Mystery: The Witch of Desire

"A strange and terrifying aura erupted around the altar. Anyone who came into contact with it was covered in yellow oil and sprouted white feathers. Humans, curly-haired baboons, and other animals were all swallowed up by the giant tree..."

"When I woke up again, I was already trapped in this endless cycle of death, building the altar day after day, being devoured, then resurrected, and building the altar again..."

Rawls' spirit gradually became sorrowful. Livre did not feel sympathy for this cultist, but she found it strange. It was the first time she had seen a spirit with obvious emotions in a psychic session.

Rawls's description was similar to what he had said during his lifetime, except that he concealed his identity as the perpetrator.

It seems that the appearance of the feathered serpent disrupted the Celestial Cult's plans, and the power of death corrupted the ritual of offering sacrifices to the Mother Tree of Desire, thus leading to this anomaly.

Was this an accident, or was it a deliberate scheme?

Although Death died at the end of the Fourth Age, it is possible that there are higher-ranking angels who follow the path of Death, and they are equally capable of doing this...

Livre stopped thinking and continued to ask:

"What is the purpose of your sacrifice?"

A greedy glint flashed in Rawls' eyes, and his tone became tinged with fanaticism:

"I beseech my great master for the power of the Sequence 5 Fallen Treant..."

Sequence 5, the same rank as Mrs. Waffle, the Nativity sect is really making a name for themselves...

Liviel glanced at the altar, which was now mostly complete. Logically, the formation of the giant tree meant that the Mother Tree of Desire had bestowed power equivalent to a Sequence 5 rank. However, due to the interference of the Feathered Serpent, no one accepted this gift, so the power remained within the altar, erupting periodically to devour surrounding creatures. These creatures, in turn, were resurrected under the influence of the Death God's power, creating a cycle.

"That altar contains the power of Sequence 5..."

Liviel hesitated for a moment, then reached into her pocket and grasped the knowledge crystallized by the Fallen Tree Spirit and the Medal Recipient.

Now, the evil god's gifts are sufficient, but how to obtain them safely is a more crucial question.

As she pondered, Rawls's soul suddenly let out a painful groan, then collapsed and disintegrated, turning into specks of light that flew into the soil.

Livre suddenly realized that the red-haired, curly-haired baboon's corpse had sunk into that patch of soil.

Could it be...?

Just then, a hairy hand emerged from the soil, grabbed the soft ground, and struggled to climb upwards, trying to crawl out.

As expected, Rawls will revive; no wonder the extraordinary trait didn't extract...

Livre was ready, and as soon as Rawls crawled out of the ground, she released a large swarm of spider silk, binding him tightly.

"Madam, please, please let me explain..."

Having already asked most of the questions she wanted to ask through the psychic communication, Livre didn't waste any more words with him. She directly used spider silk to bind every joint of his body, and then activated the ability of a sex addict, putting the curly-haired baboon in a state of extreme arousal, making it difficult for him to gather any more extraordinary abilities.

Then, Livre took out the Mirror of Arodes and asked:

"Honorable Arodes, my question is, how can I safely obtain the power bestowed by that being from that altar?"

The mirror of Arodes flickered, and illusory words appeared:

“Place a substitute in the center of the altar, and after he has received the gift, take it away from him by virtue of the status granted by the crystallization of knowledge.”

"In exchange for something else, you need to answer one question for me. Now, you owe me two questions."

Arrodes added an expectant emoji after the text.

"I'll return it to you when we get back to the ship."

Liviel put away the Mirror of Arodes and looked at Rawls, who was tied up in a ball, with a mocking smile.

His curly-haired baboon eyes were filled with terror, and the red fur on his head swayed back and forth.

Suddenly, his expression calmed down, and he said in a deep voice:

"Just kill me."

Don't think you can act recklessly just because you're resurrected. I'm not stupid.

Livre muttered a sarcastic remark to herself, then tied a thread around Rawls's tongue to prevent him from biting it off and committing suicide.

After waiting for more than ten minutes, finally, something unexpected happened.

Livre's heart suddenly raced, an indescribable desire welling up inside her, stirring her restless heartstrings.

She used her sex addict's abilities to suppress the urge, and at the same time, a huge figure emerged from the center of the altar built by the curly-haired baboons.

Chapter 205 Sequence 5: The Fallen Treant

It was a colossal tree, too large for a single person to encircle, its surface covered with enormous, dark green scales. From the gaps grew flower buds stained with pale yellow oil, interspersed with a few pure white feathers. It was exactly the same giant tree she and Edwina had seen before.

In an instant, Livre sensed a familiar aura that she loathed—the aura of the Mother Tree of Desire!

This aura mingled with another powerful aura containing the force of death, causing her body to tremble involuntarily.

Liviel suddenly realized that another aura containing the power of death was very similar to the aura emanating from the man who had snatched the writhing, hungry creature.

Could it be that the man was also a being of the Death God Path?

Before Liviel could think too much, the tall, thick trees seemed to come alive, growing rapidly upwards, and the flower buds began to bloom, sprouting thin, feather-covered arms.

Around it, trees withered rapidly, weeds died, and all the curly-haired baboons huddled around it, their once dull eyes turning scarlet.

The limbs that sprouted from the tree trunk and flower buds spread wildly, reaching towards the red-eyed, curly-haired baboons. These poor creatures had lost the ability to sense danger and simply stood motionless, waiting for the limbs to grab their bodies and drag them toward the tree trunk.

As soon as the curly-haired baboon touched the bark of the tree trunks, its seemingly hard scales began to wriggle like mud, becoming soft and sticky, swallowing the baboon whole. Soon after, several white bones emerged from inside the tree trunks, signifying that the curly-haired baboon had been completely transformed into nourishment for the evil god.

Rawls, bound in spider silk, was still trembling slightly, instinctively terrified of this scene he had witnessed countless times.

Finally, the feathered limbs reached for the last curly-haired baboon. Within the barrier, the only surviving curly-haired baboon was Rawls, who was bound by Livre.

Several limbs covered in feathers and flower buds paused briefly, then, like sharks sensing blood, they spread toward Rawls.

Livre leaped up, grabbed the bound Rawls, and rushed into the altar area in a few steps.

Through the twisted, struggling limbs and vines, Livre saw that inside the massive tree's scales, there was a cluster of emerald green things, emanating an eerie and alluring aura.

Switching the writhing hunger to the appraiser's soul, Livre saw through the power of desire contained within.

This is the power bestowed upon the Sequence 5 Fallen Treant by the Mother Tree of Desire...

The limbs behind her had already rolled back in. Liviel had no time to hesitate. She immediately condensed her frost spear and thrust it fiercely at a point on the giant tree scales, then poured sharp black flames into the gap.

The giant tree's massive trunk twisted violently, causing the earth to tremble. A rumbling sound came from underground, shaking Livre so much that she could hardly stand.

She simply released her spider silk, which stuck to the branches of the giant tree. She then leaped high into the air and landed on the scale-like bark. Below, the black flames still failed to burn a hole in the hard bark.

It seems I lack some powerful offensive methods...

Livre's heart sank slightly, and she looked at Rawls, who was trapped in the spider silk, with an unfriendly expression.

She remembered that the zombies' exteriors were as hard as steel...

Livre simply controlled the spider silk and swung Rawls up like a huge rock.

Wow, this thing is pretty heavy!

Rolls was propelled by the spider silk, spinning and flying through the air. After accumulating enough kinetic energy, he slammed into the spot on the giant tree that was being scorched by the black flames.

Boom! Rawls's hard body smashed a large hole in the scaly bark, as if it had hit an iron plate.

Livre then tossed the unconscious Rawls inside. The moment the emerald green thing made contact with Rawls' body, it began to change violently, like a living worm, frantically burrowing into Rawls' body.

Rawls let out a painful groan. His body swelled up and turned red. His clothes and skin rotted together. Pus flowed from his wounds, and branches and flower buds sprouted from all sorts of strange places on his body.

As Rawls merged with the emerald green thing, the limbs and vines outside the giant tree seemed to accept the intruder, remaining motionless and no longer attacking their surroundings.

Just as Liviel was about to act, having prepared to seize the power, the ground, which had been stabilizing, suddenly trembled again, as if some creature had turned over underground!

Liviel's heart tightened, and she jumped onto the canopy of the giant tree, far away from the ground.

The next second, the ground splattered with a bang, and a giant snake, too big for one person to hug, emerged from the earth. This giant snake had huge scales that were dark green with black tinges and exaggerated eyes that looked like they were burning with flames. Between the gaps in the scales grew white feathers covered with light yellow yellow stains, and on its back was a pair of thick wings that could be spread out.

The giant snake half-crawled, half-flew, raising its body to coil around a tall, thick tree. It flicked out its black forked tongue, gazing at the enormous tree not far away, and at Livia clinging to its canopy.

Around it, trees were rapidly withering, weeds were all dead, and countless rotting corpses emerged from the soil, while unseen shadows clustered around it.

A feathered serpent! An extremely powerful feathered serpent, its rank likely surpassing Sequence 5!

Is this the feathered serpent that Rawls mentioned that interfered with the ceremony?

Its condition did not seem to be very good. Numerous flower buds oozing pus had grown in the gaps between its scales and on its wings, clearly indicating that it had been severely contaminated by the Mother Tree of Desire.

Judging from the situation, this feathered serpent is unlikely to allow the power-granting ritual to proceed smoothly.

Liviel's heart sank. She left the canopy of the giant tree and hid to the side to observe how things would unfold.

The feathered serpent seemed to loathe the giant tree intensely. Without much hesitation, it charged straight at it, countless shadows converging around it, forming a continuous black curtain that distorted the surrounding environment. The moment that black curtain touched the giant tree's limbs and vines, it instantly caused them to rot and wither.

The feathered serpent broke through the obstacles in front of its massive body and flew to the giant tree. With a flap of its wings, a void gate opened behind it.

Countless blood-stained limbs emerged from the gate, emanating terrifying roars and a chilling aura that seemed to emanate from hell, causing even Livre, who was hiding nearby, to tremble.

The giant tree's massive body rotted rapidly, even its tough bark softened quickly, turning into puddles of foul-smelling mud. However, it did not sit idly by and wait for its death. The pus-filled flower buds swelled rapidly, and numerous new limbs and vines stretched out, wrapping around the feathered serpent's body.

The moment the vines touched the feathered serpent's body, they turned a bizarre, bright red, as if they were absorbing the serpent's life force.

The two sides remained deadlocked for an unknown period of time. The feathered serpent's already weakened body gradually gave way, and the giant tree withered, revealing Rawls, who was fused with the emerald green substance inside.

It's now!

Liviel quickly appeared from the side, her left hand writhing with hunger, switching to the soul of the Priestess of Light, gathering a holy and dazzling light.

All the light transformed into a sharp blade, slashing fiercely at the feathered serpent's broken body!

Before the blade of light touched the feathered serpent's body, its body became illusory and decayed, and the shadowy figures dissipated. As the blade made contact with the scales on its neck, a teeth-grinding collision sound rang out. The feathered serpent, with little life force left, held on for a few seconds before its head was completely severed, falling to the ground and being purified by the holy light.

Its remaining corpse quickly turned into black smoke under the light, and soon only a dark black wisp remained, with no other traces of its existence.

Ignoring the extraordinary properties of the object, Livre quickly leaped toward the collapsing giant tree, quietly jumping into the hollow interior of the tree and pinning down Rawls, who was fused with the emerald green object.

Under the corrosive influence of the 'Fallen Treant's' power, Rawls had lost his mind, and various parts of his body began to merge with the giant tree.

Liviel picked up the knowledge crystals of the Fallen Tree Spirit and the Medalist in one hand, enveloping them with her spirituality. With her other hand, she gripped Rawls's neck. In an instant, the emerald green thing seemed to sense a summons, slowly separating from Rawls's body and moving towards Liviel.

Before long, the emerald green substance completely separated, came into contact with Livr's smooth skin, and seeped into her body, moving to her lower abdomen.

As soon as the first touch was made to her lower abdomen, the emerald green mass trembled as if it were being pressed down by some invisible force, causing Liviel to feel a chaotic pain within her body.

Here we go again. The remnants of Chik and the Mother Tree of Desire are acting up within me at the same time. These two evil gods are raising poisonous insects in my body...

Liviel inwardly cursed, and tried her best to control the spirituality in her lower abdomen, forcing the newly integrated emerald green thing to other parts of her body.

Unlike last time, this time the power of the mother tree was completely outmatched. Under Liviel's deliberate control, it did not cause any significant disturbance and was easily dispersed throughout her body.

As this power surged in, Livre felt a strange reaction in her body.

This feeling was like my body transforming into a graceful tree, immersed in a misty dream, passionately intertwined with Fors and the others.

Livre felt as if she had become the master of this dream, able to mobilize all desires by waving her branches and leaves, and draw all life force by spreading her roots.

This is the power of the fallen tree spirit...

At this moment, Liviel sensed something and the power bestowed upon her by the Mother Tree of Desire was enhanced, directly elevating her to the rank of Sequence 5.

Looking inward, one sees a massive tree, its surface adorned with countless coins, already growing within one's own body.

This should be the 'Tree of Origin' mentioned in the crystallization of knowledge. Every fallen tree spirit has a 'Tree of Origin', some are poplars, some are willows, some are birches...

But the tree inside Liviel's body didn't resemble any known tree; rather, it looked like the giant tree seen in the murals of underground ruins...

Liviel couldn't help but have a bad feeling. Could this giant tree be the symbol of the Mother Tree of Desire itself?

She shivered and quickly checked her body carefully, but she felt no discomfort or sensed that she was being watched.

Am I overthinking things?

Liviel calmed herself down a bit and continued to experience the Fallen Tree Spirit's abilities.

Now, she can sense the desires of all living beings within a certain range and manipulate them, or infiltrate their dreams to absorb their life force.

The life force obtained from other creatures can be used to nurture the giant tree within her body. As the giant tree continues to grow, Liviel will be able to better control the power of the fallen tree spirit.

Good, we finally succeeded.

Liviel smiled with delight and turned to look at the broken trunk of the giant tree.

The vines and limbs that had been eyeing him menacingly all stopped moving, as if they had accepted him as a companion.

Without hesitation, Livre ignited the black flames, turning the broken giant tree to ashes.

She turned and walked toward the spot where the feathered serpent had died. Apart from a patch of pitch-black extraordinary energy on the ground, there was nothing left, but Livre could still sense that the ethereal soul of the feathered serpent was still lingering around her, staring at her with hateful eyes.

As expected of an extraordinary being of the Death Path, even their death is somewhat different from that of other creatures...

Livre picked up the extraordinary trait and activated the ability of the Wriggling Hunger Detection.