Eldritch Horror Theatre

An unexpected harvest?

Fu Qian had imagined more than once what would happen in the ultimate form of a work injury—when one's SAN Value hit zero.

And at this exact moment, Yasui Tokiyuki's words instantly illuminated a string of clues.

Coming from the same place as Ariel—Fu Qian certainly didn't think he meant the Real World. Yasui Tokiyuki was most likely referring to the Warehouse.

So Ariel was also a senior?

It seems my intuition was reliable after all.

When he first met this Tier 2, he had asked him a question: "What were you like before you turned into this state?"

He had asked because of a subconscious feeling at the time: that "Chinese room" state was a mental disorder almost as severe as completely losing one's mind.

Now it seemed it really might be just as severe.

They might have even learned something about the Warehouse from him?

That is certainly a possible sequence of events.

A series of thoughts flashed through Fu Qian's mind at lightning speed.

"So Ariel was created by Nepheli?"

He didn't beat around the bush, asking directly the next moment.

"Yes."

Yasui Tokiyuki's answer was just as crisp.

"I also know that you rely on a special entity to grow and receive many gifts, though of course, you bear the corresponding risks. Want to know how Nepheli found Ariel?"

"Let's hear it."

"It's very simple—"

Yasui Tokiyuki's words came to an abrupt halt. He looked down at his left ribs, which had already been torn open by a hideous, razor-sharp claw.

Having launched another surprise attack using Delusion Step, Fu Qian didn't waste a single moment before unleashing a Visceral Attack.

He had once wondered if the day would ever come when he could rip out a Deity's kidney. Today, that grand ambition was finally realized.

Judging by the tactile feedback, even though this guy claimed to be a Deity, his physical toughness still lagged behind Hamadus.

"Sorry, I don't want to know."

Amidst the spray of blood, his emotionless voice finally rang out.

"Trying to prolong your life with such a minor trick?"

"Knowing when to cut your losses is a necessary quality for a real man."

"You..."

Through damage far more terrifying than he had imagined, Yasui Tokiyuki realized what had happened.

This guy hadn't just seen through his attempt to stall for a brief buffer by bringing up secret topics.

He had also played along, pretending to be interested, only to launch a sneak attack the exact moment Yasui Tokiyuki was fully focused on recovering—using a damage method he had never seen before.

"I have to say, if you two really are of the same kind, you are far stronger than Ariel."

Yet this time, despite being severely wounded, Yasui Tokiyuki didn't flee.

Not only that, but the flesh and blood scattered by the Visceral Attack didn't dissipate on the spot. Instead, it adhered and stretched into an impossibly thin blood membrane.

Countless varying faces reflected upon this translucent membrane of blood. Their expressions were either in pain or in pleasure, but they all shared one common trait—they were completely intoxicated.

The only comforting thing was that they were all still human faces.

And Fu Qian, having just executed his Visceral Attack, was now completely surrounded by this membrane.

Every face opened its mouth to roar, merging into an indescribable rhythm.

At that moment, even though he was using Pseudo-God Incarnation and stood at the exact same Rank as his opponent, Fu Qian found himself affected.

If he had to describe the feeling, it was like someone taking a hot iron and repeatedly smoothing out the sulci of his brain. The distinctions between concepts in his consciousness grew blurry, rapidly transitioning toward a state where form is emptiness.

At the same time, the figure resembling a Styx Avatar finally reacted. Six weapons of different shapes, all radiating the aura of Death, slashed down toward him in unison.

Of course, they missed completely.

Fu Qian, already down to one arm, had absolutely no intention of taking that head-on. He used Delusion Step again, escaping the range of the blood membrane.

Surprisingly, neither entity gave chase.

The next moment, that eerie blood membrane wrapped itself directly around Yasui Tokiyuki, forming a writhing, resplendent robe.

The Styx Avatar also spread its six arms wide, positioning itself like a shield in front of Yasui Tokiyuki.

Clearly, his opponent had no intention of falling for the same trick twice.

...

"To think you could use that kind of power continuously. What an excellent misdirection!"

Yasui Tokiyuki let out a heartfelt sigh of admiration.

"I was just trying it out. As the saying goes, 'Boldly experiment, but court death with care.'"

Facing Yasui Tokiyuki's demeanor, Fu Qian didn't lower his guard in the slightest.

The matter regarding Ariel was undoubtedly of great value to him.

If it weren't, Yasui Tokiyuki wouldn't have brought it up to stall for time.

Unfortunately, compared to the task at hand, it took Fu Qian only a single millisecond to snuff out his curiosity and formulate a plan to turn the trick against him.

He was never naive enough to think this guy had any sincere intention of sharing his secrets to success.

The sole purpose behind all of Yasui Tokiyuki's actions was to kill him without leaving any loose ends.

And at this exact moment, even after taking a Visceral Attack to the gut, this newly ascended Tier 1 still wore an expression that said the advantage was entirely his.

"It's hard to imagine that a Demigod Realm could inflict such damage on me!"

As he spoke, his wounds rapidly healed, with only the writhing robe still tethered to his abdominal cavity.

At the same time, however, the Dislocation semi-circular patterns symbolizing the Red Moon had spread wider across his body, no longer confined to his face.

Of course, he didn't seem to care about this at all.

"Don't be so hasty; you aren't in such great shape either."

He pointed at Fu Qian's severed arm and body.

In truth, he didn't need the reminder. Fu Qian was well aware that the patterns on his own body had already proliferated like a mosaic.

The main issue was that the moment he returned here, his connection with the Red Moon had suddenly strengthened. Even if his wounds healed, it was useless; certain things had already integrated into his flesh and blood.

"I can tell you just used some special method to recover a significant amount of your condition."

"But unfortunately, your Pope didn't grant you any preferential treatment."

Yasui Tokiyuki wore a face full of pity.

"Since you aren't interested in Ariel, why don't we change the subject."

The next moment, just as he had done at the very beginning, he simply turned his back and gazed at the azure planet in the darkness.

"Have you ever wondered what's on the other side of the moon?"

Along with Yasui Tokiyuki's new question, the azure planet, which had seemed so close at hand, actually began to move. In the blink of an eye, it sank behind an endless mountain range.

Is this how you get to the other side of the moon?

Fu Qian retracted his gaze and looked down at his feet.

A twisted face had unexpectedly surfaced on the crushed ice, opening its mouth in a silent wail.

Accompanied by this wail, the entire ground rippled like flowing water, rapidly churning up countless faces.

In the blink of an eye, this desolate wasteland transformed into the same state as Yasui Tokiyuki's robe, stretching all the way to the infinite horizon.

"Welcome, to the Dark Side of the Moon."

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