Detective Agency of the Bizarre-Chapter 1339 - 179: Hell Town

The Devil’s Daughter said Lu Li has 25 days.

But on the first day, Lu Li kept hurrying along without stopping, encountering only a variety of Inferior Demons along the way.

To Lu Li, they were as annoying as flies, and just as weak, but in a way, they were helping Lu Li.

It had nothing to do with looting humanity. The Inferior Demons within a roughly five hundred meter radius of Lu Li were often drawn by humanity, fuel, souls, and vitality, like moths into a flame, leaving a briefly open corridor of wilderness in Lu Li’s wake, which aided him in not straying off course.

There was no need to worry about getting lost because Hell Creatures would guide the way.

The landscape of the wilderness was not always unchanged. Hills on Earth turned into low mountains in hell, flowing with magma like active volcanoes.

Lu Li spent a few dozen minutes climbing this roughly three hundred meters high low mountain, gazing into the distance.

At the end of a mirage distorted by heatwaves, Lu Li spotted the remnants of buildings standing in the heart of a Lava Lake ahead.

Perhaps there lay demons or traces of them.

Crossing the magma stream, Lu Li left the low mountain and stood by the scorching air, where the wind seemed to burn by the Lava Lake. The heatwaves from the purgatorial magma lake obscured the view of the lake’s heart, but having seen the formation from the low mountain, Lu Li released the Dreamwalker, flying towards the lake’s center, close to the magma that would burn the soul on contact.

The Inferior Demons, arriving late, circled and scratched at the earth anxiously by the lake, then whined and fled from the erupting magma bubbles.

Gurgle gurgle —

Before entering the deep part of the lake, the lake distorted bizarrely around Lu Li, a pillar of fire rose and coiled towards him, caught by the aura surrounding Lu Li.

It was a mass of burning, shape-shifting magma, struggling and burning furiously, yet the searing magma couldn’t make Lu Li feel a hint of heat.

A bucket of water appeared above the flame creature’s head, pouring down, illogically extinguishing it into Obsidian, a surge of humanity several times more than that from Inferior Demons flowed into Lu Li, seemingly a lot, but 0 multiplied by any number is still 0.

It would take hundreds of flame creatures to equal a single ghost; hunting them remained unprofitable.

But just as Lu Li tossed the Obsidian back into the magma, the Lava Lake boiled at the drop point, rippling outwards —

Realizing he had awoken something, Lu Li dimmed with the Dreamwalker, disappearing into the air, simultaneously, an immense, terrifying magma creature rose from the Lava Lake — a being formed from countless flame creatures.

But Lu Li had already left the magma area, and two minutes later, gathering the Dreamwalker, Lu Li appeared on Lake Heart Island.

The screen of heatwaves and the encircling Lava Lake enfolded the small island; standing on the island, even without feeling the temperature, the omnipresent orange-red was unsettling.

Lu Li’s rationality suppressed this anxiety, exploring the remaining few Obsidian buildings on the flooded Lake Heart Island.

Regrettably, the buildings were empty, with nothing left inside — the harsh hellish environment makes it difficult to preserve any written records.

As Lu Li pondered where the previous residents might have migrated if this place was abandoned, he discovered a carved mark on the cracked and raised ground.

Restoring the stone slab on the ground, the mark formed an arrow pointing to the northeast.

After staying a few more minutes to confirm there were no more clues, Lu Li left Lake Heart Island, heading towards the arrow’s direction northeast.

Hoping for some discoveries there.

To avoid veering off course, Lu Li maintained the Dreamwalker flight, and after flying roughly five or six miles along the arrow’s direction, a wild rising rock wall like a Rift Valley stood in the distance.

And a Hell Town clinging to the rock wall.

The arrow was correct, and so was the direction.

The halo behind faded, and Lu Li resumed walking, heading towards the distant canyon town.

...

The signboard clanged loudly and noisily.

The fierce winds blowing from the depths of the canyon constantly eroded this town.

Structures built of stone were either severely damaged or collapsed, only the Obsidian buildings from the Lava Lake remained standing.

No pedestrians were visible on the streets, even Hell Creatures disliked the hostile environment outside.

Lu Li bowed his head, his clothes flapping, braving the fierce wind as he walked into the town built along the rock wall, now only with an Obsidian core remaining.

Jingle — jingle — jingle —

Lu Li pushed open the door, entering the most noticeable tavern in the town. 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

Whether in the mortal realm or hell, taverns were always the liveliest places.

Lu Li swept his gaze over the strange, fantastical demons within, walking towards the counter.

As Lu Li gazed upon them, they too, were watching him.

Greed and covetousness shot towards the figure like sharp arrows, inhaling and saliva sounds despicably echoed within the tavern, shadows and evil quietly stretched towards the contour.

"From afar... suck... traveler... suck..." Behind the counter, a waiter without a jaw struggled to control the vile fluids he was secreting: "You suck... need what suck —"

Lu Li ignored its disgrace: "What is the situation in hell now after severing its connection with the mortal world."

"You need... suck... payment... soul suck..."

The waiter unsurprisingly exuded greed.

"Can other rewards suffice."

"Do you have... suck... what?" The waiter’s continuous saliva sucking made him appear rather dim-witted.

"Your life." Lu Li calmly locked eyes with the waiter, deep within reflected himself and the scene behind: "Or theirs."

Lumps of inflated black mud spilled in shadows, ghostly white flames floated in, scaly claws quietly reached out, sharp appendages slowly extended...

Bam —

The door swung open violently, disturbing these, under heavy footsteps, Lu Li saw the reflection of a huge shadow repelling the malice behind in the adaption’s panicked pupils approaching.

"Blue Blood Chief—"

The Adaptor tried to shrink into the counter, but was grabbed by the twin claws suddenly extending from the gigantic shadow, with a splash of fluid, pulled out from the counter, kneaded into a meatball, and stuffed into a mouth.

The mix of chewing and screaming sounds, as it swallows, disappeared into the throat’s depth.

The demons in the tavern were terrified by this scene, and a few seconds later, a jawless, slender demon drilled out from behind the counter, continuing the unfinished scream: "— Are you insane! That was my last body!"

"This is the punishment for violating the Beauty Lake Town." The Blue Blood Chief licked the fragments of meat beside his gums, focusing his oppressive gaze on Lu Li: "Soul, what do you want to know?"

"The current state of hell."

Lu Li treated each scene unfolding before him with calm.

"It’s terrible, ever since new souls stopped arriving. There’s war everywhere. Demons fighting demons, demons fighting devils, devils fighting devils, demons and devils teaming up to fight demons and devils. You’ve come to the right place because the owner of Beauty Lake Town doesn’t like chaos. I have answered; according to equivalent exchange..."

The Blue Blood Chief loomed over Lu Li, extending his terrifying claw, then scratched at his itching carapace.

"Now it’s your turn to answer me: Why are you in hell?"