In the territory on the second level of the Witch's Palace, in an alley of a large demon city:
Three figures, cloaked and hooded, moved through the labyrinth-like paths. One had a seductive figure, another had a full bosom that even the robe couldn't conceal, emitting a holy aura that caused any nearby demons to sizzle like roasting meat, making them howl in pain as they fled.
The third figure clung tightly to the first, wrapping an arm around her waist as they walked.
"Hey! Can't you loosen your grip on me a bit?" Litia protested, her face flushed.
"No way." Wu Chen firmly refused, keeping his hold on Litia.
Are you kidding me? With all these demons and monsters around, what if I accidentally brushed against one with a [Poisonous Skin] or [Auto-Reflect] ability? I'd be done for!
Only by staying close to his wife did he feel a bit of peace and comfort.
"Besides, think about it. We're traveling incognito this time, right? Doesn't holding you like this make us less conspicuous?"
"After all, who would ever suspect that the noble and dignified witch would be walking with a man holding her waist?"
Wu Chen said seriously.
"Uh… you might have a point."
Litia blinked and nodded in agreement.
"Hmph!"
A cold snort came from a short distance behind them, as Sylvie looked at Wu Chen with disdain.
"Slick-tongued man!"
"Just as I thought, men are all the same, no good!"
Sylvie pouted, her eyes filled with a deep-seated resentment, as if recalling some painful memory, looking at Wu Chen with the sorrowful gaze of a puppy abandoned by its owner.
"Wife, why is Sylvie staring at me like that?"
"I'm not your wife… sigh, forget it, call me whatever you want."
"Don't take it personally. She has a deep-seated hatred for males; it's not just directed at you." Litia sighed, giving up on correcting Wu Chen.
A deep-seated hatred for males? Is that because of me?
Ah, I really am a sinful man.
Wu Chen showed a slightly helpless smile.
Sorry! I'm really sorry! I thought this was just a game back then, so I didn't take it too seriously.
Now I can't reveal my true identity, but someday I'll make it up to you properly!
So please don't discover who I am now!
Wu Chen silently prayed in his heart.
The three of them walked deeper into the alley, passing through a hidden barrier, and a more expansive black market area unfolded before Wu Chen.
Demons with goat heads and horns flew through the air, tentacle monsters wriggled along the streets, slimes bounced in groups through the busy market, and beasts with various fur, scales, and spikes wandered down the center of the road.
Lizardmen, floating eyeballs, multi-headed serpents… all sorts of bizarre demons moved about the black market, making the place lively.
"Come and see! Freshly caught noble mother and daughter pairs, only 300 platinum coins! Skilled in all household chores, warm beds, and nighttime activities!"
"Hey, brother, want to check out this captured human lord's daughter? If you buy now, you'll get her sister as a bonus."
"Hehe, here's the childhood friend of a chosen hero. If you buy now, you'll also get the completely broken hero as a freebie. Exciting, right?"
"These are magic talent experts skilled in arcane coding, enslaved by the Enslavement Witch. They can be assigned any work without complaint. Rent one for a month for just 5,000 silver coins, with unlimited overtime! Act fast!"
In the large, brightly colored tents lining the street, many humans dressed in ragged, coarse clothing were shackled with chains or collars. They were being pulled by slave traders, including orcs, minotaurs, and pig-headed beastmen, who loudly advertised their wares.
Seeing such a scene naturally ignited a fire within Wu Chen, who had come from a different world.
But unfortunately, with his current lack of power, he could only endure for now, considering if there was any clever way to free them.
"Why does it seem like these slave traders selling female slaves aren't doing good in business?"
After casually browsing for a while and pondering a plan, Wu Chen suddenly noticed something strange.
Considering the noble ladies, the princess sisters, and the hero's childhood friend mentioned earlier, Wu Chen felt that these should be selling like hotcakes.
But despite the slave traders shouting for a long time, not a single demon seemed interested.
Instead, the lines for renting or buying magical talent slaves were continuously flowing with people.
This doesn't make any sense!
"Do men's minds really have no other color besides yellow?" Sylvie angrily mocked, "We demons aren't as lustful as you humans and goddesses!"
Hey, as a former goddess, you have no right to say that!
Wu Chen turned to Litia, hoping she could provide a reasonable answer.
"It's simple, Wu Chen. Do you find that green pig over there sexy and attractive?"
Litia pointed to a nearby green pig dressed in a revealing sheer gown, strutting with exaggerated movements, its pig hooves covered in pink stockings and bright lipstick smeared on its face.
"Wife, are you joking?"
Wu Chen's mouth twitched slightly.
My eyes! That's blinding!
"Of course, my wife is still the most beautiful!" Wu Chen quickly hugged his beautiful wife, feeling a sense of relief.
"Just like you think that green pig is unattractive, most demons feel the same way about human females." Litia explained, blushing as she pulled away.
"I see. Everyone has their own unique sense of aesthetics. But if that's the case, why are these guys still trying to sell human females? They're terrible at business!"
"These people were probably doing business with humans on the borders of human territories before. Recently, there's been a lot of commotion on the human side, with unrest in the border areas of the fallen regions, so they came here to lay low and try their luck selling off their stock."
Fallen regions? Border unrest? What major events have happened on the human side recently?
Wu Chen wanted to know more details but feared arousing suspicion if he asked too much. He had to temporarily suppress his doubts and curiosity.
Understanding the reason, Wu Chen stopped focusing on the customer traffic and instead coldly observed everything around him, seemingly searching for something.
"Are you looking for something?"
Noticing Wu Chen's actions, Litia couldn't help but ask.
"Are there no human farms here?" Wu Chen asked in confusion.
In his previous gaming experience, the demon black market was far filthier and more disgusting than it appeared now.
Once, he and a few other players infiltrated demon territory to gather intelligence and encountered a human farm.
Some demons had a particular taste for human consumption, so it wasn't surprising that demons would establish human farms.
Although the in-game censorship system sanitized the content, the horrific scenes and agonizing cries, with humans being treated like livestock, still ignited the players' fury.
In the end, all members unanimously decided to abandon the reconnaissance mission and directly destroy the entire farm, killing the demon king in charge at great cost, only to be overrun and instantly killed by the countless other demon kings and demons that arrived in response.
After that, Wu Chen noticed that several of his companions, who had been with him during that mission, either couldn't handle the brutal experience and quit the game or became incredibly serious, abandoning their laid-back attitudes and dedicating themselves to developing their territories and leveling up.
These companions had become fully immersed in the game.
And so had he.
Living in a world where humans were at the top of the food chain, in a country free of war and chaos, Wu Chen had never thought about such tragic scenes of humanity.
War, chaos, weakness, worthless lives, human farms, humiliation, death!
Even though it was just a game, the tragic images of humans had been deeply etched into his mind.
Why should the weak be subjected to such torment and humiliation, where even survival is a luxury!?
If survival of the fittest was the law of this game world, then he would become stronger!
Not long after, those players who had worked hard to become stronger and develop their territories issued a "Demon Extermination Order" against those demons with a taste for human flesh. Upon discovering such demons, they would pursue them relentlessly and annihilate them at any cost.
A massive counterattack began across the players' territories. Humanity's retaliation also drew the attention of the true rulers of the demon race, the strongest villains— witches!
This was also the first time the players truly realized the terrifying and despair-inducing power of the witches.
But despite this, the "Fourth Calamity" (the players) never ceased their actions.
Players gave everything they had: some drew the witches' attention by exploiting their infinite respawns, some requested the goddesses to temporarily halt the witches' advance, and the top ten super-wealthy players exhausted their priceless god-tier equipment and items just to block dozens of demon kings from reinforcing the frontlines!
The top three player guilds, who usually fought each other for resources, set aside their rivalries and united to fend off wave after wave of invaders, facing what seemed like an endless tide of demonic beasts!
A group of 25 elite professional players, temporarily assembled, used extraordinary tactics and movements to hold one of the witches in place for a full ten minutes, ultimately all perishing in the attempt!
These gaming experiences became legendary stories on various forums, QQ groups, and websites.
As the initiator of the "Demon Extermination Order" and the unanimously elected commander, Wu Chen vividly remembered these scenes.
Thanks to the relentless efforts of the "Fourth Calamity," human farms gradually disappeared, and humanity slowly began to resist the demons' invasion.
The "Fourth Calamity" was terrifying indeed!
Now that the players had seemingly disappeared for some years, Wu Chen had expected these farms to resurface. Yet, to his surprise, he hadn't seen any shops or stalls selling humans as food.
This didn't make sense!
Wu Chen couldn't believe that those demons who enjoyed eating humans had suddenly developed a conscience.