A farmer set himself ablaze in the middle of a busy street after local government officials went back on a promise to pay him for land they had appropriated to build a new highway.
Qiang Yuan, 45, squatted down just outside the council building, poured fuel on himself and then set it alight - turning himself into a human fireball in front of horrified shoppers.
Incredibly, he remained seated even as the flames blackened his skin.
Shocked shopper Wen Ko said: 'I was just about to go into a store when I heard people start screaming.
'I turned round and saw this huge ball of fire.
'I then realised it was a man sitting on the ground. He toppled over as a security guard ran over to extinguish the flames, but then he sat back up again and continued squatting there despite the fact his skin was blackened and charred.
Yuan had been promised cash in return for his land, after officials told him it was needed for the new road.
But months after giving it away, the farmer still hadn't been paid - and his calls were being ignored.
At his wits end, Yuan bought petrol from a local shop, walked up to the front of the council buildings and poured it over his head before striking a match.
After the flames were extinguished, he was rushed to hospital, where he is in a critical condition.
A hospital spokesman said: 'He has severe burns across 70 per cent of his body and is very lucky to be alive thanks to the quick reactions of the security guard.'
Qiang's wife Ling Cheng, 40, said: 'He was very angry and upset and kept saying that he had been cheated.
'We aren't rich and we really need that money as we have lost a large amount of our earnings from the land.
'He said he was gong to try and meet someone to find out what was happening.
'I had no idea he was going to do something like this.'
Local government officials have yet to comment, but said they would release a full statement once an investigation had been completed.
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