fu Qian's response, briefly losing himself in memory.

"The reason I took over this place back then was because it possessed a magic that intoxicated me.

"Many people fear this place. They feel it's too far detached from reality and blurs certain boundaries... But I saw the exact opposite. So many things actually became clearer here."

His fingers gently stroked the hardwood desk. In that moment, his movements conveyed a genuine, cautious tenderness.

"In short, driven by that intoxication, I wandered through every single corner of this place over and over again, until I discovered the blood vessel-like veins hiding beneath its surface.

"And as I tirelessly delved deeper, this notebook appeared before me, bringing with it the absolute pinnacle of that mesmerizing charm."

...

See? This was why excellence stemmed from passion.

Seeing that the Attending Physician was growing increasingly intoxicated by his own words, Fu Qian tactfully pushed the True Word Notebook toward him.

Firstly, to reiterate his lack of interest in the item, and secondly, to avoid having the doctor drool on his hands.

Servis's description wasn't just highly evocative; it perfectly explained how he had discovered these hidden passages and relied on them for coming and going like a ghost.

It wasn't by chance. It was just passion.

If he hadn't possessed that passion for his work, and subsequently sensed the unique aura of this place, the True Word Notebook likely wouldn't have resurfaced so quickly.

Despite the overly heavy emotional coloring, Fu Qian still believed Servis's account to a certain extent.

For instance, the True Word Notebook shared an unusual connection with this place.

He had already marveled at it earlier—placing an item like this right in the core area of the Sanitarium, where it could perfectly verify everyone's mental state, just felt too fitting. It truly carried the flavor of arbitrating across eternity alone.

Though its exact relationship with the Abyss Notes was still difficult to parse for now.

"Understood. So, ever since you found it, have any words inexplicably appeared on its pages?"

Chiming in, Fu Qian continued to focus on the details.

"Of course not. The contents have always been like this, though there's a lot I don't understand."

Servis, however, couldn't quite understand why he was asking that.

"Ever since Lasik left her handwriting in it, no one else has opened it for a long time—so have you made up your mind? Will you accept my proposal?"

Having heavily emphasized the point, he finally couldn't hold back anymore, hoping to secure Fu Qian's formal commitment.

"Of course."

Time was indeed tight. Unbothered, Fu Qian simply nodded.

"I'm actually quite interested in that case now. You can invite him in."

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