Eldritch Horror Theatre

Because of this, the complexity of Old Man Weilong’s emotions seemed much more understandable.

As mentioned before, while he was banished, the Academy’s peaceful years had continued to roll on.

For example, the invitation he had issued before leaving Linghui Courtyard had indeed been received by the guest student, Wen Li.

And she had actually come straight over to visit, acting like someone who couldn’t wait to show off her results—which she indeed had.

”Welcome.”

With a gesture, Fu Qian invited the young prodigy to sit wherever she liked.

This was what it truly meant to Look with New Eyes After Three Days Apart.

On the one hand, she had truly progressed in leaps and bounds; on the other, without looking with new eyes, he wouldn’t be able to confirm it.

Power always lay in how it was used. Even though his Transcendent Perception was gone, he still had ways to verify Classmate Wen Li’s condition.

The specific method was exactly what the idiom implied—looking with new eyes.He was now the hundred-percent genuine King of the Abandoned Prison, meaning he could wield his Calamity Authority without any restrictions.

Without needing to assume his Mythical Form, pupilless orange eyes would automatically appear above a target’s head, functioning as far more than a simple curse to amplify damage.

The effect was, of course, purely straightforward; he didn’t use it to pry into deeper secrets.

But this thing acted like a laser radar, boasting a startlingly precise side—such as the speed at which the eyes opened.

Different transcendents naturally had varying resistances to different types of power, but they generally followed the rule that a higher Rank meant stronger resistance.

For instance, the speed at which the eyes opened above Eldest Miss Wen’s head right now was much slower than they had for Classmate Liushuang.

Although there was already a difference in Rank between the two, in Fu Qian’s view, a mere gap between Tier 4 and Tier 5 was nowhere near enough to cause such a disparity—this was the difference between a God and a mortal.

Of course, fast and slow were always relative; an increase from one millisecond to two milliseconds was still a hundred-percent extension.

To the authentic King of the Abandoned Prison, the Calamity Eyes above both their heads had basically snapped perfectly round in an instant.

In short, this authority belonging to the Tyrant could easily be used as an alternative sort of probe, and an extremely precise one at that.

The only problem was that the probe’s intensity was also exceptionally high; he had to be careful not to accidentally poke someone to death.

...

Linghui Courtyard was quite wealthy, after all. They had actually managed to forcefully push Wen Li into taking this step, making his earlier guidance well worth the effort.

Naturally, Eldest Miss Wen herself had worked very hard, cooperating flawlessly.

He was just scanning and evaluating her; he obviously wasn’t going to actually detonate it. Having reached his conclusion, Fu Qian controlled the Calamity Eyes, making them quickly shut tight again.

”Are you getting used to staying here?”

Offering the casual greeting, Fu Qian walked past the two of them and found his luxurious leather chair.

Both his research assistant and his visitor were very considerate, carefully leaving it empty for him.

”Um... not really.”

However, that casual, polite remark seemed to trigger the visitor’s homesickness.

Wen Li shook her head slightly, her expression odd.

”I’ll go get another cup.”

Seeing this reaction, Ji Liushuang didn’t hide the curiosity on her face either.

After all, the scene of Professor Fu failing to kidnap her and being sternly rejected was still vivid in her mind. No matter how she looked at it, their conversation shouldn’t be this natural and harmonious.

Even Professor Fu’s earlier greeting had carried a rather casual tone...

Vaguely realizing there might be another interpretation of the situation, Ji Liushuang smiled and stood up, offering to prepare some tea for her boss.

”Thanks for the trouble. Feel free to speak.”

Having roasted by the fire for so long, a cup of tea was exactly what he needed to soothe his throat. While accepting the favor, Fu Qian gestured for Wen Li to continue.

She obviously had a problem on her hands.

No matter how abundant Linghui Courtyard’s resources were, it was hard to imagine them forcefully dragging a Tier 4 onto the path of the demigod in just a few short days.

Especially since this Tier 4 had only just advanced a few days ago.

Subjective initiative had its limits. Without sufficient knowledge and informational support, most attempts to ascend to the Demigod Realm were essentially like buying a lottery ticket.

But facts speak louder than words. Why were they still able to accomplish it?

Simple. It wasn’t them; it was Master Yuhun who did it.

That being, who understood the ancient and modern worlds and treated them all as mere delusions, was likely an entire dimension ahead when it came to figuring out rituals.

...

The path of the transcendent was fraught with immense peril—that was no empty talk.

When he suggested that Classmate Wen Li hand over the remnants belonging to Liliana, it was naturally meant to be both an opportunity and a danger for her.

Her earlier progress had been astonishing, and Linghui’s actions had seemed slightly aggressive. This had led him to harbor some negative suspicions about one of the Four Colleges of the Academy, prompting him to interfere a little.

In essence, Wen Li could also be considered a probe he had thrown out to test whether he was overthinking things.

Admittedly, even if he wasn’t overthinking it, the outcome might still be a good thing for her, but the inherent risks couldn’t be ignored.

It was just like the resolve Wen Li had shown when she decided to accept the Invitation Letter and come to the Academy.

And the final result proved that her resolve had indeed come in handy.

When visiting Linghui, Old Man Weilong’s excessively low-profile attitude made it obvious to even a blind man that he was holding back a major move, preparing to shock the world.

In response to this outcome, he had done three things.

First, he had used the Decree of Return to disturb the foul energy Linghui Courtyard had accumulated over the years, aiming to strike the grass to startle the snake.

Second, he intentionally damaged the architecture to serve as a marker and confirm his banished state.

Third, he invited Wen Li over again, looking for a chance to confirm more details through her condition.

As for why Wen Li had actually come over so readily, even managing to come alone?

That was equally simple—why would he have invited her if there wasn’t a problem?

For him to make a special trip to their door just to do that carried the unspoken message that things had gotten serious, and she didn’t need to think about anything else but coming straight over to deal with it.

Of course, facts proved that this Child of Destiny was truly no joke.

The disturbance caused by his Decree of Return had actually been a massive success, instantly initiating the Inner Demon Deathmatch.

And by the time she was describing her symptoms here, the root of the disease had already been resolved.

...

To be honest, he couldn’t entirely confirm what state His Excellency Master Yuhun was currently in.

No matter how tyrannical his strength was, pulling out five alternate personas at once to assist the glorious return of the King of the Abandoned Prison must have put him under extreme pressure.

But to say he would just die like that? Fu Qian, who always respected the vitality of Psychic Type practitioners, felt the probability wasn’t that high.

Therefore, the moment he stepped out of the Abandoned Prison, he had been trying to find his own ”inner demon.”

After all, the rules of the deathmatch were clear: whoever lost would receive the Inner Demon Brand.

It was a pity there was still no movement; he had thought he was about to gain a massive new database.

While his lack of Transcendent Perception was certainly a factor in this, he still felt that the other party’s situation was highly intriguing.

”The mentors at Linghui Courtyard have always been very attentive to me. After I went back from here last time, they put in an immense amount of effort, even expending all sorts of precious materials and Items...

”And in the end, they actually succeeded in digesting that thing. In the words of my mentors, I have already begun to touch upon divinity.”

Realizing she didn’t need to hide anything, Wen Li didn’t hold back. Frowning her pretty brows, she delivered a rather shocking statement.