Chapter 22: The Legacy of the Witch Church

Because Wang Ya refused to cooperate, the security guards had no choice but to drag her off the stage, one holding each of her arms.

Out of nowhere, a strange surge of strength allowed Wang Ya’s frail body to break free from the two guards’ grip. 

She fell to her knees and crawled toward Lu Yinxi on all fours, crying out desperately.

“Xiaolu-chan! Xiaolu-chan! Xiaolu-chan! Xiaolu-chan! Xiaolu-chan!”

Even with Lu Yinxi’s usual composure, the sight made her gasp and retreat three steps backward. 

The musicians nearby didn’t dare get close, afraid of catching some bizarre contagion.

The security guards stepped forward again and restrained Wang Ya. 

This time, they successfully escorted her off the stage without further trouble.

“I’m sorry. I’ll issue a statement later explaining everything. What happened just now was an accident. I have no personal dispute with Wang Ya.”

After giving this brief explanation to the venue, Lu Yinxi bowed once more with the others and left the stage.

“So she was a former collaborator who kept pestering you, Xiaolu, even after your work together ended. And today she showed up in such a… distinctive way to try and win you back?” 

Su Xiaocheng summarized the whole story Lu Yinxi had recounted.

“What do you mean ‘win you back’? Big Sister, your wording is way too weird. Nothing ever happened between them,” Su Xiaowei corrected.

“Even though the atmosphere is kind of serious, I really… have a hard time holding it in.” 

Youzi’s face twitched as she quickly popped a piece of candy into her mouth, doing her best to uphold her professional demeanor.

***

At some point, accompanied by a rumble of spring thunder, a light drizzle began to fall from the sky. 

Wang Ya walked alone down the street, gazing up at the gloomy sky as tears traced down her cheeks.

“Why? Why did you leave me!”

Recalling the events of the past, the rose-tinted filter through which Wang Ya viewed Lu Yinxi gradually faded away.

She didn’t consider herself a lesbian or anything. 

She simply felt Lu Yinxi had a kind of warmth, and singing together with her had been very enjoyable.

Drenched by the rain, Wang Ya thought to herself, If only I could shine like that too—bright enough to make people’s hearts flutter.

“Why? Why can she be so popular, while I’ve worked so hard for so many years and am still just a second-tier singer? I can’t even get permission to collaborate with her a few more times.” 

The emotions in Wang Ya’s heart gradually turned dangerous.

“Want to know? This one will teach you~”

A seductive voice whispered softly beside Wang Ya’s ear. 

Warm breath brushed against her earlobe, making her heart itch with longing.

For some unknown reason, the rain avoided the two of them. 

The hurried pedestrians on the street didn’t notice anything unusual at all.

Wang Ya turned around and saw a tall woman who had appeared behind her at some point. 

The woman wore only a few strips of fabric that barely covered her important parts, leaving large expanses of snow-white skin exposed to the air. 

A pair of alluring phoenix eyes stared fixedly at her. 

Her delicate pink tongue licked her vivid flame-red lips, as if she had spotted something delicious.

“Who are you?” 

Wang Ya thought back but couldn’t find this woman in her memories.

“Who this one is isn’t important. What matters is that this one can give you what you want.” 

The woman lifted Wang Ya’s chin and gently wiped the tear stains from her face. 

“As long as you’re willing to come with this one.”

Wang Ya snorted coldly, not bothering about the woman’s identity. 

“Fine. You’d better not deceive me.”

“Very well.” 

The woman chuckled softly. 

Black light bloomed from her hand, engulfing all vision.

When Wang Ya’s eyesight returned, she found herself in a space surrounded by bottomless darkness. 

The only things visible were seven tall-backed, luxurious dark-style chairs before her and an ornate table placed in the center.

Upon closer inspection, how could this be a conference table? 

It was clearly a massive coffin embedded with various gemstones, with a lifelike seven-petaled flower carved at its center—an item that was obviously priceless.

Five of the seven chairs were already occupied, leaving only the two at the very end empty. 

The occupants’ hoods were pulled low, hiding their faces. 

From their figures, they were all women. 

The tall woman took the head seat and crossed her legs.

“Lust, you’re late,” a lazy female voice said from the left-hand side.

“This one ran into an interesting woman,” Lust replied, running her fingers through her hair unhurriedly.

Everyone’s gaze focused on Wang Ya.

“So she’s the new member you’ve picked? Replacing who?” an impatient voice asked.

“Of course it’s Envy. Although Pride has already abandoned her Pride, she’s still alive, and the demonic artifact carrying the Sin of Pride hasn’t been recovered yet,” Lust said matter-of-factly.

Sloth didn’t care in the slightest. 

Leaning back in her chair, she urged, “It doesn’t matter who it is. Can we finish this quickly? I still want to sleep.”

No matter how slow on the uptake Wang Ya was, she now realized she had stumbled into a bad place. 

She lowered her head uneasily, watching her feet twist back and forth.

Seeing the anxious Wang Ya, Lust smiled gently. 

“Don’t be alarmed. This one bears you no ill will.” 

An exquisite mirror appeared in her hand. 

Powered by magic, it slowly floated over to Wang Ya.

“Joining us means nothing more than becoming a top singer. That’s not difficult for us at all. You can obtain even more—everything better that you envy will belong to you.”

Wang Ya stared at the mirror in her hands. 

Under Lust’s alluring voice, she slowly nodded in agreement.

“Okay.”

A black cat walked out from the darkness. 

It elegantly leaped onto the coffin and dropped a half-dead crow. 

Under its control, a strange light flashed through the crow’s unfocused pupils, and a contract took form.

Because it was not formed willingly, the contract was highly unstable. 

No one paid it any mind.

The contract descended onto Wang Ya. 

She let out a miserable scream and collapsed to her knees. 

From any angle, she failed to meet the conditions for becoming a Magical Girl. 

Lacking a pure and beautiful soul, contact with the Magical Girl contract only brought her a purifying pain.

Under the black cat’s control, the contract was forcibly completed. 

A dim Maiden Heart coalesced and floated in mid-air, as if it could extinguish completely at any moment.

“Now, kill it,” Lust commanded.

Wang Ya looked at the mirror in her hands in bewilderment. 

It didn’t appear to have any offensive capability.

“Use whatever method you like. If you don’t even have this much resolve, what qualifications do you have to envy Lu Yinxi?” Wrath sneered mockingly.

Wang Ya gritted her teeth and wrapped both hands around the crow’s neck. 

The crow had only one breath left. 

This squeeze cut off even that final breath. 

It died on the spot.

Black qi surged from the already unstable Maiden Heart. 

Wang Ya seemed about to lose her sanity and fall into a Witch. 

The immense soul-deep pain caused her to faint on the ground.

The coffin trembled slightly. 

An indescribable power descended upon Wang Ya, halting her descent. 

The Magical Girl contract shattered. 

The Maiden Heart was swallowed by the mirror, which then contentedly dropped back into Wang Ya’s hand.

Jealousy—one of the Seven Deadly Sins Deacons of the Witch Church—had reappeared in the world after several days.

After an unknown amount of time had passed, the others had already left. 

Wang Ya—no, the Envy Deacon—finally awakened. 

She shakily got to her feet and sat down in the empty seat that belonged to her.