Demons, Flesh Golems, Mages, and Women

Ophiel flew high into the sky without drawing the Demons' attention. It was not until he opened The Key of Solomon, found the corresponding incantation, and recited it aloud that the Demons on the ground vaguely sensed that something was wrong.

But by then, it was too late. Ophiel placed a call for help to old God, and God acknowledged it, promptly sending a tremendous surge of energy through the power of faith into Ophiel's body.

In midair, Ophiel's originally grayish-white skin began turning a holy milky white under the blessing of that immense energy, radiating a pure white glow. He looked like a bright energy-saving light bulb, illuminating the entire monastery.

As Ophiel finished the incantation, an invisible energy shockwave spread outward from him.

The Demons who noticed Ophiel, the oversized light bulb, were first puzzled about when Gargoyles had evolved into glowing beasts. Then they watched helplessly as the energy shockwave passed through their bodies.

Some weaker Demons were killed outright by the shockwave and sent back to Hell. Even the stronger ones did not fare well, becoming extremely weakened after the shockwave passed.

The nearby Gargoyles did not care why the Demons had weakened under the shockwave. They only knew that missing such a fine opportunity would weigh on their consciences. Their blades rose and fell, slaughtering the weakened Demons without mercy.

Li Feng quietly hid in a corner, watching Mordo, who had killed quite a few Demons and was sweating profusely, as well as a Demon farther away that had barged into the monastery. Its power had been greatly reduced by the shockwave, and it had the misfortune of running into a murderous-looking Adam.

Mordo hid in the corner and observed Adam purely out of curiosity. He wondered how a soulless Flesh Golem would deal with that unlucky Demon.

Adam did not need much effort to beat the Demon until it was crawling on the ground. "Where is Naberius?"

The Demon sneered. "They're waiting for you."

Adam froze. "What does that mean? What's waiting for me?"

The Demon wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and smiled. "We knew the Gargoyles would do everything they could to protect you so you wouldn't fall into our hands. But there are too few Gargoyles, and that would easily cause them to relax their protection of the Gargoyle Queen. Then Julier could kidnap the Queen. In exchange, as long as the Gargoyles hand over you, we will release the Queen."

Adam knew that Leono could communicate with Archangel Michael and was the Gargoyles' spiritual leader. The Gargoyles would certainly trade him for Leono.

At the same time, Adam knew that he was neither a Gargoyle nor a human. He was merely a soulless monster created by humans.

Yet Leono, who clearly knew how he had come into being, had treated him quite well. At the very least, she had not killed him the moment she captured him. Instead, she had given him weapons to defend himself against Demons and lectured him at length about how to be a person. Deep down, Adam still hoped to save Leono.

As the Demon went on about how Adam was nothing more than an imprisoned monster in Leono's eyes, Adam could not help cursing, Bullshit. Then he used his fists and Holy Water to force the Demon to reveal the location where Leono was to be exchanged.

Watching Adam run out of the monastery alone to rescue Leono, Mordo felt an indescribable emotion rise within him.

Was Adam, who had been born in violation of the Laws of nature, truly evil? Would he destroy nature's balance?

The Gargoyles, guardians of the human world, clearly knew Adam had no soul and was merely a thinking Living Corpse. Yet they had not only refrained from killing him on the spot, they had not even imprisoned him. Instead, they had let him go, given him weapons, and allowed him to survive alone in the outside world. Was Leono right or wrong to do that?

Only after Adam's back vanished from sight did Li Feng, deciding to administer another strong dose of medicine to Mordo's mind, walk over to the dazed Mordo and say, "The Gargoyles of this world are an angel's army. Since the Gargoyles know about Adam, doesn't that mean God may know of Adam's existence too? But do you see God doing anything about it?"

Li Feng spread his hands. "Adam may not have been created by God, but He never stripped Adam of his right to live. At the very least, He let Adam live freely for over two hundred years. And if others can't tell, can't you? The color of Adam's Astral Body has already reached the critical point. Once he takes that step, Adam will gain a soul. By then, he will no longer be a monster, but a human—a human with extraordinary power."

Having said that, Li Feng no longer cared whether Mordo would come around. He simply broke into a run and followed behind Adam.

Meanwhile, with the Queen kidnapped, Gideon became the Gargoyles' highest-ranking commander.

After Adam ran out of the monastery and disappeared, Gideon reluctantly prepared to trade Frankenstein's Experimental Notes for their Queen. However, his decision was not approved by his companions.

Watching the Gargoyles argue over whether to exchange the notebook for the Queen, Mordo felt deeply conflicted. On one side was the supposedly evil Flesh Golem, heading alone to rescue the Gargoyle Queen. On the other were the righteous Gargoyles, who could not gamble with their Queen's life and, after failing to find Adam, decisively chose to exchange the Frankenstein's Experimental Notes the Demons craved for the Queen.

Mordo felt that he could not understand this world. If he were a Gargoyle, who would care whether it was the Queen or not? Once they handed over the experimental notes the Demons desperately wanted, the consequences would be far more serious than losing a Queen. Compared to that, the correct choice would be for Gideon to hold The Key of Solomon, rally the troops, and storm the Demons' lair.

If the Queen unfortunately died, then that was simply fate. No one could be blamed.

Unfortunately, Mordo knew he was ultimately an outsider, and these Gargoyles would not heed his advice. Moreover, when Gideon said, "Leono is the only one among us who can contact Archangel Michael. She is our spiritual leader," Mordo could clearly sense that the surrounding Gargoyles had already accepted Gideon's plan to exchange the experimental notes for Leono.

All Mordo could do was stand to the side and nurse his headache in silence.

By the time Gideon flew to Walton Theater with the notebook to exchange for Leono, Adam, who had traveled on foot, had only just reached the theater entrance.

In the distance, Li Feng braced his hands on his knees and panted heavily. Watching Gideon fly out of the theater with Leono, he could not help grumbling, So what if you can fly? Adam and I clearly left the monastery first, but you flew here, completed the trade, and I only just made it to the theater entrance.

After a while, Li Feng recovered some of his stamina and was about to sneak into the theater to check the situation when he saw a Demon hurry out with a notebook in hand. Shortly afterward, Adam ran out of the theater, panting heavily. After determining the direction, he followed the Demon's escape route.

Li Feng scratched between his brows and jogged helplessly after Adam. My stamina may be pretty good by ordinary human standards, but you're either Demons or Flesh Golems. Do your stamina bars never go down? Or have you already noticed me and decided to run me to death? Just wait. Once I return to the Marvel Universe, I'll definitely train my stamina. One day, I'll run you all to death in a marathon.

Li Feng watched Adam track the Demon to Naberius's lair. After efficiently sending the gatekeeping Demon back to Hell, Adam cautiously broke into the Demons' lair while observing his surroundings.

Feeling as if he were about to foam at the mouth, Li Feng had no intention of continuing to follow him. First, Li Feng did not have the strength to break into a Demons' lair. This was the Demons' lair—who knew how many Demons were inside? Li Feng did not think he was powerful enough to slaughter his way through it. If he stupidly barged in, it was hard to say who would kill whom.

Second, there was no need to waste his limited stamina. Li Feng remembered that after Adam broke into the Demons' lair, he learned why Naberius was resurrecting corpses, recovered Frankenstein's notebook, and escaped safely.

Afterward, Adam would return to the Demons' lair after reading the experimental notes and follow Dr. Wade, who was helping Naberius resurrect corpses. He hoped Dr. Wade could fulfill what Frankenstein had once promised him: create another soulless monster like himself. He had been alone in this world for two hundred years. He needed a companion.

So Li Feng felt it would be better to wait obediently outside the Demons' lair for Dr. Wade. It was safer, and he could obtain the experimental notebook as well.

As night fell, Li Feng, hiding in the distance, saw a blonde woman storm out of the Demons' lair. At first, he was not sure whether she was the Dr. Wade he was looking for, but then he saw Adam appear in the distance and quietly follow behind the blonde woman.

What Adam did not see was that not long after he followed Wade away, a Demon in black leather emerged from the lair and quietly followed Wade.

Li Feng curled his lip and quietly followed behind Adam. Wade, shouldn't you feel honored? A Demon, a Flesh Golem, and a Mage have all chosen to follow you at the same time. More importantly, none of the three of us extraordinary beings wants your life.

When Wade noticed someone following her, Adam also realized that a Demon was following him. He immediately stepped in front of Wade, identified himself, and told her to follow behind him. Along the way, Li Feng held back his laughter as he listened to Adam tell Wade about the monastery and the Demons, while Wade looked utterly bewildered.

I'm a scientist. You're telling me about Demons and angels that make no scientific sense, not to mention those Gargoyles that I don't even know what they are. Do you really think I'd believe you?

Wade felt that Adam's brain must have gone wrong when he was used as a Resurrected Corpse test subject.

When she heard Adam tell her that her employer was a Demon Prince, the way Wade looked at Adam changed completely. Her expression practically screamed, Just how fried is your brain?

Li Feng found Wade's expression so amusing that he could no longer hold back and burst out laughing.

Adam kicked open the back door of an abandoned factory. Hearing Li Feng's laughter, he thought the Demon had caught up with them. He quickly shielded Wade behind him and shouted into the shadows, "Come out."

Li Feng walked out from the dark corner, laughing as he said, "Adam, sorry, but if you tell Dr. Wade about Demons and Gargoyles like that, of course she won't believe you."

"It's you." When Adam saw that Li Feng had been following him, he sighed in relief. As he pulled Wade into the abandoned factory, he said to Li Feng, "But everything I said is true. As a Mage, you not only witnessed the Demons attacking the monastery, you personally shot and killed quite a few Demons too."