The Bizarre Detective Agency

Chapter 248: Deep Sea Stone

After the Black Crow departed, a Trader arrived at the detective agency.

Such efficiency was a welcome relief for Lu Li, who had little time to spare.

This Trader was different from the one Lu Li had seen before. His worn scarf was patterned with tan and brown stripes.

Of course, it was possible that it was always the same Trader, just wearing a different colored scarf each time.

Before presenting his shopping list, Lu Li asked the Trader for information about a stone that could block spirits.

“It was discovered by a first-generation exorcist with an exceptionally long name. The stone was used to build ghost prisons,” Lu Li added.

The Trader called it Deep Sea Stone.

Because it was found in the depths of the sea.

“Can you tell me more about it?” Lu Li wanted to learn more to determine if Deep Sea Stone would be suitable for building a shelter.

“Certainly.”The first-generation exorcist who discovered Deep Sea Stone was named Pablo Diego José Santiago Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno Crispin Crispiniano de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santisima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso.

Just as Tesla had said, this first-generation exorcist's name was long enough to fill an entire line. The only inaccuracy in that statement was that a single line was hardly sufficient.

Jokes aside about the difficulty of writing such a name in school, people generally called him Pablo or Picasso.

During one of his sea voyages, he discovered a strange reef just a few meters below the surface, which was highly unusual. They were in the open ocean, with the nearest land almost a thousand nautical miles away. Even without the means to measure the exact depth, it was safe to assume it exceeded three thousand meters.

For a reef to appear in such a place was completely illogical.

As an exorcist, Pablo knew something was amiss. Perhaps it wasn't a reef at all, but something supernatural. However, he was merely an ordinary passenger on a transcontinental voyage and had no authority to issue commands. Pablo recorded the coordinates and, upon reaching shore, contacted the Exorcist Association. He then set sail again on another ship to return to the marked location.

Back then, conditions were not as dire as they are today; for instance, there was ample sunlight. Thanks to the excellent visibility, a vast, dark shadow could be seen beneath the waves, as if some enormous creature lurked on the ocean floor.

Pablo reasoned that whatever was down there couldn't be alive; otherwise, it would have moved on in the several days that had passed. So, he donned his diving gear and plunged into the sea, descending to get a closer look.

Upon getting closer, Pablo confirmed that it was indeed some sort of underwater reef. He broke off a small piece and returned to the surface to analyze it.

Through his research, Pablo discovered the stone's unique power: ghosts, which could phase through any other material, were unable to pass through it.

Even the more powerful vengeful spirits were partially blocked by the Deep Sea Stone.

After further tests, Pablo determined that a ten-centimeter thickness of Deep Sea Stone was enough to create a barrier against ghosts. Increasing the thickness did enhance the effect, but only marginally. A one-meter-thick slab was just 1.5 times more effective than a ten-centimeter one, and a ten-meter slab was only 1.2 times more effective than its one-meter counterpart.

The thicker the Deep Sea Stone, the smaller the additional benefit.

Deep Sea Stone obviously possessed considerable value, and soon the Exorcist Association began to mine and survey it. The reef turned out to be far larger than they had anticipated. It was more of a mountain than a reef.

Due to technological limitations, the height of this Deep Sea Stone mountain rising from the ocean floor was last measured twenty-three years ago. The Spirit Hunters Association updated the previous measurement from 1,328 meters to 1,822 meters.

This number didn't represent the mountain's actual height, but merely the length of the measuring chain they were able to use.

Aside from constructing several ghost prisons, exorcists commonly used Deep Sea Stone for storing important items. However, not all exorcists viewed the material favorably.

Some believed the Deep Sea Stone mountain was a kind of seal, restraining something horrific. This theory never gained much traction, because even after centuries of mining, humanity had only managed to extract a few tens of meters of stone, and that was just from the very "peak."

Those few hundred or thousand tons were a negligible amount compared to the mass of the entire mountain.

“So, ten centimeters is the optimal thickness, and one meter is the next step up?” Lu Li asked.

After the Trader confirmed this, Lu Li continued, “How many shillings for a cubic meter of Deep Sea Stone?”

“A cubic meter?”

The Trader paused, perhaps not understanding the term "cubic meter," or perhaps awaiting an answer from some unseen source.

“A piece of Deep Sea Stone one meter long, one meter high, and one meter wide.”

Lu Li clarified.

A ten-centimeter thickness was Lu Li's minimum requirement. If money were no object, he would consider one-meter thick walls. The logistics of construction would be a challenge, of course, but safety was his top priority.

“8,800 shillings,” the Trader replied.

Anna, who had been eavesdropping, put on a look of surprise.

“I didn’t think it would be that expensive,” Lu Li frowned. If entire prisons could be constructed from Deep Sea Stone, the price shouldn’t be so steep.

“That was the old price.”

“Why did it change?” Lu Li asked, his mind racing. Could someone else have had the same idea?

“Deep Sea Stone is becoming increasingly difficult to mine. And the three major organizations are buying up the supply.”

Anna, still listening in, nodded as if it all made perfect sense. The ocean had become incredibly dangerous, after all, and the more accessible parts of the underwater mountain had already been mined out. All that remained was the stone buried dozens of meters deeper, making it difficult to extract. The high price was inevitable.

The three major organizations are buying up Deep Sea Stone, too...

Lu Li’s eyes narrowed as he considered the deeper implications. “Is there any chance the price might drop?”

“It will only continue to rise.”

Lu Li abandoned the idea of one-meter-thick walls entirely. But even the ten-centimeter option was far beyond his budget.

If Lu Li wanted to build a shelter measuring ten by ten meters with a five-meter ceiling, he would need four cubic meters of Deep Sea Stone.

The stone alone would cost Lu Li 35,000 shillings.

The one-meter-thick option would be ten times more expensive.

Even with the advance of 100 investigation points, Lu Li’s entire fortune was barely enough to afford a single cubic meter of Deep Sea Stone.

“Is there anything else with a similar effect, besides Deep Sea Stone?”

“There is, but it would be even more expensive.”

Lu Li abandoned the idea of finding an alternative and asked, “Can I use my ten-percent discount?”

“Yes. The price for a cubic meter of Deep Sea Stone will be reduced by 880 shillings.”

“I’ll take one cubic meter to start.”