A fantastical journey across the heavens, beginning with the Witcher.

Chapter 78 The Heart of the Oak

"Wilgeferts".

Principal Philip uttered a name softly, his tone carrying a hint of respect, but more so a complex emotion.

"Who?"

Li De's eyes widened suddenly, his slightly flustered expression replaced by surprise.

He was not just familiar with the name, he knew it like the back of his hand.

He was the core leader of the Brotherhood of Sorcerers, one of the top sorcerers in the entire North, and a rare genius skilled in both literature and martial arts.

As is well known, warlocks are typical "glass cannons," excelling at ranged spell suppression but weak in melee combat. However, Vigfortz completely shattered this notion.

In the original storyline, this person also harbored a strong desire for Ciri's ancient blood. In order to hunt down Ciri, he fought a fierce battle with Geralt, who was eager to protect his daughter, or rather, he crushed him.

Geralt's swordsmanship was considered masterful throughout the North, but against Vigforts, he had no chance to retaliate.

The opponent didn't even use any magic; with just an enchanted iron staff, he completely defeated Geralt in just five moves.

The first blow struck the abdomen hard, the force of which caused the white wolf to vomit acid on the spot.

The second blow struck Geralt precisely on the shoulder, the powerful impact sending him flying. His head slammed heavily against the base of the statue. The third blow hit his ribs, breaking several of his ribs.

The fourth blow slammed into Geralt's forearm, breaking it instantly and sending the sword flying from his hand.

With the final blow, Geralt's thigh bone was broken cleanly, rendering him completely incapable of resistance. He collapsed to the ground, severely injured and unable to get up.

If it weren't for the Tree Queen of Brochlon Forest lending a helping hand, the White Wolf would have become a sick wolf.

Admittedly, Geralt underestimated his opponent, not expecting a sorcerer to be so adept at close combat, and was knocked down by a combo that left him unable to stand.

But honestly, even Li De himself wasn't confident he could subdue Geralt within a few moves using only swordsmanship, without the aid of magic signs.

What's even more terrifying is that he didn't use any magic at all.

In the later part of the original story, Geralt, who was seriously injured, organized a search party to rescue Ciri and Yennefer, who were imprisoned, and fought a final battle against Vigfortz. The members included a sharpshooter, a former Nilfgaardian officer, an agile thief, and a high-ranking vampire who was over four hundred years old.

In the end, Geralt was the only one left in the five-man squad; the other four had all perished.

Regis, the high-ranking vampire known for his ability to regenerate from a drop of blood, suffered the most gruesome death. He was pinned to a marble pillar by Vigfortz and burned into a glassy mass by fire magic, his physical body completely destroyed.

He had initially thought it was just the manuscript of an ordinary sorcerer skilled in academic research, but he never imagined it was the culmination of the work of such a legendary figure. No wonder the manuscript's ideas were so ahead of their time.

At that moment, a slight noise came from behind Li De.

Elena rubbed her sleepy eyes, slowly raised her head from the table, and looked at Li De in a daze.

Seeing him standing in front of his grandfather's desk with a serious expression, he thought his sweetheart had been scolded and punished by his grandfather. He instantly sobered up and quickly got up and walked to his grandfather's side.

She reached out and grabbed Principal Philip's arm, gently shaking it, striking a charming and ingratiating pose, and softly pleading.

"Grandpa, please don't scold him. It was all my idea. If you have to punish someone, punish me instead."

The "affected" demeanor is just like a child who has caused trouble and is trying to rekindle family affection.

Principal Philip was most susceptible to his granddaughter's charms; a faint smile secretly crept onto his tense lips, and the wrinkles on his face seemed to be smoothed out.

But he still forced a serious expression, glared at Elena with a stern face, and deliberately spoke in a deep voice.

"Stop bothering me. Now that you've finished reading, take him and leave. Don't get in my office's way. If you're not coming to class tomorrow, remember to find another teacher to cover for you beforehand. Don't just skip class without saying a word."

Upon hearing this, Elena knew that her grandfather was no longer angry. She immediately beamed with joy, leaned over and said a few sweet words to cheer him up. Then she took Li De's hand and walked quickly toward the door.

Before leaving, Li De bowed slightly to Principal Philip.

Night had fallen, and the campus of Cowburg was quiet. The bright moonlight shone on the streets, creating a mysterious atmosphere.

Elena still held tightly to Li De's hand, resting her head on his shoulder.

Li De looked down at the gentle-looking girl beside him, and a warm feeling welled up in his heart.

Over the course of his two lifetimes, spanning nearly sixty years, he has always disliked the women in TV dramas who are obsessed with love. He always felt it was absurd and foolish to lose oneself for love.

But it was only at this moment that he realized that when he became the one cherished and loved unconditionally, he couldn't feel any negative emotions at all.

They walked in silence until they reached Elena's residence.

For the next two weeks, the two were inseparable, like conjoined twins.

Li De practiced swordsmanship while Elena watched intently from the side; when Elena went to class, Li De sat at the back of the classroom and waited quietly.

Taking walks, shopping, cooking, and honing my skills—life is peaceful and comfortable.

Over time, every teacher and student at Cowburg Academy knew that the academy's most outstanding student had been taken away by the Witcher. Almost every time they went to the academy, someone would come with a sword and challenge them to a duel.

If the system interface has a status bar, his status bar is already filled with "So happy I forgot about home" —

But the peaceful days did not last.

On his fifteenth night staying in Niubao, Li De lay in bed, embracing the red-haired beauty as he drifted off to sleep.

In his sleep, a spiritual force of unknown origin silently wrapped around him, pulling his consciousness into a chaotic dream world.

Thanks to his long-standing habit of meditation, he had a much stronger control over his mental energy than ordinary people. He instantly realized that he was under a spell and instinctively tried to break free.

At that moment, a hoarse, weak voice suddenly rang in my mind, intermittent, as if it had exhausted all its strength to barely transmit this message.

"Help me, Witcher!"

Li De hesitated for a moment before asking.

"Who are you?"

"Hunchbacked Swamp — Heart of the Oak — I — In the Cave —"

The voice was muffled and indistinct, like that of a person on the verge of death.

Fortunately, at the last moment before he woke up, a detailed location information was precisely imprinted deep in Li De's mind.

Immediately afterwards, the mental force that had been binding him vanished.

Li De suddenly opened his eyes, quietly withdrew the arm that Elena had pressed under his neck, put on his clothes, picked up the two swords by the bed, climbed out of the window onto the roof, and cautiously checked his surroundings.

Apart from a few abandoned bird nests, no trace of biological activity was found.

He sat on the roof, looking in the direction of Willen, somewhat hesitant.

"The Heart of the Oak, the god worshipped by the druids, shall we go there?"

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