Eldritch Horror Theatre

”That’s right. I am a corrupted existence.”

Fu Qian’s critique was remarkably blunt, yet Henry’s quiet voice carried no hint of offense. He actually seemed to agree.

”Remember what I told you about Blazing Rainbow?”

He looked at Yuan Shan.

”Knowing too much about certain things is never a good thing,” Yuan Shan replied in earnest, clearly remembering the lesson.

”Exactly. To certain Higher Existences, Their very name carries pollution. That is why I once instructed you to watch for any mention of this title.”

Henry nodded and turned his gaze to Fu Qian.

”Blazing Rainbow is an ancient Divine Entity from the Mythological Era. But what makes Her most unique is that She still exists.”

That statement carried quite a lot of information.

One of his goals for this trip was finally being met. Fu Qian praised the development silently.Although he already knew what Old Man Henry was telling them, the implications behind it were crucial.

It was obvious the Night Watchers had a solid grasp of certain ancient secrets. Were they somehow involved with these beings, or simply guarding against them?

”In terms of Rank alone, She sits far above what is commonly understood as Tier 1. She even possesses authority partially akin to the sun.”

”But She isn’t the sun?”

Fu Qian grew thoughtful. In his past dealings with Blazing Rainbow, the entity had indeed displayed authority related to colors, as well as stars.

A connection to the sun made perfect sense.

”No. The ancient Sun God perished long ago, and there are currently no signs to suggest He still exists.”

Having organized his thoughts, Old Man Henry was now dropping massive revelations. Any casual sentence from his mouth contained deep secrets impossible to find in the outside world.

”According to our records, Blazing Rainbow commanded a substantial following during the Mythological Era. She usually appeared as a beautiful woman, and portions of her authority overlapped with the Sun God’s. But of course, all of that ended on that fateful night.”

”They all fell silent. Yet Blazing Rainbow did not perish; She merely retreated entirely behind the scenes.”

”And thanks to the efforts of the Night Watchers, this title—like many other honorific names—was completely erased from public awareness.”

’Just as I suspected. You were the ones behind it.’

That mention of ”efforts” naturally brought to Fu Qian’s mind the opera he had watched in Dunis.

His theory at the time had been spot on.

The tangled, chaotic web of local myths—had they truly been deliberately orchestrated?

Was the goal to shatter the foundations of faith for the myriad ancient deities?

Discussing this very subject inside a Church in the Sacred Night Capital carried a certain ironic charm.

As for poor Hamadus, had that entity managed to slip through the cracks simply by being too weak?

After all, Hamadus technically held the status of a subordinate deity to the God of War.

”Why are you so certain She hasn’t perished?”

Judging by the look on Yuan Shan’s face, this was all new to her as well. Her teacher had clearly adhered to the principle that knowledge was a curse, holding back these dangerous truths until now.

”As I just mentioned, I was polluted by Her,” Henry said calmly.

...

”That is why I remain one of the few people in this world who still knows that title.”

Amidst Chief Yuan’s heavy silence, Henry offered a comforting word.

”But you two don’t need to worry too much. Simply knowing an honorific name will, at most, draw Her attention. Actual pollution requires much more specific conditions. As for the details, I’ll keep those to myself.”

’You don’t need to tell me; I can already take a pretty good guess.’

Listening quietly, Fu Qian shook his head to himself.

’A covenant.’

Based on what he had encountered so far, interactions with ancient higher entities revolved around two core concepts: faith and covenants.

And if the name of the cat he’d met back then wasn’t a mere coincidence, it was hard to believe the man sitting in front of him was just a simple believer of Blazing Rainbow.

Moreover, Henry himself had just mentioned that pollution required ”specific conditions.”

It was highly likely that he had forged a covenant with Blazing Rainbow through some unique method.

Judging by the fate of the proprietress at Dragon Peak Inn, his very essence of existence had been twisted as a result. That was the true nature of pollution.

”I understand now. What Midas fears is Blazing Rainbow looming behind the pollution. That is why you could never be a reader of his story!”

Her teacher’s frank confession clearly weighed heavily on Yuan Shan’s heart, but she pulled herself together, returning to the core of their discussion.

”That’s why you had Fang Xun track down this special entity. As long as he succeeded, it proved he wasn’t a similar carrier of pollution.”

”Correct.”

Henry confirmed her deduction, looking visibly relieved.

”It seems this young man is just a poor soul who happens to know a little too much.”

’What I know might be a bit more than you think.’

Fu Qian let out a small sigh, sensing it was time to show some sincerity.

”I do, in fact, know a bit about pollution.”

”Certain Higher Existences that still possess power can cause a distortion in the transcendents who make contact with Them. This distortion corrupts the very essence of their existence, and it is entirely irreversible.”

Fu Qian deliberately emphasized the word ”irreversible.”

This was exactly what he was curious about.

He had seen what happened to the last traitor with his own eyes.

Given Henry’s stance regarding Blazing Rainbow, he was essentially an upgraded, full-spectrum traitor—yet he was still alive and kicking?

He had reached the Divine Emissary Level under Her, yet somehow managed to slip away cleanly. How on earth had he done that?

”Regardless, it was this exact knowledge that allowed me to deduce your intentions just now.”

”You really do know quite a lot.”

Something specific in Fu Qian’s wording clearly struck a chord with Henry.

”You are correct. Pollution is called pollution because once you take a wrong step, there is almost no going back. But that doesn’t mean you are completely helpless. For instance... you can fight pollution with pollution.”

’A servant of two masters? So that’s his game!’

Armed with his vast reserves of knowledge, Fu Qian instantly grasped the implications of Henry’s subtle hint.

Had this old guy somehow managed to forge another covenant?

To borrow an architectural analogy, it was like making yourself the supporting pillar of one house and the load-bearing beam of another. If the two houses didn’t like it, they could just fight it out amongst themselves.

’Brilliant!’

The sheer difficulty of pulling it off aside, it was certainly a valid strategy.

”Trust me, it feels nowhere near as clever as it sounds.”

Henry scoffed, seemingly able to read Fu Qian’s mind.

”I can tell your Demigod Realm state is already quite stable. I strongly advise you never to consider this path, under any circumstances.”

”That includes your Lantern. I won’t have the Night Watchers pressure you into handing it over, but it would be best if you never knock on it again.”

”Thanks for the warning!”

Fu Qian nodded.

He probably wouldn’t follow the old man’s advice, but the warning was clearly given in good faith.

More importantly, those words confirmed that the crisis triggered by his earlier probing was finally over.

”So he is in the clear?”

Yuan Shan immediately chimed in to confirm.

”As long as he doesn’t speak recklessly, he will be fine. Ideally, he shouldn’t even think about it.”

Henry gave a slight nod.

”Otherwise, Blazing Rainbow just might follow that thread of awareness right to his doorstep. The same goes for you. Oh, right...”

Having delivered his warning to Yuan Shan, Henry suddenly recalled something else. A flicker of genuine embarrassment crossed his face.

”About that last hand... I genuinely thought I had it.”

”It’s fine.”

Fu Qian looked entirely unsurprised.

”Judging by the look Ross gave you, I already knew exactly how terrible your luck at the tables was.”