Witch Redemption

Seeing that it was actually effective, Li Lan, seizing the opportunity, recalled "Revelation" without hesitation and used the same tactic again. This time, Li Lan's target was the guy's right hand...

Clang—

The immense weight slammed down, and the dark greatsword that the imprisoned "Archangel Angel" had been tightly gripping in her right hand finally slipped from her grasp, and rolled to the side.

Lana reacted swiftly and moved closer with perfect timing, but just as she reached for the hilt of the dark greatsword, her beautiful face suddenly turned into one of extreme panic, and her whole body began to tremble with fear.

"No! The effect of courage lasts for one minute. How much time has passed?"

Realizing something was wrong, Li Lan didn't hesitate to chant, "Courage!"

No matter what status Li Lan applies, it cannot be stacked a second time within the duration of the status. However, if the status is removed for other reasons, that's a different story, and it can be reapplied.

It was through this experiment that Li Lan discovered that Lana's contact with the dark greatsword would shorten the duration of "Courage," reducing it to only three seconds—terrifying.

So, after Li Lan continuously used "Courage" to buff Lana, she finally threw the dark greatsword directly into the spellbook, and while she breathed a sigh of relief, she was also covered in cold sweat.

"All done! What's next?"

After seeing that Li Lan actually had a way to deal with this guy, Lana quickly placed all her hopes on Li Lan.

Little did Li Lan know that this was just a desperate attempt, a result that turned out to be a happy accident.

“We can’t kill it, otherwise the grimoire’s hint wouldn’t be to stop it, but to kill it.”

Li Lan voiced her guess, "Lorena's confinement won't last long, and we have no way to engage her in close combat. In that case, let's retreat! Let's get as far away as possible!"

"Uh," indeed, no one here can hurt this guy right now. Lana has already attacked repeatedly without success. "Fine, if I can't beat it, I can at least run away, right? Anyway, running away and pulling the monster is also a way to stop it."

That's exactly what I mean.

The two exchanged a glance, understanding each other's thoughts, and retreated without hesitation. "Lorina, follow me, don't confront it head-on!"

Without hesitation, Li Lan retreated. Looking at Della, who was kneeling on the ground and completely collapsed, she finally felt compassion, forcibly pulled her up, put her arm around her waist, and ran away.

As she ran, Lolina asked earnestly, "Why are you suddenly running away? Can't you beat it?"

Luo Lina remembered that Li Lan's violent hammer attack at the end seemed to have really worked. Wouldn't it be better to press the advantage?

"Fighting is a joke, we can't win at all!"

They weren't ashamed at all that they couldn't win; they slipped away as fast as they could, as if their feet were greased.

Sigh, let's wait until we get through this difficult time before considering collecting the body of Witch Code Name 015.

Li Lan felt a strange sense of sorrow. It was at this moment that he suddenly remembered Senior No. 47. Back then, there were eight seniors, and there was no infighting among them. In the end, four of them perished here.

What were their feelings at that time?

Just three seconds after Li Lan and the other woman cheated and stole "Archangel Angel's" weapon, and started running away, Lolina's "Locks of the Underworld" finally failed, and the humanoid monster was no longer restrained.

However, Li Lan's hammer remained firmly pressed down on its right hand, and no matter how much it struggled, it could not break free.

Enraged, it began to make strange "cooing" sounds, looking pitiful and helpless.

………………

The central main hall is located in the underground area of ​​the Sunset Temple.

A massive barrage of silver arrows, conjured from magical energy, rained down like a storm, hurtling towards the Icefield Wolf, Skul.

This abyssal monster, suppressed to only one-tenth of its strength by the temple, could barely struggle against the barrage of arrows. Within seconds, several arrows pierced its body, slowly draining its life force.

"Damn it! Damn it!"

Skul roared in fury, abandoning all thoughts of escape, determined to tear the witch before him to shreds.

"Damn false demon god! I'll fight you to the death!"

In this dying struggle, it mustered its last remaining strength and finally revealed its true form: a gray-blue demon wolf the size of a small mountain.

However, before it could launch its final attack, a terrifying black light suddenly appeared from nowhere, piercing through its defenses and severing the enormous wolf's head...

Dark red blood covered the entire gloomy central hall. The pungent smell of blood and the bone-chilling cold began to spread from the corpse of the demon wolf, turning the entire central hall into a terrible hell on earth.

"Parker, well done."

"A beautiful woman," praised Lerakin, the fourteenth pillar god in the sequence.

The boy, who slowly emerged from the shadows, accepted his master's praise and then asked in confusion, "Killing this abyssal monster means we'll be at odds with the Sixth Apostle, Karamit. Won't that be troublesome?"

“It’s alright,” Leragin said slowly as he walked to the wolf’s corpse. “Even among the apostles, there is no monolithic unity. We have all come together because of common interests. After tens of thousands of years, things will have changed.”

"What the master means is..."

"The six apostles are about to turn against each other, and the sixth apostle, who is the savior of mankind, will soon perish. Just keep watching with me, a new era is about to begin!"

Lerakin stretched out her slender hand and pressed it onto Skul's unseeing head. The immense magical power transformed into a rapidly swirling storm, turning the wolf's corpse and the dark red blood on the ground into dust and completely obliterating it.

In the blink of an eye, only a broken dark red intelligence core and a huge dark purple magic core remained on the ground.

"Parker, absorb its power as soon as possible. Those witches are about to give up. After they die, it will be the best time to seize the prophetic power of Archangel Angel."

………………

On April 17, 10003 in the Gregorian calendar, three days after the witches were sent to the Temple of Sunset, the entire city of Dawn was shrouded in a suffocating atmosphere.

A large number of soldiers were transferred from Mori City and stationed at various posts in Dawn City. The entire city was under martial law, and the entry and exit of everyone was strictly controlled.

Perhaps because something big might be happening in this city, apart from all the original inhabitants, a large number of foreign adventurers have been driven away to the border city of Mori or other cities protected by temples.

The outer plaza of the Temple of the Setting Sun.

Realizing the opportune moment had arrived after a massive tremor that had occurred three minutes earlier in the underground area, Eisen crossed the desolate street alone, walking towards an open area in front of the temple ruins amidst the gazes of numerous guards.

There, two people had already gotten there first, gazing upon the ancient and weathered temple ruins.

"Major General Eisen, it's been a long time!"

The middle-aged man at the front was the first to notice the newcomer, turning around and walking towards Eisen, extending his right hand.

"You're too kind, General Victor."

Eisen's expression remained as cold as ever, but his tone carried a newfound respect, a respect that came from the heart.

The middle-aged man, referred to as "General Victor," was a full two meters tall, imposing and strong. His dignified black general's uniform gave him an air of quiet authority. Beneath his brown bangs, his features were unremarkable, except for a pair of deep, dark eyes that instilled an indescribable sense of dread at first glance.

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Lord Victor turned back to look at the temple ruins, which had become slightly distorted at some point, and said slowly, "Since Major General Eisen is planning to take action, he must have foreseen something."

With a somewhat solemn expression, Eisen nodded in affirmation, and his raised right hand ignited with pure white magical flames. He then clenched his fist, and a small black book, bound to the fate of the witches, appeared in his hand.

He calmly opened the small book in his hand, “Witch code name 014, Witch code name 015... Witch code name 019, a total of six people, the cause and effect have been severed.”

The cause and effect have been severed, which means the complete death of the corresponding witch!

“This is too fast…” Abbot’s expression changed as he followed behind Admiral Victor. “In the past, it would have taken at least a while. Could it be that the Pillar God who infiltrated them has made his move?”

"That's right, its intervention is only one reason. Another reason is that the remaining witches have already found a way to leave this temple."

Chapter 65 Return to the Ruins of the Sunset Temple

"How is that possible? They've only been inside for three days."

Abo's words were full of surprise, but he quickly realized that two of the witches had a significant connection with the previous batch of witches. If he could obtain any information from the previous witches, then dealing with the Sunset Temple, which was known as the "Witch's Tomb," would be a piece of cake.

Unlike the somewhat surprised Abbot, General Victor, who had long held a high position, was unaware of the witches' situation. He simply asked calmly, "Now that these surviving witches have found a way to leave the temple, does Major General Eisen have any further instructions?"

The Imperial Royal Family, the Imperial Witch Cult, and the Imperial Holy See each have their own vast and complex networks of relationships. For example, General Victor belongs to the Imperial Royal Family and is generally only responsible for maintaining stability in his region, without interfering in the other two organizations.

Take Eisen, for example. He is actually directly under the Witch Cult and is usually only responsible for witch-related affairs. Furthermore, because he is a confidant of the Witch Cult's warden, the Undying Iris, and possesses the "Code of Causality" granted by the Witch Cult, his status is, in some ways, even higher than that of the local lord, Victor.

"According to the warden's instructions, the purpose of allowing the fourteenth pillar god to enter the Sunset Temple is to use it to kill this weakened descendant of the god and remove the temple's first layer of protection. Given that the fourteenth pillar god is currently in a weakened state, if it were to obtain the descendant of the god's magic core and godhood, it would cause a great disaster."

Eisen responded respectfully. Although his status was similar to Victor's, the difference in military rank and strength was obvious. Eisen was just a junior.

"Oh? If you want to deal with a weakened demigod, I'm afraid it will be difficult for me, a general, and you two junior generals to fight against him."

Victor analyzed that, as the strongest being present, he knew better than anyone that the strength of a "hero" alone could not match that of someone who had just stepped into the realm of gods, even if they possessed the trump card of a "divine artifact".

Why is there such an insurmountable chasm between mortals and gods?

“That’s right, so the warden ordered me to bring one of the sealed artifacts of the Witch Prison, Rank 083, the Book of All Things.”

As soon as Eisen finished speaking, General Victor, who had remained calm since their meeting, finally changed his expression.

The mere mention of the so-called "sealed artifacts" sends shivers down the spines of every Imperial Hero who knows even a little about them.

The so-called "sealed artifacts" are actually strange books with extraordinary abilities that can activate their special powers without the aid of any magic. Some of these terrifying "sealed artifacts" can even trigger miracles, their power surpassing the strongest magic of the time and comparable to the divine artifacts used by these heroes.

Of course, using "sealed items" and using "divine artifacts" are different, and different "sealed items" have their own different side effects.

One of the side effects is that it can range from a short period of time when one loses rationality and self-harms, to sacrificing a part of one's body, selling one's soul, or even having to sacrifice many lives as a price after using the "sealed artifact".

The second side effect is that all "sealed artifacts" carry a terrifying resentment within them. This resentment can materialize under certain conditions, harming the holder of the "sealed artifact." Furthermore, this resentment can also affect normal people within a radius of 100 meters, creating many unpredictable factors.

Because using "sealed items" comes at a considerable cost, the Witch Order will never allow such terrifying items to leave the Witch Prison unless absolutely necessary.

"Major General Eisen, are you planning to use the Book of All Things Alone?"

Victor's expression was solemn. Without a certain level of awareness, taking out this "sealed artifact" would be tantamount to courting death.

The Book of Myriad Phenomena, listed as the 083 Sealed Artifact, manifests the user's inner world, creating a self-contained space capable of imprisoning anyone for up to an hour. Furthermore, regardless of the imprisoned person's initial strength, they will be forcibly brought to the same level as the user. In other words, the weak become stronger, and the strong become weaker—a double-edged sword.

The price for using this "sealed artifact" is that the user will be immobilized for one hour, and within one hour after use, the user must sacrifice one of their arms to feed the Book of All Things. If the price is not repaid in time, and the time limit is exceeded, the user will die instantly and their soul will be completely annihilated!

However, even though the use of this "sealing artifact" was too terrifying, Eisen remained cold-faced and spoke as if he were having a casual conversation: "If nothing unexpected happens, I am the best candidate. At that time, I'm afraid we will have to ask General Victor to take action to kill the pillar god Leragin."

"I understand!"

Looking at Eisen's resolute expression, Victor felt a deep sense of respect.

These are the empire's most elite soldiers, deeply in love with their homeland, always putting the empire's interests first, and willing to go through fire and water for it.

The reason why the British Empire has been able to remain strong and prosperous for thousands of years and become a true "empire on which the sun never sets" is precisely because of the patriotism of these respectable soldiers. And with the efforts of these pillars, the empire will only become stronger in the future!

………………

This pure white space seemed to have no end. Li Lan, Lana, and Luo Lina retreated for nearly fifty meters, but the surrounding area still looked vast and boundless.

"Okay, this distance should be about right."

Li Lan still held the limp Della around her waist. Perhaps due to extreme grief and pain, the poor thing had completely fainted and it was unknown when she would wake up.

Lana steadied herself and stared warily at the dark figure that remained motionless in the distance. "Wait, why isn't it moving?"

Since close combat is no match for them, the best course of action is to stay as far away as possible. Fifty meters is neither a long nor a short distance; it's just right.

"I don't know what happened, maybe it was tired."