Boom!
Su Xiaocheng channeled her magic power and executed a nimble backflip, dodging the black tentacles’ attack like a fluttering butterfly.
Her pink long hair fanned out, sparkling with tiny glimmers under the streetlights.
The tentacles pressed on without pause, smashing the road sign behind her into fragments.
Her pink high heels lightly tapped the ground. Magic power gathered at the tip of her staff.
Su Xiaocheng spun to stabilize her stance, finished charging, and fired a magic beam that pierced straight through the witch’s body.
“Fifth one.”
Su Xiaocheng picked up the dropped Witch’s Heart and estimated her remaining magic power.
“Still about half left. If I conserve it, I can help Youzi deal with a few more.”
“Witch’s Hearts can also quickly recover magic power. Xiaocheng, with your current condition, you should be able to use three C-rank Witch’s Hearts in a short time.”
“That’s perfect.”
Su Xiaocheng pulled out the map, ready to choose the next target.
“Wait, wait—why are these three red dots nearby all closing in at once?”
Looking at the map, Su Xiaocheng realized she had somehow ended up in a small encirclement.
“Can’t conserve magic power anymore, meow, or things could get dangerous, meow. The one on the right is closer, meow. Take it out first, meow!”
Xiaotuan urged anxiously, meowing nonstop.
“Understood!”
Su Xiaocheng stopped hesitating.
She struck first, flying straight toward the witch on the right.
Ten seconds later, the witch’s figure appeared in Su Xiaocheng’s view.
The pre-charged magic beam shot out directly for a quick finish.
To her surprise, the witch narrowed her scarlet eyes.
Several tentacles crossed in front of her, slightly blocking the magic beam for a moment.
Using that brief window, the witch successfully dodged the attack.
“This witch is off, meow. She feels smarter than the previous ones, meow.”
Xiaotuan stood up on Su Xiaocheng’s shoulder at the sight.
Su Xiaocheng’s small face turned serious. “One shot isn’t enough?
Then take another!”
While the witch was still off-balance, the second magic beam hit true.
The fragile witch burst apart with a splat, leaving behind her Witch’s Heart.
She quickly stepped forward to collect the loot, then straightened up.
The other two witches were now within a hundred meters and closing fast.
Black tentacles extended from behind them, ready to strike at any moment.
“The distance should still be enough.”
Su Xiaocheng mentally calculated.
Massive magic power gathered as three magic beams targeted one witch simultaneously.
The witch wove her tentacles together, desperately trying to block, but against the absolute gap in power, all her efforts were in vain.
Her companion’s sacrifice bought precious time for the last witch.
She finally closed in to a sufficient range.
Over a dozen tentacles surged forward, sealing off all of Su Xiaocheng’s escape routes.
“What if I don’t dodge?”
Su Xiaocheng planted her staff in front of her. Magic power formed a pink spherical shield.
Every tentacle that touched it was instantly shattered by the shield’s rebound.
Deprived of her tentacles, the final witch knew she had no chance.
She charged headfirst into the shield, smashing herself into countless fragments while also draining a huge chunk of Su Xiaocheng’s magic power, nearly depleting it.
“These three witches were stronger than the others.”
Su Xiaocheng felt a bit worried and reported the witches’ abnormality to Youzi over the voice channel.
***
“I was just about to tell you.”
Youzi propped herself up with her flintlock pistol. Witch’s Hearts littered the ground around her.
“Sorry, I didn’t have time earlier. The entire South District witches were swarming me.”
Youzi channeled her magic power.
All the nearby Witch’s Hearts were drawn to her.
An orange Maiden Heart that was already half-turned black flew out from her body, absorbing the floating Witch’s Hearts.
Having single-handedly cleared the southwest districts, Youzi’s magic power was nearly exhausted.
A large amount of gray aura clung to her Maiden Heart like maggots on bone.
If she didn’t replenish her magic power soon to resist the corruption, the gray aura would merge with her Maiden Heart, causing further pollution.
She popped a lollipop into her mouth, then looked at the eight remaining red dots in the North District on the map.
“Not time to rest yet.”
The terminal’s alarm kept ringing nonstop.
Although a city-wide alert had been issued in advance and logistics had even pulled an all-nighter tonight, sending out warnings based on the map positions, dozens of people had still been attacked so far.
Even members of the Anning City branch’s security team had suffered casualties.
“Chief Xu, the North District urgently needs support. The witches have gathered and formed a two-kilometer-diameter witch domain covering an entire residential complex. Preliminary estimates put over fifty civilians still inside the domain.”
The security team captain’s urgent plea came through.
“Received.”
Youzi crushed the lollipop between her teeth, stood up, and flew toward the North District.
***
“Xiaocheng, where are you going, meow? Your mission is already complete, meow!”
Su Xiaocheng flew toward the North District. Her pink Maiden Heart floated in front of her, slowly absorbing three Witch’s Hearts.
“Youzi’s situation probably isn’t great either. I’m going to help. It’s just three Witch’s Hearts—it’ll be fine.”
If this had been Su Xiaocheng from a few days ago, she would probably have gone home to replenish by now.
Maybe it was the influence of the Maiden Heart, but Su Xiaocheng felt like she had gained a bit more of a sense of justice.
When she arrived in the North District, Youzi was already waiting in front of the witch domain—even though her distance was twice as far.
“You’re here. Then let’s head in.” Youzi’s voice sounded exhausted. “Xiaocheng, just support me.”
“Got it.” Su Xiaocheng knew her remaining magic power was barely enough even for support.
The two magical girls entered the witch domain one after the other.
A breaking sound rang out as a witch ambushing at the edge of the domain launched a surprise attack.
Bang! Youzi blew away the gun smoke from the barrel.
The witch slowly collapsed, turning into a pool of black liquid.
“Seven left.” Youzi picked up the Witch’s Heart and said casually, “It’d be nice if the rest were this simple too.”
Multiple overlapping witch domains could somewhat block external magical girls’ perception, but once a high-ranking magical girl stepped inside, the witches’ auras had nowhere to hide.
C-rank witches were easy for even Su Xiaocheng to pinpoint.
“Doesn’t look likely, meow.”
Xiaotuan watched the witches revealing themselves from every direction and meowed.
Dozens of tentacles attacked at once, forming a writhing net.
Youzi tossed a baby-fist-sized red candy from her left hand.
The red candy exploded ahead, and fierce flames incinerated every tentacle in an instant.
Her right-hand flintlock fired in rapid succession. Two witches couldn’t dodge in time and were shot dead on the spot.
Who said flintlocks could only fire once?
Magic was never that inconvenient.
The remaining witches tried to retreat into the residential buildings, but two unlucky ones suddenly found pink ropes binding their feet.
They quickly broke free, but the brief delay was enough for Youzi to put bullets through their bodies.
“Well done, Xiaocheng. Three left.” Youzi praised.
The remaining stragglers were scattered and no longer a threat.
The two girls split up to prevent the witches’ final desperate struggles from harming any civilians.
Bang! Bang! “Biu~”
The witch domain slowly dissipated.
The night’s conflict had finally come to an end.
But for the magical girls, the real test had only just begun.