Chapter 136: Flame Demon

The skilled one picked up a sheet of paper and a pen, and wrote a new story on the desk:

Flame Demon: It is a humanoid creature made of fire, its core a never‑extinguishing flame that beats like a heart, and it can promote its own growth and evolution by igniting objects or assimilating other flames.

It possesses a powerful learning ability, becoming more cunning and stronger as it continuously grows.

Arson and slaughter are its most primal instincts.

The short story was quickly finished, and the skilled one molded a clay figure of a heart wrapped in flame using a mixture of many materials.

He blended the traits of a demon, an arsonist, and a conspirator into a demon elixir as hot as molten lava, and poured it over the molded clay figure.

He quickly retrieved the materials, set up the ritual to pray to the Hidden Sage, and Lei Keton stepped back a pace and began chanting the prayer:

"Sage who perceives the world, eyes that probe truth, embodiment of endless knowledge and spiritual numbers!"

"I pray to you;"

"I pray to you, seeking the power of knowledge"

"I ask you to grant tangible power to abstract knowledge."

As the prayer finished, a whooshing wind roared in the room, the candle flame took on a hazy violet glow and flickered. The whole room grew dim.

Lei Keton took the ritual dagger, cut a wound on his palm, and let the fresh blood drip onto the parchment and clay figurine lying on the floor.

A pair of eyes, containing countless brilliant stars, cold and indifferent, without eyelashes, appeared in the wavering candlelight.

The parchment and clay figurine on the floor began to disintegrate rapidly, turning into streams of information, which then coalesced into an illusory light sphere.

The illusory light sphere expanded and contracted continuously for about two minutes, then re‑formed into a blood‑red heart wrapped in layers of flame.

When the anomaly faded, Lei Keton bent, picked up the figurine from the floor, and felt a scorching sensation the moment he grasped it; the freshly made Flame Demon figurine still seemed to have a heartbeat.

"Its vitality is far stronger than the previous Plague Doctor and Unicorn figurines; is that because I added relevant description while writing the story?"

Lei Keton whispered a line.

He then closed his eyes, performed a quick divination, and obtained rough information about the Flame Demon figurine:

To use it, besides providing sufficient spiritual energy, one also needs nearby combustible material or raging fire.

The Flame Demon has a powerful command over fire and can grow by devouring flames. The more violently the fire burns, the stronger and more cunning it becomes.

It can employ high‑temperature, high‑pressure air and the roar of flame explosions to utter demonic words born of the abyss, full of filthy, degenerate intent.

Although the Flame Demon attains decent intelligence after some growth, its desire for arson and slaughter remains its most primal instinct. It will ignite any combustible thing it sees within its sight.

"When it matures, its destructive power can even reach the Sequence Five Exceptional level, which excels at offense, but its own flaws are equally obvious and it can be easily targeted."

"Another problematic item; the Flame Demon's negative effects are no smaller than those of the Plague Doctor and Unicorn, using it essentially guarantees a fire."

"Fine, we already added demonic traits, it won't turn out well anyway, and those traits are actually handy for causing destruction."

Lei Keton, holding the figurine that resembled a heart wrapped in layers of flame, muttered to himself for a while, then prepared to find a lucky gang to test the Flame Demon's strength.

Lei Keton casually tossed a gold coin onto the Beike Land city map spread on the desk; after the coin settled completely, he walked over and picked it up:

"Qiaowude District?"

"It's not the East District or the Dock District?"

Lei Keton let out a rather surprised sigh.

After tidying the remaining ritual materials in the room, Lei Keton donned his coat and set off for Qiaowude District.

To better observe the surroundings, Lei Keton didn't even use spirit‑realm transit; instead he took a rental carriage to Qiaowude District, then switched to different carriages to wander the area a few rounds.

He found no clues about the gang he sought, but Lei Keton saw Kelei En, no, it must have been Sherlock Moriarty Detective, looking like makeup artistry.

He and a man about thirty, wearing a heavy coat, a semi‑tall hat with two neat side whiskers, entered a building without a signboard but with a golden rose embedded at the doorway.

"Is this a brothel?"

"A scene worth photographing."

Lei Keton muttered two sentences softly in the carriage.

"Let's stop right here!"

After greeting the coachman and paying the fare, Lei Keton walked toward the Golden Rose under the coachman's slightly envious gaze.

However, Lei Keton didn't go inside; instead he turned to a shop beside it and bought several sheets of drawing paper.

Lei Keton walked back toward the Golden Rose, intending to see what Kelei En was doing inside and whether there were scenes worth recording. These would be precious sources of humanity later!

Just as Lei Keton was about to approach the Golden Rose, he noticed a rental carriage not far away; though the carriage was unremarkable on the street, Lei Keton, using his Secret‑Gazing Eye, saw an elderly gentleman seated inside.

The man seemed to sense Lei Keton's stare, his gaze heavy as he looked toward him across the carriage.

"Interesting, Reader's Path? That's Detective Aixingge Stanton?"

Lei Keton quickly linked the man to his identity; Exceptional beings of the Reader's Path are quite rare throughout Luen. Every Reader is poorly regarded by the Storm Church.

A faint smile curved Lei Keton's mouth as he walked toward the man's carriage. The moment he neared, Detective Aixingge Stanton stepped out of the carriage.

"Hello, may I ask if you are Detective Aixingge Stanton?"

Lei Keton naturally greeted him.

Aixingge Stanton was silent for a moment, cautiously appraising Lei Keton before speaking:

"I am, may I ask who you are?"

"Al Taiensi, a scholar traveling the world, who just recently arrived in Beike Land."

Lei Keton smoothly reported the false identity.

"The arsonist with a £5,000 bounty on the Future ship? You actually came to Beike Land?"

Aixingge Stanton, rather surprised, mentioned Lei Keton's sea identity.

"I've been in Beike Land this long, and you're the first to recognize my sea identity! No wonder you're a great detective, you even follow maritime news."

Lei Keton was somewhat surprised; he didn't expect the great detective to have any knowledge of sea affairs.

"Paying attention to all kinds of information is a detective's professional quality, but you come to Beike Land with no disguise at all—aren't you afraid of attracting the Storm Church's attention?"

Aixingge Stanton replied politely, then steered the conversation toward the Storm Church, trying to invoke the pirate's fear of the Church.

I just saw you, so I came over to have a look; there aren't many people of the Knowledge Church in Beckland, and normally you can't even find anyone to ask for information.

Do you know which nearby gangs are more active?

Lei Kedun stopped standing outside the carriage to question Aixingge·Sitan Dun, took a few quick steps forward, entered the carriage compartment, and found a seat.

As for Aixingge·Sitan Dun's assistant and the carriage driver, they had already slipped silently into sleep.

Aren't you a pirate under the Star Supreme Commander? What connection do you have with the Knowledge Church?

Aixingge·Sitan Dun didn't block Lei Kedun's entry into the carriage; the other's stare gave him a strong sense of danger, and he was certain that this relatively young man was an extraordinary individual whose rank surpassed his own.

Lei Kedun naturally performed the Knowledge Church's standard courtesy, drawing the All‑Seeing Eye on his chest:

"May wisdom be with you!"

"May wisdom be with you!"

Aixingge·Sitan Dun, with a solemn expression, returned the salute.

Do you know which nearby gangs are more active?

Lei Kedun asked again.

In Beckland, every respectable gang has its own backing forces; some are supported by the government, some by foreign powers, and some by cult organizations.

If you act too recklessly, you'll easily attract the attention of the Luen authorities and the forces behind the gangs; in Beckland, many powerful extraordinary beings hide among the populace.

Aixingge·Sitan Dun didn't give Lei Kedun a direct answer; instead, he first explained the composition of Beckland's gangs.

Lei Kedun fully understood Aixingge·Sitan Dun's concerns, and while nodding slightly, explained:

"I won't do anything overly conspicuous; I just happen to have a miraculous item that needs testing, and I want to find a lucky gang to try it with, and earn some extra profit in the process."

Aixingge·Sitan Dun's eyebrows twitched slightly—are the young people of the Knowledge Church all this out of touch now?

Although somewhat helpless that the other wouldn't heed his advice, Aixingge·Sitan Dun still relayed all the information he knew about Beckland's gangs to Lei Kedun, even pointing out that those gangs are easier to handle and less likely to draw official attention.

(End of chapter)