Love letters are not allowed in the exorcism notebook!-Chapter 1016 - 83: They Are Much More Reliable Than You

Holmes indeed didn’t rest.

The fire in the basement fireplace was burning fiercely. As Wang Yunxiao followed Yan Yu’an into the room, he saw the lean man lying in a rocking chair, holding an old-fashioned pipe in his mouth, making the already cramped basement filled with smoke.

A sealed space, a burning stove, and smoking—are you really not worried about carbon monoxide poisoning?

The basement was piled high with all sorts of books and documents, covered in dense text from the carpet to the walls, which could easily cause discomfort to those less educated.

But these messy bits of information were secondary. Wang Yunxiao noticed the man lying on the sofa covered in clothes and snoring at second glance.

An acquaintance.

If it’s not someone in disguise, though seeing this person’s impersonator here, such chances are practically negligible.

Even his actual appearance was unexpected to Wang Yunxiao.

Huo Qingyang.

Since the mid-level shake-up of the Special Service Bureau last October, this former head of the Operations Section had vanished.

The Special Service Bureau wouldn’t actively announce the whereabouts of the Operations Section chief, but if you had some contacts or networks, you could hear that the chief resigned in fury due to his girlfriend’s unfortunate sacrifice.

Wang Yunxiao knew this was just a smokescreen.

Because Huo Qingyang’s real girlfriend... whether she is his girlfriend is unclear, but currently, it’s the Intelligence Section Chief Liu Zhihan.

He didn’t expect him to come to this place.

So thinking from another angle, at least since last October, the Special Service Bureau had already been laying groundwork targeted at Lanton.

"You’ve finally arrived."

The man addressed as Mr. Holmes by Cheng Feng puffed out a smoke ring and gestured towards Huo Qingyang on the sofa: "Quickly get this freeloader away from here for me! Do you know how much bread in Lanton costs per pound now?"

Actually, when they entered, Huo Qingyang had already woken up. Hearing this, he turned over and sat up, stretching his arms and refuting: "Brother, your words are a bit heartless. You mooched food and drink at my house for so many years, did my dad ever ask you for meal money?"

Holmes sneered: "Don’t mention your dad; I paid tuition fees, so why shouldn’t he provide meals!"

What do you call him?

Wang Yunxiao was dumbstruck listening from the side. The key point was that Mr. Holmes’ Mandarin, to be exact his Tianmen accent, was so impeccable that even Old Tianmen locals couldn’t find any fault.

Huo Qingyang glanced at the three young people and smiled brightly: "Alright, you guys can even run field missions now. You’re progressing quite fast. What do you need me to do? Just say it."

"No need."

Cheng Feng shook his head and said: "Today, I specifically came to visit Mr. Holmes; I didn’t know in advance that Commander Huo, you are here as well."

"Are you kidding! There’s nothing your Secretary Bureau doesn’t know!"

Upon hearing it wasn’t him they were seeking, Huo Qingyang immediately changed his face, turned his head, and nestled into the sofa to continue sleeping, leaving his back to the three.

"Not taking him away for real?"

Holmes looked disappointed: "Or at least make him leave me alone, let him go wherever he wants."

"I’ve come today seeking your advice on the policy changes at the top of Lanton."

Cheng Feng declared solemnly: "Based on our observations, the Lanton government’s actions seem to have become somewhat extreme. They are deliberately enticing Asmod to invade our Thousand-Year Dynasty World; this conduct seems contrary to Avalon’s seclusion tendency."

"Not enticing."

Holmes took a drag on his cigarette and shook his head: "Asmod has already reached an agreement with the government. This time, their actions aim to extend a hand during the Four Seas Commerce Guild’s return to the mainland."

Cheng Feng frowned: "What’s the rationale for doing this?"

"Stirring trouble, isn’t it quite obvious?"

Holmes laughed: "The return of the Four Seas Commerce Guild will inevitably cause some chaos in Tianmen’s social order, and chaos is the optimal soil for demons to thrive. Asmod urgently needs a new authority to consolidate his status in the new era; he intends to replace past ’desire’ with ’pleasure.’ The Overseas Chinese are precisely the fitting audience; they’re accustomed to Western cuisine, and suddenly returning home will undoubtedly face cultural maladaptation. At this moment, ’pleasure’ is needed to ease cultural conflicts and social contradictions."

"Regarding our side, I suppose you can understand that while constructing social models, the Mathematics Transgressor didn’t account for humanity’s demand for pleasure. After all, from a scientific perspective, nearly all human desires are influenced by brain hormone secretion. Once becoming digital life, it’s logical to rid oneself from such low-level spiritual pursuits."

"But anyway, theory is one thing, reality is another. Convincing those noble lords to give up pursuing pleasure is indeed somewhat challenging. You see, I can’t even quit smoking—humans abandoning pleasure is as good as abandoning humanity."

Holmes pointed to his own head: "Do you know the working principle of addictive drugs? Our bones and tendons constantly wear down, and our body secretes a hormone that reduces the pain this wear causes to negligible levels. Taking such a drug is equivalent to injecting large doses of hormones, hence the intoxicating sensation it brings."

"But afterward, the drug’s effect prompts our brains to judge that hormones are excessive and no longer need secretion. Once the drug’s effect fades, we swiftly experience the wear-pain that hormones used to mask. In the words of addicts, it feels like ants crawling all over the body."

"Thus, people need pleasure, even digital life alike. As part of this deal, the Pleasure Demon Asmod will convert half his soul into data to provide them with necessary elements of pleasure."

Cheng Feng contemplated for a moment, nodded, and said: "Thank you for the reminder. This indeed is something we hadn’t considered before. If applied to specific actions, how much support will your government provide Asmod?"

"Of course, everything except actual actions."

Holmes made a joke.

"As far as I know, the Mathematics Transgressor offered Asmod a highly feasible plan, but this information won’t come for free."

"What do you need?"

"Help me with something."

Huo Qingyang suddenly sat up, staring at Holmes: "Why not use me, a big living person here, over these newcomers?"

"It’s not the same."

Holmes shook his head: "Judging from my observations, they’re much more reliable than you."