The Villain Princess survived the Imperial Riot

"Yes and no. Ultimately, it's the old woman's power that was exploited by her."

Hestia smiled and said:

"The Hermit and Historian of the Manifestation Path can summon traces of the past through the echoes of things. If I'm not mistaken, this head is related to what she's researching down there, and her summoning attracted a fragment of a witch, which led to her disastrous fate. It's conceivable that this old creature must have been quite powerful in life. Even after death, with nothing left of her flesh, she was still able to call upon the old woman's power to this extent.

"Unfortunately, the old woman isn't a skilled cultivator in combat, so you can only control the gargoyles and bodies she has placed here. As for the ghosts, well, they're just ghosts."

"You dare... say that again?" The woman stared at the princess cruelly.

"Oh, you're impotent and furious, huh? You're not even rotten flesh, you don't even have a soul, you're just a mark. Of course, if you've reached the summit of the myth in Dreamland, you'll leave behind a beacon of immortality, allowing for the possibility of regeneration, but..." Hestia responded with a hateful and treacherous smile. "Hehe, the fact that you're trying to stop me like this means the old woman isn't ready to be devoured by you yet. You've used the power of the [Secret Treasure] to block any movement underground, hoping to use this slight delay to completely digest her, right?"

"..."

Seeing that she could no longer hide her feelings, the woman remained silent for a moment before her madness faded away and she spoke calmly, "Help me escape and return to life, and I will grant you the eternal life and power you have always dreamed of."

"That's great! Eternal life! Even though there's not even a rotten flesh left, I'm not completely dead." Hestia smiled, not caring at all. "What does this have to do with me? I don't want the empire to be ruined by witches, so..."

Hestia looked at the head coldly. Her clairvoyant eyes had already found the weak point of the dark room. She stretched out her hand and pressed on the wall, injecting all the spirituality in the Witch's Book into the mechanic's stone tablet. The Seal of Decomposition instantly penetrated the iron wall constructed by arcane magic and mysticism.

Hestia smiled mockingly as she felt the crackling sound.

"So you better keep dying, old man."

Volume 33: The Dreamer: . The Solution to the False Light

The witch, the shadow of dreams, the terrifying existence behind the curtain.

But at this moment, only a head was left... no, not even a head was left. It was just a residual image that reappeared under the echo of the power of the [Hermit]. Such a so-called witch could not bring much psychological pressure to Hestia.

She did not intend to leave this residual image behind, as that meant that the witch who had seized some of Lady Aynive's power might be resurrected in the old woman's body.

Even if it is true as Lady Aynive said, that there are many kind witches or enchantresses living in seclusion in this world - but in essence, witches are always a scourge to the world.

The woman with long ochre-red hair was obviously not a good person.

As for revealing her background and building closer ties in the name of a "witch"... Hestia couldn't imagine what kind of idiot would hand over their own handle to an evil being with no bottom line.

By then, an old woman would appear by her windowsill every night, whispering sweet nothings in an ambiguous and disgusting voice: "Your Highness, you don't want your identity as a witch to be known to outsiders, do you?"

Hestia shuddered and became even more determined to eradicate it.

The danger of cooperating with a witch is no less than letting worms corrode your soul.

"Do you know what kind of cold opportunity you've experienced?" The woman with red crazy hair was indifferent to the emperor. Her originally calm face turned crazy again and she shouted, "Stop! You damn ant, surrogate mother, and lust pot!"

Hestia couldn't even understand what the woman was saying. She turned to Viola, who was covering her ears, and said, "What are you standing there for? Are you going to leave or not?"

"Hmm... sob... sob?" Viola couldn't hide the sound that entered her mind, but this didn't affect her reaction to the princess' words. The maid asked anxiously, "Your Highness, are these ghosts really okay?"

"Including her, all the ghosts you see are just afterimages of history. Don't pay any attention to them." Hestia shook her head. "If you play for a while longer, maybe the old woman will really capsize."

If the ochre-red witch took over Lady Aynive's body, she really had no confidence in defeating the old monster that had existed for who knows how many years.

Behind the collapsed wall was a vortex of black mist, as if leading to another world.

"The secret art of Tibetan Buddhism?" Hestia pondered.

[Secret Treasure] not only symbolizes profound wisdom, but also concealment and concealment. Therefore, those who cultivate the secrets that originate from the hidden realm may not possess formidable combat abilities, but they are undoubtedly the most difficult to catch.

The princess walked into the black mist without hesitation, and turned with the ripples. When she opened her eyes again, she had come to a desolate and isolated palace.

The dark room was empty, with dense, incomprehensible symbols carved into the walls. Niches housed countless statues covered in black cloth. The statues sat cross-legged on desks, holding black candles with pale flames burning in their hearts.

In the center of the hall stands a triangular stone slab over six or seven meters long, as if it were carved by a knife. Ancient characters are engraved on the stone slab, and its base shows signs of excavation, as if only a small part of its body is exposed.

Circles of circular marks surround the stone slab, and the hubs connecting the rings and lines form a book tower. Pale light refracts between the book towers, and finally casts a majestic shadow on the mural facing the stone tablet.

The shadow was thin, floating, and had sparse hair, like an old woman.

"Your Highness, this is..."

Viola followed and looked around the magnificent hall. She smacked her lips in shock and was speechless.

"Ancient ruins, interesting. How dare this old woman study these long-lost histories and powers right under the Empire's nose? Do you really think I wouldn't dare execute her?"

Hestia shook her head, a barely perceptible curve appeared at the corner of her mouth, but it was just a joke.

Since the remnants of the witch can be traced back to this place, it means that she may be able to find the secret of witch training here!

Then, Madam Ainiwei was no longer a disposable secret practitioner for her—

The old woman must be made to serve the empire and recruited as an advisor to interpret witch history!

"Mrs. Ainiwei? Where is Mrs. Ainiwei..."

"It's right there on the mural." Hestia stared at the shadows on the mural and murmured, "Light... This is a hidden dungeon I've never even heard of."

"Is that shadow Lady Aynive?" Viola said anxiously, "Could she be trapped by the curse here?"

"No, it's not the curse here, it's herself."

Hestia realized that Lady Aynive's entrapment was related to the candlelight here, but more so due to the limitations of her own power.

At this moment, the human head also penetrated the black fog and appeared in the hall, laughing wildly: "Do you really think you can save her? She has been lost in my true spirit. In a quarter of an hour at most, her body will become my new shell!"

Viola tried to ignore the woman's hysterical harassment and concentrated on studying the princess's beautiful profile, trying to divert her attention: "Herself?"

Hestia smiled and said, "If there was a curse here, then what greeted us just now wasn't gargoyles and iron golems, but a far more terrifying force."

"You're a bit clever, but not much. Did you notice that the moment you entered here, your retreat was..."

"Look, she's getting anxious," Hestia said, interrupting the woman's chant. "She wants to disrupt our thinking and our stance. The more she does this, the more vulnerable she appears, like a helpless, furious, lame old dog."

"You dare to say it again..."

"Look, you're in a hurry again." Hestia shrugged. "On the surface, these light sources cast a shadow of the old woman, but in reality, there's no power here other than the old woman. Knowledge is just knowledge, and relics are just relics. So, perhaps those lights maintain the old woman's stability. It's the projection of her shadow that prevents her from being completely devoured by the lame old dog."

Viola thought she was knowledgeable enough for her peers, but she never imagined that her limited knowledge would make her look like an idiot in front of the princess. At the same time, she also understood the significance of the princess's words "better than me".

No wonder His Highness would be so hard on me—noble people have stronger self-esteem, so it's only natural that they can't tolerate such things.

But the princess knew so much knowledge, so why was she surpassed by her in the preliminary examination of the Academy of Arcane Law?

To be honest, she still doesn't know His Highness's ranking.

Suddenly, Viola thought of an incredible possibility - is it possible that His Highness doesn't care whether there are people with better grades than her, and His Highness's original goal was her, not someone who is better than herself...

Thinking of this, Viola's breathing gradually quickened. Her cheeks flushed crimson for some unknown reason, and she could no longer hear the mad dog-like roar of the ochre-red woman. Her mind was filled with the graceful figure, voice, and smile of the princess.

"So, to solve the old woman's troubles, we just need to..." Hestia was about to teach Viola some basic esoteric skills, but she noticed that the maid was distracted at this moment. She frowned and slapped her head to wake her up. "Did you hear what I said? Or is that lame old dog's voice more important than mine!?"

"Hmm..." Viola rubbed the sore spot, but there was no grievance on her face. Instead, she smiled sincerely and said, "Thank you, Your Highness, for treating me as a friend."

Hestia: “?”

Oh no, does this witch also have the power of mind control?

After staring at the maid with the [Eye of Truth] for a while and confirming that Viola's soul had no signs of being polluted, Hestia felt relieved. As for why the maid had such a reaction, she was too lazy to investigate for the time being.

She walked over to several of the book towers that were redirecting pale candlelight towards the stone tablet and said, "These lights are some kind of guide, connecting Ayniveh and the stone tablet. So there's no need to extinguish the light sources. All we need to do is create a dark barrier between the old woman and the stone tablet, like this..."

"you dare--"

Amid the woman's anxious and angry screams, Hestia pushed the tower of shiny books to redirect the light.

Suddenly, the woman's voice vanished, and the shadow on the mural shrank from far to near, until an old body tumbled out. It was Lady Aynive, halfway inside her coffin.

"Mrs. Aineway!" Viola hurried forward to help her up.

"Ahem, y-how did you get in?" Aynive vomited several mouthfuls of black liquid from her wrinkled lips, like a drowning person. She coughed violently and took a long time to catch her breath. "Anyway, thank you."

"You've concealed your secrets from the Empire and secretly researched heresy. I think you truly deserve to be slaughtered, Lady Aynevere." Hestia approached Lady Aynevere jokingly, completely lacking any respect for the elderly or the young. "It's a good thing you're not dead yet. You still have a chance to experience the Empire's eighteen tortures."

Aynive's eyes narrowed, and she remembered that the "benefactor" who saved her from the brink of annihilation was a ruthless descendant of the Dragon.

"Your Highness, aren't you curious about the ancient history hidden within this stone tablet?" Lady Aynive's breath was weak. She should have been resting, but now she forced herself to stand, trying not to appear frail. "It concerns the prophecy you believe in: the destruction and rebirth of Mengsu."

"Hmm?" Hestia showed interest, but at the same time, she tried not to appear overly excited. She said coldly, "Then tell me, haha, maybe I can help you avoid some punishment. Let's start with this place. Where is it?"

"At the bottom of the Yunling Rift Valley, three thousand meters below the Governor's Mansion. The original entrance was buried in an earthquake thirty years ago, but I still left a passage from the Shadow Realm. It's in this library."

The situation is stronger than people. If she wants to preserve her research or even save her life, Lady Ainiwei has to reveal some information that will interest the princess.

"Aside from its location, what is this place?" Hestia asked again. "What does your condition have to do with the witch?"

The princess asked so many questions that Aynive didn't know where to begin. After thinking for a moment, she turned and asked, "Your Highness, have you ever heard of the Void Light?"

Hestia nodded slightly. "I've read snippets of this in esoteric texts. A former deity from ancient times, he vanished and resurrected many times. The most recent record is three thousand years ago, when he was awakened by the myth of the Dream Deity, ending a millennium-long war of corruption. Since then, no more viable worms have appeared. After the release of the Void Light, his remains faded into the Origin of Void, the Origin of Heart, and the Origin of Lamp. The latter two were acquired by Russ Skin and Infinite Radiance."

"Uh..." Mrs. Ainiwei was stunned.

"Why, am I wrong?" Hestia also frowned.

"No, Your Highness is very knowledgeable. I never thought that the royal library would contain such secrets that I have never known about..."

Aynive's tone was filled with reverence for knowledge. She suddenly integrated the knowledge in her memory and made a judgment based on the confirmation and inference of historical materials - the "secret treasure" mentioned in the second half of the princess's sentence had a 90% probability of being true history!

Fitting it into a part of the historical gap can completely fit the emergence process of Huiguang and Wupi!

The inspiration from the dream was injected into her soul, and Aynive's originally withered complexion suddenly became rosy and shiny, as if a dead tree came back to life. She had a premonition that if she continued to pursue this secret treasure, she would have the possibility of entering the state of perfection or even the state of possession!

"..." Seeing the old woman looking so radiant, Hestia was speechless.

Who is asking whom?

The princess said, "Tell me about what you know about the Void Light."

"We are only speculating about the power of the Void Light and cannot make a definitive conclusion. Currently, from the historical records we have analyzed, we only know that the Void Light ended the millennia-long war of corruption. It destroyed the Well of Maggots, preventing its worm offspring from ever descending upon the known world again."

This is Lady Aynive's domain. When she mentions the risks and secrets hidden in the unknown history, she forgets the threats and troubles around her. Even if she were to die, it wouldn't stop her pursuit of the truth.

"During this period, Xu Guang could have become the undisputed ruler of Mengsu. He had countless followers, and even the unruly myths worshipped him as their master. However, in a blank period of history, he suddenly disappeared from the world, drowning the shadow of Mengsu. From then on, esoteric practitioners could no longer reach the other side of Mengsu. That event was called the 'Resolution of Xu Guang' by the esoteric community."

Viola raised her right hand curiously. "Hey, Lady Aynive, I read in the account of a [Blessing Monk] that it was the infinite light that drove away the temptations within people."

"Of course, the gods and elders will interpret their followers differently. History, both real and imaginary, overlaps in different worlds." Lady Aynive smiled kindly at the black-haired girl. "What I mentioned are only some of the findings of the 'Secret Treasure Group'. They may not be completely correct, but just because they are incorrect does not mean they are wrong."

"Don't try to play tricks on me. Are you saying that this place, this stone tablet, is related to the Void Light?"

"Yes, I echoed its history, wandered within its deep dreams, and pursued traces from long ago. In the process, I unfortunately touched upon the witch's remaining divinity. Like a whirlpool, she drew me into the abyss, plundering my strength and knowledge."

"What's the connection between the virtual light and the witch?"

"This is the secret treasure I've spent my entire life searching for." Aynive's aged eyes suddenly lit up. She was incredibly excited, as if she could live another five hundred years. "The illusory light engulfed Mengsu's figure. Many mystical cultivators can see the fading fragments of the illusory light while roaming Mengsu. But why did He do this?"