Eldritch Horror Theatre

”Your state is indeed quite interesting.”

”Is that where the whip came from earlier?”

Deng Feizhou had relaxed by now, studying Fu Qian closely.

”No.”

Fu Qian flicked his hand, revealing the Tyrant’s Fist.

”It’s actually the effect of this thing. I got it by chance.”

”A fascinating item. It contains the power of a curse.”

Looking at the oddly shaped ring, Deng Feizhou showed no surprise; instead, he just smiled and nodded.

This guy saw through me from the start. He was just testing me, Fu Qian thought.

What a pain to deal with!Good thing I always maintain my excellent moral character—honesty.

No lying unless absolutely necessary.

Besides that, Fu Qian caught another underlying meaning in Deng Feizhou’s words.

”You see everything your puppets see?”

”You catch on fast.”

Deng Feizhou gave him an appreciative look.

”That’s right. I share all the senses of anyone I possess, even while dormant.”

”I really must apologize, then. Crushing your body under my foot back there must have hurt.”

”It’s fine. I tested you first, after all.”

Deng Feizhou’s smile didn’t waver.

”And you don’t need to test me, either. The death of a puppet does affect me, but it’s far from severe.”

”I misjudged you back at Wen Li’s house. Your ability to conceal your aura is quite impressive.”

”Thanks for the compliment. Being low-key is a habit of mine.”

”What about Chen Mingda? Does he know you’ve possessed him?”

”Of course Chen Mingda doesn’t know. He might be a bit extreme, but he isn’t stupid.”

”To be honest, I don’t enjoy doing this sort of thing. It’s equivalent to severing a piece of myself. That sensation of the flesh and even the soul tearing apart is extremely uncomfortable.”

Deng Feizhou explained patiently as he raised his right hand and spread his fingers.

Soon, as if the bones inside had melted, his five fingers began to twist and writhe.

Like fleshy worms, the five fingers gradually pulled themselves out of his palm.

After crawling around the edge of his bare palm a few times, the fingers merged back into his skin, slowly vanishing into the center of his hand.

At the front of his hand, five new fingers sprouted out once more.

Why does this give me such an inexplicable sense of déjà vu?

Witnessing the scene, Fu Qian sighed inwardly.

No wonder his attitude shifted so rapidly the moment I showed the Biochemical Demonic Arm. He’s treating me like one of his own kind.

Haa!

His demonstration finished, Deng Feizhou let out a long breath and looked at Fu Qian.

”After all these years, it still brings some discomfort every time. The piece left on Chen Mingda is almost certainly unrecoverable. But to stop him from spouting nonsense before he died, I had to make that sacrifice.”

”It was also to make Chen Xing’s breakthrough seem more natural, right?”

”Exactly.”

Deng Feizhou openly admitted it.

”Chen Xing couldn’t suppress his state forever. And the breakthrough of a Demigod is a massively impactful event at any time. As a family head, who knows how many eyes are on him. To suddenly advance after being stuck at a bottleneck for so long, he had to find a suitable excuse to avoid suspicion.”

”I understand. Thanks for sharing.”

Fu Qian nodded.

”Heh. Do you know why I’m telling you this?”

Deng Feizhou looked at Fu Qian.

”Isn’t it because I’m your new client?”

”Do you think just anyone has the right to strike a deal with me?”

Deng Feizhou scoffed coldly, his gaze turning sharp in an instant.

”It’s quite simple, actually. Because you’re a genius.”

Deng Feizhou looked at Fu Qian.

”Despite clearly not knowing the method, you’ve somehow advanced all the way to Tier 4.”

”You don’t even show the slightest sign of losing control or breaking down. Before I met you, I couldn’t have imagined such a thing.”

”Do you know why our organization is called the Origin Council?”

”Why?”

”Because what we are doing is the greatest feat in human history, an attempt to completely liberate humanity from its shackles.”

”The body contains the greatest wealth, yet humanity sits upon a mountain of treasure in total ignorance.”

”For so many years, people have only known how to act on instinct, indulging in power and wealth instead of exploration and thought.”

”Even when transcendent power later emerged, it was quickly chalked up to the luck of a few. The vast majority of people still spend their entire lives in mediocrity, fading away in their shackles. In truth, compared to the immense potential hidden within the human body, things like cultivation, innate talent, and superhuman abilities are nothing but the laughable conclusions of a bunch of fools...”

”Your words remind me of an old friend,” Fu Qian said suddenly, facing the impassioned Deng Feizhou.

”Oh?”

”An Old Man named Lu Yuan. He liked to dabble in limb splicing work, and he also believed it was a great feat to liberate humanity.”

”You know Lu Yuan?”

Deng Feizhou looked at Fu Qian with keen interest.

”He didn’t invite you to be a subject for his limb grafting?”

”He did, but I refused. I hate adding parts to my body.”

Fu Qian replied quickly.

”Your reasoning is laughable, but you were wise to refuse. The Rebirth Club might possess a sliver of pioneering spirit, but unfortunately, their ideology is completely outdated. Abandoning the exploration of the human body to pursue amalgamation with transcendent creatures was proven to be a foolish idea ages ago, yet they refuse to let it go.”

”Of course, compared to those stubborn blockheads in the Night Watchers, they’re still much better—”

Deng Feizhou seemed quite familiar with things like limb grafting.

”Alright, I understand your ideology. Truthfully, I don’t care that much about it. Now, can you tell me what it takes to trade for the method to advance to Demigod?”

Fu Qian said directly.

”Don’t be so hasty, young man.”

Deng Feizhou looked at him.

”You will soon discover that our goal goes far beyond any so-called Demigod.”

”But my goal right now is Demigod. Without concrete facts laid out in front of me, I won’t trust anyone. My patience is limited.”

Fu Qian stared coldly at Deng Feizhou.

”It won’t be long. Just a few minutes.”

Deng Feizhou pointed at the wall clock, letting out a low laugh.

”Very soon, your troubles will vanish.”

”What do you mean?”

Following Deng Feizhou’s gesture, Fu Qian glanced up at the wall clock and realized something.

”You’re stalling for time?”

”You caught me? We’re waiting for a friend.”

Deng Feizhou sat down unhurriedly, a smile on his face.

”What made you think that barging in here gave you the right to strike a deal with me?”

”In fact, even Chen Xing doesn’t know the true price he paid.”

Haa...

Fu Qian looked at Deng Feizhou and let out a long breath.

”The one coming is Chen Xing?”

”That’s right. We agreed to meet at exactly eight o’clock. Otherwise, I would have left Shangjing long ago. The Night Watchers will track me down sooner or later.”

Deng Feizhou blinked.

”Chen Xing has always been a punctual man. You’ll get to meet him very soon—or, you could try to run away.”

Which means that in less than ten minutes, I’ll have to face Deng Feizhou and a newly advanced Demigod at the same time.

Fu Qian glanced around, discovering that invisible walls seemed to have surrounded him, trapping him firmly in place.

”Even a Demigod couldn’t break through this in a short amount of time. I suggest you don’t waste your energy.”

”Also, I was telling the truth earlier. You really are an excellent material. I’ll have Chen Xing try not to damage you so I can make good use of you later.”

”I see! So I only have a few minutes left?”

Once Deng Feizhou finished gloating, Fu Qian finally spoke.

”Exactly.”

”Is that right!”

Fu Qian suddenly blinked.

”Then how do you know I wasn’t stalling for time too?”

”Three minutes is enough to scatter your ashes.”