Three-Finger Brand

Whenever the dungeon closes, it's the peak time for adventurers to interact with each other.

Whether it's a professional information broker questioning an adventurer or the adventurer's casual conversations during rest, they will reveal more or less information.

After all, not everyone is willing to give what they know to the Golden Lion Merchant Guild in exchange for rewards. Some people look down on those rewards, while others feel that they can get more benefits by keeping the information in their own hands.

"Hey bro, how far have you gotten in your exploration? Want to chat?"

"Okay, I'll tell you. I found a checkpoint that's full of soldiers stationed there. There must be something good there, that's why there are so many people guarding it. Hehe, if you can name a good price, I'll tell you the route to get there."

"You're dreaming! Just follow the blessing's directions and you'll get there. Even a fool could find it. You think you can sell it for money? Go eat shit!"

"Has anyone managed to chase the White Mask away? Can anyone tell me what he said? I accidentally slashed him twice, and now I don't know anything about it."

"You mean you just lightly slashed twice and drove away the White Mask who would have been seriously injured before fighting you?"

Where adventurers are, it's noisy and chaotic, but it's also full of a unique kind of energy.

It is worth noting that the number of Non-Human Races adventurers in the Warrior Country is significantly greater than that in the Arnor Kingdom. The chance of hitting Orcs, dwarf, or even Fishman by throwing a stone into the crowd is only slightly lower than hitting a human.

The reason why the Warrior Country can attract so many different races is probably because they have had Dragon Knight who intermarry with dragons since ancient times, so the atmosphere in this regard is relatively open.

In any case, Gong Qiying felt that he couldn't possibly fight against a Fishman whose upper body was fish and whose lower body was human.

But while he was drinking, several people had already started chatting up the Fishman girl.

Gong Qiying was filled with awe.

Listening to adventurers exchange the bits and pieces of information they know is part of the fun. Gong Qiying keeps all kinds of data, such as where adventurers have gone the furthest, where they like to gather, and which small area they stay in the longest. It is updated in real time every day, so he knows exactly what kind of information adventurers are exchanging.

Sometimes, listening to people discuss information with serious expressions that is actually useless makes him want to have another drink.

However, some of the information exchanged among adventurers is not about the Zane Dungeon.

"Ms. You Fei, the guild has an urgent request for you. Do you have time?"

Upon hearing this sound, Gong Qiying turned his head and looked at You Fei.

His body had also been specially enhanced through the dungeon, so he could hear the conversation even from such a distance, not to mention that You Fei and the others didn't seem to be trying to hide anything.

"What request? We just got back, and we're all exhausted," You Fei said, scratching her messy hair. It was clear she was indeed tired.

"It's a request related to the recent attack by an unknown monster. The guild considers it a dangerous incident, and only highly skilled individuals can accept it," the staff member said.

Fan En vaguely remembered the request and pondered, "It seems that similar incidents have been occurring more and more frequently lately. Could it be that the guild sent people to investigate, but they encountered danger and came back to ask us for help?"

The staff member looked around, nodded, and said in a low voice, "The culprit might not be a monster, but a demon."

"A demon race that likes to brand others with a branding iron, leaving marks resembling three fingerprints!"

You Fei and the others didn't react to these words, but Gong Qiying, who was listening silently, showed a strange expression.

Three-finger branding? Why does that sound so reminiscent of the Three Fingers of Frenzied Flame?

But all those who saw the Frenzied Flame in the dungeon should be gone by now, specifically Jia Nage and Iliphis.

"Well, there's nothing we can do about it. If it's a demon, then we need to investigate it thoroughly." You Fei's reluctance faded, and she stood up to follow the staff toward the guild. Fan En and Yi Sha also went along, while Te Pi, seeing that he had nothing to do, went to handle the affairs of the merchant guild.

Gong Qiying will naturally go along as well, but not in his current form.

A moment later, in a small meeting room on the upper level of the Adventurers' Guild.

The local Adventurers' Guild Branch Guild Master was talking to You Fei and her group.

"There's something you may not have heard of, but it's already spread among city administrators."

The Branch Guild Master, a shrewd and capable woman with skin that resembled snake scales, said:

"Shortly after you set off for Reid, traces of strange demons appeared in the Imperial Capital and a number of surrounding cities, including Black Rock City and Duel City."

This was the first time that Fan En and Yi Sha had come across information so closely related to the demons. Before this, Reid was so remote that even the demons only existed in legends. They couldn't help but feel excited at this moment.

You Fei, however, keenly sensed something and said:

"Could it be the demon that escaped from the Imperial Capital before, seeking revenge?"

As everyone knows, a young demon once appeared in the Imperial Capital, searching everywhere for the location of the Light Eagle Legion's base. Later, when the guards of the Warrior Country thought he was a spy and tried to arrest him, he revealed his true demon form and fled. This incident is also the reason why people suspected that Iliphis was colluding with the demons.

But few people know that the demon was never captured and is currently still on the run, its whereabouts unknown.

"We didn't take this matter seriously at first. It was just a demon. Every year, there are dozens or even hundreds of incidents related to demons in our territory, but it didn't cause any major harm."

The Branch Guild Master looked regretful and placed a document in front of everyone.

There was a round, red sphere drawn on it.

It was none other than the Fallen Devil Egg!

"These are items lost after that monster escaped. They are now kept in the Royal Vault of the Imperial Capital, and only the King and the Magic Sage have the right to visit them at any time."

"At first, we knew nothing about this thing. It wasn't until King Anzi III of the Arnor Kingdom revealed the dangers of the Fallen Devil Egg that we realized this insignificant thing could cause such a great harm by turning humans into demons."

The Branch Guild Master sighed, "Back then, the entire Imperial Capital, no, the entire country, was swept up in a craze for eating Happiny to prove that they were not holders of the Fallen Devil Egg. You should know about this as well."

"That left a very deep impression on me."

You Fei recalled that during that time, everyone she saw on the street was bursting with happiness because they had eaten too many Happiny, and they were all laughing in a disgusting way, like big monkeys.

However, the national crime rate dropped rapidly during that period.

"The royal family is now paying attention to matters related to the demons, but it's too late; they can no longer find any trace of that guy."

"Yes," the Branch Guild Master said, "So we believe this incident is a breakthrough. Perhaps that demon is using the Fallen Devil Egg to transform humans as a form of revenge against us!"

"Our investigation team has confirmed that the perpetrator of the attack was a demon, which is why we withdrew the commission. Other cities have assigned commissions to Gold-Rank Adventurer, and you are currently the only person in Black Rock City suitable to investigate this matter. We request your assistance!"

"Since you've said all that, I have no reason not to agree," You Fei said naturally. "Perfect timing. It's been a long time since I've fought against demons, so let's test my current power."

"Thank you so much," the Branch Guild Master said with a sigh of relief. "Because of His Prince Lanle's presence here, I really hope this matter can be resolved as soon as possible, so that His Highness will not be attacked again when he travels."

On another note, she was also puzzled as to why Lan Le hadn't left yet. The Zane Dungeon shouldn't be allowing this prince, who loved to travel around, to live in Black Rock City.

Could there be another hidden story?

Just then, You Fei suddenly realized something, turned her head sharply to look at the window, and her fighting spirit suddenly rushed over.

Who's there?

She heard a rustling sound from the bushes outside the window, went over and opened the window to look around, but found no suspicious traces anywhere.

"There's no residual magic, so it's not something like monitoring familiars. Am I imagining things?"

She looked around carefully again, but still found nothing. Then she closed the window and continued discussing the matter with the Branch Guild Master.

From the shadows of the grass, a round creature emerged, looking exactly like Gengar, the thieving monster active in the Catacombs of Carthus!

Gengar lurked in the shadows, weaving its way through the darkness until it finally arrived in front of Gong Qiying, handing her the Sound Recording Stone.

"Thank you, you've worked hard~" Gong Qiying rubbed Gengar's body. The touch was quite wonderful, and it was a bit addictive. Both the person touching it and the Pokémon being touched looked like they were enjoying it.

After returning Gengar to its Poké Ball, he went back to his temporary rented house in the Warrior Country and listened to the recording in the Sound Recording Stone.

After listening, he showed an even more interested expression.

"Interesting, I'd like to learn more about it."

Gong Qiying was rather lazy and didn't want to go along.

So they planned to use some tricks to get a copy of You Fei's investigation results.

The night was dark and windy, perfect for the development of a scene reminiscent of a horror movie.

Meanwhile, outside Black Rock City, in a hidden cavern.

The entire cavern was covered with scorched marks from the flames, and a raging fire was still burning at this moment, but these were ordinary flames, without any magic or other special properties.

Within the flames, a wretched-looking old man crawled and writhed in the shadows, muttering incantations:

"A burst of Frenzied Flame, a burst of Frenzied Flame, a burst of Frenzied Flame."

He went mad by the end.

"Where can I find the Frenzied Flame?!"