To put it bluntly, Wange Yue was a golden signboard for the Apocalyptic Church.
The Church had been vigorously promoting and marketing the [Judgment Scales], but even so, cases of Magic Girls suffering magical backlash from their own power were still extremely rare.
Silver Bell had only vaguely suspected it was related to the Tower of Commandments before, never imagining the problem actually came from the Meteorite Fragments.
“So I still have one more thing to ask of you all,” Wange Yue began. “Could I trouble you all to continue keeping the fact that I’m still alive a secret? Is that okay?”
Silver Bell froze for a moment, then anxiously grabbed Wange Yue’s arm.
“There’s no need to worry about the Church anymore, right, Wange? The Association can’t just sit back and ignore them hiding the Meteorite Fragments! And now that we know what’s wrong with your body, the Hidden Bone Hall will find a way to treat you. There’s no need to keep hiding!”
Wange Yue gave a bitter smile and shook her head. “It’s not about those issues, Ling’er… It’s a little too late now.”
Wange Yue rolled up her sleeve in front of everyone. This time, it wasn’t just Silver Bell—the others were stunned too.
On Wange Yue’s arm was a large patch of crack-like veins interwoven with gold and black, and they showed signs of spreading further, a gruesome sight.
“I originally thought it was some rare form of Magic Power Contamination, but now it seems it’s probably the side effect of the Meteorite Fragment’s backlash. I’ve heard before that being eroded by a Meteorite Fragment causes something called ‘Star Eclipse,’ which is why the Six Seats strictly control the Meteorite Fragments.”
“It might be because I’ve been connected to the Meteorite Fragment for too long. Even though I’ve severed the link to the Tower of Commandments, the magic generated by people’s emotions toward me still deepens the Star Eclipse. Looks like this side effect won’t be disappearing anytime soon.”
“Hold on, let me check you.”
Xiaoxi immediately switched to her [Polaris] form. A soft blue light enveloped Wange Yue’s arm as Xiaoxi slowly closed her eyes. Before long, her expression turned serious.
“It’s no good. This isn’t something Healing Magic can solve. No Magic Girl with a [Coordination] Attribute, no matter how strong, could treat this. Even if Xingge came, I doubt there’d be much she could do.”
Wange Yue’s condition was worse than Xiaoxi had imagined.
It wasn’t just that the side effect wouldn’t fade soon—if left unchecked, Wange Yue’s Magic Circuit would be gradually eroded!
Although Xiaoxi didn’t know the exact effects of Star Eclipse, erosion of one’s own Magic Circuit was no small matter.
After hearing Xiaoxi’s conclusion, both Silver Bell and Qiuli looked worried.
In contrast, the person involved herself appeared calm, as if she had already accepted the fact.
“That’s why I wanted to ask you all to keep hiding the fact that I’m still alive. Consider it a solution I stumbled upon by accident. I noticed that since my supposed death, the magic I receive from people’s emotions has decreased a little, and the spread of the Star Eclipse has slowed.”
A flash of inspiration struck Xiaoxi, and she suddenly realized something—Magic Girls can indeed gain magic from people’s affection and admiration, but the flow of that magic is influenced by people’s perception!
Just like when Jingtong impersonated her, as long as enough people believed that Jingtong was the real [Eternal Star], some magic would flow to Jingtong.
Similarly, if people believed that Wange Yue was “dead,” the magic flowing to Wange Yue would decrease, naturally slowing the Star Eclipse’s spread.
So maintaining the status quo could be a viable solution… But could it really solve the problem completely?
Xiaoxi didn’t know if the Hidden Bone Hall had a way to treat Star Eclipse, but she understood how bad Wange Yue’s condition was.
Even if the Hidden Bone Hall had a method, they couldn’t cure Wange Yue immediately…
Although Wange Yue had spoken lightly just now, Xiaoxi still caught the fleeting loneliness in her eyes.
That was it. What if the Hidden Bone Hall couldn’t fully cure Wange Yue either? Would she have to live in hiding forever just to slow the Star Eclipse? That kind of life wouldn’t be easy for anyone, would it?
“By the way, Miss Ye Xinglan, I also need to apologize to you,” Wange Yue suddenly turned to Ye Xinglan.
“I’ve seen the online public opinion recently. If it weren’t for getting involved in my matter, you wouldn’t have been targeted and framed by the Church. I’m truly sorry.”
Wange Yue’s face was full of apology. Xiaoxi finally understood why both Silver Bell and Qiuli thought she was overly gentle.
Even though this clearly wasn’t her fault, Wange Yue genuinely felt guilty for dragging Ye Xinglan into it.
That’s right—now that Wange Yue’s issue was resolved, they needed to figure out how to address Xinglan’s problem.
And of all times, Xinglan had just witnessed her identity being exposed. It really was raining on a leaky house…
Having all these matters pile up at once gave Xiaoxi a headache. Wange Yue and Xinglan… Wait!
Xiaoxi froze. Several conditions clicked together in her mind, and suddenly a spark of inspiration struck.
“Hold on. If you want to reduce the magic obtained from people’s emotions, isn’t there a simpler, more direct method? Fake death is only treating the symptoms, not the root cause, right?”
“No. I can’t bring myself to disappoint the Church’s believers like that.”
Wange Yue answered resolutely. She understood exactly what Xiaoxi meant.
Since people’s positive emotions like love and admiration for Magic Girls generate magic, wouldn’t making people hate a Magic Girl solve the problem at its root?
But she absolutely wouldn’t agree to that method.
Just as she didn’t want to tarnish the Church’s image in people’s hearts, the [Judgment Scales] had always been a symbol of justice and order in the public’s mind thanks to the Church’s years of promotion.
Wange Yue didn’t want to make people lose faith in that symbol.
“Don’t worry, I won’t ruin the [Judgment Scales]’ image in people’s hearts,” Xiaoxi said with a mysterious smile.
“But pursuing only justice and order isn’t exactly popular, you know. After all, I’ve come to deeply understand the power of public opinion these past couple of days.”
“I’ve thought of a way to solve both your problem and Xinglan’s—would you mind putting on a little show with us, Miss Wange Yue?”
A moment later, Wange Yue nodded thoughtfully. The method Xiaoxi proposed really did serve both purposes, and she could accept the outcome.
She just wondered if it would have any negative impact on [Eternal Star].
“Don’t worry, I’m pretty good at acting,” Xiaoxi said with a nonchalant smile. “And besides, as long as it’s for Xinglan, I’ll do anything.”
There was no need to hide her connection with the Astrologer anymore. Xiaoxi opened communication with the Astrologer in front of everyone.
“Ms. Astrologer, you said before that the Church plans to take advantage of this to keep secretly photographing Xinglan and twisting the truth, right?”
The Astrologer’s voice came through the communicator.
“Mm. My divination tells me the Archbishop has planted at least six or seven pairs of eyes in the Tower of Commandments. Keep an eye out when you and Miss Xinglan leave the ‘Labyrinth.’”
Joy rose in Xiaoxi’s heart. The Archbishop was truly ruthless.
But that was perfect—right now, she wanted him to keep taking those secret photos.
“Actually, Ms. Astrologer, I was thinking of using the Church’s scheme to our advantage…”
Xiaoxi briefly recounted Wange Yue’s situation and her own plan.
Even the Astrologer fell silent on the other end for a moment before letting out a helpless chuckle.
“Heh. What a bold plan. I wonder who that child takes after…”
“Huh? What did you say?”
“Nothing,” the Astrologer’s tone returned to normal. “I think this plan can work. Go ahead, Miss Xiaoxi. I’ll support you completely.”