Chapter 124 Demonic Sacrifice 5

Judge Lin gave the order, and the soldiers immediately stepped forward to clean the faces of the three "warlocks" thoroughly.

"Not him."

After getting a clear look at the warlocks' faces again, Judge Lin frowned, his expression filled with disappointment.

None of them were Xia Qi.

It had been a month since Xia Qi last exited the dungeon. According to their calculations, he should have arrived in this dungeon by now, so why hadn't they seen him yet?

Would he have to wait another month?

Judge Lin’s thoughts turned grim as his gaze swept over the warlocks and witches on the platform. Suddenly, something caught his attention.

Judge Lin turned sharply, his voice stern as he asked, "Why are there so few warlocks and witches today?"

"M-my lord!" The deputy judge, looking like a scared mouse, shuffled forward nervously, not daring to lift his head as he answered softly, "Last night, there was a prison break at the Southern Dobei Prison..."

"What?!" Judge Lin shouted in shock, glaring at the deputy judge. "You fools! He must have escaped!"

"Ah? Sir, I don’t understand what you mean..." The deputy judge, who had never seen Judge Lin so furious, stumbled backward, his fat body wobbling precariously.

"Please calm down, Your Excellency!" Another deputy judge, tall and thin like a stick, stepped forward, rubbing his hands together as he forced a dry laugh. "While there was a breakout at Dobei Prison, our reinforcements from the other three prisons managed to recapture several of them..."

"Did you catch any of the warlocks?" Judge Lin interrupted coldly.

There were a total of 35 warlocks and witches present. Each prison provided one warlock and nine witches, so the extra five were all witches.

"...N-no, my lord." The deputy judge took out a handkerchief and wiped the sweat from his brow.

The warlock from Dobei Prison had definitely escaped.

Judge Lin's face darkened, his expression turning grim as veins throbbed visibly on his forehead.

He had poured immense effort and resources into manipulating the Central Space’s rules. His plan was nearing its final stage.

Everything was set, except for one last move. He only needed to eliminate Xia Qi to reach the endgame.

Thus, he had personally come to this dungeon, leading a group of overpowered players, laying a trap for Xia Qi in advance.

And yet, at the last moment, Xia Qi had escaped again.

All because of these useless NPCs!

"Idiots!!!" Judge Lin cursed, flicking his sleeves heavily at everyone. "Execute all the warlocks and witches immediately!"

With a dark and gloomy expression, Judge Lin pointed at the three warlocks who looked similar to Xia Qi. "Start with them!"

"Ah!" The "warlock" on the far left let out a scream, wetting himself in terror.

Watching Judge Lin’s actions from below, Xia Qi pulled his hood lower, covering his face even more.

This Lin guy has truly lost his mind, taking his anger out on innocent players.

Xia Qi strongly suspected that if he were caught by Judge Lin, he would be torn to pieces.

"Prepare for the execution!"

After the executioner shouted, the "warlock" on the far left was pushed by the soldiers towards the guillotine. As they reached it, the soldiers pressed his head into the slot. The "warlock" immediately cried out, "I'm not a warlock! Please, spare me!"

Hearing the "warlock's" desperate plea, the younger sister shuddered and muttered, "Oh, they're so pitiful."

Xia Qi furrowed his brow, feeling a deep unease.

Watching innocent players heading towards death, he couldn't help but feel a sense of sorrow for those who had fallen.

He couldn't just stand by and watch so many people die. Gritting his teeth, Xia Qi decided that since Judge Lin kept causing him trouble, he would return the favor by causing some trouble for Judge Lin.

Xia Qi raised his head and quickly counted the bastions near the square.

There were ten bastions surrounding the square. From the gaps in the bastions, he could see about twenty archers.

Including the dozens of soldiers on the ground, Judge Lin could mobilize around thirty people.

Xia Qi then shifted his gaze to the outer circle of the square, searching for a potential breakthrough point.

On a wide road outside the circle of commoners, there were carts carrying hay, stalls selling fabrics, and stands with pottery. Amidst these dazzling stalls, Xia Qi spotted a nearby market.

Markets always had plenty of flammable materials.

Xia Qi's eyes lit up.

If they caused chaos in the market, it could create a significant impact on the execution ground in the square.

Unfortunately, he had no system items at the moment. If he had something like a bomb or a fireball, he could set the market ablaze and create chaos at the execution site...

As Xia Qi was analyzing the situation, a sudden gust of wind swept in from behind him. If he hadn't already been holding onto the sculpture, the wind would have almost knocked him off.

"Whoosh—"

"Wow! What a powerful wind!"

The old man let out a startled cry. His bony body swayed, and he was about to fall off the platform of the sculpture. Xia Qi reacted quickly, reaching out to grab the old man's back and pulling him back to safety.

At the same time, Sister Hong also scooped up the trembling younger sister.

"Thank you, Xia," the old man said after being steadied by Xia Qi. He clung tightly to the claws of the sculpture, his headband blown away, and complained loudly, "What kind of cursed wind is this?"

The trees around the square were swaying violently, and a few of them even tilted over.

While the trees swayed wildly, the crowd was thrown into disarray. Some people even bumped into each other or fell together. In an instant, screams and curses erupted from below.

Moments later, a crowd crush began to occur in the square. Several groups started fighting and shoving each other. A few commoners were knocked into the platform, almost toppling the female witch who was waiting for execution.

"What are you all standing around for? Get moving and restore order!" Judge Lin suddenly stood up and shouted at the soldiers who were still picking up their lost hats.

After being scolded, the soldiers abandoned their hats and quickly moved to restore order among the crowd.

The strong wind continued to howl, kicking up dust from the ground. Xia Qi squinted his eyes and looked at the chaotic crowd below, thinking this might be a good opportunity.

His luck couldn't have been better. Just as he was about to stir things up for Judge Lin, the perfect opportunity arrived.

"I'm going to the market," Xia Qi said to the other three, and then jumped down from the sculpture.

"How can I miss out on the fun? I'm coming with you!" Sister Hong, understanding what he intended to do, also jumped down from the sculpture.

Since the younger sister and the old man weren't strong in combat, they stayed on the sculpture to avoid slowing Xia Qi and Sister Hong down.

After landing on the ground, Xia Qi and Sister Hong brushed past the civilians in their way and ran towards the market. The crowd was so chaotic that the two had to exert considerable effort to make their way through.

Just as they were about to rush out of the plaza, an even more violent gust of wind tore through the area.

Sand and dust stung Xia Qi's eyes, blinding him instantly, and he was accidentally knocked against the wall by a civilian.

Following that, an angry roar exploded above his head, its momentum enough to shake the heavens and earth.

"Roar—"

The sound, like thunder and wind, echoed endlessly. In an instant, Xia Qi felt his ears go numb, as if he could no longer hear anything.

Everyone went deaf, and for a moment, no one could even scream.

Sand and gravel battered his face and body. Xia Qi braced himself against the wall with one hand and covered his eyes with the other, barely opening them to try and make out the surroundings.

The sky had changed color, with the eastern sky covered in ink. A massive black shadow appeared overhead, like a mountain ready to collapse on them.

"W-What is this..."

Xia Qi held his breath, having never seen something so enormous since entering the Sinful Game.

Could this be some kind of prehistoric monster?

"Demon, a demon is coming!" A civilian who hadn't gotten sand in their eyes shouted, causing the rest of the crowd to gasp in fear.

"Roar—"

The terrifying roar echoed again from above, shaking Xia Qi to his core, nearly causing his legs to give out. The roar left a painful ringing in his ears, and his heart raced as blood surged to his head, causing a head-splitting pain.

The horrifying roar had come from this gigantic creature.

"Run!!!" A voice screamed, and the civilians, snapping out of their daze, bolted toward the edges of the plaza.

Xia Qi felt everyone around him running and pressed himself against the wall to avoid being knocked over.

"Xia, are you alright?" Sister Hong, having recovered her vision first, pulled Xia Qi into a corner, where they hid.

Once he felt safe, Xia Qi blinked rapidly, forcing his tears to wash the sand out of his eyes.

After clearing his vision completely, he looked up just in time to see the black shadow in the sky plummet downward with incredible speed, heading straight for the plaza.

"Boom!"

The gigantic creature landed on the plaza, instantly creating a massive crater. The remaining soldiers panicked, dropping their weapons and armor as they fled, leaving Judge Lin behind.

Xia Qi's eyes widened in shock as he stared at the enormous creature in the distance.

The dragon had a body resembling a tree bee, covered from head to toe in sharp black scales. It had bat-like wings on its back, with three large pairs of wings.

Since Xia Qi was positioned behind the dragon, he could clearly see its long, winding tail, the tip of which glistened with cold, menacing barbs and hooks.

It appeared to be a Norwegian Ridgeback. Of course, in this dungeon, more accurately, it should be considered a demon dragon.

In the chaotic center of the plaza, Judge Lin, standing on the platform, gaped in horror at the dragon.

"Roar—"

The dragon let out another terrifying roar, and Judge Lin was swept off the platform by the gust of wind, falling to the ground.

"Thud, thud, thud."

Just as Xia Qi thought the demon dragon would charge at Judge Lin, but instead, the demon dragon let out a low growl. It shifted its massive claws and twisted its enormous head, its gaze fixed urgently on the guillotine.

The executioners and soldiers at the guillotine had long since fled, leaving only two warlocks standing and one whose head was still in the guillotine's slot.

The two warlocks screamed in terror as the demon dragon shifted its focus, their eyes rolling back as they fainted from fear.

"What's going on?! Is anyone going to help me?!" The warlock with his head in the slot suddenly shouted, struggling to turn his head around.

As soon as he lifted his head, he found himself staring into the face of a black dragon.

The black dragon towered like a small skyscraper. Its bright red eyes, wide and unblinking, stared at him as if searching for something.

The warlock froze, his mouth agape.

"Roar—"

The demon dragon blinked again, and upon seeing the warlock's face clearly, it suddenly opened its mouth and let out a dissatisfied roar.

"Oh my god..."

Feeling the hot breath on his face, the warlock finally realized what monstrous creature was in front of him.

This was the legendary demon dragon, known for devouring people without leaving a bone.

Thinking this, he let out a tragic scream and, with his head drooping, fell back onto the guillotine's slot.

From his defeated posture, it seemed he had chosen between being devoured by the demon dragon or facing the blade.