Chapter 57 In the Name of Money

When this story was originally told, it was said to have taken place in Michigan, which should be very far away from Florida, so how did it end up here?

Before he had time to ponder further, a heavy flurry of footsteps resounded.

Townspeople from other directions had gathered and rushed over.

The reason they were so late was that the town’s population was small, and the people in this room were a tight-knit clique whose houses were close by as neighbors, whereas the other residents lived relatively farther away.

Staring at the house engulfed in raging flames, the crowd was filled with shock.

"Oh, God!"

They also noticed Louis standing by the roadside, but before they could question him, a shout rang out.

"Louis! Louis!"

Not far away, David came running over, panting heavily. There was no help for it; someone who never exercised simply could not run far.

Seeing that Louis was safe and sound, David let out a breath of relief, then swept his gaze across the other townspeople with a vigilant look.

On his run over, he had encountered Angela and the stranger woman, and after a brief account, he had roughly understood the situation. In his eyes now, not a single one of these townspeople could be trusted.

"I've already called the police, so you'd better not make any rash moves!" David warned loudly.

"Hey, pal, we should be the ones asking you that, outsider. Your kid was right at the scene of the crime."

"Ask what? I just got here, I'm just looking for someone. As for Louis—"

"He's still a child. You surely aren't absurd enough to suspect him, are you?" David’s remark about him still being a child instantly left everyone choked up and speechless.

David did not mention Angela and the others, because if he did, there was no telling what this mob might do. The most crucial thing right now was to keep them under control and wait for the police to arrive.

"This..."

Everyone exchanged glances; the man was right.

"Alright, since this gentleman has already called the police, let's put out the fire first and wait for the authorities to investigate the truth."

The group quickly set to work fighting the blaze. Because this location was somewhat remote, they had indeed prepared some basic fire-extinguishing tools just in case.

Fire grenades burst within the flames, streams of water sprayed from small hoses...

Yet the fire showed no signs of abating.

Moreover, the speed at which the flames spread was abnormally fast; at this scale, anyone inside would find it extremely difficult to escape.

Louis, who had just finished making his phone call, watched this scene with a smile. Are you kidding me? The fire generated by pyromancy inherently carries unique properties—highly flammable and extremely difficult to extinguish. You expect to put it out with this little trickling water?

If that were the case, wouldn't my cultivation of mystic arts have been in vain?

Someone nearby noticed Louis smiling and grew increasingly displeased. "Hey kid, what are you grinning at? Do you think this is a joyful occasion?"

Louis glanced at him sideways.

"None of your damn business."

"You—!"

Just as he was about to step forward and teach this arrogant punk a lesson, he noticed David wiping a handgun in his hands and looked at him in confusion. "What? Why are you staring at me?"

Take a deep breath.

"Nothing."

By the time the police arrived.

The raging fire was nearly extinguished, and everyone stood in a daze, staring at the charred, ruined skeleton of the house, while the continuous cries for help seemed to still echo in their ears.

"This is truly a tragedy."

After a brief inspection revealed no survivors and that the victims had died in exceptionally gruesome states, the sheriff wore a mournful expression.

"No, Sheriff, this is nothing more than a ridiculous internal feud."

David, who had already learned part of the truth from Louis, stepped forward to speak, successfully drawing angry glares from the townspeople.

"Oh? It seems you have something to say?"

"Actually, you won't need me to say much, Sheriff; you'll figure it out very soon."

Not long after, an officer rushed over to report the discovery of a female corpse and a golden arm inside, causing the sheriff to immediately catch a whiff of something unusual.

Meanwhile, Louis closely watched the shifts in expression among the people around him.

Because he suspected that the appearance of this golden arm here might have some connection to the locals.

Sure enough.

He noticed that the expression of the town mayor, who led the group, looked somewhat unnatural, and several men behind him had shifty eyes as they quietly shrank back into the crowd.

...

What followed was quite simple. After Louis made his call, a lawyer arrived promptly, leaving the sheriff with no grounds for detention.

And this fire, which had claimed nearly twenty lives, despite being fraught with doubts, was ultimately categorized as an accident triggered by an internal dispute over the uneven distribution of stolen goods.

Although the townspeople harbored endless grievances about this, no one cared whether they accepted it or not. The case was settled just like that; from the report and investigation to the closing of the case, everything was unbelievably fast.

Naturally, this was the result of the Kano family exerting influence behind the scenes.

One had to admit that in modern society, before your mystic arts reach a certain level of intensity, they simply cannot compete with power and money.

In the name of money, there is nothing that cannot be accomplished in America. If there is, it only proves you simply do not have enough of it!

"Little Louis, don't act on impulse, especially when it comes to your own safety. You could have just made a phone call; there was no need to take matters into your own hands. That only increases your risk."

"As for those townspeople, leave them be. I'll handle it."

On the other end of the phone, his uncle Max instructed him thus.

Louis didn't mind. He told Max what he needed, and without asking why, Max simply agreed.

Hanging up the phone.

Louis looked at Olivier, whom he had just found in the lake with an infected wound and an uncertain chance of survival, as well as Steve, who had been discovered in a grave pit and was currently suffering from a mental breakdown.

The miserable states of the two men brought their respective women to heartbroken tears.

They could not understand why merely going out on a trip had led them to such horrors.

Civilization and savagery actually coexisted.

Shaking his head, he stopped paying attention to them. Lacking any healing-type arts, his heart was willing but his strength fell short; he could only leave it to modern medicine.

Perhaps this was simply fate. At least they had survived, unlike the original film where everyone perished—that could already be considered fortunate.

Soon, the two women accompanied their men into an ambulance bound for the hospital, while David and Louis drove back to the city center.

The journey was marked by silence.

David had many questions he wanted to ask, such as the abnormal fire, the bizarre golden arm, and the female corpse...

After hesitating several times with words at the tip of his tongue, David ultimately chose to remain silent.

He trusted Louis.

Besides, even if Louis had done it, it was to avenge poor Angela.

What else could he possibly say?

However...

"Louis, do you think if I start believing in the Kitchen God, I'll be able to protect myself from these supernatural disturbances?"

"And, with so many people dead, won't they really turn into malevolent spirits?"

Louis smiled. David’s naivety amused him. "Believing in anything else is useless, but believing in the Kitchen God next to our house is effective, as long as you remember to carry the Kitchen God's talisman."

"As for whether they'll become malevolent spirits... I don't know."

"Even if they do, it doesn't matter. They aren't going to plague us."

David was stunned.

He had a point!

We don't even live in that place.

And even if they really came looking for us, we wouldn't be afraid!

So what was there to worry about!