Eldritch Horror Theatre

So this was what the Goddess of Sins really looked like?

Fu Qian studied the "living goddess" in front of him.

Aside from being significantly taller, the Goddess of Sins looked exactly like a young human woman.

With her voluptuous figure and gentle features, she looked like a Sistine Madonna stepping right out of a painting.

Sitting silently in these dilapidated Ruins, she actually exuded a distinct sense of holiness.

She truly had the full aura of a goddess.

The only problem, perhaps, was that she was alive.

Fu Qian glanced to either side. It wasn't hard to imagine the shock Elena and Cross felt upon witnessing this scene.

The two of them probably felt like someone offering incense to Lord Guan, only to see the statue suddenly flip a page of the Spring and Autumn Annals in its hand.

After a long moment, Elena was the first to snap back to her senses.

She frowned at Fu Qian, subconsciously shaking her head.

"This is the first I've heard of such a thing, but this is definitely what the Goddess of Sins looks like. I would never mistake her."

"How does the real Goddess of Sins purify Sin Fire?"

Fu Qian thought for a moment before asking.

"It's simple. You just perform a specific gesture toward the Goddess Statue to establish a connection and receive her response, which then purifies the Sin Fire on your body."

Elena answered automatically before realizing what Fu Qian meant.

Cross finally recovered his wits as well. He looked back at her with an inquiring gaze.

"You happen to have Sin Fire on you. Give it a try!"

Elena gritted her teeth and pointed at the "living goddess" in front of them.

Cross immediately understood. After a brief hesitation, he stepped forward, walking right up to the Goddess of Sins.

Fu Qian and Elena followed close behind.

Even with the three of them approaching, the living goddess remained completely unresponsive.

Cross didn't hesitate. Stopping in front of her, he spread his arms and raised his right hand, forming a specific angle above his head.

Maintaining that angle, he rotated his hands ninety degrees and then held the pose.

A few seconds later, the living goddess finally reacted.

Like someone waking from a deep dream, she slowly lifted her head and looked down at Cross.

After another few seconds, she leaned forward slightly and extended a hand toward him.

From Elena's deeply furrowed brows, Fu Qian knew this was not how things normally went.

Cross's reaction was also strange. He seemed to have fallen into some kind of trance.

Faced with the living goddess's gesture, not only did he show no alarm, but he obediently reached out his own hand.

Witnessing this, Elena's expression wavered, as if considering whether she should stop him.

Before she could make up her mind, however, Fu Qian stepped directly forward and did something that left her dumbfounded.

He cut in front of Cross and grabbed the extended hand.

Fu Qian's movements were so smooth and natural that it looked like he was greeting a VIP; he even shook her hand up and down after taking it.

In the eerie silence, the living goddess turned her head toward Fu Qian, seemingly noticing him for the first time.

The scene in the room seemed to freeze.

The next moment, Cross's body jerked violently. He raised his head in confusion, as if snapping out of that strange mental state.

The sight that greeted him made his mind blank for another few seconds; he suspected he was still trapped in an illusion.

"What just happened?"

Elena quickly asked, her eyes fixed on Fu Qian.

"After I finished the gesture, I thought I heard a voice calling to me."

Cross recalled absently.

"The voice was incredibly gentle. It made you want to melt into her embrace. I... I accepted it without thinking. I completely lost control of my body. Wait—"

His voice suddenly spiked in pitch, and he reflexively took a step back.

"There's something wrong with her!"

Before Cross could finish his sentence, a sudden mutation occurred.

The hand Fu Qian was holding abruptly turned soft and fluid. Every fingertip splayed open, fusing into a thin, webbed membrane.

The webbed membrane rapidly crept forward, enveloping Fu Qian's entire forearm in an instant.

Fu Qian's right hand visibly withered and shriveled.

Beneath the translucent webbing, throbbing veins of bright red were clearly visible.

"Save him!"

Elena hesitated for only a fraction of a second before barking the order to Cross.

By now, the living goddess's entire body was melting into that same slushy, fluid state, ripples of motion shuddering across her surface.

Faced with this grotesque sight, Cross gritted his teeth. He locked onto the already deforming head, raised his Heavy Hammer, and brought it smashing down.

Screech!

Facing his attack, the living goddess finally opened her mouth and unleashed an ear-piercing scream.

Cross's body convulsed, blood immediately oozing from his nose and mouth.

Seizing this opening, the living goddess dodged the blow. Her body then contorted even further.

Overlapping layers of webbing slithered up Fu Qian's arm, trying to cocoon him entirely.

Crack!

The next moment, a whip forged purely from shadows lashed against her. Elena had joined the fray.

However, when the whip struck her body, it only left a faint mark. The webbing's movements weren't hindered in the slightest.

This thing was far tougher than they imagined.

Cross, having recovered his senses, immediately followed up.

The living goddess had now completely lost her human form. Showing absolute greed, she yanked desperately at Fu Qian's arm.

But a moment later, the layered webbing froze in place, dumbly clutching nothing but a disembodied arm.

Before it could even process what had happened, its entire mass was launched into the air, flying directly into the path of Cross's Heavy Hammer.

Splat!

This time, the living goddess took a solid hit, her whole body shuddering violently.

The next second, a brilliant White Ring shot from Elena's hand, encircling the creature completely.

As the White Ring spun and tore at it, the webbing let out waves of shrill shrieks, twisting and thrashing relentlessly.

Crash!

Seeing this, Cross didn't hesitate. He rained down blows with his Heavy Hammer.

Finally, with a long, drawn-out wail, the webbing went completely still, collapsing into a pile of dead, leaf-like matter.

At the same time, Elena let out a muffled groan as a dark red flame ignited over her body.

The color of the Fire of Sin made it obvious—she had landed the killing blow on the monster.

The Sin Fire burning on Elena was much more intense than what Cross had experienced. Beads of blood were even seeping through her skin.

This living goddess yielded a massive amount of experience.

Her features twisting, Elena barely suppressed her pain. She immediately stared at the shriveled arm on the ground before instinctively looking over at Fu Qian.

The latter stood there, completely composed, both of his arms perfectly intact.

The arm he used to shake hands just now was a fake?

"How did you know there was something wrong with it?"

Overcome with pain, Elena's voice had turned somewhat hoarse.

'Of course I knew. My mission hasn't even triggered yet!'

Fu Qian thought to himself. Instead of answering her question, he looked at the flames on her body and shook his head.

"That looks a bit intense. Is the Sin Seeker going to come after you?"

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