Eldritch Horror Theatre

’My old friend’s voice and face remain vivid. How could this seat not reminisce about the past?’

Fu Qian activated the Resplendent Tyrant for a simple reason: his body would expand along with it.

Once, in the arena, he had used a similar move to brutally tear the Taboo Crocodile Demon apart with his bare hands. That was what formally began his bond with Elder Lu.

Facing the ripples left behind by the old man, responding in this form was the only way to express his heartfelt regret.

Furthermore, given the current situation, the Resplendent Tyrant offered more than just visual flair.

For one thing, as mentioned earlier, this sudden spew of vile fire had immense reach. Dodging it would actually be quite troublesome.

The Laboratory was also full of various rules. If he accidentally violated a restriction like ”do not climb the walls” while trying to evade, the resulting damage could be far worse than if he just stood still.

In fact, Fu Qian chose the latter.

But while standing still, how could he minimize the impact?

Even with what was theoretically a Demigod Realm physique, acting too recklessly was still unwise.This was where the wondrous utility of the Resplendent Tyrant came into play.

Beyond confusing cores and twisting the roots of disaster, it possessed another unique property: a special suppressive force against conceptual phenomena.

It was best not to let the Tyrant know you were a dream illusion or something similar, otherwise the destruction would be doubled.

Ultimately, the results were quite excellent.

The moment the surging impact drew near, it seemed to cower before the Tyrant’s majesty, unexpectedly revealing a hint of timidity.

Not only was its direct impact heavily diminished, but even the subsequent bone-clinging burns barely scorched past his dermis.

Finally, beyond all that, there was a hidden effect—a higher entity’s dream, was it? Then this seat would crank up the intensity.

The Resplendent Tyrant’s pressure was far from directed solely at this spew of fire; it weighed more heavily upon this entire remnant dream.

In a certain sense, Master had indeed found the right person. Professor Fu had plenty of methods to deal with places like this—and it seemed they were already taking effect.

It was hard to say if this was because the underlying code had been completely reset, but the twisting power took effect exceptionally quickly this time.

Specifically, the monster’s head—which had paused to rest after tiring itself out from spitting fire—was rapidly concealing itself.

However, the massive lump connected behind it failed to hide completely as it had before. Instead, it shifted into a state resembling optical camouflage.

At first glance, there seemed to be nothing there, but one could actually tell it was just blending into its surroundings through light refraction.

This change continued to ripple outward. In just the span of a breath, the outline of a colossal behemoth was revealed.

’This is fucking half a year old?’

As the saying goes, sometimes seeing too much isn’t a good thing. At that moment, Fu Qian noted that the seemingly empty corridor was actually already packed full.

Countless strip-like appendages, supple as if boneless, were tangled together in bizarre ways, resembling an intestinal obstruction caused by parasites.

Regardless, even though its sheer mass was on a completely different scale, it looked far too similar to that previous cluster of tentacles.

No matter how one looked at it, it had clearly been eating far too well recently, resulting in some gratifying growth.

As for why pressuring the dream had managed to force it out into the open?

It was simple: it had exposed itself far too easily.

As mentioned earlier, when that thing sustained damage from his counterattack, the entire space seemed to tremble.

Fu Qian was quite certain it wasn’t the result of an impact on the Laboratory itself, because not a speck of dust had fallen.

It was the dream itself trembling. This creature was highly bound to this place.

Combined with its current reaction, there was even reason to suspect it was the very reason this dream still existed.

And if that guess was true, what this thing harbored was likely far more complex than mere divinity. Old Man Lu’s vigilance back then had been justified.

Rumble—

Of course, this wasn’t the time to shower anyone with praise.

He had just remarked that not a speck of dust had fallen, yet an unnatural rumble suddenly erupted right above his head.

As debris flew everywhere, Fu Qian was instantly showered with it, entirely due to his currently towering height.

Once the dust settled, he saw another massive lump descending from above in a sneak attack.

After crashing through the ceiling, it was steadily caught by Fu Qian with a single hand.

’Heh, this seat has wandered the jianghu for many years. Aside from always remaining vigilant in times of peace, how could I forget a petty trick like a feint to the east and strike to the west?’

It was as casual as raising his hand for a high-five. Fu Qian was not the least bit dissatisfied with this warm welcome.

He even upheld the principle of maintaining a firm handshake. In that moment, his fingers transformed into thick tentacles, reversing the hold and grasping the attacker tightly.

Unfortunately, some simply couldn’t handle too much enthusiasm. The sneak attacker seemingly suffered from a touch of social anxiety; instead of continuing the assault, it began to frantically pull away.

’Wait a minute. Doesn’t that thing look a bit familiar?’

Refusing to let go despite its dizzying struggles, Fu Qian adopted an almost sadistic posture, thoroughly admiring his own villainous act. Within that writhing mass, he scanned a rather unusual silhouette—Boom!

While he was still searching through his memories, that thing abruptly split open, and a truly overwhelming shockwave poured down upon him once more.

Unlike the falling rubble from before, this time it was a bone-piercing chill.

’It really is old man Kikuchi. I remember his hand having this exact shape.’

Moreover, even though this thing had grown so massive in just a few months, its moral education had clearly been neglected. Sneak attacks, feigning surrender, a feint to the east and strike to the west—from start to finish, it was full of nothing but cheap, underhanded tricks.

Bathed in that refreshing chill, Fu Qian confirmed his own memory once again.

That unusual silhouette was exactly like Old Man Lu’s beast head—it was clearly the remains of something it had yet to fully digest.

—

As for its source, it was none other than the second member of that duo, Kikuchi.

Back then, his signature frost breath had caused him no small amount of trouble.

In addition, what had occurred in that split second could already be clearly understood.

Although its sneak attack had failed, it hadn’t actually been in any rush to retreat. While pulling and struggling against his grip, it had shockingly launched a second ambush—Boom!

Wait a minute, that made three times now.

At that exact moment, Fu Qian noted that the flames from down the corridor were also surging toward him, effectively forming a deadly crossfire.

’A double whammy of ice and fire?’

’Ever since I helped you two make your debuts, I knew you’d end up taking this worthless path.’

As everyone knew, water and fire weren’t actually all that easy to neutralize. What was far more likely to occur was a violent explosion.

Instantly caught in this pincer attack, Fu Qian noted that surviving this lethal trap would cost him much more than just his dermis.

He might have activated the Resplendent Tyrant, but the attack methods of the two elders were also far beyond the level he had encountered previously. They had similarly undergone a Sublimation of divinity.

His skin popped and crackled, his muscles were seared and melted away strand by strand, and even his bones emitted a crisp cacophony, like large and small pearls raining down upon a jade plate—

Yet, in that moment, Fu Qian only sighed, looking on as if he were helplessly watching old friends stray down the wrong path.

Amidst his deep regret, countless tentacles exploded from his body in all directions. He was like a radiant sun of flesh and blood, an organic sun swearing to cleanse all the darkness in the world.