Chapter 251: The Nun

Snap!

Watching Louis shatter the demon, the black-robed heretic couldn’t help but collapse to the ground, his wrist blood flowing slowly, face pale as death—clearly suffering massive hemorrhage.

Louis licked his lips, recalling the scene just now.

Malphas, this demon, hadn’t expected to reappear; too bad the projection was useless—if not, I could’ve directly absorbed it, maybe earning another demon lord slot.

Still, not a bad deal. Though this guy had no good intentions, he did reveal quite a bit.

“Eileen, nun, Vatican… is this ‘The Nun’?”

Louis still felt uncertain, but his memories never lied—there was a seventy percent chance the Eileen Malphas referred to was the one he thought of.

So how was this demon connected to ‘The Nun’?

One was ‘Annabelle,’ the other ‘The Nun’—different films in the same series, yet they had no connection at all.

Now it seemed likely this was due to a butterfly effect caused by me.

Could it be that this demon has now teamed up with the ghost nun Valak from ‘The Nun’?

Just confirm his location, and I’ll know for sure.

Thinking this, Louis looked at the collapsed black-robed heretic and smiled, “Your array is decent—you didn’t fool me. Good. You’ll live.”

The black-robed heretic exhaled in relief, but before he could catch his breath, Louis spoke again, “Tell me—where did you get this array?”

“Sir, I traded this array with a fellow practitioner back when I was in Florida, later moved to Massachusetts.”

“But after that, I tried contacting them—they’d already left.”

“Hmm? Where to?”

“England.”

“That’s an overseas number—I remember. Their voice had a bit of a London accent. Probably in London.”

Good.

Now I’m certain.

Even if Malphas hasn’t teamed up with Valak the ghost nun, he’s definitely connected to her.

Let me piece this together.

Malphas’s avatar possessed the Annabelle doll; after I purged the demon, some residue may have remained—or perhaps luck brought him back. Either way, he and his heretic group left America and went to England.

There, he likely made contact with Valak and learned about Eileen.

Now he’s probably plotting something, and just happened to be summoned by me—lying to make me seek out this nun.

Next, it’s up to Louis to choose: either clash with Nun Eileen because of the demon’s lies, or follow the demon’s advice and sell Eileen out. Either way, the demon wins—two birds, one stone.

And it doesn’t stop there.

The talk about Hell also has a trap, but this one’s shallower.

It’s just trying to lure Louis into Hell—once inside, its home turf, it can crush him however it wants.

“Pretty cunning. No wonder it’s a demon.”

Luckily, I’ve seen the script.

Now I can investigate London in England directly—no need to wait passively for the Warrens. Take the initiative. Find Valak, then strike.

A fragmented avatar of a demon god.

Its true body was sent back to Hell, its avatar mostly destroyed, leaving only a sliver of residual soul. A demon god’s lingering power in this world has weakened to this extent.

Extremely rare.

For Louis—a man with extreme need for demons—this is a rare delicacy! Cannot miss!

“Immediately assemble our personnel in England toward London. Target is London. Search thoroughly.”

Having skimmed ‘The Conjuring 2,’ Louis remembered clearly—the story took place in England. But since he hadn’t watched carefully, he didn’t know the exact location, which was why he’d waited for the Warrens to trigger the plot.

So part of Cano International’s forces had already been dispersed there; given the special relationship between America and England, sending people over was easy.

Now the scope is narrowed to London—further investigation becomes much simpler.

Louis pulled out his radio and issued one order after another. Personnel began mobilizing. Results wouldn’t take long—this was the purpose behind Louis’s early power-building.

After giving orders, Louis prepared to continue. The summoning array still remained here—it wasn’t the only one, nor would this be the only summoning. He’d keep going.

“Continue.”

The black-robed heretic nodded frantically and resumed his work.

As Louis performed the summoning ritual.

Downtown.

A special agent entered City Hall and met the mayor.

He pulled out what he held.

A peach-wood talisman pendant.

“This is the exorcism holy artifact that’s been wildly rumored in Cambridge and nearby cities?”

The mayor nodded. “Correct. And wooden crosses too—each sized differently, all just scams to swindle money.”

“This Cleaners Company plays dirty. I suspect they’re behind all these paranormal incidents—why else does every incident vanish the moment someone buys their stuff?”

The mayor spoke at length, but the man in the black suit merely nodded, carefully examining the pendant.

He pulled out a device resembling infrared goggles, pressed the button, and scanned it—no change.

He frowned. “No energy signature? How is that possible? Are you sure you didn’t misremember or guess wrong?”

The mayor’s face darkened with anger. “Do you think I’d be mistaken? My own home just had one of these incidents—I saw it with my own eyes!”

The black-suited agent glanced at him, utterly unfazed. “I’ll report this.”

“And then?”

“We’ll send someone to investigate, verify whether you’re telling the truth. If you’re wrong, Mr. Mayor, you’d better start saving up.”

“Hmph.”

The mayor’s face turned sour. He said nothing more.

After leaving City Hall, the agent didn’t depart—he took a cab to Cleaners Company.

As an inspector dispatched by the Bureau, he could’ve made his own judgment already. Earlier, he’d just been humoring the mayor. From the moment he entered, the mayor had worn a sour face, offered no tip, treating him like a servant he could freely command.

Please. We’re not in the same chain of command. No matter how much face he had, he couldn’t command the Bureau. Since he refused to show respect, don’t blame me for giving him the cold shoulder.

“Hmph. Useless mayor.”

Holding the pendant, the inspector strolled casually toward the Cleaners Company entrance.

In his view, this was likely another local vendetta disguised as a paranormal event—he’d seen too many of these over the years.

Perfect chance to make a little profit.

The inspector glanced at Cleaners Company’s scale, and instinctively calculated the exact amount he’d skim.

“A decent little lamb.”

He walked in boldly.

But he didn’t see.

After he left.

In the mayor’s office, the mayor who had just been furious now sat calmly—as if he’d never lost his temper—and even dialed several calls.

“Yes, I’ve informed that inspector.”

“This test will reveal what kind of company this really is.”

“Don’t say more. Keep your head clear. Don’t provoke this company. Mass-producing special items and openly running a business—do you think it’s simple? Don’t you think they have backing? Don’t let greed blind you.”

“In short, minority yields to majority. If you refuse, go ahead and act alone—we won’t stop you. But if trouble comes, don’t expect us to help.”

“…”

After hanging up, the mayor lifted his glasses with a finger—the lenses flashed white in the sunlight.

“This test should reveal some truths. Sigh… mysterious powers, mysterious powers…”

Moments later.

Company building.

Swallow.

The inspector stared silently at the green-blue human shapes on his device’s screen. A bead of sweat rolled down his temple, nearly falling into his eye—he didn’t notice. He only felt icy cold, as if he’d walked into a demon’s lair.

This detection device was newly issued by the Bureau, designed to identify souls with special energy signatures.

And now—

What had he seen?

The burly men standing like guards—each glowed with colors other than white!

“White, green, blue, red, black.”

He muttered. White meant ordinary people. Green indicated anomalies—still within safe limits, solvable with guns.

Blue meant danger—typically powerful spirits, Wendigos.

Red and black—he’d never seen them, but the manual stated: Demons. If encountered, escape without penalty.

And now, before his eyes, a group of burly men flickered with mixed green and blue!

Most bodies deep green, a few parts blue.

What kind of place is this?

Could there be even stronger colors inside?

No! I must leave.

Swallow.

The investigator said nothing and turned to leave.

Behind him, several soldiers who had removed their black armor to serve as security watched his back with hollow gazes.

Only after leaving the company and entering a narrow alley did the investigator exhale, then quickly pull out his phone.

Beep-beep—

The call connected.

“Something’s happened!!”

……

Suburb basement.

Louis stared expressionlessly at the center of the ritual circle, the black-robed heretic grinning, his wrist already bandaged, the ground-bound array altered again and again.

But nothing changed inside the basement.

“Sir, you know, summoning demons is extremely difficult, and most rituals circulating today are wrong. I was already lucky to get this one.”

Louis wasn’t disappointed—fishing always carries the risk of catching nothing, but now it seemed the bait couldn’t even reach the water.

“Isn’t there any universal array?”

“Well, there is—the hexagram, flipped upside down. But it’s not directional; it points only to the concept of demons. If you’re lucky enough to actually summon one, what comes out is completely random.”

“Fine, use that one.”

The heretic’s face twisted in agony, but he had no choice—he began bleeding again.

This kind of ritual never succeeds without blood, so he had to bleed every time.

It seemed this gentleman had no intention of stopping him.

Louis had no intention of stopping him—he’d simply replace him when he was near death, then use the blood of the Flesh-Eating Demon. Given its unique nature, its blood alone was sufficient as material.

At that moment.

His phone rang.

The caller ID showed Michael, the Bureau captain who had previously investigated the Cano family in Orlando. Due to the Cano family’s immense threat and Louis’s proposal for mutual cooperation, they had become allies.

He had since handled cleanup operations during the parasitic and mutated insect incidents in California, and the Apalum Descent Event.

He had effectively become the Cano family’s patron and network within the Bureau.

Now he was calling…

Louis’s eyes flickered with understanding—he guessed the reason.

He answered the call.

As expected, it was about the investigation into the Sanitation Company.

But Louis had anticipated this from the moment he founded the company—he openly let haunted households of law-abiding citizens be exploited, then sold protective talismans to the elite, who weren’t fools; they were greedy, not stupid.

Naturally, they’d sense something odd, and it was inevitable the Bureau would be alerted.

So Louis had already informed Michael when he founded the Sanitation Company.

His call now was no surprise.

“Don’t worry—I’ll handle it. Won’t cause you any trouble. Same place: Storage Locker 908070.”

“By the way, this list… only the mayor?”

Louis’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Alright, next time we meet, we’ll have a proper chat.”

He hung up.

Louis rubbed his chin.

Only the mayor had sent the investigator—not the elites from Cambridge or neighboring cities.

Something was off.

After a moment’s thought, Louis understood.

“Heh, northern state elites are just as pragmatic as southern ones.”

“Even their Shitan is refreshingly original.”

He shook his head and dismissed the matter—soon, the mayor and other elite representatives would come to him with gifts, or perhaps invite him to a ball.

It didn’t matter.

For Louis, worldly affairs were no longer what they once were—just a little effort sufficed. The focus must remain on demons and other monsters.

“You may rest now.”

“Come on, let’s continue.”

Splat.

The black-robed heretic collapsed to the ground, his face deathly pale—he could now play a vampire without any makeup.

Gone—not a single drop left—

Two burly men dragged him away; then someone entered carrying the Flesh-Eating Demon’s blood and replaced the offering.

Another group of bleating, round-eyed sheep was led in.

“Baa, baa, baa—”

“BAA!!”

Spurt!

(End of Chapter)