Time passes imperceptibly, and a few days pass in the blink of an eye, and in the anticipation of everyone in Ionia, the annual Festival of Fire has finally arrived.

The Festival of Fire is a traditional festival in Ionia that has been around for at least a few hundred years. In the beginning, the Festival of Fire did not have a fixed date and was an ancient religious holiday. The priests are lighting a "sacred fire" and throwing the prepared sacrifices and wooden plaques with the names of those who died during the year into the fire, which means celebrating purification and the rebirth of the soul.

Later, the nature of the festival of fire slowly changed, and it was no longer a god-worshipping activity of a few clergymen, and the veil of mystery was peeled off and entered the public eye. At this stage, the festival of fire became a popular celebration, and in good harvest years, people held their own celebrations after the autumn harvest, usually on a village-by-village basis. During the day, the preparation stage is the stage, and the real event begins in the evening, when people gather large piles of straw together to light them, sing and dance around the bonfire, drink wine and taste fruits, and celebrate the harvest of the year.

At the end of the festival, a group of unmarried young girls put on flower clothes and masks and danced the "worship dance" around the bonfire, and the most welcoming to this show were naturally the young boys. This dance has the function of offering sacrifices and blessings, and it is hoped that the coming year will also be a good year.

After the establishment of the Ionian government, the Festival of Fire was designated as an official holiday in Ionia, and the date was set on October 1st, and since then the Festival of Fire has truly become a national holiday.

Over time, the festival of fire has become a common custom to go to the tranquil gardens on the outskirts of Presidium and celebrate the festival under the majestic trees that bloom in full bloom. The festival here is different from other places, and it is very formal and sacred, so although it is a little crowded with too many people, many Ionians who advocate artistic life still come on this day. As for the distance, don't worry, Presidium is located in the center of Ionia, and it doesn't take much effort to get here, even those who live on the edge of Ionia can get here in a week if they want to.

The festival begins in the morning, with a variety of roadside stalls selling Ionian food, clothes and weapons along the road in the Garden of Tranquility. Fang Yan had sold his own weapons on this day a few years ago, of course, at that time, Fang Yan had not been able to cast equipment with rune power attached, just ordinary weapons, but even so, Fang Yan's weapons were still popular for their extremely high quality, and they were sold out of stock every time and were in short supply.

In the afternoon, after dinner, people would hang scrolls in the shade of the great trees with scrolls describing their misfortunes and sorrows. When the sun rose the next day, and the scrolls hung by the people were completely obscured under the majestic trees, an Ionian summoner borrowed the fire from the "divine fire" enshrined in the Ionian temple, and burned them all with the power of magic with a torch in both hands.

The flames were blazing, but they could not hurt the majestic trees, and although the smoke was filled, there was no choking smell, but a refreshing fragrance. This is not man-made, but rather the innate ability of this majestic tree, which the Ionians worship as the "sacred tree", which is one of the main reasons why large numbers of people come from other regions every year.

When the magic has dissipated, the flames have been extinguished, and the sun shines through the branches into the majestic tree, the inquisitor of Ionia, the current Master Hana, will make the final conclusions at the celebration: break out of the darkness and welcome the magnificent light.

Of course, on the evenings of the Festival of Fire, the Garden of Tranquility, which becomes especially lively, has many shows, most of which are small theaters that tell the legends of Ionia. The most popular in the past few years is undoubtedly the show staged by the Equilibrium Sect, and in the past few years, it was "The Legend of Rena" performed by Shin and Akali (this is where Akali Ghost Dancing Girl skin and Shin's Oni Warrior skin come from).

"The Legend of Rena" tells the story of an ancient Ionian who is hunted by evil spirits, and the plot is probably that Rena tries to escape from the torment of an evil spirit, but the evil spirit has been finding her and continues to torment her. Eventually, Rena put on her own mask to fight the evil spirits, and used her own power to scare them away.

Although the plot sounds clichéd, when you really sink into the story, the show is really good, which is why "The Legend of Rena" has become the most popular show at the Fire Festival in the past few years.

However, it is impossible for a show to last year, and last year's audience was much smaller than the previous year's, so Akali and they wanted to rehearse a new show this year to continue to maintain the title of "most popular".

It's nighttime, and the garden is lit up by countless lights, and it's the best time to put on the show. The new show that had been prepared for a few days was about to be staged, and although she was very confident in the new show, Akali still looked a little nervous when it came to the end - although she didn't act much, Fang Yan could still see it in her eyes.

"Don't worry, our show must be the best!" Walking in front of Akali, Fang Yan said confidently.

At this moment, they were making the final preparations before going on stage in the background, Fang Yan was dressed in a red and white suit, with a big red robe on the outside, and a sharp long sword with a red scabbard hanging from his waist, which looked quite heroic with his handsome appearance. This is Fang Yan's costume.

Akali glanced back at Fang Yan and didn't speak, just nodded silently. The clothes she wears are still the same as the previous set of [Ghost Dancing Queen], which is also out of consideration for using the last show to attract popularity, and the role this time is also very suitable for this outfit. It is also a red and white tone, but it shows a bit of poignancy when worn on Akali, and it looks particularly harmonious when standing with Fang Yan.

Meimu looked Fang Yan up and down, Fang Yan subconsciously straightened his back, and Akali smiled and said, "It's really a wise decision to ask you to come to the show, you performed better than me during the rehearsal." ”

Fang Yan smiled and didn't speak, but straightened his head, although Akali's words had an element of praise, he was also quite satisfied with his performance.

Looking at the clock hanging on the wall, it was only a few minutes before eight o'clock in the evening, and eight o'clock was the official stage time. At this time, Kennan, who was in charge of the off-site affairs of the performance, also came over to inform the two of them, so that the two of them could make final preparations. Fang Yan and Akali glanced at each other and walked outside at the same time.

"I don't know if the master is here, although he said that he won't come to see me and be ashamed, but I always think he will come." Walking on the way to the performance, Fang Yan thought to himself.

Shen has been waiting for the performance in advance, and the curtain of the performance has not yet been opened at this moment, the sets and props are ready, and the supporting actors are also in place, only Fang Yan and Akali are missing.

At the moment when she stood up to play **, Akali's eyes changed, and she instantly became extremely serious. Akali is such a person, who may usually look like a gentle big sister next door, but when she is about to do something, she shows her true character, calm, serious, cautious, and a little proud.

"The sword of glory is taken down, and the balance is sought in chaos." Akali said to herself.

After greeting all the actors, Fang Yan stepped back and stood in a corner behind the curtain side of the curtain where the audience could not see, staring intently at the stage. He won't be in the first act, but it's a short story, and he'll have to wait here in advance.

At this time, a crisp and loud female voice came out of the radio outside, which reached Fang Yan's ears: "The following program is called "The Prince and the Shadow Swordsman", the program is from the Balanced Sect, and the main actors are Shen, Akali, and Fang Yan, I believe everyone will not forget the touching that "The Legend of Rena" brought us. What will be the repertoire of the Equilibrium Sect this time? I'm as curious as everyone else, so please welcome the opening of The Prince and the Shadow Swordsman with the warmest applause! ”

Listening to the warm applause coming from outside, watching the curtain slowly open to both sides and gradually revealing the scene outside, the corners of Fang Yan's mouth, who was hiding on the side of the performance, hooked a trace of arc: "The show is staged!" ”