Eldritch Horror Theatre

”You really had this all figured out.”

At the quiet dining table, Yuan Shan stared at Fu Qian for a long while before finally admitting his idea was genuinely feasible.

Yuan Shan had, of course, received a report on Fu Qian’s clash with Daneta and his group.

They had acted carefully, but it was impossible for an operation of that scale to leave no traces. Tracing it wouldn’t be too difficult for the Night Watchers.

And if they were nursing a guilty conscience and feared exposure, they likely wouldn’t be very cooperative.

This guy really had calculated every angle.

She had to admit, though, that taking his calculations into account solved quite a few of her own headaches.

It was certainly nice having things handled for her, but she couldn’t help feeling that relying on him too often would lead to early senility.

...

”I’ll investigate Daneta’s group like you suggested, and I’ll have someone keep an eye on Jiang En. As long as he doesn’t take any more extreme actions, we won’t touch him for now.”After pondering for a moment, Yuan Shan accepted his proposal.

”I can even overlook the fact that you roped me into your mess tonight without my permission.”

”But there’s one problem. Given the current situation, it seems impossible to completely rule out the possibility that you are Herbert.”

Then her tone shifted.

”Mainly because the story you just spun was a little too logically sound.”

So she still held a grudge after all!

Seeing the sneer on Chief Yuan’s face, Fu Qian sighed inwardly.

He could understand her reaction. She was a dignified regional chief of the Night Watchers, yet her emotions had been jerked around into utter chaos and frantic turmoil. She had even struck a pose ready to face death unflinchingly.

If it had been Old Man Logan, he probably would have ripped his clothes off in a murderous rage and punched a hole through the earth by now.

Speaking of which, he wondered how the old man was doing lately. The previous mission summary had only mentioned that his condition was improving.

”That’s actually simple.”

Reining in his wandering thoughts, Fu Qian straightened his expression and directly addressed Chief Yuan’s interrogation.

”As the Progenitor of the Blood Clan, Annalise’s ideas are a bit too ill-considered. Why must the Blood Clan all have uniform red eyes? It’s too monotonous and boring!”

”If it were up to me, I’d make their pupils change color depending on the blood they drank. That way, when they greet each other, it would save them from asking boring questions like ’what did you have for lunch?’”

...

When Fu Qian finished, not only Yuan Shan but even Wen Li looked as if they had been petrified.

That bout of sheer nonsense had clearly placed an immense strain on their language processing systems.

Fu Qian was very understanding of this. He casually grabbed a dessert, eating as he waited.

”Was that extreme enough?”

Chief Yuan was experienced and knowledgeable after all, recovering her senses a beat sooner.

He asked this directly, facing her slightly complicated expression.

”Enough.”

Yuan Shan let out a long sigh, finally relaxing completely.

Although his words just now were a mess and the content entirely unconvincing, he had conveyed the most important point. For a race like the Blood Clan, where Rank suppression was so overwhelming, casually using the Progenitor’s name to spout such nonsense was truly a low-probability event.

Not to mention that as the legendary First Apostle, Herbert was a famously fanatical follower.

When the man before her wasn’t in the guise of Herbert, his previous attitude might have been a slight possibility. Now, the scales had tipped completely.

This guy had genuinely provided a rather persuasive reason.

...

”That should do it. I have matters I need to go back and arrange.”

Fully satisfied, Yuan Shan stood up to take her leave, even thanking Fu Qian with surprising candor.

”Thanks for the hard work.”

Regardless of whether his attitude begged for a beating, this guy had indeed helped solve her problems.

”Thank you for the hospitality.”

Without waiting for Fu Qian to exchange pleasantries, she turned to Wen Li.

As a newly advanced Tier 4, the latter’s demeanor was remarkably calm.

”Walking the path of the transcendent isn’t about going as fast as possible. Fully digesting your power and accumulating insights is equally crucial.”

While offering this well-meaning advice, Yuan Shan didn’t insist that Wen Li come to her with any questions.

It was obvious that as a fellow demigod, Fu Qian—who had single-handedly designed her advancement ritual—would absolutely be trusted far more than she was.

Though with Eldest Miss Wen hanging around this guy every day, it felt far too easy for her to be led astray.

”Thank you for the reminder. I’ll make sure to fully digest and stabilize.”

Fortunately, Wen Li’s attitude was undoubtedly proper. She listened very seriously and offered her earnest thanks.

...

Chief Yuan was indeed extremely busy with numerous affairs, and she soon left in a hurry.

”Mister Fang, is there anything else you need me to cooperate with for testing?”

Wen Li, however, was extremely clear on her own role, immediately checking if she could still be of help.

”That’s enough. You can go ahead and celebrate your gains first.”

But Fu Qian had already obtained the most important information. He signaled for Eldest Miss Wen to relax a little.

”You’re a Tier 4 now, at any rate. You don’t need to be so reserved.”

Phew!

Before Fu Qian even finished speaking, Wen Li let out a long breath, her face instantly breaking into a bright smile.

”It really feels like a dream. I never thought I could actually do this!”

She had absolute reason to be happy. Only a few hours had passed since Mister Fang arrived. An insurmountable hurdle for countless transcendents had been crossed just like that, almost in a daze.

After it was over, she had even had two demigods help examine her to confirm there were no hidden dangers.

And finally, an incredibly important point—she had actually managed to help Mister Fang!

’I actually might know how you did it.’

Meanwhile, Fu Qian mused silently.

His words just now hadn’t just been him being polite to Wen Li. The advancement ritual had concluded smoothly, and Wen Li had manifested abilities remarkably similar to Eve’s. For him, this was already the greatest harvest.

A certain theory Fu Qian held regarding the path of the transcendent had once again been verified.

Why was it that many people, himself included, could advance without needing materials or potions?

Even for Eldest Miss Wen, the bottleneck had acted as if it didn’t exist at all.

The answer was simple: the materials were likely already inside their bodies.

If the transcendent path of the supernatural route were compared to an increasingly towering building, then Fu Qian had a slightly counterintuitive theory—this building was actually fully constructed from the very beginning.

A transcendent’s self-refinement, or their advancement ritual, was merely the process of discovering and mastering it.

This explained why most low-tier advancements weren’t all that complicated, often achieved in a confused daze.

As for Eve, whom he had crushed to death, she could be seen as a special case—the building itself had come alive and fought to seize control.

This was also why Wen Li’s advancement was so seamless after digesting her; the building itself already possessed a certain degree of self-control.

As for those who hit a bottleneck at a low Rank, it was actually quite understandable. People were different. The limit of the building inside them was only a few floors high. If they wanted to continue advancing, they needed to add the bricks and tiles themselves.

If this theory was true, then the concept of innate talent on the transcendent path was genuinely solid.