Eldritch Horror Theatre

Stripping an administrator of their Transcendent power, only to produce a real Transcendent?

That went far beyond merely tying one’s own hands.

Complaints aside, Fu Qian didn’t actually attribute this to the Warehouse having a sick sense of humor.

Based on his past experience, whenever the Warehouse imposed new restrictions, there were usually unspoken reasons behind them.

The classic ”it’s for your own good” routine.

So what Fu Qian was curious about was this: if the Warehouse truly deserved his charitable assumption, what kind of power was behind this to exert such immense influence?

He didn’t know.

This was clearly the hidden puzzle of the operation. Since there were no answers to be found just yet, he might as well keep the question in mind while he worked.

”It’s really there!”

Fu Qian didn’t stand alone in the dark for long. An exclamation from the Ruthless Guy soon rang out behind him, proving that he possessed the same ”talent” to see the anomaly.A rapid succession of car doors opening followed as Butters and his companion stepped out almost simultaneously to stand beside him.

”It’s actually real... Strange. Even with such thick walls in the way, it doesn’t stop me from seeing it, or even hearing it...”

The Ruthless Guy’s awe hadn’t ended. He simply stared at a corner of the building, muttering to himself, his mounting excitement almost palpable.

’Ironclad protection had its drawbacks too, huh.’

Seeing this reaction, Fu Qian could only sigh inwardly.

It was obvious that precisely because they had been protected so well, most ordinary people—while spared from devastation—completely lacked an understanding of the terrifying side of the transcendent realm.

When stumbling upon a bizarre entity like this, a person from the transcendent realm might not deny its potential value, but their first reaction would absolutely be to suppress the voices in their head to avoid mental corruption.

That being said, even a professional like himself didn’t have a solution for it at the moment.

”Oh, so what did you hear?”

Amidst his silent musings, Fu Qian maintained his posture without turning his head and asked casually.

...

”I can’t make it out. It sounds like someone is talking, but no matter what, I just can’t hear it clearly.”

To his surprise, the one who answered was Butters, the organizer of the operation.

”It was exactly the same when I first discovered it. Even after I went back and raked my memory over and over, I couldn’t glean a single piece of information from it.”

It was obvious from his tone that he could hardly conceal his excitement over the reappearance of this Miracle.

”I wasn’t lying to you, was I? It showed up even earlier than the last time I encountered it.”

The next moment, Butters looked triumphantly at his two teammates, especially the Ruthless Guy.

”Then what are we waiting for?”

The latter’s attitude underwent a complete one-eighty. Without voicing any further doubts, he simply turned right back to the car and pulled out a rather handy Crowbar.

”There’s no need for that either.”

Admittedly, the portable door-breaching tool in the Ruthless Guy’s hand suited his temperament perfectly, but Fu Qian merely glanced at it before signaling that it wasn’t necessary.

In the short time they’d been standing there, he had already assessed the state of the door lock. It could still be cracked with a bit of technical finesse.

Without even waiting for the Ruthless Guy to reply, Fu Qian stepped forward and stood before the nearest side door.

...

Correctly complete all scenarios.

Just as he had noted earlier, these Containment Conditions seemed open to multiple interpretations.

And up until now, it was still entirely unclear what ”correctly” actually meant.

Regardless, considering that Butters was the protagonist of the previous scenario, playing along with his plan for the time being—and even ensuring his survival if necessary—seemed like a reasonable course of action.

”Where is the party happening?”

Wasting no time, by the time a surprised Butters and his companion caught up, Fu Qian had already slipped a piece of wire he’d swiped from the car into the keyhole. As he worked, he tossed out the question like casual chatter.

”Huh? You’re actually interested in that?”

This time, it was the Ruthless Guy who was taken aback.

It was obvious that he wasn’t entirely convinced by ”Mister Wolf” yet. Although he didn’t try to push ahead anymore, he hadn’t put away the Crowbar in his hand either.

’So it really is before the party, huh?’

”So, are you interested?”

Having instantly gleaned the information he wanted, Fu Qian shot back in his usual emotionless tone.

If he remembered correctly, Brother Ruthless was nowhere to be seen at that party.

”Hard to say. It’s mostly kids’ stuff, but it wouldn’t be half bad to have a place to grab a drink,” the Ruthless Guy snorted. He didn’t sound particularly opposed to the idea.

”So, you still haven’t gotten it open? Maybe I should just do it.”

A moment later, he impatiently flashed the Crowbar in his hand.

”Not at all. I just wanted to see if anyone would beat us to the punch and come out from the inside.”

Shaking his head, Fu Qian shoved the door in front of him.

Amidst a slightly piercing screech of friction, the door swung open, abruptly halting before it was even halfway open, as if snagged on a warped floorboard.

...

He had unlocked it ages ago and was just checking for movement inside?

At that moment, both Butters and his companion instinctively stared at the wire in Fu Qian’s hand.

Clearly, ”Mister Wolf’s” sheer professionalism had once again expanded their horizons.

”The voices seem louder.”

Fu Qian paid their shock no mind. He simply pocketed the wire and shared his observation.

Even though the voices were manifesting directly in his mind, they genuinely sounded like they were coming from inside the house. The moment the door opened, the noise grew noticeably louder—though it remained just as unintelligible.

But that didn’t matter. The effect was still remarkable.

At a glance, the darkness inside the building was far deeper than the night outside. Yet, after a brief moment of stupor, the Ruthless Guy didn’t say another word; he simply hefted his Crowbar and charged straight in.

Fortunately, amidst his rapid, heavy breathing, he hadn’t forgotten to turn on his Lighting Equipment.

”We need to hurry. If we wait too long, that thing might just disappear.”

Butters looked slightly more composed by comparison. Watching the Ruthless Guy bolt inside, he muttered a rather flimsy excuse to himself.

Without waiting for Fu Qian to weigh in, he hurriedly chased after him.

Despite being left in the dust right after unlocking the door, Fu Qian wasn’t annoyed. In fact, he completely understood their behavior.

Because he could clearly feel it—as the voices in his head grew louder, a certain compulsion grew stronger alongside it, filling him with a frantic urge to rush toward that glowing object that practically brushed the ceiling.

A classic case of mental influence.

He might be able to suppress it through sheer willpower, but expecting two ordinary humans to resist was asking far too much.

The Ruthless Guy held their only Lighting Equipment. Watching the two men round a folding staircase one after the other and vanish behind another door, Fu Qian gave his eyes a moment to adjust to the pitch-black darkness before following closely behind.

Even so, without any locked doors in their way, the two men ahead moved at an unbelievably frantic pace.

By the time Fu Qian reached the room he had pinpointed from the outside, he was greeted by a jarring sight—a solitary figure standing there.

Butters stood holding the light in his left hand and a Crowbar in his right. Meanwhile, Brother Ruthless had completely vanished without a trace.