Witch Redemption

In just a few words, the beautiful young man didn't mention the real reason for discovering these witches, but he directly touched Li Lan's heart.

Li Lan's heart sank. She thought to herself, "So, it really was the right path to go through remote monster-infested areas from start to finish? But without contact with human society, intelligence gathering becomes a major problem; it's hard to have the best of both worlds. If these small countries can't be approached rashly, then is it because I wasn't cautious enough? No, no!"

Li Lan was starting to have doubts about life, but then she realized that things weren't so simple.

Indeed, in this world, there are very few witches who can escape the control of powerful nations, so their identities are not hard to guess.

Secondly, Li Lan suspected that the real reason their identities would be discovered was that none of them expected that this god of the living would actually be in charge of this god-like place, and that this god of the living was probably not as elegant as he appeared, but rather extremely sinister.

"This is too strange. As ancient creators, Shub and Leviathan's perception abilities are absolutely unparalleled. Back in the Elf Kingdom, they were able to sense numerous dangers and take precautions in advance. This time, if there really is a god-level being in this area, they shouldn't be unable to detect it. Could it be..."

In an instant, Li Lan guessed a terrible truth.

Many of the world's great powers are aware of the existence of ancient creators, and these creators will become their greatest enemies in the future. As a result, these nations may have already developed preliminary ways to restrain these creators, whether on a physical or spiritual level.

For example, this young man who calls himself the "God of the Present World" may have the ability or means to isolate himself from the perception of the Creator's avatar.

"If that's the case, and if this guy really is a god of this world, then attacking him now would be the biggest mistake of all!"

The difference in strength between the two sides was too great. Li Lan would never forget the "hand-made nuclear bomb" of those living gods from the Elf Kingdom. This was a densely populated area, and this high and mighty living god probably wouldn't directly "hand-make a nuclear bomb," but that didn't mean he didn't have a thousand ways to torment them.

A true man can bend and stretch. In this situation, if the two sides can still communicate so peacefully, why shouldn't Li Lan take a few steps back?

"May I ask, Your Majesty, what is the purpose of summoning us here?"

While verbally addressing the deity with reverence, they inwardly cursed the man's corpse and mouth.

"It's nothing really, you've just been arrested. Could you please cooperate? I don't like fighting, but if pushed too far, I'm not sure what I might do."

With a smile, he uttered these threatening words. The beautiful young man waved his hand, and several soldiers belonging to the Kingdom of Fenyan emerged with chains. The meaning was clear.

You either surrender or die; the choice is yours.

Li Lan felt very troubled; was this going to put them in jail?

"Don't worry, you will be sent to that area in a week. Our country will also provide corresponding intelligence. Whether you can come out alive depends on your own abilities."

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

Late at night on February 18, 10008 (Gregorian calendar), Black-haired Yu Hui and Leviathan, who were stationed at the border hotel of the Kingdom of Fenyan, ultimately did not wait for Li Lan and the others to return.

"Looks like something's happened."

Looking out the window at the brightly lit street scene, Yu Huiyao, with her black hair, felt an increasingly strong sense of foreboding.

They arrived in the Kingdom of Fenyan around noon today, while Li Lan and the others had been gone for nine hours. During that time, a large-scale search had taken place in the small country. If Hei Fa Yu Hui hadn't been so shrewd as to let Juliet and the other children negotiate, they might have already been taken away.

"What should we do?" Leviathan asked anxiously, even fearfully. "What if the servants have been killed? What should we do?"

"No, I can sense his presence. He's still alive... No, you have a deeper relationship with him. Can't you sense it?" Black-haired Yu Hui clicked his tongue. Leviathan, this "God of Mud," dares to call himself an ancient creator? Is he really this reckless and shameless?

"Oh, right, he is indeed still alive. I mean, what if the others get killed?"

"What else can we do? As long as the servant doesn't die, we don't care about anything else."

With a rather cold response, Hei Fa Yu Hui had lost his usual smile and leaned back in his chair, looking very depressed. His slender right fingers tapped nervously on the table, making a soft clicking sound.

These two ancient creators were sealed within Li Lan's creations, which allowed them to sense a mysterious connection with him and perceive his life or death. However, due to their sealing, their power was significantly limited; in short, "I only have one-tenth of my power left"—truly one-tenth of their full strength.

"Even when we join forces, we can barely deal with demigods. Some of the more troublesome ones we can only flee from. It's very troublesome. If the other side can successfully take away the servants, or even kill them, it means that the opponent is at least a demigod, or even a pseudo-god personally."

Strangely, when Hei-haired Yu-hui and the others entered this area, they did not sense anything unusual.

In other words, even the avatars of the ancient creator can perceive certain aspects of destiny's trajectory, and they couldn't possibly be unaware of such a momentous event as today. This suggests that something is likely limiting their abilities and isolating them from their senses.

"A barrier? Could it be this barrier?"

Even clay bodhisattvas have a temper. They were initially brought to this world with "pleasure" and had a smooth journey before heading to the Elf Kingdom. But after that trip to the Elf Kingdom, these two ancient creators became incredibly resentful. How could they tolerate that?

There's a feeling of being targeted everywhere, which makes it impossible to feel happy!

Black-haired Yu Hui was rarely angry; his expression had lost its usual composure and was now terrifyingly dark.

"Leviathan, how much of your true physical body do you have left? Is your reserve sufficient?"

"What do you want to do?" Leviathan felt that the black-haired Yu Hui was a little scary at this moment.

"I won't do anything. What do my servants always say? Prepare for a rainy day. These ants are too ungrateful. I'll make them remember the fear of being dominated by the strong!"

With a voice as loud as boiling water, she gritted her teeth. Black-haired Yu Hui never liked to engage in any profound schemes or tricks. When pushed to the limit, she would pretend to educate these ants about what true explosive art and true throwing tiles were.

This strange barrier isn't very big? Great! Then just blow it up! Everyone dies together!

"This...this isn't a good idea, is it? What if it wakes up the person downstairs..."

“Leviathan, strictly speaking, this servant is our foundation, our stake in this world. If we run out of money, what will you do?” Black-haired Yu Hui paused for a while, then said irritably, “Of course I’ll flip the table! You and I both lost the bet ten thousand years ago, and I can’t afford to lose again this time. Flip the table, destroy the world, and all the games of true gods can go to hell. That’s what I’m going to do.”

"Uh, you're really angry?"

"What do you say?"

Leviathan remained silent for a long time after hearing this, then took out a specially made iron box and examined it, presumably to estimate the amount of cards he had left.

“Blowing up this barrier is no problem, but I want to give two conditions. One condition is that our servant dies once, and the other condition is that the game must continue. I don’t want to be outnumbered and face so many tough guys after flipping the table. I’m afraid that if we really fight, we’ll both be badly injured. You know that our servant has our protection, so he shouldn’t be that unlucky. We can consider blowing through this place and then escaping with the reborn servant. What do you think?”

"Alright, then we'll behave ourselves for a while and wait here for now."

It can be said that the biggest reason why Hei-fa Yu-hui tried so hard to win over the true god "Abhos" was this huge trump card. With just this finger of Abhos that can regenerate many times, he could blast open a vast area.

If one were to be ruthless and exert all one's strength to stimulate the regeneration of Abhos's body, sacrificing all the living beings of a great nation for him, then even overturning the table and destroying the world would not be impossible.

There's no need for that; their goal has always been that world full of entertainment, and they're still hoping that this witch's servant can actually find a way back and cleverly take them there.

But if this huge bet is lost, it won't be as simple as flipping the table.

Once upon a time, these two ancient creators also began to experience how agonizing waiting could be.

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

"It seems that something happened to Ako and Arno. All I can confirm right now is that the blessing placed on them has not disappeared."

In the next room, the high-browed girl, Yao, was also looking at the street scene outside the window with a dark expression. No one knew the strength of her two familiars better than her.

At the demigod level, those two were practically immortal tanks with incredible strength. Yet even they couldn't return. There's definitely a possibility that some pseudo-god was in this area and made a move today.

"The fact that this false god was able to imprison them shows that he is quite powerful, and may even be able to kill them. Moreover, a large-scale search broke out in this area today, perhaps in search of a creator like me. If I hadn't been able to read minds and pretend to be mute at that time, I might have been finished."

"The barrier in this area seems quite unusual. Should I abandon these two companions and retreat first?"

"No way! A tiger fallen into the plains is bullied by dogs. I, the CEO of a big company, have fallen to this state. Even my loyal subordinates have been dealt with. How can I slink away like this? I have to think of a way to deal with her!"

Enraged, the ancient creator's avatar, whose true name was "Cthulhu," was also furious. She couldn't defeat him in the Elf Kingdom, was injured, and fled far away. Who knew that she would be targeted here again? How could she possibly withstand this?

"I need time to prepare. This barrier covers a wide area, so I can slowly infiltrate it. If you push me too far, I'll send this hellhole flying!"

It seems that these angry avatars of the Creator are all self-destructive maniacs; once they get carried away, they unleash their "trump cards" without a second thought.

She shifted her gaze to the three sleeping figures on the kang (a heated brick bed) beside her, her expression growing even more grave. "I need a large number of flesh and blood sacrifices to summon the power source of my true form. I also lack sufficient manpower right now. Should I try to command them?"

She felt a strange sense of guilt. Since coming to this world, she had rarely killed any intelligent beings. After all, having lived in a society governed by the rule of law for so long, she was still unable to change her old habits.

Even someone like her was driven to the point of having thoughts of killing and sacrifice, which shows just how angry she was at that moment.

"Fine, judging this world by the morality of that world is a mistake in itself. Now that we're barely able to protect ourselves, I don't need to pretend to be a gentleman anymore."

After thinking for a moment, she decided not to wake the three sleeping little creatures. As her fingertips slid across the table, creating a peculiar array, ten ugly, leech-like small creatures were quickly summoned in the flickering light.

"Why can't killing be done in this way?"

Parasitize, manipulate, and then let intelligent beings kill each other.

This ancient creator, accustomed to comfort, finally recalled his own mischievous side.

Chapter 8 New Technology

On that day, forced by circumstances, Li Lan had no choice but to surrender and go to jail along with the golden-haired Yu Hui and the twin witches Bai Ling and Xue Ling.

It was in the prison of the Kingdom of Fenyan that Li Lan and the others discovered a terrible fact: they were not the only ones imprisoned. A large group of legendary adventurers who had arrived that day had also been coerced and imprisoned. It was said that they would be escorted to the snow-capped mountains by the army of the desolate ancient kingdom the next morning.

Squeezed into a small cell, the three legendary adventurers, Franklin, Ruda, and Nig, looked terrible. They had initially thought they had just accepted a guild mission with a huge reward, and now they simply couldn't believe they were actually being held captive.

Why is this happening?

Franklin was starting to have doubts about life. This force that suddenly appeared today, belonging to the desolate ancient kingdom, did not blame them for colluding with the witch at all, and even seemed completely uninterested in it.

So what exactly is the reason for imprisoning them? Why wasn't it explained clearly when they were arrested today?

It's impossible that all these foreign adventurers are criminals, but that's the reality they face. Without distinguishing right from wrong, all adventurers who came to the Adventurers' Guild in the Kingdom of Fenyan to hand in their missions were either sent back if they were Diamond-level or sent in if they were Legendary-level, regardless of their race.

In fact, some adventurers did consider resisting when they were arrested today. Unfortunately, all the unfortunate souls who attempted to resist died, and not in a dignified manner, leaving no complete corpses. This incredibly ruthless method naturally intimidated the vast majority of people. It can be said that everyone in this prison was completely subdued, with no other choice.

Franklin felt miserable and frustrated, but he couldn't say a word. He didn't know how to assess the situation or how to comfort his teammates.

In contrast, only these three witches remained calm, seemingly unconcerned about their current life as prisoners.

Because of the large number of informants around them, Li Lan unusually refrained from speaking. Instead, she squeezed into a corner with the Twin Witches and Yu Hui, and took out paper and pen.

"Fortunately, we are safe for now, but the future is not optimistic. Let's clarify what happened today and discuss our future strategies together."

First, Li Lan was certain that the "cross-dresser" who appeared before them today and called himself the "God of the Present World" was probably indeed at the god level. Just seeing him once was enough to send a chill down her spine, a feeling she had never experienced before when facing demigods.

They could consider a fierce resistance on the spot, but the only outcome would be death; no matter how you look at it, it was a complete dead end.

The current god may not kill them for now, but that doesn't mean he won't try to kill them again. Escaping this predicament is definitely not easy. At least from Li Lan's perspective as an ordinary person, he couldn't think of any way to break the deadlock in the short term.

Because they are not strong enough, they are powerless in the face of an absolute gap in strength, and this time, there is no one like Matilda to help clean up the mess, so Li Lan has to rely on himself.

"We are unable to put up an effective resistance, and we have also lost contact with Shub and the others for the time being. The whole situation is not only passive for us, but also fatal. I think you may need to be prepared."

Frustration and dejection were Li Lan's most helpless feelings at the moment. Forced to accept this cruel reality, he and the Twin Witches had a simple thought: their time left might be running out, and the only thing they could do was to treat each remaining day as if it were their last.

"Let's take it one step at a time. We shouldn't worry about Shub and the others. With their intelligence, they might be able to do better than us."

When Li Lan mentioned Hei Fa Yu Hui and Leviathan, she breathed a sigh of relief. These two ancient creators were not to be underestimated, and entrusting the three little elves to them was definitely the safest option.

"Aren't we going to consider the possibility of escaping? If we go along with what that tomboy says, we'll be sent into the snowy mountains in a week, and then we'll probably never see them again, and we might not find a chance to escape."

Xue Ling, the most composed of the twin witches, wrote down this opinion on a piece of paper, to which Li Lan simply shook her head.

"It's not that we don't want to resist, but that we can't. The situation is even more hopeless than we imagined." If Hei Fa Yu Hui and the others were still around, Li Lan might have considered seeking their advice and discussing countermeasures together. But unfortunately, things don't always go as planned. He encountered this misfortune the moment he stepped out the door. What could he do?

"It's not like there's no chance to contact them," Li Lan planned to secretly leave a skilled concealment follower when she was taken away from the cell tomorrow, to truthfully inform Hei Fa Yu Hui and the others about the general situation here, and to ask them to escape from this place as soon as possible. "I've already thought out the specific arrangements. What I'm worried about now is whether we'll be used as high-level cannon fodder this time?"

Being used as high-level cannon fodder is much better than being crushed like trash from the start, although both are extremely unpleasant.

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

The soldiers responsible for escorting this large group of adventurers came from the only superpower in the wild lands of the northern continent.