Chapter 796: The Cost of Being Nosy

Behind Lu Mi, the gloomy Vije Pan was still questioning the Church of Knowledge's cleric, Hera Beg:

"In a legal duel, can I do anything to the other party without facing punishment?"

"Yes." Hera Beg confirmed Vije Pan's suspicion.

Vije Pan's eyes instantly lit up—he felt this place was heaven.

He excitedly swallowed a mouthful of saliva.

Gulp… he heard a similar sound of swallowing beside him.

He turned his head and saw the source: a woman with loose brown hair, Zhu Li.

The "Collector" was equally excited, while the cannibal chef Les licked his lips.

He was already hungry.

Lu Mi paid no attention to the performances of these hardened criminals; he stepped out of the library-like church and surveyed his surroundings.

The architecture in this area was extremely ancient, resembling early Fifth Era style—characterized by columns and arches, heavy, dense, grand yet simple.

Behind the church stretched an endless cemetery; amid the trees stood countless gravestones and numerous mounds rising from the ground.

This reminded Lu Mi of a line mentioned in the "0—01" sealed dossier:

"Buried beneath a subterranean mausoleum, place numerous soldier dolls, and construct above it a cemetery containing over a million corpses…"

Was the subterranean mausoleum sealing "0—01" right beneath him? Lu Mi had just withdrawn his gaze when the once-bright sky darkened abruptly—thick clouds gathered overhead, and muffled thunder rolled endlessly.

"Just like that… no wonder the dossier said Morola frequently suffers extreme weather…" Lu Mi mused, gazing into the distance, where the endless mountain ranges loomed like crouching beasts along the horizon, blocking all who might try to flee.

Of course, this was merely a metaphor—Morola's residents never entertained the thought of leaving the city, at any time.

Lu Mi himself felt a slight reluctance.

The underground was calling him.

"We need to find a place to settle quickly, or we'll get soaked in the rain," Ge Yi's voice echoed beside Lu Mi.

He too had stepped out of the unnamed church, and as a native of Esala, his diction was remarkably formal.

"Yes," Lu Mi smiled and walked into the large square before the church.

Ge Yi followed, glancing back at the scene, and said with surprise:

"There's a cemetery this big here?"

"A cemetery with over a million, even tens of millions of corpses," Lu Mi replied casually.

Ge Yi nodded thoughtfully:

"Historical records mention a large-scale relocation of graves in the early Fifth Era across the Lunbao region, to address the aftermath of the 'Pale Plague'—was this where they moved them?"

"Perhaps." As Lu Mi crossed the square, he subtly activated the black sigil representing the "Pus-Swollen Severed Hand," without actually using it.

He was sensing the approximate locations of the other two parts of the "Pus-Swollen Severed Hand."

This sensing startled him—not just two parts, but subtle feedback came from all directions across the "City of Exile."

"Did the old severed hand get dismembered?" Lu Mi muttered silently.

He chose the direction with the strongest feedback and moved forward.

After walking just one street, he heard metallic clashing sounds and saw two men engaged in fierce sword combat, surrounded by a crowd.

Duels with fatalities happen every day… Lu Mi reviewed the "0—01" sealed dossier's contents and paused to watch, not rushing ahead.

Ge Yi did the same, as if evaluating the combat prowess of Morola's residents.

The duel lasted two or three minutes, ending when the man in the thick black jacket was cleaved open from chest to abdomen, his bloody intestines spilling out as he convulsed and died.

A group of people in long black robes—men and women alike—appeared out of nowhere, their expressions utterly blank.

They silently dragged away the stripped corpse and quietly washed the blood from the street, moving like machines following a fixed procedure.

The onlookers gradually dispersed; among them, a short man wearing a brown-green baseball cap and wearing a friendly smile passed by Lu Mi and Ge Yi, glancing at them several times.

"You're new here?" the short man asked warmly.

"How can you tell?" Ge Yi asked curiously.

The short man laughed heartily:

"Your demeanor hasn't changed yet—you haven't truly become part of Morola!"

As he spoke the last half-sentence, his voice suddenly sharpened, as if an unknown force had seized his body.

Lu Mi watched the man silently, observing his state change.

The short man immediately waved his hand:

"Haha, I'm Wolms. Let's drink together later."

As they watched Wolms walk down another street, Ge Yi suddenly spoke to Lu Mi:

"Didn't you notice you're missing something?"

"I noticed," Lu Mi nodded indifferently. "His hands are fast."

He had only realized the "Traveler's Satchel" was about to leave his body the instant Wolms retracted his hand.

This man was definitely an extraordinary individual—a true "Thief." His sudden state shift was likely a deliberate act to draw attention.

"If you noticed, why didn't you expose him? Afraid of retaliation?" Ge Yi didn't understand Lu Mi's reaction.

"I want to see what he'll do next," Lu Mi smiled unchanged, hands in his pockets, slowly following the thief along Wolms's path.

Ge Yi stared at his back, thought for over ten seconds, then decided to first find accommodation.

…………

As soon as he was out of Lu Mi and Ge Yi's sight, Wolms suddenly quickened his pace, weaving through multiple alleys, doubling back.

Once certain he'd shaken off any possible pursuers, he stopped deep in an empty alley and pulled from inside his clothing a deep black coin pouch.

It was Lu Mi's "Traveler's Satchel."

"Haha, newbies really are careless—I wonder what's inside…" The man in the baseball cap reached into the "Traveler's Satchel."

His expression changed slightly, flooded with intense delight.

He could sense the pouch's value, feeling it contained many sentient objects—but he hadn't expected it to be an extremely rare spatial item, its interior seemingly holding a sizable room.

"What a fortunate surprise…" Wolms gripped one object inside the "Traveler's Satchel" and yanked it out.

Before his eyes appeared a mutilated, half-body of swollen, bluish-black corpse, already rotting and dripping yellowish-red pus.

Plop!

Wolms jerked his hand back, letting the half-body fall to the ground.

"This…" His face twisted in utter horror.

How could anyone carry a half-body around?

Especially one this severely decayed!

Even in Morola, where murderers were too numerous to count, this was the most twisted kind!

No wonder he was exiled here!

Wolms steadied himself and reached into the "Traveler's Satchel" again, pulling out a sheet of fine, pure white leather.

He couldn't look away from it, as if staring at the skin of his dream lover.

He soon noticed unfamiliar black words on the leather.

"These look like the languages that can manipulate supernatural forces—this leather must be extremely valuable. I need to copy it down and find someone to interpret it, but without drawing suspicion." Wolms caressed the fine white leather with great delight, unwilling to let go.

Suddenly, he felt an itch in his throat.

"Cough! Cough! Cough!"

He coughed harder and harder.

Within ten to twenty seconds, he coughed as if his heart would tear apart.

Puff!

Wolms spat out a pool of blood.

"This isn't right! Why am I suddenly so ill?" Wolms vaguely understood—he hurled the fine white leather onto the ground.

But his coughing continued, violently.

As he coughed, he thought of ways to save himself:

The man kept such a dangerous piece of leather in his pocket—he must have prepared medicine to treat the corresponding illness…

Yes, he must have!

Wolms reached into the "Traveler's Satchel" again.

The first thing he pulled out was a gray-white lightning-shaped brooch.

A thick silver-white bolt of lightning suddenly struck from the stacked clouds above, hitting him directly.

Boom!

Amid the echoing thunder, Wolms collapsed, his body charred and twitching.

Already gravely ill, the lightning struck him to the brink of death.

"How… how could I suddenly be struck by lightning… I… I…" Wolms's vision darkened; he closed his eyes in confusion, fear, and regret.

He soon stopped breathing.

Just ten seconds later, Lu Mi turned into the alley and walked to the front of the corpse, looking down and shaking his head with a smile:

"It's dangerous to rummage through other people's belongings."

After a pause, Lu Mi sighed regretfully:

"I was hoping to follow you and meet Morola's extraordinary individuals—you're really not up to the task."

"You haven't even touched the more dangerous items yet."

As he spoke, Lu Mi picked up the "Traveler's Satchel," pressed its opening against the contents, and shoved the "Thunder of the Sea" brooch, the "Despair Witch" skin, and the half-body of the "Pus-Swollen Severed Hand" back inside.

"I'll just have to be a good Samaritan this once." Lu Mi mumbled as he patted down Wolms and took 537 Sassen golds.

That amounted to about 2, 63 Fael golds.

Putting away the good Samaritan's bounty, Lu Mi waited for Wolms's extraordinary traits to seep out.

About two minutes later, a squad of enforcers in black robes and expressionless faces entered the alley; their leader stared blankly at Lu Mi and said:

"Did you kill him?"

"No, he was struck by lightning—probably because he did too many bad things," Lu Mi laughed, explaining seriously, "He was a thief who stole from me, so I chased him here."

The enforcers studied Lu Mi, as if verifying whether he was lying.

After a moment, the leader nodded and said:

"You may go."

Lu Mi didn't move an inch; he chuckled and said:

"The things on his body should be mine, right?"

(End of Chapter)