Chapter 29 Three Evil Gods Seek Lanevus

Chapter 29 Three Evil Gods Seek Lanevus

Chapter 29: Three Evil Gods Find Lanevus

91
"Money is always gone without us noticing," Edward lamented.

"Yes." Shinzo, who was basking in the sun nearby, responded deeply.

The dark saint who was checking the accounts in the next room looked at his nose and his heart. The smell of poverty filled the Aurora Society, making the gods miserable.

It has been more than a month since God descended, and His vessel has grown very fast. Now it has the appearance of a two-year-old child. His unique black and gold highlights have become more and more obvious. The gold has a tendency to spread downwards, gradually occupying one-third of the area, which is much better than the state at the beginning when it was forced to the roots. The red eyes are still the same. If you walk outside, you will probably be considered a vampire hybrid... Will he be captured as spiritual material... How much can a vampire sell for? Edward began to think divergently.

"You seem to be thinking about something impolite." The True Creator glanced at Him, "You've been quite free lately. Are you not in a hurry to get promoted?"

"There's no point in being anxious." The demon replied, "Little Zaratul has also been stuck as a miracle worker for so many years. He hasn't found an opportunity to advance since the Fourth Epoch. Even a fortune teller can't do it. I'm sure it's even harder for me."

The other party changed the subject: "The Aurora Club has been transforming smoothly recently, and everyone is very motivated. Have you made any progress in tracking down Lanevus?"

"Who is Lanevus?"

"..." Zhenzao endured, "The one I gave flesh and blood to."

"Oh, you mean the fraudster." Edward thought for a moment. "There is no news at the moment. Mr. Z's men and the members of the East District sect are already trying their best to find him. But there is one thing in the report that I am very interested in. That is, the bounty hunters and even private detectives who were tracking down this Lanevus were secretly hunted down and tortured to death."

The true creator noticed: "Murder, demon or prisoner?"

"I don't know. But someone who uses such a crude and reckless method to vent his malice is definitely not a high-sequence one. I'm not interested in him."

Edward lit a cigarette and held it in his hand, letting it burn quietly. "I think it's a demon. If this is also a demon, combined with Backlund's current serial murders, isn't the concentration of demons here too high?"

The true creator looked at me with an indescribable look in his eyes. His left eye said, "The devil is beside me," and his right eye said, "What are you talking about?"

"It seems that Lanevus is currently active in the East District, because most people who are looking for him have died in a corner of the East District." Edward held his chin with one hand, as if he was talking to himself, or as if he was talking to the real Creator. "If that is really a demon or a prisoner, I can go there. How can a private detective and a bounty hunter have the effect of combining Beyonder characteristics? However, the question is, why is Lanevus able to connect with these two channels?"

"That's not important. What's important is to recycle my flesh and blood from Lanevus." The True Creator said, "Resources cannot be wasted."

"You can't sense your flesh at all, can you?"

"I can sense it, but there are hundreds of them. He used some method to expand my contamination. He must have distributed his blood to other people."

"It would take a long time even if we checked them one by one, not to mention we can't gather them for a large-scale check... Never mind, I'll go to the East District for some activities."

92
Xio wore shoes that were much higher and put on a thick beard to make herself look like a short man. She came to the agreed meeting place and waited for a few minutes before she saw Maria, who had also disguised herself and hidden most of the scars on her face, come in with a changed appearance.

"I know it's you, Hugh." Maria said straight to the point, "I received the latest intelligence that another body has been found. Five people who were tracking Lanevus have died. Are you sure you want to continue?"

"How could this happen... Lanevus is simply a lunatic!"

The number of dead must be more than five. Xio thought of Williams, who died tragically just because he got the information. Even his face was destroyed and his body was unrecognizable. It was normal for bounty hunters to disguise themselves and disappear for three to five days because of the big or small rewards. Lanevus seemed to know this, so he always killed them brutally, destroyed their faces, and dumped their bodies in extremely secluded corners. If Xio hadn't been unable to find Williams, the familiar intelligence dealer, anywhere, she would probably have been kept in the dark and foolishly continued to track them down.

The arbitrator was furious, but could do nothing. "Ms. Maria, I cannot forgive this evil act! I hope this guy will be punished no matter what. I will never miss any opportunity!"

"But you are not capable enough." Maria said mercilessly, "If I hadn't provided you with the identity of the body in time, you would have been one of them now! Who gave you this reward? Don't you know anything about this person?"

Xio bit her lip. Although she felt puzzled and complained, she still didn't mention Miss Audrey's name. "I took it myself. At that time, I just thought it was an outdated bounty with a low difficulty level..."

"Then you should stop immediately. If you continue to participate, it may put your life in danger."

"What about you, Maria?"

"I don't want to pursue this matter any further, even if the reward is several hundred pounds."

Anyway, this is the business of the Aurora Society, not my job. Maria kicked the stone at her feet irritably and watched it fly out of the alley. "And I still have a lot of things to do! The textile factory has introduced new machines, and nearly half of the female workers have been laid off. The girls need new jobs, but there are not so many positions in the East District! I don't know which idiot instigated them to go back and smash the machines to protest, and there are even human traffickers taking the opportunity to kidnap people - I really don't have time to care about a scammer!"

Xio bit her lip, Maria turned away and said nothing, and the alley fell into dead silence for a moment.

"...Maybe we can consider reporting this to the major churches." Xio reluctantly said, Maria's expression still not looking good. After a moment, she cursed bitterly, "Okay, you go report it, I hope the gods really care about the lives of people in the East District!"

This is the only way. Xio felt helpless and followed Maria out of the alley. Suddenly, her forehead bumped into the other person's back, and it was like hitting a piece of iron, making her see stars instantly. Xio poked her head out from behind Maria in confusion, and saw a brown-haired gentleman who looked very familiar passing by the alley from a distance - it was Forth's editor, their benefactor in the previous Qilingos incident, Mr. Edward Vaughn!
What is he doing here? Why is this respectable gentleman here? Oh, yes, the last time I ran into him was also in the East End. He seems to be particularly fond of collecting folk songs, so his works are mainly realistic tragedies...

Xio did not notice Maria's strange behavior. This disguise was not suitable for greeting, so she lowered her head, pulled up her collar, and left quickly.

After she left, Maria recovered from her stiffness, took a few deep breaths, and continued walking.

——However, the moment she stepped out of the alley, she saw Edward Vaughn, who had been passing by nonchalantly, standing next to her, in the blind spot at the entrance of the alley, looking at her with a smile on his face.

"You were afraid of me just now." Edward said with interest, "Fear, surprise, and delight. You know me, and you even showed a hint of joy. - Are you from the Pilgrimage Sect? Sequence 6, head of the East District?" "No, Your Highness the Angel of the Abyss, Your Highness Richard has shown me your portrait." Maria tried her best to say this under the influence of the natural fear brought by the high sequence and the years of terrorizing the leader in the sect. She thought she was shouting, but in fact her voice was so thin that even people one meter away could not hear it. "Yes, I am Backlund of the Pilgrimage Sect, head... East District... I..."

"Don't mention your name. I'll forget you in no time."

Edward asked, "You are surprised, are you having difficulties?"

Maria hesitated for a moment and decided to tell the truth. "Yes, I am tracking down Lanevs as an individual, and I am also investigating a human trafficking case. The former has killed five people, but I still have no clue. The latter is basically certain to be done by Kapin, but there is no evidence."

"I'm looking for Lanevus, too." Edward pulled out a piece of paper from his coat pocket. It was a cutout of the East District from the Backlund map, with hundreds of red dots densely drawn on it. A dozen of them had already been crossed out. "I'll probably be able to check them all today."

Maria looked at the crossed-out mark, imagined the true meaning behind "check", and didn't dare to speak.

Without waiting for Maria to continue speaking, He looked up and around, pointed in a certain direction and asked, "Does Kapin live there?"

"Yes."

"Resentment and sin are gathered there, and the blood color is more obvious than anywhere else." Edward took a look from a distance, "But something else helped him share some of the burden. He has a backer, so it's normal that you don't have evidence. ... Since he is a person with heinous crimes, he is qualified to be my sacrifice. If you can sacrifice him to me, I will reward you."

"?!please--"

Maria was startled, but just as she was organizing her words, the Abyss Angel had already turned and left, and his figure could no longer be found in the crowd. The person in charge who was suddenly assigned a task covered his face with one hand, and it took him several seconds to finally calm down. Anyway, there are so many troubles, so one more can be accepted... Maria sighed deeply, cheered up, and went to the Dock Workers' Association as planned.

93
3pm.

Klein left Mrs. Summer's lunch party and headed to the East District again. Combining the intelligence passed on by Miss Justice and Taylor's information, he had a clearer goal this time: disguise himself as a reporter and enter the Dock Workers' Association to check on Lanevus's situation.

He did not bring his own magical items and equipment, and simply dressed up as a common investigative reporter. He was not aware of Lanevus's current state and his violent and cruel collaborators. Therefore, out of caution, Klein did not bring anything that would arouse suspicion.

When he arrived not far from the two-story building, Klein pulled down the brim of his hat. He didn’t feel any suspicious gazes—unless he counted the big black dog squatting at the entrance of the association, dozing off in the sun with its eyes half closed.

Seeing him about to push open the door, the big black dog raised its head and looked at him. The human-like eyes and the faint traces of blood on the fur around its mouth made Klein feel a little creepy. Thinking of Miss Justice's big golden retriever who seemed to be a spectator, Klein couldn't help but wonder: Could this also be an extraordinary dog?

He didn't pay much attention to the dog and pushed the door open. He found that the layout of the union was very simple. It was just a spacious cement house without any decorations or reception staff, and there were not even a few chairs. The stairs were in the middle, and the doors of many offices on both sides were closed. A man in shabby clothes stood by the door. Klein approached him:
"I'm a reporter from the Backlund Daily. I want to interview the staff of your association to understand your demands and desires."

Hearing the word "reporter", the man's eyes suddenly became alert and he answered repeatedly: "No! We haven't organized anything recently..."

"No need to answer him." A female voice interrupted the man's slightly panicked words. The woman with iconic black hair and scars walked down the stairs and said with sharp eyes, "I'm sorry, we are not accepting any interviews from reporters right now. Please go back, sir."

"—I think you misunderstand, ma'am."

Klein's mind raced. Judging from the man's relieved expression and the woman's response, the other party was obviously a leader in the association, probably the Miss Maria that Taylor mentioned. Klein used the extraordinary ability of the "clown" to do his best to make his eyes look more sincere: "I sympathize with you. I plan to do a special report describing what the union has done to help workers and the actual difficulties they have encountered. Please believe me."

Maria narrowed her eyes slightly, as if she was trying to determine the truth of this statement. Klein broke out in a cold sweat on his back. After a while, she finally spoke, "We have encountered too many difficulties. Since you are here for an interview, you should have understood the actual situation."

"Mr. Reporter, what do you want to interview?"

Klein was stuck for a moment. He desperately searched his mind for the recent news he had read in the newspapers, and within two seconds he pieced together a plausible answer: "About the new Poor Law."

As soon as he finished speaking, he wanted to slap himself hard. The Poor Law has been promulgated for several months. It is not right to investigate the social impact now! Seeing the doubtful look of the man next to him, Klein regretted it even more. But the words had already been spoken, so he could only pretend that nothing had happened and continued to look at the other person with a sincere look.

Miss Maria seemed surprised by this answer. She was silent, opened her mouth, and then closed it again. After thinking for two seconds, she said, "I understand. It's OK. It's not convenient to interview here. Please come to my office and talk."

Actually, it worked? Klein was stunned in his heart, but his reaction was not slow at all. He thanked the man repeatedly and followed him upstairs. Just as he turned the corner, Klein suddenly felt a spiritual touch, and he glanced out the small window for some unknown reason.

He saw a strange yet extremely familiar figure.

Although the other person's skin had turned bronze, his ordinary round face had become angular, and his glasses had changed from round frames to long gold-rimmed frames, Klein still felt familiar with it thanks to his spiritual intuition as a "fortune teller."

The figure stayed downstairs at the association for a few seconds, interacted briefly with the big black dog at the door, and then left. Klein saw all this and his body began to tremble. He could hardly hold his pen and notebook.

TBC
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2 to 1 ritual: a terrifying massacre (with foreshadowing). At least 3 times, 9 times for best results, and a blood sacrifice of an angel.

Edward's progress: 5/9, 1/1.

The five massacres that have been completed can still be accurately pointed to Edward Vaughn (history books) after more than a hundred years, and horror stories based on him are still circulating in the border areas of various countries (children who don't sleep at night will be captured by demons (?) or too many people have died and the place is haunted). The rituals that Edward has completed are very effective. He can now be promoted, but the success rate is only about 5%. If he is promoted, it will definitely attract the intervention of the mother tree, Fabuti and other righteous gods to stop him. There is no guarantee that the real creation will help him much. The success rate of about 60% cannot withstand any risks, and it is even very likely to fail.

That was why He was not in a hurry to be promoted, but continued to look for opportunities to perfect the ritual.

And the most important thing:↑The above are all performed for others to see. In fact, the sequence of decline can be melted in the mouth.