Eldritch Horror Theatre

Why did it always feel like the Warehouse was handing out bonuses using an administrator’s part-time wages?

It was no baseless claim. Whatever relationship the Warehouse had with Excellency Father’s Amnion, he himself was practically an old acquaintance of the entity.

Eliminating Yi’an, who walked that entity’s Divine Path; fully exposing everything regarding the Finger Orb to the Night Watchers; and dealing with Ancient One Eckhart in the Realm of Bliss to reduce a thousand-year scheme to nothing... the Warehouse was naturally the mastermind behind all these events.

But aside from mission-related matters, he had also delivered quite a substantial gift to that Excellency recently.

Take the research project in cooperation with the Night Watchers, for example, or seamlessly pinning numerous major incidents onto that entity.

This made him suspect that the desperate straits Excellency Father’s Amnion now faced might be directly tied to the Night Watchers.

If that were truly the case, didn’t this count as the legendary ”you reap what you sow”?

If he hadn’t worked so tirelessly to sling mud at that entity, he wouldn’t be enjoying such a relaxed work environment today.

Furthermore, the strength of the Night Watchers likely needed reevaluating.

They had managed to force a relatively intact higher entity straight into a dead end.That Hongmen banquet waiting for him later was probably going to be quite intense... so he wondered if Excellency Father’s Amnion had left behind anything helpful.

Feeling absolutely no remorse for driving someone into a corner, Fu Qian eagerly retrieved his special reward for this mission.

[Name: Eldest Son’s Vision]

[Type: Special Item]

[An exquisitely crafted, yet slightly stained Gold-Embroidered Ribbon.

Its gold-spun threads shimmered faintly, as if born to draw the eye.

Wearing it will keep you away from pain.]

[Note: Unseeing]

...

Was the Warehouse hoarding its words like gold now?

The description was far too brief, giving off the distinct feeling of an all-around downgrade.

He had practically given up hope on receiving any SAN Value rewards beyond the standard twenty points, yet even this highly anticipated special reward reeked of half-hearted effort.

Not only was the item’s effect vague and brief, but the note was reduced to a single word.

And to think he had actually looked forward to it when he first saw the name.

Fu Qian let out a long sigh and looked down at the ”Eldest Son’s Vision” that had materialized in his hand.

Its appearance was quite nice, at least.

Exactly as described, it was a relatively short Ribbon.

The weight in his hand was far lighter than it looked.

Against a pale pinkish-white base, the embroidered patterns were so exquisite that one had to question if such detail was even necessary; it was practically the embodiment of the word ”gorgeous.”

The only problem was that, true to the description, stains had soaked through in certain spots.

But even these stains shimmered with a pure golden light, making one wonder what on earth had soiled it.

Tears, perhaps?

Fu Qian casually measured it against his face.

It wasn’t a blind guess. Although it was a decorative Ribbon, the word ”Vision” immediately brought eyes to mind.

Not to mention the keywords ”eye” and ”unseeing” in the text.

So did ”keep you away from pain” just mean covering the eyes, pretending not to know what you couldn’t see?

It was practically a case of different tunes played with equal skill compared to the phrase, ”Quick, chase the beggar away, my heart is breaking.” More importantly, it seemed to actually be true.

After holding it up to his face, Fu Qian realized that this method of wearing it was likely correct.

The heavily stained areas genuinely seemed to align with two closely set eyes.

Then, tears shed out of compassion had completely soaked through the Ribbon.

While golden tears were somewhat strange, and the crying seemed a bit too excessive—it wasn’t actually that strange.

He couldn’t forget that eyes didn’t just shed tears; they could also bleed.

Fu Qian was even quite certain that it was blood, because he had seen this Ribbon before.

Mourning God.

...

With the help of Master Yuhun, he had once had the privilege of witnessing the historical moment when the Tyrant fell under siege during the Long Night.

Aside from Dark Moon running interference and the Dragon King taking the frontal assault, there was another absolute core combatant: a white-robed ”God” wielding a Golden Staff and harboring boundless compassion.

And the only accessory on that entity was a Ribbon wrapped around the face, completely covering the eyes.

Blood flowing from those eye sockets had soaked the Ribbon, turning golden as it continued to drip down, while the contrasting golden hair had turned blood-red...

In short, whether it was that visually unique image or the heart-piercing wound caused by the sneak attack, they had left a deep impression on Fu Qian.

So much so that the moment he laid eyes on the Ribbon, the connection immediately clicked.

His primary concern was no longer limited to the reward’s effects, but rather why this specific reward had appeared.

Was Father’s Amnion actually the Mourning God?

The possibility felt far too small.

Not only were their power types clearly different, but the Statue in the Sanctuary just now had even been female.

But if that entity wasn’t the Mourning God, why had the spoils ripped from a mission connected to it ended up being this?

Did a special, profoundly deep connection exist between the two?

That seemed to be the only explanation, but the problem was that during the mission in the Realm of Bliss not long ago, he had concluded that Excellency Father’s Amnion had a close relationship with the Lord of Heaven, potentially even being a subordinate deity of sorts.

From that, one could naturally deduce a conclusion: was the Mourning God the Lord of Heaven?

Unfortunately, this clashed directly with another piece of intelligence he currently possessed—

Ancient One Eckhart was the most devout believer of the Lord of Heaven, yet according to Chief Yuan, the object of Eckhart’s loyalty was undisputedly the Ancient Sun God, the Wheel That Cannot Be Looked Upon. Therefore, the Sun God was the Lord of Heaven.

So could the Mourning God be the Ancient Sun God?

Judging from the strike he had taken back then, Fu Qian felt that this possibility was just as small.

...

So was this some kind of triangular relationship?

Excellency Father’s Amnion was already at the level of a higher entity; surely that entity couldn’t also be a servant of two masters, right?

Aside from the reward itself, Fu Qian always hoped the description would offer some extra intelligence.

However, the scale of the intelligence this time seemed a bit too large, to the point that his existing framework of knowledge was taking a hit.

Beyond all this, there was one more peculiar detail: the issue of the name.

Just ”Eldest Son’s Vision” on its own was fine, but his other harvest this time was the honorific name of Excellency Stomach—Father’s Amnion.

”Father” and ”Eldest Son”—did these two terms carry some deeper hidden meaning?

Honestly, Fu Qian didn’t think they were purely familial terms, but ignoring the connection was just as difficult.

In short, he could only conclude that the subject surrounding the Sun God seemed to have introduced a variable capable of shaking the very foundation of his theories.

And if he couldn’t solve it immediately, he might as well test out how effective this ”keep you away from pain” property really was.

Deeply aware of the principle of more haste, less speed, Professor Fu then wrapped the Ribbon around his head, exactly as he remembered it being worn.