Chapter 141 He Hasn’t Died Yet
“Jiejiejie…”
From the center of the raging karmic fire, a robust figure struggled to stand up, emitting a hoarse and sinister laugh.
Several merchants close to him were all engulfed by dark flames that continued to grow stronger. They should have been able to escape, but now they were trapped by the divine miracle of the Golden Bell, struggling in vain and only able to scream as they fell to the ground, awaiting their fate.
The temperature of that flame was too high; the Kamil swords on the rooftops paced anxiously, unable to approach even half a step closer. The hawk-nosed man shouted loudly, conjuring a boulder as big as a head, which whistled through the air and crashed into the flames, causing the strong man’s body to stagger, but he quickly regained his footing.
He waved his hand, and the flames twisted towards the hawk-nosed man, barely dodged by the latter, who widened his eyes in shock.
At this moment, I was still a short distance away from their location.
Smoke began to rise from the woman’s body. She clenched her teeth, trembling as she hugged the child tightly in her arms, closing her eyes as if accepting her fate.
It’s too late… It’s too late…
I couldn’t use long-range lethal techniques to freeze or knock back the strong man, as that would certainly affect those around us. But ice spears… would only make the flames burn even more fiercely.
Whoosh—
The wind roared past my ears, my speed reaching its peak, my petite figure almost invisible to the naked eye. Even so, I couldn’t keep up with the spread of the fire. Watching the helpless woman about to be consumed by the karmic fire behind her, suddenly, a graceful figure appeared within my sight.
After a brief moment of confusion, I realized it was Teresa.
She ignored the scorching heat that seemed capable of melting anything, quickly picking up the kneeling woman, her nun’s habit fluttering violently in the heat, and immediately black smoke rose.
“Hildegard!”
I heard Teresa shout, my eyes widening in surprise.
In the next moment, she turned around and threw the woman holding the child toward me.
Not considering Teresa was still under the effect of the Golden Bell, the woman she threw was much taller and stronger than Teresa, yet she could still perform such a throw… how powerful was her physical strength!
My heart slightly admired, yet I could not stop moving. My feet sharply turned, leaping up to catch the screaming woman in mid-air, then gently landing on the ground, pushing her behind me without looking.
I urgently called out, “Sister Teresa!”
The elegant figure in the nun’s habit flickered in the flames, indistinguishable in the chaos.
I became anxious.
“Aaah—!”
Gale winds danced at my ears, the violent currents bombarding my body, pulling my hair straight and making my skirt rustle with a loud noise.
My eyes glowed blue.
I felt like I had never moved so fast. The figure rushing forward like a bolt of lightning seemed unstoppable, even the flames seemed to part before me, crashing powerfully towards the strong man’s massive body.
Boom—!
“Mmm!” A muffled groan.
The strong man, surrounded by blazing flames, was lifted into the air, his limbs twisting and contorting constantly as if boneless, flailing like flags, finally crashing into a pile of debris by the alley, motionless.
The Golden Bell above my head had not dissipated, and I felt a series of pressure on my body—but compared to when the old man in the robe did it, this was nothing, far from enough to restrict my movements.
“Woah, impressive.”
Teresa’s characteristic gentle voice sounded. I sighed deeply, rubbing my sore shoulder, turning to look at her.
“Sister, are you okay?”
“I’m fine.” She gave me a slight smile, “This sinning fire… isn’t so remarkable after all.”
But she didn’t seem as relaxed as she claimed.
Her veil had fallen to the ground and was burning. Her nun’s habit was full of tattered holes, the white sleeves charred black, sparks floating, her disheveled white hair curling messily. After meeting my gaze, Teresa immediately put her hands behind her back.
Yet, I could still see large and small wounds on her fair arms.
The ugly blister.
I knew it must hurt.
“Sister, you’re injured…”
“It’s just a minor wound.” Seeing the concern in my eyes, Teresa shook her head with a smile. “It’s nothing to worry about.”
She looked quite spirited… She had clearly been completely engulfed by the purifying fire just moments ago. Did she use some powerful miracle?
In any case, it’s good that no one was seriously hurt.
After I struck down the muscular man, the temperature around us dropped significantly, but the flames continued to burn. The bodies of those who had been set on fire at the beginning were already reduced to charcoal and lay scattered at our feet.
The Cenari Swords leaped from the rooftops, quickly driving the remaining merchants to one side of the road.
“Be careful, they might all be heretics.”
The woman referred to as the deputy captain warned them. Upon hearing this, the merchants immediately became terrified. Their faces turned pale, their bodies trembled uncontrollably, and they mumbled incoherently.
“What… what heretics…”
“What’s going on… What’s happening…”
“We are just merchants trying to make a living. We are not heretics… We’ve never even heard of them…”
I saw the man in the top hat among them.
When the flames erupted, he tried to flee by rolling and crawling, but he was restrained early on by the Cenari Swords. Now, standing with the merchants, he looked dazed, muttering something unintelligible, and his hat was nowhere to be seen.
“Save lives first, then take them out. Swift and clean.” The deputy captain, with her slender waist swaying like a snake, walked to my side and clapped her hands. “Both of you are admirable figures.”
Then she turned her gaze to Teresa. “What does the Church plan to do with these people?”
Before Teresa could answer, I gently shook my head.
“We’ll discuss this later.” I directed my gaze towards where the muscular man had fallen. “It’s not over yet.”
The deputy captain looked surprised. “So you mean…”
“He’s not dead yet.”
As if to confirm my words, crimson flames flared up again from the ruins in the distance, and faintly, we could hear the muscular man’s furious roar, like that of a wild beast.
“Even so… he still won’t die…” Teresa murmured.
I tilted my head and thought for a moment before asking, “Is anyone living here?”
The sudden question left everyone confused. The deputy captain looked at me with suspicion. “…No. This place was originally a renovation area, and the residents of the nearby streets moved away six months ago. If not, these heretics wouldn’t have chosen this place for their transactions. Those two children should have just happened to be playing here…”
“That’s good.” I nodded slightly at her.
There was no need to listen to anything else.
“Miss Hildegard, what do you intend to do?”
What do I intend to do?
Of course…
I took a step toward the direction of the flames.
“Let me handle this.”
Boom—
A loud explosion echoed as the muscular man, fully restored, stood up once more. Blood oozed from his nose and mouth, and fragments of internal organs remained stuck to his chest. His face was deathly pale, but he ignored all of it, pulling out the red-hot sword from his waist and slashing himself across the chest, arms, and even his face.
“Little girl… little girl!”
His body rapidly turned crimson as the sin-laden flames consumed him. The sword in his hand melted from the heat, turning into molten red liquid.
“Hahaha—!”
He laughed crazily, as if driven mad, throwing the sword handle at me and charging forward.
I didn’t give him a chance to finish his threats. My petite body glowed with dazzling blue light, and a fierce Frost Mist surged forth, instantly cooling the air scorched by the flames. Raising my small hand above my head… I swung it down abruptly.
Crack.
Bam-bam-bam-bam-bam—!!!
Countless thick and sharp Ice Spears submerged everything within sight.
