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Chapter 452: The Fire genies' Wish Spell
Hearing Cassius's questioning, Hamid trembled all over while being gripped in the dragon's claw. He stammered:
"Y-you can't kill me!"
"Why not?"
"I'm an Emir appointed by the Grand Sultan of the City of Brass! If you kill me... you'll be making an enemy of the entire Fire genie Empire!"
The fire genie noble tried to muster his presence, but the fear in his eyes was unmistakable.
Cassius burst into laughter.
"Heh heh..."
"Given the current situation, do you think your Grand Sultan would really care about a minor Emir like you?"
Cassius's words were brimming with confidence, as if he had already seized complete control of the situation, showing no fear of offending the Sultan.
His decision to come to the Fire elemental Plane at this time was due to a famous event he recalled from his previous life—the Burning War.
The Fire genie Grand Sultan of the City of Brass was indeed incredibly powerful.
He stood at the pinnacle of legend, bordering on godlike strength. He had allied with powerful devils of Hell and relied on the corrupt Fire genie Lord and the Evil Fire Prince Imix.
Under his tyrannical rule, scimitar-wielding fire genies had raided countless planes, enslaved numerous races, and built a vast empire spanning the Fire elemental Plane, even defeating an expeditionary force from Fadlan.
But the fire genies' glory wasn't eternal.
The true master of the Fire elemental Plane, the powerful divine being known as Kossuth, the Lord of Flames, wouldn't allow the Evil Fire Prince to seize full control or threaten His divine throne, so He sent the Pure Flame to cleanse all things.
In the year 1768 of the Third Era, the benevolent Fire genie Lord and Sacred Flame Prince Zaman Rul led an uprising, allying with enslaved fire dwarves, genie apostles, and otherworldly races.
They formed the so-called "Sacred Flame" organization, launching an unending conflict against the Evil Fire Prince Imix.
The war continued, with flames of vengeance and rebellion spreading across the Fire elemental Plane. The Sultan dared not easily leave the City of Brass.
"Or are you saying he would wage war against me for your sake, risking a confrontation with a powerful red dragon?"
Hearing this, the fire genie noble's face turned pale, and a trace of despair flashed in his coal-black eyes.
The red dragon wasn't wrong.
Hamid had only become an Emir due to the war depleting the ranks of strong fire genies, pulling them to the front lines.
"Oh, right."
Cassius suddenly thought of something, and an amused expression appeared on his face.
"Now that I've captured you, if I release you... will you grant me three wishes?"
As natural rulers of the Elemental Planes, genies possessed powerful physiques and spellcasting abilities and drew upon the inner plane's essence for the power of "wish-granting."
Because of this, fire genies were often referred to as "fire gods."
The power to grant wishes had become legendary among mortals, and only noble genies could do so, granting one to three wishes to a non-genie.
However, wishes had invisible limits, and exceeding those limits could result in disastrous consequences.
Because of this, players in Cassius's previous life referred to fire genies as "wish machines," typically summoned via Wish Candles, albeit with considerable risks.
"Yes, my lord!"
"I-I can still offer you a wish!"
Hamid clung to this last lifeline like a drowning man grasping a straw, quickly responding, afraid the red dragon might devour him.
"But..."
His tone paused momentarily.
"Mighty dragon, my powers are limited, and I can only grant one wish per contract to another creature."
"Whether you desire gold, jewels, or exquisite delicacies, I can find them for you."
The fire genie noble forced a fawning smile on his crimson face; for survival, his so-called noble dignity meant nothing.
"Only one wish? How disappointing."
"And do you think I lack gold, jewels, or fine wines?"
The fire genie's face twisted as if he were about to cry.
"N-no, of course not."
"I apologize, mighty dragon, for my ignorance."
Cassius's curiosity quickly waned, leaving him bored.
A single wish, while priceless to mortals as a chance to change their fate, held little allure for a red dragon.
The Wish Spell typically worked by simulating existing spells in the world.
If the objective couldn't be achieved through simulated spells, the wish could fail or come with significant costs, sometimes manifesting in strange ways.
"Well then."
"Let's try this wish."
After a moment of thought, Cassius made his decision—after all, with so many fire genies here, there would be no shortage of wish opportunities.
"Tell me, where will the Vengeance Demon Jezal Slak appear?"
"Th-this..."
"Mighty dragon, perhaps you could reconsider—"
The fire genie noble's smile froze, and beads of hot sweat trickled down his forehead.
The Abyssal Demon.
The epitome of chaotic evil.
No sane being would want to associate with such a creature.
And the demon targeted by this terrifying dragon was likely a powerful, deranged demon lord.
As soon as the red dragon uttered his request, the inner plane's laws surged, compelling Hamid to fulfill the wish.
Cassius's intimidating gaze bore down on him, exuding invisible dragon might, leaving no room for negotiation.
If it were a mortal, Hamid could have twisted the wish's meaning or deceived the rules.
But the dragon's watchful presence and his life hanging by a thread made that impossible.
"Oh, Great Flame Lord..."
"Please let me live."
Hamid prayed silently, his face contorting into an expression worse than crying as he reluctantly brought his hands together and began to make the wish.
"I wish to see Jezal Slak's location of arrival."
A surge of powerful energy erupted.
Hamid's turban fluttered in the wind, and the golden earrings on his ears swayed slightly.
The miracle of wish-granting unfolded.
Reality bent under the power of the wish, creating a high-level divination spell through a mystical process.
"Whoosh—"
A massive magical projection appeared in midair.
The background showed rolling mountains and dark rocks, with a towering, majestic peak at the center, reaching over a thousand meters high.
"This is..."
"Mount Thierry?"
Cassius immediately recognized it as the main peak of the Anstika Mountains, known to the northerners as the "King of Snowy Peaks."
Suddenly, the azure sky darkened.
A massive black claw tore through the sky, creating a vortex hundreds of meters in diameter from which countless grotesque demons poured forth.
They surged like a tidal wave, their hideous bodies blotting out the sun and casting the land into darkness.
"Cassius—"
"Embrace the destiny of the end—"
A deep, raspy voice echoed. Cassius recognized it immediately—it was the Vengeance Demon Jezal Slak.
"Crack... sizzle..."
As if the projection had encountered some kind of interference, chaotic static filled the image before it abruptly ended.
"Oh? He's truly persistent, choosing once again to invade through the Anzeta Wasteland."
"It seems this body of mine is quite attractive to him."
"Judging by the vision, it's about two years from now. In that case, let's end it all in Anzeta."
Cassius gazed at the fiery orange sky of the Fire elemental Plane, flames flickering in his golden eyes.