Chapter 144: The Scorching Path

A roar came from the north of the town, like the rumbling of a distant train. It didn't sound like the noise made by a normal animal at all.

As this roar gradually decreased, it slowly became sharp and ended with a strained off-key note, drawing the attention of everyone on the dock and the coast to the north.

"Don't come back again..."

Those cries made Jess unbearable. He barely followed Gerred who was running wildly and tried his best to forget the terrifying scene in Southshore and ran straight towards the direction of the forest outside the town.

If it were two weeks ago, no, if it were two hours ago, he would think this decision was really crazy.

But now, an incomparable motivation was pushing him to run towards that dragon. The injured people, the burned houses... that griffin and that dwarf knight. Everything must have an explanation.

To be more selfish, he also wanted to participate in such a battle. Even if it was just a "participation", it would be worth this journey through time.

Groups of civilians outside the town were fleeing towards the direction of the southern dock. The summoned soldiers were advancing in the opposite direction towards the forest. Some of them were militiamen, and some even held pitchforks.

But in this situation, a long pitchfork might be much more useful than a sword. Jess was advancing among these people, following the direction of the intermittent low roars. Most of them were covered in black ash like him. Some even had tears all over their faces, but none of them hesitated in their steps. They all rushed towards the forest like crazy people.

As soon as they entered the forest, they felt waves of heat coming from in front. Before seeing the shadow of the dragon, they had already felt its power.

Jess really couldn't imagine that just a young dragon could possess such terrifying power.

Flying sparks were fluttering among the trees. Many leaves had already caught fire. Some soldiers were lying in low-lying areas to avoid the oncoming heat waves. After this wave passed, they got up again and rushed forward.

Behind the trees ahead, some archers could already be seen hiding. Military orders were being transmitted amid the sound of burning flames. It turned out that many soldiers from Lordaeron had already chased here.

Jess felt uncontrollable nervousness. He was worried that before he could see the appearance of the dragon, he would be directly blown away by a ball of fire.

Looking up, Gerred had already rushed far ahead.

If he still had fear, then the only source of this fear was the fear that the dragon would die before he arrived, so that he couldn't kill it with the hammer in his hand himself.

Avoiding burning branches and dead leaves, Jess saw a middle-aged soldier in chain mail lying in a pit, taking a breath and wiping the sweat stained with soot on his forehead. He was not a militiaman but a port guard. Covered in dust and ashes, he seemed to have just participated in firefighting in the town and then responded to the call and came here to hunt down the fallen black dragon.

Seeing him, Jess thought of his father. He remembered that every time he saw his father who came back to see his mother and himself when he was a child, he seemed to be in this state.

If there was a black dragon that rushed to Brill or even the periphery of the capital city... When that time came, even if his father was old, he would probably pick up weapons and rush up to fight the fierce beast like this person.

Jess glanced ahead at the shadow of the riverbank watchtower obscured by the trees. The previously indescribable stench continued to permeate. It didn't seem like the burnt smell of a simple fire. It was the same smell he had smelled in the town.

And here, this smell was extremely strong.

Jess frowned. Strangely, after coming here, he felt that this smell was familiar.

He leaned against a tree beside him and took a breath. Running several miles from the coast with murlocs really made him exhausted. Don't be so tired that he couldn't lift his hands when facing that dragon.

Perhaps he had run too recklessly, so that he smelled the bloody smell in his own mouth. But after stopping and taking a break, that smell gradually faded but didn't completely disappear.

Gerred had disappeared. At this moment, another wave of heat came. Jess hid behind the tree at hand to avoid being directly hit by this heat wave. This shock wave was more violent than the previous ones. It was like being hit hard by the wind blown out by a jet plane. Both ears were burning hot. Just this one time, his hair seemed to have been exposed to the sun for a while.

Jess quickly put on his hood. The stench brought by this hot wind made him cough. The burning sensation on the back of his neck immediately reminded him where he had smelled this smell before.

It was Stonekeep.

The one who created this smell was not someone else but himself!

Shadow fire... No, if what was in front of him was a black dragon, then this was the real shadow flame...

Jess remembered that on that day at Stonekeep, he had also suspected that the fire ignited on the sword was shadow flame. But he thought that it was the terrifying poisonous fire that only black dragons could release and had nothing to do with an ordinary person like himself.

Only now did he understand that the two were likely to be essentially the same. Perhaps the black dragon's release was purer and more perfectly fused, while his might be weaker and more scattered.

But judging from the appearance of these flames and the smell they emitted, they seemed to be the same thing.

Even Jess's was more evil. After all, black dragons themselves possessed the power of the earth. In ancient times, before they were led to degenerate by the evil gods, the flames they spewed out were burning magma... And the one who helped Jess ignite that flame enchantment was a demon, ignited by fel energy.

"Gerred!" he shouted loudly, but there was no response.

Jess glanced to the direction out of the forest. Probably Gerred had already run to the very front. He had to catch up.

The roar of that black dragon was very close. It could be seen as soon as one rushed out of the forest. He had to be prepared in advance.

He opened his small booklet recording spell incantations and first cast Arcane Intellect on himself skillfully. Then he firmly remembered the incantations of Curse of Weakness and Fear. He touched the mana potion on his clothes strap and hugged his staff tightly.

Hopefully, with the boost of this staff, at least one of Curse of Weakness or Fear would take effect.

Remembering in the cabin, he cast the Curse of Weakness boosted by the staff on "Baron of the Night", but that panther could still attack him with its claws.

So when facing such a real dragon, he was very doubtful whether his magic could take effect.

However, even if it only had a little effect, it could bring an advantage to the soldiers of the Kingdom of Lordaeron in surrounding that dragon. It wouldn't be in vain.

At this moment, the fire had weakened, and the shouts of the soldiers regained the upper hand.

Jess stuffed the booklet into his bag, silently recited the incantations he had just memorized, walked out from behind the tree he was leaning against, and continued to advance forward following two Lordaeron soldiers who were advancing cautiously.

The trees were getting sparser. The dragon-hunting battle was imminent.