Chapter 209: Entanglement: Fallen Angel, Demonic Anomaly, and True Name

Louis cast a brief glance and saw an elderly man with white hair panting as he ran toward them, followed by a car that had just stopped and three people—a woman, another woman, and a man—rushing over.

“Father Perez.”

Ed hurried over and steadied the old man, but before Perez could catch his breath, he gasped urgently, “That demon is connected to Satan—be extremely careful!”

!!!

One sentence, and it struck like thunder.

Who is Satan? The most orthodox King of Hell in the West.

All subsequent demons dubbed “Hellish Kings” pale in comparison to him.

This great demon is somehow tied to Satan.

This…

Ed was startled, patting Perez’s back as he asked, “What exactly happened to that demon? You didn’t explain clearly over the phone.”

“We were just attacked by that demon, but someone suddenly appeared…” Perez’s gaze went blank.

His eyes fixed on Louis, whose face was obscured in the distance.

Seeing this, Ed’s eyebrows twitched—he instantly understood Perez’s implication. He tugged Perez’s sleeve and pointed to the terrifying scorch marks on the ground, still radiating intense heat.

Perez: “Gulps—”

He shifted his gaze and continued, “After we came down from the building, we rushed over here. On the way, I reread the book they’d found about the demon’s name and realized they hadn’t finished reading it.”

“Marsales, a great demon who delights in torturing the weak, watching them struggle in familial bonds before spilling the blood of kin to absorb their souls. But he is merely the thirteenth of Solomon’s Seventy-Two Demons, a subordinate of Beret, one of the Hellish Kings.”

“Beret was once a rebellious Power Angel who sided with the Morning Star when it opposed the Lord. After following the Morning Star’s fall, he became one of the Hellish Kings through his dominion over power, later participating in Solomon’s affairs and becoming one of the Seventy-Two Demons.”

“So, Marsales might very well be an angel who fell and became a demon!”

???

Ed and Luo Lin stared in shock.

Even the three people behind Perez looked perplexed—they clearly didn’t buy Perez’s theory.

And yet.

Is this what you mean by “connected to Satan”?

Maybe just one of the angels Satan brought down during his fall?

Perez said nothing, only shook his head. “Actually, whether or not it was once an angel doesn’t matter. Even if true, it would’ve been just an ordinary angel—after falling, it retained little power and could never regain its angelic form.”

“But the problem is, it serves Beret. That King has always favored manifesting in the mortal world, bringing war and destruction. Marsales’s appearance must mean something is wrong!”

“We must exorcise it and report it to the Church for investigation.”

Perez said this.

Ed fell silent, glancing at the flame-wreathed chain ball in Louis’s hand.

Louis ignored Ed’s gaze. He’d heard Perez’s words—but so what?

Just speculation.

He needed this demon for something useful.

There was no way he’d hand over this great demon based on a few words—don’t even think about it!

“I don’t care about any of your theories. Now, answer my question,” Louis said coldly.

“Of course, sir.”

Ed sighed helplessly. Seeing Perez looked odd, he explained the issue of the Demonic Anomaly to him.

Perez froze, lost in thought.

Clearly, he needed time to process this.

Minutes passed as both men pondered.

At this point, the distant wail of police sirens was barely audible. After all, such a massive disturbance and celestial phenomenon—if not a single officer showed up, the local police station would likely be smashed by furious citizens.

Louis led the group a short distance away and cast a concealment technique, hiding them all. As long as they didn’t shout loudly or make sudden movements, their presence would remain undetected.

Then—

“I remember.”

“A Demonic Anomaly is a special entity formed from fragments of a heretical god after its shattering and subsequent corruption,” Ed said, looking up.

“Hmm? Go on.”

But Ed first glanced at Perez beside him, noting his uneasy expression—he clearly had realized something too. Then he looked at Louis, clad in black, face hidden, yet radiating immense power.

Still, he spoke.

“God is a monotheistic deity, so during its spread, many other gods were condemned. Some heretical gods possessed unique powers; after their shattering, they didn’t fully die but instead fell into corruption, joining Hell and becoming demons.”

“Heretical gods varied in strength, and the size of their fragments differed, so Demonic Anomalies vary in power as well.”

Speaking of these hidden truths, Ed sounded confident and eloquent.

“But most Demonic Anomalies are weak. Only a few special ones are powerful—like Mephistopheles from Faust. Though not one of the Seventy-Two Demons, its status rivals that of a Demon Lord, and records even suggest it rivals the demons among the Seven who can be called Kings.”

“It is a special Demonic Anomaly—the most powerful one ever recorded.”

“Also, due to their divine powers, they all possess unique abilities. The most common is granting wishes, since the defining trait of a god is fulfilling the wishes of believers—a trait still evident in their remnants.”

“But these abilities always come with restrictions, since they are not true gods.”

The three behind Perez suddenly understood—they had never known such secrets existed.

Now they realized why Ed had glanced at Perez with such a strange expression: because he’d just openly spoken of other gods’ existence in front of a priest.

During the Church’s dominant era, it outright denied the existence of any other gods—just hearing someone mention a heretical god would trigger a scolding.

Now, Perez merely looked embarrassed—because times had changed.

Louis’s mind churned: Demonic Anomaly… heretical god… shattering… corruption… power… Mephistopheles from Faust…

The connections between these terms.

In the end, Louis could only say: God was ruthless.

How many gods had this thing killed?

But this meant the Demonic Anomalies all contained fragments of divine power?

Divine power…

Louis’s heart trembled slightly.

The Ascension Technique!

Though the prerequisites for the Ascension Technique had yet to be met, future strengthening would inevitably involve divine power.

It seemed he must keep this Demonic Anomaly he captured well cared for.

“How do you identify a Demonic Anomaly?”

Louis asked.

Ed shook his head. “I don’t know. I only learned this when I visited the Church’s library to obtain my documents—I had no access to further knowledge.”

Louis nodded.

He believed him.

After all, Ed was a Three-Half member—not an official Church member.

Louis turned to leave. He had what he needed; staying here served no purpose.

But then—

The old priest Perez, who had just regained his courage, suddenly called out to Louis: “Sir, that demon is extremely dangerous. Its back may conceal Beret’s colossal secret—one misstep could trigger world destruction.”

“Please hand it over to us for exorcism—drive it back to Hell, destroy its vessel, and prevent its manifestation in the mortal world.”

Louis turned his head, coldly fixing his gaze on the old man.

“Impossible.”

Perez sighed. “Very well, sir.”

He’d only been trying. If refused, he had no recourse.

“Still, I’m curious about your exorcism. If I gave it to you, how would you exorcise it?” Louis asked again.

He’d never seen a Church member deal with a demon.

He was curious.

He’d heard the Church always drove demons back to Hell, never destroyed them.

Hence the term “exorcism,” not “annihilation.”

He wondered if it was true.

Perez pulled out a Bible. “Our exorcism relies on the Lord’s divine power and teachings.”

“The Lord said, ‘All who…’”

“Enough. I’m not interested in religious grandstanding. I only want to know how you exorcise.”

“...Alright. The key lies in whether we know the demon’s true name and how devout we are. The more devout, the stronger the effect when chanting Scripture and reciting the Lord’s teachings. Combined with holy water, crosses, and other sacred items that weaken it…”

“Finally, we drive the demon out of the mortal world through Scripture recitation.”

“For the Lord once said: what belongs to man belongs to man; demons do not belong here—they must return to where they belong. Before the Lord’s teachings, even demons must obey!”

Perez’s face glowed with fervor, his eyes shimmering.

Louis was unmoved.

He mentally stripped away the religious brainwashing and summarized it in modern terms: God had set rules, built a firewall.

A demon, an illegal file, slips in unnoticed—fine. But if detected, it gets expelled.

Yes, illegal file—only expelled.

After all, a demon isn’t a virus.

And who is the virus...

To God, the virus must be other gods... probably.

Louis grew even more wary of God—tyrannical, utterly tyrannical—imposing his own rules upon the world with nothing but a name, a Bible, and some symbolic so-called holy artifacts.

He could expel demons with just that.

What kind of thing is this?

Is he carving his power and his rules into the very bottom code of the world?

What realm is this?

Primordial Spirit?

Or an immortal?

What kind of immortal?

He shook his head.

Louis paid no further heed to their pleas for him to stay.

One step, two steps, three steps...

After taking a few steps forward, Louis’s figure gradually vanished without a trace.

Only Ed and the others remained, staring at each other in silence.

At that moment, Warren and his wife finally noticed the three people behind Perez.

“Perez, who are these people?”

(End of Chapter)