novelraw Chapter 103: Black-Robed Witch?
Chapter 103: Black-Robed Witch?
Too thrilling!
Even though he couldn't see anything, Li Wei still felt incredibly exhilarated.
Because he had truly obtained first-hand evidence.
There really were Witches in this world, and the Plague was very likely released and spread by Witches—or at least related to them.
Furthermore, Witches could control crows to scout targets in advance, thereby laying targeted ambushes.
Moreover, even if the one controlling the crows wasn't a Witch, they were definitely connected to the Bandits.
Listening to the war cries ahead, he feared there had to be at least twenty or thirty Bandits.
By the way, could they beat them?
"Neigh!"
A startled warhorse suddenly turned back, but the knight on its back was nowhere to be seen.Li Wei's eyes lit up. Was this a gift prepared for him?
But just as he thought this, an unexpected change seemed to occur on the battlefield ahead. A super loud voice, like an explosive thunderclap, joined the fray. Then came continuous, agonizing screams, followed closely by those hundreds of crows taking to the air, cawing as they fled.
Did the Bandits fail their robbery?
Was this a trap?
Was there a super-strong powerhouse hidden in the prison cart instead of captured prisoners?
Li Wei let his imagination run wild, only to see the startled warhorse run back on its own after covering some distance.
Sure enough, how could there be so many good things?
He waited in place for about another half an hour. Just as he was about to get up and check the situation at the battlefield ahead, he saw another convoy trundling along from the end of the road.
This time it was much livelier. There were a full four or five carriages. Some were loaded with supplies, while others were those simple covered wagons, upon which sat seven or eight filthy women.
They were somewhat unique, however. They didn't look like poor people, yet they appeared as though they couldn't even afford clothes, possessing a profound ancient charm of being wealthy and generous.
At the front and back of the convoy, there were also many people walking or riding horses, totaling about thirty people altogether. There were driving coachmen and drunken guards. As for those riding horses, they were dressed quite decently, but without exception, they all carried weapons.
"So this is a merchant caravan, tailing behind the Lord's troops to leech some sense of security?"
Li Wei's heart stirred. Perhaps this caravan had Table Salt for sale?
Of course, it was still better to be careful.
Next, he patiently waited. He waited until this caravan crossed the ridge, passed through the Valley, and all movements died down before he silently crept over.
From far away, he saw the site of the battle, because seven or eight corpses were hanging from the trunks of the roadside trees. When a gust of wind blew, he could smell the strong stench of blood. In the distance, the sound of wolves howling rang out; beasts had caught the scent of blood.
The wind in the Valley gradually picked up. An inexplicable chill spread through his whole body, such that even with the bright sun shining above, he couldn't feel any warmth.
Even the shadows of the trees under the sunlight seemed to twist into masses of venomous snakes, viciously tearing at Li Wei's shadow.
He even felt as if he had fallen into an ambush on all sides.
Ultimately, Li Wei stopped a hundred meters away from the battlefield. He wasn't merely afraid of those seven or eight hanging corpses, but rather, he felt quite uncomfortable.
The sound of wolf howls drew closer—it seemed like a wolf pack. Li Wei even felt he could smell a certain foul, bloody stench in the wind.
However, leaving at this moment was not rational. Fortunately, he was currently downwind. Perhaps he could slip through unnoticed?
Just as he was thinking this, three Black Wolves, nearly the size of calves, emerged from the forest to the east.
Yes, they were wolves.
Li Wei did not know why their sizes were so enormous, but it didn't seem to matter. Because riding on the back of one of the wolves was a woman wearing a black robe. Her frame was very slender, and judging by her physique, she looked about fourteen or fifteen years old.
Her entire body was shrouded in the black robe, and an oversized crow rested on her shoulder. This crow looked incredibly lively, constantly tilting its head to scrutinize the surroundings.
It was very mysterious, and also very stimulating.
Li Wei didn't dare to look anymore. He hastily hid behind the large tree, simultaneously memorizing the surrounding terrain and the positions of the trees while preparing for combat.
Truly, it wasn't that he was being careless. He just never expected that a Witch would return to inspect the battlefield. Why hadn't she taken action just now?
After a little while passed like this, extremely discomforting sounds of tearing and devouring drifted over from the battlefield.
It was those three giant Black Wolves feeding.
There was also that crow, pecking at the food just the same. That joyous sound of flapping wings could not be mistaken.
Li Wei didn't look. Once the initial thrill passed, he had already regained his composure. Regardless of whether the other party was a legendary Witch or a fox spirit, she was absolutely not the benevolent sort. The moment she discovered him, there was no way she would spare him.
And calmness was the first trump card he could play.
The wind in the Valley gradually died down, but that putrid stench mixed with the smell of blood didn't weaken; instead, it seemed to have grown thicker.
Where was the putrid stench coming from?
The wolf's howl rang out again and gradually faded into the distance.
Li Wei was not discovered. The distant battle site was a complete mess, and the smell of blood was even stronger, yet that putrid stench had immediately faded considerably. Thus, he instantly knew where that putrid stench had come from.
A rotting black-robed Witch?
How fucking fantastical!
Not daring to linger any longer, Li Wei immediately detoured. He had to leave.
However, this time, barely after walking for five hundred meters through the forest, a sudden, entirely unprompted scalp-tingling sensation hit him!
Not good!
Without daring to look around at all to find the source of the unease, Li Wei accelerated right on the spot. In the next second, he bypassed a large tree, but didn't stop at all, instead sharply changing directions once more!
Sprinting wild! Sprinting wild!
Absolutely not looking back!
Li Wei pretty much brought out everything he had, stimulating all his life's skills at this moment. In a short two to three seconds, he accelerated from a standstill, executed two consecutive turns, and raised his speed to a very high level.
And practically at that exact moment, an aura of icy coldness swept rapidly from behind, slamming with a smack into the large tree Li Wei had just bypassed.
In that instant, the temperature within a ten-meter radius plummeted violently, easily dropping down to several tens of degrees below zero.
Li Wei even sensed the sudden disappearance of that large tree's life force right at that moment.
What the hell?
But Li Wei didn't dare turn around to look, just sprinting madly through the forest!
Furthermore, he circled a tree every three to five seconds. At the same time, he rapidly and calmly recalled all the surrounding environments and directions in his mind.
He needed to find the optimal escape route.
Fortunately, this was always something he liked to do and habitually did. So even while sprinting wildly, even with the trees obstructing his field of vision, he could still determine the direction through the undulations of the ground and the changes in light and shadow.
Thereby determining the enemy's location.
But he didn't plan on looking back. Even though his Two-Star Composite Bow was right in his hands and he could casually pull out a hardwood arrow, he absolutely would not look back!
"Awhoo!"
A wolf's howl rang out from the back right, followed closely by another wolf howl from several hundred meters ahead and to the left, as well as the sound of running. It was that black-robed Witch, and her three mutated giant wolves.
Oh, there should also be a crow staring at him from the sky.
As these thoughts flashed by, Li Wei didn't panic or lose his head. No, he was actually as calm as always, even breathing a slight sigh of relief.
While it was true that the wolf howls allowed those three wolves to communicate and coordinate an encirclement, it was simultaneously equivalent to them giving away their positions to him.
As a result, he slightly slowed down his pace, changed direction, and ran toward a place with more trees.
The surrounding terrain, the distribution of trees, the softness of the ground, the constantly shifting positions of the enemies—in this moment, all this information surfaced in his mind like crystal-clear flowing water. And despite carrying a backpack weighing over fifteen kilograms—which added up to nearly twenty kilograms with the Leather Armor—he could still move swiftly as if flying.
His Level 1 Awakening of Stamina acted like a car's ABS anti-lock braking system, preventing him from excessively expending Stamina. His calm emotions allowed him to precisely control his breathing, refusing to waste a single drop.
As for his Agility, it made his body more coordinated and balanced, making his reactions to the surrounding environment sharper and more precise.
Combined with his understanding of the surrounding terrain and topography, as well as his sharper hearing and vision, he could rapidly accumulate advantages through tactics.
For example, using the forest to interfere with the black-robed Witch's line of sight, preventing her attacks from hitting accurately.
At the same time, because she was riding on the back of that Black Wolf, it would cause that Black Wolf's running speed to drop and its Stamina depletion to increase. This much was certain. As long as Li Wei maintained a constant running pace, the Black Wolf the black-robed Witch rode wouldn't be able to catch up.
As for the remaining two Black Wolves, since they were taking a circuitous flanking posture, even if they were very fast, it was impossible for them to intercept him in a short period of time.
Therefore, finding a way to cut off and disrupt the opponent's pursuit and encirclement to force a one-on-one situation was the sole, optimal choice.
In addition, he could utilize changes in the terrain and the distribution of the trees to form a brief terrain suppression against the pursuing Black Wolves.
Because on steep terrain, even mutated Black Wolves would find it extremely difficult to climb. And even if they could, their speed would have to drop.
Therefore, Li Wei turned. He turned right, getting closer to the Black Wolf on the right rear.
This was equivalent to him making a right turn and closing into the right rear Black Wolf's straight-line sprint zone. In a brief moment, the distance between the two sides was narrowed to less than fifty meters.
But doing so temporarily widened the distance from that mutated Black Wolf several hundred meters away to the front left.
As for the enemy Witch on the center line, her distance from Li Wei remained unchanged, still at roughly a hundred meters.
Most importantly, the forest ahead was sparse, with excellent visibility. The terrain was open and flat—exactly perfectly suited for a mutated Black Wolf to launch a short-distance charge!
"Awhoo!"
The wolf's howl rang out again. It was the Black Wolf in the enemy's middle path howling. Was it giving instructions?
Was the Witch ordering a charge, or had she seen through Li Wei's intentions?
He didn't know, but that crow in the sky was squawking wildly and constantly circling, tracking Li Wei precisely like a drone, making sure he could never escape the Witch's line of sight.
Li Wei still didn't turn around to look—not even once. He continued to sprint wildly at a steady pace, and even his shifts in direction were so silky smooth, it was as if he were listening to music while running a marathon!
He was just this leisurely and comfortable, acting as if there were no wolves! As if there were no crows!