Eldritch Horror Theatre

”Th... three plans again?”

Even in such a serious moment, Yuan Shan’s mouth twitched as she watched Fu Qian stroke a nonexistent beard.

”Let’s hear them.”

”The worst plan is simple. We reject Gulade’s sincerity and kill this newly advanced Divine Emissary outright. After all, the Night Watchers’ code of conduct is supreme and brooks no blasphemy.”

Completely ignoring Ambor’s suddenly soaring killing intent, Fu Qian offered his counsel on the spot.

”But the problem with this approach is that, while there’s no need for jianghu morality when dealing with demonic heretics like him, and we could just gang up on him in the name of justice...”

”...he is a Tier 2 Transcendent, after all. He currently holds the advantage in timing, location, and manpower. If a fight breaks out, there’s a high probability he’ll escape, and maybe even harm some innocents along the way.”

...

Yuan Shan clearly agreed with Fu Qian’s analysis of a potential escape.

Even with three Demigod Realm fighters on their side, if Ambor was dead set on running, their chances of keeping him here were only fifty-fifty, and the ensuing commotion would be massive.Speaking of which, the worst plan last time had also been to kill Ambor. If she had accepted it back then...

Yuan Shan indulged the memory for only half a second before banishing the stray thoughts from her mind.

Such hypotheticals were meaningless now.

The only thing to blame was this guy’s absurd speed of advancement.

”And the middle plan?”

”The middle plan is even simpler.”

Fu Qian pointed at Serana, whose condition was deeply worrying. Although the Blood Clan possessed powerful regenerative abilities, hers were clearly suppressed; her body was still riddled with wounds.

”There’s nothing wrong with the new Divine Emissary’s suggestion itself. We simply accept it.”

”We sacrifice her, and everything returns to normal. The sun rises as usual tomorrow, and no one else gets hurt.”

”Meanwhile, Ambor’s thousand years of steadfast dedication finally culminate in him shattering the void, becoming a legend for the ages.”

”Every word I just said was a promise.”

Ambor, previously radiating murderous intent, hadn’t expected Fu Qian to offer such an objective analysis. His posture rapidly softened, and he emphasized this to Yuan Shan with absolute seriousness.

”And the best plan?”

Yuan Shan offered no response to his promise, maintaining a cold expression as she pressed on.

”The best plan is to declare this matter too grave for an immediate decision and report it to superiors. In the meantime, we do everything in our power to control the situation and ensure public safety.”

...

The moment the best plan was spoken, both Yuan Shan and Ambor fell completely silent. Even Serana, still struggling in a pool of her own blood, couldn’t help but look over.

”Of course, under normal circumstances, this newly advanced Tier 2 Transcendent definitely wouldn’t accept that.”

Fu Qian pointed at Ambor, completely unfazed.

”His entire performance up until now has been based on the premise that you currently can’t do anything to stop him.”

”And all he wants is your promise. Once you accept, he’ll broadcast the good news as quickly as possible, thereby gaining a recognized safety guarantee to keep you in check.”

”But if the Night Watchers were stronger and had the ability to crush him directly without any risk, he would never believe in a negotiation under those conditions. So if you choose this option, he’s definitely still going to run, and he’ll most likely succeed.”

...

Hearing this, Ambor opened his mouth to speak, but stopped himself. It was clear that Fu Qian’s deduction was flawless.

”Then what’s the difference between this best plan and the worst plan?”

Given past experience, Yuan Shan hadn’t held much hope for his ”best plan” to begin with, but it was so absurd that she couldn’t stop herself from asking.

”Naturally, there is a difference. When you sit in a certain position, your hands are tied. You do everything you can, so no one can point fingers at you.”

”It’s not that our side didn’t try; the enemy just had a Gundam.”

...

”Chief Yuan, Mister Fang is a reasonable man. Please consider this carefully.”

While Yuan Shan remained silent, Ambor made his stance clear from the sidelines.

No matter what, dancing on a tightrope like this still brought considerable psychological pressure.

In the midst of Yuan Shan’s silence, the heavily wounded Serana seemed to give up struggling, turning her bloodshot eyes toward Ambor.

”Did you just say you received the Progenitor’s revelation?”

”Isn’t it obvious?”

Ambor clearly didn’t care what Serana thought anymore. Hearing her question, he answered as if it were nothing.

”To the Blood Clan, the Progenitor’s will is the path to becoming a God itself, and now, I have taken a step further.”

”You’ve probably never experienced that feeling before. In just a single instant, I knew I had received her approval. The Progenitor shared her authority.”

”Though, of course, you’ve already experienced the power of that authority firsthand.”

”...I really don’t understand!”

In response to Ambor’s mockery, Serana only let out a string of low, husky laughter.

”I, too, pursued the Progenitor’s revelation over long, long years—”

”But she didn’t choose you. You never received any response, did you?”

Ambor cut her off.

”Even the revelation that my opportunity lay here in Shangjing appeared within my will, as did the Night of Nights. You can’t refute any of that.”

”And when I came to Shangjing to set all of this up, the Progenitor’s will manifested twice in succession. You saw that with your own eyes.”

”Finally, on this night, I gained the Progenitor’s approval. This is an irrefutable fact.”

”Irrefutable...”

Serana murmured to herself, her gaze unconsciously drifting toward Fu Qian.

Clearly, she had been deeply impacted by that line in the notebook.

The contradiction between the fact that the Progenitor had already fallen and the scene playing out right before her eyes was the true cause of her confusion.

Fu Qian sighed inwardly.

”By the way, Excellency Ambor, might I ask a small question?”

A moment later, he looked at Ambor with absolute seriousness.

”What do you want to ask?”

Ambor became vigilant almost instantly.

Though this was their first meeting, given the style Fu Qian had displayed, Ambor clearly didn’t dare drop his guard.

”It’s very simple. When did you first receive the Progenitor’s revelation?”

...

He hadn’t expected Fu Qian to ask about this at all. Ambor pondered for a moment, deciding that during such a sensitive time, he ought to show a proactive and cooperative attitude.

”Three months ago.”

”Could you be a bit more precise?”

”That is as precise as it gets. The day of the full moon, three months ago, just like today.”

Ambor spoke with absolute certainty.

”...Alright.”

Listening to the increasingly fierce ravings echoing in his ears, Fu Qian sighed and turned back around.

”The worst, middle, and best plans. I wonder what the Chief thinks?”

...

This question successfully drew every gaze to Chief Yuan’s conflicted face.

Living up to expectations, she finally took a deep breath after a fierce internal struggle.

”I’m sorry, but this time, I choose the worst plan.”

’A clear understanding of the world is an education in itself. Sure enough, the Chief hasn’t fully mastered the art of being thick-skinned and ruthless yet!’

Amidst his silent praise, Fu Qian locked his gaze onto the instantly alerted Ambor.

However, the man’s earlier words were still echoing in his mind.

That day, three months ago.

That was the first time he had used the mask to sync to this world, to this Shangjing.