One-Eyed Monster

Falling! Infinite, unending falling! Clueless, relentless falling!

The sensation sent a tremor through Witch Biggs's heart like never before. It was a familiar feeling, rising from the soles of her feet to the crown of her head. The rushing wind was sometimes like a knife, slashing at her repeatedly, each layer stripped away making her flesh ache. At other times, it was like the earnest, soft whisperings of an elder, each word warming her from within. Sometimes aching, sometimes soothing, sometimes caressing—the sensations the wind brought the Great Witch were bizarre and elusive, and it was this uncertainty that left her at a loss.

Before long, Grand Witch Biggs felt again the terror of that rapid fall. Though she was no stranger to this sensation, it felt more intense than ever before.

However, in reality, she wasn't tumbling down from Guru Mountain. At this moment, Biggs was scrambling down the hill as fast as her hunched body would allow. In front of her were Fighter Musa, carrying Qi Liu on his back, and the incessantly babbling Axia. Behind them pressed fierce, relentless walking corpses and various birds and beasts of unknown origin.

That previous sensation of falling only concerned my future, Biggs thought, but this one... this is about my life and death. Both are falls, yes, but the severity is clearly different. This fall feels faster, deeper, it's taking my breath away.

Grand Witch Biggs didn't have the leisure to sit and analyze this sudden sensation of falling as she had last time. All she felt now was helplessness.

When one feels helpless, the mind often descends into chaos. That's how I feel right now, Biggs thought. It's as if my mind is no longer under my control.

At this moment, thoughts she never wanted to consider forced themselves into her mind, taking her by surprise.

This, perhaps, is the chaos before departing for the Eternal Tranquility Realm!

It is said that before departing for the Eternal Tranquility Realm, everyone's mind will be filled with regrets from their life. The thoughts that surfaced in Biggs's rebellious mind took her by surprise. My mentor... and my fellow sisters...

Witch Biggs was no longer young, but she also hadn't aged enough to be forgotten, even though her face resembled that of someone who had endured many years.

Her mentor was the great White Robe, who had lived more years than the roads Biggs had traveled were long. Yet, her mentor looked like a young girl of about ten. This visual contrast had puzzled Biggs for a very long time, until it began to manifest in herself…

Her hunched figure, sunken eyes, and face full of wrinkles made everyone believe she had already lived through several lifetimes.

In truth, while she had lived for many years, she hadn't aged to the point of needing a cane to walk or panting when she spoke. Yet, her appearance betrayed her. Everyone who saw her assumed she was an old woman who needed a cane and gasped for breath with every word.

Over time, Witch Biggs discovered that this assumed identity of an old woman brought additional benefits, especially during Divination. People, moved by sympathy, often gifted the "elderly woman" more gold coins, so she settled into this persona.

Of course, I knew the reason for my hunched figure and wrinkled face. Mastering Spirit Sensing Skills isn't easy for a Wizard. In the Yowein Continent, where Equivalent Exchange is law, the more advanced one's Spirit Sensing Skills, the more one is ravaged by the Natural Force. The fact that I've been unable to progress from an entry-level Black Robe to a Gray Robe is truly odd. My sisters advanced to Gray Robes long ago; some might even be striving for White Robe by now. And I... I'm still just a Black Robe apprentice with only Divination skills.

This Wizard Apprentice status can fool others, but among our kind, we only look at robe colors, not how many Spirit Sensing Skills someone has mastered. My Spirit Sensing Skills are top-tier among my peers, but even the best skills don't meet the criteria for promotion to Gray Robe. I originally wanted to stay by my mentor, but she told me there was nothing more to teach me. She said advancing to Gray Robe requires one's own deeper understanding of Spirit Sensing Skills, which depends on talent. Some might remain apprentices forever.

Her words had a profound impact on me. I was the best in both Spirit Sensing Skills and Map Recognition among my peers, yet I couldn't cross that crucial threshold to Gray Robe. After returning to my hometown from my mentor's side, I continuously bought Spirit Books, hoping to one day find a path to Gray Robe advancement within their pages...

Not being able to advance to Gray Robe... this might be my life's greatest regret. No wonder I saw images of my mentor and sisters just now... And because I couldn't advance to Gray Robe, I don't even know what my magic specialization is.

"Hahaha, look, we Alchemists are awesome, aren't we? See, these birds and beasts are the Exchange Beasts of our predecessors at the Alchemy Workshop. They're more than enough to deal with these Wire Puppet-controlled walking corpses," Axia began to boast about alchemy again.

"Look at you Fighters, only resorting to the Spirit Wall to combat the walking corpses. Politicians? They haven't given us a good plan yet. And Wizards? I haven't seen that old woman do anything useful." The walking corpses chasing Qi Liu and the others were temporarily hindered by a flock of sparrows, so Axia's chattering mouth was safe for the moment.

The sparrows' formation was quite odd. Sometimes they swooped down, using their sharp beaks as weapons; at other times, they huddled in a circle, chirping as if to distract the enemy with sound.

However, the corpses weren't completely defenseless. Suddenly, the walking corpses did something shocking. A few of them began to tear at each other, ripping their once-intact bodies to shreds. These fragments then formed a horrifying offensive wave, instantly putting the sparrows at a disadvantage...

"My Spirit Wall won't last much longer! Elder Witch, quickly think of something!" Musa shouted, ignoring Axia's sarcasm. The walking corpses' frenzied self-dismemberment forced him to deploy the Spirit Wall without hesitation.

"I..." Witch Biggs's mind was a maelstrom; she didn't know how to reply.

Frenzied arms and heads charged Musa's Spirit Wall. Under the insane assault, some sparrows had already fallen, dissolving into puffs of mist upon hitting the ground.

Confused, Biggs continued her mental fall, the wind—now cold, now hot, now calm—relentlessly buffeting her mind.

I seem to see cold Spirit Power sinking, hot masses of Spirit Power rising to the sky... Deep within, I reach out with both hands, one grasping the cold, the other the heat, melding them together...

WHOOSH—

A fierce gust of wind swept past. The arms hammering at the Spirit Wall were suddenly blown into the sky, suspended there for a long moment before they began to fall.