Chapter 2982: The Art of Self-Nourishment

It really was all-encompassing.

What should have been a laboratory looked like a dojo.

And hidden directly at the top of this dojo-like place was a human head.

He could only say that this rapid succession of shifts didn't break the immersion—it actually thickened the atmosphere.

Especially upon realizing that the head and the person behind him seemed to be the exact same person.

'I worship myself?'

The head was still swaying, looking remarkably lifelike.

As an expert in flesh and blood, Fu Qian could easily confirm that the thing was the genuine article.

Comparing it to the Blue-Robed Old Woman behind him only confirmed that it wasn't just a matter of mere resemblance.

It looked exactly as if it had been plucked right off her neck when she was younger.

Just as he thought—those two brains belonging to Old Man Ji Feng back in the Warehouse might very well both be real.

'Here's a perfect example, isn't it?' Fu Qian clicked his tongue in wonder, his mind rapidly expanding on the idea.

"What do you think?"

The old woman, however, seemed dissatisfied with him keeping his marveling to himself. After scrutinizing her youthful face for a few seconds, she once again asked for his impressions.

"She looks a lot like you did when you were young."

Fu Qian not only answered smoothly, but he also told the absolute truth.

Compared to that gang of robbers in masks from before, the old woman was clearly no simple character.

Not only did the Vision Radar read her strength at the Demigod Level, but how many people could maintain such a tranquil bearing when staring directly at their own severed head?

Yes, the old woman was a transcendent. He could tell the moment he walked through the door.

But aside from her high Rank, it honestly wasn't all that surprising.

In such an abstract place, why should one assume by default that the "travelers" couldn't be transcendents?

Not to mention the implicit connection that likely existed between the Academy and this Tower before them.

Even from Su Gao's reaction, he could tell she didn't consider this an anomaly.

"How would you know? Have you seen me when I was young?"

The Blue-Robed Old Woman, however, was clearly dissatisfied with Fu Qian's assessment and actually demanded he provide the basis for his judgment.

"I have."

But when it came to logic, how could Professor Fu ever be bested?

Nodding immediately, Fu Qian even narrowed it down to a precise timeframe.

"Going by your facial features, you looked about ten years older than this head, and about twenty years younger than you are now."

...

He could tell that the old woman was thinking hard, racking her brain to recall when she had ever crossed paths with such a character.

And then somehow failed to kill him on the spot, allowing him to live to this day.

"What a pity. I don't seem to recall you," she said. "Did we talk about anything at the time?"

Unfortunately, her efforts were in vain. She gave up after a moment and stared intently at Fu Qian for verbal confirmation.

"Hmm... let me think." Fu Qian genuinely sank into his memories and began to recount them in a leisurely tone.

"You seemed to be quite a fanatical racist who looked down heavily on our friends in the reptile class.

"You had zero interest in knowing her name, even referring to her as a beast... Later on, you straight-up silenced her, not letting her speak at all.

"We had a fairly pleasant conversation, though. We both shared a mutual disdain for the vile custom of celebrating funerals, and you even warned me that my friend was mentally unstable and suggested I take her to get her head checked."

Hmm...

True knowledge is found in the details. As Fu Qian told his story, the old woman's expression gradually shifted from her initial disdain to something far stranger.

It seemed that, even to her, those sounded exactly like things she would actually do.

"...So, when was this?"

After a brief silence, the old woman didn't rush to refute him; instead, she lowered her voice to confirm the details.

"Just this week, actually. In a place much like this one."

His answers were as smooth as ever. Fu Qian even pointed around the room, offering an extra detail free of charge.

"You're lying. Why don't I remember that at all?" As the Blue-Robed Old Woman's expression shifted repeatedly, it was actually the hanging severed head that lost its composure, suddenly opening its mouth to snap back at him.

As it spoke, its eyes snapped open, revealing irises the color of blood amber. Its gaze stabbed into Fu Qian's face like a dagger.

"Perhaps because... it happened in a space-time that no instrument could ever detect?"

Both the words it spoke and its exact accent served as yet another proof that the two heads belonged to the very same person.

However, even when faced with being called out to his face, Professor Fu didn't panic in the slightest. He pondered for a brief moment before telling the absolute truth.

Yes, an academic researcher had to remain honest. Every sentence of his previous description had been completely true.

It had happened less than a week ago, inside Professor Lisa's laboratory.

The second flare-up of his Etched Intellect had caused him to cross paths with a Demigod-level old woman, whom he suspected to be a senior from the Academy.

Completely unaware that the laboratory had already changed owners, she not only spoke with the absolute confidence of a host, but even relentlessly belittled Professor Lisa.

When he had first seen her face downstairs, he hadn't been entirely certain.

Now, comparing her to this younger version, he could easily use the squeeze theorem to confirm that she was indeed the exact same person he had met.

Besides, it made perfect sense for a senior of the Academy to be inside the Academy's Tower. It made everything seem much more reasonable.

As for why this Tower and this person had appeared at the Birthday Party, Fu Qian felt he was finally starting to form a theory—

Theoretically, this senior of the Academy must have been one of the members of the exploration team back then, right? And she must have ultimately perished in the Ash Sea?

And if he remembered correctly, the aftermath of the Ash Sea incident had been jointly handled by the Night Watchers and Li He, the Academy Dean at the time.

...

The Birthday Party was feeling less and less like a simple gathering place for the higher-ups of the Night Watchers.

The remnants of an incident cleaned up by the Night Watchers' brass had somehow manifested in this phantom "crowd" that flickered in and out of existence...

What was the exact mechanism behind the Birthday Party's unique metabolism?

How exactly had the higher-ups of the Night Watchers handled that accident back in the day?

Could their specific cleanup methods have directly led to this bizarre scene unfolding before him?

As these thoughts raced through his mind, Fu Qian once again felt deeply satisfied with his itinerary.

These questions seemed like a bit of a tangent, but they were actually closely tied to this trip. Why had he been given the special treatment of being torn to shreds after entering the Birthday Party?

For his Tier 1 ritual, this was undoubtedly a core issue.

According to the conclusions he had drawn earlier, it shouldn't have much to do with his identity as an outsider. It was highly likely tied to his unique Tier 2 Form.

But why would his False God form subject him to being torn apart? He was clearly still lacking the answer to that follow-up question.

But right now, the scene in front of him seemed to offer an opportunity to search for an explanation from a different angle.

"Nonsense!"

Also, perhaps because she was reduced to nothing but a severed head, one could see that the younger version of the old woman had retained a fair amount of her humanity—her temper was even worse than her older counterpart's.

Just as a look of confusion crossed the older woman's face, the severed head let out a cold snort, her expression full of disdain.

"Heh... Nonsense?"

Unfortunately for her, such a verbal attack was clearly directed at the wrong person.

Fu Qian shot her a glance. Finally deciding to stop holding back, he instantly swapped to a look of utter arrogance.

"Standing before you is a Lifetime Professor of the Academy Apocalypse Institute, the head of a university-level key laboratory, and an official temporary consultant for the Night Watchers. Who do you think you are?"