The group had lost track of time, their journey growing increasingly arduous as they ascended the snowy peak. With every step closer to the summit, the blizzard intensified, its swirling snow threatening to engulf them entirely.
“Damn it all!”
Aya Tone muttered a curse under his breath.
A storm of this magnitude on a snow-capped mountain could only spell disaster.
Urgently, he bellowed, “Roll call!”
Lin Qingfeng, positioned nearest to Aya Tone, was the first to comprehend and respond.
He immediately grasped Aya Tone’s intention. “One!”
“Two!”
“…”
“Ten!”
“!!!”
A chill of horror swept through the group as they turned, eyes wide with alarm, to scrutinize their companions.
There was one too many!
“Why the strange looks?”
Mi Xiaoxiao, who had been walking in the heart of the formation, suddenly found herself the subject of everyone’s intense gaze, prompting her to self-consciously pat her head.
“Xiaoxiao, freeze!”
Lin Qingfeng’s face was grim as he sharply called out to Mi Xiaoxiao.
Mi Xiaoxiao’s hand froze mid-air, and she was just about to inquire of her vice-captain why he had stopped her.
Before she could utter a word, a voice beside her spoke up, “What’s the matter?”
“!!”
A wave of icy dread instantly crept up Mi Xiaoxiao’s spine.
This was no mere chill from the environment; it was a profound cold emanating from her very core!
That voice was unmistakably her own!
She spun around abruptly, her gaze locking with another pair of eyes!
“Who are you!” ×2
“No, wait! Who am I!” ×2
“I am Mi Xiaoxiao!” ×2
A collective headache seemed to afflict the group as they stared at the two identical Mi Xiaoxiaos, utterly bewildered and unsure how to proceed.
“You impostor, reveal your true form before my Sharingan!”
In Mi Xiaoxiao’s eyes, her blood-red pupils constricted, and three tomoe spun furiously, quickly morphing into the intricate pattern of a crimson flower.
To everyone’s astonishment, the other Mi Xiaoxiao, unwilling to be outdone, widened her own eyes, revealing identical blood-red pupils and the very same Mangekyo Sharingan.
“Blood Burst!” ×2
Two identical surges of power collided head-on, each neutralizing the other completely.
Ultimately, a profound stillness settled over the scene.
“!”
This revelation sent shivers not only down Mi Xiaoxiao’s spine but also etched expressions of pure terror onto the faces of everyone else.
Two Mi Xiaoxiaos, identical in every visible aspect.
And possessing identical supernatural abilities!?
How could such a thing be possible!?
“Xiaoxiao, stay calm!”
True to his role as vice-captain, Lin Qingfeng’s immediate priority was to soothe his distraught teammates.
“What the hell is this thing?”
Aya Tone’s brow furrowed deeply.
Within the range of his perception, no new life form had registered at all.
When exactly had this additional “Mi Xiaoxiao” materialized?
“Captain!”
Unable to discern any abnormality himself, Lin Qingfeng could only turn to Aya Tone for immediate assistance.
“Hold your horses!”
Aya Tone waved a dismissive hand, signaling him to remain calm for the moment.
With a deliberate motion, he then gently raised his magic staff, his calf muscles tensing as he abruptly swung it downwards towards one of the Mi Xiaoxiaos.
“Captain, what are you doing!?”
Mi Xiaoxiao recoiled swiftly, narrowly evading Aya Tone’s strike by a hair’s breadth.
Once she had regained her footing, her scarlet eyes blazed with an indignant glare at Aya Tone.
Her fury was laced with utter bewilderment.
She simply could not fathom why Aya Tone had suddenly attacked *her* instead of the impostor standing right beside her.
Observing that his strike had failed to connect, Aya Tone let out a soft sigh.
‘His magical girl persona, it seemed, was still woefully inadequate; he possessed not an ounce of close-quarters combat skill.’
‘At such a close range, he couldn’t even strike a stationary object.’
“How much longer do you intend to keep up this charade?”
Aya Tone slowly straightened, his gaze falling dispassionately upon the “Mi Xiaoxiao.”
There was not a flicker of emotion in his eyes, as if the figure before him were nothing more than a corpse.
In truth, that was precisely the case.
Within Aya Tone’s heightened perception, the “Mi Xiaoxiao” standing before him radiated not a single trace of ‘life.’
This was a truly terrifying discovery.
For any living creature in the world, no matter how adept they were at suppressing their presence or concealing their aura,
they would invariably, albeit unconsciously, emit a faint ‘life’ energy.
The absence of this energy was characteristic only of inanimate objects.
This meant that the “Mi Xiaoxiao” before him was—dead!
“Captain, what are you talking about? I *am* Mi Xiaoxiao; how could I possibly be pretending?”
The “Mi Xiaoxiao” frantically attempted to prove her authenticity, her face etched with terror.
Yet, no matter her efforts, in Aya Tone’s eyes, she remained nothing more than a pathetic jester.
The death clinging to her was as starkly evident amidst the vibrant life energies of the others as a luminous full moon in the darkest night.
“This farce has gone on long enough.”
Aya Tone couldn’t be bothered to waste further words on the impostor. “Divine Shooter!”
His magic staff erupted in a blinding flash of light, utterly consuming the “Mi Xiaoxiao” within its brilliant embrace.
As the dazzling light dissipated, all that remained in its wake was a shimmering puddle of melted snow.
This, then, was the “Mi Xiaoxiao”’s true essence—snow.
‘Tsk tsk tsk, indeed, a magical girl like him ought to stick to magic.’
‘Only a fool would attempt close combat.’
‘Oh, wait, there *was* a fool just now…’
“Captain!”
Mi Xiaoxiao threw her arms around Aya Tone, tears streaming uncontrollably down her face.
No one could truly grasp the depths of despair she had just experienced.
The entity had possessed identical abilities and memories to her own.
Had Aya Tone not vanquished the impostor in a single, decisive blow, she would have been utterly lost, without a clue as to how to proceed.
“Stop that, stop that.”
Aya Tone promptly shoved Mi Xiaoxiao away. ‘This is the interior of a dungeon, after all!’
“Xiaoxiao, what are you thinking!?” Lin Qingfeng, too, glared furiously at Mi Xiaoxiao, who had stumbled to the ground.
Even he, the seasoned vice-captain, found himself overcome with anger.
‘One must remember!’
‘This was no ordinary dungeon; in an S-rank instance, danger lurked in every shadow.’
‘The recent replication was ample proof of this; without Aya Tone’s intervention, even he would have been unable to discern any difference between the two.’
‘Yet Mi Xiaoxiao had actually—!’
“I’m sorry…”
Mi Xiaoxiao scrambled to her feet, biting down hard on her lip to prevent any more tears from falling.
She understood that her impulsiveness had led her to lose control of her emotions.
Aya Tone’s seemingly callous push had, in fact, been a subtle act of mercy…
‘Had it been any other S-rank individual…’
‘Mi Xiaoxiao would have long since been reduced to ashes, just like the puddle of melted snow on the ground.’
“Enough. Just be more mindful next time.”
Aya Tone cast a cold, dismissive glance her way before turning his attention elsewhere.
He then retrieved an earpiece from the four-dimensional pocket on his back and slowly placed it on his ear.
Bai Xiao had given it to him before their departure, explaining it was for maintaining communication within the dungeon.
However, due to its prohibitive cost and the immaturity of the technology, only three such devices had been produced this time.
Each S-rank team leader carried one.
The recent snow replication had planted a terrifying thought in Aya Tone’s mind.
‘What if…’
‘What if he hadn’t detected the anomaly in time? Would Mi Xiaoxiao have been replaced without anyone ever realizing?’
‘An identical appearance, the very same supernatural abilities.’
‘If not for his unique ability to perceive life energy, the replicant might have imperceptibly replaced everyone in the group, and no one would have been the wiser…’
‘At that point, the replicant, having destroyed the dungeon’s core, could simply depart through the teleportation array and infiltrate human society!’
‘The consequences were utterly unimaginable!’
He disregarded the fact that they had encountered no monster traces throughout their journey, and that the entire dungeon’s perceived danger level seemed even lower than that of an E-rank instance.
‘It turned out!’
‘The true crisis had been lurking beside them all along.’
‘Only…’
‘They had all been blinded by the “snow” itself…’
Aya Tone had retrieved the communicator precisely to warn the other two teams.
The connection was established swiftly.
– What’s wrong? –
– Be careful, the snow! Zzzzzzt— –
Before Aya Tone could utter more than a few words, the communication was violently severed by an unknown force.
His brow furrowed deeply, and he then lifted his gaze to the snowflakes gently drifting down from above.
‘It’s the “snow”!’