Crow Hag

After resting for a while, Evan chose to return the way he came, not lingering too long in the dangerous swamp.

"Occasionally coming out to capture potion ingredients as a diversion is fine, but if I were to spend all day running around for rare medicines that grow in all corners of the world, the time and energy spent would be too much of a loss.

Perhaps the path of seizing wealth from the sea and then transforming that wealth into various cultivation resources is more suitable for me."

Although he had just completed a successful hunt unscathed, Evan was already considering staying away from this kind of routine in the future.

The ancients said that cultivation requires "wealth, companionship, method, and land," but for Evan, as a Wizard Apprentice, the only element of cultivation that he could currently obtain was "wealth"; the other elements were all matters of chance.

Evan wasn't anxious.

As a promising Naval Officer, his future was destined to be on the vast sea, where wealth, treasures, and power would all be acquired.

This is also the charm of the sea that drives generations to explore it relentlessly.

"The milk will be there, and the bread will be there too."

Whoosh—

Lightly borrowing strength from a fallen dead tree, Evan moved like a lithe leopard, swiftly traversing the scattered land islands. A journey that might take an ordinary person a whole day might only take Evan an hour.

Moreover, the return journey was much faster than the way he came.

Having walked the path once, there were no more secrets for Evan. Where were the footholds? Where might danger be lurking? It was all clear at a glance.

But Evan's luck was clearly not good today; the weather changed faster than his return speed.

Just as he left the continuous land islands and stepped onto solid ground, a strange fog swept across the entire swamp in a short time, and the sky suddenly darkened.

Although it wasn't quite to the point where one couldn't see their fingers, it greatly affected his vision.

After all, Data Vision was based on Evan's senses and couldn't enhance his vision. In this kind of weather, he didn't dare to rush recklessly.

As a precaution, Evan paused, chopped some oily branches, made a torch, and then slowed down to continue forward.

Hunting the crocodile had already taken up a lot of Evan's time, and he didn't want to spend the night in this ghostly place.

The time displayed in Data Vision was 2:54 PM.

He wanted to try to leave the swamp before five o'clock, otherwise, in this weather, it might be completely dark before five o'clock, bringing him more unpredictable dangers.

Unlike the ghost legends that only existed in fantasies or stories in his previous life, this world was one where extraordinary power manifested. Knights and wizards had already appeared, so would those strange and terrifying things be far behind?

Evan didn't want to see the terrifying and bizarre things that were bound to exist in this magical world!

Unfortunately, things didn't develop according to Evan's will.

Time passed minute by minute. The traces he had left on his way here were still clearly visible, but Evan felt that the road under his feet had obviously become much longer.

Not in the real sense of spatial scale stretching, but in Evan's feeling, at his normal pace, he should have already left this woodland adjacent to the swamp.

But by the light of the torch, the vision was still a gloomy, endless, messy forest, with no birds singing, no insects chirping, silent and eerie.

Slowly stopping, Evan had to admit that something he couldn't understand for the time being had happened.

"Lost in the woods?"

For a moment, even with his boldness, he couldn't help but feel his scalp tingle. Poisonous insects and fierce beasts were nothing; the unknown fear was the most terrifying.

And Evan felt, perhaps it was just his imagination, that the moment he stopped, countless eyes seemed to suddenly open in the surrounding treetops, staring at him unblinkingly.

Evan's expression was somewhat gloomy.

This area was clearly marked as a non-dangerous zone on the map, and at the very least, there shouldn't be any extraordinary creatures that could threaten him. But right now, Evan just wanted to curse the unscrupulous merchant who sold him the map!

However, that was a matter for later.

The immediate crisis had already arrived!

"Flap, flap..."

A large, dark flock of birds rose from the forest.

Crows!

Nothing but crows!

Their size was comparable to small falcons, and hundreds or thousands of them rose into the air at the same time. Their wings formed a canopy, blocking out the sky, even the last faint light was obscured.

Night had fallen.

The scene before him was too bizarre, completely beyond Evan's understanding. He involuntarily took two steps back, and the torch in his hand seemed to be affected by his fluctuating emotions, flickering a few times.

At the same time.

Whoosh—

Gusts of cold, damp wind mixed with a strange fragrance swept through the treetops, converging from all directions.

"Caw, caw, caw..."

Evan suddenly turned his head, but instantly took two steps back again.

He couldn't even control the strength in his feet, leaving several deep footprints in the mud.

Because, on the tree behind Evan, almost within reach, a "monster" was quietly squatting on a branch.

It had an abstract, distorted human face, wrinkled, withered yellow skin, a protruding nose like a bird's beak, and dim, bloodshot eyes that flickered with cruelty and indifference!

Its hands and feet were almost mutated into claws, and its body was covered in black feathers, but around its neck, it wore a delicate garland.

Squatting on the tree, it looked like a crow spirit mutated into a human, and just one glance was enough to cause intense discomfort.

"Gak, gak...!"

A red-eyed crow standing on its shoulder tilted its head to look at Evan in a very human-like manner, cawing strangely, making one's heart even colder.

Crow Hag!!!

Even though Evan was new to the extraordinary world, he had heard of this creature's great reputation.

Leon's notes contained a detailed description of the Crow Hag, but Evan was more concerned about what Leon himself had experienced at the time, which was not recorded in detail. In any case, it certainly wasn't a pleasant experience.

Unlike demonized creatures that had formed stable groups, or ferocious creatures formed by the mutation of ordinary animals.

Crow Hags were not born monsters. Their predecessors were actually witches among humans!

Unlike the orthodox path of wizards who gradually transformed from nothing, they were like demonized creatures, able to awaken certain supernatural powers naturally from birth as they grew older.

In a way, they are all natural spellcasters favored by the gods.

However.

However... if they don't have systematic guidance, learning, and then perfectly master this talent, they will face a very terrifying risk of losing control while growing rapidly.

It's like a skyscraper with a crooked foundation; the stronger it is, the higher the risk of losing control!

Until one day.

When their magic loses control or they die with resentment, if they are not dealt with and purified in time, they may mutate together with their crow pets and become this ugly and terrifying monster—a Crow Hag.

More importantly, their staple food is... humans!