Eldritch Horror Theatre - Ch. 23: Thug
Almost the exact instant Wen Li was kicked away, a violent force swallowed the spot she was previously standing on.
Fu Qian watched helplessly as Wen Xiuxian's head ballooned up like a balloon, until his entire body exploded into a cloud of red mist.
Everything happened in a flash. After kicking Wen Li away, Fu Qian stepped forward to block the angle and solidly crashed into this Flesh Storm.
A massive tremor erupted. The fierce impact made his internal organs tremble.
Not only that, the storm seemed to be mixed with countless tiny spikes, frantically tearing at everything around them under the boost of powerful kinetic energy.
Three seconds later, the storm dissipated.
Fu Qian lowered his head and raised his left hand.
Below his shoulder, the skin was completely gone. The flesh and blood underneath were riddled with holes, and gleaming white bones could be seen in some places.
I never even suffered an injury this bad in Mortal Kombat! The power of this thing is pretty decent! Within the radius of the Flesh Storm, there was nothing intact. Even the half wall that was caught in the blast had turned into a honeycomb.
These assassins are truly resourceful to be able to whip up something so lethally powerful! However, although the injury was heavy, it wasn't fatal.
Expressionlessly, Fu Qian straightened out his exposed blood vessels.
The next moment, he kicked apart the crumbling wall.
Gathering his strength and borrowing the recoil of the violent force, he instantly passed through the gap, flashed to the side of a person outside, and delivered a flying kick.
It's you! Whether it was Wen Xiuxian or not, that attack just now wasn't something an ordinary person under Hypnosis could execute.
Fu Qian didn't believe these assassins were dedicated enough to sacrifice their lives to complete a mission. There had to be someone nearby controlling it remotely.
That's why, while bathing in the Flesh Storm earlier, he opened all his senses, missing no traces, and successfully locked onto an aura.
Right now, the owner of the aura was mingling among the bodyguards rushing over upon hearing the commotion, walking outwards.
Boom! A kick carrying violent force, as fast as lightning and with terrifying momentum.
The target could no longer pretend. Twisting his body, he unexpectedly elongated by a segment instantly, and then his body dodged this fatal blow in a bizarre posture.
However, what greeted him was a mangled, bloody hand.
SquELCH! Like a crushed tomato, Fu Qian's left hand—which was almost entirely devoid of flesh—struck the opponent with a genuine Nine Yin Skeleton Claw on the spot.
[Thug: Digestion Progress 1/3]
[Aggressive as fire, sweeping like a thunderbolt. Congratulations, you have begun to grasp the essence of the Thug.]
When the target in his hand completely stopped struggling, a prompt rang out by Fu Qian's ear.
At the same time, a warm current flowed through his entire body.
The feeling from when he first used the Thug form reappeared, only the intensity was far greater than before.
After a violent wash of vitality, the exposed bones actually faintly emitted a metallic luster.
The next moment, flesh grew, the wounds healed rapidly, and in the blink of an eye, the bones were covered once more.
Digestion progress one-third? Fu Qian took a deep breath. He was very certain he had undergone a new rebirth.
If he were to do it again, he was confident he could send that Mr Ji to his grave within ten seconds.
But according to this, my Thug form has only just begun. Even now, I've only digested a part of it? Aggressive as fire, sweeping like a thunderbolt... refers to my performance in killing this assassin just now? Or maybe it was all my past performances. And these are called the essence of the Thug. In that case, the way to digest the Thug form is to turn myself into a Thug. Interesting! Just 1/3 strengthened me this much. I wonder what I will become after achieving 3/3 complete digestion. Fu Qian silently grew expectant.
Tossing the corpse on the ground, he retreated back indoors through the original path.
He glanced at Eldest Miss Wen Li. The latter was struggling to crawl up from the ground.
The Flesh Storm's radius wasn't too large, and with him blocking in front, she didn't suffer much damage.
But there seemed to be blood on her forehead. Could it be she hit it when he kicked her away?
I can't be too demanding. I'm not a professional nanny, so I can't guarantee she'll remain unscathed every time. He had to admit, the one who died in the line of duty outside had quite professional methods and extremely strong concealment.
He just felt Wen Xiuxian was a bit weird just now, so he took an extra look at Wen Li.
This girl's ability could perceive the emotions of the people around her. Being father and daughter for so many years, she should find it easier to notice any anomalies.
Sure enough, Wen Li might not have realized it herself, but her doubtful expression proved she also subconsciously felt something was wrong with Wen Xiuxian.
"Are you okay?"
Wen Li barely stood up supporting herself on the wall, asking Fu Qian with a trembling voice.
"Was that..."
"Probably an assassin."
"But he looked like my father."
"It can't be ruled out that it really was your father."
Considering the opposing assassins were skilled in techniques like Hypnosis and disguises, the probability of Wen Xiuxian being caught, processed, and sent over after leaving the house in the morning was indeed not small.
This woman, Wen Li, wasn't stupid. There was no need to help her console herself.
"No... Father shouldn't have come back so soon..."
Wen Li subconsciously muttered to herself. Suddenly, she froze in place, stiffly bending down to pick up an item.
It was a watch mangled by the explosion, covered in countless tiny honeycomb-like holes.
A wail of agony rang out, and a familiar notification chime sounded by Fu Qian's ear.
[Containment Failed]
[Shattered Mind. Wen Li has lost the possibility of advancement.]
……
Are you fucking kidding me! Returning to the Warehouse, Fu Qian stared speechlessly at the sky for a minute, feeling his joy of leveling up somewhat diluted.
Wen Li didn't even die and I still failed? Discovering the deceased was indeed Wen Xiuxian, an emotional breakdown was understandable.
But Shattered Mind... did she just go straight up insane? Silently selecting the event replay, Fu Qian quickly watched his journey up to this point at multiple times the speed, and finally came to a conclusion.
Escort missions are really a no-go! Thinking back, this mission seemed to lack the Wolfmen, Evil Gods, and the like from before, but the level of danger was even greater.
The Wen Family was glorious on the surface, but was actually surrounded by crises. She herself was as fragile as glass; wanting to survive was genuinely not easy.
Now there was even a possibility of failing without her dying.
Covering two people at the same time was much harder than covering one.
Furthermore, neither Wen Li nor her dad were the sort of characters who would easily be manipulated by others. Trying to make them obediently follow arrangements wasn't easy.
The situation was complicated.
Fu Qian stared at the black-and-white cocoons on the Fog Door.
When a matter has thousands of threads, and twists and turns full of pitfalls, the best solution isn't to bite the bullet and push forward, but to change the line of thought.
For instance, Asura Mode.
[Consume 1 point of Sanity Value. Attempt containment again.]
[...1%...3%...10%...50%...98%...100%. Containment Scene loading complete.]
"Don't look around!"
Team Leader Gu's familiar voice rang out.
Looking at the intact Wen Family mansion, Fu Qian took a deep breath.
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