Eldritch Horror Theatre

’Here I thought an Academy professor stepping up to the front lines would have some grand insight to offer, and after all that, your answer is just the rod?’

Threatening to beat an innocent bystander to death right in front of law enforcement was a staggering display of sheer nerve.

Even in her shock, Yuan Shan was fairly confident he wouldn’t actually go through with it.

Still, after days of dealing with him, Professor Fu carried such an aura of anything-goes unpredictability that she couldn’t help picturing the scene anyway.

And in all fairness, crude and brutal as it was, that kind of extreme pressure might actually work.

If there really was no other way to start, throwing an extra death threat into the mix at least added a fresh element to the ritual.

”I see. Where on earth did you pick up a method like that?”

Understanding the logic didn’t keep Yuan Shan from frowning and pressing him on it.

”The Sword Comprehension Institute, of course. Don’t you know how those cultivation types are always locking themselves away in secluded meditation? No coming out until they break through.”

Fu Qian laid the tone on thick, never missing a chance to play up his credentials as an academic.”...He just threatened to beat you to death, and you have nothing to say?”

People who constantly flaunted their degrees and titles were never easy to like. Seeing how little effort Fu Qian made to hide his Academy background even in front of Serana, Yuan Shan let out a sigh and turned to the silent Blood Clan Demigod.

”How could taking another step along the Transcendent Tier path ever come without risk...”

Serana, as it turned out, took it remarkably well, making it clear she fully understood Professor Fu was only doing it for her own good.

”And... thank you both for your help, Your Excellencies.”

Not only that, she followed up the next moment with a deeply earnest expression of gratitude toward Yuan Shan and her mentor.

No matter how bizarre the scene was, or whether there was an element of coercion in the mix, anyone could tell that two figures of their stature showing up like this meant well.

To say nothing of the fact that His Excellency Henry could easily have kept quiet about how to draw the gaze.

”Don’t mention it. If Gulade—or the whole Blood Clan, for that matter—can finally produce a Tier 2 with a working brain, I’d be more than happy to see it.”

Yuan Shan simply waved a hand, her words blunt and candid.

Clearly, this pretentious, long-lived race didn’t enjoy the highest reputation in her book.

”This will very likely make your trip in a couple of days much harder.”

Before anyone else could speak, her eyes were already back on Fu Qian.

”As if it isn’t hard enough already?” he shot back with a dry chuckle.

So he really had never once considered playing the model citizen. After pushing and pulling things this far, he clearly couldn’t care less about tacking one more black mark onto his record.

Yuan Shan shook her head, confirming that the man truly practiced what he preached.

”How are you holding up?”

Dropping the subject, she turned back to Old Man Henry to make sure the help he was about to offer wouldn’t take a toll on him.

”It won’t affect me much, or her either.”

Henry sounded quite confident, even making a point of stressing how safe his assistive measure was compared to Fu Qian’s approach.

”It won’t cause any distortion to the self, so there’s no need to worry about it raising the odds of failure.”

...

”Understood. That was indeed one of my concerns earlier. The Progenitor is quite sensitive to the purity of flesh and blood.”

With her own vital interests on the line, Serana not only listened intently, she answered with equal candor, admitting that despite their goodwill, she really had been worried about that exact issue.

”I need a moment to prepare. Would you all mind waiting for me a bit?”

With her misgivings laid to rest, she looked around at the group for permission.

”Thank you. I won’t be long.”

Once Yuan Shan gave an affirmative nod, Serana wasted no words, rising briskly and stepping through a small side door.

”Will this really work? How come I’ve never heard you mention it before?”

In a place this quiet, stepping into the next room wouldn’t stop someone of the Demigod Realm from hearing every word they said.

Even so, Yuan Shan didn’t bother lowering her voice, frowning at her teacher as if suspecting he had been holding out on her.

”I’m not certain it’ll work. I just think it’s worth a try.”

His prized student had been on the back foot all evening—or to put it less charitably, played like a fiddle by this venomous schemer.

Yet even under those circumstances, she hadn’t forgotten her duty or given up on herself, fighting stubbornly the whole time to get a grip on the situation and shoulder the responsibility.

Old Man Henry was visibly pleased with how Yuan Shan had conducted herself, and he took the time to address her concerns seriously.

”This is called Dark Tide.”

The explanation even came with a live demonstration.

As he spoke, Henry reached out a hand and lightly tapped the air.

A strange sight unfolded at once. Though his fingertip was spotless, it looked as if invisible ink were hidden inside it.

From the exact spot his finger came to rest, an eerie patch of shadow bloomed outward, dimming the visibility across the entire transept by a notch.

And the light wasn’t the only thing that darkened. Taking the brunt of the ripple head-on, Fu Qian almost thought he caught the scent of blasphemy.

Yes—it went far beyond anything a word like stench could cover.

The sole purpose of that thing’s existence seemed to be smearing a clammy, greasy film of filth over everything it touched.

The silver lining was that it passed in a flash, receding from the point of contact like an ebbing wave.

All in all, the name Dark Tide really suited it.

”Its effect isn’t what you’d call friendly, but it has one distinct property: the tremor it sets off is omnidirectional.

”It reaches far beyond the physical space in front of us, extending into more abstract concepts... dreams, and even will.”

The Old Man didn’t mince words either, openly admitting that the stuff was worse than just unpleasant to look at.

”On top of that, while it may grow faint, it doesn’t fade away easily... So I’m thinking I can use it to rig up a broadcast for her.”

...

That made sense. The logic held together.

Listening to Old Man Henry lay it out, Fu Qian had to admit you really couldn’t underestimate the wisdom of the older generation.

He had invited these two guests along on a whim, and they just happened to have the exact means to help. It really was a neat bit of coincidence.

Especially since Old Man Henry’s ability looked to have nothing whatsoever to do with the Blood Clan.

Now, it turned out to be a case of creative application. The nature of the power didn’t match at all, yet the Old Man was confident he could pull off a ”cosmic broadcast” for her.

When the Progenitor couldn’t be reached through bloodline ties, this really was a solid fallback plan.

And it also made it completely clear why the Council advised Henry against using this ability.

Spraying filth across every plane and channel at once was definitely a bit too negative for those ”guardians of the world.”

Beyond that... Fu Qian rubbed his fingers together, taking in the strange lingering feel of the Dark Tide.

’So the other entity Old Man Henry bound a covenant with really is The Abyss?’

In that moment, his mind went back to the mission where he had met all those predecessors—and the scene where he had tossed a cat right into a frog’s mouth.