A Core Ship From The Start

After finishing the exterior shots of the Western-style house, the film crew entered the interior.

The house was old, and although the main door was intact, the lock on it was almost useless, opening with just a light push. The crew quickly entered the hall of the house to begin the next stage of filming.

The entire hall was simply furnished. Besides the spacious hall, there were connections to the East Mansion and the West Mansion on either side, with stairs leading to the second floor at the front. Although many years had passed, perhaps due to renovations by the second owner, the house appeared surprisingly intact.

However, the most striking feature was not the house itself but a statue standing in the center of the hall!

"What is this thing?"

One of the crew members muttered under their breath while staring at the statue, feeling uneasy, as did the others. It was understandable; this statue was—unsettling!

It's not unusual for a wealthy family to have statues in their home, but generally, these are of angels or holy beasts.

Yet this statue before them looked extraordinarily bizarre!

It had a head resembling an alien cucumber and a centipede-like body standing upright. With six clawed hands in a wild gesture, it looked neither like an angel nor a demon beast but more like some alien monster!

This was why everyone felt uncomfortable. Imagine having two stone lions at your doorstep—nobody would think it's odd.

But having two alien sculptures at your doorstep... how unsettling is that?

"Professor? Could you tell us about this sculpture...?"

The host quickly stepped forward, curious and questioned. The old professor stared at the statue dumbfounded, then shook his head after a moment.

"This does not seem to be recorded. I'm not quite sure... but judging from the inscriptions on the pedestal, it should be some kind of demonic image from Buddhist scriptures."

As he spoke, the professor pointed to the base, where everyone noticed Buddhist scriptures etched beneath the statue.

"But why not carve a Buddha statue directly and instead use a demonic image?"

"That... I don't know."

The old professor chuckled, steering the conversation away. The rich often have peculiar interests, and such things aren't uncommon. Of course, it couldn't be openly discussed on a variety show, so they simply moved on. The host casually inquired but, seeing that the old professor did not intend to answer, let it go.

Duanmu Huai, however, stared at the statue, frowning slightly.

Duanmu Huai couldn't identify what the statue depicted, but he was sure it represented some form of alien life!

Could it be that this place was the work of aliens?

If so, Duanmu Huai understood why he couldn't perceive its presence.

After all... different categories.

In the world of Cthulhu, there are three major threats.

They consist of Outer Gods, The Ancient Dominator, and alien life forms.

Among them, Outer Gods pose the greatest threat but generally don't bother you if you don't disturb them.

The Ancient Dominator is relatively tricky because they constantly crave to reclaim their lost glory and power, so they're proactive in causing trouble—objects Duanmu Huai often targets.

Alien life forms, then, are literally beings from beyond the stars.

However, these aliens aren't simply like Green Orcs or Space Undead, nor like Star Spirits. Instead, they resemble terrifying and mighty entities like the Star Gods!

Relatively weaker ones like Miguel, Flying Polyp, Xia Chai Worm Tribe, and Old Ones are closer to the concept of aliens in sci-fi films.

But the strong ones, like the Star of Colours, are almost at catastrophe level—well, except for the great Race of Yith.

Of course, in the world of Cthulhu, these alien beings are all classified as monsters,

And importantly, these alien creatures are not only bizarre-looking; they possess particularly strange and powerful abilities, which is crucial!

But if that were all, it would be tolerable. The issue was, before these people arrived, Duanmu Huai had secretly searched the entire house with his Thousand Eyes and found nothing!

That made it a bit tricky.

Duanmu Huai isn't afraid of tangible creatures. Burrowing Demon Worms are formidable, but if he wants to kill them, it's not hard. He would fight them head-on. But facing non-corporeal beings, Duanmu Huai feels somewhat powerless. With elusive entities like the Star of Colours, he wouldn't know where to hit even if he wanted to, which is the most troublesome!

Now Duanmu Huai thought that what might be here was something like an energy being similar to the Star of Colours, making his options very limited.

Unless it gathered enough power to reveal its true form, like the Star of Colours, otherwise, Duanmu Huai would be battling wits with the air.

Quite literally.

Damn, such spooky nonsense is the worst.

Duanmu Huai cursed silently, retracting his perception and diverting his gaze from the statue. By this time, the film crew had finished shooting the scene, and it was time for the exploration team—the actress and the crosstalk actor to make their entrance.

"Wow, this place is really creepy."

Upon entering, the crosstalk actor exaggeratedly shouted, while the actress looked around uneasily.

"Ugh... that statue is just terrifying..."

Of course, the exploration of the filming process had naturally begun. Then the director came over and handed each of them a portable camera under the camera, indicating for the two of them to explore the entire mansion.

"Whoa, director, you're not serious, are you really sending us in?"

At this moment, the crosstalk actor was already so scared that his face turned pale, his legs trembled, and he almost wanted to leave first — of course, this was all part of the act. The reason they chose to participate in this show was because it was also a way to increase their own fame. If they performed well in the show, they would win the audience's approval, which would naturally benefit their acting careers.

Being a crosstalk actor is inherently a comedic occupation, so his exaggerated style, similar to a comic strip, was acceptable.

"Alright, don't be so nervous, we'll have someone to protect you."

As he spoke, the director pointed to Duanmu Huai.

"He will be following you all the time, so you can rest assured."

The actress and the crosstalk actor both looked at Duanmu Huai, who stood not far away wearing sunglasses, and their faces turned pale — yeah, they didn't need any acting skills for this, just acting naturally would suffice.

"Great, now we can feel relieved."

The actress also breathed a sigh of relief, repeatedly patting her chest. Her public persona was that of a pure, gentle girl, who was sweet and innocent. According to typical scenarios, the actress ought to move forward and get closer to Duanmu Huai, showcasing the charm of a delicate girl. However, looking at Duanmu Huai's iron-like build and a face more menacing than any mobster seen in movies, the actress dared not approach him, and merely nodded timidly at Duanmu Huai before maintaining her distance.

"Alright then, let's go."

The crosstalk actor said this and went directly toward the East Mansion, followed by the actress, Duanmu Huai, and two other staff members.

As for the remaining staff, they stayed in the hall to start organizing the footage that had been shot earlier.

"Everyone, be careful, make sure to shoot every necessary part thoroughly."

Sitting on a chair, the director was also holding a megaphone to direct others, because shooting needed a lengthy process, with lots of footage to cover. It's not like what viewers see on TV, where just shooting the main character's scenes wraps things up. Earlier, in the hall, the crew first shot the hall footage, and then had the host and guests come on stage.

"Rumble rumble!!"

Suddenly, accompanied by a thunderous noise, the outside suddenly darkened, followed by pouring rain swept into the hall with a gust of wind. Instantly, the materials and papers in the hall flew all over the place. Although the staff hurried to secure their items, the director, upon seeing this scene, brightened up.

"Great, this rain is just what we need. Did you capture it, photographer?"

"Captured it."

The main photographer nodded.

"What about Camera 2? What's going on with Camera 2?"

"Uh, uh… Director, I think… I forgot to put the tape in…"

Hearing the director's question, another photographer reported uneasily.

"What?!"

Hearing this answer, the director was instantly infuriated.

"Didn't I say before that it was likely to rain today, so I asked you to focus on shooting the outdoor scenes? What are you doing?!"

The director glared at the photographer, fuming. Since variety shows have limited budgets, doing special effects would be too costly. That's why the director came up with this idea. He knew it would rain heavily today, which was why he specifically chose this date, to use these scenes for the show — natural elements are far more impactful than effects, and they don't cost a dime!

And now, this bastard didn't put the tape in? So he was standing there with the camera for half a day and captured nothing?

"I-I'm sorry... Director..."

"Useless! Get out, get out, get out of my sight! How many times has this happened?!"

Glaring at this photographer, the director was once again infuriated; this guy had such a habit of forgetting things, even after being reminded.

"Can you do the job or not? If not, get out! When we get back to the station, I'll make sure you're out completely! I've had enough of dealing with this incompetent fool! Do you hear me? Fool!"

".........…"

The other staff present were stunned by the director's angry outburst. Although they knew the director had a temper, this seemed like a small matter to make him that angry. Meanwhile, the photographer who was being scolded stood, head down and silent, lost in thought.

"Alright, alright, director, calm down. He just got too nervous and forgot."

At this point, the main photographer hastily intervened to mediate. It wasn't because he held any particular affection for the other photographer, but because the filming had only just begun, and if the director was already blowing his top, how could they continue shooting? Other staff members also hurried to mollify the director while taking the scolded photographer aside.

"Come on, the director told you, how could you forget? Go back to work, don't upset the director again."

"I understand......…"

The photographer muttered as he turned and headed toward the West Mansion.

"Wait, where are you going?"

"I'm going to have a smoke."

Before the words landed, the photographer disappeared behind the West Mansion's doors, and upon watching his departure, the staff who had earlier consoled him shook his head and returned to their task.

After all, the director was still enraged over there.