Eldritch Horror Theatre

Decisive action, firm resolve.

It had to be said—the combat literacy displayed by the Nightmare Guards was far superior to that of the awakened ones, who couldn’t even coordinate a basic gang beating.

In that short span of time, their seemingly simple retreat after a failed ambush happened for one reason alone: they had underestimated their target’s strength.

First was their exceptional concealment.

Compared to that initial puddle of mud on the ground, the stealth capabilities of the guards who had quietly surrounded him were an absolute dimensional strike.

Even he only sensed them the moment they prepared to strike.

Since he was already preaching the gospel, he conveniently used the opportunity to leave a shocking impression.

Their tactical thinking was also clear. They had first sat back and watched his conflict with the awakened ones, letting both sides wear each other down.

Then, seeing the situation fall into a stalemate and his enlightenment spreading like wildfire, they immediately launched a merciless attack.

Beyond that, he could clearly feel they were significantly stronger than the three possessed ambushers from earlier.If someone was struck by a Black Arrow, even outside a vital spot, the only difference was how quickly they dissolved into mud.

If not for his warning, Lady Raven might have been the only one left standing after that first volley.

Upon realizing his energy consumption was nowhere near as high as they expected, and that his Combat Power was even more absurd than his previous showing, they decisively abandoned the unthreatening awakened ones to focus entirely on him.

Finally, the Class Representative who chose to lead from the front had used the information gap to create a perfect opening to attack, only to be outplayed in turn. After personally evaluating the damage values inflicted upon him, he directly chose the strategy of ’wind is tight, pull back’. That, too, could be called decisive.

It didn’t take much thought to know that once this person got away, he would use this latest strength assessment to gather even more elite troops and launch another ambush.

For Fu Qian, of course, that would undoubtedly be a welcome sight. He could meet more Class Representatives belonging to the Nightmare faction.

But it still wasn’t good enough.

As he had noted earlier, time was tight; he needed maximum efficiency.

For instance, helping this person get back faster.

Amidst a massive boom, the Crystal Giant Arm and the Black Armor slammed violently into each other.

...

Although he was bleeding heavily and the force of this strike could not be mentioned in the same breath as his peak condition, the body beneath the armor still shattered along with it, spraying into the air.

However, just like the Black Arrow from earlier, every single fragment dissolved into black arcs of light before hitting the ground, converging into a breathtakingly gorgeous display of fireworks.

This brutal scene undoubtedly shocked everyone present.

The exchange happened so fast that more than one fleeing awakened one couldn’t help but look back.

Yet, despite their commander being killed, the Nightmare Guards remained perfectly calm.

The few who had leaped down after him used the opportunity to return to the top, retreating rapidly alongside the rest of their squad.

Aside from another volley of Black Arrows raining down to pin their target, they left absolutely nothing behind—not even a parting threat.

Professional.

Fu Qian looked up at the night sky once more, silently praising them.

”Are you... specifically here to deal with them?”

Lady Raven, who had managed to hold her ground and not flee, wore an incredibly complicated expression.

Her plan, which she believed was entirely under her control, had been met with wave after wave of drastic changes.

By the time everything had completely spiraled out of control and the situation seemed hopeless, the threat had suddenly vanished without a trace.

In truth, she wasn’t the only one feeling entirely at a loss.

Upon realizing they didn’t need to keep running for the time being, the other awakened ones couldn’t help but exchange meaningful glances.

Obviously, they had been subjected to a great deal of enlightenment today, and none of it was easy to digest.

What their future held, how they could avoid the fate of the people on the ground, and what would happen in ”reality” to the four who had been hit...

Even though their long-standing fears had been confirmed, they only felt even more lost.

Under the sway of these emotions, more than one person actually felt a faint urge to listen to the gospel once more.

Unfortunately, just as Lady Raven’s question received no response, they never heard the apostle’s voice again.

Without a sound, the figure gazing up at the night sky simply vanished from where he stood.

He really didn’t seem to care about their reactions...

Realizing this, the entire group was left feeling hollow.

...

’This direction looks a bit familiar.’

In the silent night, Fu Qian’s figure continued to Blink.

Because this place was even more bustling than the real Laerdin, the altered Blood Crusade lacked no springboards for movement.

He had used this exact method to vanish from the sight of the awakened ones just moments ago.

As mentioned before, Fu Qian had absolutely no need to waste time conversing with them.

And now, he quickly realized he seemed to be heading toward Laerdin’s West District Church.

Although, in the dead of night, he couldn’t actually see the church’s towering silhouette.

As for how he determined the direction?

It was simple. The Class Representative who had been on the verge of escaping just now was pulled back by the Thread of Attachment.

At this moment, the ethereal trail that only he could see pointed precisely in this direction.

Just as he had mentioned helping the man return faster, while that strike had been vicious, it was never meant to kill.

Because of the negative effects of the Turbulence on his body, Fu Qian possessed a special perception of the life states around him.

He was fairly certain that even if these Nightmare Guards had appeared in their true bodies, as long as he didn’t use Visceral Attack, they wouldn’t die easily.

Given the circumstances earlier, the Class Representative’s words and actions were so resolute that on-site communication was practically impossible.

So, Fu Qian simply made his choice: send this squad leader back in the flesh to deliver a message.

And through the effects of the Thread of Attachment, it would be extremely easy to track down the core members of the Nightmare Guards—who now had a proper understanding of the current situation.

This would make the subsequent communication far more efficient, helping them reach their maximum potential.

An organization dedicated to maintaining the Nightmare and fiercely rejecting the power of the Law from reality might just provide information that exceeded the value of the Celestial Sphere Cult in the real Laerdin.

As for the objective of this trip, the legendary Proxy, Fu Qian believed there was a very high probability that they were connected to this organization.

Fu Qian was confident that his recent rampage couldn’t possibly have gone unnoticed by the Proxy meant to stop the Nightmare from bleeding into reality.

And whatever he did next would surely leave an even stronger impression on them.

Of course, if they were truly unrelated, it didn’t matter.

Completing the mission was never the primary objective this time anyway.

...

Emerging from the shadows, Fu Qian—who had long since retracted his wings—walked past a couple who had served as a springboard and took in the sight before him.

It really was the location of the West District Church.

However, at this moment, the magnificent architecture was completely gone, replaced instead by a tranquil lake.

And the trail left by the Thread of Attachment pointed straight down into the pathless depths of the water.

Silently, Fu Qian was already submerged, having chosen the watery path.