Chapter 343 The mysterious witch's deal

Qin Feng and his team escaped from the collapse of the underground maze, but they had no time to breathe. Liu Feng was still unconscious and was eroded by the dark power. They had to find a way to unlock the seal as soon as possible. In this mysterious secret place, dangers were lurking everywhere, and the members of the dark sect had obviously not given up.

At the entrance of the misty forest, there was a strange sense of tension in the air. Several people supported the unconscious Liu Feng, feeling uneasy.

"We have to find a safe place and treat Liu Feng's injuries first." Wang Yue looked at the dark runes appearing on Liu Feng's face, worried.

Ye Li nodded in agreement: "If it is not resolved quickly, he may be completely devoured by the dark power."

Chu Tian looked around and suggested, "Why don't we go find that spirit beast? It said before that it can help us if we need it."

"Good idea." Qin Feng nodded, "Let's go find it first, maybe it knows how to unlock this seal."

They quickly moved along the forest path, searching for the spirit beast that had helped them before. As they approached, the mist grew thicker and the outlines of the trees became increasingly blurred.

"The fog seems to be getting thicker." Zhang Meng frowned. "Could the spirit beast have left?"

Just when everyone was confused, a gentle voice suddenly came from the front: "Are you looking for me?"

Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and found that the spirit beast was standing under a tree not far away, watching them quietly.

"We need your help." Qin Feng stepped forward and said anxiously, "Our friend has been corrupted by the power of darkness, and we don't know how to save him."

The spirit beast slowly approached, took a closer look at the unconscious Liu Feng, and whispered: "His condition is indeed very bad. The dark power has penetrated deep into his soul. It takes a special power to unlock this seal."

"Then where can we find this kind of power?" Ye Li asked.

The spirit beast pondered for a moment and said, "At the other end of the secret realm, there is a mysterious witch who may be able to help you. But her temperament is strange and her requirements are extremely high. You must be prepared."

"Mysterious witch?" Chu Tian raised his eyebrows. "She doesn't sound like someone who is easy to get along with."

"Yes, she is indeed difficult to approach." The spirit beast explained, "But if she is willing to help, Liu Feng can be saved."

Qin Feng nodded firmly: "No matter how difficult it is, we must try. Please take us to find her."

The spirit beast smiled slightly: "Come with me."

They followed the spirit beast through the dense misty forest and walked for a long time before finally arriving at a slightly eerie area. The trees here were taller and denser than in other places, and the leaves seemed to be trembling slightly, as if they would make strange noises at any time.

"It's so eerie in here." Zhang Meng muttered and clenched his fists.

The spirit beast stopped and pointed to a small wooden house covered by vines in front of it: "That's where the witch lives. You go in, I'll wait outside."

Qin Feng looked at his companions, and they all nodded in agreement. They walked towards the cabin, and as they approached, a strong sense of oppression came over them.

"Such a strong fluctuation of spiritual power!" Wang Yue said in a low voice, seeming a little nervous.

Qin Feng reached out and knocked gently on the door of the wooden house. A faint light immediately shone through the crack of the door, as if looking at them. After a moment, the wooden door creaked open by itself, and an old and hoarse voice came from inside: "Come in, young man."

They walked into the house carefully and found that the furnishings were simple, but there were many strange bottles and jars hanging around, emitting an unknown smell. In the corner of the house, an old woman in a dark cloak was sitting in a rocking chair, holding an ancient crystal ball in her hand.

"What do you want?" The old woman slowly raised her head, revealing a pair of bright eyes.

Qin Feng stepped forward and said respectfully: "Dear witch, our friend has been corrupted by the power of darkness. I heard that you may have a way to help him unlock the seal."

The witch narrowed her eyes and looked at the unconscious Liu Feng: "Oh? Let me see."

She stood up and walked to Liu Feng, stretched out a wrinkled hand, and gently placed it on his forehead. After a moment, her face became serious.

"The situation is worse than I thought," the witch said. "His soul has been corroded by the power of darkness. Ordinary treatments are completely ineffective."

"Then what should we do?" Ye Li asked anxiously.

The witch chuckled softly, "There is only one way to save him, but it requires you to complete a task."

"What mission?" Chu Tian asked curiously.

The witch slowly walked back to her rocking chair, sat down and said, "In the depths of the Misty Forest, there is a strange flower called 'Flower of the Underworld'. It grows in an extremely dangerous place and can only be picked on a full moon night. If you can bring this flower back, I will help you unseal it."

"Flower of the Netherworld?" Wang Yue frowned. "It sounds difficult to find."

"It's indeed hard to find." The witch smiled, "But it seems you have no choice."

Qin Feng looked at his companions. They all looked solemn, but there was a determined light in their eyes. Qin Feng turned to the witch, nodded and said, "We accept the task. Please tell us how to find the Nether Flower."

After leaving the witch's cabin, the spirit beast continued to lead them deeper into the misty forest. As the night deepened, the fog in the forest became thicker and visibility became lower and lower.

"Where does this flower grow?" Chu Tian waved the branch in his hand irritably, trying to disperse the thick fog in front of him.

The spirit beast replied: "The Nether Flower grows in a dark swamp. The atmosphere there is full of decay and death. It is difficult for ordinary people to find it."

"It's getting better and better." Zhang Meng muttered, "Can't there be a simpler task?"

Ye Li smiled and said, "Simple tasks are not what we do, right?"

Wang Yue nodded: "Yes, we specialize in dealing with such difficult matters."

Qin Feng interrupted their jokes: "Okay, focus. We are almost there."

Finally, they came to the legendary swamp, where the air was filled with a rotten smell and the ground was covered with thick moss and black mud.

"How disgusting, what kind of place is this?" Chu Tian wrinkled his nose.

The spirit beast explained: "This is where the Nether Flower grows. You must be careful, the quagmire here is very dangerous and you may suddenly sink into it."

Qin Feng nodded: "Everyone be careful and try to take every step steadily."

They moved forward cautiously in the mud, and the mist around them seemed to be flowing slowly as if it had life. Suddenly, Ye Li pointed forward with sharp eyes: "Look, there is something flashing over there!"

Everyone looked in the direction she pointed, and sure enough, they saw a faint blue light flickering in the distance, as if guiding them forward.

"That's the Netherworld Flower!" the spirit beast said excitedly, "Be careful, pick it quickly!"

"Go!" Qin Feng shouted and took the lead to rush towards the direction of the blue light.

They quickly approached the blue light, but the closer they got, the colder the atmosphere around them became. Suddenly, the mud under their feet began to shake violently, as if something was moving underneath.

"Everyone be careful!" Ye Li shouted.

Just as he finished his words, several huge mud monsters suddenly emerged from the mud, emitting a stench of decay and waving their huge mud arms towards them.

"What the hell are these!" Zhang Meng exclaimed, swinging his fist at a mud monster, but the mud arm dodged nimbly.

Chu Tian quickly summoned a storm wolf, rushed towards another mud monster, and chopped it down with his thunder claws, but the mud monster was unharmed.

"These guys don't seem to be afraid of physical attacks!" Chu Tian shouted.

Qin Feng clenched the Dragon Shadow Sword: "Try to attack with spiritual power!"

He raised the Dragon Shadow Sword high, injected spiritual power into it, and the sword emitted a dazzling blue light. He slashed at a mud monster with one sword. The sword energy passed through, and the mud monster was split in two, turning into a pool of stagnant water.

"It really works!" Qin Feng shouted, "Everyone, use your spiritual power to attack!"

Ye Li quickly ordered the frost fox to spit out a stream of frost air, freezing a mud monster. Chu Tian and Wang Yue also attacked with spiritual power, repelling the remaining mud monsters.

"Go pick flowers now!" the spirit beast reminded.

Qin Feng waved his hand, signaling Chu Tian and Zhang Meng to cover him, and he and Ye Li quickly ran towards the Nether Flower. The flower looked like an ordinary blue flower, but the petals emitted a faint blue light, as if it had a mysterious power.

"That's it!" Ye Li said softly.

Qin Feng nodded and reached out to pick the flower, but the moment his fingers touched the petals, a strong chill came from the flower and rushed straight into his heart. He suddenly withdrew his hand, startled.

"What's going on?" Ye Li asked.

"This flower has a protection mechanism, so we can't just pick it." Qin Feng frowned and said, "We have to think of another way."

The spirit beast reminded: "The Netherworld Flower needs to be picked in a special way."

Wang Yue came over, thought for a moment and said, "Maybe we can use spiritual power to wrap it, and then pick it?"

Qin Feng nodded: "Let's give it a try."

He inserted the Dragon Shadow Sword into the ground, gathered spiritual power in his hands, carefully wrapped the spiritual power around the flower, and then slowly picked the Netherworld Flower. As expected, he did not encounter the cold again this time.

"Success!" Chu Tian shouted excitedly.

"Take it back to the witch quickly!" Zhang Meng urged.

They quickly returned to the witch's residence and handed the Nether Flower to the witch. The witch took the flower, examined it carefully for a while, and nodded with satisfaction: "You did a good job, this is indeed the Nether Flower."

"Then can you help us remove the seal on Liu Feng?" Qin Feng asked anxiously.

The witch smiled and said, "Of course. However, the power of this flower can only be most effective on a full moon night. You need to wait until tonight."

"We can wait." Ye Li said firmly, "As long as we can save him."

The witch nodded and turned to prepare for the ritual. She took out a few candles and some strange powder and sprinkled them gently on the nether flower. The flower began to emit a soft blue light, as if blooming in the night sky.

"Come here and stand in a circle," the witch instructed.

Qin Feng and his companions stood up according to her instructions. The witch began to chant the spell, and the air around them gradually became heavy. Suddenly, moonlight poured through the cracks in the roof and shone directly on the Nether Flower.

The flower emitted a strong light, and a blue beam of light shot straight into the sky. At the same time, the dark runes on Liu Feng's body began to slowly fade away, and the painful expression on his face gradually eased.

"It works!" Wang Yue said excitedly.

After a while, the light gradually dissipated, Liu Feng's eyes slowly opened, and he looked at the people around him in confusion.

"Where am I?" he asked weakly.

"You're okay." Qin Feng breathed a sigh of relief, "We saved you."

The witch nodded: "His soul has been purified. Now he just needs to rest for a while before he can fully recover."

"Thank you, witch." Ye Li said gratefully.

The witch waved her hand and said, "Don't thank me. You have completed the task. I am just fulfilling my promise."

Qin Feng looked at Liu Feng and said softly, "Now, we have to leave here as soon as possible. The people from the Dark Sect may still be waiting for us outside."

The witch smiled and said, "Good luck to you, young adventurers."

After walking out of the witch's cabin, Qin Feng and his group took a deep breath. The Misty Forest was still shrouded in thick fog, but they felt much more relaxed than before.

"What should we do next?" Chu Tian asked.

Qin Feng looked into the distance and said firmly: "We must continue to track the movements of the Dark Cult and completely crush their conspiracy."

Ye Li smiled and said, "It seems our adventure is far from over."

Wang Yue patted Liu Feng on the shoulder: "I hope you can recover soon. There may be more challenges in the future."

Liu Feng nodded and smiled weakly: "Thank you for saving me. I will recover as soon as possible and fight against the Dark Cult with you."

The spirit beast nodded and said, "You are all brave warriors. The future of the secret realm needs your protection."

Qin Feng gripped the Dragon Shadow Sword tightly, his eyes flashing with determination: "That's right, no matter how dangerous the road ahead is, we will keep moving forward."

Everyone smiled, encouraged each other, and continued to move forward into the depths of the misty forest. They knew that there were still many unknown challenges ahead, but as long as they united as one, they would be able to overcome all difficulties.