Eldritch Horror Theatre

”So what put you in such good spirits today?”

Not long after, Student Wu stepped through the door and immediately voiced his unconcealed shock.

”To come all the way out to my place.”

”Someone’s treating us.”

Lounging lazily in his seat, Young Master Qin pointed across the table and gave a remarkably concise explanation.

”Exactly, with a side of safety advice.”

As the person in question, Fu Qian fully owned up to it, his tone entirely sincere.

”Alright... I see the food isn’t here yet, so how about we start with the advice?”

Wu Qingyu’s earlier question had obviously been more for venting his own shock. Nonsensical as the answer was, he had absolutely no intention of wasting brainpower trying to understand it.

”How much time do you have?”The moment this time-management suggestion came up, Young Master Qin let out a sigh tragic enough to draw tears.

”Eighteen minutes... seventeen now.”

Student Wu looked entirely numb to this reality, reporting the time with pinpoint precision.

”Alright then, let’s start with you.”

Fu Qian was readily accepting good advice. He nodded and looked the medical intern up and down.

”No problems here. Keep up the good work, strive hard, and you’ll have a bright future.”

”Thank you, Grandmaster. I just pray I live long enough to reach that future.”

This just proved why Madam Kisaragi Chie could be considered a second-rate diviner. By casually applying her core tenets of reading a person’s expression, the client accepted the reading instantly, without a single complaint.

Of course, Fu Qian wasn’t just spouting nonsense. Even though Student Wu looked like an exhausted husk, a close-up diagnosis from a newly ascended Tier 2 confirmed there was genuinely nothing wrong with him.

”I’ll pass on a reading. So, why did you two come looking for him?”

Now that Student Wu had safely taken his seat, Young Master Qin finally looked toward Tan Ying, showing interest in the exact reason for all this.

”Yanqing encountered something strange.”

After a chain reaction of bizarre tangents, the conversation finally seemed to steer back on track.

Tan Ying nodded at Pei Yanqing beside her, gesturing for her to share her recent experience.

”I just thought it was a bit strange...”

Having had plenty of time to calm down, Pei Yanqing’s emotions were noticeably steadier. Finding herself suddenly the center of attention, she recounted the dream with a hint of embarrassment.

”I’ve had nightmares before. But this time, the concept of bugs was already deeply upsetting, and more importantly, the sheer anxiety of absolutely needing to find them... I don’t think I’ve ever felt anything like it in a dream before.”

’You haven’t, but someone else has.’

As Pei Yanqing frowned in recollection, Fu Qian quietly observed Tan Ying sitting beside her.

Tan Ying inadvertently revealed a look of deep sympathy, as if a profound resonance had been stirred deep within her heart.

Fu Qian found this completely understandable.

Back when he was paying her compensation for cooperating with his tests, she had also served as a dream’s Existence Core.

Of course, due to her dreaming state at the time, her awareness of the process was nowhere near as clear as Pei Yanqing’s.

’Could that be the reason she thought of looking for me first?’

”I can only say... it’s hard to understand without experiencing it firsthand.”

Young Master Qin was clearly a staunch materialist warrior. After hearing the full account, he seemed entirely unable to empathize with Pei Yanqing’s feelings.

Frowning slightly, he also appeared completely baffled by Tan Ying’s choice of consultant.

”If you were really worried about hidden psychological issues, having Xiao Yu help you find an old expert or something would definitely be the right medicine for the job. Why was your first instinct to come to this guy?”

”What’s that supposed to mean? Looking down on us young experts, are you?”

Before Tan Ying could even open her mouth, the very first person to react to Young Master Qin’s doubt was the target he had just pointed at.

Fu Qian gave a cold snort, radiating a perfect ”do not bully a young person in poverty” attitude, vowing to demand justice for himself.

”Because he’s a professional... Anyone who can cultivate that many wealthy female clients must obviously be a master of female psychology.”

In the brief moment he had caused a distraction, the slightly dazed Tan Ying snapped back to reality. She offered her reasoning without batting an eye, even tossing in a casual compliment about Fu Qian’s career development.

”...I can only say, I believe in a woman’s sixth sense more than ever now.”

Young Master Qin listened to this incredibly sound and logical argument with utmost admiration.

After all, during their earlier small talk, Fu Qian had personally admitted that he had only just returned.

”So, young Expert Fu, do you have any solutions for this situation?”

Taking the medical intern’s tight schedule into account, an array of dishes had rapidly arrived at the table the moment Wu Qingyu sat down.

While gesturing for him to dig in, Young Master Qin didn’t forget to satisfy his own curiosity.

...

”I do.”

Faced with this minor test, Expert Fu didn’t even blink. He simply snapped his fingers and beckoned for Pei Yanqing to look his way.

By the time everyone turned their attention to him, a pale gold Handbell, about the length of a forearm, had already appeared in his hand.

It was even covered in deep scratches, looking as if it had been violently clawed by some sort of adamantine cat.

”What is that?”

Its appearance undeniably packed a significant visual punch.

Before the patient could even speak, Tan Ying was already the first to cry out in surprise.

”The Mind-Purifying Universal Benevolence Bell.”

Fu Qian answered smoothly, casually turning it over in his hand to signal there was no need to be nervous.

The item was naturally the sedatives, and of course, it wasn’t something he had been carrying on his person.

He had simply taken a quick trip back to the Warehouse.

This retrieval method, which even the adamantine cat master and apprentice hadn’t been able to see through, was naturally impossible for the few ordinary people in front of him to detect.

”...So, you’re planning to ring a bell to exorcise her?”

As it turned out, the audience hadn’t even fixated on how he had produced it.

The sedatives undoubtedly radiated an ancient, solemn aura; one look was enough to tell it was no ordinary object.

Holding it upside down by its handle, Fu Qian suddenly looked somewhat like a witch doctor, sparking a flurry of wild imaginations.

Even Student Wu was looking him up and down, completely forgetting to eat.

”Ringing the Handbell... I suppose you could say that.”

Answering his question, Fu Qian gave a slight nod and motioned for the patient to lean in closer.

...

Faced with this exceedingly bizarre development, it was obvious Pei Yanqing felt some subconscious resistance. However, thanks to the excellent reputation Expert Fu had built up on a daily basis, she eventually hovered slightly forward in her seat.

She made up her mind that no matter what eerie sounds she was about to hear, she would cooperate and finish the treatment so as not to waste his good intentions—

Thunk!

At the muffled sound the next instant, she froze on the spot, staring blankly as Fu Qian pulled the Handbell away from her forehead.

”What’s going on... Aren’t you supposed to ring it?”

Everyone else in the room had nearly the exact same reaction. Ultimately, Tan Ying was the first to break the silence, expressing sheer disbelief at what she had just witnessed.

”I did ring it.”

Seemingly unable to understand Tan Ying’s fuss, Fu Qian turned the Handbell around to show her the damaged interior.

”Here, physical mind-purifying and universal benevolence—how do you feel?”

He directed that last question toward the patient.

”Um... I think I’ve calmed down completely.”