The Virtuous Dark Witch

Chapter 51

Nothing stood in her way. Her immense witch power crashed against the walls of Sunblight Chasm with unstoppable force. With a deafening boom, the earth trembled three times, startling all the birds and beasts in Rodley Valley into frantic flight. The temperature inside Sunblight Chasm soared once more.

At the same time, Wendice Larissa quickly gathered the thick witch power around her, channeling it endlessly into the Venom Needle Vein at her waist. She traced the cold poison, desperately trying to stop it from spreading through her body and attempting to pull it out.

As the surge of witch power weakened slightly, Elara Dessey, who had soared into the air, immediately spun around. With a thought, a dragon's roar sounded again. She released her right hand, and the Silverwing Eastern Dragon Staff transformed, spreading its wings and flicking its tail to dive downward. It tore through the scorching space, and Elara followed close behind.

Sensing the approaching chill, Wendice Larissa—who had closed her eyes and was using witch power to expel the snake venom—had veins popping on her forehead. But the raging venom inside her gave her no room for distraction.

Yet Death was already upon her, and she had no way to retreat. Forced into a corner, she had no choice but to gamble everything. Gritting her teeth, she wrapped the rampant venom with the witch power in her meridians. Then she clenched her hands, threw back her head, and screamed:

“Ah——!”

She unleashed all her witch power.

The power of a Demi-Witch Ancestor, once fully released, was not to be underestimated. Elara's eyes narrowed slightly. She abruptly halted and turned, recalling the Silverwing Eastern Dragon, and landed beside the Mercury Pond.

Although Wendice Larissa had expelled the venom from her body by releasing all her witch power, without power to support her, she could barely even stand. With a gesture of her right hand, the Crimson Bamboo Staff stuck in the rock flew back to her palm. She looked at Elara and smiled weakly:

"As expected of the most powerful witch on the Mal Continent… a descendant of Selah Dessey."

Her methods had been somewhat despicable, but she had indeed wounded Elara and forced her to this point.

Elara glanced down. There was not a single movement in the Mercury Pond. She could not help but frown. Still, she had no intention of giving Wendice Larissa any chance to catch her breath. Three silver needles shot out, hidden in the darkness, then sliced through the air to appear just one yard from Wendice Larissa.

Because she had released her witch power twice, even though it was night, the Light Witch power inside Sunblight Chasm was extremely dense. That was why Wendice Larissa had dared to risk everything. She swept her left hand, forming a ball of witch power, and pushed it forward to block the three incoming needles.

Elara had expected this. With a thought, the three needles instantly split into nine.

Wendice Larissa's heart jolted. She spun on her heel and retreated sideways. Thirty-six fine needles embedded themselves in the rock wall. Elara flashed behind her and struck out with a palm.

Even with the witch power inside Sunblight Chasm supporting her, Wendice Larissa—who had burned all her power—was far less sharp than before. By the time she sensed the danger behind her, it was too late to pull back. She could only desperately dodge the vital points.

Her arm was injured. Dark Witch power invaded her flesh like a ferocious beast, shattering her arm bone.

Boom.

Wendice Larissa could not withstand the force and slammed into the rocky wall of Sunblight Chasm. Blood ran down her forehead, dripped along her cheek, and fell onto her bright yellow robe.

Elara recalled the thirty-six Fine Needles stuck in the wall and pressed them toward Wendice Larissa's thirty-six vital acupoints. But at that moment, Wendice Larissa suddenly closed her eyes, curled her lips, and whispered softly:

"I was not meant to die today."

Her voice was faint, but Elara heard it clearly. Her left ear twitched slightly, and her eyes instantly turned colder than frost. She immediately pulled back and threw the Silverwing Eastern Dragon Staff. It shot upward like lightning. At the same time, the staff split into countless glowing silver needles that spun rapidly around Elara.

A chaotic wind blew in all directions. Elara caught a whiff of blood. Her ten fingers moved quickly, controlling hundreds of Fine Needles to stab into the darkness along the edge of Sunblight Chasm. She heard a low murmur and did not hesitate. She instantly detonated the witch power wrapped around the needles.

Several consecutive booms rang out. Blood and flesh splattered everywhere.

The chaotic wind died down. Elara retracted her needles and looked at the pairs of blood-red eyes that had appeared in the darkness. Her beautiful long eyebrows furrowed slightly. Judging by their numbers, these had to be the Andros that Cinderaven had spotted earlier—coming from the west, passing through Rodley Valley, heading east.

Were they allied with the Larissa family? From the color of their eyes, these Andros had excellent bloodlines. And what was with those hooded cloaks they wore? How could they hide in the darkness without her noticing?

"Take her alive," the male Andros standing in the center of Sunblight Chasm, with the purest eye color of all, finally spoke.

As soon as his voice fell, the blood eyes in the darkness vanished. The wind blew aimlessly again.

Elara pressed her lips together. She judged the Andros' positions by the directionless wind and controlled her needles to meet them. She landed several hits, but these Andros were extremely cunning.

Once they realized Elara was locating them by the wind from their rapid movements, they changed their battle formation. They split into three teams, taking turns revealing their blood eyes to distract her. One team moved quickly to create wind and disrupt Elara's attention. Another attacked through the air. But they could not get close, blocked by the formidable needles spinning around Elara.

The stalemate lasted nearly an hour. Elara instinctively felt that the number of Andros besieging her had not decreased. Although the hooded cloaks hid them, she did not know exactly how many had come. But she trusted Cinderaven's judgment—this group of Andros numbered less than a hundred.

Nearly a hundred Andros. She had killed fully half. Logically, their offensive should have been greatly weakened. Yet the attack had only diminished by one-fifth.

Elara's expression grew colder and colder. These Andros were deeply suspicious. She could not drag this out any longer.

But at that moment, the temperature around her suddenly changed. It was like adding frost to snow. Wendice Larissa had recovered far faster than expected.

Elara flashed and turned into a grain of Witch Sand, weaving through the spinning needles and shooting into the sky. The needles, as if summoned, followed closely behind the sand grain and reverted into the Silverwing Eastern Dragon. An earth-shaking dragon roar rang out. A Crimson Bamboo Staff appeared in the air, swinging toward the dragon's head.

Elara reappeared. With a flick of her left hand, the Silverwing Eastern Dragon vanished in place, dodging the strike. It re-formed into a staff in her hand.

A breeze brushed her face, thick with the smell of blood. She threw a Netherfire Bomb and followed with a pushing palm. The Netherfire Bomb burst into the darkness with a thunderous boom, and blood mist rose at once.

After landing the hit, she turned into Witch Sand again and hid in the Moonlight. Elara was about to dive to the bottom of Sunblight Chasm to find Cinderaven when a wave of heat hit her.

Wendice Larissa had seen through her disguise. She held the Crimson Bamboo Staff and blocked the falling Witch Sand.

"My turn now."

She sliced through the air. A sharp Sunlight Arc sliced upward through the sky with a swish. The Witch Sand retreated upward. Thirty-six thick, glowing long needles charged forward fearlessly.

BOOM——

Two waves of witch power collided. Space itself twisted. Pain shot through Elara's chest, and her mouth tasted salty. Was this the power of a Demi-Witch Ancestor?

Wendice Larissa was not fairing well either. She had just healed her injuries by drawing on the life force of the Andros, but the backlash of witch power had made her wounds worse again. Even so, she could not let Elara Dessey go.

Instinct told her: Elara Dessey must not be allowed to live. Otherwise, within a hundred years, another Selah Dessey would rise on the Mal Continent.

Wendice Larissa held nothing back. She released the Crimson Bamboo Staff. Drawing on the dense Light Witch power here, she formed thousands of colorless light blades, instantly illuminating the entire Rodley Valley. They were so bright that even the man lying at the center of the Mercury Pond at the bottom of Sunblight Chasm could not help but frown.

Space was torn into pieces by the colorless light blades. Elara shot upward. Reaching a certain height, she suddenly turned and threw back. A black Netherfire Bomb pierced the blades.

A deafening explosion shook the sky. The man lying at the center of the Mercury Pond abruptly opened his eyes.

His blood-red eyes were as clear and pure as glazed glass, no confusion in them. He scanned his surroundings, raised a hand to rub his temples, then pushed himself up from the mercury surface into a sitting position. He picked up the black crow floating up from the bottom of the pond and examined it closely, a faint smile tugging at his lips.

At that moment, a drop of bright red blood fell from above, landing precisely on the back of his right hand resting on his knee. A sharp glint flashed in his eyes. He looked down at the mercury surface and blinked gently.

Above Sunblight Chasm, Elara was already injured. Blood flowed from the corner of her mouth and dripped down. The chaotic winds around her closed in slowly. But her eyes still locked tightly onto Wendice Larissa, who stepped through the air toward her with the Crimson Bamboo Staff. Her left hand gripped the Silverwing Eastern Dragon Staff firmly.

Several strong gusts of wind hit her. Elara's right hand tightened, and silver needles appeared between her fingers. She was about to launch them when the chaotic, directionless winds around her were suddenly pulled by a force and slammed straight toward the bottom of the chasm.

Wendice Larissa's face paled in terror. She looked back and down:

“Austin……”

Elara did not care who Austin was. Seeing Wendice Larissa distracted, she immediately threw her needles at her.

A chill approached. Wendice Larissa quickly snapped back and dodged. Still, two silver needles pierced her right arm. The pain was not unbearable. She flashed backward, retreating. The situation had changed—she intended to flee.

After suffering so much, Elara would not let her escape. She pulled with her right hand.

Wendice Larissa, who had just fled a hundred yards away, felt a sharp pain in her right arm and was pulled back uncontrollably.

He had woken up. She loved him, but she feared him even more. Terror drove her to escape at all costs. She gathered witch power in the fingertips of her left hand, raised it, and chopped down without hesitation.

She severed her own right arm. Blood spurted and splattered. Then she turned into a b****y Sunlight Arc and vanished on the spot.

Elara watched Wendice Larissa escape helplessly. She wanted to chase, but no longer had the strength. Panting heavily, she recalled the needles left scattered everywhere, then turned to look down with numb legs.

One by one, the Andros in black hooded cloaks crashed onto the rocky ground, nowhere left to hide, all overcome with terror.

The man sitting at the center of the Mercury Pond stood up, carrying a seemingly dead black crow, and walked to the edge of the pond. He smiled lightly and asked:

"What is wrong with your bloodline?"

"Austin…… Duke Austin……"

Voices filled with terror and disbelief. Ninety-one Andros nobles collapsed on the ground, unable to move. Thinking of this man's reputation, several were so scared that their blood eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

Two seconds passed. No answer came. The man had no interest in probing further.

The Seven-Petaled Blood Core Flower of the Saparaya Mother Tree bloomed in the center of his glazed, blood-colored pupils.

Instantly, screams echoed from the bottom of Sunblight Chasm. The arrogant leader with blood eyes begged for mercy:

"Corell…… ah…… I'll talk……"

But he had missed his chance. The man no longer cared to listen to his nonsense.

"What you say may not be true. I'll just take the trouble to strip your bloodlines and see for myself."

He spoke so casually, yet the Andros on the ground turned ashen with fear.

"No…… ah……"

The painful screams made Elara, who had landed in the corner, raise an eyebrow. She curled her lip and muttered inwardly:

"How annoying."

Her dark eyes stared unabashedly at the man. Only now did she have time to admire his legendary, otherworldly beauty. She finally understood Roxane Mullin and Wendice Larissa's obsessions.

His glazed, blood-colored eyes were deeper than those of the Andros ancestor dukes in Andrea Capital. A few lashes at the corner of his eyes were slightly longer and lifted upward—not seductive, but enough to stir one's heart.

His mouth, slightly wider than his nose, looked a little pale pink, perhaps from not having fed on blood for a long time. The corners of his lips naturally curved up slightly, but this did not soften him; it only added a touch of noble coldness. His straight nose was not as high as a Westerner's, yet it shaped his facial features into absolute perfection.

His short, dark, blood-tinged hair was slightly wavy. After stripping the bloodlines from the Andros on the ground, he condensed them into a seed and looked down at it. A small lock of hair fell from his forehead.

Gulp.

Elara swallowed hard. It was a miracle this man was still single. With great difficulty, she dragged her gaze downward. Although he wore a loose white shirt and pants, it did not affect her judgment—after all, she had studied medicine in her past life and seen plenty of bodies.

Great build. The lean, strong type she liked. A body like that would make surgery much easier. And… the texture would probably feel nice too…

Wait, no—wasn't she supposed to check on Cinderaven? Elara raised a hand to cover her slightly aching chest. She must be badly injured; it felt like burning inside.

The man turned the blood-colored grain between his fingers. Why did their bloodline resemble the seed of the Saparaya Mother Tree?

Alex had always regretted not collecting seeds of the Saparaya Mother Tree before the forest was destroyed. Could the Blood Pact have collected them? He looked down at the Andros on the ground, their bloodlines stripped, now like withered wood. He lowered his lashes, smiled, and twisted his fingers holding the blood grain.

The blood grain turned to nothingness. The nearly lifeless Andros on the ground also disintegrated into mud flecked with blood as their bloodlines were erased.

Rodley Valley finally fell silent.

Elara stood motionless in the corner. The man glanced at the drop of blood on the back of his right hand, then turned to look at Elara. He stepped forward and stopped less than a yard from her. His voice carried faint amusement as he called:

"Little Dessey."

Her heart skipped a beat for no reason. Elara pressed her lips together and did not look up. She reached for Cinderaven in his hand and murmured as if talking to herself:

"You can't deny you're Austin Corell anymore, can you?" She had caught him red-handed.

The man let go. He looked down as Elara stroked the black crow's head.

"This was my……"

He suddenly frowned mid-sentence. He raised a hand and pulled open his white shirt. More than a dozen ugly, worm-like wounds had crawled across his chest. He spoke with undisguised disgust:

"Such a mood killer."

Elara had not wanted to look, but he had pulled his shirt open himself. When she saw the seemingly living wounds crawling upward, she shuddered.

"Is this the Twin Spirit Curse?"

“Yes.”

The man was used to it. He pulled his clothes closed and looked at Elara again.

"Goodbye, Little Dessey."

Before Elara could process his words, he closed his eyes and fell straight toward her.

Elara tried to dodge, but her feet would not move. She instinctively let go of Cinderaven and caught the falling man. The fire in her heart, no longer suppressed, spread rapidly, burning her face red. She froze in place, breathless as she promised:

"Don't worry. I won't do anything."

Cinderaven, lying on his back beside Elara's feet, suddenly opened his eyes. He flapped his wings to stand and flipped over.

"What are you planning to do?"

He was awake already? Elara tightened her stiff arms, cleared her throat, and said:

"The smell of blood is too strong here. We should leave quickly and return to West Sea Forest."

But as she tried to lift her leg, she realized a problem. What should she do with the man in her arms? Carry him? Drag him? Or… keep holding him?

Cinderaven wiped his face with a wing, then looked at his own body with disdain.

"Austin Corell's clothes are filthy." Just thinking of Wendice Larissa the old witch touching him made him want to scrape off a layer of his own skin. "Hurry up and take them off and throw them away."

Elara, still struggling with how to move Austin Corell, was shocked to hear this demand. She confirmed:

"What did you say?" Take off his clothes? Was he serious?

"Don't dawdle. Strip him now and throw the clothes away."Cinderaven was insistent. Elara had to remind him: "Do you have other clothes here?" She didn't mind helping, but wasn't he afraid she would feel him all over?

Cinderaven froze. He finally realized the problem. After a moment of solemn thought, he turned to look at the Mercury Pond.

"Then we'll drag him into the pond and clean him. Wash the dirt off."

That worked. Elara understood the master's feelings and did not refuse. After cleaning him and much internal struggle—and with Cinderaven now perched on her shoulder—she blushed, put an arm around Austin's waist, and walked out of Sunblight Chasm.

Two black horses waited outside the valley. After placing Austin Corell's body on the long bench, Elara let out a breath. She tapped the carriage wall and ordered:

"Straight back to West Sea Forest."

Bringing this man made her extremely nervous. If anything was revealed while he was asleep again, she would never be able to explain herself, even with ten thousand mouths.

The carriage entered the path. The two black horses walked leisurely, as if they could sense their master's mood and knew there was no rush on the journey ahead.

Cinderaven, feeling low-spirited, huddled in the corner of the carriage, drooping his eyelids and waiting quietly. But half an hour passed, and the usually sharp and great lord did not ask a single question. Besides feeling uncomfortable, he grew increasingly anxious. He stretched his neck and peeked over. Was she planning to let him confess on his own?

Elara leaned her elbow against the long bench, rested her chin on her right hand, and stared at Austin Corell's face. Just as she realized she was becoming infatuated with his beauty, she made a firm decision.

To keep beauty from distracting her in the future, she would take this chance to look at Austin Corell properly until she was completely sick of him.

After another five minutes of internal struggle, Cinderaven finally decided to take the initiative. He flapped his wings, landed on Austin Corell's face, curled his claws, and settled down.

A perfect, otherworldly face was now occupied by a black crow with not a single white feather on its body. Elara felt extremely complicated.

"You picked a great spot. Thanks a lot."

Thanks to Cinderaven, her beauty-blinded mind finally cleared.

“Speak. What's the Twin Spirit Curse really about?"

He knew she would ask. Cinderaven drooped his bird face, not daring to meet Elara's clearly unhappy gaze. Had he acted too late?

He answered honestly:

"It's exactly what you saw. The Twin Spirit Curse is unlike most curses that target only the soul or the body."

"It goes after both. After nearly a hundred years of research, Selah discovered that when the soul and body are separated, the curse's harm to the victim temporarily stops. But once the soul returns to the body, the invasion continues."

"That's twisted," Elara said, dropping her laziness and frowning. "Did the Selah Witch Ancestor know Austin Corell was cursed with the Twin Spirit Curse before she died?"

Cinderaven shook his head. "No. Probably because Austin Corell's Andros bloodline is too pure and his healing ability too strong. The early discomfort went unnoticed. Only after Selah died, during a fit of rage, did the Twin Spirit Curse seem to fully awaken and begin its rampant erosion."

The outbreak was delayed that long? Elara sat up straight, no longer resting her chin, and fell into deep thought. She habitually twisted the Life Ring on her left thumb.

"One more thing," Cinderaven decided not to hide anymore."I suspect the Twin Spirit Curse erodes the Andros relatively slowly." He sighed deeply."Austin once tried to turn Selah, but she refused. She said a Selah Dessey who could not communicate with nature would no longer be Selah Dessey."

"True," Elara said, thinking of her aunt. "All Dessey witches are proud."

Cinderaven knew that well. "You don't have to worry about Thea Dessey anymore. Her transformation failed." He was also quite surprised by this.

"What do you mean?" Elara had thought her aunt's transformation was successful.

Cinderaven thought for a moment. "Put it this way: Alexander's bloodline purity is beyond doubt. Logically, he should have had no trouble turning Thea Dessey, even though she's a powerful witch. The reason I say her transformation was incomplete is insufficient power replenishment afterward."

"After being turned, Thea Dessey did not feed on blood. That left her lacking power, unable to fully awaken the Andros bloodline. Later, she reconnected with nature. A bud that was already withered could not bloom—it just wilted."

"What about her eyes and healing ability?" What Cinderaven said essentially matched her earlier analysis: incomplete evolution.

"She drank so much of Alexander's blood. She couldn't have gotten nothing out of it," Cinderaven emphasized again."Alexander is the son of Lisandra Stirling and Alexandra Stirling. Except for being unable to summon the Saparaya Mother Tree flower, his bloodline is no weaker than the Andros ancestors."

Elara nodded, understanding. "You said Austin Corell tried to turn the Selah Witch Ancestor?"

"Yeah, but he got rejected, didn't he?" Because of his bloodline, he never turned humans. Selah was the only exception."Trust me. If Austin Corell had known he was cursed earlier, he would never have let Selah go. He would have turned her for sure. Then he wouldn't have suffered all these years longer than her."

"What exactly were Austin and Selah Witch Ancestor……"

Before Elara could finish, Cinderaven replied darkly:

"We used to be close friends. But once he learned she even dragged him into a curse, Austin decided their friendship was too deep—they needed some distance. So now, we're nothing."

His voice was bitter. He looked at Elara with teary eyes. "Would you say Austin was wronged?"

"Yes," Elara nodded firmly.

Sensibly spoken. Cinderaven wiped away a tear. "Then promise me you must put Austin's body in Selah's tomb." Austin has so much he wants to say to her. "He wasn't letting her rest in peace even in death.

"Didn't you just say their friendship was too deep and they needed distance?" Elara refused gently. "Aren't you afraid the Darkwing Fairy Queen will shred Austin's body?"