Universe Infinite Canteen

After Li Wei left with the Witch, Ma Lu also began to process the ingredients.

He first reclaimed the Chef's Knife from the Hellhound and cut off a Sweet Potato Knight's arm.

Just this arm alone weighed nearly 300 pounds, and it emitted a sweet fragrance. Unable to resist, Ma Lu cut off a finger, peeled it, and ate it raw.

The taste was indeed quite good, though it kept drawing sidelong glances from Yun Que.

Afterwards, his hands busy, he sliced off the other arm as well and stuffed it into the Collection Bag. The remaining 400 pounds of counterweight he left for the 5-star ingredient, the tireless purple eggplant.

With the 100% efficiency bonus in food processing from the Chef's Knife, Ma Lu managed to clean up quite swiftly, taking less than 5 minutes. But even so, the number of Energized Plants nearby visibly increased.

Ma Lu didn't delay any further and immediately led the Witches out of the Skyward Forest.

Ever since that missile fell, the Ouroboros Serpent hadn't spoken again. The girl remained tight-lipped and abnormally silent throughout the journey.

Especially when everyone arrived at the scene and saw the bodies scattered everywhere and the deep pit left by the explosion, her face suddenly lost all color and turned deathly pale.

Although she still managed to follow Ma Lu's commands during the subsequent battle, she seemed like she had lost her soul.

The Hellhound, Yun Que, and the others also didn't look too good. Even after defeating a formidable enemy, there was no excitement as before.

Before leaving, Yun Que kept looking around as if searching for something.

Back on the aircraft, Ma Lu saw that the four of them looked as though they were grieving, so he took the initiative to suggest going for a big meal at a restaurant once they were back in the city to reward everyone.

But even the normally gluttonous Yun Que remained silent this time, turning her face away.

So Ma Lu turned to the Bliss Bird, who seemed relatively calm among the four, and said, "You like reading, don't you? When we get back, let's find a bookstore, and I'll allocate 5,000 Holy Silver Coins specifically for you to buy the books you want."

However, even the Bliss Bird unexpectedly said, "I've been... not in the mood for reading recently."

"Then I'll hold onto the money for you until you're ready to read and then buy."

Before Ma Lu could finish speaking, Yun Que muttered softly, "Sir Knight is a big meanie."

The purple-haired girl was even more direct, raising an eyebrow and a mocking smile appeared at the corner of her mouth.

"It seems like you really see yourself as a Knight, but we won't be attending your promotion banquet," she said.

"Okay," Ma Lu looked at the Ouroboros Serpent, "What about you? Do you have anything to say? Take this opportunity to speak your mind."

The Ouroboros Serpent shook her head.

Ma Lu then looked back at the other three, "I know you're dissatisfied with me, but I only made the best choice for us at the time. The missile had fallen; that can't be changed. We couldn't survive in the wilderness on our own. And now that the Witch Alliance is gone, our only choice is to return to Holy Temple City."

"Did the Shrike... really die?" Yun Que asked with teary eyes.

"I don't know," Ma Lu replied tersely.

At the time of the explosion, he was intently watching the Chessboard Map, and the Shrike's icon had disappeared along with the others, making it seem as though she had been killed by the blast.

But according to typical movie and novel clichés, as long as the body isn't seen firsthand, there's still a chance for resurrection, especially in a world where magic exists.

The Shrike might have opened a portal at the last moment and escaped from here.

As long as she ran far enough, she wouldn't be found on the Chessboard Map.

Still, even if the Shrike didn't die, the Witch Alliance's loss was clearly severe. The power disparity between them and the Order Church was already significant, and after this battle, the gap in strength would only widen further.

Frankly, Ma Lu couldn't see any possibility of them winning, not even with his help.

The Order Church had received a divine oracle before the disaster struck and had begun preparing to build the Holy Temple City. Now, after hundreds of years of operation, it was deeply entrenched, not something external forces could easily challenge.

Moreover, witches were a minority compared to the ordinary human population.

This was why the Order Church could train and treat witches in an almost inhuman way without causing much dissatisfaction within the city.

In contrast, as a minority organization, the Witch Alliance aimed to liberate witches and could gain covert support from some like Yun Que and Hellhounds.

However, most ordinary people only felt fear and apprehension towards them—a sentiment influenced by Church propaganda, but mainly due to a lack of mutual interests between the two parties.

Ordinary witches like Yun Que and Hellhounds might not see this, but as the leader of the Witch Alliance, the Shrike should be very aware of it.

The attacks she had led on the mining spots in the Goladot Mountains, though they caused some trouble for the Church, also further increased ordinary people's mistrust of witches.

Ma Lu was somewhat confused about the meaning behind her recent actions.

The purple-haired girl, on the other hand, was still hung up on another matter, "Hey, why didn't you take the chance to get rid of Li Wei as well? That guy killed so many people in one go, and he didn't even spare his own witches. Why would you still pledge loyalty to him..."

"Indeed, given Li Wei's state at the time, it was possible to take a risk and kill him," Ma Lu admitted. "But that wouldn't have been beneficial for us. If the deputy commander of the Sacred Order of Knights and their elite forces were wiped out and only we returned to the Holy Temple City, plus the lack of tangible evidence of the Shrike's death, the Church would definitely consider us prime suspects. As for loyalty..."

Ma Lu paused, "I don't know why Li Wei suddenly placed so much importance on me. In that situation, I simply couldn't refuse."

"In the end, it's still about your own future," the Hellhound sneered, but from her expression, it seemed she accepted Ma Lu's explanation.

The Bliss Bird, who had remained quiet until now, suddenly interjected, "You asked me if there was any book I wanted to see. Indeed, there is one, but it's not something money can buy."

"Hmm?"

"The 'Chronicles of the Holy Temple City,' not the abridged version that's circulated outside, but the real 'Chronicles of the Holy Temple City,' compiled by the Church's scribes, stored in the 69th-level library, accessible only to the Church's high ranks.

"If you became a master, you should have the right to go to the 69th level."

"So you want me to bring the book out for you?"

"No need," the Bliss Bird said. "That's too risky. Just help me look up the history of 14th Holy Year, then come back and tell me."

"That..."

"You don't want to go?"

"No, it's just that I can't read," Ma Lu thought for a moment, then decided to confess that he was illiterate. But then he added, "However, I can take a picture for you."

"That's even better."