The Cornflower Witch Chapter 204

Riding a white horse across the wilderness, a long-lost sense of emptiness washed over Hylial.

Hylial’s mood was slightly lighthearted, perhaps due to a feeling of freedom, like finally enjoying a joyful vacation after working overtime for six consecutive months.

This description might be a bit exaggerated, but she genuinely cherished this carefree feeling.

Unlike her arrival, Hylial only took two days to travel to Mammoth Town. This was likely because she traveled alone, a much faster pace than when she was hindered by the speed of the caravan.

After traversing the desolate and dark wilderness and reaching Mammoth Town on the frontier, Hylial paused, put on the veil that “Bad Apple” had given her, and then entered the association branch there.

“I need information about the Spider Forest,” she said, presenting her Woodland Badge as identification.

“Alright, please wait a moment.” The staff member behind the counter calmly pulled out a printed page from the bookshelf and handed it to the young woman.

“The Spider Forest is quite dangerous. Do you have any familiar companions as teammates?” he kindly reminded her, seeing her alone.

“I know, but I’m just looking into the situation this time,” Hylial explained simply.

Seeing her confident demeanor and knowing she was a second-tier student, not a novice, the staff member offered no further advice.

After receiving the information, Hylial settled in Mammoth Town. Based on her previous experience adventuring with “Bad Apple” and his group, she purchased the supplies she would need for the journey, including torches, candles, ropes, and a simple tent. She then packed these items and loaded them onto her warhorse.

Early the next morning, when most of the town was still asleep, she set off on horseback.

Heading northwest from Mammoth Town, Hylial arrived at the outskirts of the Spider Forest by noon. The narrow paths here were overgrown with weeds, suggesting that no one had ventured through for a long time.

Facing the gray-white world of the frontier, Hylial prepared herself and led her warhorse into the forest. A slightly cold sensation once again enveloped her.

Walking along the river, she passed through the long, gray-white area and gradually entered the forest’s interior. Here, she saw traces of small spiders and many dilapidated cobwebs among the trees.

The deeper she went into the forest, the darker the sky became. It was only around three in the afternoon, but it already felt like dusk.

Noticing her warhorse getting restless, Hylial paused, took out her long-unused candle lamp, and hung it around the horse’s neck. A slight touch spread an orange-red glow, illuminating the surroundings.

After advancing a few hundred more meters, the sky above the forest was completely covered by leaves and cobwebs, making it almost impossible to see the heavens. Many small white spiders scuttled on the ground, causing the warhorse to constantly lift its hooves.

It seemed that without clearing the way, further progress would be difficult.

Hylial now understood why this secret realm had been uninhabited for so long. Mammoth Town itself was situated on the edge of the Dark Mist Mountains, a remote and sparsely populated area with few resident students. Coupled with the dangerous environment and the fact that its only valuable resource was spiders, most people would be truly unwilling to venture here.

She took the lantern from the horse’s neck and held it in her hand. With the activation of Bloom-Flowering Method, an invisible wave of fire spread, igniting the surrounding cobwebs.

The fire spread quickly, burning not only the cobwebs but also the trees.

At this moment, Hylial tightened her grip on her restless warhorse, allowing the flames to spread and expand. Large quantities of fallen leaves and cobwebs ignited, sending plumes of smoke billowing into the forest. She stood still, her green eyes shimmering as if she could see through the dense woods and observe what was happening inside.

After a few minutes, the forest in front of her seemed to “come alive.” Numerous spiders surged out, climbing everywhere in a dense, unsettling tide.

In response, Hylial intensified the flames again. Invisible waves of fire rolled and spread, igniting the approaching spiders. The scorching heat carried away the dead branches and small spiders, tossing them into the air to become a shower of sparks.

The stench of charring filled the air. At this moment, several gray-white large spiders rushed out of the forest, seemingly oblivious to the flames. These strange spiders were about three meters wide. After surging through the fire, their multiple pairs of black eyes searched, instantly spotting the girl standing in the ring of fire, and then charged towards her.

[White Chinchilla Spider] (Second-Order, Insect): A spider skilled at weaving webs and ambushing enemies. Its body blends with the environment when motionless. It is venomous. Upon death, its bodily fluids emit an foul odor, marking enemies for its companions to pursue.

“Hiss—”

It was clear they were enraged. As they scurried, their limbs rubbed together, and their glossy black fangs opened, revealing menacing mouthparts, clearly intending to tear the unfamiliar girl to shreds.

However, Hylial was well-prepared. She put down the lantern, drew the Glimmergold Greatsword from her waist, and moved out with light steps. Like a mountain goat hanging from a cliff, she sliced through the attacking spider, its severed limbs scattering on the ground.

As greenish-yellow liquid spilled out, a peculiar sour stench spread, forcing Hylial to cover her nose and avert her gaze. She then easily dispatched another attacking “white chinchilla spider,” sidestepping with agile movements to avoid the venomous fluids sprayed upon its death.

Creatures of the ‘Insect’ aspect are mostly weak individually. Even though these spiders were also second-tier like Hylial, their strength was vastly different.

After slaying more than twenty “White Chinchilla Spiders,” the forest finally quieted down, leaving Hylial feeling a bit troubled by the numerous spider corpses.

The valuable parts of these spiders were their eyeballs and venomous fangs, but seeing the ground covered in greenish-yellow fluid, Hylial really didn’t want to touch them.

Forget it, she decided, the materials weren’t worth it.

She carefully leaped among the spider corpses, avoiding the stench-emitting fluids, feeling that this process was even more difficult than the battle itself.

After slaying the surrounding second-tier spiders, the remaining first-tier spiders, influenced by the pheromones in the air, fled in fear. They likely understood that a very dangerous and terrifying enemy was here.

Returning to her warhorse, Hylial spent some time calming it down, feeding it some food, until the white horse was stable enough to continue walking with her.

Stepping over the burnt ground, Hylial continued through the forest. She vaguely sensed that there were even stronger spiders deeper within, but they hadn’t emerged, whether they were ambushing her or in a state of hibernation.

Thus, as darkness completely fell, Hylial found a relatively safe spot and began setting up camp for the night.

Thanks to the runes she had learned previously, she could now set up a simple alert array to guard her through the night. Additionally, the constructed array helped prevent her aura from leaking out, which could attract enemies. Just as she lit a campfire and began cooking her dinner, a figure from deep within the forest slowly began to move.

Eight red eyes of varying sizes moved through the inky blackness like lanterns in the night. Its enormous body moved with extraordinary silence, without a single sound.

In the dead of night, an unseen shadow slowly traversed the forest until it glimpsed the hazy glow of a campfire in the distance.