Eldritch Horror Theatre

Surprisingly, the person who rushed in to break up the fight was an acquaintance.

He was one of the pair who had escorted him to Yuan Shan during his first mission in Shangjing.

The last time Fu Qian saw the guy, he had only been around Tier 7. Now, he looked to have made significant progress.

Even so, charging into a battlefield like this to intervene required considerable courage.

He was also quite rational, choosing to evacuate the crowd before trying to stop the conflict.

As Fu Qian sized him up, the young Night Watcher clearly recognized him as well, his expression instantly turning complicated.

Naturally, he remembered Fu Qian perfectly well.

The first time they met, Fu Qian had been calmly reading a book right next to Qin Feng’s headless corpse.

Although the subsequent investigation proved he had nothing to do with the Night Watcher Qin Feng’s sacrifice, the man’s behavior and demeanor were so inherently suspicious that beating him to death wouldn’t have felt entirely unjustified.

So it was naturally impossible for him to have a good impression of Fu Qian.Yet despite the Night Watcher’s absolute vigilance, Fu Qian stopped fighting with unusual decisiveness, even cooperatively taking two steps back.

After all, he was the one dishing out the beating, so stopping posed no difficulty at all.

Huff!

Huang Zhixun finally got a chance to catch his breath. He rapidly pulled away, staring at Fu Qian with intense vigilance.

This guy’s strength was simply irrational; just moments ago, he had genuinely feared for his life.

However, upon realizing the person intervening was a Night Watcher, he forcibly suppressed the urge to immediately flee.

At least he’s not completely stupid!

Fu Qian watched him, thinking it was a pity.

This guy had descended from the sky with murderous intent earlier. If he had fled the scene to avoid punishment now, the package would be perfectly complete. By then, pinning any crime on him wouldn’t have been excessive.

So the fact that he didn’t run only proved he hadn’t entirely lost his mind.

”Xu Liuyun, Shangjing City Night Watchers.”

Things were progressing far more smoothly than he had imagined. The young Night Watcher breathed a slight sigh of relief and solemnly announced his identity.

”The fight here has severely disrupted public order. I’m sorry, but both of you need to come with me.”

He spoke in a stern tone.

”Indeed!”

While Huang Zhixun was still collecting himself, Fu Qian was the first to let out a long sigh.

”I tried to advise this gentleman earlier, but alas, he just wouldn’t listen! This is truly ruining the image of transcendents everywhere in the eyes of the masses.”

...

With Fu Qian putting on this act of justified self-defense, not only was Huang Zhixun left speechless, but even Xu Liuyun didn’t know what to say.

He had obviously arrived late and was unaware of how the situation had started.

However, from the traces at the scene, it was obvious that a vehicle had been forcibly intercepted, leading to the ensuing conflict.

Therefore, Fu Qian’s claim was likely pretty close to the mark.

Of course, as for why this guy was driving a police car, that would have to be verified separately.

”I am Huang Zhixun.”

By this time, Huang Zhixun had finally snapped back to reality. Realizing he couldn’t just let Fu Qian spout nonsense, he decisively announced his identity.

Although Xu Liuyun’s strength was too weak to even be worth mentioning, the Night Watchers he represented were absolutely not a force anyone dared to ignore.

”I know.”

Xu Liuyun glanced at him, his demeanor not growing any more polite because of Huang Zhixun’s status.

”...It was mainly because this guy’s behavior just now was far too suspicious, so I wanted to take him down.”

Huang Zhixun wasn’t foolish enough to deny his own actions, but he chose his words carefully.

”I understand. You can take your time explaining this when we get back.”

Xu Liuyun listened earnestly, but his response offered no leeway whatsoever.

...

The journey back was quite silent.

In the end, Huang Zhixun failed to persuade the young Night Watcher and was brought to the Night Watchers Base alongside Fu Qian.

This included Wen Li as well. As one of the involved parties, she stayed directly by Fu Qian’s side.

Her demeanor, however, was noticeably more relaxed. After all, in Wen Li’s eyes, Mister Fu had predicted this conflict in advance. The situation was clearly always under his control, so there was absolutely nothing to worry about.

By the time the group arrived at the base, Yuan Shan, who had rushed over upon hearing the news, was already waiting for them. The look she gave Fu Qian could only be described as a complex mix of emotions.

”Tell me, what’s going on?”

Gesturing for all of them to take a seat, Yuan Shan asked directly, her expression cold.

”Councilor Huang might need to be the one to explain that, because I have no idea what’s going on either.”

Surprisingly, Fu Qian yielded the opportunity to explain to Huang Zhixun, gesturing for the other man to speak first.

...

This... how should he put it?

Being handed the initiative without having to fight for it left Huang Zhixun momentarily at a loss for words.

Regardless, ending up in a confrontation at the Night Watchers Base was absolutely the last situation he wanted to be in.

Fu Qian’s earlier guess was correct; he had indeed made his move because of the Gan Zuoxun matter.

The Gulade Group had always been dissatisfied with this newly appointed municipal officer.

So upon learning that the man’s mental state was somewhat unstable, they were naturally more than willing to fan the flames.

However, having their own people strike would leave them too exposed to criticism, so they had enlisted Huang Zhixun.

And before making his move, Huang Zhixun hadn’t neglected to look into Fu Qian’s background.

In his eyes, Fu Qian clearly had some sort of connection with the Night Watchers.

This was precisely why Fu Qian had been targeted.

What he hadn’t expected was for the guy to be so difficult to deal with, leaving Huang Zhixun with no choice but to strike personally.

His original plan had been incredibly simple: strike directly and capture the guy.

Even if the guy’s actions hadn’t been orchestrated by the Night Watchers, Huang Zhixun could use a minor trick to lock in his connection to them.

With a bit of publicity afterward, he could undoubtedly create far more room for speculation regarding Fu Qian’s appearance at the hospital.

By then, even if there was nothing wrong with Gan Zuoxun, the situation would most likely only get messier the more they tried to clear it up.

This was a true open scheme!

Unfortunately, while the idea had been grand, at this very moment, he had lost all initiative.

At the same time, under Yuan Shan’s pressing gaze, staying silent was out of the question.

”The anomaly in the sky today and the incident at City Hall took me greatly by surprise. Later, I inadvertently learned that this guy had shown up at the hospital under highly suspicious circumstances.”

Huang Zhixun pointed at Fu Qian.

”I found it strange, so I wanted to find him to verify a few things.”

”After all, as a Federation councilor, I also bear responsibility for the safety of Shangjing.”

”So that’s how it is.”

Fu Qian nodded as he listened.

”When Councilor Huang dropped from the sky and forcefully brought my car to a halt, I thought he just wanted to hitch a ride.”

...

Fu Qian’s words were laced with barbs, causing Huang Zhixun’s expression to twist in discomfort.

But what he said was the absolute truth; he couldn’t exactly deny it with a straight face.

Ultimately, he had misjudged the man’s strength and failed to take him down immediately, causing the situation to slip out of control.

Losing control of the situation in the middle of a plan was a highly dangerous thing.

”I was indeed a bit too hasty, but I had no malicious intent.”

Huang Zhixun could only brace himself and explain.

”The main issue is that Mister Fang’s actions were simply too suspicious.”

His tone remained adamant.

”Chief Yuan is more than welcome to ask him exactly why he appeared at the hospital.”

”Alright.”

Hearing this, Yuan Shan looked at Fu Qian with a faint, unreadable smile.

”Tell us, then. Why were you at the hospital?”