Mystery: The Witch of Desire

Without further hesitation, Dunn activated his Nightmare ability, his deep eyes flashing with a dark light, dragging the drunkard into a dream.

In the drunkard's dream, he saw a man wearing a baseball cap with a thick beard that almost covered his entire face, and he had a somewhat effeminate appearance.

The man handed a stack of flyers to the drunk man and coaxed him into distributing them...

"Instigator!"

Upon seeing this scene, Dunn's heart tightened suddenly.

"Could it be that the Witch Cult and the Rose School have joined forces? This is not a good thing..."

"What's the purpose of distributing these flyers? It's as if they're deliberately trying to expose the secrets hidden in Kingfisher Bar. Is it a trap? Or is there some other reason?"

Dunn ignored the drunkard—he was just a pawn being used—and immediately returned to Blackthorn Security, heading to the lounge.

Leonard, Cohen, and Luo Yao are on duty tonight.

Cohenley was on duty at the Charness Gate underground, while Leonard and Luo Yao were drinking coffee in the lounge, discussing the romance novel by Fors Wall, a rising star novelist from Backlund.

Dunn's gaze swept between Leonard and Luo Yao, finally settling on Leonard:

"Leonard, come with me. We're about to start something."

Leonard paused for a moment, then stood up excitedly:

"Yes, Captain!"

The two men put on their black trench coats, checked their weapons, and prepared to go downstairs.

At this moment, Dunn suddenly remembered something, quickly took two steps back, and said to Luo Yao, who remained in the lounge:

"One more thing, send a telegram to Ahowa County: we have discovered traces of suspected cult activity! Please reassess whether to send reinforcements!"

Chapter 76 The Corrupted Monster

Levi ran wildly toward the Kingfisher Bar.

He was moving extremely fast, and the taste of blood rising in his throat was already rising.

However, as he got closer to the Kingfisher Bar, the gloom in the sky grew darker, and his unease intensified, as if something terrible had happened.

"Hopefully, those on night duty have already been drawn to the flyers..."

Ignoring his physical exhaustion, Rivi increased his speed.

Finally, he rushed to the street where the Kingfisher Bar was located, but by then, the darkness in the sky had gathered into a solid blackness, and the howling wind swept through, as if the wailing of wronged souls was crying out.

Boom!

A loud tremor came from underground, and Levi stumbled abruptly. He quickly regained his balance and saw several huge cracks appear in the ground in front of him, with the bricks and stones used to build the road collapsing rapidly.

Amidst the flying debris, several enormous green vines emerged from the ground, growing wildly along the cracks and rushing towards the surrounding buildings and pedestrians.

Several drunkards who had just come out of the Kingfisher Bar and were vomiting nearby were instantly lifted into the air by vines, screaming and struggling.

"The situation is much more serious than I imagined! Look at how long these vines have grown—they're already over ten meters long, far exceeding the extent of the contamination in Samira back then."

"Why is there such a difference? Well, Samira was probably passively corrupted, while Pat actively recited the name of the son of the evil god. That son of the evil god was extremely powerful; even a casual glance or aura from him was enough to overwhelm Pat, causing him to undergo a crazy mutation."

Levi felt a chill run down his spine: what would have happened if he had listened to Sharani and recited the name of the son of the evil god?

The screams of several drunkards broke Levi's reverie. He hid in the shadows by the street, prepared his weapons, and coldly observed the rampant vines.

Those drunkards were all people who had bought sex at the auction that night. Levi felt no sympathy for them. Although they might not deserve to die, Levi would not risk his life to save them.

The vines twisted and writh wildly like living things, tightening around the drunkard's body, with sticky, dark green sap seeping from their surface, slowly seeping into the fabric of his clothes and gradually merging with his flesh.

During this process of fusion, the originally restless and frenzied vines suddenly became quiet, no longer spreading and entangled everywhere, but only tightly binding their prey and entwining it in place. The fine roots pierced through the flesh and silently devoured all the nutrients they could absorb.

After a while, the drunkards were completely devoured by the vines, leaving not even a trace of their clothing behind. The vines, which were originally only a foot thick, suddenly swelled up to several times their original size, like a giant python that had just finished feeding on its prey. Ugly lumps bulged on its surface, slowly wriggling and undulating as nutrients were transported, gradually transferring the plundered energy to its underground body.

In a short while, the lumps on the vines were completely digested, and a sharp, piercing whistle suddenly came from underground—the sound contained both the satisfaction of a full meal and an uncontrollable desire and murderous aura, piercing through the ground and making Levi's scalp tingle.

The moment the long howl resounded, flower buds exuding an eerie aura slowly swelled up on the vines, which were several times thicker than before. Between the layers of petals, the pistils were filled with thick, turbid pus, and wisps of arousing desire spread everywhere, making people feel hot all over and giving rise to the desire to reproduce.

The vines, which had been relatively calm, became agitated again and suddenly swept towards the surrounding residential areas and the Kingfisher Bar.

The brick and stone walls collapsed instantly under the immense force of the vines, raising clouds of dust. The people inside were terrified by this nightmarish scene, their desperate screams echoing throughout the house.

Levi stopped watching, his eyes narrowed, and he swiftly drew the dagger he carried with him, slashing his chest until warm blood gushed out. He raised his hand and smeared the blood evenly on the mirror he carried with him, his gaze fixed on his own cold and eerie face reflected in the mirror.

In an instant, a tremendous force surged out of the mirror and violently entered his sea of ​​consciousness.

Having already experienced this several times, Levi remained calm and extracted two usable abilities from the situation:

The first is the ability of Sequence 7 to manipulate black flames.

The second ability is the manipulation of spider silk. Like a spider, one can create strange, almost invisible threads to wrap around a target, slowing them down and affecting their movements—a nemesis of hand-to-hand combat. It can also allow one to move rapidly in another direction as if being pulled by something. Alternatively, the threads can wrap around oneself layer by layer, forming a giant cocoon.

This ability comes from Sequence 6 of the Assassin's Path – Pleasure.

This was the first time Levi had acquired the Sequence 6 ability, and it was through this that he learned the name of the Assassin's Path Sequence 6.

"Pleasure, it sounds alluring. When I reach Sequence 6, will I, as a man, be able to handle it?"

Levi didn't have time to think too much. He immediately ignited black flames in his palm and attempted to attack the vines.

After advancing to Sequence 8, Rivi's spirituality increased, and the power of the black flames also increased. Large swaths of black flames fell onto the vines, burning them until they convulsed, and heart-wrenching howls came from the depths of the earth.

"My attack was not stopped by the notary office!"

Levi was overjoyed, relieved of any worries. Perhaps because Pat had completely lost his mind due to the pollution, he was now only recognized by the Book of Notarization as a monster, rather than a follower of that evil god.

Reeve's attack successfully attracted the attention of the vines, which swept towards him frantically, disregarding everything around them.

The vines were thick yet swift. As Levi dodged and weaved, he barely managed to avoid the direct blows, but he was grazed several times by the edges, leaving stinging bloody marks on his skin.

"This can't go on...we'll get hit head-on sooner or later."

Levi pondered to himself, then thought of the ability to manipulate spider silk that he had just acquired.

He rapidly shot out large swathes of nearly transparent silk from his fingertips, one end embedding itself in the ruins destroyed by the vines, the other connecting to his own body. As the vines swept in again, Levi abruptly tightened the silk, his entire body nimbly swaying to one side, skimming past the edge of the vines.

As he left more and more spiderweb anchors, an invisible net gradually wove itself through the ruins, and the blind spots for hiding became increasingly dense. Pat, who was driving the vines, was clearly in a daze, blindly whipping around, but he could never touch Rivi, who was skillfully weaving through the web.

However, although Levi could dodge back and forth among the vines, a slight misstep would still result in him being smashed to pieces, which was ultimately not a long-term solution.

He couldn't help but wonder if the flyers had worked, and whether the Night Watch team would actually arrive.

Chapter 77 Bondage and Burning

The enormous vines lashed out frantically, but Levi dodged them time and again by pulling on his spider silk. Just then, the vines suddenly twitched violently a few times and then stopped moving.

Just as Levi caught his breath in that brief respite, the ground beneath his feet suddenly trembled violently again, as if something underground was raging wildly. His heart tightened, and he immediately staggered back a distance, staring intently at the ground at the base of the vines—he saw the earth and rocks churning and cracking wildly, and a twisted figure was forced out of the crack.

The creature was so grotesque it was horrifying: its body was covered in rotting pus, its form a haphazard patchwork of chicken wings, pig limbs, cow torso, and goat head, with thick, dark red liquid constantly dripping from its joints. Only its face retained the outline of Pat. Pat's skin peeled away in patches, exposing the bright red flesh beneath, with dark red blood dripping from its limbs, emitting a nauseating stench of decay and decay.

"This is Pat's true form, corrupted by the power of the evil god..."

Levi's heart sank, and a chill instantly seeped into his limbs and bones, already anticipating an even more brutal battle to come.

The moment Pat's true form appeared, an overwhelming, suffocating stench of filth swept across the area like a tidal wave. His face, with only a remnant of human features, was fixed on Levi, blackish-red pus dripping from the corner of his split mouth, as he let out a hoarse, desperate scream that was inhuman, the shrill syllables almost piercing eardrums.

At the same time, countless mangled human limbs suddenly sprouted from the limbs pieced together from various animals—some were only half an arm, others were still attached to twisted fingers, densely packed, writhing and mutating like vines. The next second, all the limbs exploded simultaneously, gushing out a sky full of filthy blackish-red blood, carrying a corrosive and eerie energy, which sprayed towards Rivi like a torrential rain.

Levi's eyes narrowed. Instead of retreating, he advanced. Dark black flames instantly ignited at his fingertips. He flicked his wrist, and the black flames suddenly surged, transforming into a dense wall of fire in front of him. The moment the filthy blood splattered onto it, it emitted a piercing "sizzle" sound and wisps of white smoke rose up. As soon as the white smoke dissipated, it was completely burned away by the black flames, leaving not even a trace of filthy blood.

As the smoke dissipated, Pat roared and pounced forward, several thick, dark green vines, as thick as buckets, suddenly burrowed into the ground and then burst forth, intertwining with his mangled limbs. They swept across like a giant whip, carrying a foul stench and corrosive pus, heading straight for Rivi's face.

Levi touched the ground with his toes, his figure flashing backward like a ghost. Using the shadows for cover, fine spider silk condensed from his fingertips and shot out like arrows, precisely wrapping around Pat's thickest leg. Spiritual energy flowed swiftly from his fingertips to the silk, tightening instantly and constricting Pat's limb tightly. At the same time, cold black flames spread along the silk, climbing up Pat's leg and scorching his rotting flesh. Pus and bits of flesh sizzled in the black flames, and the air was filled with the stench of burning corpses.

Driven mad by the black flames, Pat's filthy aura intensified, and the flower buds on his vines burst open, oozing thick, dark green pus. Wherever the pus splattered, it corroded the ground, creating tiny holes. He exerted all his strength, his remaining limbs swelling again, trying to break free of the spider silk with brute force. But the silk was incredibly tough, and no matter how much Pat roared and strained, it held him firmly, unable to budge an inch.

However, when the pus sprayed from the flower buds landed on the spider silk, the originally black and tough silk gradually became fragile and gray, its toughness decreased significantly, and even fine cracks appeared on the surface. If this continued, Pat would soon be able to break the spider silk!

Levi gritted his teeth, and countless spider silks shot out from his fingertips, forming a giant black net that tightly enveloped Pat. Black flames spread along the spider silk, enveloping Pat and the thick vines around him in a sea of ​​eerie purple fire. The sounds of burning, screams, boiling pus, and the crackling of charring vines intertwined, and the foul stench collided with the chilling aura of the black flames, stirring up a strange white mist that filled the sky.

Pat struggled frantically in the sea of ​​fire, his broken limbs constantly breaking off and regenerating. The thick vines around his body were also constantly carbonized and falling off under the scorching black flames, but new vines and limbs quickly emerged from his body. Each rebirth was more twisted and thicker, and the filthy aura on his body became more and more violent.

Under the strain, Levi's spirituality was also nearly exhausted. Instead of collapsing, Pat's figure in the black flames became increasingly frenzied, and he was about to break free from Levi's restraints.

Just then, the surrounding environment was quickly pulled into a hazy darkness, and a powerful spiritual energy gathered not far away. Levi turned his head in surprise and saw a tall man wearing a trench coat and a top hat standing there, with a talisman that glowed with silver light between his fingertips.

"Dark night!"

The man uttered the two words in a deep voice in ancient Hermes, then threw the talisman at Pat, who was struggling wildly.

In an instant, the silver rune was enveloped in dark red flames, emitting a soft explosion.

A deep, tranquil power instantly spread out, enveloping Pat's body.

He swayed as if hit by a shockwave, then his movements became sluggish, and his body's regeneration slowed down.

At that moment, another black-haired figure jumped out of the darkness, raised his revolver, and fired several shots at Pat's head.

The extraordinary bullet, imbued with spiritual power, pierced Pat's skull with pinpoint accuracy. The flesh on Pat's face healed with difficulty, like mud, and his movements became even slower.

"Night watchmen, you've finally arrived!"

Encouraged, Levi immediately poured all the remaining spiritual energy in his body into it. The dark purple flames that condensed at his fingertips became even more intense. Streams of fire, carrying a bone-chilling cold power, slammed down on Pat and the withered vines. At the same time, he gritted his teeth and manipulated the spider silk, making the pitch-black giant net tighten even more, locking Pat's movements in place and giving him no chance to breathe.

Under such relentless and fierce attacks, the corrupting power within Pat's body finally could not withstand the onslaught, and his body's recovery speed could not keep up with the pace of destruction. With a deafening roar, his grotesque body, pieced together from severed limbs and coarse vines, instantly collapsed and shattered, ultimately turning into a pool of viscous, blackish-red sludge. It contained countless tiny fragments of limbs and carbonized vines, emitting a pungent stench of decay and filth, gradually melting and drying on the ground.

Chapter 78 Unacceptable Kindness

Levi stumbled and fell heavily onto the cold ground, his chest heaving violently. Before he could even catch his breath, a deep and sharp gaze suddenly fell upon him, scrutinizing and probing, making him freeze.

His heart tightened, and he quickly pushed himself up, a bitter feeling welling up inside him.

"Because I was fighting alongside Pat just now, I completely forgot about the gap between my status and that of the official Extraordinary. Right now, in the eyes of the Night Watchers, I'm probably a suspicious person."

Dunn Smith stood there, his gaze fixed on Levi. The man was disheveled, his robes tattered and corroded by filth and pus, and there were scorch marks on his body. He was the same man who had seen him in his dream not long ago, the one who had instigated drunkards to hand out flyers on Zotland Street.

However, Dunn's eyes held a more complicated expression. He had clearly seen the fierce battle just now; the other side had indeed fought with all their might, battling the corrupted monster to the death. And was his instigation of the drunkard to distribute flyers on Zotland Street also an attempt to warn the night watchman that something unusual had happened at the Kingfisher Bar?

Therefore, Dunn waved for Leonard to lower his pistol, remove his top hat, and calmly began to speak:

"Let me introduce myself. My name is Dunn Smith, captain of the Tingen Market Nightwalker squad."

"You really are Dunn..."

Looking at Dunn's thinning hair after he took off his top hat, Levi finally confirmed his identity in his mind.

He sensed Dunn's goodwill. Perhaps Dunn also saw his efforts in fighting the corrupted monster and was willing to communicate with him.

But he had too many secrets: the gift of the evil god, the gaze of the being in the mirror, the destiny he had come from another time. No matter which one was exposed, the outcome would be something he could not foresee.

Levi didn't speak, quickly disappearing into the shadows and heading into the distance.

Leonard instinctively darted out to give chase, but was stopped by Dunn.

"Captain, are we just going to let him go like that? That person must have something to do with this incident."

Leonard asked, somewhat puzzled.

Dunn was silent for a moment:

"Clean up the mess is the priority. First, evacuate the civilians, treat the injured, and clean up the remaining contamination... Never mind, I'll handle those. Leonard, go and notify the Punishers and the Machine Heart to send more people. And..."

Dunn looked at the charred vines, their thick roots digging deep into the ground and extending directly beneath the Kingfisher Bar.

He adopted a solemn expression:

"Notify the police station to surround the Kingfisher Bar, take everyone away for a thorough investigation, and hand over any suspicious individuals to us for processing."

"Yes!"

Leonard immediately started running, sprinting through the streets of Tingen at night. He planned to first go to the River and Sea Church of the Lord of Storms, and then contact the Church of the Holy Numbers of the God of Steam and Machines in the suburbs by telegram.

Then, the aged voice echoed in his mind again:

"I advise you to avoid any actions related to this matter in the future."

Leonard looked somewhat surprised and, as was his habit, spoke in a low voice:

"why?"

The aged voice replied with a heavy tone:

"I sensed that repulsive aura again... and this time I also sensed an extremely filthy power, which comes from a Sequence 1 angel. If you get involved with it, you have no hope of survival."

Leonard raised his voice in surprise:

"An angel?! Old man, you're not kidding, are you? What's His/Her name?"

The aged voice sneered:

"Once you know His name, you will be immediately corrupted, your flesh and blood will be stripped away, and you may become a monster even more terrifying than that person."