It was even possible that the Cloud Whale had just prepared her breakfast!
“An! What have you done?” A wrenching pain seized Bai Zhiqiu’s heart as she watched an innocent life tragically perish before her very eyes.
“What have I done? I haven’t done a thing, you see! Her life was ended by your own hands! If you don’t believe me, look! How neat that cut is! Hahahaha!”
As she spoke, An erupted into a wild, unrestrained laugh.
“You!”
“Zhiqiu! They are merely people from memories! Once this Yun Paopao awakens, they will vanish… All of this is fake… and you can only replace people who never truly existed!”
Yan Qingzhu’s voice rang out. Just moments ago, through this simple exchange, she had finally discerned the true nature of their predicament.
If An truly possessed the ability to replace anyone at will, it would have been far more effective for her to directly replace Yin, Jasmine, or even Yan Qingzhu herself.
Such an act might have driven Bai Zhiqiu to madness. Yet, An hadn’t done so. Instead, she had uncharacteristically replaced a maid with whom Bai Zhiqiu had only a fleeting acquaintance, or perhaps no connection at all.
There were only two possibilities for this behavior. Either An was deliberately doing this, slowly eroding Bai Zhiqiu’s resolve, forcing Bai Zhiqiu to ‘kill’ people one by one, before finally turning her attention to them.
Or, An was, in fact, only capable of replacing figures who were already deceased and had been fabricated within this illusion!
Given these options, the latter possibility seemed far more likely.
“I’m not wrong, am I, Miss Goddess? Oh, no, I mean Miss False God!”
“You! You are very clever! I hope your cleverness doesn’t lead you down the same path as your master and her companions!”
“Don’t worry! I won’t follow their old path! Next, I’m going to beautifully defeat you, rescue them, and then have a deep conversation with a certain little one!”
With that, Yan Qingzhu’s gaze shifted towards Bai Zhiqiu.
“With such an adorable little one around, I certainly can’t afford to die!”
Upon hearing Yan Qingzhu’s words, a faint blush crept onto Bai Zhiqiu’s face.
‘What was this? Was this a confession? But there was a time and place for such things! This was a public setting!’
‘Couldn’t they discuss it later, in private? Besides, shouldn’t this kind of development officially begin in the next volume?’
“Heh! We’ll have to see if you have the ability to do so!”
“Oh really? Then allow me to show you!”
With that declaration, Yan Qingzhu stepped forward, moving to the center of the altar.
“Little Demoness! Attack here!”
Upon hearing Yan Qingzhu’s words, An’s expression visibly darkened. She extended a hand, condensing a demonic claw, intent on stopping them.
But it was already too late for her to intervene!
Bai Zhiqiu’s Pangsang was the first to strike the stone on the altar. In mere moments, it pulverized the stone into fine dust.
At this instant, the authorities of Wujian and Shatter manifested together, unleashing an incredibly potent and violent force for all to witness.
Meanwhile, Yin and Jasmine joined forces to deploy a defense, successfully blocking An’s attack.
“Tsk! I never thought I’d be fighting alongside you someday!”
Yin playfully stuck her tongue out at Jasmine.
“There will be many more opportunities to fight side-by-side in the future!”
“Don’t even think about it!”
“However, that area you destroyed—while the personnel were evacuated in time, preventing any casualties—had two buildings alone worth billions!
And since you are currently residing within Bai Zhiqiu, well, that debt, if we round it up, essentially falls on the Little Demoness’s head!”
“You! You’re cheating! Whatever you have to say, direct it at me!”
“Don’t worry! I won’t make any excessive demands! It’s just that, at that time, Nandu City might be a little short-staffed… Do you understand what I mean?”
With a smile, Jasmine secured another Sunwheel-tier powerhouse for the association, and one who wasn’t particularly clever at that…
“I’ll do it then! But I have one condition! I will only act alongside Bai Zhiqiu!”
Yin gritted her teeth as she laid out her terms. She could work for humans, but being with Bai Zhiqiu was her absolute bottom line!
Upon hearing Yin’s demand, Jasmine feigned a moment of consideration, but then promptly agreed!
“Alright then! We’ll do as you say!”
Though Jasmine wore a troubled expression, inwardly, she was overjoyed.
‘What if Yin had simply refused to acknowledge the debt? What could she have done then? She certainly couldn’t have made the Little Demoness pay those billions, could she?’
Thus, this plan was, to put it plainly, a scheme to catch a white wolf empty-handed. It just so happened that this little white wolf named Yin was a bit too foolish…
“Alright! It’s decided then! Once all this is over, pack up and report to the Magical Girl Headquarters with Bai Zhiqiu!”
“Hmph!”
****
“Yin! Come here quickly!”
Yan Qingzhu and Jasmine stood guard against An’s attacks, while Bai Zhiqiu and Yin examined the object beneath the altar…
Unexpectedly, there was no nest of tentacles beneath the altar, nor any Cloud Whale. Instead, there was only a colossal sphere of flesh.
Through the fleshy sphere, Bai Zhiqiu sensed a life force—one that was simultaneously potent and fragile…
“This is Yun Paopao? Why is it so small!” Bai Zhiqiu scrutinized the fleshy sphere. While the truth likely lay before her, she found it hard to believe.
A Cloud Whale of such immense size had transformed into a sphere this diminutive. Though the sphere itself measured a meter and a half in diameter, it was still incredibly tiny compared to the Cloud Whale’s original body.
“You silly Bai Zhiqiu! Can’t it be in human form? Besides, don’t you always say that concentrated things are the essence?”
Yin retorted with a playful jab at Bai Zhiqiu.
“Have I been too kind to you lately?”
Bai Zhiqiu shot Yin a sidelong glance, her scythe in hand, eager to be used.
“I’ve heard vampires are unkillable. I’d like to see if Pangsang can truly kill them!”
With that, Bai Zhiqiu raised the scythe in her hand slightly.
“Wuwuwu! You’re not actually going to hit me, are you? Do you not remember all those times I risked my life to save you?”
“Just get to the point! And who taught you all that, anyway?”
“You did! From that human thing… I think it’s called a television, right? That’s where I learned it! I saw it in your mind…”
Hearing Yin’s words, a few black lines seemed to trail down Bai Zhiqiu’s forehead. Those were the shows she usually watched with her sister; she hadn’t expected Yin to pick them up.
“From now on, learn some good things and watch fewer of those melodramatic dramas!”
“What are melodramatic dramas?”
“The ones you watch! Alright! Now quickly teach me how to awaken Yun Paopao!”
“That’s simple! You do this, then that, and finally, that! Understand?”
“Understood… I think?”