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

The system will pop up a prompt when appropriate.

[Primitive Fallen Object - "Old Witch (Whispering Woman, Boiling Woman, Weaving Woman)" has been recorded]

During the period of celestial convergence, corrupted beings from outer planes altered history, spread legends, and disguised themselves as guardian deities, sustaining their lives through dark magic and bloody rituals.

[Reward: Attribute Points +2, Skill Points +2, Legendary Status +1]

The special attribute "Legendary Status" has been unlocked. Regardless of your reputation, your story will resonate throughout the surrounding area. As your Legendary Status increases, you can obtain special titles.

[Current Legend Level: 1]

The last ugly head fell to the ground, and the battle came to a complete end.

In the entire village, apart from the quacking poultry in the chicken coop, only the witcher and a mother and daughter huddled in a corner were still breathing.

The other surviving women had already escaped during the chaos when Li De unilaterally overwhelmed Nian Po.

The woman holding the child struggled several times but couldn't get up. She could only hold the child tightly under her body, curling her body up as if she wanted to embed herself in the soil, and she didn't even dare to breathe loudly.

Through the gap in his arm, Li Deneng could see a pair of round, clear, innocent eyes, with the purity unique to children, looking at him timidly.

"Master... I beg you!" The woman's voice trembled violently, choked with sobs. "We deserve to be hanged, but the child is innocent. Please spare her..."

This desperate plea silenced Li De for a moment.

"If I told you now that I'm not someone who indiscriminately kills innocent people, you probably wouldn't believe me."

He withdrew his gaze, his tone indifferent, "How about we make a deal? Tell me where the monster's lair is, and I'll let you leave."

The woman suddenly raised her head, a glimmer of hope flashing in her eyes before quickly fading away. She shook her head: "I don't know... Only the village chief and Finley have led people to their lair."

She had considered giving a random direction to lure the witcher away, but looking into those calm, golden cat eyes, she ultimately chose to tell the truth.

She feared that if her lie was exposed, she would lose even the last chance to save her child's life.

Li De glanced at the pile of corpses not far away, where the village chief and Finley's bodies were mixed in, already beyond dead.

"Never mind if you don't know."

It was getting late; the sun was setting, and orange-red clouds blanketed the horizon as night rapidly swallowed the last rays of light.

The most important thing right now is to prepare the purification ritual before midnight to prevent these violently deceased corpses from giving rise to evil spirits or vengeful ghosts, which would only cause more trouble.

But just as he turned to search for firewood, a childish voice came from behind him: "I know where the ladies live."

Li De paused, then slowly turned around.

The little girl, nestled in her mother's arms, timidly peeked out, her round eyes glistening with tears, perhaps from being frightened by what she had just witnessed.

He crouched down to be at eye level with the girl, his golden cat-like eyes softening considerably, and his tone gentler, "You know?"

"Don't talk nonsense! Hill! How did you know...?"

The mother covered her daughter's mouth and scolded her in alarm.

"I just knew it!"

The little girl forcefully pulled her mother's hand away, her voice carrying a hint of stubbornness.

"One night, that wicked Finley came to bully you, and the next day I picked up a stone and smashed it over his head! He called me a little beast and said he would send me to the old banyan tree to be a treat for the ladies!"

An old banyan tree? Li De's mind stirred slightly.

Banyan trees prefer warm and humid environments. The terrain of the Hunchback Swamp is located in the north, and the temperature is not suitable for banyan trees to grow. The so-called old banyan trees are mostly landmarks specially cultivated by old witches using black magic.

This makes things much simpler.

He had originally planned to use the monster's corpse as a medium to perform divination with soil to determine the direction before searching along the way. Now that he had this clear clue, he could save a lot of effort.

He wanted to say thank you, but when he caught sight of the corpses lying haphazardly not far away, he swallowed his words.

After a moment of silence, he said to the woman, "I will burn these bodies later. If you wish, you can separate the child's father and bury him separately."

The woman's eyes instantly reddened, tears streaming down her cheeks, her voice choked with suppressed sobs: "No...no need...my husband is long gone..."

She sniffed and slowly said, "Only by regularly offering living people to the ladies will they protect the village. Sometimes there aren't enough outsiders, so the ladies will have the village chief draw lots to select people, prioritizing children, then women... That time, our family was chosen, and he tied me and the child up at home, then went to the monster's place and never came back..."

"No wonder there are so few women and children in the village."

Li De lowered his eyes, a complex emotion passing through his mind.

The current situation is bad, and everyone is having a hard time.

At the beginning of this year, the Nilfgaardian Empire ambitiously expanded northward, with its military might far exceeding everyone's expectations.

The first to bear the brunt was the Kingdom of Sintra, located at the crossroads of north and south, which fought back desperately but suffered repeated defeats.

The wealthy and lords could flee to more northern countries with their possessions to avoid disaster, while ordinary people could only stay where they were and let the flames of war consume them.

Many deserters and refugees became bandits in order to survive, and even Velen, far away in Temuria, was affected.

Bandits, rebel soldiers, monsters, wild beasts... any of them can easily take a person's life.

In addition, the hunchbacked swamp and surrounding areas had long been regarded as a dining table by the old witches, who frequently caused famine and plague to force people to depend on them.

Ultimately, it's this damned world that's harming people.

"Take the child back inside and hide."

Li De took out a small bottle of honey and handed it to the little girl as a reward for providing her with the crucial clue.

These are the ingredients he uses to prepare the decoction. He snatched them from the bear's mouth. They taste very sweet, and he drinks a little of them himself occasionally.

"I'm going to perform a purification ritual, which might attract monsters from the neighborhood. Stay inside and don't come out."

……

As mentioned before, the number of humans who died by his sword was not much less than the number of monsters.

Over time, you'll inevitably encounter some troublesome things, such as cursed spirits, veiled banshees... These ghostly creatures often haunt those who kill them, leaving behind curses that are difficult to dispel, making them much more troublesome than ghouls.

To eliminate these unnecessary hidden dangers, Li De had already figured out a standard handling procedure.

The first step is incineration.

He searched the village and collected enough dry firewood, then piled all the bodies on the firewood pile.

Whether human or monster, both contain a lot of water in their bodies, so this amount of firewood is unlikely to achieve the effect of an incinerator. Its main purpose is to facilitate subsequent rituals.

Once the soul is freed, the body will quickly decompose, making subsequent cremation much easier.

The second step is to perform a purification ritual.

The key to the ritual is reciting a sacrificial incantation in ancient language at midnight.

Coincidentally, tonight is a full moon, and the magical tides are high, making it the perfect time to hold the ceremony.

Time passed slowly, and the full moon gradually rose to the center of the night sky, its cool moonlight bathing the entire village.

Li De knelt in a meditative posture before the pile of firewood. The firewood in front of him was already lit, and the orange-red flames licked at the corpse, with sparks occasionally flying and drawing brief arcs in the night.

He took a deep breath, his deep, resonant voice carrying a desolate quality that seemed to transcend time, echoing through every corner of the village:

"The radiance of the moon bathes this sacrificial site."

Using this sacred thistle as a guide, it cleanses away misfortune.

Dust returns to its earth, soul returns to its homeland.

Do not linger here, lost souls.

The wind carries my remaining wishes, the fire burns away my resentment.

The stars guide the way, the moon ferries us through confusion.

... "

Perhaps realizing that the witchers had no intention of exterminating them, the survivors did not flee the village, but instead huddled together in a house for warmth.

The bolder ones peeked through the cracks in the window, secretly observing the witchers performing the ritual; the less timid ones cowered in the corner of the bed, trembling all over.

The little girl, held tightly in her mother's arms, clutched the bottle of honey. Every now and then, she would secretly unscrew the cap, dip a thin stalk into it, and carefully put it into her mouth to sip. She looked just like a little mouse stealing oil.

She wanted to see what the ceremony looked like, but her mother held her too tightly and she couldn't break free. She could only prick up her little ears and listen carefully to the obscure and solemn incantation.

"...

All worldly attachments vanish like frost.

This world is not where I linger; there lies peace and tranquility.

The bones are silent, the rotting flesh lies buried in the wilderness.

Undisturbed in the afterlife, unharmed in this life.

... "

Ancient languages ​​are the languages ​​of nature, magic, and ancient races, and inherently contain unique power.

Although it is not enough to cause anomalies in the heavens and earth, when combined with the incantation caster's own magical power, it is enough to create some incredible phenomena.

When the incantation was halfway through, the flames on the firewood suddenly changed from orange-red to eerie green, and the originally warm firelight became icy cold.

The effects of the ceremony began to appear.

As one after another, indistinct souls rose dazedly from the corpses, the bodies dehydrated and weathered at a visible speed, and within seconds, they were devoured by eerie green flames and turned to ashes.

After the bodies turned to ash, the souls transformed into clusters of tiny green fireflies, swirling and rising into the night sky, drifting towards the full moon, and finally dissipating into the darkness.

However, one soul remained stagnant in place. Even though its face was blurred, one could still vaguely discern the distorted expression on its face, a mixture of anger, fear, and resentment, making it appear particularly ferocious.

"...

The long night is coming to an end, and dawn is in sight.

Return to nothingness, and find eternal peace and tranquility.

Vita Knox, The Final Chapter!

After the incantation was recited, the eerie green flames suddenly rose several feet high, then quickly dissipated, leaving only grayish-white ashes scattered on the ground, gently drifting in the night wind.

And that twisted soul is undergoing a violent transformation at this moment.

The once humanoid outline began to tear apart from the mouth, the tear extending all the way to the throat. A long tongue hung down in front of the chest, and a pair of jet-black claws grew from the shriveled, rotting, translucent body. Wisps of green will-o'-the-wisps were still wrapped around the surface of the tattered hemp clothing...

In the end, it became a demon spirit.

"well……"

Li De sighed helplessly, and as he stood up, his silver sword "Goldwell" was already drawn.

"Alright, it seems you're not planning on a peaceful end." His eyes narrowed, a cold glint flashing in his golden cat-like eyes. "Then I'll have no choice but to—kill you one more time."