Eldritch Horror Theatre

Classmate Liushuang was still working as hard as ever.

After parting ways with Executive Yama Su halfway, Fu Qian didn’t wander further through the bustling night. Instead, he returned straight to the Laboratory to quietly hide his achievements and fame.

Thanks to his meticulous upgrades, the livability index of this place—scratch that, its scientific research prowess—had advanced by leaps and bounds. It no longer felt remotely as desolate as before.

Almost the moment he stepped through the door, he could sense his research assistant hard at work on the upper floor despite the heavy darkness.

She wasn’t making large movements like practicing her swordplay, but she clearly wasn’t resting either. She gave off the faint impression of sitting in quiet comprehension.

With her continued refinement of the Lucent Sword Heart, she exuded an increasingly crystalline, transparent aura. If not for his current Rank and perception, it would have been difficult to pick out these details—let alone the finer ones.

Careful not to disturb the hardworking student, Fu Qian softened his footsteps and walked to his personal chair.

He had to admit, the intricate, opulent design was actually growing on him.

Inspecting the furniture gifted by the Red Moon and mentally approving of its aesthetics once more, Fu Qian plopped into the seat. He then turned his attention to another item resting in front of him.

Surprisingly, it was just as intricate and opulent.Interwoven with black and gold and dotted with specks of red, its patterns were dazzling, and its overall shape was no less striking.

Even though it was just a box.

That’s right. This new addition, which had suddenly appeared sometime after he left, was a small, square box.

If it hadn’t been so overly ostentatious, one might have assumed that the Warehouse had lost patience during their few days of lost contact and had simply forwarded a mission directly here.

As it stood, its jewelry-box refinement, coupled with a certain perception-masking effect, made it seem far more likely that the Red Moon had stumbled upon another treasure and dispatched its little messengers to deliver it.

Seeing as the recipient wasn’t home, they had simply dropped it off without waiting for a signature.

Click!

The box wasn’t locked. With a soft sound, Fu Qian reached out and flipped the lid open.

“Ah—”

Almost instantly, an agonizing shriek a thousand times more piercing tore through the extraordinary night.

...

It carried no supernatural effects, but it was a genuinely heart-rending scream. It was the most visceral expression of agony and terror, capable of striking a chord in almost any intelligent creature.

Given its soul-piercing penetration and the stillness of the night, even with the Laboratory’s somewhat remote location, it would undoubtedly deliver a severe shock to the slumber of many at the Academy.

It seemed he commanded more presence after all. Demigod Su, the Night Watchers’ esteemed envoy, had only managed to force a handful of people to work overtime tonight. Her impact simply could not be mentioned in the same breath as the sheer reach of this single scream.

The noise had indeed erupted from the box. Sitting right in front of it, Fu Qian bore the absolute brunt of the shriek, receiving a highly effective, mind-clearing jolt.

Yet, as he experienced this Midnight Ominous Cry firsthand, he felt zero guilt about disturbing everyone’s rest. He didn’t even bother to close the lid until the long, drawn-out howl finally faded away.

’How could any of you sleep at a time like this?’

In this autumn of many troubles, the acting Dean of the Academy, the interim spokesperson of Apocalypse, and countless people of insight from various Academies were all racking their brains and working through the night.

Even young students were staying up cultivating, not daring to slack off in the slightest. How could anyone still be in bed at this hour?

Fueled by this sense of righteous indignation, he finally took a clear look at the thing inside the box.

’What is this, a Bone Horseshoe Crab?’

The very first thing that popped into Fu Qian’s mind was what to call it.

It was no divine weapon or magical artifact, nor was it cosmetics or perfume. The object was pieced together entirely from fragments of white bone.

Its structure was rather simple: a flat body and a slender tail, looking very much like the exoskeleton of some ancient creature.

More importantly, this exoskeleton was actually moving.

The shriek just now had evidently been a stress response triggered by the opening of the box, echoing violently from the sides of its curled-up body.

Most notably of all, a faint, almost imperceptible emerald glow lingered between the gaps in the stark white bone.

...

’Those creatures from the Underworld?’

This specific combination of bone and spirit naturally brought to mind a certain mysterious place he had already explored twice.

As well as its inhabitants—the creations that the people of the Linghui Courtyard revered for possessing a Pure Soul.

After having just sent two gifts, it made sense that the Red Moon would take a breather for a while.

Given that this object was sitting on his desk, Fu Qian was much more inclined to believe it had been sent by a certain young talent from the Apocalypse Branch, rather than the Red Moon catching it just because it thought he might be interested.

Young people were full of energy, after all.

”Professor Fu, you’re back.”

Right as he was musing, a greeting came from behind. It was Classmate Liushuang.

The shriek just now had clearly interrupted her cultivation.

However, she didn’t show the slightest hint of annoyance. As she greeted him, she casually flicked on the lights and studied her returning boss with a bright smile.

”Your arm...”

Her gaze immediately fell upon Fu Qian’s tattered sleeve, and her expression turned to one of shock.

Compared to his last return, he looked as though he had just survived a perilous ordeal.

”It’s fine. I have eight more sets.”

Alerted by Ji Liushuang, Fu Qian glanced down and noticed the tragic state of his clothes. He shook his head, gesturing for her not to worry.

Though their focuses were slightly different.

”Did Professor Lisa send this?”

He casually gestured to the box in front of him and asked for confirmation.

”Yes... she brought it over first thing yesterday morning,” Ji Liushuang replied. ”When she saw you weren’t here, she specifically warned me not to mess with it.”

Smiling helplessly, Ji Liushuang peered into the box with open curiosity. This was clearly her first time seeing what was inside, too.

”Is this some kind of transcendent creature? Ah, it’s trying to get out!”

...

Snap!

Classmate Liushuang was right. After its initial cowering, the peculiar creature had clearly perked up.

Although its movements were as slow as an old man practicing Tai Chi, it was already attempting to climb out of the box.

Unfortunately for the creature, Fu Qian didn’t give it the chance. He immediately slammed the lid shut.

”Yes.”

At the same time, he confirmed Classmate Liushuang’s guess.

”It gives off a very unique vibe. Is it Professor Lisa’s latest harvest? When she brought it over, she called it a ’little gift,’ though that scream just now felt more like a practical joke...”

It was clear that, despite having never personally visited that forbidden zone, Ji Liushuang’s deductions were spot on—likely because she had seen the experimental materials in Lisa’s lab before.

”Or perhaps it’s an expression of dissatisfaction with the slack atmosphere at the Academy,” Fu Qian said. ”Why not let her explain it herself?”

Even so, Fu Qian seemed to have no intention of elaborating further. Instead, he casually nodded toward the door.

”Huh?”

Ji Liushuang looked over in surprise. The door, which hadn’t had its mystical restriction activated, was pushed open from the outside, revealing Professor Lisa’s rather smug face.

”Well? How was it?”

She couldn’t wait a single second to ask.

”Fascinating.”

His hand resting on the box, Fu Qian considered it for a moment before earnestly giving it a positive review.