"Please wait a moment."
Fangzheng's voice was not loud, but it reverberated throughout the square. Hearing his voice, the bald man who was about to throw the torch was stunned. He turned his head and looked at Fangzheng.
"Who are you?"
Looking at Fangzheng's extravagant yet strange attire, the bald man became a little more cautious. The overall standard of this world was still that of the Middle World. In this era, men generally wore long or short sleeves on the upper body, legging-like trousers on the lower body, and leather boots on the outside. However, Fangzheng's attire was clearly different from the others. He was wearing a black suit and leather shoes, with a windbreaker on the outside. No matter how one looked at him, he did not fit in with the others. At the very least, Liz and Miao Jie were wearing cloaks, so they did not look strange from the outside.
But Fangzheng's attire was very strange …
"I'm just a foreigner."
Facing the bald man's question, Fangzheng slowly walked forward with a smile and pointed at the two women tied to the stake.
"May I ask, what crime did they commit to be burned at the stake?"
"Because they are freaks! They are sorcerers! Evil energy flowed through their veins! So they must be purified! "
The bald man shouted again. At the same time, the crowd around the square also shouted.
"Holy Fire! Illuminate, burn, purify everything! "
Hearing the crowd's cheers, Ciri frowned. Liz's expression was also very ugly. Miao Jie looked around. Although she did not say anything, her expression was also a lot stiffer. Fangzheng squinted his eyes and looked at the bald man with the same smile.
"Oh, so these two ladies didn't commit any crimes like murder. It's just because they have different blood flowing in their veins and possess different powers than ordinary people that they have to be executed?"
"Of course, they are the embodiment of evil, the spawn of the devil, the claws of the dark! Inhumans!! "
"No, I didn't do anything."
Hearing the bald man's shout, one of the women suddenly screamed.
"I didn't do anything bad! I am innocent! I just want to live like you! Save me!! "
"Witness the grace and mercy of the flame!"
The bald man raised the torch high and walked in front of the woman, staring at her. Not far behind him, a priest in a red and white robe also began to pray loudly.
"The fire ignites us, and protects us from evil. The purest supreme flame heals our hearts. The most sacred flame chased away all the wild beasts. The flames would burn everything, including the enemy's soul. The flames dance unceasingly, illuminating the most brilliant path for us. The red flame shines brightly, protecting us from suffering. Fire gives us warmth and directs our lives. Eternal Fire, we pray to you. Eternal Fire, we place our faith in you. In our eyes, there are no other gods besides the Eternal Fire! "
As the priest prayed, the bald man raised his torch high and looked at the woman with a ferocious smile.
"Freak, this is a special pile of firewood for you, so that you can slowly enjoy the feeling of being burned to death. Sooner or later, you will beg me for mercy with all kinds of voices, just like the other freaks!"
As he spoke, the bald man threw the torch into the fire. Immediately after, the flames rose and disappeared without a trace.
"What, what's going on?"
Looking at the scene before him, the bald man was instantly shocked, while the others also broke into a heated discussion. But soon after, an even more shocking scene occurred.
The flames extinguished silently.
Not only the torches in the hands of the soldiers, but even the fire pillars in the surroundings, as well as the flames in the candles and oil lamps in the homes of the civilians, also disappeared silently.
The Free Cities that were originally burning with an inextinguishable flame were now plunged into darkness.
Even the radiance of the sun began to dim. Thick dark clouds appeared out of nowhere and shrouded the entire sky.
The civilians walked onto the streets and looked at everything before them in shock and fear. They discussed among themselves, completely unaware of what had happened.
"I see."
In the square, Fangzheng's voice sounded again. He put his hands behind his back and stared at the bald man in front of him with a smile on his face.
"Because you can't understand, you're afraid. Because you can't accept it, you're ostracized. Do you get a twisted sense of joy from easily burning those beings with extraordinary powers to death? "
"…"
No one said anything. Many people looked around in panic, not knowing how to react. Fangzheng, on the other hand, walked forward slowly with his hands behind his back.
"That's why you're gathered here, cheering and jumping for joy, because it makes you feel power, a power that allows you to fight against those non-human beings … Well, unfortunately, this is just an illusion."
"You're the one behind this?!"
The bald man was no fool. Seeing Fangzheng's reaction, he immediately confirmed that the strange situation in front of him had something to do with this man. With a wave of his hand, the soldiers immediately stepped forward and completely surrounded the bald man.
"Who are you! How dare you act presumptuously in front of the Eternal Fire! "
"The Eternal Fire … Hmm, the prayer is well written, but it's a pity that the people who believe in it are too cheap. A bunch of stupid mortals seeking comfort with the power of fire."
Having said that, Fangzheng looked up and revealed a cold smile.
"Well then, I'll show you what a real fire is."
As he spoke, Fangzheng gently stomped his foot.
Boom —!!!
The ground cracked, and hot air erupted in an instant, blowing away the civilians and the soldiers in the surroundings. The bald man screamed in pain and fainted after hitting the wall. At that moment, the crowd that had been watching the execution panicked as they screamed and fled. As for Fangzheng, he slowly walked to the stake and made a gesture. Soon, the ropes binding the two women immediately tore apart, allowing them to be released.
"Thank, thank you for your help, kind sir."
"You're welcome. It's nothing."
Fangzheng waved his hand in response to the women's gratitude.
"Leave this damned place and go live somewhere else. It might be hard, but it's better than being tied to the stake."
Hearing Fangzheng's words, the two women hurriedly bowed to him, then turned around and left. At that moment, Hiri and the others also arrived in front of Fangzheng.
"What the hell are you thinking!!"
Hiri wanted to grab Fangzheng's collar. She originally wanted to keep a low profile, but in the end, Fangzheng ruined everything!
"We're in big trouble now!"
"Trouble? I don't see any trouble, Miss Hiri. "
Fangzheng reached out and pressed down on Ciri's hand as he stared at her.
"Perhaps you still don't understand, so I'll say it again. Those with power make the rules, and this means that I can do whatever I want. No one can stop me … Speaking of which, if you have the time to complain to me, why don't you interrogate that baldy and ask him where your good friend is? Maybe he knows? "
Hearing Fangzheng's words, Hiri speechlessly glared at him, then rushed to the unconscious baldy not far away. Miao Jie giggled as she walked to Fangzheng's side and held his arm.
"As expected of Mr. Fangzheng. He's really manly. He's actually willing to fight against an entire cult for the sake of two suffering women. How admirable."
"The Goddess will never forgive their evil and barbaric actions!"
Liz clenched her fists, wishing she could pull out her chain sword. They actually wanted to burn the other party to death just because they had a strange power. From Liz's point of view, this kind of behavior was clearly heresy. Oh, right, she was also a believer.
Well, there was no compromise between heathens and heathens.
At that moment, Hiri returned.
"Got it. Dandelion is locked in the prison under the Temple Island … Let's get out of here quickly!"
"Do you know where the Temple Island is?"
"Of course … What do you want?"
Facing Hiri's puzzled question, Fangzheng rolled his eyes.
"To save people, of course."
"Are you crazy?"
Hearing Fangzheng's answer, Hiri was dumbfounded. She turned pale with fright. She originally thought that Fangzheng would take advantage of the chaos to escape after saving people. She didn't expect him to continue forward. Go straight to the Temple Island?
"Are you going to make an enemy out of the entire Novigrad and the Church of Eternal Fire?"
"So what if I am?"
Fangzheng glanced at Hiri, amused.
"Miss Hiri, you're too indecisive. You're used to running away, and you've given up on thinking. In fact, there's more than one choice in this world. Maybe in your opinion, we should act cautiously, find some clues, and then find a chance to save your friends. But for me, there's a simpler solution to this problem. That is to just walk straight over, break down their door, and take them away. "
"You … You don't understand what kind of power you're going against!"
"It's you who doesn't understand, Miss Hiri."
Fangzheng narrowed his eyes again and stared at Hiri.
"I can tell you clearly that no one in this world is my match. Whether it's the Northern Alliance, Nilfgaardian, or the Church of Eternal Fire, I won't bat an eyelid even if they all come together. Besides, compared to being annoyed to death by pretending to be weak, I personally prefer to show off my strength from the start, so that those with ulterior motives will consider their choices carefully. "
Having said that, Fangzheng turned around and continued forward.
"Alright, let's go. Where's the Temple Island? Can you lead the way? "
For Novigrad, at this moment, they were in an unprecedented state of chaos.
The whole city was enveloped in a sudden chill. It was still midsummer, but it was as cold as winter. Many people shut their doors and windows tightly, hiding in their homes and shivering. Even the wealthy merchants and nobles were no different. They huddled tightly under their blankets, shivering uncontrollably. All methods of heating up lost their effect. Whether it was using flint to light a fire or using magic tools to create a flame, none of them worked. It was as if fire had completely disappeared from the world.
Soon, these people learned of what happened in Novigrad Square and quickly locked onto the root cause of all the disaster — — Fangzheng!!
In their opinion, Fangzheng might be a powerful sorcerer. Perhaps that was why he had the courage to come here and provoke the Church of Eternal Fire. But could they tolerate that? Of course not!!
Shortly after, fully-armored soldiers gathered. The Witch Hunters and Temple Guards also picked up their weapons and attacked Fangzheng's group of four.
But then, an unbelievable scene happened.
Hundreds and thousands of arrows that could turn enemies into porcupines flew from all directions. But before they could get close to Fangzheng's group, they completely melted into thin air. There were also some Witch Hunters and Temple Guards who tried to launch sneak attacks on Fang Zheng, but as soon as they rushed out, it was as if they had hit an invisible wall head-on. Not long after, they were turned into a pile of charcoal.
How is that possible?
Ciri, who was beside Fangzheng, was dumbfounded when she saw this scene. She did not know how to react. Of course, she knew that Fangzheng was powerful. Those metal warships were enough to prove his strength. But what Ciri hadn't expected was that Fangzheng himself actually possessed a power that she couldn't even imagine. Ciri could be considered to have seen the most powerful Warlocks in this world, but no matter how she thought about it, she couldn't think of anyone who could reach Fangzheng's level.
In fact, up until now, Ciri didn't know what Fangzheng had done. He just clasped his hands behind his back and walked forward leisurely. He didn't chant any incantations, nor did he make any hand gestures. There weren't any magical undulations, but the soldiers who charged at him burned one after another and turned into pitch-black charcoal.
At this thought, Ciri suddenly felt excited.
If all of this isn't a dream, does that mean that he really has the power to go against the entire Church of Eternal Fire? Or even the entire city?
Is this the value of power?
Ciri, who had always been on the run, had never thought of such a thing. She was used to being hunted, and she was used to running away. Even if she had more power, Ciri only thought that it would be easier for her to escape. She had never thought that there would be another option after obtaining great power.
That was, as Fangzheng said, to fight back!
So what if I provoke you? So what if you come to kill me? What can you do to me? No matter what you do, it's meaningless to me. What can you do?
Ciri stared at Fangzheng, who walked in front leisurely and without any pressure. Ciri clenched her fists.
This feeling … doesn't seem too bad?
(End of this chapter)
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
