Inside a gunpowder store, the meaning of those two words required no explanation. Abandoning all pretense of formation, the four sprinted outward along the narrow corridor at full speed.
Fortunately, even after they burst out of the stairway and reached the surface, the anticipated explosion did not occur.
Yet the armory outside the warehouse had completely lost its former tranquility. The oil lamps hung outside several buildings were all lit, patrolling soldiers had wheeled out large lanterns fitted with condensing reflectors, and the sounds of footsteps and shouting echoed continuously from the distance, as if a large detachment of soldiers was mustering.
Xialuote slowed her pace, doubts blooming in her mind.
Their squad had only just emerged from underground after infiltrating the armory, without making contact with any guards. Who had caused this commotion?
Had those traitors of the True Creator already been discovered, prompting them to detonate the gunpowder ahead of schedule?
Duonowan also looked toward the direction of the disturbance. In just a few seconds, he made his decision:
"First find the officers here and have them flood the gunpowder store with water to neutralize the risk of fire and explosion."
An armory housing ammunition and gunpowder was certain to have water reserves for firefighting. Though flooding the stores would ruin the gunpowder, it was far better than an explosion... Xialuote nodded in agreement.
Just as they prepared to move, a frantic clatter of boots came from behind the weapon-storage building. Two squads of soldiers converged from different directions, quickly fanning out the moment they spotted Xialuote's group and encircling them.
These soldiers uniformly wore black tricorn hats, gold-braided blue coats, white trousers, and black leather boots. The flintlock muskets in their hands were already raised, aimed at the four from multiple angles.
"Drop your weapons and stand where you are!" shouted the sergeant leading them, his right hand gripping the hilt of the sword at his hip.
This is trouble... Xialuote instinctively tightened her grip on her dagger, though she did not draw it.
Having witnessed Aidian killed by the Gusitafu family's footmen with muskets, she knew Beyonders were not immune to bullets. Before them stood more than a dozen well-trained soldiers; if they opened fire simultaneously, someone in the squad would inevitably be wounded or killed.
Duonowan clearly had the same realization. He gestured for the other three to stay put, took half a step forward alone, and reached inside his coat toward his Sun Holy Emblem.
"We are from Saint Weiyefu Church—"
Before he could finish, the persistent unease lingering in Xialuote's heart surged abruptly to a peak.
She whipped her head toward Xier, whose spirituality was stronger and who possessed divination abilities. The Clown's face had drained of color, and he was already lunging toward Aidemeng.
Without time to think, Xialuote also bolted toward the burly Light Suppliant.
Duonowan hesitated for only a fraction of a second before grasping the situation. Abandoning any attempt to explain to the soldiers holding them at gunpoint, he dashed toward his teammates while chanting in the Hermes language at extreme speed:
"Sun."
A beam of intense sunlight pierced the night, falling upon 2-046 in Aidemeng's hands. The latter seized the edge of the black cloth and yanked it down with all his might, exposing the silver-white kite shield underneath, half the height of a man and engraved with a two-headed giant on its surface.
A faint golden glow rose from the shield's face, far softer than the noon sunlight Duonowan had summoned, resembling the first glimmer of dawn piercing the dark before daybreak. At the same time, as Aidemeng raised the Sealed Artifact toward the gunpowder store, Xialuote, Duonowan, and Xier all placed their hands on the shield's rim. An astonishing weight fell upon their shoulders, backs, and arms, forcing their knees downward in an involuntary sag.
The next instant, flames erupted beside them.
Xialuote's vision was instantly overtaken by an expanding burst of orange-red, and only then did a roar capable of tearing eardrums reach her ears.
The ground quaked violently. A scorching shockwave swept across the terrain, laden with stones, shattered wood, and metal fragments. The soldiers and their sergeant, who had just encircled the four at gunpoint, had no chance to react before being thoroughly swallowed by fire and billowing dust.
When the shockwave from the detonation reached the vicinity of the shield, an invisible wall seemed to materialize in the air. High-speed flying stones abruptly lost their momentum and tumbled down, while the surging flames were forced apart, rushing past both sides of the four companions.
Yet this wall could not block the tremors transmitting through the ground. Xialuote's legs went completely numb, her balance nearly gave out, and the shield pressing down upon her arms grew heavier by the second.
Standing at the very front, Aidemeng braced his massive frame against the back of the shield, while the other three crowded into the narrow sanctuary behind it, sharing the load together to prevent the Sealed Artifact from toppling.
Moments later, the roaring gradually subsided, and the flames began to recede.
Xialuote's ears still buzzed, and her nostrils were filled with the acrid stench of sulfur and smoke. Peering past the edge of the shield toward the gunpowder warehouse, she saw that the building had vanished entirely. In its place remained only a massive crater opening straight into the underground, the surrounding earth completely overturned, with vast swathes of dark red matter mingled amid the shattered stone and splintered wood.
It was the blood and severed limbs of the soldiers who had encircled them moments ago.
Xialuote stared numbly at the sight, the tangled thoughts in her mind gradually cohering into a clear realization.
The armory's gunpowder would not detonate without reason. The squad had walked into a trap, and this was very likely Madam N's doing... She had lured a squad of Purifiers here, then detonated the armory to blow them up along with the guards, manufacturing a sensational incident to prove that the Aurora Order had the power to wreak havoc across the city and kill the deity's faithful and official Beyonders...
Xialuote glanced at the three teammates crouched behind the shield. Seeing the solemn expressions as each scanned their surroundings, she realized at once that the explosion was not the end; the cultists lurking within the armory would almost certainly follow up with further attacks. Reining in her thoughts, she whispered:
"Let's get out of here first."
The four quickly moved away from the smoking crater. Aidemeng wrapped the Shield of the Guardian in the black cloth once more, causing the dawn glow on the shield to fade and rapidly easing the crushing weight that had required all of them to bear it together. Duonowan raised his hand to conjure golden flames burning with the brilliance of noon, hurling them into the swirling smoke to illuminate areas where enemies might lurk. Xier drew several stiff, sharp-edged cards from beneath his vest, holding them between his fingers as his eyes swept across the illuminated zones.
Xialuote also drew the Dagger of Verdict, a surge of confidence brought by the Sealed Artifact welling within her.
Farther off, the panicked shouts of soldiers and the orders of officers echoed, but the thick smoke and chaos thrown up by the explosion separated the two sides for the moment, leaving the four isolated.
Suddenly, several orange-red sparks flared within the smoke. Birds formed entirely of condensed red flames broke through the haze, beating their wings as they scattered and swooped toward the four from different directions.
A Beyonder attack!
Xier, who had been observing with narrowed eyes, snapped his wrist. Several palm-sized stiff cards shot forth, slicing toward the lead firebirds. Yet the moment the cards touched the flames, the extreme heat ignited them, rapidly reducing them to drifting ash.
Seeing this, Duonowan stepped forward and pointed upward.
"Sun!"
A thick pillar of golden holy light descended from above the smoke, landing precisely before the group. Most of the firebirds shattered into flying sparks in midair, while the remaining two lost their direction and crashed obliquely toward the ground.
*Boom! Boom!*—
The moment they hit the ground, the flames expanded violently, two consecutive explosions tossing up shattered stone and dirt.
Xialuote shielded her face with her arm and retreated several paces before evading the scorching blast of air.
Before she could steady herself, a silhouette stepped slowly out from the smoke stained red by fire.
It was a tall man wearing an open-collared shirt. His facial features were unexpectedly regular, even handsome, though a hairless head marred that aesthetic appeal. In each hand he loosely held a ball of incandescent flame, like a walking candelabrum.
Xialuote felt an undisguised malice radiating from him.
Was he the one who detonated the gunpowder store? With his ability to manipulate flame and unleash firebirds, igniting the gunpowder would require no physical proximity to the barrels. Could he be Madam N's accomplice?
As she pondered, the bald man took several steps closer. He glanced at the shield wrapped in black cloth and the vigilant Purifier squad, a mocking smile appearing on his face.
"Is that what that woman had in mind? Tricking a bunch of official Beyonders into coming here to die?"
Xialuote was struck speechless, a twinge of guilt rising in her chest over having indeed been deceived by Madam N. The gazes of the other three briefly drifted toward her as well, clearly recalling the origin of the intelligence.
"Careful!" Duonowan warned loudly at once. "He's trying to sow discord!"
"Tch."
The bald man shook his head in regret. Without making any other gesture, more firebirds began taking shape above his head.
At this, the Clown, Xier, snapped the rest of his cards outward, sending them flying toward the bald man at varying speeds to force him on the defensive.
Xialuote kicked off the ground, charging forward under cover of the cards while pulling a holy water bottle from her coat pocket and hurling it forcefully at the enemy.
The bald man did not dodge. With a wave of his right hand, the incandescent flames in his palm converged and flew toward her.
Not good!
Xialuote dove to the side by instinct. The fireball swallowed the holy water bottle in an instant, streaking past where she had stood and detonating prematurely before striking the ground.
*Boom!*
A scorching blast struck her from behind and to the side. Xialuote felt her body lift, tossed through the air before tumbling across the ground for several rotations. Her chest felt constricted, and a sharp ache flared across her shoulders, thighs, and back; she nearly lost her grip on the Dagger of Verdict.
Had her body not felt suddenly lighter at the moment of the blast, as if blessed by some protective power, that explosion would likely have severely wounded her.
"Sun!"
Almost simultaneously, holy light summoned once more by Duonowan crashed down from above, fully engulfing the bald man.
Yet a layer of crimson fire surged from the man's shoulders and back, coalescing into a flaming cloak that enveloped most of his body. When the scorching, purifying sunlight struck it, the cloak merely shuddered violently without causing direct injury to his flesh.
Xier raised his hand again, sending more cards flying from his fingertips.
The bald man wore a contemptuous sneer, disregarding the paper darts that ignited one after another in midair as they drew near, scattering into flying motes of flame. His gaze fixed solely on the only genuine threat—the Sun Priest, Duonowan.
Yet while the Clown appeared to merely repeat his card throws, his left shoulder drew slightly back, and his other hand quietly dropped below his vest.
He has another trick ready... Noticing this, Xialuote hesitated no longer. Scrambling up from the ground, she gripped the Dagger of Verdict, locked her eyes onto the bald man, and proclaimed loudly:
"Multiple counts of murder!"
The instant the words left her mouth, she clearly felt the response from the Sealed Artifact.
Conviction established!
The smile froze on the bald man's face. His body seemed to lose all control in an instant; the remaining flames in his left palm and the newly formed firebirds above his head vanished at once.
In that brief window, Xier's lowered hand whipped a sawed-off musket from beneath his vest, leveled it at the bald man, and pulled the trigger.
Chapter 65