Her destiny stolen? The Divine Witch Ancestor has returned!

While Phoenix was burning space on one side, Wu Zhao on the other side discovered that Nunu was missing.

The altar outside the darkness was empty.

"My lord, the girl's presence has vanished."

Danadus's voice was hoarse and low, with a hint of stiffness.

It was very stiff, as if he didn't say much.

The golden aura gradually dissipated, and Wu Zhao raised his hand to wave away the black energy that was swirling around him.

"Where did she go?"

Wu Zhao looked at Jun Wu.

Junwu was startled and closed his eyes to sense it.

"Are you looking for her?"

He frowned, his expression becoming more serious.

"...I can't find her."

What an eerie person.

Wu Zhao turned the ring on his hand, and a faint noise came to his ears.

"It was the villagers who were worried that the shorter duration of the sacrificial ceremony would affect next year's harvest."

Junwu lowered his eyes; a number of villagers were gathered below the altar.

They all stared intently at the altar with worried eyes.

Wu Zhao glanced at it casually as well.

There were faint traces of formations on the villagers, and she also noticed that several villagers moved in unison but with extremely stiff steps.

It has an unnatural feel to it.

It's like a puppet, being controlled by something.

Those people, however, seemed completely oblivious to anything amiss.

"those people……"

Junwu noticed her gaze, and a complex expression flashed in his eyes.

"It's a curse, something the villagers came up with to seek the mountain god's protection."

“They had this curse before I came to the village.”

curse?

What kind of curse can hollow out the body and devour the soul, turning a person into an empty shell?

unless……

These people angered the mountain god.

A thought flashed through Wu Zhao's mind so quickly that she couldn't quite grasp it.

"This village is getting stranger and stranger."

She shook her head inwardly.

"I need to find Nunu, you..."

"Those villagers are now in your care."

After Wu Zhao finished speaking, she jumped off the altar, and Danadus, who was shrouded in darkness, followed her away.

Junwu's golden eyes were cold as he casually glanced at the villagers waiting below the altar.

……

Wu Zhao quickly circled the village, but as expected, he did not find Nunu.

"Not in the village anymore? Could it be..."

"She ran out of the village?"

Wu Zhao walked slowly, gradually approaching the edge of the village.

Danadus followed silently beside her, like a shadow following her everywhere.

"My lord."

Wu Zhao turned his head, and a dark shadow gradually stretched out, pointing in one direction.

"There's some unusual activity over there."

Ok?

Upon closer inspection, wasn't that... the little thatched hut where Yu Ying and Wu Xingzhou lived?

Wu Zhao paused, turned around, and headed towards the thatched hut.

Hearing footsteps outside, Yu Ying nervously gripped the jade talisman Wu Zhao had given her.

Yu Ying's expression relaxed only after Wu Zhao pushed open the door.

"Zhaozhao, you're back."

"What happened outside?"

She stayed inside the house with Wu Xingzhou, only seeing the golden light shooting into the sky through the window.

"Nothing's wrong. How is your husband?"

Yu Ying's expression immediately lit up when this was mentioned.

"He seems to be waking up soon! I saw his hand move after you left."

"At first I thought I was seeing things, but I kept talking to him, and his hand really did move again!"

"...I think he should be able to hear me."

During those hopeless days, Yu Ying talked to Wu Xingzhou more than once.

But the man lying in bed never responded to her.

Yu Ying was even in despair, but she never expected that a miracle would actually happen.

His eyes were filled with gratitude and expectation as he looked at Wu Zhao.

"He'll wake up, right?"

Wu Zhao took out a handkerchief from his pocket and handed it to her.

"Calm down, I will definitely take you back to where you belong."

Buzz—buzz—

A strange fluctuation came from somewhere.

It sounded like the whispers of an ancient god, or perhaps a sigh from long ago.

Wu Zhao's eyes lit up.

This sound...

Do you know about the mountains outside the village?

Yu Ying wiped away her tears and composed herself.

She thought about Wu Zhao's question for a moment.

"The mountain? That mountain seems to be a taboo in the village. From the village chief to the villagers, no one is allowed to enter the mountain."

“When Xingzhou and I first arrived, we almost starved to death because they rejected us… Xingzhou even planned to go into the mountains to find something to eat, but the villagers found us and surrounded us, almost beating him up.”

Yu Ying still feels lingering fear when she thinks about that time.

Is no one allowed to enter the mountains?

"Then, even High Priest Junwu can't go in?"

As Wu Zhao asked, the ring on his hand flashed.

"I don't know, I'm sorry."

“After Xingzhou and I were driven here, we lived in this little courtyard... Occasionally, the priest would send someone to bring us some things. If it weren't for his help, I probably wouldn't have made it this far.”

Pressing his hand against the ring, Wu Zhao pondered.

It seems that the answer she seeks may be found in these mountains.

"I'm going into the mountains once, so make sure you keep the jade talisman safe."

"I'll be back soon."

Wu Zhao glanced at the sky outside the window; the sun was about to set.

The village has rules that prohibit anyone from going out at night.

She should be able to sneak into the mountains at this time without attracting the attention of the villagers.

"Be careful, I have a bad feeling about this village at night."

Seeing that she was about to leave, Yu Ying whispered a reminder.

A dark shadow enveloped Wu Zhao, leading her outside the village.

At the foot of the mountain, Wu Zhao had just emerged from the shadows when he felt an extremely cold aura rushing towards him.

"..."

Some inaudible murmurs were carried to my ears by the wind.

Is someone crying?

As Wu Zhao stepped into the mountain area, the whispers around him became more frequent.

Even the tone of the crying became clearer.

"It hurts……"

"Someone...someone, please help me...I'm in so much pain..."

"People...fail expectations...despite..."

The intermittent, decadent music made Wu Zhao's temples throb.

Is the mountain god weeping?

"My lord, the mountain god here is dead."

Danadus's voice rang out.

“The mountains are filled with a deathly aura; there are no living creatures left.”

The whole mountain is dead? How is that possible?

Wu Zhao gasped.

The spiritual energy here is completely different from that in the real world. How could such abundant spiritual energy not bring this mountain to life?!

"There are some remnants of consciousness; shall we go and search for them, my lord?"

Danadus's pure red eyes, hidden in the darkness, narrowed.

“My lord, that girl…is in the mountains.”

"She seems to be absorbing the death energy in the mountains."

Sure enough, it's here.

Wu Zhao's eyes darkened.

"Danasus, take me there!"