North America Gunman Detective

Chapter 1376 744: Duskshadow Beast (Part 2)

Its strength was formidable. Although not extraordinarily agile, it was still very difficult to completely evade its attacks. Horton inflicted quite a few wounds on it, yet it seized the opportunity to break his arm and then picked up a fallen log to smash Horton's leg.

Thankfully, his assistant, standing behind, smashed a large Holy Water Bottle onto it. The unique corrosive effect of holy water on dark creatures made it abandon the pursuit of Horton, and it leapt up a tree and fled. Only then did the assistant have the chance to escort Horton out of the woods, and with the sheriff's help, rush him to the hospital for emergency care. Later, they went to a hospital in Dallas for follow-up treatment.

Jimmy just sat by Horton's bedside, listening as Horton recounted the entire story, and it still seemed very perilous.

Jimmy honestly wasn't sure how strong Horton's close combat abilities were. In the previous exorcism ceremony by the river, they were dealing with a non-corporeal Resentful Spirit, which didn't fully showcase his close combat skills, so they had no way to gauge the capability of this Shadow Beast.

Jimmy: "So, you're saying this thing can be considered a purely physical monster, right? No strange visible abilities?"

Horton shook his head: "No, it fought us purely using physical attacks the entire time."

Jimmy: "If that's the case, would it be possible to eliminate it by using heavy firepower directly? Like requesting SWAT or National Guard to search for its tracks and then unleash direct firepower coverage..."

Horton paused for a moment. Clearly, he hadn't thought about this before. According to legends, this kind of Shadow Beast rarely appeared, possibly only once every few decades, and no one had ever dealt with it before. Previously, he only thought of handling it himself and never considered Jimmy's approach. Since it's all physical attacks, how could it withstand the devastating firepower of modern weapons?

If handguns don't work, use rifles; if rifles don't work, use large-caliber rifles. If significantly impacted, surely the military's heavy firepower could annihilate it.

Horton thought about it but still shook his head: "We haven't requested official assistance with this kind of supernatural event before, and I'm not sure if we can do that."

Jimmy shrugged: "Well, it's at least one of the options. I think if your people can't handle it, they can try, or your people can just bring weapons along."

Horton nodded, about to speak when his phone rang. He took a look at it from the bedside and said to Jimmy: "Jimmy."

Jimmy nodded, got up, and left the ward, closing the door casually. Only then did Horton answer the phone.

Soon, Horton hung up and called out to Jimmy, who opened the door and came back in.

Although Horton's voice wasn't loud, the hospital doors were indeed not thick, and sounds from inside could still be vaguely heard. Although they didn't know who was on the other end, Horton indeed mentioned some firearms, so the person on the other side should be the reinforcements from Houston.

Horton: "Thanks, Jimmy. I've already spoken to the others, and they'll find a way to bring a batch of weapons over."

Jimmy: "That's good; that monster's done for now."

Horton paused and said: "You... do you have time lately? I remember you're a really good shot, and my colleagues rarely use guns."

Jimmy looked at Horton in surprise, "Are you sure?"

Horton: "You can stay on the outer perimeter and support with long-range shooting. They'll protect you. Please."

Jimmy: "When will they head over?"

Horton: "Tomorrow. They're coming to Dallas today and will head to Luoying Town early tomorrow."

Jimmy thought for a moment. "I need to think about it; give me some time."

Jimmy turned and left the ward, pulling out Lambert's phone: "Supervisor Lambert, I'd like to talk to you in person about something, is it convenient?"

Lambert: "What's it about? You've seen Horton?"

Jimmy: "Yes, I'm at the hospital."

Lambert: "Is it about the reason he got into trouble?"

Jimmy: "Things are a bit complicated, related to a local legend of yours."

Lambert: "Come back and see me."

Jimmy hung up and returned to the Dallas office, retelling the story Horton had shared and informing Lambert about the exorcist priests coming from Houston and their preparation of firearms.

This was a local matter in Dallas, and Jimmy didn't belong to the Dallas office. Getting involved without any notification could pose problems, even though he got along decently with Lambert. Local law enforcement was a major hassle; after all, the potential use of firearms could easily lead to various misunderstandings.

Lambert tapped his fingers on the table, contemplating how to proceed. He knew Father Horton well, and his judgment about the monster was likely accurate. If the people coming later were strong enough, there might be no need to call in SRT support from the Dallas office. If not, theoretically, they should be able to drive the thing away and ensure there wouldn't be too many casualties.

He glanced at Jimmy; in terms of firearms expertise, the highest achiever in shooting at Quantico in recent years was right in front of him. With Jimmy holding the fort, it should be enough.

Lambert: "Jimmy, if nothing else is pressing, assist them. But make sure you stay safe. If law enforcement gets alarmed, notify me."

Jimmy nodded: "Understood. I need some ammo support from the bureau; I didn't bring spare ammo." As he spoke, he opened his suit to show his gun.

Lambert nodded, picked up the phone, and called someone to take Jimmy to retrieve ammunition and weapons.

Since it wasn't an investigation, Jimmy hadn't brought his FBI gear bag this time. It contained three types of bullets, a rifle, and a Bullet-Proof Vest. Now, he only had three guns and a dagger, which made him feel a bit lacking.

The following day, Jimmy met with Horton at the hospital. Horton gave him a phone number and an address, instructing him to meet up at the church with the others and head to the scene together. The others had already been notified that he would participate in this operation as the FBI liaison.

In Luoying Town, three vehicles parked outside the town. Horton's assistant in the first car guided them to the location, and the group disembarked and entered the woods, soon arriving at the previous battle site.

The cave was still there, the battle scars still visible. In just a few days, neither fallen leaves nor vegetation had fully covered them. Jimmy could even smell a lingering scent of blood, likely from when Father Horton was wounded, along with a stench of decaying branches and leaves, which originated from that cave.

Two exorcist priests chanted blessings for each other, one holding a Short Sword and the other a Nail Hammer, as they ventured into the cave. Jimmy wasn't worried, as his Heart Eye Vision showed the cave to be empty. Although it had several turns, the covered paths were still within his field of vision.

Looking around, Jimmy ensured there were no threats nearby. After a while, the two priests emerged from the cave, their clothes smeared with what looked like mucus and quite a bit of soil, appearing extremely disheveled. It seemed Father Horton was the same way before.

"We need to track its whereabouts. Everyone spread out and look, especially up in the trees."

The three priests and one assistant divided into two teams, searching along the direction the Shadow Beast had fled. Jimmy followed one team and quickly found several claw marks on a tree. Following them, they continued until they exited the woods, where they encountered a sprawling farmland with two farm buildings not far apart in the distance.

"Let's go; it must have gone that way."

Examining the ground beside the woods, they found some footprints, indicating the creature headed towards the farm. It looked like trouble for the people there.