Mystery Detective of the Steam World

Chapter 412 Just the beginning

If the botanical garden outside is quite beautiful, then the area on the other side, separated by just one wall, presents a completely different picture.

This reminded Li Wei of scenes often seen in alien horror movies—corridors surrounded and covered in blood and flesh. The originally man-made structure was now covered in patches of blisters that grew wildly and unchecked like moss, emitting a foul and nauseating odor.

Clearly, this is not a very good place to visit.

"What the hell did you bring into the botanical garden?"

As they walked, Marquis Calent couldn't hold back any longer. Although he was very well-mannered, he still couldn't keep his composure in the face of such a disgusting scene.

"Lord Karent, I assure you, this is just a completely new plant..."

"I don't care if it's new or not, this thing is not suitable for a botanical garden."

Marquis Calent pointed his gun at the vines on the wall next to him, which were still twitching like blood vessels.

"Moreover, this is a plant? I think it's more like some kind of monster!"

"------!"

Li Wei noticed that the vines flickered again, as if in response to the Marquis's words.

Did it know that the Marquis was cursing it?

"…………………"

The staff did not respond; perhaps they did not know how to explain, or perhaps they did not offer any explanation at all.

"I want to see what kind of plant it is that is so ugly."

Marquis Calent shook his head and continued down the stairs.

The next aroma was even more nauseating. Unlike the fragrance Li Wei had smelled at the banquet, it was extremely strong and filled with a cloyingly sweet odor. However, it did resemble the fragrance at the banquet, only it was hundreds of times stronger.

Moreover, it didn't work like those scented candles.

Finally, the Marquis of Calent reached the bottom floor, where a sign reading "Water Room" hung on the door. He reached out and pushed the door open.

Then, everything inside was completely exposed to everyone.

"By the Holy Lord..."

Seeing this scene before him, Marquis Calent stared in astonishment.
In the center of the water room was a huge water purification pool, which was originally intended to store filtered pure water. But now, a tree was growing in this pool.

Well, or something like a tree.

Its shape resembled a tree trunk, extending from the pool to the ceiling, merging seamlessly with it. Countless "branches" spread across the ceiling, completely covering it with twisted, fleshy creations. From these branches hung bizarre "sausages," constantly gleaming. Even dense, dark red gas floated around, creating the illusion of a lush, leafy canopy enveloping the entire ceiling.

At the same time, Li Wei glanced at the air for a moment, then looked away.

"Is this the new species you were talking about?"

Marquis Calent looked at the tree of flesh and blood before him with disgust.

"It's simply..."

Before Marquis Calent could finish speaking, suddenly, something unexpected happened.

Suddenly, the "fruit" on the tree burst open, and then a rich aroma mixed with spore-like particles sprayed out!

Just then, Li Wei made his move.

He grabbed the Marquis of Carente, pulled him out of the water room, and then casually tossed a round object inside before Levi closed the door.

The next moment—an explosion rang out.

"boom!!"

In an instant, scorching flames filled the entire room, turning the water room into a giant oven. Even standing outside, one could feel the intense heat. At the same time, the staff clutched their heads and began screaming loudly. Moments later, they collapsed to the ground, exhausted, seemingly unconscious.

"Thank you for your cooperation, Marquis Calent."

Li Wei smiled slightly at Marquis Calent.

"Thanks to you, I was able to take down this thing so easily."

"Holy Lord..."

Upon hearing Li Wei's voice, Marquis Calent seemed to snap out of his daze. He blinked and turned to look at Li Wei.

"Sir Levy, what exactly is that thing? Is it a demon from hell?"

"To be honest, I'm not too sure either, after all, there are too many strange and wonderful things in this world."

Li Wei shrugged.

“But at least we can be sure this thing is… Oh, looks like it’s in trouble.” Before Li Wei could finish speaking, a roar like that of a ferocious beast suddenly came from the water room, piercing through the heavy doors and flames, echoing throughout the entire botanical garden. At the same time, the vines on the ceiling began to sway… But unfortunately, it was too late.

Li Wei snapped his fingers.

The screams stopped abruptly the next moment, and then the vines that had been swaying as if they were about to do something began to dry up and break, like dried-out blood vessels.

"Alright, the problem is solved now, Marquis Calent. I am very pleased to cooperate with you."

"I thought a fierce battle was waiting for me."

Marquis Calent glanced at the gate engulfed in flames, then put away his gun.

"It was indeed a fierce battle, and you were the bravest warrior."

Li Wei smiled and looked at Marquis Calent, explaining to him.

"It is because of your presence that this thing remained silent until we discovered its true form. If it weren't for you, I'm afraid I would have had to blow up the entire botanical garden or kill a bunch of people to break in and deal with this trouble."

That is indeed a problem.

Marquis Calent frowned. Whether the botanical garden was blown to smithereens or turned into a battlefield, it would easily become news circulating in the foggy city.

"But what's wrong with these guys?"

"They were probably manipulated by that plant, just like everyone else."

Li Wei pointed to the burning water room. Generally speaking, water rooms are difficult to catch fire, but the incendiary bombs Li Wei used... well, those who know, know.

As Levi said, the Marquis of Kalent's involvement was a crucial part of the plan; he was essentially using the Marquis as bait. Levi had always suspected that this monster possessed its own intelligence, and if so, it would likely want to make the Marquis of Kalent its puppet as well.

Therefore, when it didn't attack Marquis Calent immediately, Levi knew his suspicions were correct. It clearly intended to lure Marquis Calent to its side, then attack him and turn him into its puppet.

This gave Li Wei an opportunity.

Li Wei didn't use [Reality Anchor] on this thing immediately. After all, this thing was costing him his life. In Li Wei's opinion, it would be best if he could weaken it first and then use [Reality Anchor] to kill it in one blow.

As it turned out, Levi's plan went very smoothly, mainly because the Marquis of Calent was such a tempting bait.

"However, the problem isn't solved yet, is it? It's just a tree, even if it's a disgusting tree, I don't think it's going to grow legs and run into my botanical garden."

Marquis Calent was no fool, of course; he was eager to know who was plotting against him behind the scenes.

"Of course, I will continue to investigate, Marquis Calent. Rest assured, these people will not have a good time."

This is the lair of these monsters. Li Wei is certain that, as long as there are no obstacles, he and the agents of MI7 have enough information to find out who brought this thing to the botanical garden—after all, records are part of civilization, and they always exist.

"Then please."

Marquis Calent knew that he was, after all, just a minister, while Levi was a detective whose forte was intelligence gathering.

"If you need anything, feel free to come to me anytime."

"As long as Your Excellency doesn't complain that I always use you as bait."

"This is not a complaint; getting some exercise occasionally is good for your physical and mental health."

Upon hearing Li Wei's reply, the Marquis of Calent chuckled.

"Sitting in the office for too long definitely requires some exercise. Perhaps I should find an opportunity to go hunting at the nearby hunting grounds... Sir Levi, would you like to come along?"

"My pleasure."

Li Wei smiled slightly at the invitation of the Marquis of Calent.

Marquis Calente left by carriage, while Levi turned his gaze back to the botanical garden before him—this time, his expression became extremely solemn.

Indeed, Li Wei received a task from the system when he saw that tree.

However, this mission is not a good thing.

Mission "Destroy the Node" Completed

Looking at the system notification, Li Wei frowned, a serious expression flashing across his eyes. He knew what nodes were, of course, but this only made things more complicated. It meant that the tree in the botanical garden wasn't the culprit, but rather part of a much larger monster.

This is what makes the Hive Consciousness tricky, because you simply can't figure out how big it really is.

However, as long as there are clues, we can continue the investigation.

Li Wei withdrew his gaze and looked at the agent beside him.

"Alright, let's go find out where this strange tree came from."

As the Marquis of Calent said, this tree didn't just grow legs and run to the botanical garden on its own. In other words, someone must have brought it here, and if we follow that lead, we should surely find some clues.

(End of this chapter)