Eldritch Horror Theatre

When Fu Qian met up with Yuan Shan and the others at dusk, everything inside the Base looked perfectly normal.

But beneath the ordinary atmosphere, one could keenly sense a trace of brewing tension.

Yuan Shan must have left specific instructions; this time, the old man at the gate didn’t give Fu Qian any trouble. Once his identity was confirmed, he was waved straight in.

By the time he reached Yuan Shan’s office, she and Logan were already waiting.

He fell far short in the looks department, Fu Qian noted as he glanced at the seated Logan.

Compared to Yuan Shan beside him, Logan might have been a tier higher in strength, but his surface presence fell far short of hers.

”You’re here.”

Seeing Fu Qian enter, Yuan Shan offered a slight nod in greeting.

”Is it really just the three of us?”

Skipping pleasantries, Fu Qian pulled up a chair and sat down.Logan clearly disliked his attitude. From the moment Fu Qian walked in, Logan sat with his eyes on his nose and his nose on his heart, ignoring him entirely.

”In a battle like this, anyone beneath the Demigod Realm is virtually useless.”

Yuan Shan offered a complicated smile.

”I’ve stationed the others along the perimeter, primarily to maintain order.”

”Understood.”

Fu Qian didn’t press the matter.

”When do we move?”

”After dark.”

This time, Logan answered gruffly before Yuan Shan could speak.

’After dark?’

Fu Qian glanced out the window. The sun was already just a sliver on the horizon.

”Is there a specific reason for that?”

He turned back to Yuan Shan.

”Yes.”

Yuan Shan nodded, exactly as expected.

”The reason Tier 2 is called a Divine Emissary is that at this tier, one can establish a special connection with certain conceptual entities. They can receive their favor and blessing, and even allow them a temporary Descent into their bodies.

”Based on your description and our observations over the past two days, Ariel’s power seems tied to light or the sun, so we’re scheduling the operation for after dark.”

’There’s a mechanic like that? Then wouldn’t midnight be even better!’

’This guy really doesn’t want to wait a second longer than he has to!’

Fu Qian marveled inwardly, offering no comment.

After a mere ten minutes of waiting, Logan stood up and once again retrieved that hideous mask.

From this angle, he could see the inside of the mask. Patches of grime clung to its irregular surface, looking like dark red bloodstains.

Winding tentacles stretched from the edges all the way to the mouth, eventually twisting and coiling together.

Taking a deep breath, Logan lifted the mask and pressed it to his face.

Almost instantly, a mind-bending song rippled outward like an invisible wave, washing over the entire room.

The bursts of wailing embedded in the melody threw his thoughts into chaos, feeling as if countless tiny bugs were crawling through his brain.

’If it’s this intense just standing nearby, the impact on Committee Member Logan must be vastly worse.’

Fu Qian studied the cantankerous old man.

Even with the strength of a Quasi-Divine Emissary, Logan looked momentarily dazed after donning the mask, though he quickly recovered his bearings.

’From another angle, this isn’t necessarily a bad thing,’ Fu Qian thought.

’If the side effects are this severe, the corresponding shielding effect should be at the same level. No wonder he’s so confident about fighting above his weight class.’

’The reason he put it on now must be to acclimate to it beforehand.’

’After all, doing it in the middle of a fight would just give the enemy a free opening to swat him to death.’

”Move out.”

Under Yuan Shan’s solemn gaze, Logan finally stabilized his mental state and rasped out the command.

Interestingly, likely due to the mask’s influence, his voice carried a strange rhythm, sounding almost like he was reciting poetry.

”Move out.”

Hearing this, Yuan Shan breathed a sigh of relief and nodded at Fu Qian.

...

It didn’t take long for the trio to arrive outside Ariel’s manor.

Yuan Shan’s people had already confirmed that the target hadn’t left the house all day.

Under the cover of night, everything inside appeared perfectly normal.

After a silent scan of the perimeter, Logan didn’t say a word. He took the lead, vaulting straight inside.

The instant he touched the ground, golden-red patterns rapidly spread across his body, reducing his shirt to ash.

Simultaneously, four extra arms erupted from beneath his ribs, stretching out in every direction.

All of this happened in total silence.

A split second later, Logan’s body blurred into a streak of light, crashing into a corner of the mansion at incredible speed.

’Now that’s a top-tier brute!’

Fu Qian watched in awe. In accordance with their prior plan, he and Yuan Shan held their position in the distance to guard the perimeter.

Amid the terrified screams of the manor’s servants, an incomparably bright torch flared in his perception, followed instantly by a violent tremor.

Boom!

The next moment, Logan smashed right through the opposite side of the building, in relentless pursuit of a familiar figure.

Brother Ariel, whom they hadn’t seen in days, now had half his shoulder caved in. A massive gash tore across his chest, and he hacked up a mouthful of blazing white liquid.

He must have been suppressing his aura just prior. By the time he sensed Logan’s ambush, it was too late to dodge, causing him to take a brutal hit in the rush.

Logan’s strategy was undeniably simple and brutal, but highly effective: unleash his strongest wave right from the start and bull-rush the target to catch him off guard.

But Ariel was a Tier 2 Divine Envoy, after all. While his physical durability couldn’t compare to a specialized physical fighter like Logan, his vitality was exceedingly strong.

Having evaded Logan’s follow-up pursuit, Ariel’s entire body erupted with blazing white light, his silhouette rapidly turning ethereal.

Limbs, joints, torso...

In the blink of an eye, Ariel’s body dissolved into blinding spheres of light. These spheres overlapped and linked together, forming a somewhat bloated body.

His head transformed directly into burning golden flames, with faint, ghostly facial features drifting across its surface.

A moment later, dense clusters of golden patterns surfaced across his body.

[SAN Value -1]

Even from this distance, and despite being mentally prepared, merely looking at those patterns sent a jolt through Fu Qian’s mind, directly shaving off a point of his SAN Value.

Logan, who was facing it at close range, had to be enduring an even greater impact, yet his movements didn’t hesitate in the slightest.

Taking advantage of the window where Ariel was shifting into his Mythical Form, Logan closed the gap to his side once more.

’The Siren Tear Mask was terrifying to this degree!’

Under fully prepared circumstances, Ariel’s counterattack had absolutely no effect.

Watching from the sidelines, Fu Qian clicked his tongue in admiration.

Logan swung all six of his arms at once, the ridges on them glowing an even deeper crimson. Fueled by that surging, miraculous power, he could actually touch Ariel’s already ethereal body.

In the next moment, a massive chunk of Ariel’s body was ripped right off.

It had to be said—with prior preparation and the protection of an artifact, the slight gap in their realms had been bridged. Logan now held the absolute upper hand.

Fu Qian could even sense that Yuan Shan beside him was eager to jump in.

But in the very next second, boundless light erupted from Ariel’s shattered body.

A white glare that seemed capable of dispelling all darkness formed a surging ocean, drowning everything around it.