The terrified citizens turned back in horror, witnessing the most frightening scene of their lives.

Its form was indescribable, a pale face hidden beneath a black cloak burning with flames. Two sharp fangs pressed against its lower lip, and its crimson lips seemed to drip with blood.

It hovered silently in the air, carrying enormous white bone wings on its back. In its right hand, it held a long scythe made of white bone, from some unknown beast. The bone was so white it was terrifying; even a single glance could make one's soul flee in terror.

"Ignorant humans, who dares to call upon my master?"

On the execution platform, Lidia stared intently at the "demon" wrapped in ghostly blue fire amidst the clouds and mist, her tea-green eyes blazing with fervent light.

"Are... are you... here to take me?" Her throat was sore and parched, having not had water for three whole days. She could only produce a hoarse, unpleasant sound.

Perhaps her voice was too weak, for the demon didn't seem to hear.

Lidia gazed at It longingly, her torn lips oozing a salty liquid which she swallowed thirstily, moistening her dry throat.

"Are... are you the Dark God?"

The demon finally cast a merciful glance at her—only in her eyes was it merciful; everyone else was terrified beyond measure.

"I am called Ferryman, messenger of the gods." The tall divine messenger lowered his gaze, his pupils as red as raging fire, casting down the look she most yearned for. "My divine master is the great God of Death and Time, the Dark God Kovikhross, who holds dominion over human souls and the six realms of reincarnation."

Luo Wei thought it over and decided it was best to cosplay as a minor death god messenger. If a powerful death god were to personally intervene just to save a death row prisoner, it would be too demeaning for such a deity.

"God of Death and Time..." Lidia's face showed an expression of awe as she whispered with surging emotions, "Dark God, the Dark God really heard my prayers..."

"Great Messenger!" She suddenly raised her head, even though the back of her skull hit the iron pillar so hard she could barely open her eyes. Through tear-blurred vision, she cried out, "Great Messenger, I am a follower of your divine master. Please, take me away, take my soul!"

"I am willing to sacrifice my soul to darkness, to offer it to the great God of Death and Time, to serve His evil for eternity!"

The demonic messenger swung Its scythe, as if to reap her soul. Its crimson lips parted slightly, revealing a mouthful of stark white fangs.

"Then, as you wish."

Lidia closed her eyes in bliss, never having felt so relaxed in her brief life.

"Everyone, don't run! There's no need to be afraid, there's no dark god here!"

"Damn you, you charlatan!"

The bishop of the temple appeared at the foot of the execution platform, gripping his magic wand, his brown eyes glaring hatefully at the black-clad figure in the sky.

"The holy vial isn't glowing, there's no demon here. You despicable rat, how dare you ruin our sacred demon-expelling ritual!"

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"What? No demon?" Those who heard the bishop's voice stopped in their tracks, looking back in shock.

"That's right, he's just a contemptible scoundrel, not some messenger of a dark god. He's merely using magic to disguise himself," the bishop raised the wand he had hurriedly retrieved from the temple. "With just one spell, I can reveal his true form!"

The panicked crowd halted their escape, looking questioningly towards the figure above the execution platform. On closer inspection, It didn't seem that terrifying. The smoke and flames looked scary, but they hadn't actually harmed anyone.

The bishop sneered at the black-clad figure and waved his wand: "You damned rat, show your true form! Nulano Revealing Spell!"

The bishop of Siria was a mid-level mage, and this spell was beyond Luo Wei's ability to resist. So, she didn't resist at all.

The magic stone on the wand emitted a dazzling white light, shooting straight at her.

"What wings, what white mist, what red eyes and fangs—it's all an illusion. You insignificant insect, how dare you deceive a noble clergyman," the bishop laughed raucously, throwing his head back. "Look, look at the true face of this damned rat!"

"My lord, my lord!" A monk tugged tremblingly at his robe, his legs shaking, a foul-smelling liquid trickling down between them. "My lord, please look! It really is a demon!"

"What?!"

The bishop looked up at the sky in disbelief. The eerie figure still floated in the thick white mist. The ghostly blue flames on Its body gradually turned red, Its crimson eyes becoming even more terrifying. Those sharp fangs could easily pierce his throat and drain his blood in an instant.

Its bone-white wings flapped faster, with inch-long, pure black and sharp feathers growing between the bones, exuding an evil aura from every part.

"It's angry, the demon is angry! Run!"

The monk fled, crying out in terror, his voice no different from the commoners'.

"The demon is enraged, the flames on Its body have turned red! It's going to kill us!"

"Run, run for your lives—"

Amidst the chaos in the square, only the bishop stood rooted to the spot, muttering "Impossible, how can this be?" over and over.

"Pitiful mortal, your stupidity truly pains me." The demon flapped Its wings, Its dark red eyes looking down contemptuously as It swung Its bone scythe downward.

"Ah!" Fear finally overtook him, and the bishop couldn't help but scream, turning to run towards the temple. The holy vial, he still had the holy vial! The holy water inside could exorcise demons!

Seeing him finally scared off, Luo Wei quickly shook off all the dry ice pieces under her skirt, raising the carbon dioxide concentration even higher

The phosphorus fire on her body had been burning for too long; the tung oil cloth was about to melt. She had to extinguish it before going down to rescue people, otherwise it might ignite the fuel on Lidia's body.

The white mist was so thick that human forms were indiscernible. Luo Wei used the smoke as cover to descend to the ground, quickly untying the ropes binding Lidia and rescuing her.

Due to the high concentration of carbon dioxide, Lidia was somewhat oxygen-deprived and fell into Luo Wei's arms in a daze, grasping her sleeve like a lifeline.

"Are... are you here to take me away?"

Luo Wei was momentarily stunned, then held her body tightly. "Yes."

Time was pressing, and she was about to leave with Lidia in her arms when suddenly a hand reached out from beside her.

It was the poor farmer's wife, who had somehow freed one of her hands and now firmly grasped Luo Wei's arm as she was about to leave.

"You want to come with me too?" Luo Wei felt a pang of sympathy.

Before the demon-expelling ritual began, she had been hiding in the crowd using an invisibility spell, piecing together this woman's tragic story from the snippets of conversation around her.

Her child had fallen ill and was on the brink of death. With no other recourse, she could only pray to the gods.

To ensure her prayers were heard, she killed the only rooster in her yard as an offering to the divine. However, this act was witnessed by a neighbor with whom she often quarreled, who then reported her to the temple.

After her sacrifice, her child miraculously recovered, but another child in the village fell ill.

The temple believed she had used evil magic to offer the other child's health to a dark god. They drowned her child and arrested her.

TBC