Sword of Dawn

Page 207

Cobbler Bloom held up the torch, looking towards the city head due west. On the dark city wall, a little fire was flickering.

The soldier guarding the city gate nervously looked at the situation under the city wall with an oil lamp. Beside him were two other soldiers who were as nervous as himself. Countless flickering flames in the crowd.

These people who came from the villages and towns near Luan City, the neighboring cities, and even the neighboring territories gathered in the field, and the commotion from them was getting louder and louder. Behind this team, more people were walking along the broken The stone road came, and the light of the torch stretched continuously in the wilderness, as if a giant flaming snake was gradually trapping this church city that had stood for hundreds of years.

And in the wilderness, the most eye-catching ones are those standing at the front of the crowd, wearing thick white armor, carrying a giant hammer on their shoulders, and radiating brilliance all over their bodies.

Those are the white knights from Cecil.

What they represent at this moment is not Cecil's armed force, but the new order of the Holy Light.

"Open... open the city gate?" The soldier tremblingly asked the veteran beside him. He touched the white cloth belt on his arm, and his voice was full of fear, "Will they also take us..."

The veteran was also immersed in fear, but he knew that the matter had come to this point and he had no choice. Long after the priests completely closed the gates of the church area, these soldiers who were stranded on the outer city and the city walls were already completely abandoned. After backing up, the soldiers with brains took the initiative to put down their swords and became accomplices in this chaos—or, in other words, allies in this righteous act.

"Open the gates," said the old soldier, "let the Cecilians come in, and the blockade of the city will be over."

The winch covered with iron sheets began to rotate, and the chains drove the bearings to make a creaking sound. The heavy gate of Luan City was finally opened again after being closed for dozens of days. The crowd gathered in the wilderness watched the gradually opened The city gate, and then countless pairs of eyes fell on the front of the team.

The white knights in heavy armor took the lead to step forward. These people covered with steel were like lighthouses in the night, giving people endless courage. The huge team moved and followed the white knights. Luan City.

The soldiers who opened the city gate tremblingly hid in the shadows aside, watching the heavy armored knights leading the crowd silently, watching the huge and chaotic procession passing through the city gate, they saw in this procession what they were like. Almost any kind of occupation I have seen in my life-farmers, blacksmiths, cobblers, stonemasons, both rags in rags and well-dressed merchants, some with only pitchforks and sticks, some People are carrying long swords and spears, some of them are ordinary people, and some are like mercenaries who just walked off the battlefield...

The soldier even had an illusion, he felt as if people from the entire southern border had gathered here.

……

Half an hour before the first rays of the sun rose, a large number of heavy and chaotic footsteps came from the street paved with gravel and a few stone slabs, and the footsteps even made the whole ground tremble slightly, accompanied by Watching these movements, the light of countless torches emerged from all directions, and countless strange but friendly faces appeared in the swaying firelight.

Warriors wearing strange white heavy armor, whose whole body seemed to be casted by light, came out of the crowd. These warriors came to the restless citizens of Luan, passing from under the helmet decorated with wings and engraved with scriptures. Come a deep and friendly voice: "We are the white knights under the command of the Patriarch, and we are here to help the people of the Holy Light."

As described in the news circulating in the city a few days ago - the allies of the Holy Light appeared in the darkness, and the powerful white knight led the people of the Holy Light from all directions to rescue this city in the dark. The fallen holy city.

The two teams quickly merged together, and under the leadership of some guides, this huge team began to move towards the cathedral.

There are dozens of white knights surrounded by the holy light. They only account for a small part of the whole crowd, but they walk in the forefront like sharp arrows. Among these knights, a hazy shadow did not cause any trouble. Anyone's attention approached the leader of the Knights.

Amber's figure emerged from the shadows, and she looked up at the burly white knight: "I didn't expect so many people to gather..."

The burly white knight was none other than Wright. He didn't wear a helmet, and his scarred face was full of resolute expression. He slightly lowered his head and glanced at the petite half-elf: "They come from the entire Luan area and the nearby Carlo In Ercheng, the team gathered in the wilderness for several days-this is your credit, without you, people would not see the truth of the corruption of the Church of the Holy Light, and it would be impossible to gather so consciously and indignantly."

"I'll just accept this compliment," Amber said a little complacently, and then there was a trace of curiosity in her tone, "But I didn't expect you to come in person——as the Patriarch of the Protestant Church, you didn't stay behind ... Lao Zong... the Duke sent you here?"

"I made my own decision," Wright said lightly, and then he paused for two seconds, his tone more serious than usual, "This is our mission."

Amber blinked, listening to Wright's solemn voice continue to sound in the night:

"Cecil took root in the Dark Mountains, which made him always face the threat of the wasteland, and whenever Cecil was attacked by aberrations, the lord would always stand on the line of defense. I learned one thing from him—— A decision by a leader may cost hundreds of thousands of people. Sometimes this decision is necessary, and sometimes the people's sacrifice is voluntary, but the leader can never accept these sacrifices with peace of mind. He must be with those who made sacrifices. Stand together and stand ready to bleed together.

"This is a war of the Holy Light. For the transformation of the Holy Light, for the freedom of belief, unarmed ordinary people are going to challenge the Transcendents who are far stronger than them. This change will inevitably lead to bloodshed. This bloodshed is necessary. But as a Protestant leader, I can't just let them bleed.

"So here I am."

Wright carried the mechanically powered warhammer wrapped around the St. Job's belt, and walked forward with firm steps, while Amber was a little dazed on the spot. After a few seconds, the half-elf shook his head: "That guy There are really some weird people around me..."

Ten minutes before dawn, the crowd gathered on the large fan-shaped square in front of the church district.

This place, which was once used for heresy trials and burning rituals, is now crowded with people, and the smell of flames burning grease pervades the entire square, and more and more people are still pouring in from all directions, but the limited square has long been unable to accommodate more There were too many people, so those who came from further afield could only gather in the nearby streets.

As the crowd grew, and as time went by, louder and louder noises began to sound from everywhere, and some strangers even began to shout angry slogans in the crowd, and some mercenaries wielding swords and high They cursed the cowards in the church loudly, some businessmen brandishing canes angrily denounced the injustice of the Church of Holy Light, and some even stood on several high platforms at the edge of the square, brandishing their fists and denouncing the priests in the cathedral as villains, butchers and eaters. The devil of human flesh—this passionate anger even shocked the people of Luan in the square. It was hard for them to imagine why these allies who came from afar would hold such great anger towards the priests in the cathedral.

This anger even surpassed them.

The terrible movement in the square spread into the church area. Those priests who had shut themselves in the inner city walls for many days and pretended to be deaf and dumb finally couldn’t sit still. They climbed onto the inner city walls and towers in amazement, wanting to To see what was going on outside—and then the surprise turned to horror.

people.

The square is full of people.

It was a crowd that could frighten priests and knights with extraordinary power.

At the same time, Seven Terry was quietly confronting a priest in a black robe with tattoos on his head in front of a key magic circle node in the small church area of ​​the inner city.

Looking at the fellow church members in front of him, Seven Terry sighed: "Back off, Alcott, there is no other way."

However, the discipline monk in black robe just stood motionless in front of the magic circle, and it took him a long time to break the silence: "The Knights and other discipline monks will soon notice the abnormality in the chapel area..."

Seven Terry couldn't help but stepped forward, his tone excited: "Can they resist here for a while, can they resist for a lifetime?!"

The black-robed priest looked into Seven Terry's eyes and said calmly: "...but my mission is to guard the barrier of the chapel area—unless death terminates my mission."

Seeing the calm expression of the priest in front of him, Seven suddenly read the real message from it.

He frowned, and his voice was full of sorrow: "Alcott, I know, in that heresy trial... Although you hid it well, you were also the one whose faith was shaken. Don't insist anymore, I know you As a person, you clearly know what the church has done these years, and you also know that they have intensified in the past year..."

"I am a discipline monk, and maintaining the order of the church is everything to me. This is an oath I made before the Holy Light," the black-robed monk calmly interrupted Seven Terry, "Do you still remember that you were in Holy Light?" Is it the oath you made before the light?"

Responding to the discipline monk was a ten-second silence and a firm sentence: "...Of course I remember, I will never forget it forever."

"That's good," the Discipline Brother breathed a sigh of relief, showing a relaxed look, "Pastor, do what you should do."

Seven Terry was a little at a loss. He walked towards the black-robed priest in front of him, but he seemed to have forgotten what he should do.

"The bell is about to strike."

The black-robed priest's words made him suddenly sober.

He looked at the black-robed priest in front of him in astonishment, and heard him say quietly:

"...I am a Discipline Brother, and I know all the secrets of these churches, and this is my job... Priest, do what you have to do, that flimsy door will not stop the angry crowd, if the bell strikes After the sound, the magic circle is still running, and many people will die."

Seven Terry felt that his blood was gradually congealing, and the cold feeling spread from his heart to his limbs. He heard the first indistinct ringing of a bell in the distance, and heard the last request of a pious man:

"Kill me, save Shengguang."

A warm feeling spread from his fingers, and Seven Terry felt his gradually congealed blood get warm again. He saw that he was holding a dagger in his hand, and the tip of the dagger sank into the monk's chest.

The Discipline monk fell down, and the magic circle node in the chapel area lay quietly on the platform behind him, where the holy runes shone slightly.

Seven Terry rushed to that node, and the black-robed Discipline Cultivator fell obliquely on the ground. Amid the low buzzing of the divine magic circle's stoppage, he heard the bell ringing from afar become more clear and loud , heard the sound of the door of the church district collapsing.

He exhaled, and whispered softly in his last breath:

"Oh God……"

Chapter 0493 The White Knight's Fighting Style

The gates of the church district came crashing down.

No one knows who made the first roar, but everyone knows that the door was pushed open by the power of ordinary people.

Without the blessing of extraordinary power, even the gate leading to the church area is nothing more than that.

"Destroy the church!" "Kill the bishop!" "For those children!!"

At this moment, the furious crowd seemed to have forgotten the horror of the extraordinary, as if they had forgotten the coercion accumulated by the cathedral for hundreds of years, the white knight launched an attack in front of the crowd, free mercenaries and Adventurers followed behind to form a second tide, and after that came farmers and merchants wielding sickles, hoes, sticks and pitchforks, and the huge crowd poured through the gate like a tide of mud , and the limited number of Holy See knights and soldiers guarding the door were submerged by the tide in the first instant.

This is the first time that ordinary people have resisted extraordinary forces. However, this is a world where extraordinary forces are completely superior to ordinary people. The defense line composed of civilians attacking the Holy See knights can only make this action a meaningless sacrifice, so In addition to dozens of white knights, mercenaries and adventurers assembled from all over the place charged at the front.

These people at least have relatively sophisticated equipment, or have a certain amount of extraordinary power. They have been able to compete with the Holy See knights in numbers, but they are still a group of people who have been controlled and oppressed by the church for a long time, and they are also part of the "civilians".

The newspapers and programs broadcast in various places not only angered the people in the fields, but also angered the blood-sucking crowd. They volunteered to be the first strikers to hit the cathedral, and now this striker has passed The first line of defense in the cathedral district, and continue to march towards the cathedral.

Amber mingled with her team among the crowd, and as she crossed the square in the chapel district, her sharp eyes caught the swaying figures on the edge of the square.

Those were the priests in the chapel area—they took off their conspicuous priestly costumes and put on clothes that were the same as those of ordinary people, and tied white cloth strips on their arms. They ran along the square while guiding the crowd Follow the road and faithfully perform their duties.

Amber breathed a sigh of relief—the priests not only remembered to wear white cloth strips as a mark, but also changed their clothes in advance, which is really a wise move.

This wave of anger is destined to sweep across the entire church district in a semi-out of control state. It is almost impossible to restrain the angry crowd with reason, although before the action, the crowd has repeatedly propagated that "those with white cloths tied to their arms are allies." This matter, but when the anger is burning, the gorgeous priest's robe will inevitably be more eye-catching than the cloth strips on the arms.

After just 10 minutes, the crowd crossed the area of ​​the chapel, which can be said to be without resistance, and approached the ring square in front of the cathedral with almost no damage and bloodshed.

The roar of mountains and tsunami and the loud noises caused by various weapons and spells echoed over the city of Luan, and the solemn doors and gorgeous stained glass windows of the cathedral made disturbing creaking sounds amid waves of sound , a priest wearing a gold-rimmed white robe rushed into the large corridor, the holy light around him was very dim, and a scorched scar covered his face - it was the holy light impact hand cannon that broke the shield wounds left behind.

"They're coming! They're coming! Thugs! Thugs are everywhere!" The priest ran and shouted in the corridor, "They also have the Holy Light! Those thugs...those thugs also have the Holy Light in their hands!"

The corridor was full of people running around, and the panicked priests ran back and forth between the glittering and gorgeous doors like headless flies. A discipline monk in black robe stopped the priest who was running wildly in the corridor: " Where are the Holy See knights? Where are the soldiers? Where are the guards outside?!"

"Scattered! The soldiers were scattered by a group of mercenaries who rushed out of nowhere, the knights were defeated by those in white armor, and the rest could not stop them-those thugs were about to storm the cathedral Already!!"

A loud noise came from the circular square, mixed with the loud noise of something collapsing and smashing, the cathedral's glass windows shook amidst the loud noise, and a blood-stained priest ran over from afar: "Father! Priest! The barrier in the square is about to break!!"

Desperate shouts came from all directions: "Where's the magic array? Why didn't the magic array activate?"

"The chapel area has been breached - the magic circle over there has not been activated from the beginning!"

"The bishop... where is the bishop?"

Someone finally remembered the temporary bishop of Luan City, and someone finally remembered the person who should be in charge of the overall situation at this moment. The priest whose face was burned by the holy light grabbed the black robe of the discipline monk and shouted without regard for etiquette: "Francia Where is Bishop Berenger?! Why didn't he show up?!"

"The bishop is in the prayer room...he is communicating with God..."

"There's no time—those thugs are about to storm in!"

"I'll call him!"

Loud bangs came from the square, and all the doors and windows of the cathedral began to shake. The trembling priests and priests gathered in the main hall of this huge building, and the last batch of Holy See knights guarded these spellcasters. In front of him——all eyes were fixed on the gilded white gate in front of them, some were praying in low voices, some were cursing loudly, everyone mustered up their own power of holy light, ready to deal with the gate being knocked down at any time. The moment of breach.

Until those "mobs" attacked the church area, they never thought that they would face such a powerful force. They thought that their power as an extraordinary person and the magic circle of the church area were enough to tear them apart. They wanted to smash all the intruders, but the facts shattered all their hopes: the magic circle in the church area had not been activated from the beginning, and those "mobs"...they also had the Holy Light in their hands.

In this land ruled by the God of Holy Light, there actually exists a Holy Light that is not under the control of the gods! !

A terrified priest heard the movement from outside, and couldn't help saying in a trembling voice: "Those guys who use holy light and war hammer... Where did they come from?!"

"The church has never cultivated that kind of... monsters," a Holy See knight wiped the cold sweat and blood from his forehead, trying to calm down while constantly adjusting the posture of holding the sword, "Their sacred artifacts are powerful, and when they cast spells, As if we were tireless, we wanted to take advantage of the interval between their spellcastings to launch a surprise attack, but half of the people were killed by their continuous impact of holy light... Those are simply monsters!"

"Lord... the Lord will save us..."

The explosions from outside stopped suddenly, and the priests who were almost in despair burst into ecstasy, but the expressions of the experienced Holy See knights and discipline monks suddenly changed: "The protection of the gate has been broken! !"

The light curtain covering the church door finally couldn't bear the continuous damage, and it shattered like a broken white crystal into fragments flying all over the sky. Two white knights like steel giants wielded heavy mechanical power war hammers, using their greatest strength. He smashed the gilt white door with all his strength——as the hammer head came into contact with the door, the repulsion mechanism and the gravity adjustment rune inside the warhammer were instantly activated. There was a terrible crash that reduced the boulder to dust, and the doors of Luan Cathedral were torn apart with a loud crash.

"Activate the shield!"

The white knights took the lead in rushing towards the opened gate, everyone activated the energy shields on their armor, and a holy white light curtain shrouded these warriors... Beside the field priests, they strode through the smoke and dust, sending out their own unique Roaring: "The doctor is here!!"

In the chaotic smoke, more than a dozen strong or weak holy light spells flew from the opposite side, causing ripples on the white knight's energy shield. Wright held a heavy mechanical power hammer in one hand, fearlessly Facing the enemy's attack, he continued to move forward. As the smoke cleared, he saw the situation on the opposite side - seven or eight wounded Holy See knights formed a precarious line of defense, and a thin layer of dust floated on the metal shield and armor. Holy light—the human body without the power supply of magic capacitors and overload modules can only output so much energy in this situation—and behind those knights of the Holy See, there are dozens of cloth robes, looking Vulnerable priests and priests.

This is the last resistance force of Luan Cathedral?

Those weak clergymen and the Holy See knights who guarded them gathered together at the end of the hall. Seeing the white knight team breaking in and the "mob" constantly pouring in, those who still had the courage to express it with loud curses He stated his position: "You untouchables who are possessed by the devil! You are going to hell! You will be burned ten thousand times by your devil master! The God of Holy Light will..."

However, these loud curses could not stop the actions of the White Knights—as elite troops transformed from professional soldiers, the first batch of White Knights who entered the church strictly carried out the tactical actions that had been practiced countless times in the combat regiment— Put up the shield, find a nearby bunker, and at the same time take off the grenade from the waist, open the safety and throw it over, and add a dozen shock hand cannons by the way.

An unreasonable explosion directly overwhelmed all the objections of the priests of Luan. Amid the huge smoke and loud noise from the grenade explosion, only large areas of holy light suddenly lit up and then went out.

Wright carried the warhammer and led the team forward. Amidst the smoke and dust, he saw that there were still a few Luan priests and Holy See knights still active. These people relied on magic weapons for protection, great luck and The comrades around survived, and they saw the white knights approaching. A priest raised his hand almost subconsciously, gathering a scorching light bullet and shooting it at Wright.

Wright did not dodge or dodge, letting the ball of light fly in front of him, and a small translucent figure instantly emerged from the air, this small figure caught the light with shocking agility , and then dissipated into the air while stuffing the light bullet into his mouth and gnawing on it.

This scene that completely violated common sense made the attacking priest exclaim: "...the devil...the devil!! You are all devils!!"

Wright clenched the warhammer in his hand, and walked towards the Priest Luan who had started talking nonsense: "You call all your enemies devils and heretics, but you forget the teachings of the Holy Light, and the power of judgment It should belong to the axiom, but it has become in your hands... Forget it, the megaton hammer!!"

The battle in the church hall ended in a short period of time. When an enemy fell, Wright put his hammer on his shoulders again and looked back at his subordinates: "It is impossible that there are only so few people in the cathedral... …Other priests may be hiding in various rooms and secret passages, looking for them separately, and treating injured civilians and mercenaries in time by the way.”

The white knights led away, and more mercenaries, adventurers, and armed civilians began to enter the cathedral and several ancillary facilities near the church, sweeping away the priests who were hiding room by room. When everything seemed to be going well, Wright couldn't help but frown.

A shadow appeared in the air next to it, and Amber jumped from the shadow to the ground: "That Frank Berenger is not among these priests."

Wright instantly realized where the disobedience in his heart came from, and almost at the same time, he felt an abnormal energy fluctuation coming from the depths of the cathedral.

A white knight who was guarding nearby also noticed the abnormality at the same time - the eyepiece on the white knight armor used to detect abnormal magic fluctuations allowed him to see the collection of dangerous energy: "The Patriarch! There is a situation! Underground"

"I'll go check it out!"

Chapter 0494 Holy Light Monster

In the centuries-old Luan Cathedral, the sound of roars and metal collisions broke the tranquility of the sanctuary. The pungent smell of magical flames burning the air filled every corridor and room. The gathered volunteer mercenaries The peace and common people set off a frenzy on the upper floor of the entire church. Hidden priests and Holy See knights were constantly found from hiding corners and dragged to the square outside. This terrible movement even penetrated the thick The ground spread to the underground palace facility under the church.

Wright led more than a dozen white knights to walk in the deep underground palace of Luan Cathedral. The heavy and rapid sound of iron shoes stepping on the ground echoed in the ancient stone corridor, and the sound of fighting on the ground would faintly float from time to time. , Misty as if in another world.

Amber's figure kept shuttling in the shadows near the white knight team. She caught up with Wright and couldn't help being curious: "Have you been to this place before? Why do you look so familiar..."

"The underground structures of large cathedrals are all similar. There is a rectangular dungeon extending directly below the main hall towards the direction of the Holy Spirit Tower. There are one or two crossroad structures in the middle. There are fixed regulations," Wright said in a deep voice as he walked. , "Be careful, there may be enemies hiding under here..."

"That's what I said... but I didn't see anyone along the way," Amber looked around, and could only see the corridors and stone roads illuminated by magic spar lamps, "but the feeling here is... ...It's kind of weird..."

Wright didn't respond, but silently communicated his sense of the Holy Light in his heart. With a faint light emerging in his eyes, this facility located underground in the church showed a different form in his vision:

He saw countless translucent spirit bodies floating in the long and deep corridor, runes that were difficult for mortals to understand and read were shining on the mottled ancient walls, the stone slabs on the ground were soaked by faint light, and a thin layer of mist It was rising from the cracks in the slate floor, gradually filling the entire corridor.

The other white knights also activated their tactical eyepieces one after another, watching out for any abnormal energy reactions.