The next day, at Qing’s collaboration event.
Lu Yuan glanced around and was surprised to find that Liu Zhe had signed a live streaming contract on behalf of Miss Qing.
The streaming venue was located in the tallest building in Yunjing—a tower belonging to Yunjing TV Station.
“Yunjing Tower.”
At this moment, on the top floor of Yunjing Tower, the atmosphere inside the live broadcast room was lively and bustling.
Qing sat quietly in front of the backdrop, occasionally answering the host’s questions by following the teleprompter’s cues.
Most of the time, Qing simply nodded or shook her head, sometimes typing answers on her phone to display them. This unique way of communication only added to her mysterious aura, causing the comment section to flood with messages.
Lu Yuan crossed her arms and leaned against a camera far from the lens, bored out of her mind as she scrolled through her phone.
Liu Zhe stood nearby, nervously watching the real-time data, occasionally signaling to the crew.
***
Suddenly, a local news headline caught Lu Yuan’s attention:
【Several Recent “Genius to Wreck” Strange Incidents in Yunjing; Experts Suggest Possible Mass Psychological Suggestion?】
She casually clicked it open and skimmed through the content.
“Famous violinists suddenly can’t play? National-level Go players start dabbling in abstraction? Programmers can’t code anymore? And they all hear strange music? Click here for the full scoop!”
“Tch, Yunjing sure has its share of weirdness,” she muttered under her breath, pursing her lips.
Was this why Sister Su Li was summoned back to Yunjing?
Lu Yuan was somewhat curious, but since arriving in Yunjing, she hadn’t contacted Sister Su Li—after all, Sister Su Li was very busy, and Lu Yuan tried not to disturb her if it could be avoided.
Someone in the comments mentioned a “Chaos Witch” and a “Violin Girl,” but Lu Yuan shook her head, thinking it was just netizens’ wild imaginations.
Maybe it was some new type of Calamity influence, or perhaps just a collective hallucination brought on by stress? After all, big cities were fast-paced; psychological issues weren’t uncommon.
“None of my business,” Lu Yuan told herself firmly.
Her mission was clear: keep a close watch on Qing, the walking Disaster Magnet Physique, ensuring she wouldn’t get into trouble in Yunjing, nor let any anomalies on her person attract bigger problems.
Other cases were naturally the responsibility of Yunjing’s local Magical Girls and Sister Su Li. Meddling would only divide her attention—that was what Sister Su Li had taught her.
She exited the news page and casually opened a car shopping app, browsing sports cars. Though she couldn’t afford them, this was the kind of thing that lifted her spirits.
Ah~ Enjoyment~
***
However, halfway through the live broadcast, the host suddenly handed a Fans Gift Box to Qing.
In that warm and harmonious moment, a faint melody began to play, sounding… like a violin?
The sound was not loud but carried an intensely disturbing dissonance, instantly drowning out the background music and chatter.
It made people feel inexplicably uneasy, with hair standing on end.
“Uh?” The host’s smile stiffened, and he shook his head reflexively, suspecting a headset malfunction.
The crew looked around suspiciously, searching for the source of the strange noise.
What kind of BGM is this? It wasn’t here during rehearsal.
***
Lu Yuan was momentarily stunned. Her first instinct was that Qing’s Disaster Magnet Physique had triggered again, but combined with the news she had just seen, she immediately realized what was really happening.
Not a hallucination! Not a coincidence!
There really was someone nearby using a bizarre melody!
Qing’s hand holding the gift box froze, her expression turning confused and helpless.
The host beside her began to change—his professional smile gradually twisting into a sinister grin… No, not just the host; almost everyone present except Qing wore the same discordant smile, all staring directly at Qing.
This was too strange. The entire live stream environment had clearly become abnormal.
“Damn it!” Lu Yuan cursed under her breath, throwing aside her “not my problem” principle.
Protecting Qing was the top priority, and this eerie melody was the greatest threat right now.
The Black Long Spear instantly materialized in her hand.
She threw off her coat and flicked off her sunglasses, stepping forward as Magical Girl Lu Yuan.
Positioning herself between Qing and the host, the spear’s tip pointed to the sky as she shouted sharply:
“I am Magical Girl Lu Yuan! Emergency situation! I am taking control here! Everyone evacuate in an orderly fashion!”
Her voice crashed down like thunder, instantly overpowering the strange violin sound and the crowd’s noise.
The crowd’s transformation halted abruptly, replaced by a dazed stillness brought on by her authority.
Some people seemed to come to their senses and began to flee.
“Liu Zhe! Take Qing and run!” Lu Yuan yelled.
“Got it!” Liu Zhe snapped back to reality and immediately grabbed Qing’s hand, leaving the scene.
***
“Where… is the sound coming from?” Lu Yuan forced herself to calm down, her sharp ears picking up the faint violin melody.
It didn’t sound like it was amplified through speakers. Rather, it seemed to be emanating directly from a single point.
Her gaze, sharp as a hawk’s, quickly scanned the entire studio.
Control panel? No.
Audience area? No.
Backstage entrance? No.
Ceiling…
Her eyes suddenly locked onto the side upper area of the studio!
There was a narrow metal walkway used for maintaining lighting equipment, hidden among shadows and countless cables.
There!
A figure was casually sitting on the walkway’s railing, her legs clad in black stockings dangling freely.
The woman had neat short black hair, with striking red highlights dyed on the inside.
Perched steadily on a strand of hair near her ear was a live butterfly.
At the back of her head, a long braid swayed lightly with her subtle movements.
Due to the angle and lighting, Lu Yuan couldn’t see her full face clearly—only her delicate jawline and the playful smile at the corner of her lips.
In her hand, she held an aged dark brown violin, the bow lazily resting on the strings.
That chilling, nerve-wracking dissonant melody had obviously come from this instrument.
***
Lu Yuan immediately locked onto her target.
Without hesitation, her magical power erupted beneath her feet as she leapt upward like a black lightning bolt.
In midair, Lu Yuan aimed her spear precisely at the butterfly woman.
“Oh dear, you caught me,” the woman smiled.
“Bang!”
Lu Yuan fired, but the woman easily twisted aside.
The bullet grazed her hair, the gust fluttering the butterfly’s wings.
She looked up, meeting Lu Yuan’s gaze.
Lu Yuan finally saw her face clearly.
It was beautiful but with an unmistakable hint of wickedness.
The red highlights in her short hair blazed like a burning flame.
She didn’t even stand up, only her wrist holding the bow trembled slightly.
“Ching!”
A sharp, short note exploded suddenly, a transparent crescent-shaped sound wave flying directly toward the airborne Lu Yuan!
Invisible, unavoidable.
Lu Yuan felt as if her brain had been struck hard by an invisible hammer.
Darkness engulfed her vision, and her body seemed to shatter in an instant.
A nauseating dizziness washed over her.
“Ugh…” she groaned, crashing heavily onto the equipment box below.
***
Pain surged through her body, and the spear slipped from her grasp.
Struggling to lift her head, Lu Yuan saw Si An standing above her, looking down coldly while lightly brushing the violin strings, as if tuning her instrument.
The butterfly on her hair remained perched steadily, as if the lethal soundwave had nothing to do with it.
“Not bad speed,” the woman chuckled softly, her tone like she was reviewing a boring performance.
Lu Yuan clenched her teeth and tried to get up, attempting to summon her spear back.
“Huh? Not dead yet?” The woman, who had been perched high above, suddenly appeared before Lu Yuan.
She crouched down, curiously eyeing Lu Yuan’s battered form.
“Then let’s do introductions, shall we? I’m Si An. What’s your name?”
Lu Yuan didn’t answer.
Summoning her last ounce of strength, she suddenly raised her hand!
The black long spear, dropped nearby, instantly transformed into a burst of light, then reformed in her hand.
The spear’s tip pressed firmly against Si An’s forehead!
The move was seamless and lightning-fast!
Si An seemed completely unprepared for this desperate strike and didn’t dodge.
Or rather, she didn’t care.
Pointed at her forehead, she showed no fear.
Instead, a stronger excitement gleamed in her eyes, even… encouragement?
Obviously… she could easily kill the woman named Si An by pulling the trigger, yet she neither dodged nor flinched.
There was no time to think further.
Lu Yuan knew this was her only chance.
“Bang!”
A muffled sound echoed, but no bullet was fired.
Instead, a large cluster of vivid red Red Spider Lilies suddenly burst from the spear’s barrel.
Petals scattered, instantly covering Lu Yuan’s chest and Si An’s cheeks.
“What?!” Lu Yuan’s eyes widened in shock.
Her spear had just… fired flowers?
“Oh dear, giving flowers to another girl on your first meeting?” Si An gently picked up a Red Spider Lily from Lu Yuan’s spear and inhaled its scent, intoxicated.
“Do you do this to every girl?”
What was happening? Had her ability been rewritten?!
Lu Yuan tried to resist, tried to push her away, but her body felt shackled by an invisible force.
Not even a finger could move as she helplessly watched Si An’s actions.
Si An smiled, delicately pinning the seemingly dew-laden Red Spider Lily on the left side of Lu Yuan’s battle suit, right over her heart.
The petals brushed against the fabric, emitting a faint rustling sound.
“Don’t move~” Si An’s fingers pressed softly on the petals, as if whispering a lover’s secret, “This is… my return gift to you.”
The next second—
Boom!!!
A dull yet heavy explosion sounded from Lu Yuan’s chest!
No blood splattered, no limbs torn apart.
Instead, countless eerie Red Spider Lily illusions bloomed from her chest, centered over her heart, like phantasms unfurling fiercely.
Lu Yuan’s body convulsed violently, her pupils dilated and then rapidly scattered.
The last thing she saw was Si An’s eyes, filled with indulgent affection, and on her chest, the exquisitely beautiful yet terrifying—
Death Bouquet—blooming from her very life.
Her consciousness plunged into darkness.