Our Family Has Fallen

What was even more astonishing was that the banshee actually bowed slightly towards them, her hollow expression gaining a glimmer of Spiritual Essence, as if she was not just a mindless monster.

"I don't know what happened to you, but I deeply regret it. However, you can tell us where the enemy is, I…"

Before Lance could finish, the banshee, who had regained her composure, raised her hand to point deep into the wilderness, while an ethereal voice sounded.

"Liberation…"

As she spoke, she floated up, a scene that left Lance and his companions somewhat perplexed.

"My lord, what do we do now?"

"Shall we follow her?"

"A monster doesn't seem trustworthy."

"This is clearly a fungal parasitic entity; it's obviously the Witch's doing. The banshee must know something. Since we have no clues at the moment, let's follow her and see."

Lance made a decision. He was also aware of the risks; trusting a banshee was simply too absurd.

But they had to understand the predicament they faced. They had already lost their leads upon entering this completely corrupted wilderness. Now, this was the only path left.

The others had no objections. After a quick preparation, they set off in the direction the banshee had indicated. Meanwhile, the banshee had vanished, disappearing into the vast wilderness…

Lance glanced ahead; the sky had grown dim, meaning they had been traveling for almost half the night. As the team advanced through the wilderness, a suffocating scene unfolded before their eyes.

Around them, no normal plants could be seen, only mushrooms—and their terrifying size was noteworthy.

What they had seen at the gravesite was trivial in comparison. Here, the mushrooms were thicker and taller than a person, with a girth that two people couldn't wrap their arms around, and varying heights of three to ten meters.

The shadows they cast could completely engulf a person, not to mention the pale yellow mist permeating the air—spores emitted by the mushrooms.

This scene reminded Lance of those parasites whose heads were devoured by mushrooms; he wondered if these were the result of the fungi devouring the trees.

Combining this with what they had seen earlier, it seemed these fungi would grow rampantly across this land until everything was consumed and twisted, forming a unique environment—a world built by fungi. Anything that entered it was like prey stepping into a trap, either to be assimilated into mushrooms or to have its Flesh devoured as nourishment.

This oppressive scene exerted great pressure on everyone, even making them doubt the banshee's guidance.

"The mushrooms here are taller and bigger, indicating that the corruption began earlier and runs deeper here than elsewhere. This proves that this is the enemy's core. We're on the right path," Lance said at an opportune moment. He needed to boost the team's morale and prevent it from sinking into pessimism and negativity.

The others said nothing. Compared to the journey itself, they were more fearful of the Witch they had never met. What kind of methods could possibly create such a bizarre Spore Forest?

"Look!"

Soon, Dismas discovered something, and this discovery was indeed shocking.

In the midst of this desolate Spore Forest, a field suddenly appeared without warning, where various rare herbs grew, all meticulously tended. Some were so rare that even Lance could not recognize them.

"Someone has been cultivating here; the enemy is definitely nearby!"

…

SSSS!

The Witch raised her hand and poured the thick potion over the thorn cocoon, instantly corroding its surface, which broke into brittle twigs and branches that shattered on the ground.

The thorns, which had previously regrown instantly, were now clearly recovering much more slowly. Although they were still healing, the reduced circumference of the cocoon made it clear that in this battle of attrition, the Witch, aided by her corrosive potion, clearly had the upper hand.

"Where was I? Oh, right…" The Witch kept pouring the thick potion over the cocoon. It seemed that years of living alone in this wilderness with no one to talk to had led her to confide in the cocoon. "By that time, my relationship with him had already fallen apart. He didn't believe Herbology could satisfy his ambitions and instead spent a fortune to hire a group of necromancers, starting to study the power of souls.

"In the entire Hamlet, he found only one girl who met the criteria—a rare and powerful talent, no less than yours or mine. He wanted that girl.

"He used his power to make the girl's father lose everything, turning him into a madman who only knew how to get drunk and commit domestic violence. Then, he had the girl's husband drafted into the army. This left her without support to endure the torment of domestic violence alongside her mother. But such torment was obviously not enough.

"He had initially wanted the girl's husband to die in battle, but soon he came up with a more vicious plan, one that would destroy the last shred of the girl's sanity.

"He told the girl directly that her husband's military service was over, but then he had a Maid use an aphrodisiac to seduce the girl's husband.

"That day, the girl put on her prettiest dress, ready to welcome her husband home. Despite the hardships, she believed that once her husband returned, everything would get better. She still clung to that sliver of hope.

"But she waited until evening, and her husband still did not return. Worried, she couldn't help but search the town. At last, she found her husband in a tavern, flirting with the Maid.

"At that moment, the emotions that had been suppressed for so long finally overwhelmed her. According to that man's plan, the girl would ultimately fall into his hands…"

At this point, the Witch laughed maniacally, seemingly proud of her own tactics.

"But he hadn't expected that I had long since detected his change of heart. I had placed a Curse on the girl, and under my guidance, she went mad. She grabbed an ax and killed her husband and the Maid.

"When she returned home, distraught, she witnessed an even more tragic scene: her father lay drunk to one side, while her mother was on the ground, motionless, beside a shattered wine pot.

"Her mother had no breath left; her body was cold. She then took the ax and killed her father as well. Finally, she realized there was one more person who deserved to die, so she turned the ax on herself.

"Under my manipulation, the final ritual was completed at that moment. From that despairing soul, an incredibly pure banshee was born.

"I seized his creation. That arrogant man didn't even notice any of this. Similarly, from that ritual, I gained sufficient Revelation. From the decaying bodies of that family, I discovered another path.

"A path to contend with Flesh! You simply don't understand how great I truly am! Wait until you witness my most perfect creation…"

As she spoke, the Witch stopped, turned around, and looked outside, a strange smile appearing on her face.

"It seems a few little mice have intruded."

Her words had barely faded when several people burst in from outside the manor. The newcomers were Lance's squad.

After discovering the field of herbs, they quickly found some architectural ruins. Most of the buildings had collapsed over time; only a few low-slung houses still stood on the barren land where not even a blade of grass grew.

Nearby stood a well, looking as if it belonged to some long-abandoned farm that had been repurposed by certain entities.

The house looked extremely dilapidated; it probably couldn't even offer basic protection from the elements. On its lintel hung a massive white deer skull.

But what was more defiling was the large pot set up in front of the house, with broken bones scattered about. The sheer number of skulls made the origin of these bones painfully clear.

Not to mention the human skins stretched on frames to dry nearby. Though their purpose was unknown, it couldn't hide the fact that these beings were cannibals!

This scene deeply shocked everyone. Such a crazed Cannibal Witch must be eradicated!

Lance's gaze fixated on the large figure lifting a ladle beside the pot.

The Witch stood over two meters tall, her frame massive and corpulent. She was so fat her neck was invisible, and her fingers resembled pig trotters.

Her face was hideous, dotted with pustule-like boils. Her facial proportions were abstractly inhuman; her large mouth looked capable of swallowing a small pig whole, and her nose was sharp and prominent, entirely unlike a human's.

However, as a spellcaster, her body was free of the strange mushrooms. She wore a base layer of coarse cloth, with an outer garment fashioned from a leather cloak and bone decorations.

Her various accessories and tools were a dazzling sight, most notably the white deer skull she wore on her head. Not to mention the dozens of large and small pouches strung on her belt, filled with all sorts of unidentifiable herbs.

However, the materials used to sew the outer garment and craft these pouches were likely not animal hides at all, but tanned human skin.

Although they had been adversaries, they had never met face to face. Now they finally saw the mastermind behind this series of events—the Witch.