Mermaid Reef

John is here because of Susan's request.

Laundryman Erin goes missing.

Because she was involved in the bizarre murder that happened the night before, her friend Susan didn't dare to call the police, so she had to come to Detective John for help.

Irene is the most humble low-level person in this city. She has no relatives and no property.Except for Susan, who usually works with her, no one cares about her life or death.

Girls like this are very dangerous, and they are easily trafficked to women's institutions and factories.

If the action is late, not to mention that the person cannot be chased back, the body may be cold.

The most troublesome thing is that this matter also involves paganism.

Through Gemil, John confirmed that there is an evil god hunting in the dark in the city of London, and the paganism that Irene believed in worshiped butterflies, and John found gray butterflies on Susan.This shows that the "spiritual pollution" of the evil spirits continues to spread.

Susan's life safety is not urgent for now, but Irene's side is really urgent.

According to John's speculation, the laundryman Irene received some kind of baptism in paganism, which would allow the power of evil gods to pollute people.

Pastor Conor's notes explained this type of ritual. The correct method will allow humans to obtain part of the power of the ancient gods. The wrong method will allow humans to be branded with evil, and the spirit and body will be polluted by evil gods, causing some terrible changes. .

For example, some limbs are deformed, with sharp teeth, scales and so on.

This means being parasitized by the power of the evil god.

The gray butterfly may be a parasite.

When the parasitism is complete, human beings will become monsters and become "followers of evil gods".

What is the family of evil gods?

It may be the food of the evil gods, the servants of the evil gods, it is hard to say whether they still retain human mind and emotion, but one thing is for sure, they will never be able to return to their relatives and friends, and can only curl up in the darkness to survive.

John suspects that Irene, who is missing, has been taken by the pagan high command.

They wanted to hold the final conversion ceremony for Irene, so when Susan found them, they said, "Irene has escaped the troubles of the world."

This matter cannot be delayed!

John decided to investigate overnight. According to the "pagan" address provided by Susan, he heard that the pagan mentioned Irene. He quietly knocked out one of them, and pretended to be the other party to join the sacrificial team.

First float on the Thames by boat, and then come to this abandoned factory.

"The number of gray butterflies flying on the river is terrifying." John recalled that scene with a feeling of nausea.

Will these gray butterflies find a host?

What will become of London?

Will Susan be the next Erin?

Jason: "..."

Jason finally understood that John didn't understand Gemil's reminder at all!

Gemil asked John to pay attention to the butterfly, and told him not to seek death; John thought it was a clue to solve the case, and he could find the culprit along the way.

"What are you going to do? Stop the ceremony and save people?" Jason asked expressionlessly.

"I heard that Irene was sent here last night. Today they hold a ceremony, which is also the last chance to rescue her."

John was not caught by the client for not working seriously, but was guilty of running another commission.

After all, this is an urgent order, and if you are slow, you will die.

"Haven't you ever thought that you are here to die? How much do you know about evil gods, just based on what you know from me?"

Jason's tone was cold, he changed his gentle and calm expression, and stared at the detective with deep eyes as if looking at something dead.

John stuck.

He couldn't say that his intuitive alarm hadn't sounded a reminder all along!

From seeing the gray butterfly on Susan, to following the heretics, coming to their stronghold to see the butterfly pattern on the wall, and then taking a boat trip on the Thames at night...John didn't feel anything unusual!

Maybe a gas mask and thick clothes are too helpful?

He really didn't feel any discomfort. If he had a severe headache as soon as he came in, he would definitely change his plan and not follow up directly.

Jason thought of the situation when John pointed at himself with the wooden warehouse just now. John saw a part of his body tentacles protruding from his skin. He was just startled, and he would return to normal immediately.

Jason squeezed the words through his teeth: "Your willpower is improving, don't you know it? Ordinary people will feel stunned, severe headaches and even coma, but you are affected very little, which paralyzes your mind. Nerves. When you step into the area where the gray butterfly really inhabits, and you feel that the situation is wrong, it will be too late!"

John: "..."

Jason continued: "Why do you think these heretics are so careless? Because people who are polluted by gray butterflies are immune to mental damage to a certain extent. Except for you, other people want to get in smoothly by wearing this black robe and mask? Ah!"

Jason had always heard that humans with higher willpower would die faster, but he still didn't believe it.

Now he believes.

At the same time, Jason also understood why fear is the most intense human emotion.

Fear will keep humans away from danger, which is a reminder passed down in human blood.

The increase in the upper limit of willpower will lead humans to misjudge dangers.

"It turned out to be like this, but it's all here. If I just go back like this, Irene will really be hopeless." John quickly regained his composure.

He tentatively asked, "What is Mr. Johnson doing here again?"

Jason: "..."

Suddenly, he discovered that the detective's sense of danger hadn't failed.

Hui Die's self-proliferation on such a large scale not only attracted the detectives who investigated, but also attracted the same kind of evil gods who disliked Hui Die!

As long as the detective is lucky, he can escape, not courting death.

"If Irene you're talking about is a skinny laundress..."

Jason described Erin's appearance, and his words were much more accurate than Susan's.

John was very surprised: "Mr. Johnson, have you seen her?"

"I met you on the road." Jason replied.

It was true, he met one or two people on the streets of London every day.

"However, I have a deep impression on her, because she was polluted by the power of evil gods, and this kind of pollution is rare." Jason's expression was a little strange.

John quickly asked, "Does she have a gray butterfly?"

"More than that, she has been entangled with silk threads. According to you humans, that is the state of cocooning, and it is also the final form of maintaining a human form. As long as there is no external intervention, it can actually be maintained forever... However, things are not that simple. The last step of becoming a member of Huidie is not a ceremony, but the murder you mentioned, the murder that happened in front of your house yesterday. So give up, that girl is no longer human."

"what?"

"You can see for yourself."

Before John could react, he felt his body "fly" out.

Suddenly, he stood on a rock, and the soles of his feet slipped.

After standing still, he looked up, and suddenly found that those heretics were in front of him, walking forward with lights.

John: "..."

Looking back, I can't see Jason's shadow. It seems that this commission to infiltrate the pagan altar can continue?

***

Some suspicious traces began to appear in the ruins of the factory.

For example, the stones embedded in the walls, the sunken potholes, it seems that some huge thing rolled over here.

The terrain was getting lower and lower, and the level of water was also rising. Finally, after turning a corner, a glowing blue thread appeared in front of it.

These silk threads are entwined between the ground and the walls, like a spider's nest.

There is a big hole in front, and a giant cocoon is vaguely hanging under the thick silk thread.

It's too dark here, and the powdered scales and silk threads have the side effect of making people tranced, so it's impossible to see the true face of the cocoon.

The pagans came here, put down their lanterns, and knelt down facing the big hole, muttering some strange pronunciations.

"Whoa."

Several strange shadows appeared around the wall.

They are "glowing all over their bodies", and their bodies seem to be covered with a blue-purple tulle, revealing a graceful figure.

From a distance, it looks like a group of pitifully thin women, but the place that should be plump is very full.

John turned his head instinctively, and then felt a slight pain in his forehead, and immediately realized that this was the servant of the evil god.

They reached the light range of the lantern, and John lost his breath almost at that moment, his pupils constricted.

The dependent creatures of these gray butterflies all have the appearance of women. Their eyes are very large, terrifyingly large, occupying almost half of the face, and protruding slightly to the sides.

The surface of this pair of terrifying black eyes is also divided into countless like a grid.

- Compound eyes of insects.

Although other facial features are normal except for the eyes, a thin layer of fluff has grown on the face.

They were not clothed at all, and the blue-purple tulle was actually unspread wings.

"Irene."

The pagan leader with the lantern called.

One of the monsters reacted to the name, and instead of looking thin and short, its skin was so white that it glowed.

It's just that the expression is empty, as if sleepwalking.

Irene stared at the gas mask on the heathen's head for several minutes, and when she saw her current appearance from the reflection in the glass, she suddenly covered her face and let out a terrifying scream.

John didn't even hear the sound, but he could tell from Irene's movements and the reactions of other "butterflies" covering their ears.

"Irene, my child, you have been saved by the gods." The pagan leader knelt on the ground and raised his hands.

Irene screamed again, with a desperate expression, and after about a minute she made a broken voice: "Is this salvation?"

The pagan leader looked directly at Irene and said, "It's not salvation, it's just getting rid of the original cruel fate, but who knows, we didn't choose a crueler fate?"

Erin cried and laughed, shaking her head.

At this time, the air suddenly became hot and dry, and the scale powder was beating like crazy.

The "butterflies" were the first to react. They looked terrified and fled into the darkness in a hurry.

The lanterns in the hands of the heathen were extinguished at the same time.

In the ear is the sound of silk thread flying, indistinct murmuring.

John only heard one sentence: "Gamil is here, I will lure the gray butterfly's incarnation cocoon out, don't leave here if you don't want to die, don't look out no matter what happens."

Then there was a loud bang, through the gas mask, John vaguely saw a black figure rushing towards the bottom of the pit, smashing down the blue cocoon hanging from the silk thread.

Because they can glow, the pagans followed the butterflies out without hesitation.

John suddenly rushed at the pagan leader. If he didn't do anything, he wouldn't be able to tell who was the leader if everyone continued to run around.

"Who are you?" the leader asked hoarsely.

John held the barn against the neck of the pagan leader, an elderly man.

"I should ask you this, what are you planning? Why are you using the power of evil gods to spread pollution?"

"Pollution?" The old man let out a strange laugh.

There was a terrible roar from the bottom of the cave, and all fell into a trance for a moment, and then could not stand, for the ground shook violently.

"Let's go." Eileen realized that something was wrong, turned around and ran back, her terrifying face was full of eagerness and panic, "This place is going to collapse."

"No, it's more dangerous outside."

John didn't forget Jason's words.

Now the three evil gods are going to fight, the ghost knows what's going on outside.

***

The Thames was churning wildly.

The boat was torn apart by the huge waves, and the river began to flow back into the city.

——Flow back along those sewage drains and sewer pipes.

The stench stunned most people immediately.

It was followed by a terrible sound, and before people had time to get up from the bed, they felt that their heads seemed to be stirred by something.

The dense fog that permeated the river also disappeared completely, and a strange silver moon hung in the sky.

Flocks of flying gray butterflies were wiped out in the moonlight.

Their wreckage falls on rivers, city streets, and soon becomes specks of blue light.

These blue fluorescent lights float like fireflies, like "rivers" wandering in the streets and alleys of London. There are so many of them that they almost cover the entire city of London.

On Tower Bridge, the most conspicuous bridge on the Thames River - two castle-like towers were cast in granite and steel, and the moonlight seemed to cover them with a silver tulle.

A mermaid with long crimson hair sat in the hazy moonlight, its glowing fish tail hanging down in mid-air along the iron chain of the bridge.