"Girls, that's the Holy Mountain! We've found it!" Hakkara screamed, her joy bursting forth. Many witches stood frozen in shock at the sight, while others, realizing what they'd witnessed, embraced their companions and wept.
Chirong raised her eyebrows. "Is this really the Sacred Mountain?" "What's wrong? Is something amiss?" Yezi leaned in, whispering. She shared the same confusion—the city in the sky bore no resemblance to the golden splendor described in ancient texts. Though the spires stood majestic, their entire structure was a dull gray-black, appearing lifeless even by daylight. The crimson mist hovering above the city was even more striking, thick as unyielding blood.
"What's squeezing those holes..." Akai's voice grew hoarse. "I can't see clearly, but those things don't look like God's..." A shiver ran through Yezi's spine. As the most perceptive member of the Gongzhu Guild, Akai's words sent a chill through her. The lightning had already left with the Nightingale—otherwise, she could've gotten closer to examine the situation.
"Girls! The Sacred Mountain is right before us!" the mentor raised her hands and cried out. "Just one more push, and we'll find eternity!" With that, she urged the stone maiden to carry her forward. Ye Zi tried to step in, but her foot was already out and back in. She remembered Wendy's fate half a month ago. At this point, any attempt to dissuade would be futile—her mentor wouldn't stop until she saw it with her own eyes.
The group began to speed up. After leaving the mountain base, the snow unexpectedly thinned, and the surrounding temperature rose slightly. This was the legendary forbidden zone, a place untouched by humans, Ye Zi thought. Yet now, their footsteps were leaving marks on this uninhabited land. If lightning were here, she would surely be delighted, wouldn't she?
Looking back, the towering mountains undulated endlessly behind them like an impenetrable barrier. This made Ye Zi wonder: Could it be that the Juejing Mountains prevented the evil beasts from directly invading the continent's core, forcing them to detour through the northernmost lands?
In any case, if she could truly find the Sacred Mountain and no longer wander aimlessly, she would be content... She let out a soft sigh. Truth be told, when Nightingale recounted her adventures in Border Town at the campsite, she was genuinely moved. When Wendy asked who wanted to leave with Nightingale, she even found herself wanting to step forward and call out her name. Yet in the end, she couldn't overcome the mental barrier, succumbing to the shadows left by her past.
The leaf shook its head, refusing to dwell on the past, and followed the group's pace as they raced across the yellow-and-white meadow.
But strange things soon began to happen. No matter how fast they moved, the city kept retreating as if matching their speed. After an hour, the 'Holy Mountain's Abode 'remained suspended in the clouds, neither growing nor shrinking—like... they hadn't moved at all.
"Please rest, Mentor," said Shi Nu, "the sisters are exhausted." During this period, several shifts had been taken over carrying the mentor, and she was the one who had persisted the longest.
"No! How can we stop now?" Hakkara shot back without hesitation. "This is God's test for us, sisters. Without unshakable resolve, you'll never reach the Sacred Mountain! Stop not a bit! Keep walking until the Sacred Mountain's gate appears before us!" Seeing their pleas fall on deaf ears, the group pressed onward.
Yet the situation remained unchanged. During their journey, the witches encountered two waves of evil beasts. The second wave brought two monstrous hybrids. Ye Zi's attempt to restrain the weeds proved futile—her sister was suddenly slashed by a sharp claw, blood splattering the ground.
After finally subduing the monsters, the group noticed the sky darkening—clearly twilight had fallen. The city still lay ahead, but its outline grew increasingly indistinct, as if vanishing into the distance.
Based on past experience, they should have found a suitable spot to set up camp. But this place was nothing like the Desolate Mountains—everything was flat, and with evil beasts lurking around, they couldn't possibly stay overnight in such a place.
"Master Mentor, let's retreat to the foothills first! Let Chitong lead the way and Hongjiao light the path—we might make it back before midnight." "No!" Haka La shouted. "We've spent the whole afternoon here, barely stopping. Everyone's exhausted—we can't keep up at this pace. Sisters, hold on a little longer. We'll only truly rest when we find the Sacred Mountain." "And what about Sherry?" someone asked, pointing to the lifeless Witch lying on the ground.
"We don't have time to bury her," the mentor shook her head. "Leave her here. The earth will embrace her." Ye Zi closed her eyes in sorrow. Another sister had departed. If she had been stronger, she wouldn't have died in this desolate land, without even a tombstone to mark her presence.
As the crowd hesitated between advancing and retreating, the stone maiden suddenly cried out in alarm: "Look up! The city has vanished!" Ye Zi opened her eyes and looked up. The sky had turned a deep gray, with clouds shrouding the night sky. The city had disappeared without a trace, as if it had never existed.
All the people stood still, and for a moment the silence around them was terrible.
A city forever beyond reach, a mirage floating in the air, vanishing into thin air at sunset... Suddenly, Yezi recalled the adventure stories Lightning had told—those fantastical realms seen at sea. She shuddered and whispered, "We were deceived..." Then she shouted, "We were deceived! That wasn't even a sacred mountain! What we saw was a mirage!" "A mirage?" Haka turned abruptly, his God-like face twisted in horror. "What is that?" "The stories of Lightning mention this phenomenon often during long voyages, but it's rare on land. What we saw was just an illusion. The real city might be far away—or even not ahead at all!" "Does that mean it truly exists? And it hasn't vanished?" "This..." Yezi froze. "I don't know." At that moment, Akito suddenly warned, "Caution! Something's coming!" She stared intently at the group's left flank, her face turning grim.
"Another monster?" Zhui Feng assumed a combat stance. "How many?" "No..." Chi Tong took two steps back. "I don't know what that is..." As she spoke, a black shadow approached with lightning speed, aiming straight at her. Though she caught sight of the approaching shadow, she couldn't evade it—unlike a crossbow arrow, it was too fast to dodge.
In a flash, the dark shadow pierced Chitong's chest, hurling her backward and slamming her headfirst into the tree trunk behind her.
It was a spear.