Eldritch Horror Theatre

”I’ve actually been a bit curious.”

The four of them in the car quickly reached a consensus on when to act, and Fu Qian brought up a question that had been on his mind.

”Before today, I didn’t know much about transcendent rituals. I’m wondering—how exactly do you obtain the rituals you were all discussing in the first place?”

He asked the question point-blank.

”And how do you confirm the gifts granted after the ritual is complete?”

”Didn’t Roldan tell you?”

Hearing his question, Shang Shiming looked visibly surprised.

”No.”

Fu Qian shook his head.

”How is that possible!”Beside him, Rachel couldn’t hold back any longer.

”You’ve already received a gift—how could you not know how the ritual was obtained?”

”Pure coincidence. I just had nothing better to do, so I dug out a kidney.”

Fu Qian’s expression was completely casual, sounding as if he were talking about cleaning his ears after a shower.

’Who the hell digs out a kidney just because they have nothing better to do! Are you bullshitting us?’

The reactions of the other three in the car were perfectly unified; not one of them believed a word of his nonsense.

Shang Shiming’s expression shifted several times before he became the first to break the silence.

”It’s hard to pin down any specific pattern for obtaining a ritual. You can basically understand it as fragments of information suddenly appearing in your consciousness.”

”For no reason at all, they just appear?”

Fu Qian frowned slightly.

”Basically, yes.”

”And in most cases, they are extremely difficult to interpret correctly.”

Shang Shiming weighed his words.

”That’s exactly why we have gatherings like this. Because these things are bizarre and unpredictable, everyone is quite happy to share their findings and listen to advice from others.”

”Even so, the percentage of successful interpretations is very small.”

”According to you, didn’t I basically hit the jackpot? No wonder Roldan said my good luck brought him some amusement.”

Fu Qian looked thoughtful.

”Strictly speaking, your situation is a little different.”

Shang Shiming hesitated for a moment before finally speaking.

”The probability of an ordinary person perceiving a ritual on their own is practically non-existent. The information that appeared in your mind must have been implanted by Roldan.”

”And it seems your luck really is quite good. Not only did you interpret it correctly, but you incredibly went ahead and tried it.”

”You have to understand that most people would just treat it as a fleeting, absurd thought and quickly forget about it.”

Shang Shiming spoke while carefully observing Fu Qian’s expression.

”Everyone is different. I happen to be the type who likes trying new things.”

Fu Qian explained casually.

’Who the fuck just ”tries new things” like that!’

Rachel was already looking at Fu Qian as if he were a complete psychopath.

Carving out your own internal organs just because some information popped into your head—no sane person would ever do something like that.

”So that means there is actually still a chance for me to obtain revelations regarding rituals on my own?”

Li Min, who had been listening in silence from the sidelines, finally couldn’t hold back her question.

”Of course!”

Shang Shiming’s tone was incredibly certain.

”From our long experience, anyone in this place has a chance of receiving a revelation. The probability is just much higher for a transcendent.”

”If that’s the case, then Percy truly is a magical place!”

Li Min let out an irrepressible sigh, clearly filled with anticipation.

As she marveled, however, Fu Qian noticed the look on Rachel’s face beside her.

For a delinquent girl who had always acted so high and mighty, her expression right now was actually a bit stiff.

’Could she be feeling guilty about her best friend?’

Fu Qian mused inwardly.

It seemed that what Shang Shiming had said wasn’t entirely the truth.

Recalling the looks in the eyes of the crowd at the gathering, he couldn’t shake the feeling that he and Li Min—the two newcomers—had been set up!

Fu Qian didn’t say anything, merely looking out the window.

...

Slurp!

Draining the last drop of the refreshing liquid, Fu Qian flicked a finger. The empty cup traced a neat parabola through the air, landing accurately in the trash can ahead.

Sure enough, in this sweltering weather, nothing beat a nice, cold club soda to lift one’s spirits.

He was currently standing on a wide cobblestone street. Scattered in every direction were magnificent buildings that looked as though they had been there for ages.

”That’s our target for today.”

Following the direction Shang Shiming was pointing, Fu Qian looked at the Stone Tower in the distance—at least fifty meters tall—and the crowds bustling back and forth around its base.

”Are you sure?”

”Is there some misunderstanding in your definition of ’remote’?”

Actually, it wasn’t just him. Even Li Min and Rachel, masquerading as tourists beside him, had deep skepticism in their eyes.

”It can’t be helped.”

Shang Shiming actually looked a tiny bit sheepish.

”Although Percy has many historical sites, once you push the timeframe back over five hundred years, our options become rather limited.”

”Don’t worry, this Stone Tower is completely independent. It sits at a safe distance from all the other buildings, and inside, it’s actually a Clock Tower.”

”Besides, I’ve confirmed that due to certain safety hazards, tourists haven’t been allowed inside for many years now, and the immediate perimeter is sealed off as well.”

”If a building like this were to suddenly collapse, people probably wouldn’t even find it strange. That way, it won’t easily attract the Night Watchers’ attention, which will save us a lot of trouble down the line.”

”You’ve certainly thought this through!”

Fu Qian offered a word of praise, but quickly followed up with another question.

”So how exactly do you plan to do this? If we just walk over there in broad daylight, we’ll end up in countless tourist photos. Not to mention, the commotion won’t be small. The Night Watchers will likely be here before we even finish.”

”First, we sneak in ahead of time. That won’t be difficult for us. Then, we simply wait for the right moment to act.”

Shang Shiming seemed to have planned this out long in advance.

’The right moment?’

Fu Qian suddenly realized something and glanced up at the sky.

”You specifically checked the weather forecast?”

”Yep!”

Shang Shiming nodded vigorously.

”There’s going to be a thunderstorm later on. It will mask some of the noise.”

’Was that really it?’

’Did this guy get the idea from some movie?’

Even so, Fu Qian continued to stare at the behemoth in the distance.

”Even if the noise isn’t an issue, have you considered how heavy that thing is?”

”Aren’t your expectations a bit too high for a newly advanced transcendent?”

”I think... I can provide a little help as well.”

At that moment, Li Min, who had been studying it for a long time, gritted her teeth and spoke up.

”Don’t worry. This is my ritual, after all, and everything is going according to plan. When the time comes, I only need you to provide the initial push. It doesn’t require an overwhelming amount of raw power.”

Shang Shiming gestured for Li Min not to step in, speaking with absolute confidence.

”The structure of this building is incredibly intricate and stable, but that also means that once its critical support points are destroyed, it will become as fragile as a line of dominoes.”