Detective Agency of the Bizarre
Chapter 465 - 465 Three hundred and twenty-two

465: Three hundred and twenty-two.

Cooling body 465: Three hundred and twenty-two.

Cooling body “I should have thought of this earlier…”

Jojo murmured sorrowfully, unable to stop her tears.

She had already prepared herself for her brother’s death, but when she finally encountered the truth, the unbearable grief instantly pierced her heart.

Lu Li, holding an oil lamp, stood at the doorway, his face unchanged with calmness.

His gaze swept over the extinguished campfire, the scattered empty cans and unopened cans, the unused charcoal, and the strange patterns on Oliver’s body.

It was clear that Oliver had died an unnatural death.

Jojo crouched beside her brother, whispering inaudible gentle words.

Lu Li waited quietly; he thought it would take Jojo a long time to calm her emotions, but soon, she left her brother’s side, wiped away her tears, and approached Lu Li.

“Can we take my brother’s body with us?” Jojo asked hoarsely.

“Where would you take it?”

Jojo fell silent; they were deep in the Shadow Swamp, struggling to survive themselves.

How could they possibly carry a body out…

It made no sense.

“Can I bid him farewell?

Just a few minutes,” Jojo pleaded.

Lu Li handed the oil lamp to Jojo, “We still have time.”

“Thank you.”

Gently nodding and taking the oil lamp, Jojo returned to Oliver’s side and knelt gently beside the body, hands clasped in prayer.

A slow prayer echoed in the narrow cabin, spreading into the depths of the corridor.

“Life withers like a flower, yet blooms like one as well…”

“Our fates have been set on a path from birth to death…

we come from the soil…

and to the soil we shall return…

such is the destiny of life.”

“An end does not signify the conclusion…

all that you were will be remembered and passed on.

Bodies decay with time, but the spirit remains immortal…”

“I, Joanna, wish for Oliver’s soul to ascend to a pain-free heaven…”

“May the undead find eternal peace…”

As the last syllable faded, Jojo closed her eyes, whispering softly.

[Very… profound words…]

Only Lu Li could hear the whisper echoing in the depths of his mind.

“You should know about these prayers,” Lu Li spoke quietly.

“They are common among church believers.”

[Believers…

I never respond to them…]

“Why?”

[Their ideas of prayer are bizarre and peculiar…

coveting my power…

or trying to curse others…

or desiring wealth and women…

or offering meager loyalty…

I am not interested in these…]

“But most Evil Gods do not refuse those who come to them.”

Unlike all other anomalies, Evil Gods are born from human beings.

An Evil God is a consciousness formed by the convergence of numerous negative emotions.

Regardless of whether it existed before, as long as enough people believe and offer sacrifices, the Evil God would take birth in accordance with the believers’ consciousness.

Lu Li thought of something, “The first settlers of Shadow Town believed in the Mother of the Marsh, imagining her as a protector and blessing to the town.

You claiming to be the Mother of the Marsh, does this suggest that you are the ‘good Evil God’ spoken of in rumors?”

This speculation held a great possibility, as it could reasonably explain why the Demon Slayers of the Ailen Peninsula were indifferent to the Evil God at their doorstep.

Because the Mother of the Marsh was a “good Evil God.”

The so-called good Evil Gods are only relative.

They are not human and naturally do not need to act by human rules, nor can they be judged good or bad by human standards.

They merely protect their own territories, indifferent to the humans who pass by.

Just like eyes observing the ants beneath one’s feet.

They might harm passersby due to certain factors, but compared to other Evil Gods, this type of Evil God is almost harmless.

Today, as the world tilts towards destruction, Exorcists hardly have time to pay attention to these harmless Evil Gods.

The Mother of the Marsh did not directly address Lu Li’s problem; it didn’t even respond, whispering something else instead, “I feel… you are very close… enter the center of the Banyan Tree… I will await you there…”

“Are you leaving again?” Lu Li asked.

“It feels something… resisting… I must focus my consciousness…”

“Leave a trace of consciousness, I will contact you if there’s anything.”

After a brief pause, the Mother of the Marsh replied, “Hold onto the Divine Statue… I will sense your consciousness… and… it… was not brought here by me…”

“It?”

“The ship… you are in its body…”

Lu Li suddenly turned his head to ask Anna, “Do you feel anything?”

Joanna had already started to pray, and Anna, who emerged, had not detected any presence; she knew Lu Li wouldn’t have spoken without reason.

She closed her eyes, diffused her own aura around, only to be blocked by the cold, damp walls.

It was hard to imagine that her own aura could feel the cold and dampness, as if she had touched the walls.

“The walls here actually blocked my aura…” Anna said in a low voice, astonished.

Lu Li looked towards Joanna, who was knelt beside Oliver’s corpse, murmuring, “Are you done?”

Joanna opened her eyes that she had closed, her face streaked with tears, washing away the mud on her cheeks.

“What happened?” She heard the conversation between Lu Li and Anna before.

“The situation has changed, we need to leave here first.”

Unaware if the ship had realized they had discovered it, Lu Li did not reveal the truth.

“Okay.”

After a moment’s hesitation, Joanna got up, staggered a bit, picked up the oil lamp, and returned to Lu Li’s side.

Without further words, Lu Li and Joanna quickly retraced their steps under Anna’s protection.

Passing back the oil lamp to Lu Li, Joanna kept looking back at first, feeling her brother was watching her from the darkness.

But soon, she noticed Lu Li’s pace was much quicker than before, realized something, and silently followed behind.

Until at one moment, Lu Li in front suddenly stopped.

Joanna, nearly bumping into Lu Li’s back, lifted her head and heard Anna murmur, “The path ahead has disappeared…”

The long corridor under the ship’s deck stretched forward, the darkness beyond the light seemed endless.

They had walked a significant distance and should have reached the corner by now.

But the rust-covered corridor was still straight in front, unreached by its end.

“Still found no issues?” Lu Li asked Anna.

“I can tear it apart.” Anna murmured coldly.

She felt the ship was toying with them.

“You can’t tear apart steel.” Lu Li denied Anna’s suggestion, recalling the fleeting illusion when they boarded, thoughtful, “Let me try.”

Lu Li stared into the darkness ahead, as if something was there.

“I don’t know why you stranded deep in the swamp, but I can help you leave this place.”

The words echoed into the depths of darkness, seconds passed, tens of seconds… No change occurred around them.

Lu Li, with a calm expression, continued.

“The owner of Shadow Swamp, the Mother of the Marsh, is my… ally.

I might not be able to do it, but it can.

Let us leave, and I will have the Mother of the Marsh send you where you need to go.”