Eldritch Horror Theatre

Had things been flipped upside down? He had to admit, the view was truly bizarre.

Even if it was a ”home” he rarely returned to, for Fu Qian it still had its own familiar feel.

So much so that the moment he looked out the window, he easily came to an abstract conclusion.

That place out there wasn’t ”home.” It was what he used to look up at from inside home—the Red Moon floating in the sky.

If the Half-Step Moon was under his feet, then what was up in the sky?

In truth, ever since his very first Homecoming, one question had always lingered in his mind: why could he still see a moon from the moon?

There was, of course, a simple explanation for that—namely, that the Half-Step Moon itself was merely a kind of illusory realm.

What it meant to the Red Moon was much like what the Abandoned Prison meant to the King of the Abandoned Prison.

In that case, the Red Moon in the sky was like the sun sitting on the throne in the Abandoned Prison—Wait, no. The Tyrant.

Yet precisely because of that, the scene before his eyes felt all the more like an inverted world.The Half-Step Moon had been flipped upside down and hung in the sky instead?

Considering that the Red Moon had left this path home behind of her own accord at his request, this really wasn’t a good omen. It could even be taken as a sign that ”Annalise’s” corruption had already spun out of control.

Could the Red Moon truly still anchor who she was?

Could that hurried invitation on the Archipelago earlier have been ”Mother’s” final moment of lucidity?

From this angle, he couldn’t see the crowd of figures standing quietly on the moon overhead, gazing down.

Still, he had the distinct feeling that if he actually stepped out through this window, it might well deal a fatal blow to that already fragile will.

After all, even her ”child” had taken the other side.

All in all, this prearranged road home no longer seemed quite so easy to walk.

If there truly was no other way out, and it came down to a moment where a choice had to be made—

Then he would have to brace himself to go all out and try to crush the moon beneath his feet outright.

He might even have to lock down every concept tied to Annalise and help the Red Moon make the most violent severance possible.

Still, given how deeply the two names were bound together, the prospects remained grim, making it strictly a last resort.

And he had to admit, this was where the value of a backup plan really shone through. The Seed of Writhing—that safeguard he had planted earlier out of seemingly groundless worry, like the man of Qi worries about the sky falling—now looked like a relatively safe route instead.

No matter what, that thing was inside the Red Moon’s head. It should be able to lock onto the right location much more reliably than this window—or even the Ring.

Fu Qian looked down at the band resting in his palm, its teardrop-shaped gem glittering as brilliantly as ever.

Even if the Homecoming effect was usable when the time came, there was really no telling which ”home” it would bring him back to.

In short, the situation looked bleak, though if one looked on the bright side, at least there was still a situation left to work with.

What he needed to do next was use the less than a day he had left to uncover the secret behind those words.

Yes, the very words tied to the Primordial Moon’s countless schemes—the ones Annalise had treated as her final testament, and which had genuinely tormented the Red Moon for a thousand years.

For a research topic of this difficulty, the schedule was undeniably a bit tight.

Thankfully, as a leading academic figure, he had long since grown used to working under pressure.

Not to mention he had plenty of acquaintances here in Shangjing; what he had said earlier about having connections wasn’t an empty boast.

For instance, even though no person was waiting for him, a cat seemed to be.

Click—Fu Qian pulled the window shut once more, then locked eyes through the glass pane with a black-and-white cat across the street.

...

His Excellency Henry seemed to have lost weight.

What limited knowledge of pets he possessed had all been picked up from the old folks in his residential complex.

Even so, Fu Qian wasn’t about to forget the coat pattern of a Tier 2 contender, a former high-ranking member of the Night Watchers, and a dual Divine Entity Covenanter.

Sprawled out lazily over there, refusing to get up even though the sun had already gone down—who else could that be if not Chief Yuan’s respected mentor, Henry?

Not only had he really hurried over as quickly as Yuan Shan said he would, he had even plopped himself right outside The Bookstore to keep watch?

Such treatment was truly nothing short of flattering.

On top of that, Chief Yuan didn’t seem to be hosting him very well. At the very least, Fu Qian was quite certain that the last time he saw His Excellency Henry in this form, the cat had been a good two jin heavier.

Heh...

So much so that even he, an honorary consultant, seemed to be catching the brunt of the cat’s displeasure.

After trading a look from afar, His Excellency Henry actually turned his head right away, tucking his chin in and settling into a languid posture to go back to sleep. Fu Qian had failed to come out and greet him from afar, so it was only natural for the cat to have a bit of a temper.

Fu Qian didn’t mind in the slightest; in fact, he rather admired that unbothered attitude.

He showed it by mending the fold after the sheep is lost, heading straight downstairs and opening the door—since he hadn’t greeted the guest from afar, he would greet him up close—

”How did you get here so fast?”

Yet just as Fu Qian crossed the nearly empty street and came to a stop in front of Henry, a pair of hands beat him to it and scooped the cat up.

Sizing up the alluring figure before him from head to toe, Fu Qian couldn’t help being taken aback by Yuan Shan’s efficiency.

”Didn’t I tell you to stay put and wait here? I thought something had happened.”

A flicker of embarrassment seemed to cross her face for an instant, but Yuan Shan casually brushed back her hair, regained her composure in a flash, and turned the tables on him.

”I figured you two wouldn’t get here so quickly, so I went and took a little vacation.”

Offering an absurd excuse with a smile, Fu Qian gestured for them to come in.

...

”What did you run off to a place like that for again? As if things haven’t been chaotic enough already?”

Though his excuse left a strange look on her face, Yuan Shan took him up on the suggestion without hesitation, not insisting on heading to Night Watchers Headquarters.

The moment she stepped inside, she went straight to the seat beside the counter, sat down, and voiced her confusion.

As for the cat she had been holding in her arms, he had leaped out even before that, landing on the counter to stare quietly at the shopkeeper’s chair.

Just as he thought—Chief Yuan had a very clear grasp of his movements.

Abrupt as her question was, Fu Qian wasn’t surprised at all.

After he had swaggered off so openly earlier, if the dignified chief of the Night Watchers couldn’t even keep track of that much, she wouldn’t deserve her post.

”I had business to attend to, of course. In fact, I was just discussing that very thing with His Excellency Henry.”

Putting on a slightly serious air, Fu Qian gestured toward the cat on the counter and spouted nonsense without missing a beat.

”...What did you two talk about?”

Yuan Shan was visibly startled. Though her question was directed at Fu Qian, her eyes darted toward Henry beside her, as if hoping her teacher might give her a hint or two.

Unfortunately for her, the only response she got was the disdainful back of a furry head. The way the Old Man turned away yet again made it look as though he had completely despaired of his student’s intelligence. Just as expected—had she rushed over in such a hurry because she was worried he would air her dirty laundry to her teacher while she wasn’t around?

Her reaction couldn’t have made it any more obvious, leaving Fu Qian to marvel inwardly that Chief Yuan remained ever so young at heart.

”Relax, we just exchanged a look,” he explained with a grin, before politely inquiring after his esteemed guest.

”When did the Old Man get here?”