Chapter 118: The Ancient Parchnt
Constantine's Near-Death Experience
In his short career as an exorcist, Constantine had faced many life-threatening situations, always managing to escape due to a string of bizarre "accidents." Today was different; he genuinely felt he was going to die right here.
Fire was spreading throughout the forest, growing wider and wider. The air temperature was skyrocketing, and the entire area was engulfed in raging flas.
Constantine coughed from the smoke, his head spinning, and symptoms of dizziness setting in.
"Am I really going to die here?"
"No! Can't die! Find that black armor. Only it can save !"
Constantine dodged the demon's attacks while desperately searching for Luke's location.
Unfortunately, the fire was too intense; he couldn't find his bearings. In his panic, he slipped and fell backward onto the ground. Kaptun seized the chance, stomped its foot on his chest, and thrust its hideous, fang-filled maw right up close. The avarice in its eye was almost solid.
Hoo! Hoo! Hoo!
You slippery little mouse! I've finally got you!
The great Kaptun will eat you, fuse your flesh into my body, and present your soul to the endless Abyss Lord!
Tremble!
Fear!
Cunning and vile Constantine, your corrupted soul will forever wander in the purgatory!
BAM!
An energy blast disintegrated the Higher Demon's head. Flesh splattered everywhere, drenching Constantine's face and clothes in a layer of greenish-brown goo.
The next second, the viscous goo began to writhe. It crawled back to its original location, moving across Constantine's throat, tongue, and skin. The sight was indescribably nauseating, like hundreds of thousands of sticky worms squirming all over him.
Luke felt his stomach churn just watching it, let alone being the victim.
Constantine lay rigid on the ground, eyes wide with horror. The foul-slling goo crawled up his tongue, over his teeth, past his lips, and down his greasy skin. It paused between his legs, seemingly inspecting the size of his... thing.
His mind froze at that mont. His body shook uncontrollably. Constantine scread a hysterical, agonizing cry.
Luke clicked his tongue and shook his head.
"Poor guy. Hope you don't have nightmares tonight."
Constantine had snapped. He violently drew on his remaining magical power, ignoring the blood bubbling from his mouth. Black light erupted from his fingertips, quickly coalescing into a powerful sealing array.
He was going to send the damn Hellspawn back to the Endless Abyss!
Just then, the ground began to shake. A fissure opened beneath the Higher Demon's feet, and deep-red magma surged out. It then transford into a red and green magical array that engulfed the demon's body.
Kaptun seed to realize what was happening, his eye filling with terror.
That bloody Scumbag-Con! You lied to again! You lied to !
It roared in defiance, struggling with all its might, but it was useless. It was slowly dragged down into the magma.
A few seconds later, the magma vanished, the fissure closed, and the ground returned to normal.
The demon was gone, apparently dragged back to Hell by so powerful force.
Luke looked thoughtful. He wasn't stupid; he could clearly see the manipulation involved. He jumped down from the rock and walked up to Constantine. His voice was flat.
"The demon is gone. Now, it's ti to talk about our business."
Constantine scoffed contemptuously.
"I never talk to things that hide their face."
Luke raised his hand. An energy blast scorched past Constantine's scalp, exploding into a half-ter-deep crater in the dirt.
"Still don't want to talk?"
Constantine: "..."
His dirty face twitched with a mixture of shock and anger. He glanced at the circular pit on the ground, then instantly plastered on an utterly fawning smile.
"Hero... no, Boss. What did you want to discuss?"
"Naturally, the matter between us."
"I helped you and then saved you, yet you chose to set up, forcing to fight an unkillable demon for so long that I nearly lost my life. Constantine, how do you think I'm feeling right now?"
Constantine grew instantly awkward. Selling out a teammate is definitely not sothing to brag about, and being confronted afterward was even worse. Fortunately, he had experience with this sort of thing.
"Boss, please let explain. I truly didn't an to. The residual energy from your fighting was too strong. I couldn't help, and if I had forced myself to intervene, I would have only held you back. It was better to stay hidden and cheer you on, wouldn't you agree?"
"That makes sense, however..."
Changing his tone, Luke suddenly smiled. "I have one flaw: I always repay a favor and always settle a score. No matter how you explain it, it doesn't change the fact that you screwed over. You owe a favor, you owe a life, and you owe an explanation. How will you repay ?"
Constantine's expression was worse than a grimace.
"Boss, w-what do you want?"
"Compensation, of course. Energy depletion, emotional trauma, and the tragic experience of acting righteously only to be betrayed—all of this needs compensation."
Constantine was miserable. The guy was clearly toying with him, yet he had no recourse. He could only try to placate Luke.
"How about this: I'll be your free magical consultant. Anyti you run into a magical problem, you can co to . I guarantee results."
"I don't need a magical consultant. Even if I did, I wouldn't hire you. Your reputation is terrible."
"Then what do you want? I have no money and no connections. Besides my magic, all I have is my life. You can't possibly want my life."
"Correct. What I want is your life. Give your life, and we'll call it even."
Constantine quickly forced a smile.
"Boss, don't joke. My life isn't worth a penny."
"A penny is still money."
Luke's tone was serious, and his actions backed it up. He spread his fingers, aiming them at Constantine's head. Blue light filled his palm, and a powerful energy field radiated outward, causing the surrounding air to distort.
A suffocating sense of danger washed over Constantine. His pupils constricted, and his body suddenly went rigid. He had a premonition that if he stalled any longer, he would actually be killed.
This humanoid machine is no superhero! It's a ruthless, cold-blooded bastard!
"Boss, I suddenly rembered! I have one more thing! A book of black magic spells! I stole... no, borrowed it from an abandoned castle. I'll give you the book, and we'll forget everything that happened today!"
"Where is the book?"
"In tropolis, at my hotel."
"Excellent!"
Luke grabbed his coat, soared into the air, and flew toward tropolis.
Ten minutes later, in an unremarkable hotel room in the western suburbs of tropolis, Luke dumped a trembling Constantine onto the floor.
"If you lie to , I will blow you and this entire hotel into ruins."
Constantine shot Luke a look of profound bitterness. He trudged over to a closet, retrieved a piece of luggage, and pulled out an ancient book bound in parchnt.
"This is the book!"
Luke didn't take it. Instead, he commanded,
"Open it. Turn the pages one by one!"
Coward!
Constantine cursed internally. Following Luke's instructions, he flipped through the parchnt book page by page, proving he hadn't rigged it with anything.
Satisfied that the book contained no hidden magic, Luke took it. He flipped to the page detailing the demon summoning array and compared the illustration to the magic circle that had appeared under the demon's foot.
"Ava, how does it look?"
"The lines on the right side were modified. The rest is identical."
"Looks like the book is genuine."
Luke stowed the book, turned, and left.
Constantine let out a massive sigh of relief. Ignoring the dirt and dust, he flopped onto the bed. Thinking of the humiliation he had just suffered, he viciously cursed.
"That damned humanoid machine! Just you wait! Without my limitations, the book's owner will eventually find you! We'll see how you beg then!"
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