Chapter 16: The Deceiver

Lei En's expression wasn't good.

No one likes being secretly watched, having every move exposed, even if Luo Jie seems harmless.

The worst part is that he didn't notice Luo Jie's presence at all; his Soul Eye saw no trace, and he has no idea how Luo Jie managed it.

Is this the power of the legendary demon hunter?

Seeing Lei En's change of expression, Luo Jie's mouth twitched as if a hint of a smile appeared. He walked to the altar, his gaze falling on the opened tome placed on the corpse offered as a sacrifice, and studied it seriously.

Lei En followed, wanting to glance at the tome's contents, but Luo Jie raised his hand to stop him and said, "This is the 'Book of Loxi'; you may not read it."

As he said so, he closed the tome.

"The Book of Loxi?"

Lei En noticed a pattern on the cover: a black skull mask surrounded by a blood‑like radiance, its eye sockets flashing an ominous red light.

Luo Jie explained, "Loxi is the evil deity of the Shadow Blade faith, revered as the 'God of Murder.' Apart from its followers, we generally call it the 'Deceiver.'"

"The Deceiver is a tremendously powerful deity, wielding the divine offices of 'Murder,' 'Cunning,' 'Lies,' 'Conspiracy,' and 'Conflict.' The Book of Loxi records its doctrine, used in sacrificial rites and follower prayers, and carries a faint divine power. Anyone other than a follower who reads it, if their Willpower is not strong enough, will be beguiled into becoming its follower."

"Even with strong Willpower, if one is not already beguiled, reading it repeatedly will drive one mad."

Lei En felt a chill inside, grateful that he hadn't read it.

Luo Jie seemed well‑versed in this evil god and continued, "The Deceiver can quietly amass many followers and become a mighty deity, partly thanks to the beguilement of the Book of Loxi."

"This Book of Loxi was likely freshly made, having undergone only a few sacrifices; its effect isn't that strong yet, and its uses are limited."

"The few people you killed were probably beguiled by this Book of Loxi and became followers of the Deceiver."

Lei En, hearing this, couldn't help but feel puzzled.

Back then, Ai Si Bo Ge took me to kill, trying to recruit me, going to great lengths—why didn't he just hand me the Book of Loxi to read?

Luo Jie seemed to read Lei En's thoughts, glanced at him, and said, "The Book of Loxi can alter a person's faith, but its effect varies in strength and depends on prior beliefs. Especially for followers of the God of Magic, before reading the Book, it's best to break mental defenses and perform actions aligned with the Deceiver's doctrine—such as murder or deception—to please the Deceiver."

"So that's how it is," Lei En suddenly understood.

As for why later I wasn't forced to read the Book of Loxi nor used as a sacrifice, that was probably Lam Qi's doing, not Ai Si Bo Ge's orders.

At that moment Lei En suddenly realized that Luo Jie had indeed been trailing him in secret, heard Lam Qi's words, and thus could guess his experience.

Luo Jie circled the altar, his pupils slightly dilating as if inspecting something.

Finally, Luo Jie looked at Lei En, shook his head, and said, "You may have courted a big trouble."

Lei En was bewildered, "Master Luo Jie?"

"The shadow warrior you just killed likely committed multiple murders recently, fulfilling the doctrine to please the deity and performed a sacrificial rite, thus receiving the Deceiver's response," Luo Jie said, pointing to a blood‑stained sigil on the altar. "This is the mark left when the god responds to a follower."

"That shadow warrior had only just received the response, so the Deceiver's attention hadn't faded, and you killed him as a result."

Lei En finally understood and shouted inside, "What the hell!"

He was so frightened he took several steps back,

wanting to stay farther from the altar, fearing a bolt of lightning might descend and strike him down.

Seeing Lei En's fearful demeanor, Luo Jie rarely smiled, "No need to be so nervous. You mortal are less than an ant in the god's eyes; even if you kill a few of its followers, they're only slightly larger ants, so why would the god waste its power on you?"

"Moreover, this is within the Empire under the protection of the God of Magic; the Deceiver dares not reveal itself lightly."

Lei En felt a bit reassured, but Luo Jie shifted tone, "However..."

Can't you finish what you're saying in one go? Lei En suddenly realized that Luo Jie, who always projects a cold image, is actually a rather introverted tease who loves to toy with people and talks a lot.

"However what?" he asked eagerly.

"The god does not act against mortals, but its followers do."

Luo Jie pointed at Lei En, "When you killed that shadow warrior, the lingering divine energy on him transferred to you. Since you're not a follower, it formed a Conflict Mark. If other Deceiver followers draw near, they can sense this mark and will go to any lengths to kill you, to please the deity."

"Where is the Conflict Mark?" Lei En searched his own body but found no sign.

"Such a mark is invisible; we cannot see it."

Lei En was speechless; when he killed Ai Si Bo Ge, his Soul Eye was active, and aside from absorbing the soul, he saw nothing transfer to himself.

There were no abnormal phenomena in Ai Si Bo Ge's soul either.

Thus, the Soul Eye is not omnipotent; at least it cannot perceive divine energy.

"You needn't worry too much; the Conflict Mark won't last forever—it will fade after a while," Luo Jie said, offering rare comfort.

"How long will the mark last?"

Luo Jie replied, "It depends on how much divine energy remains; generally it lasts a few years, but it may dissipate in months—depends on your luck."

"Months, even years—that's too long! Master Luo Jie, is there any way to remove the mark early?"

Luo Jie shook his head, "Only the god can wield divine power; I am powerless."

Lei En felt a pounding headache.

He is still an ordinary person, not even a transcendent; if he encounters a Deceiver follower or a Shadow Blade assassin, how could he cope?

None of those followers or assassins are easy to deal with, and they hide among people, making them impossible to guard against; he might not even know how he died.

Coincidentally, Longshandecheng currently has a group of Shadow Blade assassins scheming something big.

Lei En grew anxious, his craving for power suddenly becoming urgent.

He must become a transcendent quickly, at least gain some self‑defense; he doesn't want to be mysteriously assassinated.

"Master Luo Jie, what should we do here?" Lei En pointed at the altar; since it involves a deity, he dared not act rashly.

Luo Jie wore an indifferent expression and replied casually, "Just burn it, or you could notify the church to handle it."

Lei En chose to burn it without hesitation.

He turned and left the basement, fetched a pile of wooden furniture and junk from upstairs, stacked them beside the altar, and also dragged the several corpses of Ai Si Bo Ge from the manor's outer path into the room, then doused everything with half a barrel of lamp oil he found in the kitchen.

Lei En took down the wall lamp, tossed it into the basement entrance, and a blaze quickly erupted inside.

Before leaving, he didn't forget to take the bag of cash.

Luo Jie saw the money bag in Lei En's hand but said nothing. After the two left, the manor soon erupted in roaring flames, the whole building ablaze, visible from far away in the night.

Lei En returned to the city at top speed, but he found that no matter how fast he was, Luo Jue could easily stay beside him, his footsteps barely audible, and he still had breath left to speak.

"Lei En, what are you planning now?"

"I want to become a Transcendent," Lei En said frankly.

"That's not easy," Luo Jue sighed, as if recalling his own past, "but from my perspective, your chance of passing the Soul Transformation ceremony is great; if you prepare thoroughly, it shouldn't be a problem."

Lei En remained silent; in fact, he was already contemplating holding the Soul Transformation ceremony.

Passing the Soul Transformation ceremony is a prerequisite for becoming a Transcendent, unlocking the soul‑fusion ability.

The ceremony is simple: inject the Soul‑devouring elixir into the carotid artery.

The Soul‑devouring elixir is an alchemical drug, costly, its main ingredient being the Soul‑devouring herb that once helped humanity fight the Blood Soul Curse; fundamentally, it is a potent toxin.

In early times, human pioneers took the Soul‑devouring herb directly; failure meant death, with a mortality rate exceeding ninety percent.

Nowadays, people use the Soul‑devouring elixir for the Soul Transformation ceremony; it's less dangerous—if the ceremony fails, one loses only about ten years of lifespan and the soul remains weakened for three to five years.

Though cruel, it's far better than dying on the spot.

Injecting the elixir makes its effect act directly on the soul in the brain, excruciatingly painful, comparable to the world's most horrific torture, sustained only by one's Willpower until the soul completes its metamorphosis.

During the ceremony, the elixir is continuously infused; the longer one endures, the more is injected, and the better the Soul Transformation effect, granting a Transcendent more profession choices later.

However, members of the major division rarely persist until the Soul Transformation completes; only a few pass the ceremony, with a success rate below thirty percent. Among those who do, over half achieve only a preliminary Soul Transformation, unable to choose spell‑casting Transcendent professions.

Lei En hasn't decided which profession to pursue yet; before that, he must first undergo a soul test.

The so‑called soul test involves touching a alchemical artifact called a "Soul‑grinding stone" with one's hand, simulating the elixir's effect and generating intense pain.

If one can endure the pain of the Soul‑grinding stone, then one may proceed to the Soul Transformation ceremony.

Soul‑grinding stones are available in many alchemy shops, free to use; he'll test one tomorrow.

Late at night, Lei En and Luo Jue returned safely to the Basil Inn; the lobby still had people playing cards, and they barely noticed the newcomers.

Just as Lei En was about to return to his room, Luo Jue called him back, whispering, "Lei En, after you pass the Soul Transformation ceremony, if you're interested in becoming a Demon Hunter, you can come find me and join my school; I can guarantee your safety until the seal is removed."