The Bizarre Detective Agency

Chapter 904: Joining the Squad... a God

The surging waves bore Him up, carrying Him onto the sandbar.

"Your new task is to find the next body."

The divine revelation echoing in his heart seemed at once distant and near. He radiated an aura of the same nature as the tentacled cultist, yet far more mysterious and vast.

"I am only human."

Whether the tentacled cultist had possessed the Ancient God's eyeball or the Deep God had simply manifested through that vessel, Lu Li couldn't tell. He wanted no further part in the Deep God's turmoil.

Clearly, the being who called Himself the Deep God regarded Lu Li with special favor, bestowing upon him the greatest of honors:

"Bring me a new body, and I will permit you to speak My true name."

Lu Li ignored this honor, one that would have driven believers into ecstasy, and calmly replied:

"You can ask your believers to do it."

"They... are no longer trustworthy."He stated the fact frankly.

Recalling the tentacled cultist's chaotic emotions, Lu Li had a moment of understanding. But after some consideration, he still declined the deity's invitation.

"Allow me to refuse."

"You have no right... to refuse."

A sternness emanated from the shadow beneath the impenetrable cloak. But under the hostile stares of Ofelia and the believers, He turned toward the deep sea, was swept up by the waves, rose on a waterspout, and landed on the deck of the Andrea, which waited nearby.

The Andrea's hull suddenly settled several meters deeper, as if bearing an immense weight, and a low groan echoed from deep within her structure.

"A god has weight," Ofelia recited, her voice cautious and clear.

It was an event recorded in the history of the ancient kingdom of Loran: during a ceremony held by a papal legate, a deity descended and shattered the prepared stone pedestal.

Although the stone pedestal had been carved by master craftsmen with intricate openwork, it could easily support the weight of a dozen carts. The enraged king wanted to execute the craftsmen, but a day before the execution, the officials investigating the matter discovered that the stone slab where the deity had stood was covered in cracks, its interior ground to dust.

The officials saved the craftsmen, and from that day forward, the world learned that "a god has weight."

This meant that He was, perhaps, the true Deep God.

"What do we... do now?"

Ofelia asked Lu Li, who was lost in thought.

"He is not an enemy."

Lu Li sensed that He held no ill intent, just as He had said before: ants should not interfere in the battles of men.

"We'll see if He changes His mind."

After all, men wouldn't let ants participate in their battles.

Before setting sail, Lu Li asked the believers to leave markers and several wooden boxes on the beach. Then he boarded a small boat, returned to the Andrea—which now sat much lower in the water—and climbed onto the deck. The Deep God was waiting for them. He ascended the companionway and entered the captain's cabin on the upper deck.

He knew everything about the Andrea, having gleaned it from the memories of the tentacled cultists.

A low hum—

The Andrea let out a low blast from her horn, and this time, Lu Li understood:

"Elder Sister has come home."

The Andrea's low horn sounded again, and Lu Li ordered her to set sail for home.

To the distant Sea Gaze Cliff.

...

Lu Li and Ofelia returned to the captain's cabin. Prusius was huddled in a corner, trembling; having remained on the ship, he had no idea what had just transpired.

"Can you conceal your aura?" Lu Li asked Him after a moment of thought.

"I can."

But after replying, He did nothing.

"If you don't conceal your aura, your enemies might find you because of it," Lu Li said.

"My power has not yet recovered..." He whispered. The mysterious, vast aura enveloping the black cloak receded like tentacles, and the voice that had echoed in Lu Li's heart was replaced by one emanating from the shadows of the hood, sounding at times male, at times female.

"The Allen Peninsula. There is a body there. In the Shadow Swamp," He said.

The Mother of the Swamp was there, as was the unknown creature from the northern swamp. Which of them was His body?

But Lu Li refused again:

"I will not accept another commission."

The Deep God's current power wasn't intimidating; at least, He couldn't command Lu Li—especially not after Lu Li had received help from the figure of steam.

"I can grant you divine power."

"I will not use a power that twists the mind."

The prerequisite for wielding divine power is faith, and faith is a force that takes root deeper than blood ties, altering the mind. Then there was the saying from the lighthouse: "Having accepted their favor, how can you naively believe you will remain untroubled?"

"I will help you find your beloved," He said again.

"...I will find her."

Lu Li said after a moment of silence.

Once again, the conversation led nowhere.

On the way back to Belfast, He did nothing, and as their time together lengthened, Lu Li pieced together the truth. The Deep God had fallen long ago, but a deity does not die so easily—much like the Lord of the Depths, who had once fallen into a long slumber. His consciousness had called out to his remaining believers, seeking a body to represent His power, and what followed was everything Lu Li had encountered.

Even the Deep God listened.

According to Ofelia, the Deep God wasn't very smart—or rather, He was a bit dense and ignorant. She'd certainly never seen anyone who could carry on a serious conversation with Prusius.

After all, He was currently just the vessel for an eyeball. Until He obtained more bodies, He would neither recover His power nor change His fundamental nature.

But a few days of interaction had taught the Deep God something from these humans, vengeful spirits, and outsiders—namely, how to persuade.

"I will drive out the invaders of this world."

As they approached the Allen Peninsula and the dark swamp of dead trees appeared on the horizon, the Deep God spoke to Lu Li.

Lu Li remained silent for a long moment, but in the end, he still refused the Deep God's tempting invitation.

"Why? As a native being of this land, you should help Me..."

He sounded baffled.

"I am only human."

Lu Li had never grown arrogant from flattery.

Whether in Midnight or Vinnelag, even when they proclaimed his great name, Lu Li never abandoned his rationality.

He understood with perfect clarity just how fragile he was as a human. It wouldn't take an anomaly to kill him; a harsh winter, a single storm, even a simple illness could be his end.

All of his legendary adventures were a product of accumulated caution, luck, and coincidence. He might continue to succeed, but that success would not last forever.

One day, the arrogance built on success would be the death of him.

The Andrea dropped anchor in the coastal waters. The nearby shore was dotted with thickets of dead trees, each one resembling an eerie anomaly.

"You... will regret this." He made no further attempts to persuade, his voice just a cold whisper.

"Yes. I hope you succeed."

Lu Li never doubted the Ancient God's conviction to expel the invaders.

He gave Lu Li a profound look, then stepped onto a rising waterspout and headed for the shore.

Watching the Deep God's silhouette vanish behind layers of sinister shadows, Ofelia asked:

"Where do we... go now?"

The trial in Vinnelag wasn't over yet, and the investigation into Paradise Valley had to be temporarily postponed.

Before Lu Li could answer, he felt a sudden sensation from the inverted pentagram branded on the back of his hand. He lowered his dark eyes. The brand was deepening, growing warm now that the Deep God was gone.

Something was tracking Lu Li through the brand of the inverted pentagram.

The Deep God's presence had concealed Lu Li's location. But with Him gone, Lu Li was now exposed to his pursuer.

Whether it was coincidence or fate, Lu Li raised his eyes and gazed at the distorted forest where the Deep God had vanished.

"Catch up to Him."