Eldritch Horror Theatre

An Gui's purpose in coming here was perfectly clear: he was here to kill.

He had clearly gauged Fu Qian's strength, acting cautious enough to trap him before finally showing his face.

That confidence—the absolute certainty that everything was under his control—was likely why he answered Fu Qian's questions so freely.

Of course, he hadn't lost out either. Fu Qian's responses had implicitly confirmed some of his own suspicions about Ji Yicheng's actions.

His next step was supposed to be letting Fu Qian thoroughly experience despair, seizing the opportunity to extract a few more details, and finally wiping the slate clean.

Perfect!

Unfortunately, the sky-blotting strike unfolding before his eyes had derailed everything.

An Gui never imagined the man standing right in front of him was actually a demigod.

Amidst a thunderous roar, the thousands of tentacles erupting from Fu Qian's body crushed their surroundings in an instant.

Naturally, the jumbled mess couldn't perfectly recreate its former appearance.

A single glance revealed glass and wooden planks embedded in the walls, cabinets formed of sand and stone, and even a quilt woven from paper.

The house had seemingly become a living entity, instantly healing in place after being pounded into a pulp.

In the blink of an eye, everything inside converged on Fu Qian like teeth preparing to chew their food.

An Gui's figure was long gone. Even with Fu Qian's perception, his presence was difficult to track.

Or rather, he was omnipresent; everything around them had become his flesh and blood.

What an unconventional method. An ordinary person would have a truly difficult time breaking it.

Witnessing the spectacle, Fu Qian clicked his tongue in momentary admiration.

Unfortunately, that had merely been the first wave.

As always, breaking things—especially by brute force—was his specialty.

[SAN Value -1]

Instead of retracting, the tentacles blasted outward once more like a tidal wave.

The reconstructed cabin lasted a mere half-second before the surging tentacles shattered it again.

The impact this time was even greater. Not a single fragment larger than a fingernail remained of the entire house.

Again?

As Fu Qian watched in anticipation, the Dao heart of the swirling debris finally collapsed. It fluttered to the ground, failing to coalesce again.

There was no longer any hope of getting his rent deposit back.

"Even Kelsen couldn't pull off this level of destructive power!"

A humanoid silhouette slowly squeezed out from the Residue covering the floor, quickly morphing into An Gui.

"Just who are you?"

His tone was more solemn than ever.

"That question is neither clever nor necessary!"

Slowly retracting his tentacles, Fu Qian smiled and shook his head, holding the retrieved mask in his hand.

"I imagine you have more pressing concerns. For instance, what exactly did Brother Ji do down in the Underground Ruins?"

...

Fu Qian's words plunged An Gui into several seconds of stark silence.

After that display, Fu Qian now exuded an indescribable, oppressive aura.

An Gui still had his own trump cards, but judging by the other party's performance, even assuming his Mythical Form likely wouldn't be enough to keep him here.

"Ji Yicheng in—"

A moment later, he finally nodded.

"Good question!"

Fu Qian immediately praised him.

"As far as I know, he did a lot. Far more than what was in your plan."

"Speaking of which, that was your plan all along, wasn't it? Deliberately letting the Siren Group discover these Ruins, baiting them into exploring, and then looking for an opportunity to stir up trouble?"

"...That's right."

An Gui admitted it quite readily.

"We did indeed discover those Underground Ruins a step ahead of them."

"And you realized there was considerable danger inside? Hence the idea of setting a trap."

"Correct."

An Gui nodded.

"Who was the first to discover the Underground Ruins?"

"The first was—"

An Gui caught himself halfway, suddenly realizing something.

"It was Ji Yicheng, wasn't it?"

Fu Qian gave a meaningful laugh.

"...Yes."

"Just as I expected. Since Your Excellency is being so sincere, I'll share a few things I've seen with my own eyes."

"First, your plan went very smoothly. The Siren people indeed ran into trouble. Kelsen and Sybil even ended up accidentally turning on each other."

"Is that true?"

An Gui actually sounded a bit surprised.

Ji Yicheng had evidently shared some stories with him, but the opposing demigods turning on each other was simply too fantastical a plot. He probably hadn't truly believed it.

"Then, Ji Yicheng activated the mechanisms in the Ruins, putting an end to the crisis and saving Sybil."

...

This highly impactful piece of information plunged An Gui into silence once again.

"Twice."

Fu Qian added.

...

"Is everything you're saying true?"

An Gui could finally no longer maintain his calm composure.

"First of all, that question is entirely meaningless. Did you really think I would tell you I was lying?"

"Secondly, in our current situation, does it even matter whether it's true or false?"

Fu Qian winked at him.

...

An Gui said nothing, just stared coldly at Fu Qian.

Unexpectedly, the latter didn't explain further. Instead, he started toying with the mask in his hands.

"Earlier, you said this mask was priceless. What you don't know is that it actually has a flaw."

"What flaw?"

An Gui frowned. The sudden change of topic made it a bit hard for him to keep up.

"The flaw is that the eye holes are just these narrow slits, which really obstructs my vision."

Fu Qian gestured at the mask.

Nonsense! Would a dignified demigod have his perception hindered by something like that?

An Gui's immediate impulse was to curse, but then he snapped his head up, realizing the implication behind Fu Qian's words.

"You didn't see anyone on your way here, right?"

Seeing that the man had caught on, Fu Qian looked highly satisfied. He raised a hand and slipped the mask on.

"My eyesight is terrible when I wear this. I haven't seen you today."

...

Phew!

After a long silence, An Gui let out a heavy breath.

"While transcendent items possess miraculous effects, they do indeed often come with negative side effects. It's hard to avoid."

Perhaps influenced by Fu Qian, his words also began to sound a bit strange.

"I have to say, you've truly opened my eyes. That move just now... I'm afraid even a Demigod Grade Ash Descent wouldn't be able to withstand it."

"I'm very busy today, so I'll take my leave first. Yicheng is still waiting for my news."

"He's quite an ambitious young man. Even after being injured, he still refused to go back and rest, volunteering instead to monitor the situation over on Siren's side."

"I warned him it was too dangerous, but he wouldn't listen to me."

"So... until we meet again."

"Alright, alright. See you!"

Fu Qian listened to his every word with utmost seriousness, responding with a smiling nod.

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