Watching the group arrive at the Tower of Commandments, the Third Divine Envoy let out a resigned sigh.
“I thought the Fan Club could stall them long enough for us to succeed, but it looks like we’ll have to rely on the backup plan—Ms. Black Rose, I’ll have to borrow your trophy from Summersea City.”
Black Rose chuckled softly and raised her hand in an “OK” gesture. Then, Jingtong took a small box from her pocket and unhesitatingly swallowed its contents.
It all happened too fast. Xiaoxi only had time to see that the box contained an ordinary-looking pebble—the kind you could find anywhere on the roadside, completely unremarkable.
But the moment Jingtong opened the box, Xiaoxi sensed the stone seemed to be drawing her in, giving her a strange, resonant illusion.
Her trophy from Summersea City… That’s the Meteorite Fragment the Astrologer mentioned!
Jingtong let out a short “mmph” and curled up, trembling slightly as if enduring immense pain.
This was the first time Xiaoxi had seen such a vivid expression of “pain” on her face.
Though she didn’t know what the other was plotting, she immediately attacked.
But it was already too late. A crackling sound rang out in succession, and cracks appeared on Jingtong’s smooth face.
Black Magic Power surged out from the fissures, carrying a pressure that even Xiaoxi could feel, instantly spreading outward.
Beside her, the Third Divine Envoy watched the suffering Jingtong coldly, showing no concern at all, as if Jingtong were merely a convenient tool.
“Adding in all the emotions gathered from the Seeking Truth Society and the time I pretended to be [Eternal Star].”
“Heh, it really takes a heavy price to deal with you… [Eternal Star].”
The Third Divine Envoy murmured to herself, but no one could hear her words anymore.
The black mist instantly swallowed everyone’s figures, standing out glaringly in this pristine white “labyrinth.”
“Mmph…”
Qiuli slowly opened her eyes, only remembering that the black mist had swallowed everything in her field of vision in an instant… Had they been attacked?
Everything she saw was pitch black. This wasn’t the first time Qiuli had dealt with Jingtong—could it be that woman’s Space Magic again?
But Qiuli quickly realized something was wrong. This wasn’t the pure darkness of Jingtong’s Space Magic. After her eyes adjusted to the dim light, she saw that she was simply in a dilapidated, shabby room.
The furnishings around her were familiar. This was her residence from when she was a Bounty Hunter… or rather, it was more like a prison cell. Why was she here?
Her thoughts seemed to stall for a moment. Qiuli raised her hand and dazedly touched the collar around her neck. Yes, she belonged to the Bounty Hunter’s “Corpse Collector,” so of course she would be locked up here.
Dust-covered memories came flooding back like a tidal wave.
Qiuli couldn’t count how many days she had spent here, along with the punishments, scoldings, the pain of electric shocks from the collar, and the forced tasks.
She had long gotten used to it all and found the best way to cope—numbness.
The door to the room creaked open with an ear-grinding sound.
Qiuli’s body shuddered almost instinctively. She didn’t look up at the tall man with a blurry face.
“You have a mission.”
Four simple, cold words made Qiuli understand that it was time for her to “work”… It was fine. She had done things like this countless times before—
That should have been the case, but the word “yes” got stuck in her throat, blocked by a hoarse feeling.
“Not moving yet, Qiuli?”
“…No.”
“What did you say?”
“I am no longer a Corpse Collector. I won’t do any more work for you…”
Before she could finish, a piercing pain shot through her neck. The man kicked her in the stomach without mercy.
“Don’t make me say it twice.”
How strange… Hadn’t she long gotten used to this?
She should have just accepted orders and completed her tasks like a robot. But Qiuli, against her usual behavior, stubbornly shouted out again.
“I won’t help you with anything anymore!”
What followed was a storm of kicks and punches, along with the man’s curses.
Qiuli didn’t know why she was putting up such futile resistance. She just curled up into a ball and silently endured.
Her thoughts grew foggier. The curses seemed to grow louder, pouring uncontrollably into Qiuli’s ears.
“How dare you dream? A dirty Corpse Collector like you wants to join The Association?”
“When did a Monster get to enter the Magic Girl Squad?”
“Isn’t it just by groveling to Judgment Scales and Silverflame Dragon Princess?”
“Just die. Why won’t someone like you just die…”
Qiuli tightly gripped the small knife that had appeared in her hand at some point… Yes, if she died, it would be over. A Monster who had been a Corpse Collector like her deserved to die, didn’t she?
Death would end everything. If only…
The cold blade was already pressed against her neck. Tears slid from the corners of her eyes.
Qiuli’s hands trembled—this was actually her own wish. She had long grown tired of all this.
When she was caught by the Apocalyptic Church, she wanted to end it all. Being caught by The Association or anyone else was just relief for her.
Huh?
But why were her hands, clenched to “end” it, trembling and unable to complete the final step?
“Yuege… save me…”
Qiuli’s voice trembled as if she squeezed out that name from the deepest part of her throat. Yes, she had promised Wange Yue. Back then, in the Apocalyptic Church’s prison cell—
Gentle hands wrapped around Qiuli’s arms from behind, just like that night in the Apocalyptic Church’s cell. Familiar, reassuring warmth embraced her from behind.
At the same time, in another Illusion Realm, Silver Bell was hiding behind an abandoned car.
Around her were burning streets, a nauseating stench of burning, and Magic Creatures searching for her on the street.
Silver Bell couldn’t tell where she was. Such scenes were common during the Great Chaos Era.
Maybe it was the Great Chaos now, and she was here to deal with the Magic Creatures, wasn’t she?
But why…
Even though the Magic Creature was right in front of her, and it was her duty to deal with it, Silver Bell found that she couldn’t transform.
If she couldn’t transform, she wasn’t [Silverflame Dragon Princess], just “Silver Bell.” There was no way someone like her could defeat any Magic Creature.
Heavy footsteps from behind made Silver Bell instinctively shrink her neck. The Magic Creature seemed to be heading this way. No, she had to think of a solution…
“A Xing… A Xing?”
She tried calling out. After all, they were teammates in a Magical Girl Team. During the Great Chaos, they always acted together, didn’t they?
It should be the same this time, right?
If only A Xing would come help. A Xing was so strong; she definitely wouldn’t be as… cowardly as herself.