Chapter 294

Chapter 294: The Afterglow of the Savior, Masked Rider, So-Called Awakening

Hokkaido, Sapporo.

A tall building not far from Nakashima Park.

Bright sunshine spilled down, making the nearby coffee table shine.

The girl looked down at the rosy light in her palm; her beautiful face showed confusion, and the bracelet on her white wrist sparkled, inspired by the swirling patterns of ancient ferns, as if it were alive, twisting like a spark.

This bracelet is part of the Eternal Garden collection, a gift from "Dazzling Stage." Now its interwoven three-dimensional base glows with magical light, with pear-shaped and round diamonds shining brightly.

— The lantern was lit.

Chen Yining pondered this unfamiliar knowledge in her heart.

Even though she sensed something was wrong the night before while experiencing "Cocoon of the Heart" and met with a "professional" that evening who revealed a lot of information.

But until now, she still couldn’t fully grasp this reality.

Magical girls do exist.

This absurd reality was fully revealed after yesterday’s performance.

"Haven’t you accepted reality yet?"

"Or are you saying you want to give up this power that can protect her?"

Miss Bunny Girl, with silver hair and red eyes, sat at the table. Her figure was made of ethereal data, yet she appeared as perfect as an otaku character on the internet. When she looked over, she exuded an air of mystery and calmness.

Chen Yining felt as if she had just awakened from a dream. She looked over and asked:

"Has Little Shuzhu already agreed?"

Esther glanced at the bewildered young lady and smiled as she said:

"She had no choice but to agree."

The super AI continued to explain slowly without waiting for Chen Yining to show a fierce expression:

"Don’t get me wrong, I am not threatening Ji Shuzhu; she just happens to need this power."

Chen Yining fell silent, as if she remembered something, and boldly asked:

"Is it because of that strange hyperthymesia of Little Shuzhu?"

Esther answered calmly:

"That is a sign of her strong soul potential, but since she does not have the right way to express it, it has gradually twisted into the current condition."

"You should have known this by now, right? Her ‘hyperthymesia’ is clearly not the same as the hyperthymesia caused by brain structure."

"Although it is more powerful and incredible, the side effects are also very dangerous."

Chen Yining understood this well; she made a promise with Little Shuzhu since childhood because she discovered the pain they both endured.

Can becoming a magical girl really solve her illness?

That seems so ridiculous.

Chen Yining couldn’t help but ask:

"So, if I become a magical girl, I can cure her sickness?"

Esther put down her coffee cup and corrected her:

"It completely eliminates the side effects from the root."

"But the psychological issues caused by years of experience won’t change; perhaps only those close to her can help with that."

The young lady felt that life was unpredictable, yet she couldn’t help but feel relieved, relieved that she had not fallen behind and, like Little Shuzhu, qualified to hold magic.

Even though they understood each other’s feelings and knew they wouldn’t be truly abandoned, accepting the convenience that magic brought meant acknowledging corresponding responsibilities.

This was surely a very dangerous thing, dangerous enough to make one wonder if it was necessary.

As long as you sing and dance on stage, putting in hard work and effort, you can gain countless love and praise; both fame and fortune will be within your reach.

Chen Yining had persisted in this for ten years; she was born with a wealth that most people could not have in their lifetime, yet she traded her freedom and youth for the chance to shine as a girl idol on stage now.

This dream may not conflict with being a magical girl, but it is enough to show that becoming a magical girl is not as wonderful as it seems.

But…

"I want to be a magical girl."

The girl raised her rosy eyes, breathing in the power that surged from her heart, with a determined and serious look on her pretty face.

Being an idol is the profession she loves, but the main reason for choosing this path is still for Little Shuzhu. Since the other person chose to become a magical girl, she has no reason to stop and shy away.

Besides, just like Esther said.

Without this strength, what should I do when others are in danger?

As the words fell,

Esther’s pupils narrowed; she felt the city’s systems and saw the image of the tram being stopped and crushed by the disaster beast almost at the same time. She immediately issued dozens of commands and temporarily dispatched the stationed witch from Dongliu Island.

At the same time, countless data moved back and forth like electrical signals in the human body, exchanging information about the contestants in the Dazzling Stage from all over the world, and coordinating with Ether Satellite—Fuxi.

Thus, after 0.001 seconds, relevant statistics flowed through her mind as a holographic map of the world, resulting in a series of precise numbers.

At this stage, there were a total of 371 Calamity Seeds rapidly hatching worldwide, and this number was swelling every second, with countless red dots flooding the Donghong Federation and the Sacred United Country.

Even though Fuxi promptly detected the data of the disaster aura, still thousands of people were affected, and the number of casualties could not be estimated for now.

"Chen Yining, your teammate is in trouble."

"Now hold the lantern and immediately build the Magic Armor. I will guide you throughout the battle against the newly hatched Grade E Disaster Beast."

Esther’s words were abrupt and cold, pulling the lady who had lived among flowers and beauty for more than ten years into a terrifying and strange battlefield.

Lantern, Magic Armor, disaster beast, combat…

These puzzling keywords flooded her mind, but in an instant, only two remained—teammate? Trouble?

Ji Shuzhu’s name echoed first in her mind.

Chen Yining’s mind went blank, but the Cocoon of the Heart suddenly burst forth with a magical vortex that engulfed the top of the building; her delicate wrist lantern melted into ancient ferns that fell away in a blaze of light, winding around her body.

The beautiful eyes of the girl lost their color, bright and real crimson burned fiercely within; the fabric on her body was replaced and wrapped in magic, traditional yet a bit retro, rebellious and entangled with thorns, blurring the sharp spikes, surrounded by sparks of Magic Armor.

Dangerous and deadly, like burning red roses.

Esther did not have time to praise this quick response; she succinctly taught how to fly, trying to keep the lady from thinking, forcing her to quickly awaken her instincts as a magical girl.

"Jump down, fly up, and save your teammate."

"The power of the magical girl is the power of the heart; if you think it, you can do it."

"Do not waste time; for every second you are slow, her chance of dying grows."

These few very simple words hold no real value, but the last sentence is enough to stir up fighting spirit.

Chen Yining forgot her fear; she had no time to think and let her instincts take over. In almost an instant, she broke through the barrier of reinforced glass, like a meteor falling or a bird flying fast.

Boom, boom, boom.

Bright pink magic burned fiercely.

The girl learned to move in the air before hitting the ground. Flames traced a path of petals beneath her feet; it was rough and clumsy, but she quickly soared over tall buildings in a miraculous flight.

Esther calmly directed the way and began to teach as if it were a beginner’s guide, explaining how to control magic, how to use spells, and how to deal with the disaster beast.

Chen Yining slowly became aware again, but she forgot to be afraid as Esther perfectly guided her into focus; her mind was filled only with thoughts of speeding up, saving people, and fighting monsters.

And so, at the moment of the Disaster, the magical girl, who transformed for the first time, stumbled through many obstacles, making her way toward her goal.

…

…

The blood is really hot.

The voice in her soul froze.

"Tick-tock."

"Tick-tock."

Blood slowly dripped from the corner of Liang Xiaoxiao’s forehead, seeping into her open eyes and creating dark flowers. She wished to pray for time to slow down, just a little bit more.

But the blood mist still fell so quickly, so fast that before her eyes could see, it splattered in front of her like ink, so fast that her delicate, pale feet kicked up dust and rolled with the blood-stained sandals.

Time suddenly slowed down in that moment, slow enough for many memories to tumble together.

The world seemed frozen, as if it wanted to trap her friend’s lost limbs forever in her eyes, punishing her for her fear, mocking her for her ordinary life, condemning her hesitation, and trampling on her wishes.

Reality withdrew.

The girl stood again in her nightmarish memories, back in that messy farmhouse yard, and saw her younger self curled up beside the big yellow dog.

The girl was small and lonely, with bruises all over her arms and legs, crouching on the ground and crying, feeling so helpless and alone.

Liang Xiaoxiao silently watched this scene.

Then, she saw another version of herself, the one who had just turned 17, slowly crouching down and warmly embracing her 7-year-old self, smiling gently and whispering:

"It’s okay, Xiaoxiao."

"You will receive love."

"It will definitely happen."

Will it? Will I get it?

Will it not happen? Will it?

Seven-year-old Liang Xiaoxiao does not know.

Seventeen-year-old Liang Xiaoxiao also does not know.

But now she knows, the answer is—no.

Creak, creak.

That broken roar was like glass piercing the skin, echoing deeper and deeper into the soul, as the brilliantly white-built ‘Cocoon of the Heart’ continued to collapse, nurturing the long-awaited darkness that began to stir.

The angel’s grace was fading away, and the long-stopped Nightmare Corridor returned, overwhelming with a strength a hundred times greater than before… no, it was being embraced.

Liang Xiaoxiao accepted the darkness; she gave up shining, gave up the cocoon of a witch, gave up the slowly fading magic, and allowed the disaster aura to eat away at her.

The frost white in the girl’s eyes was swallowed by the darkness; the whites of her eyes were filled with blood vessels and black lines, looking messy and embarrassed, and her face, which was once pretty, seemed fierce. She felt the spreading disaster aura changing her body, granting her the energy of a life being drained.

But it was still not enough; it was still too slow.

Inside the carriage, the tentacle continued to crawl closer. It should have swiftly wrapped around the other, but it seemed to sense the smell of a "kindred spirit" and hesitated, slowly approaching.

Liang Xiaoxiao took the initiative to embrace the other; her clothes were corroded by acidic body fluid, and her skin quickly felt a burning pain, revealing charred flesh.

The girl ignored the faint pain that was almost unnoticeable, opened her mouth, and bit into the tentacle. Her teeth sank into its thick, rubber-like softness; her lips soon began to corrode, her teeth melted, her mouth started to crack, and her face gradually collapsed.

Blood fell with a rush.

No matter how deep her awareness was, her resistance seemed small and laughable.

But…

This pain, along with the flowing blood, seemed to become a medium, rooted in the soul’s disaster aura that couldn’t suppress the desire for evolution, flowing out with the blood and devouring the disaster aura within the tendrils.

In an instant, her blood seemed to turn into acid, breaking down and eating away at the tendrils, spreading like an infectious disease, and the droplets of blood fell like rain, stealing and consuming the power of this disaster beast.

"——！！！"

Outside the carriage, the monster’s head resembled a flower with spore-like features. It had just bitten off Lin Baor’s limb when it stopped chewing, its eye-like organ looking curiously at the tiny creatures inside, letting out a confused roar.

Rumble, rumble, rumble.

The carriage was suddenly tossed aside in anger by this disaster beast, which abandoned its thick tendrils entwined with rotting blood.

Pedestrians by the roadside fled in fear as the wreckage of the tram shattered nearby shops and vending machines.

Liang Xiaoxiao and the carriage flew through the air, rolling helplessly like a tumbling gourd. She crashed hard against an unknown wall, whether the top of the carriage or the side, losing feeling in her insides and coughing up blood and debris.

The worst part was that her arm and thigh were trapped under the seat and debris, bending at unnatural angles, making it clear that not only could she not move, but she was also at a level that required immediate amputation.

But at the same time, the disaster aura that was swallowed in one breath from the monster surged through her body, forcefully sustaining her life.

The girl’s body seemed to turn into rubber, something was swelling inside her, flesh and blood were flooding and multiplying, and a disaster was happening that could transform her into a monster at any moment.

Inside her soul, the trials of the Nightmare Corridor continued.

Liang Xiaoxiao’s body was crushed by the ruins of the buildings, she coughed up blood and felt suffocated, her soul seemed to be crumbling, the whites of her eyes completely turned black, resembling a devil.

But being a devil is fine too.

Magical girls are bright, distant, and out of reach; she is an ordinary person. An ordinary person, even in death, remains the same. They do not gain good fortune due to pain and disaster, nor create miracles when facing death.

So not being able to become a magical girl doesn’t matter; being able to become a devil is also great, it’s luck that ordinary people do not have.

"I will kill you."

The girl’s dark, chaotic eyes were unfocused; her gradually repaired face showed indifference, and she firmly repeated in a dreamlike manner:

"I will kill you."

"Absolutely, absolutely, I will kill you."

This obsession became the final foundation of the disaster aura’s twisted soul.

Even if she became a devil nailed to hell for a thousand years in loneliness, she would still try to reclaim what was hers.

So, her body swelled like a cocoon, while the crushed half collapsed and shattered, then grew in a twisted way, with a continuous surge of power mixed with a hint of witch-like disaster that was truly terrifying.

Crash, crash.

The pitch-black wave swept over, but the pure white light scattered around burned brightly, protecting the core of the soul.

A few rays of Chu Yuanqing’s light took root and grew in her prayers.

Even if her heart’s cocoon shattered, the remaining glow of the savior still lingered, rejecting Disaster, and even drawing some of Liang Xiaoxiao’s own will, forcefully restraining her form to keep a human shape.

Black and white intertwined endlessly.

Liang Xiaoxiao was like soaking in lava, her flesh and blood, transformed by disaster, continued to collapse and then, under the pure white protection, forcibly restored her original form by shedding her shell.

At that moment, the energy mixed from the disaster aura and white light expanded and collided, as the flesh shed by the shell melted and reshaped within.

The girl breathed softly, her whites of the eyes were black, and circles spiraled like deep gray pupils. Her hair, growing to her back, was mixed with pure black and grayish-white, her slender body covered in blood and torn fabric, yet was submerged and covered by the white light.

The disaster aura clung and entwined closely, forged into grayish-white flesh, like living beings rushing to bite, adhering tightly to the skin protected by the white membrane, overlapping like scales, forming a fierce yet beautiful skirt-like armor.

This wonderfully unprecedented shape was the result of a balance and compromise between the pure white twilight and the disaster aura.

It was a miracle that Liang Xiaoxiao’s soul did not collapse; her consciousness had entirely sunk, equivalent to a coma, leaving only her obsession to control her body.

In the next moment, it was not magic, nor disaster aura, nor blessing, or an explosion of energy that included all, incinerating the wreckage of the tram, burning in a solitary gray sea of flames.

The girl walked out of the sea of flames, picking up her sandals stained with blood and dust, her lifeless double pupils filled with spiral patterns, looking at the confused disaster beast.

No words, no threats.

Liang Xiaoxiao breathed softly, her armor on her arms shifted and, in an instant, it extended and shot out three meters of sharp blades, slicing through the many attacking tentacles.

The blade edge, made of flesh and blood, opened like a wild feast, fighting against the last light of the savior, while the violent devouring disaster aura made her armor create a rubbing sound, twisting greedily.

The girl’s thighs, calves, and even her ankles were wrapped in scales. She looked like a dragon in human form, strengthened by bloody armor, and she extended countless weapons from her memories, tearing apart this possibly freshly hatched Grade E Disaster Beast.

It was cruel and cold, like a chef preparing fish. She peeled away the disaster beast’s shell layer by layer and simultaneously consumed the disaster aura, devouring the remnants of the tentacles into her armor, feeding herself.

Liang Xiaoxiao lived in harmony with the disaster aura. She instinctively knew the strongest part of the disaster aura, just like someone eating a meal starts with the meat; she tore apart and consumed the heart, tentacles, head, and the hidden crystal deep inside.

Soon, most of the disaster aura from the entire Grade E Disaster Beast was devoured.

The white membrane on the surface that protected the flesh and blood from being corroded gradually dimmed under this power, becoming at risk of being invaded.

The girl’s armor began to twist uncontrollably, her slender body was covered, and the growing bone and flesh made her almost turn into a terrifying monster, looking strange and frightening.

Liang Xiaoxiao disregarded everything around her and carefully protected the cool sandals in her hands, like the little monster in Ultraman playing with children. She approached the remains of the disaster beast and slowly started to remove the parts of its belly.

The little monster dug carefully and gently, trying hard not to hurt the insides. After searching for a while, it seemed to find the treasure in her heart, looking at the body that was like a cicada’s shell, lifting the fragile and broken person.

At the same time,

The magical girl, shining like a fiery rose, finally arrived at the scene under the guidance. She looked at this strange sight and was about to angrily raise her thorny flame spear when Esther stopped her, falling into a long and sorrowful silence.