Chapter 1198: The Stick Insect of the Sacred Night Capital (4)

"Teacher, I've brought him."

Compared to their first visit, Henry's extreme vigilance clearly placed Yuan Shan under considerable psychological pressure.

But since they were already here, she ultimately braced herself, stepping forward to greet him without breaking her stride.

...

Then, a moment later, the tension spiked even higher.

Even after her greeting, her teacher surprisingly remained silent, staring intently at the man she had brought.

The profound darkness in his eyes gave the distinct impression that he might strike at any second.

Not expecting the atmosphere to be this tense right off the bat, Yuan Shan quietly took a breath and shot a worried glance at Fu Qian beside her.

"A pleasure."

Yet, even under such oppressive pressure, this frivolous demigod dressed like a circus performer showed no trace of nervousness, simply smiling and nodding at her teacher.

This calm demeanor was rather infectious. Yuan Shan's heart eased slightly for a moment, and she naturally recalled a certain memory.

Back when this guy wasn't even a demigod, he had delivered himself right to her door, openly admitting to trespassing in the Restricted Zone directly to her face, completely unconcerned about being swatted to death.

Thinking about it, that moment and this one were, in a sense, strikingly similar.

"Teacher?"

Of course, this brief reverie didn't delay her actions.

A moment later, Yuan Shan stepped a bit closer and softly prompted her teacher.

"Mister Fang... a pleasure."

Old Man Henry seemed to finally react, slowly opening his mouth to return the greeting.

However, as he spoke, he never once broke his scrutiny of Fu Qian. He even narrowed his eyes, his gaze growing sharper.

On top of that, the darkness that had been permeating the air since they arrived was clearly extending further outward.

A moment later, out of the corner of her eye, she saw the believers beneath the Sacred Emblem silently stand up one by one, end their prayers, and leave the Church.

In just a few moments, the magnificent Great Hall became completely empty.

Surprisingly, Old Man Henry Campbell didn't take the two of them to the quiet room in the back for a detailed chat like last time. Instead, he had directly shooed away the believers to create a much more spacious venue for conversation.

"I've heard quite a few things from Yuan Shan. It's obvious you've been a great help to her."

After doing all this, Henry's posture turned instantly amiable, even revealing an elder's kindly warmth.

Of course, as the person involved, Fu Qian wouldn't be fooled by this facade.

The omnipresent sense of contamination in the surroundings had reached a density that surpassed even their last meeting.

Dismissing the innocent bystanders and choosing a spacious venue—this man was clearly prepared for a fight. He lacked the patience for idle chatter they'd enjoyed last time.

He hadn't even thanked him for what he did to Logan, had he?

"It was an effortless favor. So, how is Old Man Logan doing now?"

Fu Qian blinked.

It didn't matter. If he wasn't going to offer thanks, Fu Qian would just remind him.

"Logan is... recovering quite well now."

Fu Qian's active attempt to claim credit obviously felt a bit bizarre, but after a brief hesitation, Henry ultimately gave an honest answer and took the opportunity to express his gratitude.

"Speaking of which, I still must thank you."

"Oh? For what exactly?"

Unexpectedly, faced with this common polite phrase, Fu Qian followed up with incredible naturalness.

...

"Thank you for teaching him a little lesson. Otherwise, that guy's brain would have completely atrophied."

The strange conversation in the Church was like a slippery loach, liable to veer off course at the slightest misstep.

Fortunately, Old Man Henry was no ordinary person and actually managed to follow his train of thought.

Excellent!

Worthy of a man of faith. Even in this situation, the old man still treated others with sincerity.

Fu Qian was extremely satisfied with this answer.

For him, this trip was certainly a meeting with the old man, but more importantly, it was a meeting with the Blazing Rainbow.

If that Higher Existence intended to interfere with the promotion on this special timeline, then there should be no more suitable channel than Henry.

And the old man's usual straightforwardness would clearly minimize any interference with his observations, which was comforting.

"So Excellency Logan's condition has completely stabilized?"

At this time, Yuan Shan, who had been thoroughly shocked by their exchange, finally couldn't help but interject.

"At least his sanity has recovered quite well."

Only then did her mentor finally glance at her and give a slight nod.

"That's wonderful..."

Despite the eerie atmosphere, Yuan Shan subconsciously expressed her joy at the news, taking the opportunity to try and ease the tension.

"So... how did you know the title Blazing Rainbow?"

Unfortunately, Old Man Henry had no desire to wait for the mood to settle, asking directly in the next breath.

...

Not expecting the topic to shift so rapidly, Yuan Shan's heart instantly leaped into her throat as she looked at Fu Qian with worry.

Or rather, at his waist.

Her teacher might have suppressed him in terms of Rank, but at such close range, the combination of the Handbell and a pistol undoubtedly carried a significant threat level.

And in this situation, her teacher was obviously much sterner than he appeared. If this guy misspoke even a single word, it wouldn't be surprising if a fight broke out at any moment. She couldn't even imagine what the scene would look like then.

She had to do everything she could to prevent that. She hoped this guy could be a bit more tactful.

"It's simple. I've had some dealings with It before."

The next moment, under Chief Yuan's anxiety-ridden gaze, Fu Qian nodded with utter naturalness.

'What the...'

A curse merely flashed through Yuan Shan's mind for a split second before quickly melting into a violent shudder.

Looking from this angle, the originally quaint triangle on that red and gold Sacred Emblem was actually stretching into an arc, faintly resembling entangled human bodies.

This wasn't a test. Her teacher was actually going all out!

How did things escalate to this degree all at once!

Faced with the sudden surge of filthy distortion, Yuan Shan made no attempt to flee. Black ribbons instantly erupted, wrapping around her body layer after layer, quickly sealing every part of her airtight.

However, she still seemed unsatisfied. The ribbons continued to wrap around her frantically until even her perception began to be affected; only when the two men close at hand grew blurry did she feel slightly at ease.

And right at this moment, through her all-out perception, Yuan Shan could sense that Fu Qian, who was sitting beside her, was looking down at his hand.

More details had already grown blurry, but she could guess what he was looking at.

This gloom that even light couldn't illuminate wasn't as simple as merely suppressing a person's movements.

...

What a truly unique sensation!

Looking down to examine himself at this moment, Fu Qian was similarly clicking his tongue in wonder in his heart.

He was looking at his left hand.

This body part fraught with misfortune was currently undergoing a wondrous transformation.

His five fingers were becoming the exact same length and thickness.

Even his thumb had gained an extra joint, falling in line with its siblings.

This wasn't the most crucial part.

As a task runner, what methods of twisting the mind and even the flesh hadn't he seen? It was merely five fingers.

The crux of the matter, however, was that as he watched this change, he actually didn't feel any sense of incongruity.

Deep down, he seemed to believe that his fingers were always supposed to be this long.

Such rational changes were currently taking place all over his body.