Eldritch Horror Theatre

It didn't turn into white light and vanish, or anything of the sort.

Holding the headless corpse, Fu Qian waited a few seconds to confirm there were no further changes before tossing it aside.

She had been only one step away from madness, practically stripped of any ability to escape.

Even so, Fu Qian could have chosen not to fire that shot, but he had given her a quick release anyway.

The reason was simple: he wanted to confirm what would happen to a teammate's body after death.

That was one of the very things he had come here to verify.

...

Stella.

As he silently recited the fallen teammate's true name, the Tyrant's massive body moved rapidly through the corridors.

The trail left by the five-person team was also remarkably easy to track. Soon, the density of monsters ahead began to increase.

Dodging their instinctive attacks with ease, Fu Qian faced no real obstruction despite his massive frame. At the end of the trail, a descending staircase loomed before him.

Everything around it appeared to be forged from a special metal.

Now, however, a lush thicket of antlers had sprouted across the surfaces, sealing off the passage entirely.

Without the slightest intention of hiding his presence, Fu Qian blasted a path open with a few Air Bullets and stepped into the rumored Lowest Level of the Third Zone.

Just a few steps later, a wide-open door appeared before him. Beyond it lay a massive room that resembled a Laboratory of absurd proportions.

The most striking sight, however, was in the center of the room: a giant, liquid tree rippling with fluorescent light.

Countless antler-like branches tangled together, forming a massive canopy overhead.

Beneath that canopy stood the long-unseen Brother Mask, his body bathed in the fluorescent glow and his face twisted into a hideous expression.

Yet, contrary to expectations, there weren't many severed limbs scattered around.

That was because Mask, moving with stiff, mechanical jerks, was dragging the corpses—whether they were still twitching or not—to the center of the Laboratory and tossing them beneath the "tree."

The tree did not actually sprout from the floor.

Its base was a circular opening resembling a Well, and the glowing liquid that formed the tree surged out from it like a spring.

Even though Mask had already stuffed the Well with numerous corpses—the churning tangle of limbs looking like a mythical gateway to hell—this mass of flesh only provided a slight obstruction to the flow.

Confronted with this grotesque scene, Fu Qian did not rush into action. He simply stood at the entrance, silently watching Mask work.

Given Fu Qian's current hulking form, his silent presence undoubtedly radiated an immense pressure. Yet Mask remained oblivious. It was as if he had entirely stopped thinking, simply carrying out his work mechanically.

The minutes ticked by. Only when there were no more corpses left to move in the room did Mask finally stop and slowly turn his head.

In a single instant, every trace of lifeless dullness vanished from his face.

"Guansi?"

Locking his gaze on Henry, Mask spoke coldly.

...

"You can also call me T-233."

Since Mask had dropped the act, Fu Qian admitted his identity without hesitation.

"T-233?"

Mask repeated the name subconsciously. He clearly had little interest in something as tedious as a codename; his concern lay with another question entirely.

"How did you know I hadn't lost my mind?"

"I ran into Stella."

Fu Qian's tone remained perfectly earnest.

"Stella?"

Mask looked genuinely confused for a moment before realization finally dawned on him.

"Star?"

The protocol had been strictly enforced; even Mask didn't know the true names of the other members.

Taking in Mask's reaction, Fu Qian silently praised their organizational discipline.

"That idiot Star told you I hadn't lost my mind? Do you expect me to believe that? If it had been Qing, maybe."

"Is that why you chose to kill her first?"

Fu Qian let out an "oh" of realization, keeping his attention focused on the opening of the Well as he spoke.

Madam Qing's corpse had most likely already been thrown inside.

In fact, given Mask's cautious nature, she was probably the first one he had stuffed down there.

Yet, this thing was extraordinary beyond imagination. Even in his current state, Fu Qian couldn't sense what lay beneath its surface.

When he had focused his attention on it a moment ago, the only feedback he received was wave after wave of chaotic gloom, like a converging abyss of depravity.

Its Rank was incredibly high!

Was this "The Abyss"?

The sensation really did feel somewhat similar to the Mist of the Abyss he had obtained before.

In theory, all he had to do right now was rush over and toss the cat inside.

But Fu Qian made no move to do so.

"You certainly know your team well. Star did indeed think you were insane, and she was thoroughly convinced of it."

"Unfortunately, in my eyes, you are a thoroughly boring person who has nothing to do with a state like madness."

"Even the 'crazy' actions Star described only served to prove my point. Because if it were me, I also would have chosen to kill Qing first."

"And eliminating the most troublesome character first is an awfully rational move for a madman."

"You really are different from those idiots... I should have killed you immediately."

Despite Fu Qian's praise, Mask didn't seem pleased in the slightest.

'You might not have had that choice.'

Fu Qian sighed inwardly.

"Whether they are opponents or teammates, you have to allow people the right to be foolish. That's just how the real world works."

"So the question is: why did you do all of this?"

"Since you're so smart, why don't you take a guess?"

Mask let out a string of cold laughter.

"Let me think... after I left, you all charged in here, only to discover that the Scavengers sent to carry out the mission had already become walking corpses."

Surprisingly, Fu Qian actually began to guess.

"While you breathed a sigh of relief, you discovered an unacceptable truth: the mission hadn't been completed."

"That obviously struck a massive blow to the team's morale. You then tried to interact more intensely with the prismatic color on the ground."

Fu Qian pointed at the Well in the center of the Laboratory.

"However, that action caused the contamination to instantly intensify, putting your sanity to the test."

"The silver lining, of course, was that shortly after, the mission actually was completed... even though the new mission was completely incomprehensible."

"After all, there was no logical way to pack up the thing in front of you and toss it into some abyss."

"Keep going."

Staring at Fu Qian, Mask did not deny his theory.

"Faced with an almost unsolvable—and incomprehensible—problem, infighting is perfectly normal."

Readily accepting good advice, Fu Qian obliged.

"But your actions were undoubtedly too extreme. To immediately start killing your own people... that's not something a mature leader would do. It naturally makes one wonder about the real reason behind it."

"Oh? Feel free to guess a little longer."

Mask let out a cold laugh.

"Though I did figure one thing out: exactly how the previous mission was completed."

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