Witch Redemption

"I see."

It was even more uneventful than expected. Lana's expression didn't change much; in fact, she was relieved. "I've been calculating, it should be almost six years now. It's long past that time limit. The guy who took my body probably isn't feeling well and couldn't have lasted this long. It's a stroke of luck amidst misfortune."

"Hmm?" Li Lan sensed that Lana was hiding something.

"Nothing, just a sigh. So, you've now latched onto the coattails of the world's masterminds? They're all powerful Cretan gods? And they've all been captured by Earth's culture?" It sounds like a kind of magical realism, it's just so far-fetched.

"I guess so. The thought process of a true god is simply incomprehensible." Li Lan waved her hand dismissively.

"Haha, that's true. We are all short-lived species, living only a hundred years. How could we understand the boredom and loneliness of long-lived species?"

Although these witches are now long-lived beings, psychologically they are no different from short-lived beings. Lana expressed her understanding and added, "So, according to what you said, if we want to survive in the future, the best thing to do is to choose a side?"

"Yes, this world is actually just a playground created by those ancient creators, and this playground is located on the body of one of those ancient creators. You can imagine just how powerful these ancient creators are."

Li Lan was self-aware; an ant is still an ant, and she shouldn't be so arrogant as to try to become a god.

In this world, the most terrifying thing isn't an opponent who is too powerful, but rather the inability to see oneself clearly, becoming lost in illusions and one's own meager strength. In any case, they've survived to this day not just for the sake of survival, but also for revenge against the empire.

As for taking revenge on the ancient creators? There's no need. Those ancient creators are all pleasure-seekers and were never interested in intervening in this world from the beginning. They will only intervene when the time is right.

Li Lan's idea was simple: as long as he had enough strength, he only wanted to destroy the empire, destroy the elven kingdom, and destroy the entire world.

The battle between creators is none of my business; I'll just go wherever it's cool and don't care if it's the end of the world or whatever.

Ants should live by their own means, and they should crush other ants instead of provoking some absolute powerhouse.

Lana was silent for a while, then suddenly said, "Kallen, you seem to have changed. How should I put it, you've lost your former romantic and immature vibe and become a little more mature."

"Is this a compliment or a criticism?" Li Lan asked, puzzled.

"It seems you're no longer fixated on returning to your hometown, or on simply surviving; you've changed direction. I'm curious, what are your thoughts now? Or are they the same as before?"

Lana, who should have been the one who understood Li Lan best, felt that they were somewhat strangers when they met again.

"Yes, returning to my hometown is probably a pipe dream now. Living is also a kind of pain. But, Lana, I will still insist on living on, so as not to leave any regrets."

Yes, it is a pity. Li Lan has experienced countless hardships and, like her comrades, has also witnessed the death of her comrades.

He harbored a deep resentment; he hated this world and had a bitter feud with it, but his power was insignificant, and he was utterly powerless to fight against it.

Therefore, he could only choose to endure and wait for that opportunity to arrive.

Gritting her teeth, Li Lan hesitated for a moment before speaking again, "What changed me was the deaths of Matilda, Peggy, and Sherry..."

A seemingly calm remark caused Lana's face to turn angry, and her hands clenched tightly.

However, the anger quickly subsided, Lana felt relieved, released her hands, and her expression returned to calm.

"them......"

Li Lan understands Lana because they are the same kind of people, which is why they can always control their emotions. "They achieved their wishes and left no regrets. Perhaps death is not as terrible as imagined."

"Speaking of which, they also have a gift they'd like me to give to you."

The tradition among witches will never cease; everything is for the purpose of nurturing new hope.

In this inescapable dead end, what awaits Li Lan and the others should not be despair, but new hope, and this hope comes from the bond between the seven of them.

The moment Li Lan opened the grimoire, his thoughts calmed down. He silently thought to himself, "Lana, I came to save you, and I will definitely save you."

"Even if the promise between the seven of us can no longer be fulfilled, I will do everything in my power to find you all and bring you back one by one. So this time, I will not let go again."

Chapter 26 The Eternal God

The trio is dead.

Upon hearing this devastating news, Lana felt a surge of intense anger and sorrow, but she quickly suppressed these emotions deep within her heart.

Lana is not a heartless person; rather, she has always understood the cruelty of this world and can only choose to face it calmly.

"I should have known. Six years ago, from the moment we chose to flee, our fates diverged. Not to mention the deaths of the trio, even the deaths of Kallen, Lorina, Della..."

Long ago, each of them had already realized that they were all fighting to the very end against this world, and that they would have no regrets even if they chose to die.

Before today, didn't Lana think she might have to break her promise?

Having been trapped in this dark and gloomy place for so many years, he had long been prepared to die here.

"Oh, Karen, actually, I have some really bad news..."

Seeing Li Lan open his natal magic book with a serious expression, Lana couldn't help but add a few words. He wanted to say that the danger of this place was unimaginable, and even he himself dared not explore it too deeply.

Moreover, food is also a huge problem; he doesn't have much food stored up left, and it won't last much longer.

However, before Lana could finish speaking, she suddenly felt an endless surge of power coursing through her body, as if she had been amplified countless times in an instant.

At the same moment, Lana's natal magic book floated in front of her and opened a blank page. "Matilda's Gift" took effect and instantly raised Lana's natal magic book by ten levels, breaking through the fifty-level barrier and reaching level fifty-eight.

This is already the highest level among the witches currently existing in the world!

After a moment of shock, a series of hallucinations flooded Lana's mind. She seemed to see the trio's past and their determination after finally breaking through their confusion.

At that moment, the images that appeared in her mind were not just the trio, but also her former seniors, number 47, causing all sorts of emotions to surge into Lana's heart, almost to the point of bursting.

Lana remained silent for a long time, and she saw the resolute expression on Li Lan's face.

“Karen knows more than I do, and she has endured more than I have. I can’t let her see me in such a pathetic state.”

Suppressing countless negative emotions, Lana looked up at the dark sky and quietly closed her eyes.

"After today, everything will change. I will use my power to protect everyone, and Karen will no longer have to bear this burden alone."

"Matilda, Peggy, Sherry, if the end of this world is destruction, then our promise is far from over."

Even living is a luxury, and what they have seen so far is only the tip of the iceberg of this world. Lana has a strong premonition that all of them, these witches, will perish with the destruction of this world.

If that's the case, why not face death without regrets?

The agreement is not over yet, but this time, it will probably mean meeting again in another world.

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

After a long emotional outburst, Lana, not having time to confirm just how strong she really was, began to change the subject.

"Karen, I have some very important news that I should tell you in advance."

First of all, the Abyss Rift is a one-way street; you can only enter, not exit. Li Lan and the others should know this well from their fall today. This hellish place is tens of thousands of meters high. Putting aside whether you can climb up the cliffs next to it, the unsolvable suction force from the sky is enough to deter anyone.

To be precise, this cursed place is governed by a mysterious, invisible force that even demigods cannot escape its control. Furthermore, the reason why many superpowers never send beings of demigod level or higher to this place is likely because they possess some understanding of it.

Secondly, the purpose of many powerful nations sending witches to the Abyss Rift was indeed to search for the lost dragon kingdom and reap enormous benefits. One of the biggest benefits, as Lana had previously speculated, was likely to rapidly increase the level of these witches' magic books.

"Actually, being trapped here all these years, I am different from those demigods. I have never given up looking for a way to escape."

Perhaps it's because of the saying "a newborn calf is not afraid of a tiger," that Lana is so reckless in this desperate place. He dares to do what others dare not do, and he goes where others dare not go, because he is not like those old guys who have given up on treatment and lived a life of mere survival for thousands of years. He is a man who will not compromise.

"The entire Abyss Rift is extremely large; in terms of area, it is probably the size of two British Empires."

Lana made a startling statement and said in a deep voice, "The area is vast, and in reality, with our physical abilities, going anywhere isn't a problem. The problem is that only the outer perimeter of this godforsaken place is safe. As you can see now, isn't it very quiet here?"

Li Lan was also intrigued. "What would happen if we went deeper?"

“A slight misstep could be fatal,” Lana wasn’t joking. “If you want to go deeper into the Abyss Rift, just head towards the darker side. Along the way, we’ll encounter all sorts of terrain.”

The only living thing in this godforsaken place is the highly poisonous "Nether Grass," while there are plenty of dead things.

The numerous prehistoric building complexes are enormous and precarious; anyone daring to venture inside must be prepared to die inside at any moment due to a collapse.

Countless eerie rivers flowing with corrosive water never cease, and are places that no one can easily set foot in.

Various mountains and natural barriers are difficult to climb, consuming the energy and time of all explorers to the greatest extent.

The most deadly thing is not these natural barriers, but another kind of indescribable, ferocious, and deadly creature.

In Lana's description, this terrifying undead creature took the form of a long snake, about ten meters long, with a large number of black, velvety tentacles on its lower body, and two pairs of huge, tattered fleshy wings on its upper body near the head of a lone goose.

These monsters usually lurk in the darkness, and their appearances are always without warning. In addition to their terrifying speed, their attack methods include eight pairs of barbed claws on their bodies, all of which are corrosive and highly toxic.

"That thing is a collection of rot and distortion. You would never want to see it a second time after seeing it once. However, the amount of magic book experience it can provide is truly outrageous."

No one would want to provoke a demigod-level being hiding in the abyss; it would be a thankless and arduous task.

Korana is different; she's a powerful leveling maniac. The reason she's leveled up so dramatically over the years is because she hunts these powerful monsters.

"Experience is exaggerated?" Li Lan immediately realized a key point: the monsters Lana mentioned were all things that had been tainted by "divinity".

"Yes, but they're hard to kill. I almost died at their hands at first. Even after I reached level 48 in the magic book, I could still fight them one-on-one, but if I encountered two or more of them, I could only choose to run away."

Lana calls this thing the "Flying Little Snake Monster," which is definitely at a demigod level, and there are an absurd number of them.

"In the outermost areas, there are only a few basilisks wandering around. Once you go deeper, their numbers will only increase. You should know that my exploration has only gone a third of the way. After that, it will be beyond my current strength to handle, and I don't know if any particularly outrageous monsters will appear. Fortunately, there is one thing I am very grateful for: once these monsters are killed, they will not come back to life."

Li Lan immediately understood, "So, if we want to fully explore this area, we have to spend time carrying out a major purge of these monsters?"

Unexpectedly, things took a turn for the better. Li Lan thought to himself, this is a good thing. He had thought he wouldn't have many opportunities to level up when he first arrived here, but now the opportunity is right in front of him.

"Karen, I'd like to implement a major purge, but we have a big problem right now: the food issue."

Lana was once the leader of the "Transportation Society," and had accumulated food for many years using her many subordinates. However, most of the food had been eaten up, otherwise she wouldn't have needed to return to the vicinity of the "Original Land" to wait for "feeding."

"The food I have on me can only last for half a month for all of us. It won't last much longer, so it's difficult for us to go deeper."

Li Lan breathed a sigh of relief; he had thought it was something serious. "I can handle this."

Back when Li Lan was in Kobe, on the border of the Viana theocratic state, he had received a batch of grain seeds from Viscount Ivan.

The solution to the current food crisis lies not only in this batch of seeds, but also in Li Lan's unique secondary profession, "Life Creator." Li Lan can use her secondary profession skill, "Element Extraction," to obtain large quantities of life elements, which can be used to accelerate plant growth and rapidly produce food in a short period.

If it weren't for having such a trump card, Li Lan wouldn't have rushed to the Abyss Rift after learning about the Empire's possible actions.

After briefly explaining the situation, Li Lan's words made Lana's expression grow increasingly surprised, until she finally couldn't help but exclaim, "Karen, forever a goddess!"

"Great, as long as we solve the food problem, everything else will be fine." Lana said confidently. When she first saw Li Lan and the others fall into this godforsaken place, she was almost scared to death. But now it's different. Li Lan really is her angel!

Providing timely help.

"I haven't found a way out yet, but we'll work on that slowly. Also, I think we need to leave here immediately."

Lana isn't a fool. The demigods at the bottom of the hierarchy must have witnessed her performance in today's battle against that fake Kallen Elf.

If they develop into the fourth major power, the original three major powers will not stand idly by and will likely take corresponding actions soon, even at the cost of becoming enemies with them.

After all, most humans not only enjoy scheming and intrigue, but also prefer to be content with the status quo.

This godforsaken place is so short of resources; there aren't enough to go around. If another faction comes along, wouldn't that be the death of those people?

"Alright, let's set off tomorrow."