Witch Redemption

Put yourself in their shoes; the Empire's logic is simply untenable. How could seven weak witches possibly band together and escape? How could seven weak witches be swayed by the Sixth Apostle, Carametti? Did they really have the power to sway anyone?

"Demon Clan Witch, I have never cared what the Empire says to you, nor what you think of me. Our only enemy is the Empire. Whether now or in the future, our goal is revenge against the Empire. To achieve this goal, no matter who gets in our way, even if they are your fellow countrymen who seem to have crossed over from the same world, I will show them no mercy!"

The empire has a lot of evidence about the Seven Witches' defection. Does that matter? It has never mattered to Li Lan. Anyway, he had already killed quite a few other transmigrators back in the Elf Kingdom, and he wouldn't mind killing more in the future.

After her speech, the witch Rosa positioned herself as one of the seven traitorous witches, and combined with this so-called "imperial conspiracy theory," the result was extremely horrifying.

"But if you hadn't colluded with the Sixth Apostle, Kalamiti, you would never have been able to..."

"Who knows? How can an individual fight against a vast empire?" The past events are vivid in my mind, as if they happened yesterday. It was the countless sacrifices of my predecessors that gave us the only chance to survive.

The Sixth Apostle, Karamitti, played a crucial role in this process, but the real deciding factor was the countless witch predecessors who passed on their hopes one after another, ultimately leading to Li Lan.

With a sigh, Li Lan's emotions relaxed slightly. This godforsaken place kept trying to provoke his killing intent. If it weren't for his extraordinary willpower, he probably would have already started fighting not long ago.

"I remember your name is Rosa, right?"

Li Lan did indeed have a favorable impression of this extremely cautious witch; the other party's two concessions were enough to show that she was not an unreasonable person. In that case, perhaps she was a potential teammate worth trying to win over.

"Are you aware that there is such a thing as 'position' in this world?"

Upon hearing this, the demon witch Rosa nodded. "We stand on opposing sides. I represent the Empire, and you represent the traitors. Our positions mean that only one of us can survive in this space."

“That’s right. Opposing positions mean our fate will be a fight to the death, regardless of morality, justice, or evil.” Li Lan admired this witch and hoped she would change her stance. Therefore, he didn’t want to drag things out any longer. He would extend an olive branch here and even look forward to her answer.

"Time is precious. I can see that you have no intention of fighting me and you even believe in the so-called imperial conspiracy theory. No matter how much I say, I can't gain your trust. I can even tell that you may have been used as pawns and given this mission in an attempt to trade one for one with me. Am I right?"

Rosa remained silent, thinking to herself, "So that's how it is. Did they see through my plan to stall for time?"

"The Empire is sending you to your deaths, why are you still so stubborn? Do you really think this world is just a game? That death allows you to return to your original world? You're wrong. Death in this world is true death; death means losing everything. Since the Empire has already used you as pawns, why should you stand on the Empire's side?"

"How about we change our stance? Not on the side of the Empire, nor on my side, but on our own independent standpoint. Seven days—just give me seven more days—and I have a way to completely break you out of the Empire's control!"

"It's alright. It seems you want to stall for time. I'll grant your request and let you take your time to consider it!"

"Because I admire you! You're very clever!"

If it were a rebellious witch, she would have been dead long ago.

Chapter 11 The Price of Defection

Li Lan clearly remembered that the witch named "Rosa" had mentioned that she could see other people's "qi" and use it to judge their strength.

What this guy mentioned this morning—that Li Lan is stronger than any witch he's ever seen—is probably true. It was precisely because she sensed there was no chance of victory that the demon witch Rosa chose to talk to him twice, instead of foolishly choosing to fight.

Li Lan saw through the witch's intention to stall for time. Although he didn't know what she was really thinking, he had become much bolder since learning that he had the protection of two creators. He figured it wouldn't be a problem to stall for a while.

If he really has to fight against the empire and against the world in the future, then he will need power, more power, and he will not be alone.

Therefore, in order to achieve this goal, as long as the witches encountered are not too outrageous, Li Lan can indeed consider winning them over. Even if they don't stand on his side, he must find a way to keep them neutral, at least so that they don't hinder Li Lan in the future.

After a few words, since Li Lan was not in a hurry to take action and had made her stance clear, the Ghost Clan Witch Rosa naturally responded immediately, "Thank you, please give us some time to consider."

The six witches quickly retreated to a certain distance, suppressing the killing intent generated by this special space while whispering among themselves.

"Gentlemen, did you all hear the conversation just now?"

Rosa's complexion had been terrible since morning. Although she hadn't spent much time with the traitorous witch Karen Elf, the key information she gleaned from their conversation was astonishing.

The first key piece of information is that the Empire's description of these rogue witches is seriously inconsistent with the rogue witches' own accounts.

According to the Empire, the seven witches who defected were bewitched by the Sixth Apostle, Caramiti, and ruthlessly killed a group of witches. They then escaped with the help of the Sixth Apostle, Caramiti.

This was something that none of the witches had questioned much in the past, for a very simple reason.

With the Empire's strength, eliminating the seven traitorous witches immediately would be no problem at all. Their escape must have been orchestrated by someone behind the scenes; all the evidence points to the confirmed death of the Sixth Apostle, Kalamiti. Without this troublemaker, the seven witches' escape would have been a complete fantasy.

However, judging from the words of the traitorous witch Karen Elf, there may be more details involved, and the real reason for the Seven Witches' defection is probably not due to the bewitching of any apostle, but rather related to the illusions she had previously witnessed.

Is the Empire hiding something? Is everything really a conspiracy, as Karen Elf suggests?

The second key piece of information is that the rogue witch never harbored any hostility towards them, these fellow transmigrators, from the very beginning. Instead, she made it clear that the rogue witch had a grudge against the empire, and their only goal was to take revenge on the empire.

In their quest for revenge, anyone who stands in their way is destined to die.

This is why Karen Elf mentioned the so-called "stance"—stances are neither right nor wrong, only results matter.

What concerned Rosa most was not these two key pieces of information, but the last one. That was, as the traitorous witch Karen Elf had said, the Empire was probably going to use them as pawns, sending them to their deaths. And what was even more terrifying was that death in this world probably wouldn't be like what the Empire had mentioned, where the soul would return to its original world.

“Team leader, we heard it, but we don’t think his words have any truth to them.”

The witch Dani immediately refuted him, her reasoning simple: he had almost been killed that morning. This traitorous witch was just as the empire had described—ruthless and merciless, capable of killing even her own kind without hesitation. What could be trusted about such a morally bankrupt person?

“I think so too, leader,” echoed another feline orc witch, Felit, who was closer to the witch Dani. “The Empire has shown us complete evidence. The reasons for the Seven Witches’ defection have been proven from the beginning, and there is no doubt about that.”

"Yes, it's all just this rogue witch's side of the story. Besides these words, can she provide any concrete evidence? Seeing is believing. If what she said is true, then she should have provided evidence from the beginning."

The witch Dani, who had suffered a severe setback that morning, had developed a strong hostility towards the traitorous witch. After she and the witch Felit expressed their opinions, the other three witches remained silent, seemingly hesitant to voice their own views.

That is, they could not possibly believe everything the traitorous witch said at this time.

No matter how many conspiracy theories this rogue witch spouts, it's all meaningless, because they've always seen how the empire treats witches like them.

The empire treated them with sincerity, providing them with countless material support, granting them a great deal of power and status, placing them in the position of "saviors," and never deceiving them.

Not to mention the six witches including Rosa, all the other witches of the empire held the same idea: this world was just a "game," and the existence of the empire was like an NPC in the game. They were all chosen ones, just like the transmigrators in many novels or comics, experiencing different lives in a "game world."

Death is definitely not the end for them; this rogue witch is definitely exaggerating.

If this world isn't a game, then who can explain what exactly is going on with the witch's natal magic book? All the data appearing on it is something that could only happen in a game.

"She gave me the evidence this morning," the witch Rosa replied after a long silence in the face of her teammates' questions. "I may very well have seen the truth of this world, if it wasn't an illusion..."

Previously, there had been no opportunity, but now the witch Rosa could finally explain why she had lost her composure since this morning.

Finally, the witch Rosa even commented, "Kalen Elf might not be the kind of evil person we imagine, but rather someone who truly has unspeakable difficulties. I think we can trust her for now. If she really does have the means to help us escape the Empire, perhaps we..."

"Team leader, you're insane!" Witch Dani was the first to disagree. Why? Why were they mortal enemies in the morning and could shake hands and make peace by evening?

“Leader, you should think this through,” the witch Felit also advised. “We are witches who belong to the Empire. If we choose to leave the Empire, it will be tantamount to treason, and our fate will be the same as that of the seven witches.”

“Yes! And we can’t just give up all our current status, can we? We are major generals in the Empire, but outside the Empire, we are nothing.” The canine orc witch Astana also disagreed.

Within minutes, serious disagreements had arisen among the six witches. Apart from Rosa, who was the leader, the other teammates did not agree to truly defect to the traitorous witch Karen Elf and abandon all the interests and status on the side of the Empire.

The situation began to reach a stalemate.

"Team leader, what's wrong with you? You've been acting strangely since this morning. We could have chosen to ambush her from the beginning, so why were you being so cautious? Not only did you reveal a lot of intelligence and betray the Empire, but now you're saying such treasonous things?"

The witch Dani was heartbroken. She had always believed that her calm leader would not do anything inappropriate, but the reality before her was so disheartening. "This world is just a game. Everything we do is for fun, not to feel so stifled. Many things can be solved with fighting and killing. Why make it so complicated? Why do we have to think so much?"

"Is the rogue witch, Karen Elf, truly invincible? Her natal magic book is at most only slightly superior to those of the predecessors from the year 10004 in the new calendar. Even those predecessors occasionally lost their lives by accident, let alone him. Leader, please stop going on like this. You've already missed too many opportunities. Don't let the Empire, and us, down any further, okay?"

The witch Rosa remained silent; she didn't know how to explain, she just felt utterly confused.

Enraged, the witch Dani clenched her fists tightly. At the height of her anger, she even grabbed the witch Rosa by the collar. "Leader, say something! It's one thing for those rogue witches to be bewitched by the dead apostles, but are you being bewitched by them too? Tell me! What do you mean by all this? Is there really so much conspiracy theory in this world?"

“Dani…”

Seeing that the atmosphere was getting a little strange, the surrounding witches quickly rushed over and separated the two sides.

To this, the witch Rosa merely averted her gaze, murmuring, "This morning, I saw hell. I shouldn't have assumed the worst of this world, but that illusion didn't seem fake; it kept reminding me that the happiness I saw was just a mirage..."

"You're hopeless, team leader! What right do you have to lead this team? What ability do you have to lead us to compete with the other witches?"

The witch Dani had been enraged and had become hysterical.

As witches of the empire, they enjoy the highest treatment and countless powers. However, the competition among all witches is immense, almost crushing them. They have made countless efforts to survive and rise above others.

"I'm sorry, Dani, I think I need to calm down. Perhaps I'm no longer able to lead you."

Feeling somewhat lost and disoriented, a barrage of unsettling thoughts raced through the mind of the demon witch Rosa, giving him a splitting headache.

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

Time was passing slowly. Li Lan, who was waiting quietly to the side, did not expect that the group of witches in the distance would start arguing. Although he was curious about what they were arguing about, they seemed to have used some kind of soundproofing method, so he could only wait from afar.

Li Lan sighed slightly, "It seems that it will be difficult to persuade these witches of the empire with just a few words. I really want them to know the truth of the past, but unfortunately I don't have much evidence on hand."

What other evidence could there be? To make all the memories in my mind flash through my mind like a revolving lantern?

The only tool Li Lan possessed was this sealed artifact, the "Book of Dark Fusion." Unfortunately, this sealed artifact came from a small country, the Viana Theocracy, and did not involve the Empire, so its persuasiveness was very limited.

The reason why Li Lan has not dared to seize the sealed artifacts and demon goddess artifacts of those great powers so far is that these magical items are firmly controlled by the great powers. If he were to seize them rashly, they would only become positioning coordinates that cause great harm.

Two ancient creators' avatars, Black-haired Feather Radiance and Leviathan, once explained that such things should either be avoided altogether, or they should be eliminated directly using the creator's methods, leaving no potential threat.

Although the effects of the "Book of Dark Fusion" are limited, judging from the situation of the six witches, Li Lan did persuade the leader Rosa to some extent. Now it remains to be seen how many teammates this witch, as the leader, can persuade.

Has the argument ended?

Unexpectedly, the team leader ultimately lost out, clearly not receiving support from his teammates, which is understandable.

Whether in novels or movies, many protagonists can persuade a villain with just words. But what about in reality? Pale and powerless words are completely useless. If you really want to persuade someone, using "physical" methods is the quickest way.

"Has it been almost half an hour? I can't wait that long. If they continue to hold out, the situation will only become more unfavorable for me."

This was a completely enclosed space, so Li Lan had no idea what was happening outside. He even had a premonition that at the moment he was trapped, more powerful reinforcements might have arrived one after another.

"Regardless, I'm now considered a powerful figure in the Empire's eyes, so various countermeasures must be arranged properly. Let these six witches deal with me first, and incidentally, let my temporary teammate Lily become my enemy, to see if she can cause me any harm. As for the people outside, well..."

Li Lan wasn't exactly a brilliant person; he was just cautious and tended to overthink things. "A sealed artifact, the Book of Deadly Duels? Indeed, it's a valuable item; it can turn a large group of people of similar backgrounds into bitter enemies. In other words, if I had come here with Della and Lorina..."

They might be forced to fight each other.

"Given the current situation, either I have to lie down, or these witches and Lily will have to lie down."

Li Lan wouldn't mind killing everyone around him, but it went against his principles. After all, Lily Williams, this straightforward woman, was now his teammate, and killing teammates was never his style.

"How about we try this first?"

Li Lan took out a small amount of "Abhos's flesh," a special item given to him by Leviathan at their parting. The quantity was not large, and it was only used as Li Lan's trump card.

Moreover, since such a source of pollution can generally only be controlled by Leviathan, its master, both its spread and explosion require the will of the ancient creator. Therefore, Li Lan cannot currently utilize this item to its full potential; at most, it can only be used to break through special barriers or to eradicate certain undead creatures.

The black, writhing flesh, upon contact with the mottled stone ground, did not immediately spread out, but instead floated on the ground like an oil stain.

"Strange, the ground is clearly solid, but it looks like liquid right now?"

Something's not right. The body of the evil god Abhoth is supposed to be the most intractable form of physical contamination, so why is it having no effect at this moment?

Could it be that the composition of this space itself is not based on the physical laws of the present world, but rather on some other special kind of matter? Perhaps it is entirely composed of spiritual energy?

Unable to understand, completely unable to understand in the short term, it seemed that Li Lan only had one choice left.

"The sealing artifact formed after the witch's death is indeed extraordinary!"

On second thought, given that all the major powers treat witches with the most severe measures, could it be that the real target was never the artifact in the witch's hands, but rather a sealing object with extraordinary effects?