great-warnovel Chapter 413 The Blood of the Swamp Witch
Chapter 413 The Blood of the Swamp Witch
Chapter 413 The Blood of the Swamp Witch
The Muggles screamed and launched a counterattack the moment they were attacked.
But their muskets failed them in the downpour, and their bows and javelins could only leave translucent dents on the armored shards.
A few sparks flew down from the watchtower, followed by a series of explosions.
The savages struggled for only two breaths before being wiped out.
Looking at the ravaged edge of the rainforest, the Firewatch leader, who had just wiped out all the Muggles, asked his colleagues below, "What happened?"
There's no need to consider right or wrong. Since my men have taken action, these Muggles are bound to have a way to die. All questions can wait until the killing is over.
Everything happened too fast. The little indigenous girl watched as the people who came to chase her were turned into pieces in an instant. She trembled all over, whether from excitement or fear.
In the pouring rain, the wizard, unable to contain his anger, went upstairs.
"I'm going to kill all those hairless monkeys!"
"They...they have no wizard's protection at all—they are sacrificing wizard bloodlines!"
The lightning and rain seemed to stop for a moment, but then resumed as usual.
A chilling killing intent spread across the top floor of the wooden tower. Even without hearing the full story, this single sentence was enough for the UMNO members to wipe out the village.
"How did they do it?"
Muggles can always find an opportunity to harm wizards when they are off guard, but exploiting wizards' powers is not a common occurrence.
"It is a tree, deep in the swamp—an ancient tree they call the Ancestral Spirit Tree."
The little girl trembled when she heard the word pronounced in the local dialect.
"They seal the wizard alive in a tree hollow so that the swamp will be fertile and hostile to outsiders."
The fire-watcher glanced at the little girl with pity: "This child's grandmother and aunt were victims, and her mother had her limbs broken, her tongue cut out, and was imprisoned in the tribe as a vessel to breed the bloodline of shamans."
As he spoke, he gritted his teeth, and a deep resentment circulated among the fire watchers.
"Now that the first two witches have exhausted their power, in order to deal with Fiendfire, they have decided to send the child's mother into the tree as well—."
"But an accident occurred during the ritual. A wild beast suddenly broke in and took away their only remaining witch bloodline, this child. Perhaps it was her mother who used her last consciousness to send her away." The Firewatch leader took a deep breath.
He glanced at Hermione, who was still facing the raging flames and controlling the torrential rain.
If it weren't for this person, he would have already ordered a full-scale mobilization to exterminate that village, or he wouldn't need to go through all that trouble; he could simply withdraw the lookout post and watch the swamp be swallowed up by the Fiery Blaze.
No matter how powerful the witch's bloodline or how mysterious the swamp, it is impossible to resist the Black King's ferocity.
But now, he couldn't give that order; Hermione Granger was now the highest leader here.
The torrential rain was evaporated by the fierce fire, rising into an even more magnificent white mist. The large amount of rainwater and the magic power of the spell wore away the layers of fire, but the violent nine-headed fire serpent did not shrink at all. In fact, it grew stronger with the support of the flames coming from all directions.
"How ugly!" Hermione's low, soft voice reached everyone's ears.
The next moment, the gently flowing Negro River was lifted up by an invisible force. Even upstream, this once largest tributary of the Amazon River had a massive volume, like a god wielding a mighty water whip, with a terrifying momentum to destroy everything. The surging river crashed head-on into the smoldering nine-headed serpent.
The earth trembled as the earth roared and hissed from the evaporation, the earth itself shook, and the swirling water struggled against the black flames. A white light shone through the water, and even ordinary river water possessed the power to suppress the fierce fire.
But the vast, boundless firefield is the giant serpent's greatest support; as it is worn down, it is replenished.
Ultimately, Hermione's magic was weaker; she couldn't fight a war of attrition against the endless stream of Fiendfire unless she brought over the Brilliant Stone from Hogwarts.
After a brief standoff, she chose to back down first.
The torrential rain gradually subsided, and the river returned to its normal course.
The ground, which had just been damp, was dried again by the raging fire, and the nine-headed serpent leaped and roared triumphantly.
Hermione turned her head to meet the awe-inspiring gazes of the fire-watchers. Although she had lost the contest, her divine might was still second only to the Dark Lord.
The little girl was stunned. She hadn't expected that this older sister, who looked only a few years older than her, would be so amazing.
"Come here, let me see." Hermione beckoned to her. Although they couldn't understand each other's language, the girl could at least understand the gestures.
Hermione knew she couldn't just stand by and do nothing. Grindelwald, across the ocean, had seen everything. He already knew what was happening in the village; he just wanted to witness it all.
Since we can't avoid it, let's face it.
Grabbing the little girl's dirty hand, he activated his third eye, unleashing a more comprehensive field of vision than the ability to capture the mind.
She saw the rainforest of decades past, where a black meteorite struck the distant river, the rising plume of smoke a sign of impending doom.
The girl's grandmother, a respected swamp witch, was covered in tattoos, her brown skin adorned with pierced ornaments. Time had made her skin loose, but aging was accompanied by strength.
From the wind and the mouths of animals, she heard the earth's screams and the swamp's cries.
The forest is dying, life is falling petal by petal like withered flowers, black demonic fire is engulfing everything, and her village, her ancestral land, will eventually be annihilated.
So she walked into the Ancestral Tree, where vines and roots pierced her skin, and she became one with the swamp. From that moment on, the forest breeze became her eyes, the spirit creatures her claws, the trees her arms, and the swamp her embrace.
She sheltered the village and its people, allowing them to pluck food from her own flesh and blood; she nourished everything in the swamp and terrified all intruders with her cruel killings.
But the people she protected were not satisfied.
Day after day, year after year, the power that permeated the swamp gradually waned, the fruits became less plentiful, and the animals became increasingly scarce. They knew that the once-powerful swamp witch had exhausted everything.
But don't worry, she has two daughters!
During an elaborate celebration, they poisoned two witches with swamp-derived poison. Fearing their retaliation upon waking, they cut off their spellcasting hands, severed their tongues, gouged out the eyes of those they cursed, and broke their legs to escape.
Not all wizards can cast spells without a staff or sound. These primitive wizards especially need the assistance of gestures and rituals, and physical disabilities greatly limit their abilities.
The elder sister was sealed into the Ancestral Tree at the fastest speed, while the younger sister shouldered the heavy responsibility of propagating the witch's bloodline.
All the men in the village can use the witch until they give birth to offspring who also possess magic.
But perhaps the witch's inner hatred cursed her, for all the children she gave birth to over the years died young, except for this little girl, who has survived by the narrowest of times.
"What do you want to do?"
In her mind, Hermione seemed to hear Grindelwald's slightly flippant and teasing question.
"All of this will depend on your will."
This is what he hoped to see; this is the challenge he set for himself.