Eldritch Horror Theatre

Though a bit overbearing, Crystal's words made a certain amount of sense.

No matter who was beneath the Mirror Armor, he knew far too many details. If they could have dealt with him before the hunting squad left, killing him on their way out would have easily been the optimal solution.

Yet here he sat, perfectly unharmed.

"The problem is, I've dealt with the Clown more than once, and this isn't his style."

Seeing the others remain silent, Ballard made one last attempt.

"Instead, this guy acts more like some insidious, cunning outsider. His story is incredibly hard to swallow. For instance—"

He fixed his gaze on Fu Qian.

"Can you tell me how you managed to look exactly like me?"

The air went dead silent. Aside from Fu Qian himself, this was undoubtedly the question burning in everyone's mind.

Ballard had an excellent grasp of the crux of the matter. He hadn't even demanded that Fu Qian open his visor to reveal his true face.

To demigods, mere physical appearance was far less reliable than the actual form of one's power.

"That is naturally because I discovered something rather interesting after advancing to the Demigod Realm."

Meeting their scrutinizing gazes, Fu Qian thought, 'That's exactly the question I was waiting for.'

He tapped his face as he spoke, and the visor blossomed outward, retracting in all directions.

He could have done it much more simply, but considering he was currently matching outfits with Ballard, Fu Qian hadn't hesitated to put in a little extra effort to make the reveal flashier.

As the visor opened, the demigods found their gazes involuntarily drawn to him.

...

A moment later, despite the utter silence in the air, a collective gasp of amazement seemed to ring out.

Beneath the armor was still Fu Qian's face. Yet just under his skin, a surging, scorching heat pulsed as if struggling to break free, an astonishing sight that left the onlookers in quiet shock.

Among them, Ballard's reaction was the most dramatic.

Because out of everyone present, he alone knew the specific words that Andiel had spoken: I came guided by the flame.

"For the longest time, this world has been nothing but a bore."

Fu Qian touched his cheek, wearing a look of deep intoxication.

"Even the petty little game of death and rebirth has grown stale."

"I certainly didn't expect an outsider to present me with such an interesting gift."

"Unbelievable. To think that you demigods would be slower to uncover the mysteries of this world than a mere outsider."

While spinning this web of bewitching lies, Fu Qian didn't forget to casually toss out a taunt.

"What do you mean?"

Akasha finally made her presence known.

No matter what, the face in front of her had left quite a deep impression.

"Have you ever imagined a way to leave this cage?"

Never resting until his words astonished everyone, Fu Qian met their shocked, doubtful gazes and tapped his brightly glowing forehead.

"The path to redemption is right here."

"Are you trying to say... this so-called special flame can help us leave this place?"

As Fu Qian's claims grew increasingly outrageous, Ballard couldn't hold back his questioning.

"That's absolutely absurd!"

"More absurd than self-managing inside a prison?"

Fu Qian mocked right back, successfully plunging the group into silence.

Clearly, this proactive group participating in the operation could be considered the closest thing to normal people in Unseen Hill.

They might not be as extreme as Ballard, but they were at least willing to maintain a certain level of order.

However, Fu Qian's words dragged them right back to their naked reality.

No matter how much order they maintained, it was nothing more than the self-delusion of a bunch of prisoners.

In truth, Fu Qian was a bit puzzled by this as well.

Chaumont and his group could clearly come and go as they pleased; otherwise, they wouldn't have been able to rush in here to rescue people.

Furthermore, the existence of outsiders didn't seem to be a secret to these Natives. Yet, they acted as if they didn't believe they could ever find a way out like Chaumont's group had.

"I have to say, no matter who you really are, you two are equally repulsive."

Unable to refute the point, Ballard gritted his teeth and resorted to a direct personal attack.

'You've got to be kidding me. Could the Clown's ability to draw aggro really compare to mine?'

Fu Qian recalled the Clown's voice and smiling face, feeling rather dismissive of the comparison.

However, before he could say anything, Ballard's expression suddenly froze.

"The Prophet... wants us to bring this guy back."

After a long moment, Ballard slowly raised his head, his voice filled with disbelief.

"Hmph!"

While Akasha was still stunned, Crystal let out a cold snort, turned around, and walked away.

Under Fu Qian's influence, the air she had just rapidly cooled was already turning scorching hot again, and the ice wolf seemed to utterly loathe this.

"...Can you give it back to me now?"

The remaining people exchanged looks. Finally, Akasha spoke up, pointing at the severed claw in Fu Qian's hand.

"Oh?"

Fu Qian raised the severed claw as requested, but instead of handing it over, he brought it to his face and sniffed it.

"Even now, I can still smell this intoxicating fragrance."

"Are you sure you don't want to keep this little connection between us?"

...

This nearly flirtatious remark actually made Akasha hesitate.

Of course, it wasn't because she was swooning over his face. The underlying meaning behind his words was incredibly simple: did she really not want to maintain a link with a demigod who might hold the key to escaping their cage?

And without a doubt, that prospect was simply far too tempting for her.

It was so tempting that even the slimmest possibility made it impossibly hard to give up.

"Alright, Casanova, it's time for us to get moving."

Akasha's reaction made Ballard's eye twitch violently. He felt a profound sense that they couldn't allow this to drag on any longer.

His earlier rejection completely evaporated as he took the initiative to urge Fu Qian to move.

"Sure."

Readily accepting good advice, Fu Qian finally stood up and walked toward the exit.

And even as he vanished out the bar's door, the lingering Akasha never once asked for her property back.

...

A moment later, Fu Qian finally got the chance to ride in the legendary Covetous Heart Chariot.

He had to admit, aside from the somewhat retro power source, the overall design was quite stunning.

Even as the warhorses galloped, the eerie blue light trailing from their hooves stretched into long halos, looking as though they were riding on light itself through the darkness.

At the same time, Fu Qian quickly realized that this wasn't just a simple mode of transportation.

With the chariot's doors closed, he found himself enveloped in some sort of absolute isolation. Forcing his way out would require quite a bit of effort.

No wonder everyone had felt comfortable letting Ballard escort him, and no wonder Ballard had taken up the task without hesitation.

Furthermore, as they drove away, Fu Qian could sense numerous gazes hidden in the dark, and most of their auras were quite strong.

Even if this was the Order faction of Unseen Hill mobilizing in full force, this level of power was absolutely staggering.

If these people really managed to escape, they would undoubtedly form an utterly terrifying faction in the outside world.

Amid his thoughts, Fu Qian completely retracted his visor, fully exposing his head, which radiated a scorching heat.

In the dimness, the orange and blue light reflected off each other with dazzling brilliance, perfectly reducing Ballard up front to the appearance of a mere chauffeur.

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