Chapter 175 - 175 Thirty-two

Words : 1268 Updated : Sep 21st, 2025

175: Thirty-two. The second tentacle 175: Thirty-two. The second tentacle The receptionist subconsciously paused, a look of surprise in her eyes. She indeed knew something. “The Exorcist from The Weird And Multicolored Detective Agency, Lu Li.” Lu Li handed her a business card and continued, “I’ve noticed that everyone here is tainted with an evil aura, including you. Do you know anything about it?” Anna shuddered, her gaze toward Lu Li now filled with disdain. How could this guy say such shameful things with a straight face? But it was effective. When the possibility of evil could affect oneself, everyone would reveal something unusual. The receptionist’s expression soured, and she forced a smile, “I don’t understand what you’re talking about...” Lu Li’s tone remained unchanged, “Let’s simplify the question. Where is the source of this foul smell coming from?” The receptionist subconsciously glanced toward the right-hand side office area. “Thank you.” Lu Li nodded in thanks and turned to walk toward the office area. The receptionist clenched her teeth and hurried to the office to notify her boss. The stench in the air was intensifying, and there weren’t many employees in the brightly lit office area. They frowned and endured the foul smell, occasionally casting glances toward a corner of the office area. Lu Li stood outside the office area, scanning the room and settling his gaze on that corner. Illusory and elusive blood-colored tentacles descended from the ceiling, burrowing into the crown of a long-haired silhouette. Is it her? The office was very quiet; perhaps people had no desire to talk under such an odor. Several windows were open, but unfortunately, they couldn’t affect the pervasive smell in the air at all. The putrid stench washed over the brain wave after wave, and Anna couldn’t withstand the smell. She pinched her nose. Lu Li walked up behind the silhouette and touched her shoulder. “O’Connor.” Whoosh— Fluid accumulated beneath the skin, giving the sensation of a water-filled balloon. Dreadful lividity spread from beneath her neck, climbing up to her jawline. Her eyes dissolved into a cloudy chaos reminiscent of tattered fluff. Her lips parted slightly, her expression vacant, as an unconscious stream of foul liquid dribbled from the corner of her mouth, dampening the front of her chest. “Please wait... I’ll be finished... shortly...” A muffled response sounded. The name Lu Li called didn’t elicit any reaction from her, as if Lu Li had called someone else’s name. This confirmed one of Lu Li’s suspicions: After Hol had been dealt with, O’Connor was not the only remaining test subject. This was easy to understand. Resurrecting O’Connor and Hol was part of the O’Connor project, not its purpose. Their resurrection would not affect Richard’s plans. The Blood-Colored Tentacles made this clear—if one didn’t count the one in Lu Li’s mind, there were originally seven more. “You’re Whitely’s friend, right? Are you here to pick her up?” A voice sounded from behind him, and an employee who was sitting at a desk in the back row stood up to ask, “She doesn’t seem to be feeling well, and there’s a... strange odor. You’ve smelled it too, haven’t you?” He was very close to the source of contamination, and his complexion looked poor. Lu Li’s presence drew the attention of the office employees. “I’m not her friend, but I am indeed here to see her.” Lu Li replied, then patted Whitely’s shoulder again, “There’s no need to write any more.” The employee was taken aback, unsure of what to say. The office’s wooden door suddenly opened, and the receptionist followed a middle-aged man toward Lu Li, “I’m the boss here, you can call me Sauron. May I know who you are...” Lu Li calmly looked at him, “For specifics, you may ask this lady here.” “He says he’s an Exorcist...” the receptionist reluctantly answered her boss’s puzzled look. “He also said there’s an evil presence here.” Some whispers rose from the office area. The sound of the conversation wasn’t loud, but enough to spread through the quiet office area. Sauron’s demeanor darkened, and his tone became less friendly, “I don’t know what you’re playing at, but now, please leave this—” “Anna, come out.” Lu Li interrupted Sauron, tilting her head slightly. Under everyone’s gaze, a translucent ghost slowly materialized next to Lu Li in the air. “Ah—” Suppressed screams and the sound of chairs and desks moving echoed through the office area as the surrounding employees tried to get as far away from there as possible in panic. The receptionist turned and fled, leaving Sauron, who was slightly better off, but still in a state of alarm. “Spare me the meaningless talk. To get to the point, your employee is already dead, but her consciousness lingers. Before she fully decays—I need to resolve this.” Lu Li looked at him, “Please arrange an empty room for us, or if it’s inconvenient, I can take her away.” Sauron took a deep breath, which only made his complexion worse, “Understood, let’s go to the meeting room. Follow me.” Putting aside his inner doubts for the moment, Sauron led the way. “Can I hide?” asked Anna softly in Lu Li’s ear. Being stared at by those eyes made her uncomfortable. “Yes,” Lu Li nodded. “Help Whitely in.” “Okay!” As Anna’s figure faded, Whitely suddenly got up from her seat, as if lifted by someone, and remained in a sitting position as she floated mid-air. Buzz— The low murmurs of panic in the office area grew restless. “Everyone, keep quiet,” Sauron said, suppressing his inner fear. He hurried to the conference room door, opened it, and stepped aside. Once Lu Li and Whitely, floating in mid-air, entered, he hesitated before gritting his teeth and headed toward the office interior. Click— The meeting room door closed. The whispering in the office area suddenly dispersed. ... “Phew... that was exhausting.” Whitely was placed in a chair, her weight as a living person leaving Anna exhausted. If Anna hadn’t grown stronger once, she wouldn’t have been able to lift Whitely. Whitely, slow and dull, lifted her head, her murky eyes swirling with filth trying to focus on Lu Li, but she couldn’t manage it. A hoarse voice, wet like stagnant water, arose, “I feel like... I’ve never seen you.” Whitely seemed to realize something, and her sluggish thoughts sped up a bit, murmuring in a pleading tone, “Help me... help me...” “I can’t help you.” Lu Li shook her head gently and then felt a swollen, ice-cold, soft palm slip into her own. The sensation wasn’t one to evoke any positive emotion, rather the opposite, a palm that felt like a waterbed. She pleaded slowly, “Take me to... the hospital.” Lu Li did not shake off her hand, her voice a constant, unchanging calm, “You know that’s useless, doctors can’t save the dead.” Whitely’s breath began to change. The last of her vital energy was rapidly extracting itself from her body, the scent of decay growing richer, as she herself rotted away. An impatient fly flew in from the window, landing on her shoulder. Sauron, silent by the door, had a terrible look on his face, hardly able to bear the stench of decay. Whitely wouldn’t hold on much longer. The palm slipped from Lu Li’s grip, and just before it was about to crash onto the chair’s back, Lu Li caught it and gently laid it down.

Chapter 175 - 175 Thirty-two

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