Steam Age: I Fight Against Divine Authority with Otherworldly Tales

Chapter 17 Undercurrents in the Wilderness

The next morning, before eight o'clock, Karl and Suren walked along the wet stone path to the eastern exit of the town.

Outside the exit, a pale yellow light could be seen, like a barrier separating the town from the wilderness.

Two monks from the church stood on either side of the exit, each holding a piece of cardboard and a simple pen.

Anyone wishing to enter or leave the town of Loren needs to register. This is done partly to prevent civilians from taking risks, and partly to facilitate the collection of entry and exit fees.

It was only then that Karl noticed the two folding mirrors hanging from Suren's waist. He asked with some confusion, "Why are you following those aristocratic ladies, carrying mirrors with you everywhere?"

Suren shook his index finger and replied, "You wouldn't understand, you're just a guy who only knows alchemy."

Carl scratched his head, as if he had figured something out, and clapped his hands together in the air: "I see, I get it!"

Suren looked at Karl, who seemed to have solved some mystery, and felt a little puzzled, wondering what he had figured out.

Before long, a carriage slowly drove up and stopped in front of the two. A man stepped down from the carriage; it was Professor De Went.

Perhaps for ease of movement, the professor was not wearing formal attire today, but rather a gray casual outfit. However, judging from the fine tailoring of the clothes, it was clear that the wearer was of high status.

Somewhat coincidentally, just as the professor alighted from his carriage, Cole Vickers strolled over leisurely. Seeing that everyone had arrived, Professor Derwent checked his pocket watch, nodded, and took a document and a heavy little cloth bag from his pocket, handing them to the gatekeeper monk.

The monk glanced at the contents of the document, then at the three people behind the professor, his gaze lingering on their uniforms for a moment. He then opened the cloth bag, which was filled with gleaming gold scrolls. He quickly counted them, nodded, and indicated that everyone could pass.

Suren roughly estimated in his mind that it was about twenty pounds, which was equivalent to a year's salary for an average factory worker.

The four took turns boarding the carriage, and after a short while, the wheels slowly turned, heading out of the town.

Karl took out the "Loren Town Wilderness Map". The group had already chosen an area yesterday where demons were scarce and only some scattered Level 1 evil spirits appeared.

Cole simply leaned against the corner quietly, his eyes closed, seemingly unconcerned about what was to come.

Looking out the carriage window, Suren saw an invisible, pale yellow barrier enveloping the town of Loren like an eggshell, with a stone-paved path extending out from within the town.

The church had established relatively safe routes between cities, and this path was one of them.

Rows of lamps engraved with runes stood along the roadside, emitting a faint glow. These lamps served more than just illumination; they also provided powerful protection, ensuring the safety of the road.

Thanks to the protection of these powerful runic items, traveling along these routes will not result in demonic attacks, but a high transportation fee must be paid.

The carriage traveled for about twenty minutes before finally arriving at its destination.

After getting out of the car, Suren pulled out the loaded revolver and carefully inspected it, because they were about to leave this safe area and head further in.

Karl followed Suren's example and began to inspect, but his clumsy movements immediately revealed his lack of professionalism. He had several more storage bags hanging from his waist than usual, containing potions and alchemical bombs.

Suren glanced at Cole and noticed that Cole's revolver was not the standard model of the Deathbird; it was entirely silver-white with exquisite patterns embossed on the side of the barrel.

Based on the gun's structure, Su Lun determined that this revolver was a center-folding type, and its reload speed would be much faster than his own.

The professor stood behind Suren, holding a simple notebook and a specially made pen.

Suren glanced at the carriage. The driver was sitting in it. He would be staying there for the next four hours. She wondered how much the professor had paid him to be willing to risk his life with the group.

The group walked on the grass, proceeding along the route they had planned beforehand. Although it was nominally called the wilderness area, it was not desolate at all.

Trees make up most of the area, while the ground is covered with grass, making it look like a perfect place for camping, provided you ignore the strange noises that occasionally come from the surroundings.

In the territories of some high-level demons, due to their long-term influence, the surrounding plants undergo mutations, making them quite valuable materials.

Following the route on the map, the four avoided most of the demons and traveled for some time without incident. Just as they passed a lake...

"brush--"

A three-meter-long black shadow burst out of the water. The thing was covered in purple scales, which emitted an eerie light under the refraction of the sun.

The triangular snake's head emerged from the mist, moving with the speed of an arrow, lunging towards Karl on the shore.

Carl stood frozen in fear. In that critical moment, Suren raised his gun and pulled the trigger. Golden sparks flashed from the snake's head. Suren's attack only made the monster take a step back.

Just then, a gunshot rang out to Suren's right. With a loud "bang," blood splattered from the snake's body. This shot was much more powerful.

The monster cried out in pain, letting out a sharp, mournful cry, and immediately abandoned its target.

Its thick tail churned in the lake, then swept out of the water, creating a water curtain about two meters wide. These water curtains turned into droplets that flew towards Cole, who had just fired the shot.

Cole raised his arm as if to block, but suddenly changed his movement. The movement was both like a clumsy fall and a deliberate dodge. He curled up into a ball and rolled to the right rear in an extremely awkward posture.

The water droplets in the air began to sharpen, gradually turning into ice spikes that made a series of piercing sounds as they scraped past Cole's back.

Suren wasn't idle either; he fired two shots at the wound on the snake's body. Two plumes of blood mist spread across the giant snake's body, and it let out a mournful cry as its body trembled violently.

The level I evil spirits have little intelligence and do not choose to escape. The giant snake, exhausted, finally died under Cole's last shot.

The entire battle was thrilling but ultimately safe. However, Suren knew that without Cole's powerful shot that ripped open the serpent's scales, the fight wouldn't have been so easy.

Seemingly sensing Suren's gaze, Cole smiled and said, "I just used rune bullets enchanted with 'armor penetration.' When attacking humans, these things are no different in power from ordinary bullets."

Suren narrowed his eyes; the other party was clearly implying something.

After the giant serpent died, it did not dissolve directly like the monster Suren had encountered before. Instead, it turned into a wisp of black mist and dissipated, leaving behind only three glittering items.