Eldritch Horror Theatre

This...

Faced with a terrifyingly deformed and crazed Old Man Qiao, Lanaya reeled in shock.

She never expected someone who had looked perfectly normal moments ago to undergo such a drastic transformation in the blink of an eye.

”How could this happen?”

she murmured.

”Didn’t I tell you earlier? The lust has gone to his head. He’s beyond saving.”

Fu Qian spoke casually beside her, then turned and headed outside.

”...Where are you going?”

Despite her shock, Lanaya hadn’t forgotten her mission. She called out to stop him.

”That Professor Yi’an—he should be at the Academy right now?””He should be. He rarely leaves.”

Lanaya answered reflexively, then jolted.

”What are you trying to do?”

”I’m going to have a chat with Professor Yi’an, of course.”

”A chat? I’m warning you, don’t do anything reckless!”

Lanaya clearly did not believe him, her face full of vigilance.

”Why would I do anything reckless? Right now, this is all just speculation. It doesn’t even meet the standard for reporting to the Academy yet. You’re way too brutal!”

?!

Did he even hear himself? This bastard actually had the nerve to call someone else brutal.

Lanaya stared at Fu Qian, dumbfounded. She was gaining a whole new appreciation for the thickness of his skin.

She had, however, just been thinking about notifying the Academy to intervene. Hearing Fu Qian put it like that made the matter suddenly seem less urgent.

It really was better to verify the situation first.

After all, an accusation of using Transcendent Tier powers on ordinary people had to be treated with caution, especially when it involved an Academy mentor.

”If you aren’t coming, I’m leaving.”

While she was still weighing her options, Fu Qian had already walked ahead, turning back to hurry her along.

”I’m coming!”

No matter what, she absolutely could not let this troublemaker out of her sight.

Lanaya hurried after him, taking one last look at Old Man Qiao.

The old man still wore a look of utter intoxication. His stroking movements grew increasingly frantic, his sharp nails scraping his wounds until they dripped with blood once more.

”pleasure... never satisfied... forever thirsting...”

...

”Yi’an is a mentor for Linghui. He’s even slightly younger than Li Weixuan, and at Tier 4.”

”For a long time, he was mentioned in the same breath as Li Weixuan, considered the one among the Academy’s younger mentors most likely to advance to the Demigod Realm.”

”Of course, Li Weixuan has gone further for now.”

As they traveled, swift as wind and lightning, Lanaya finally broke the silence to brief Fu Qian on their target’s background.

Fu Qian was already familiar with the Linghui she mentioned.

Like the Sword Comprehension Institute and the Apocalypse, it was another division of the Academy, though much smaller in scale.

Linghui primarily focused on research related to spiritual and mental guidance. It was said its members often drove themselves into schizophrenia and insanity from their own experiments.

”From what you’re saying, this guy is quite the genius!”

Fu Qian remarked casually as he recalled the details.

This head of the Disciplinary Department was highly dedicated, so he had never actually considered ditching Lanaya to head over on his own.

The current situation was a result of his deliberate manipulation.

He had finally tracked down the main culprit. If Lanaya chose to report this to the Academy, whatever actions they took next would almost certainly strike the grass to startle the snake. If the target ended up running away, it would only invite more trouble.

At this point, dragging her along was his only option.

He even scored a dedicated chauffeur out of the deal.

”To put it bluntly, which of the Academy’s mentors isn’t a genius?”

Lanaya sighed deeply at his words.

”But the vast majority of them, no matter how overwhelmingly talented—don’t they all end up trapped right before the Demigod Realm?”

”These bizarre and eerie rituals—some of them are completely beyond human imagination. You can only undergo trial and error, bit by bit. The worst part is that every single trial could end in eternal damnation!”

”That’s true.”

Lanaya’s words naturally made Fu Qian think of himself.

In truth, even to this day, he still couldn’t confirm what his own ritual to reach the Demigod Realm had been.

The only two elements he could think of were killing Li Weixuan while the man was in a Demigod Realm state—forcibly suppressing him back to Tier 4—and eliminating a corrupted sword heart.

All he could confirm was that during that particular mission, those elements had strangely combined, allowing him to inexplicably fulfill the ritual’s requirements.

This kind of success was undoubtedly impossible to replicate. For anyone else, with absolutely no clues to follow, the step up to the Demigod Realm was indeed an uncrossable chasm.

”It’s just up ahead.”

While he was lost in thought, Lanaya slowly brought the car to a halt and pointed at the building ahead.

”Follow my lead once we go in, got it?”

Even as she spoke, Lanaya frowned.

’Strange. Why is it so quiet today? It’s still quite early.’

And there was no response from behind her.

Hmm?

Realizing something, Lanaya whipped her head around, only to find the back seat completely empty.

In the distance, a figure flashed past and vanished.

...Shit!

Sensing instantly that things had gone south, Lanaya threw the door open and sprinted after him.

How did this happen?

As she chased after him, Lanaya grew increasingly alarmed.

It was true that Linghui usually didn’t have many people around, but it shouldn’t be completely deserted at this hour.

What exactly had happened?

After following Fu Qian’s route for some distance, she caught a trace of strange movement from somewhere beneath her feet.

Briefly confirming the direction, Lanaya rushed toward it without hesitation.

The deeper she went, the more pronounced the disturbance became.

Soon, she could hear what sounded like something slapping against the walls, mingled with waves of eerie moans that sounded like weeping and whispering.

The more Lanaya listened, the more terrified she became. She realized that even she wasn’t immune to the sounds, her mind faintly swaying in intoxication.

Her ominous premonition grew stronger. She quickened her pace, finally turning a corner to lay eyes on a wide-open metal door.

Behind the metal door, inside a certain Underground Laboratory, a tall pink-and-white tree was swaying.

More than ten branch-like limbs grew from it. Some were curled like tentacles, while others still retained the shape of human hands and feet.

What they all had in common was that each one had a human body entangled within it, either hanging from the limbs or clutched tightly by them.

Most of these people wore vacant expressions, their eyes brimming with chaotic lust.

Some were even using their teeth and nails to frantically tear at their own bodies and those of others, both parties wearing looks of sheer intoxication.

All these chaotic noises blended together to form that soul-stealing, rippling sound.

Just as she was nearly stupefied by the sight, Lanaya spotted Fu Qian beneath the tree.

He was standing there, observing his surroundings with utmost seriousness.

Sitting not far from him was a figure clad entirely in black.

”Professor Lanaya.”

In the next moment, the dark figure released a long claw he had been gripping tightly and slowly turned around.

”You two arrived faster than I imagined... much faster.”

”Yi’an...”

Lanaya said, practically gritting her teeth.

”What exactly is going on here?”

With a hurried glance, she had already recognized several people; they were all staff members and students.

To think something like this would actually happen inside the Academy!

It didn’t take a genius to tell that everything was inextricably linked to the bastard in front of her.

”Yes, what exactly is going on?”

The Yi’an before them looked quite young, just as Lanaya had described.

However, the feeling his expression gave off right now was indescribable—twisted, chaotic, yet carrying a profound sadness.

In the next moment, he let out a laugh that sounded remarkably like a sob.

”As you can see, standing before you is a new Demigod Realm existence.”

”A true Demigod Realm existence, one beyond your imagination.”