<p>Chapter 3: The Woman Under the Tree</p>
<p>As Shaya’s left hand touched the pattern on the floor, a soft white light slowly blossomed in his palm.</p>
<p>Though he was currently just an ordinary apprentice in the realm of magic, after years of practice, he had managed to achieve the most basic level of magical conductivity. Thus, the white light quickly merged into the lines drawn on the floor as if it were soaking into a sponge, moving forward.</p>
<p>The ritual’s magical array was drawn with a very conductive mixture of magical beast blood and mercury, which was expensive and highlighted its importance at this moment.</p>
<p>As the white light grew stronger, the entire magical array was connected by Shaya’s magic, radiating dazzling light in this hidden little room.</p>
<p>“Buzz—”</p>
<p>In the next moment, a small wooden box in one corner suddenly made a noise.</p>
<p>Inside was a long-dried purple lich heart, which under the effect of the array, now emitted slight pulsations.</p>
<p>Serving as a dividing line, various responses from the ritual materials began to sound in the previously silent room; various magical ores emitted beautiful lights, harmonizing beautifully like strings on a musical instrument.</p>
<p>The main materials included rare organs from twelve different beings, with nodes of the magical matrix housing moon-white crystal ore, blood-red stones, essence of dark night breath, scales of the abyss serpent, bones of void demons, and four other rare extraordinary materials. Judging by this setup, one might think he intended to communicate with some evil god.</p>
<p>But in reality, these materials were merely one of the necessary conditions to connect to the Abyss.</p>
<p>So far, everything was proceeding according to the guidance of the Forbidden Book.</p>
<p>Shaya wiped the sweat from his forehead.</p>
<p>As just a magic apprentice, he simply couldn’t bear the scale of such a ritual. After a short while, he felt as if he had been drained.</p>
<p>Seeing this, he hastily picked up a green magic stone placed nearby, grasping it in his hand to replenish his depleted magical energy.</p>
<p>Almost every second, dozens or even hundreds of gold coins were being consumed, and this sensation was truly painful; no wonder the old geezers at the Magic Association fought tooth and nail over research funding in front of the finance minister’s office every year.</p>
<p>The field of magical research was pure money burning.</p>
<p>After a moment, the strange smiling face on the floor became more and more lifelike, indicating that the magical array was about to be completed. Shaya’s heart rate quickened as he watched.</p>
<p>They had reached a crucial step.</p>
<p>He carefully pulled out a test tube from his pocket; by the light of magic, he could see a thin layer of sparkling substance sedimented at the bottom of the tube.</p>
<p>This was powdered essence of void stone, a rare treasure even in the bustling Royal Capital, so precious that its value could not be described in mere gold, widely used in strategic magic like teleportation arrays.</p>
<p>Shaya gently poured the powder into his palm, chanting an obscure and ancient incantation, then stood up and slowly circled the array with rhythmic steps.</p>
<p>As the strange smile grew increasingly real, the originally soft white light gradually turned crimson, adding a hint of insanity and evil to the entire ritual.</p>
<p>Faint whispers and giggles echoed in the void, making one feel agitated.</p>
<p>Shaya remained expressionless, and at the moment the array was about to reach its climax, he gently scattered the dust from his hand, allowing it to fall into the mouth of the grinning face.</p>
<p>“Boom—”</p>
<p>A silver flame suddenly surged from the center of the magical array, igniting the powdered void stone, as if the grinning face had opened its mouth wide, greedily devouring it!</p>
<p>As the flames burned, a passageway for one person slowly emerged, a flat surface rolling like mercury, obscuring the sights within.</p>
<p>“Success.”</p>
<p>Shaya wiped the sweat from his forehead, a faint smile appearing on his pale face.</p>
<p>After ten years of effort, he finally reaped a reward.</p>
<p>In a moment of crisis, when the deities offered no response, it was the evil entity condemned by the world that became his last hope.</p>
<p>If he could enact his revenge, he would not hesitate to descend into evil!</p>
<p>Without hesitation.</p>
<p>In the next moment, he reached out toward the passageway, as if grasping his future.</p>
<p>A powerful force of attraction suddenly pulled him, and Shaya vanished abruptly from that spot.</p>
<p>The commotion in the room gradually settled, leaving only the upside-down pattern drawn on the ground, as if mocking him.</p>
<p>……</p>
<p>“Thud!”</p>
<p>With a dull thud, Shaya’s body crashed heavily onto the smooth, cold ground.</p>
<p>The consequence of the unstable teleportation array left him feeling seasick, his mind foggy, as if he were tied to a small boat sailing into a stormy sea.</p>
<p>He took a deep breath, noticing the air around him was cold and damp, and shakily stood up, pressing his hand to his forehead.</p>
<p>Although the surroundings were somewhat dim, with only a pale white magical lamp on the nearby wall illuminating the area, he took in his surroundings and saw where he was.</p>
<p>He… seemed to be in the main hall of a palace.</p>
<p>On either side were thick stone pillars engraved with reliefs, and the central path extended deep into the palace, the interior obscured.</p>
<p>Logically, the teleportation ritual should have succeeded; otherwise, the passage could not have opened.</p>
<p>However, according to the documents, the witch was sealed in the Abyss of the Northern Continent, with no mention of a palace like this. From the style of the decoration, it appeared to be quite ancient, meaning it had existed for a long time.</p>
<p>Could it be that something went wrong in the process, sending him before an unfathomable presence?</p>
<p>A confused Shaya sighed.</p>
<p>In any case, no matter where he was killed, he would respawn at the previously set resurrection point, so he wasn’t worried.</p>
<p>At this point, he could only continue moving forward.</p>
<p>About five minutes later, new sights gradually emerged before him, and Shaya couldn’t help but widen his eyes.</p>
<p>Since this was a palace, it should not be out of place to encounter two rows of heavily armored guards and a high throne with a dignified lord seated upon it.</p>
<p>But oddly, what Shaya was seeing was not like this at all.</p>
<p>Before him was an endless expanse of lush green grass, with pink flowers sprouting from the grass, and a tree thick enough to be embraced with both arms.</p>
<p>The branches of the tree, illuminated by the warm yellow magical light, cast a swaying shadow on the grass, gently dancing in the breeze.</p>
<p>Such a scene in the current environment felt very strange indeed.</p>
<p>But what was even stranger was that there was a woman gently leaning against the tree trunk, sitting quietly in the shade.</p>
<p>As Shaya’s left hand touched the pattern on the floor, a soft white light slowly blossomed in his palm.</p>
<p>Though he was currently just an ordinary apprentice in the realm of magic, after years of practice, he had managed to achieve the most basic level of magical conductivity. Thus, the white light quickly merged into the lines drawn on the floor as if it were soaking into a sponge, moving forward.</p>
<p>The ritual’s magical array was drawn with a very conductive mixture of magical beast blood and mercury, which was expensive and highlighted its importance at this moment.</p>
<p>As the white light grew stronger, the entire magical array was connected by Shaya’s magic, radiating dazzling light in this hidden little room.</p>
<p>“Buzz—”</p>
<p>In the next moment, a small wooden box in one corner suddenly made a noise.</p>
<p>Inside was a long-dried purple lich heart, which under the effect of the array, now emitted slight pulsations.</p>
<p>Serving as a dividing line, various responses from the ritual materials began to sound in the previously silent room; various magical ores emitted beautiful lights, harmonizing beautifully like strings on a musical instrument.</p>
<p>The main materials included rare organs from twelve different beings, with nodes of the magical matrix housing moon-white crystal ore, blood-red stones, essence of dark night breath, scales of the abyss serpent, bones of void demons, and four other rare extraordinary materials. Judging by this setup, one might think he intended to communicate with some evil god.</p>
<p>But in reality, these materials were merely one of the necessary conditions to connect to the Abyss.</p>
<p>So far, everything was proceeding according to the guidance of the Forbidden Book.</p>
<p>Shaya wiped the sweat from his forehead.</p>
<p>As just a magic apprentice, he simply couldn’t bear the scale of such a ritual. After a short while, he felt as if he had been drained.</p>
<p>Seeing this, he hastily picked up a green magic stone placed nearby, grasping it in his hand to replenish his depleted magical energy.</p>
<p>Almost every second, dozens or even hundreds of gold coins were being consumed, and this sensation was truly painful; no wonder the old geezers at the Magic Association fought tooth and nail over research funding in front of the finance minister’s office every year.</p>
<p>The field of magical research was pure money burning.</p>
<p>After a moment, the strange smiling face on the floor became more and more lifelike, indicating that the magical array was about to be completed. Shaya’s heart rate quickened as he watched.</p>
<p>They had reached a crucial step.</p>
<p>He carefully pulled out a test tube from his pocket; by the light of magic, he could see a thin layer of sparkling substance sedimented at the bottom of the tube.</p>
<p>This was powdered essence of void stone, a rare treasure even in the bustling Royal Capital, so precious that its value could not be described in mere gold, widely used in strategic magic like teleportation arrays.</p>
<p>Shaya gently poured the powder into his palm, chanting an obscure and ancient incantation, then stood up and slowly circled the array with rhythmic steps.</p>
<p>As the strange smile grew increasingly real, the originally soft white light gradually turned crimson, adding a hint of insanity and evil to the entire ritual.</p>
<p>Faint whispers and giggles echoed in the void, making one feel agitated.</p>
<p>Shaya remained expressionless, and at the moment the array was about to reach its climax, he gently scattered the dust from his hand, allowing it to fall into the mouth of the grinning face.</p>
<p>“Boom—”</p>
<p>A silver flame suddenly surged from the center of the magical array, igniting the powdered void stone, as if the grinning face had opened its mouth wide, greedily devouring it!</p>
<p>As the flames burned, a passageway for one person slowly emerged, a flat surface rolling like mercury, obscuring the sights within.</p>
<p>“Success.”</p>
<p>Shaya wiped the sweat from his forehead, a faint smile appearing on his pale face.</p>
<p>After ten years of effort, he finally reaped a reward.</p>
<p>In a moment of crisis, when the deities offered no response, it was the evil entity condemned by the world that became his last hope.</p>
<p>If he could enact his revenge, he would not hesitate to descend into evil!</p>
<p>Without hesitation.</p>
<p>In the next moment, he reached out toward the passageway, as if grasping his future.</p>
<p>A powerful force of attraction suddenly pulled him, and Shaya vanished abruptly from that spot.</p>
<p>The commotion in the room gradually settled, leaving only the upside-down pattern drawn on the ground, as if mocking him.</p>
<p>……</p>
<p>“Thud!”</p>
<p>With a dull thud, Shaya’s body crashed heavily onto the smooth, cold ground.</p>
<p>The consequence of the unstable teleportation array left him feeling seasick, his mind foggy, as if he were tied to a small boat sailing into a stormy sea.</p>
<p>He took a deep breath, noticing the air around him was cold and damp, and shakily stood up, pressing his hand to his forehead.</p>
<p>Although the surroundings were somewhat dim, with only a pale white magical lamp on the nearby wall illuminating the area, he took in his surroundings and saw where he was.</p>
<p>He… seemed to be in the main hall of a palace.</p>
<p>On either side were thick stone pillars engraved with reliefs, and the central path extended deep into the palace, the interior obscured.</p>
<p>Logically, the teleportation ritual should have succeeded; otherwise, the passage could not have opened.</p>
<p>However, according to the documents, the witch was sealed in the Abyss of the Northern Continent, with no mention of a palace like this. From the style of the decoration, it appeared to be quite ancient, meaning it had existed for a long time.</p>
<p>Could it be that something went wrong in the process, sending him before an unfathomable presence?</p>
<p>A confused Shaya sighed.</p>
<p>In any case, no matter where he was killed, he would respawn at the previously set resurrection point, so he wasn’t worried.</p>
<p>At this point, he could only continue moving forward.</p>
<p>About five minutes later, new sights gradually emerged before him, and Shaya couldn’t help but widen his eyes.</p>
<p>Since this was a palace, it should not be out of place to encounter two rows of heavily armored guards and a high throne with a dignified lord seated upon it.</p>
<p>But oddly, what Shaya was seeing was not like this at all.</p>
<p>Before him was an endless expanse of lush green grass, with pink flowers sprouting from the grass, and a tree thick enough to be embraced with both arms.</p>
<p>The branches of the tree, illuminated by the warm yellow magical light, cast a swaying shadow on the grass, gently dancing in the breeze.</p>
<p>Such a scene in the current environment felt very strange indeed.</p>
<p>But what was even stranger was that there was a woman gently leaning against the tree trunk, sitting quietly in the shade.</p>
