The Witcher: Start with the Lord Marrying a Wife.

Chapter 480 The Illusory Truth
Anne slowly opened her eyes, her gaze filled with determination and courage.

She looked at David and said, "David, thank you for saving me."

David breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Annie's familiar eyes.

He knew that Anne had finally broken free from the control of her false memories.

He quickly stepped forward to help her up and asked, "Annie, are you alright?"

Annie shook her head and said, "I'm fine, just a little weak."

After saying that, she and David stood together with the team members, ready to fight against the Abyss Apostles' attack.

The Apostle of the Abyss looked at Anne and David, who had stood up again, with a hint of surprise in his eyes, but he quickly regained his composure.

"Hmph, so what if you're sober now?"

The Apostle of the Abyss sneered, "Today, you still cannot escape death!"

After saying that, he waved his staff again, preparing to launch an even more ferocious attack.

However, this time David and his team members were fully prepared, and they unleashed their respective spells and skills to engage in a fierce battle with the Apostles of the Underworld.

After a fierce battle, the Abyssal Apostle was finally defeated by David and his team.

He let out a miserable scream of despair, then vanished without a trace in a wisp of black smoke.

After the battle, the team members collapsed to the ground, panting heavily.

They knew that their victory was entirely due to David's brilliant leadership and the teamwork of their members.

However, they also knew that this victory was only temporary, and even more severe challenges awaited them.
David looked at Anne lying on the ground, his heart filled with emotion.

He knew that this incident had greatly hurt and affected Anne, but he also believed that Anne could recover.

He walked over to Anne and whispered, "Annie, I'm sorry you got hurt like this."

Anne shook her head and said, "David, it's not your fault. I was just too impulsive."

After saying that, she sat up and looked at David, saying, "David, I believe you. You're not the kind of person who would take advantage of others."

David felt a surge of warmth in his heart as he looked into Anne's determined eyes.

Lia stood on the edge of the time rift, clutching the Time Scepter tightly in her hand, her eyes flashing with unprecedented determination and resolve.

She had just broken through the many illusions set up by the Night Queen and glimpsed the cruel truth hidden deep within time.

Within the cracks of time, light distorts and spacetime intersects, as if all rules have been overturned here.

Lia took a deep breath and stepped into the time rift.

Her figure was instantly swallowed by the distorted light and disappeared from the spot.

When Leah opened her eyes again, she found herself in a completely unfamiliar environment.

This is a huge laboratory, filled with all sorts of strange equipment and instruments, and in the center lies a familiar figure—Anne.

But the Anne of this moment is completely different from the Anne in Leah's memory.

Anne's body was wrapped in countless thin silver threads, which seemed to have a life of their own, moving within her body and shimmering with an eerie light.

Her eyes were closed, her face was pale, as if she had lost all vitality.

Leah's heart sank. She realized that what she was seeing was the truth behind Anne's birth.

She approached Anne, carefully examining the fine silver threads, a surge of indescribable anger and sorrow welling up within her.

"Mistress of Eternal Night, how dare you treat Anne like this!"

Lia growled in a low voice, her voice echoing in the empty laboratory, sounding particularly desolate.

Just then, a cold and authoritative voice suddenly rang in Lia's ear: "Ignorant human, do you think you know the truth?"

Lia turned around abruptly and saw the figure of the Eternal Night Mistress slowly emerging from the shadows.

Her eyes were filled with disdain and mockery, as if she could see right through all of Leah's thoughts.

"Mistress of Eternal Night, why did you alter the timeline of Anne's birth?"

Lia questioned, her voice filled with anger and resentment.

The Night Goddess sneered and said, "Annie is nothing more than the first experimental subject of the Star-Eyed Clan's 'Artificial God Body Project'."

Her existence was meant to bear even greater power.

The spiritual contract is merely a shackle we use to imprison her true form.

Upon hearing this, Liya felt a chill rise from the soles of her feet and penetrate straight to her heart.

She couldn't believe that Anne, whom she had always considered her best friend, would have such a tragic fate.

"How could you do this!"

Lia's voice trembled, and her eyes were filled with anger and despair.

The Night Mistress paid no attention to Lia's reaction and continued, "However, you don't need to be too sad."

Because soon, Anne will completely lose herself and become a puppet of our Eternal Night Council.

After saying that, she waved her hand, and a black light instantly enveloped Annie's body.

Lia tried to stop it, but it was too late.

She could only watch helplessly as Anne's body was swallowed by darkness and gradually lost its life.

Just as Lia was falling into despair, a familiar figure suddenly rushed into the laboratory.

It's David!
He held the Wind God's Shield in his hand, his eyes gleaming with unwavering determination.

"Mistress of Eternal Night, I will not let you succeed!"

David shouted, then swung the Wind God in his hand, and a powerful storm instantly swept through the entire laboratory.

Upon seeing this, the Eternal Night Mistress's expression changed slightly, but she quickly regained her composure.

With a wave of her hand, a black barrier instantly appeared in front of her, blocking the storm's onslaught.

"David, do you think you can stop me?"

The Night Goddess sneered, "You are nothing but a minor deity."

David, however, was not afraid. He waved the Wind God's Blessing in his hand again, and the storm became even more violent.

However, the Night Mistress's strength far surpassed David's. She quickly found a weakness in the storm, and a black light instantly pierced through it, heading straight for David.

David was unable to dodge in time and was struck by the black light, sending him flying backward instantly.

He fell heavily to the ground, spitting blood, clearly seriously injured.

Seeing this, Lia rushed forward and helped David up.

Looking at David's pale face and the bloodstains at the corner of his mouth, she was filled with worry and sorrow.

"David, are you alright?"

"I asked with concern," Liya asked.

David forced a smile and said, "I'm fine, you go and save Annie."

Lia nodded, then turned her gaze back to Annie.

At this moment, Anne was completely swallowed by darkness, as if she had lost all vitality.

Lia knew she had to come up with a way to save her as soon as possible.

Just then, David suddenly thought of a solution.

He struggled to his feet and walked to Leah's side, saying, "Leah, I have a way to save Annie, but I need your help." Leah's eyes lit up, and she quickly asked, "What way?"

David took a deep breath and said, “I will graft my Chaos Godhood onto Anne’s Desolate Godhood so that we can share pain and memories.”

Although doing so would cause Anne to periodically fall into a state of 'nothingness,' it would at least preserve her sanity.

Upon hearing this, Liya felt a surge of deep emotion.

She knew that David was risking his life to save Anne.

Without hesitation, she quickly nodded in agreement to the plan.

So David and Lydia began to cast complex spells.

Their figures shimmered in the light, as if they were performing a sacred ritual.

As time went on, fine beads of sweat appeared on their foreheads, clearly indicating that the spell had consumed a great deal of their divine power and energy.

Finally, with a deafening roar, the spell was completed.

David and Anne's bodies were enveloped in a dazzling light, and then gradually merged together.

When the light faded, David and Anne were seen embracing tightly, their eyes filled with determination and courage.

"Success!"

"Liya shouted excitedly."

However, just as they breathed a sigh of relief, Anne's body suddenly began to tremble.

Her eyes became empty and lost, as if she had lost all consciousness.

Then, her body began to become transparent, as if she might disappear at any moment.

"Oh no! Annie is about to enter a state of 'nothingness'!"

David shouted.

Liya's heart tightened upon hearing this.

She rushed forward to help Anne, but found that her hand had passed right through Anne's body.

She could only watch helplessly as Anne's body gradually became ethereal and then disappeared into thin air.

“Annie!”

"Lia cried out in despair."

David clenched his fists tightly, his eyes filled with pain and resentment.

He knew that although he had temporarily preserved Annie's sanity, he could not prevent her from falling into a state of "nihilism".

Each "emptiness" makes Annie's flame of life weaker until it is finally extinguished completely.

A deathly silence fell over the laboratory, with only the heavy breathing of Leah and David echoing in the air.

They knew they had to find a way to stop Anne's "nihilism" as soon as possible, or all their efforts would be in vain.

However, faced with such a cruel truth and dire predicament, what can they do?
The sky was covered with dark clouds and thunder rumbled, as if foreshadowing an impending storm.

The Flame Spirit, the spirit that once symbolized peace and hope, now stood atop a towering altar, its eyes gleaming with fanaticism, and held aloft a gem that shimmered with an eerie light.

"Believers, heed my command!"

The voice of the Flame Spirit and Water Spirit echoed in the howling wind, carrying an undeniable authority: "Those villages marked as 'heretics' are stains on our pure faith. We must wage a 'purification holy war' to wipe them out completely!"

Upon hearing this, the believers knelt down, their eyes flashing with a mixture of fanaticism and fear.

They raised their hands high and prayed devoutly, as if they could already see the dawn of victory.

At the command of the Flame Spirit Water Vessel Spirit, the believers surged towards the marked villages like a tidal wave.

They held crude weapons in their hands, but their eyes were filled with a bloodlust.

In the village, innocent villagers scattered in terror, but ultimately could not escape the fate of being slaughtered.

Cynthia stood atop the clouds and witnessed it all.

Her heart was filled with anger and grief.

As the goddess of plagues, she should be the protector of life, but at this moment, she can only watch helplessly as innocent lives perish in the riots.

"No, I can't stand idly by!"

Cynthia gritted her teeth, her eyes gleaming with determination.

She took a deep breath and then swung the scepter in her hand violently.

A powerful force of plague surged from the scepter, transforming into a green light that shot straight toward the rioting believers.

The believers were instantly enveloped by the power of the plague; their bodies began to twist and deform, and they emitted painful cries.

However, they did not stop their killing spree; instead, they attacked the surrounding villagers even more frantically.

"This is divine punishment!"

One believer shouted, "It is those heretics who have angered the gods, which is why we are suffering this punishment!"

Upon hearing this, Cynthia felt even more grief-stricken.

She understood that her actions had not only failed to quell the riots, but had instead exacerbated the believers' fanaticism and fear.

The faith network, once an unbreakable bond, is now on the verge of collapse.

Just then, David's voice rang in Cynthia's ear: "Cynthia, we must find a way to stop this riot, or the consequences will be unimaginable."

Cynthia nodded and said, "I know, but what can we do now?"

David pondered for a moment, then said, "We must destroy those faith bases. They are the key to the fire spirits and water spirits controlling their followers. If we destroy them, the riots may be quelled."

Upon hearing this, a hint of hesitation flashed in Cynthia's eyes.

She knew that destroying the faith base station meant sacrificing the faith of countless believers, which was an extremely difficult decision.

But at this moment, she had no other choice.

So Cynthia and David began to take action.

They moved between various faith bases, using their power to destroy them.

With each base station destroyed, one could feel the faith of the believers weakening, but at the same time, one could also see more believers losing their lives in the riots.

Finally, after paying a heavy price, they successfully destroyed the first faith base station.

However, just as they breathed a sigh of relief, shocking news arrived—the Flame Spirit Water Artifact Spirit had defected to the Eternal Night Council, carrying some fragments of the Rainbow Core!
"What?!"

Cynthia and David exclaimed in surprise at the same time.

They knew that the Rainbow Core Fragment was the source of the Flame Spirit Water Vessel's power and the key to its control over its followers.

Now that the spirit has defected, it means that all their previous efforts will have been in vain.

"We must catch up with it quickly!"

David said eagerly.

However, just as they were about to set off, the earth suddenly began to shake violently.

A powerful force of earth vein energy surged from underground, instantly destroying the surrounding buildings.

Cynthia and David managed to steady themselves and looked up to see Anne's figure slowly emerging from the ground.

(End of this chapter)