But even though these people were terrified, they still did not let go of Archibald and his companion.
Their hands clutched at Archibald, trembling slightly, and John, with his acute senses, noticed that some of the villagers' legs were shaking with fear.
They looked at the fragments of a wedding dress on the ground as if they were staring at some monstrous flood or beast.
How strange...
If it was truly a god seeking a bride, and the so-called bride of the god became their plaything after the ritual, why were they so frightened of these brides?
Even these torn pieces of cloth evoked such fear.
John's face remained impassive, but he quietly took a step forward, causing the people behind him to retreat in panic.
"I advise you to drop whatever you're holding. Even if you go to the bride's courtyard, you won't be able to leave this place," the middle-aged captain said through clenched teeth, his voice harsh.
John, confident that these people wouldn't dare to harm them, appeared unusually relaxed.
"Whether I can leave this place or not is none of your concern. You just need to think carefully about what you should do next."
"The ritual's offerings went wrong in your hands. Do you think those people will let you off easily?"
That struck right at the heart of their deepest fears and pains, their hands trembling even more.
"As long as we can bring you back, it won't be considered a problem."
The middle-aged captain tried to deny it stubbornly, but John simply laughed softly.
"Is that so? Are you sure you can take us back unharmed? If we suffer even the slightest injury, you will be the one punished."
"If I'm not mistaken, it's not just you, but also these so-called brothers of yours who will gain no benefits either. Am I right?"
As John finished speaking, fear was visible on the faces of those around him.
They feared not only John's departure but were more terrified of any harm that might come to him.
They couldn't bear the blame if the high priest found fault.
"What exactly do you want?"
The young captain glared at John, teeth gritted.
If looks could kill, John would have been slain countless times already!
"Isn't it obvious? I'm telling you to let us leave."
"You're dreaming; that's absolutely impossible!"
The young captain rejected John's request without any hesitation.
"Even if you're injured, at least you're still here. If we let you escape, we'd be the ones with nowhere to bury our corpses."
Laughing, John threw the fragments of the wedding dress to the ground, creating a natural barrier.
The young captain, clearly disgruntled, was about to retort but was swiftly restrained by the middle-aged captain beside him.
The young captain looked bewilderedly at the older man but, before he could react, he was struck down by a karate chop to the back of his neck, knocking him out cold.
The others did not expect the middle-aged man to act so decisively; his actions were beyond their imaginations.
After striking, the middle-aged captain looked at John with a new respect, while John simply smiled.
"It seems there are still some wise people around."
"Captain, what are you doing?"
The bystanders were stunned, shouting out in confusion.
The middle-aged captain glanced at them coolly and spoke, "Don't ask what you shouldn't, don't say what you shouldn't, just get moving!"
Everyone was perplexed, unsure of what was happening, but seeing that the captain was serious, they reluctantly complied.
Thuds sounded one after another, and quickly, the twenty or thirty people fell to the ground, some of them unclear why their captain had acted this way.
In the end, only the middle-aged captain was left standing at the scene.
Archibald and Leopold hurried over to John's side, feeling a trivial dizziness as they approached the fragments of the wedding dress.
In that moment, they understood why these people were so wary of the dress fragments.
It seemed there really was something to them.
"It seems there are still some smart ones, so I won't bother getting my hands dirty; you handle it yourself."
Since this man could deal with these people so cleanly and efficiently, it proved he had thought of something others had not.
The middle-aged man gave John a cold laugh.
"Don't think you'll be so lucky next time to dodge this."
After saying this, the man really did charge directly at the wall behind him, knocking himself out with the impact.
This decisive action left Archibald and the others gaping in astonishment.
"My God, how did you do that?" Leopold asked, somewhat dryly.
"Let's not talk about it now; we better leave this place first."
They didn't know if the incident had been reported yet, so it was safer for them to leave the area as soon as possible.
Both seemed to have realized the sinister nature of the village and quickly nodded, hurrying to follow John.
However, their legs were still weak, and they couldn't keep up with John's pace; in the end, they had to support each other as they left.