Chapter 17: The Irreversible Path of the Witch

After a while, the commotion outside seemed to grudgingly subside.

Despite my search, I hadn’t found any tasks that truly appealed to me. Perhaps it was because I was still new to the ‘Wan Shi Wu’ app, or simply unfamiliar with navigating its interface. My current schedule, moreover, simply didn’t allow for undertaking any of the available missions.

I decided to put it aside for now. After all, my current academic credits were more than sufficient.

It seemed a peacemaker had intervened in the outdoor commotion. I wasn’t sure if it was the dorm manager or an elder student, but regardless, the conflict quickly drew to a close.

At last, silence reigned.

With the quiet restored, it was the perfect time to try resonating with the Witch’s Heart!

I took the Witch’s Heart from my waist. Encased within the pendant’s intricate metal filigree, the dull gray crystal pulsed faintly.

The crystal was perfectly clear, utterly devoid of impurities.

Closing my eyes, I attempted to guide out the delicate threads of my mental energy. I was still unpracticed, this being only the second time I’d tried to manifest my spiritual power into the physical realm.

I vaguely recalled Qieluo had once said that mental energy was invisible. After a moment, I opened my eyes to find my hand seemingly empty. Yet, I could distinctly feel a faint wisp of spiritual power cradled within my grasp.

Carefully, I attempted to guide my mental energy into the Witch’s Heart.

Initially, I anticipated a challenging process. However, the moment my mental energy brushed against the Witch’s Heart, it flowed inward with astonishing ease, much like an electric current finding its way through metal!

Upon contact with my mental energy, the Witch’s Heart began to undergo a transformation. A few luminous points flickered into existence at the crystal’s very core.

Leaning closer, I confirmed it. The light was faint, yet surprisingly piercing, as if tiny LEDs were glowing from within its depths!

The points of light began to spread, voraciously consuming the entire crystal from within the Witch’s Heart!

The once dull gray crystal became brilliantly illuminated by these burgeoning lights, radiating a vibrant pink glow. Its radiance grew so intense that it even eclipsed the dormitory’s overhead lighting!

The pink light intensified, transforming the formerly dim crystal into a dazzling, lustrous pink gem.

As I felt that wisp of mental energy, it seemed to forge an inexplicable, profound connection between myself and the Witch’s Heart.

It was as if the Witch’s Heart had become an extension of my very being.

Then, a memory surfaced: Qieluo had once described the Witch’s Heart as an external magical organ. ‘So this is what she meant,’ I mused.

Now, this crystal felt like a true part of me, something I could control with absolute ease!

The Witch’s Heart, resting in my palm, suddenly felt entirely weightless. Cautiously, I withdrew my hand, and the crystal remained suspended before me!

I could even make it shift position slightly, though that seemed to be its current limit. I didn’t understand the underlying principle; it felt as instinctual as breathing. Yet, in that moment, I truly grasped that I was wielding extraordinary power!

I gripped the Witch’s Heart once more, only to find it radiating a subtle heat. A sensation of blissful warmth, akin to water melting, continuously flowed from the crystal into me.

I didn’t understand its meaning, but the feeling emanating from the Witch’s Heart was one of profound reassurance.

It felt as if nothing ill could come of this.

This time, I decided to trust my instincts. Given that the Witch’s Heart was paramount to my future journey into the extraordinary, it was only natural to place my faith in it.

Closing my eyes, I meticulously focused on every minute detail of the Witch’s Heart.

A surge of energy seemed to wash over me, a sensation akin to returning to the safety of a cradle. The only emotion I could discern was an overwhelming sense of peace.

In this ethereal state, my perception of time blurred. In a daze, I found myself once again transported to the meditation space.

An illusory, breathtaking starry sky enveloped me, with stars circling my very being. Then, before me, a pink crystal, roughly the size of an egg, materialized.

I instantly recognized it: my Witch’s Heart. I could distinctly feel the profound connection between us.

Gazing through the Witch’s Heart, I perceived a petite figure within. An undeniable intuition told me this was my future self.

‘Is this truly my future self? So petite and adorable—just as I’d expect!’

A sudden thought struck me. This was my meditation space, and within it, I possessed the authority of lucid dreaming.

‘Could I perhaps exert some influence over this Witch’s Heart, which had inexplicably manifested in my meditation space?’

‘Like, altering my future appearance?’

‘Why not try it?’

However, just as I was about to act, a profound warning resonated within me. Should I truly attempt something so audacious, I would, at the very least, collapse from utter exhaustion.

This felt like an instinctive warning from my own body, one I certainly couldn’t afford to ignore.

Condensing mental energy earlier had already left me utterly drained. Attempting something of this magnitude now would undeniably be pushing my limits too far.

Thus, I cautiously decided to simply transform my long hair to white and my eye color to blood-red.

Yet, it still didn’t feel quite complete. I proceeded to add pink heart-shaped patterns around my pupils.

‘A bit of my own twisted humor, I suppose.’

That was all for now. I attempted to make myself even more petite, deciding against any further alterations. After all, this small, soft form was already incredibly cute, a stark contrast to my current thin, unremarkable face.

Besides, this was merely an experiment; success was far from guaranteed.

Closing my eyes, my consciousness gradually drifted back to reality.

My hand still clasped the Witch’s Heart, as if everything that transpired in the meditation space had been an illusion.

I held the Witch’s Heart up to the light, observing its translucent form. It had shed its original dull gray hue, transforming into a vibrant pink crystal. Yet, it was completely clear inside, with no trace of my witch-like appearance. ‘Could everything in the meditation space truly be an illusion?’ I wondered.

While it wasn’t a major setback, a hint of disappointment still lingered.

After all, I was quite partial to white hair, and the contrast between blood-red eyes and long, snowy white locks would have been absolutely captivating to me!

Just as I was about to ponder further, I realized something was amiss. I was lying on the bed, and a strange sensation washed over me!

My hair had grown longer!

[The Witch’s Irreversible Path. Effect: Mental +1, Constitution +1.]

At that moment, the system notification appeared. I had unexpectedly unlocked another achievement, a sudden but not entirely surprising development.

However, I couldn’t bring myself to focus on the data.

I bolted upright, my now-long hair cascading down my back. I gingerly lifted a strand, its silky touch sending a ripple of emotion through me. My once dark hair had transformed into pure, pristine white!

I rushed to the nearby mirror. Staring back at me was a person with a full head of white hair! Upon closer inspection, my eyes had indeed turned red, though not the deep crimson I had envisioned. The heart patterns around my pupils were also absent, suggesting the transformation was not yet complete.

I admired my waist-length hair, noticing it wasn’t a uniform pure white. Perhaps influenced by my original hair color, the ends were dark black, gradually fading to gray, then light gray, until finally transitioning into white.

This, I could certainly accept.

After all, this was my first time resonating with the Witch’s Heart. Perhaps this was the true meaning of ‘witchification’?

Truly terrifying.

I even felt as though I had shrunk slightly in height.

I pulled down my pants, glancing at ‘down there’.

‘Hmm, it seems it’s still there,’ I mused, a touch of annoyance in my voice. ‘Not a complete transformation, then.’

My facial features, too, were only subtly feminized. Any attractiveness I possessed was entirely thanks to this new, long hair.

My Adam’s apple was noticeably less prominent, and my chest… was it an illusion? It seemed to have grown larger.