Witch Redemption

Of course, Hei Fa Yu Hui knew the extent of the trouble he had caused. On one hand, he had no choice, and on the other hand, he was probably a little reserved and felt ashamed, so he didn't say anything.

"Southwest? Hmm?"

Li Lan flipped through the map for a while, then suddenly froze. Southwest—wasn't that the border between the Naga Kingdom and the Elf Kingdom? That was the place where Peggy and the other two had last disappeared. This place was currently known as the "Lost Wasteland," and it was also the destination that Li Lan had previously decided to go to.

Although Li Lan had heard rumors before that Peggy's trio of elderly people might have met their end there, he had refused to accept it, always believing they would be alright. Now it seems they were right...

This was truly good news. The longing for her old friend brought a rare smile of happiness to Li Lan's face.

Black-haired Yu Hui was unaware that Li Lan was very happy, and continued, "From here to that hellhole, if nothing unexpected happens, we can get there within three days. Well, it's best to get there within three days, at your fastest speed. If we're late, we can't guarantee what might happen."

"There's one more thing you need to be careful about: don't die in this place. All the witches who die here will have their souls bound to the dream world, forever lost in the common domain of these false gods. Even Leviathan and I are no exception. This place is just that eerie. Where do you think all the ghosts in the Elf Kingdom came from? A very small portion of them might not be witches, but rather ancient gods or even avatars of the Creator."

This was Hei Fa Yu Hui's high praise. Li Lan didn't know where this ancient will got the information from, but it was precisely after hearing this that he felt an unprecedented pressure.

The Elf Kingdom is capable of threatening the Creator's avatar; this is no small feat!

Although there are still many questions, there is not much point in continuing to investigate. Li Lan is only concerned about one thing: where to escape to and how long to escape?

After much deliberation, given the lack of intelligence, every step we take in the future must be taken with extreme caution; the slightest misstep could mean certain death for everyone.

"In short, let's first determine the direction. The commotion lately has been too great, and I must get them out of the limelight as soon as possible."

...... ...... ......

Hei Fa Yu Hui fell silent again, and it was unknown when she would reappear. It was precisely because of the information she brought that Li Lan was quite flustered.

As I closed my natal magic book, I looked up and saw that the sky was still pitch black, but when I looked down, I saw a heartwarming scene: a humanoid follower in the protective barrier noticed that the campfire had shrunk considerably, so he silently stepped forward and added some more firewood, while the three elven girls who were still fast asleep let out a few indistinct murmurs in their sleep.

"It seems they will wake up tomorrow. We need to keep them mentally prepared."

Li Lan didn't want to encounter any danger, and then have three low-class kids screaming in pain beside him. Were they trying to kill him?

"Grandma Karen?"

"You're awake?" Li Lan turned her head upon hearing this, only to see that the twin witches, who should have been fast asleep, had already woken up.

"Yeah, I just woke up. Um... thank you. We haven't been able to sleep this well in a long time."

The twin sister, Xue Ling, told the truth that she had forgotten the last time she could sleep so soundly. Ever since her body began to mutate, they had been living in fear and in a daze, and would be awakened by nightmares every time.

Tonight is their first night back to normal, and the first night they can finally relax.

At this moment, in their eyes, this somewhat ugly old witch was a benefactor reborn, as beautiful as an angel. Moreover, since this benefactor had spared no effort to bring them out of that hell, she easily won their trust.

"Well, it was just a small favor. I was only doing this because someone asked me to."

"Rebecca and the others?" the twin sister, White Ethereal, asked excitedly. "How are they? Are they alright?"

Those two benefactors who offered help in their time of need will forever be remembered in the hearts of the Twin Witches; they will never forget them.

“Don’t worry, they’re doing well now,” Li Lan pondered for a moment, then told them some stories from the past to help them understand the outside world. “In the future, I will take you to that place. Besides Rebecca and Susan, there are several other witches like them…”

The two of them simultaneously showed expressions of anticipation.

Suddenly, the twin sister, Xue Ling, seemed to remember something and took out a brass key that she always carried with her. "Oh, right, Grandma Karen, Rebecca once gave us this, saying that it contained some secrets that only the witch chosen by fate could uncover. We'll give it to you."

The twin witches had no idea what the so-called destined witch was, but the kind-hearted old witch in front of them was their benefactor, a great person who had saved them from their suffering.

"Um, I'm not some witch of destiny, there must be someone else."

This strange key is one of Mira's remaining items. At that time, Li Lan was still suffering in the British Empire, and his later contact with Mira was due to various coincidences.

Perhaps "fate" exists in this world. For those witches still trapped in their cages, everything has been planned by an invisible hand. But for witches like Li Lan who have escaped their cages, fate doesn't exist; there are only various coincidences and inevitabilities.

However, seeing how persistent the two little ones were, Li Lan also became interested in the items left behind by Mira, so she reached out her hand, intending to take a look.

However, he did not expect that the moment he touched that cold key, everything in front of him would shatter like glass, and then endless chaos and darkness would sweep over him.

"Forehead?"

Before there was time to feel fear, consciousness suddenly sank into oblivion, and a great deal of long-buried truth was about to be revealed...

Chapter 34 Witch Reform

Waking up from the familiar nightmare, she couldn't help but raise her right hand and instinctively shield her eyes.

"..."

Her mind was still a bit muddled, but the warm sunlight was so dazzling that she couldn't look directly at it, making her feel drowsy again.

"My lord! My lord! You're awake?!"

A long, icy blue tail was swaying merrily behind her, extremely vigorously. Following this captivating tail, one could see the orc girl's uniquely beautiful figure, as well as her pair of silver-white claws that she kept at a distance, fearing they might harm her.

Finally, the wandering gaze settled on the wolf's head, its eyes narrowed with excitement, revealing two rows of gleaming white fangs in its ferocious maw.

"Fenrir? What time is it now?"

"February 3rd, 10000 of the Gregorian calendar! My lord, you are quite forgetful. We are currently in the capital city of the Elf Kingdom, Bassasaru. The place we are staying is a wonderful place known as the 'Summit of the World Tree.' These elves are truly kind, giving you the highest honors. However, to be honest, the food here is really terrible, so I personally cooked for you!"

The wolf girl, as if begging for praise, shook her enormous tail even more vigorously.

"Well, I see."

The response was rather cold. She, known as the "Sixth Apostle, Kalamiti," got up and scratched her somewhat dazed head.

She wasn't forgetful; she was just temporarily lost in thought.

Who would have thought that even the "god," hailed as the strongest being in the world, is ultimately no different from a mortal except for this near-immortal body? He needs to eat to replenish his strength, needs to sleep to replenish his energy, and he also dreams, dreaming of many things from the past.

It is said that many intelligent beings who have awakened their true nature and taken a step towards "immortality" selectively forget things to avoid the suffering caused by long lifespans and excessive memories. But she is different. As an apostle who has lived for tens of thousands of years, she has endured countless memories, and even the most boring and painful ones are treasures to her.

"Get ready, we'll be going to see the living gods here soon, and they should be appearing around that time."

They are verbally addressed as "the gods of the present world," but in reality, they are nothing more than a group of "false gods" who have lived for tens of thousands of years and successfully seized the power of the gods. As the terminators of the age of gods, perhaps only six ancient apostles in the present world know just how insane the ancient era was.

To appease the desires of many ancient creators, the six apostles directly or indirectly annihilated all the gods and slaughtered the vast majority of mythical creatures, allowing weaker intelligent beings to rise to power. The result was predictable: the weak, having gained power, began to harbor uncontrollable ambitions, ultimately leading to their seizure of the gods' power and their replacement of them.

After tens of thousands of years of development, at some point, these weaklings began to stand on equal footing with the apostles.

All of this could be considered the will of those ancient creators. She could only watch helplessly as it happened, unable to disobey or stop it.

"My lord, it's a bit of a shame. The agreed time has been postponed. This morning, those guys informed me that there seems to be new progress in the research on witch summoning, and they plan to have that Star Goddess Gaia preside over the positioning ceremony. Anyway, I don't understand what they mean."

"I see?"

The Witch Summoning, an ancient and unique ritual, originated from her two close friends, the Goddess of the Underworld and the Goddess of Space. The original intention was to summon a savior from another world. On one hand, it was to allow intelligent beings with a will to die in this world to survive in another realm, preserving the spark of life in this world. On the other hand, it was to make the summoned witch a new deity after the Age of Gods, to combat the prophesied day of the future.

The goddess of space, Chronos, once said, "This world is dark and corrupt, and such a world will never be valued by the creators. But the witches from the civilized world are different; they may guide the direction of this world with new ideas and bring hope to it."

The sixth apostle, Caramati, agreed with this vague and unfounded claim, but she was skeptical about its validity.

It is precisely because this world is a dark and decaying abyss, intolerant of even a glimmer of light, that the idea of ​​the Space Goddess, who wanted to leave a spark of hope for this world even until her death, seems all the more impractical! Even the brightest sun will be completely swallowed up in this abyss, just like the Space Goddess Chronos herself, let alone these fragile witches who are like sparks of fire?

As the Sixth Apostle, Kalamiti, had imagined, the nature of witch summoning changed. From the moment the first witch who advanced to a Silver Spellbook died unexpectedly, these intelligent beings at the pinnacle of the era drew their savage swords and made witches their victims.

To allow an outsider to rise to the top, replace them, and become the ruler of various countries? Sorry, they can't, and it's impossible for them to do so.

If they can control their own power, or even exert it more effectively, then why should they trust an outsider?

This is a world filled with bloodshed and evil. For tens of thousands of years, she has watched with such heartache as her dearest friend's hope was trampled upon, and as year after year, day after day, countless witches became fuel for the power of this world. Their corpses formed the capital for these intelligent beings to become stronger and to rebel against the great creator.

Rubbing her somewhat dazed head, she forced herself to stop thinking about such trivial matters, a habit she had always kept to herself. Instead, she took out a white mask made from the bones of a demon and used it to cover her grayish-white face.

"Fenrir, take me to the meeting place first, I can wait."

"Oh? But my lord, we have to wait until tonight..."

"It's alright, this is just a token of my sincerity. If this succeeds..."

Even when she said it aloud, she herself didn't understand it in her heart.

"Sigh, my lord is really something. Over the years, he has shown no mercy in killing witches, yet now he is going to such lengths for these witches. What is he after? I say, witches are nothing but tools, weak and useless. Why is he so concerned about them?"

Yes, even she couldn't understand herself. Apostles were supposed to be emotionless puppets, only needing to mechanically execute the commands of their creators.

Touching the somewhat cold mask, only in this moment could she barely calm down.

She liked masks; they could conceal her identity, her thoughts, and prevent others from ever knowing her vulnerabilities.

Fenrir, don't forget your duty! Talking too much is not a virtue!

Hearing that chilling voice, the icy blue wolf girl's tail bristled with fear. "I know, of course I know, I won't lie! Woof—woof—"

...... ...... ......

All intelligent beings born into this world, even those who are descendants of the gods, cannot fully bear the gods' "divinity," which is the dark blood that symbolizes the "source of power."

What made the ancient gods so special? They were toys created by the ancient creator to please him. Each of the ancient gods had a unique physical structure, a gift from the ancient creator.

The inability to seize the "divinity" of the ancient gods means the inability to seize their power, and naturally, the inability to stand at the pinnacle of this world and become the new ruler.

Even many humans, known for their intelligence, have stumbled on the problem of "how to completely seize godhood," and countless peerless powerhouses have died because of it.

Countless deaths and countless experiences have taught many powerful humans only one despairing truth: no matter how many years they cultivate or how strong their bodies become, they are ultimately just mortals and can never reach the heights of the ancient gods.

Unless they abandon their so-called "human identity"!

Thus, these incredibly intelligent beings began to shift their focus, moving from studying the physical body to studying the soul. Eventually, they abandoned their original physical bodies and began to seize the countless ancient remains of the gods, thereby being reborn and gaining the power to control everything.

This is the origin of the term "false god"!

Controlling the bodies of high gods with the souls of lower-level intelligent beings, even if it unleashes immense power, comes at a price. One price is that these false gods are imprisoned in the "cage" of their flesh, and unless they one day strengthen their souls to a certain degree, they will find it difficult to unleash their full power. The second price is that abandoning their human or elven identities to seize the remains of ancient gods means bearing the gods' inhuman curse, living their entire lives as irreversibly monstrous beings.

Therefore, for tens of thousands of years, whenever the Sixth Apostle, Kalamiti, wanted to meet with the "false gods" of various great powers, she had to notify them in advance, giving these "false gods" ample time to prepare. The false gods never met with her in their true forms, but rather as avatars capable of transforming into normal forms.

After waiting for more than ten hours, night fell, and the entire capital of the Elf Kingdom was brightly lit and bustling with activity.

Far from the bustling market, this spiraling, towering tree is incredibly secluded. This ancient tree is the tallest World Tree in the Elf Kingdom, and its enormous canopy supports a luxurious crystal palace. This is the shared palace of the gods of the mortal world, and no creature can set foot in this area alive without the royal family's permission.

Right now, the Sixth Apostle, Kalamiti, and her servant, the Abyss Monster Fenrir, sit in the sky pavilion in the southwest. From here, one can overlook any scene within the entire capital city, feel the unique peaceful and warm atmosphere of the capital, and escape the hustle and bustle of the world, as if standing at the very top of the world.

"It's so slow!"

The restless wolf girl grumbled again, baring her teeth, while her master had been sitting there since morning, completely silent.

"Quiet, she's coming."

To prevent this straightforward fellow from making reckless remarks and causing trouble, the Sixth Apostle, Caramiti, spoke for the first time after being silent for so long. Her words quickly made this carefree and loyal subordinate stand up straight, exaggeratedly and imposingly standing beside her, appearing serious and ruthless.

"This clown..."

She glanced away and saw a blonde woman strolling towards the end of the sky corridor.

The woman's eyes were half-closed as if she were asleep. More eye-catching than her seemingly simple and beautiful face was her explosive figure. Against the backdrop of pure white silk, her firm breasts were barely visible and about to burst forth.

Of course, the flowing golden waves behind her and the two pairs of gently swaying black wings added a mysterious sense of sacredness and inviolability to her inhuman features.