The trolls came step by step, but they couldn't really see it in the fog. It bent its legs and bent over, and the firelight gradually reflected a familiar face.

"Lucian." It spoke.

Lucian immediately recognized the thing—the man. Millionaires who have long been identified as missing or dead. In a gamble with foreigners many years ago, he bet on his heart.

"Jeremia?"

The former industrial tycoon laughed. He's become so deformed that the last vestiges of humanity have vanished, replaced by fire-forged steam gear, and a pile of discarded locomotives assembled from a Sensen skeleton. A demonic furnace burned in his abdomen, and the campfire between the two seemed to be tilted to one side, as if following Jeremia's breathing.

"Good man, I used to be called by that name." His voice almost melted the earth, and Lu Xi sat in front of him paralyzed. "You can call me Urgat, I picked my own name."

"I know what you're thinking." He continued. "You know that I have done everything in my power to civilize this desolate land, and I have given up on my plans to build an empire of steel. But I was too self-serving—I made a deal, just like you used to...... It was too much to pay. ”

The giant pointed to where his heart had been, and now there was only a white-hot mass of copper. The rumors are true, Jeremiah is indeed dead.

"It's not like he's dead." It was as if he heard Lucian's inner voice. "Although I got my most precious thing back, it was too late, and I was no longer alive. My body was ...... by some My colleagues were thrown to the edge of the desert, and they now know the cost of betraying me. Of course, you also know that there are many demons in the world...... But unlike the monster you can't kill, the demon who came to me has a very tempting suggestion. ”

Urgart was now closer, and the campfire kept burrowing into his abdomen. There seemed to be a thousand gears in his body, making a sound of gnawing at each other. Lucian seemed to see a huge mouth, and even the sky was about to be torn down and devoured.

"Officer, I know you're going to lose your fight against yourself. Because that's what I am. My loss has left me devastated and turned me into a thief. I sadly fantasized that I was still a human being, only to find that I was left with the darkest hollow. When you follow my old path – and you certainly will – I'd love to meet the guy who eventually takes over your body. We'll have ...... Lots of things to talk about. ”

With that, Urgat walked away with his thick metal legs. Until the halo of light like the mouth of hell completely disappeared from Lucian's vision, and the sky seemed to crack with a slight knock - the bitter sunset once again turned into a cold and dull midnight, reflecting Lucian's lonely figure.

The shadow will soon take him away.

He's going to have to pick up his pace.

Lucian had been careless.

He had forgotten the nature of demons and their abilities, so he and Senna rode into a high mountain tundra, intending to shoot a hammerstone. Lucian is one of the best bailiffs, and Senna is the best one. The two of them are brave and reckless, and they love each other deeply - Hammerstone has been waiting for them for a long time.

However, Hammerstone is no ordinary demon of the frontier. Hungry and cruel, he had been around for tens of thousands of years long before the humans of the Old World first landed on the east coast of the continent.

The astral creatures that gave birth to the gods have decayed and died, their ancient bodies falling to the earth and turning into mountains, canyons, and the first oceans. But the hammerstone is still alive. His bottomless desire for destruction sustains his perverse life. Before the language of the world existed, when he did not have a name, all living creatures knew what he looked like—a monstrous head, burning with a fire of hatred, looking down ominously over life. Malice had penetrated his body and could never be removed. He walked among the shattered bodies of magnificent objects—their children had been forgotten, and they were left to their souls at the hammerstone.

Before Lucian could even see his opponent, a blade sliced into his shoulder. This knocked him off his mount, so that the arm of the gun could not be used. Senna strides over to pick up her lover's pistol, but she is also knocked out by demonic power. Walls of fire rose from the ground, and laughter echoed through Hammerstone's pale and uncovered skull. The voice buzzed in their heads, a deep, primal howl. Lucian saw in his mind that the monster had stabbed the knife deep into Senna's throat. The battle lasted only a few seconds, and Hammerstone had already won.

The demon stood beside Xena, flames bursting from her ancient body against the cold wind. He pulled out a knife with interlaced teeth from his tattered coat. On the way to Hammerstone's lair, Lucian saw more than a dozen towns covered with skinned corpses, as well as mountains of caravan bodyguards, all of whom had unfortunately been targeted by Hammerstone's evil thoughts. Lucian had been ready—long ago, to let Hammerstone take his own life. But he didn't want Senna to suffer the same fate as a young and stupid gunslinger.

Perhaps it was because Hammerstone felt a brief moment of pleasure after countless years of eerie and extravagant slaughter, so he made a deal with Lucian.

It's too simple, Lu Xi thought with peace of mind. It's too easy to accept.

Trade his soul for the girl's life.

Then the shadow seized him. Hatred and shame rose from the young officer's heart, and under Senna's begging gaze, it invaded his senses and corrupted his flesh. The deal has been accepted and the contract has been concluded. Lucian's vision gradually turned into a sea of fire. He saw the demon he had been sent to hunt turn to Senna's defenseless body, and smirked and gouged out her heart.

Almost no one knows the origin of the Holy Priest of New Eden, but rumors of his power have been heard even in the eastern regions. Many people say that he can talk to the dead, but few people can venture into the unknown Northwest Wilderness to verify it for themselves. The man who set out for New Eden never returned—and now, as Lucian stood on the top of a nearby hill and looked at the enclave beneath his feet, he finally knew why.

A dignified church, untouched by the elements and attacked by wild beasts, not big, but vibrant. Lush cereals grow around the church, and houses that look alive. Children run on dirt roads, and people come and go calmly. There are no devils, no outsiders, no basilisks, no giants, and no gangsters with bad intentions - otherwise every house here would have been ransacked. It's bright and neat, a place that only appears in storybooks. Lucian couldn't help but be stunned. He even wondered if he had already lost the duel with the devil, and that was his reward.