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At that moment, fierce gunfire erupted at the entrance of the village. The Delta Force operatives stationed there had begun exchanging fire with the pursuing tribal militants. But Ruffman heard a sudden rush of footsteps coming from behind the house—distinctly the sound of military boots, not the bare feet of Afghan tribal fighters, who lacked such equipment.
Ruffman found it odd, thinking the Delta Force soldiers from the front might be retreating. He stepped outside, looked up, and saw dozens of men dressed in traditional Afghan robes, but wielding all sorts of advanced weapons. Strangely, they all had East Asian faces. The moment they spotted Ruffman, they aimed their guns at him. In their midst stood a strikingly beautiful Chinese girl, carrying a personal thermobaric launcher on her back, staring coldly at him.
Ruffman narrowed his bull-like eyes and said, "Oh! You guys—are you from China's special forces!?"
Before he finished speaking, the beautiful girl’s right hand flicked, and—whoosh—a cold flash shot toward Ruffman’s face, piercing through his protective flame shield. Feeling the gust, Ruffman rolled to the ground and waved his hands, conjuring a burst of dazzling fire to neutralize the attack and dodge the deadly strike. He scrambled up, staring at the girl in shock, "You—who are you? Are you one of Red Star Division’s paranormals!?"
That beautiful Chinese girl was Fiona Tang. She and her fellow Dragonforce Battalion operatives had been chasing Blackeye and the Delta Force team, knowing they were defending the village entrance. As the tribal militants closed in, Fiona and her squad circled around to block off the back of the village, preventing any enemies from escaping.
When they entered the village, they found it engulfed in flames. Everywhere were collapsed walls and charred corpses—villagers, including children, women, and the elderly. Some survivors had run outside, encountering the group of terrified women carrying the body of a dead pregnant woman. Luckily, one of the operatives spoke Arabic, and after a brief conversation, the Afghan women described the culprit as a demon who could control fire.
Fiona and the Dragonforce Battalion searched the mud-brick houses for Ruffman and eventually confronted him here. After his narrow escape from Fiona’s ambush, she realized Ruffman’s fire manipulation was formidable and not easy to deal with. It was her first time facing such a powerful foe, but Fiona was determined to take down this brute with everything she had.
Suppressing the burning anger in her chest, Fiona snorted coldly and said in fluent English, "You don’t need to know who I am! You murderous demon—I’m sending you straight to hell!"
With that, Fiona signaled the Dragonforce Battalion to spread out and fall back. Suddenly, a bronze tiger-head token appeared in her right hand. She chanted a spell, leapt into the air, and hovered midair. Raising the token, she formed the Five Peaks Seal with both hands, pressing it onto the tiger-head token and swiftly drawing a talisman. Instantly, a massive, brilliantly colored cloud gathered over the village, pouring down a chilling, murderous aura.
Ruffman was stunned, feeling an immense pressure unlike anything he'd ever experienced. He never expected this young Chinese beauty to possess such profound skills. Realizing a life-or-death battle was inevitable, he roared, "Boom!" His shirt exploded into shreds, disintegrating in an instant. His already massive body swelled rapidly, ballooning several times larger. With a guttural growl, he bellowed, "Spirit of Fire—transform!"
Roar! Roar! Roar!
After several terrifying roars, a hazy red aura erupted from Ruffman’s body, swelling violently until it suddenly morphed into a giant red bear-shaped beast wreathed in flames, standing on the earth. Its massive paws stomped the ground, shaking the earth, as it spread its arms and thundered at Fiona Tang, who floated in midair—a truly fearsome sight!
Fiona’s face was resolute. She hadn’t expected Ruffman’s powers to manifest at such a level, allowing him to project his spirit in physical form. Her Quanzhen Order Taoist arts could also manifest a spirit with enough power, but she hadn’t reached that stage yet. Against such a master, any hesitation could mean instant death.
Determined, Fiona bit her tongue, letting a spurt of sweet, salty blood spray onto the bronze tiger-head token. She chanted: "By decree of the True Master and Lord Lingbao, wind, fire, thunder, and lightning empower the ancestor’s spirit! Demon-subduing body, enter me now—by law, so be it!" The brilliant clouds in the sky churned and grew, flickering with layers of lightning.
Fiona formed the Great Wish Seal with both hands, lifted the bronze tiger-head token above her head, and shouted, "Divine Spirit, enter!"—whoosh! The token shot skyward, vanishing into the swirling clouds. The clouds split open, revealing a long, white pillar of light, while thunder rumbled across the sky. The pillar wrapped around Fiona’s floating body as she cried, "Transform!"
A clear, soaring cry echoed through the sky. Fiona’s figure flashed, then transformed into a giant silver bird, its wings spread wide, shining brilliantly and covering the whole village. With a piercing screech, the silver bird dove at the fire bear below. The bear roared, slamming its paws into the ground and hurling a multi-ton boulder at the incoming bird!
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The silver bird spat out three icy, dazzling orbs, shattering the boulder to dust! Without slowing, it swooped above the fire bear, hooked its massive, razor-sharp talons into the bear’s shoulders, and with a mighty pull, flipped the beast onto its back. The fire bear thrashed and roared, trying to rise, but the silver bird shot into the swirling clouds overhead. The clouds trembled, turning iron-gray as if drained of all energy, and the fire bear, staring up, saw a blinding white light plummeting toward it!
Bang—!
The silver bird dove from the sky, unleashing a blinding white light at the fire bear’s face, enveloping its massive body in a snowy-white aura!
Awooo! Awooo! Awooooo!
The fire bear clutched its head, thrashing wildly and howling in agony, its huge body tearing through the village. But the silver bird circled coldly overhead, watching its final struggle. At last, the fire bear collapsed at the edge of the village, its flames raging, convulsing violently before falling still.
A breeze scattered the smoky haze, and the fire bear’s body faded away, revealing Ruffman—shirtless, charred, and horribly burned. His breath had stopped; the man who played with fire met his end in the flames.
The silver bird circled the ruined village, let out a piercing cry upon seeing Ruffman's corpse, and shot up into the clouds. The iron-gray clouds suddenly glowed brilliantly, lighting up the sky. Thunder rolled, and torrential rain poured down, gradually extinguishing the fires below.
The surviving villagers—mostly women—knelt on the ground, gazing skyward and crying out, "Allah! Allah!"
As the rain faded, Fiona Tang, pale and weak, slumped to the ground, barely able to breathe or stand. Leaning against a broken wall, she reflected: for the first time, she’d risked her life and used the Quanzhen Order’s True Blood Divine Spell to activate the bronze tiger-head token, summon the ancestor’s spirit, and manifest her own Primordial Spirit as the Vermilion Bird—combining both into the Vermilion Bird Demon-Binding Ritual, finally destroying Ruffman’s fire bear.