[Vol. 7] Chapter 108: They Say Women Who Are Too Sharp…
"Of course, the amount of sacrifice needed for complete transformation is enormous. These guys probably didn't become like this through normal means. It was a rushed process, likely related to whatever ritual the ‘High Priest’ is performing right now."
"Hmm..."
Violet didn’t comment too much on the cruelty of such sacrifices. She simply observed the eerie cultists approaching, their bodies shrouded in gray mist. A golden light flickered in her palm.
"A fully transformed divine follower, huh… If this is what their ‘chosen ones’ look like, then their god must be just as messed up, like that masked guy from the Holy Empire before… All the gods of order and neutrality are basically dead, yet these evil ones just keep finding ways to survive, one after another..."
"Swoosh!"
Without warning, a golden spear of light shot out, piercing straight through the chest of one of the charging cultists and disappearing into the depths of the forest. But what happened next was unexpected. The cultist’s movement merely paused for a moment mid-air before continuing its pounce as if completely unaffected. In mere moments, it was about to reach the black-haired girl!
"Not happening!"
"Boom!!!"
A massive wooden shield, as broad as a wall, slammed into place in front of the priestess just in time. [Tree Wall] Sophie had arrived, blocking the attack head-on and pushing the enemy back. The golden light in Violet’s eyes flickered as she stood there, momentarily stunned.
"Are you okay?!"
"Huh? Oh… um, thanks?"
"Hey, why do you sound like you didn’t really want my help?"
"No, it’s just your imagination."
"Liar! You totally think I’m in the way, don’t you?!"
…Wow, what a sharp intuition.
"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"
Several emerald-green arrows shot through the air, striking the cultists’ masks, the only parts of their bodies with physical form, knocking them backward. But more and more of these eerie Church of Truth followers kept emerging from the forest, surrounding the adventurers completely as they tried to push deeper inside.
"Don't get caught up in fighting them! [Tree Wall] and [Tree Rampart] , you have to clear a path, we need to reach the ritual site deep inside!"
"Got it!"
"Leave it to me!"
At such a critical moment, there was no more room for joking around. The two frontline fighters took the lead, pushing back the encroaching enemies on both sides, while the rest of the team coordinated efficiently, advancing together.
Though no one said it outright, it was clear why Xiao Guang had sought Violet’s help. Among them, only the priestess, as a user of holy magic, had a real chance of stopping this dark ritual. This was also the main reason [Tree Bow] had originally wanted to work with Violet in the first place.
The cultists, transformed by divine power, were formidable opponents. While they weren’t quite at Marcelo’s level, each of them was roughly Lv30, making them high-ranking in terms of adventurer standards.
What made them truly difficult to deal with, however, was that conventional attacks barely affected them, their bodies were like pure smoke, yet their own strikes carried real, tangible force.
If not for [Tree], a well-coordinated legendary adventurer team, supported by Le Qiaoqiao and Hongyan, plus the occasional healing from Violet, breaking through would have been nearly impossible for an ordinary party in this environment.
Fortunately, there weren’t too many Church of Truth followers lurking in the forest. Only a few dozen of these mutated sentries had been sent to intercept the intruders. [Tree] couldn’t eliminate them all, but pushing forward was still within their capabilities.
The team advanced rapidly, keeping the priestess at the center for protection. But strangely, as they moved deeper in, the number of attacking cultists started to dwindle.
Finally, an enormous and intricate magic circle, glowing with a radiant light, appeared before them, like a grand barrier sealing the area.
"Oh! I see it! This must be—"
"Wait!"
Violet, who had been in the middle of the formation and thus had the luxury to observe her surroundings more carefully, suddenly shouted, her urgent tone making everyone instinctively stop just as they neared the ritual site.
"What's wrong, Miss Violet?"
Enrique turned back, looking confused. But to his surprise, the black-haired girl had an unusually serious and thoughtful expression. A faint, flawless golden glow was beginning to radiate from her body, as if she had activated some kind of holy enhancement magic.
"I see... so that's how it works. This guy really is something else. No wonder people say seeing is believing."
She mumbled something under her breath, then suddenly shook her head firmly at everyone, including Hongyan and Le Qiaoqiao, her tone leaving no room for argument.
"You all can’t go any further. From here on, I’ll handle it alone."
Sophie, gripping her heavy wooden shield, was taken aback.
"What do you mean we can't go forward? Is there a trap ahead?"
Before Violet could answer, the swordswoman standing nearby also seemed to sense something off. Her face turned serious.
"This place does feel strange. The cultists we first encountered when we entered and the ones we just fought are clearly different. The latter only appeared near this forest… That probably isn’t a coincidence."
"Oh? Not bad, little Hongyan, you're getting sharper."
The priestess finally snapped out of her deep thoughts and nodded approvingly. She then reached into her backpack and pulled out a skinned wild chicken they had hunted earlier. It had been cleaned but hadn’t yet been cooked. Without hesitation, she tossed it toward the glowing edge of the ritual magic circle, about a few dozen meters away.
What happened next was shocking.
The chicken passed through the shimmering light without any resistance. But the moment it entered, thick ash-gray smoke began rising from its body at an alarming rate. It looked as if it were being burned like dry wood in a fire, rapidly losing all moisture. Within moments, it withered, crumbled, and finally disintegrated into a cloud of gray dust, vanishing completely.
"Whoa! That’s terrifying!"
Le Qiaoqiao yelped and instinctively stumbled backward three steps, looking like she had just seen a ghost. The others didn't react as dramatically, but their expressions all turned grim.
If the priestess hadn’t warned them in time, they might have recklessly rushed in, only to meet a terrible fate.
Violet casually clapped the dust off her hands, as if she had already anticipated this outcome.
"See? The ritual site is already covered by a true law-based power. Any living being that doesn’t meet its conditions will be erased the moment they step inside, becoming a sacrifice for the ritual. Even lingering too close can lead to divine corruption. Just like those cultists we fought earlier."
"You all don’t share faith in that god, and since you're strong, you can resist the influence from the outskirts. But if you actually enter the ritual area…"
The thief girl swallowed nervously, still shaken.
"Good thing the boss reacted fast. How did you even notice all this?"
Violet shook her head, not bothering to explain in detail.
"It’s actually pretty simple. Look at the boundary of the magic circle. Do you think it's just a coincidence that there's a perfectly cleared area in the middle of the forest?"
Enrique hesitated, lowering his wooden bow.
"But if that's the case, Miss Violet…"
"Well, I’m a priestess blessed by the holy light, so I have at least some resistance to this stuff."
Seeing the concerned looks on everyone’s faces, especially from the members of [Tree] team, Violet patted her not-so-impressive chest and struck a confident pose.
"Relax! There’s nothing to worry about. This place used to be the homeland of the Tree Spirit race. Who knows? Maybe the great Goddess of Life is watching over us from the shadows. I’ve got Her Divineness backing!"
"You sure know how to joke around…"
"Uh, speaking of which…"
Suddenly, Le Qiaoqiao hesitantly raised her hand and interrupted at an odd moment.
"Has anyone noticed that a certain child has been missing for a while now?"