Eldritch Horror Theatre

Right after Li Weixuan's fierce sword qi blasted that Skull Centipede into bone powder, the group's surroundings opened up, and they realized they had reached the center of the ruins.

The crowded buildings broke apart here, sinking to form a deep pit.

The pit was filled with a viscous, dark red liquid, resembling putrid, spoiled blood.

What was even more bizarre was that the pool of blood was actually moving.

As if it were alive, the entire pool contracted and expanded at a distinct rhythm, looking just like a massive slime.

Along with its movements, bubbles of all sizes constantly surfaced, releasing a putrid stench that rushed straight to their heads. A single breath felt like it would rot their brains.

'So this is where all the blood went!'

It seemed his imagination still needed some work; this was far more grotesque than blood tofu.

Even more unexpectedly, there was a person in the middle of the blood pool.

His eyes were tightly shut, and he remained completely motionless.

Shockingly, not only was his body fully intact, but his upper half was also entirely spotless, forming a stark contrast with the foul filth beneath his feet.

Furthermore, the old man gripped an extravagantly designed Long Halberd in his right hand.

Just by looking at the flowing luster on its surface, one could tell it was a genuine divine weapon.

Looking closely, however, one could see faint signs of corrosion starting from the old man's submerged calves. A dark rust had crept all the way up to his waist.

"Wait here."

Li Weixuan said coldly, immediately preparing to head down and investigate.

Right at that moment, a sudden change occurred.

The dark red slurry in the blood pool twitched bizarrely, then formed a whirlpool with the old man at its center.

The stench instantly magnified tenfold.

The whirlpool's speed accelerated madly. In the blink of an eye, it slithered up the old man's legs and enveloped his entire lower half.

The next moment, the top of the slurry contracted into a solid, round pillar. It then thrashed like a snake, hoisting the old man high into the air.

The old man raised his Long Halberd high and brought it down from the sky, like an executioner delivering a fatal strike.

Clang!

Accompanied by a spark of fire that tore through the air, the old man crossed a distance of dozens of meters, his Long Halberd smashing fiercely into the ground right in front of the group.

Opposite him, Li Weixuan—who had remained completely unharmed until now—finally had specks of blood on his body.

Failing to succeed with a single strike, the old man was hoisted back into the air by the pillar of blood.

"Stay back."

Li Weixuan signaled for everyone to retreat.

The next moment, sword intent surged, accompanied by a chilling murderous aura.

So this was the power of a Peak Tier 4.

Fu Qian clicked his tongue in admiration, but his eyes were fixed on the old man opposite Li Weixuan.

The might of that halberd strike just now had been truly terrifying. If Li Weixuan hadn't blocked it, the exploration team would likely be dead or heavily injured.

Unfortunately, the figure who had launched that attack still hadn't opened his eyes. His movements were stiff, like a corpse.

'So that thing on his lower half is the main body?'

Fu Qian stared at the mass holding the old man aloft.

By now, the mass had taken the complete shape of a slug. It had sucked most of the dark red slurry into its body, revealing a circular dome at the bottom of the pool.

The old man must have been standing on top of that dome earlier.

While everyone's eyes were captivated by the battle, Fu Qian silently walked over to the edge of The Lake.

There was something he had been wanting to do for a long time.

From everything he had seen along the way, he was convinced his theory was correct.

The flesh and blood of anyone who entered the Furnace was refined by a specific set of rules, forming all sorts of twisted monsters.

This pool of blood was clearly one of those products.

So the question was, why was this old man unaffected?

It looked like he had been here for quite some time.

When things are abnormal, there must be something sinister at work. Only someone unbound by the rules had a chance of walking out.

Staring at the dark red pool, Fu Qian sliced a wound into his arm. He then turned his palm downward, letting his blood flow into the pool in a steady stream.

Logically speaking, once blood left the body, it became a dead object and should be rapidly absorbed.

Yet, unexpectedly, the blood Fu Qian poured into the pool didn't fuse with it. Instead, it floated on the surface, like oil and water refusing to mix.

'Does this mean I'm also unaffected?' Fu Qian's eyes lit up.

'Do I have anything in common with this elder? Other than both being male, that is.'

While Fu Qian was frowning in thought, he suddenly noticed a change in his blood inside the pool.

As if pulled by some unseen force, the fresh blood floating on the surface of the pool began to move.

Very quickly, the clump of blood was drawn into a thin thread, flowing toward the old man hoisted in midair.

'It can do that?'

Fu Qian watched as the thread of blood traveled all the way up the pillar of blood on the old man's lower half, ultimately disappearing at his waist.

Because the color contrast was so faint, no one other than him noticed this tiny detail.

By this time, the battle between the two was also nearing its end. Although the old man possessed tremendous strength and wielded a divine weapon, he appeared to be merely a puppet. His movements were nowhere near as agile.

Under Li Weixuan's tempestuous attacks, he soon fell to a disadvantage; by now, he was struggling just to hold on.

Li Weixuan seemed to have also realized that the pillar of blood beneath the old man was the main body. Therefore, every swing of his sword targeted his opponent's lower half. His relentless onslaught sent blood splattering and juices spraying in all directions.

As one final strike tore through the pillar of blood on his lower body, the old man shuddered violently. A groan escaped his lips, and he opened his eyes.

He began to struggle furiously, finally breaking free and leaping onto the shore just before the pillar of blood could close back up.

"Thank you... for helping me break free from that Nightmare."

As the old man knelt on the ground and panted heavily, a human light appeared in his eyes for the first time.

"To think a day like this would actually come."

The old man spoke very slowly. His voice was hoarse and grating, as though he hadn't spoken in a very long time.

Seeing this, Li Weixuan also ceased his attacks. However, he continued to eye the man warily, firing off three fundamental questions.

"Who exactly are you? Why are you here? And what is this place?"

"I am..."

Gripping the Long Halberd, the old man slowly stood up. He frowned in thought, a pained expression crossing his face.

"I can't remember. I only recall being trapped in a place, unable to get out no matter what I did..."

"There were deformed monsters everywhere. My mind grew increasingly muddled, and the periods I spent awake became shorter and shorter. There were even times when I thought I was already dead..."

"Wait a minute!"

Suddenly, the old man seemed to notice something. As he pointed at the chests of the various students, his face trembled uncontrollably.

"You are from the Academy?"

"You know the Academy?"

Many of the students bore the emblem of the Academy on their chests. Now it was the group's turn to be startled.

"More than just remember... I clearly know that I am the fourth Dean of the Academy!"

"I remember now..."

Before the people from the Academy could express their shock, the old man's expression suddenly turned deeply solemn. He planted the Long Halberd firmly into the ground.

"My name is Feng Yunhong!"

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