Chapter 338: True-Transmission Firefight, Keke Steals the Win!
Sword cultivators were a species that simply defied logic.
Fighting and fighting, clearly you had the upper hand, having already countered all of her abilities, victory within your grasp—
Then she suddenly hits you with, “I understand now.”
After that, you were in for a world of pain.
You’d already dealt a fatal blow, her body drenched in blood. Then she plants herself there, claiming that her sheer perseverance allowed her to reduce all the damage she’d taken to just one.
Her base damage probably wasn’t that high anyway—after all, she was only a Sprout. By common logic, nine hundred or so would be about right.
But then she picks up the unsharpened sword the Sect Master gave her as a child, adds a hundred, then remembers the song Lady Bingtang sang for her, and adds another twenty.
You take a look and think it’s not much. Yet with one swing of that sword, she cleaves through the two thousand-plus defensive measures you had prepared, leaving nothing behind.
Take a closer look, and one of those additions was directly appended to the nine hundred, making it nine hundred and one hundred. Another was added straight to the exponent, turning nine hundred to the power of one hundred to the power of twenty.
And if you get her even more fired up and emotional, she could just slap an exclamation mark on the end, making it nine hundred and one hundred to the power of twenty factorial!
Go ahead, fight her. One hit and you won’t say a word.
Tiyana had never considered going head-to-head with Senior Apprentice Sister. There was simply no chance of winning.
Her teacher told her to do things with a less than fifty percent probability of success.
She never said to challenge things with a zero percent probability.
Even during the final sealing, Bai Mei didn’t even draw her sword.
Tiyana didn’t even see Bai Mei make a move. It was only after she’d calmed down that a sword scar bloomed at her neck, a brilliant spray of blood.
It knocked her straight out of her transformation state.
The over a dozen substitute dolls on her hand instantly cracked open. Even after reverting from the transformation state, the pure Sword Intent left a fine, dense bloody line across her throat.
Little droplets of blood kept seeping out, trickling down.
Maybe Senior Sister Bai Mei had even held back.
After all, generally speaking, you wouldn’t really kill a fellow sect sister. That was a heavy crime in Azure Cloud.
If she hadn’t held back, her head would probably be on the ground by now…
This was a sword cultivator.
Even without physical damage, by relying on Sword Intent, it forced her own body to acknowledge that it had been cut, and thus a wound appeared.
Even if she’d held back, if not for the substitute straw dolls she had prepared, she might have just died right there.
But it was precisely this terrifying brush with life and death that allowed her to understand her own power better…
Senior Sister Bai Mei, now sealed away in a different time and space, was still charging forward without pause. Time, space—it was as if nothing could stop her sword.
Not to mention Qianjing’s crystals and Lady Bingtang’s ice.
This point had also been within Tiyana’s expectations.
So from the very beginning, the goal wasn’t to completely seal Senior Sister Bai Mei.
It was to make her get lost in different times and spaces.
This was Senior Sister Bai Mei’s only weakness.
She couldn’t see the road.
This was very similar to the Sect Master. Neither of them were very good with directions…
Perhaps this was a mark of the truly powerful.
At the very least, for a short time, Senior Sister Bai Mei wouldn’t be coming back.
Tiyana reached out and stirred the lake’s surface, gently drifting the boat from the center to the shore. She clutched her still-bleeding neck and let out a slight sigh of relief.
No matter what, the plan had succeeded.
It was the first time she’d done something with such a low success rate, and her body was still trembling with excitement, barely controllable.
“What a surprise. You actually showed up in person. Didn’t you say before that you’d rather die than leave that little nest of yours?”
Tiyana tossed her blonde hair, looking at Fengqin who had appeared silently on the shore. But the Fengqin at this moment was clearly different from usual.
Her eyes were as calm as still water, carrying a hint of coldness and sharpness, a stark contrast to the soft, timid person who was always kneeling and kowtowing.
The leader of the Dream Incubator, or rather, the commander of the Weave Realm Travelers.
Tiyana couldn’t really remember her title clearly.
“Against Senior Apprentice Sister, if I didn’t show up in person, there’d be no way to seal her.”
“That was far too reckless.”
Hearing this, Tiyana’s eyebrows curved slightly, her crescent-moon-like eyes brimming with joy. “Really? It was really reckless, wasn’t it? This time… heh, yeah.”
For a moment, Fengqin was caught off guard. The girl who used to constantly talk about caution and playing it safe was now this happy about taking a risk.
“Next up, we need to deal with Qinghua, Yumo…”
“No, no, no.” Tiyana directly rejected her proposal. “Next, I’m going to challenge Thousand-Pinweed.”
“Why?”
“If I can beat Thousand-Pinweed, the Chongxu area will be free from Azure Cloud disciples’ interference for a while, giving the other Weave Realm Travelers a place to land, right?”
Fengqin studied her carefully, then after a long moment, nodded. “Fine. But, you’re not doing this just to make your teacher happy by trying to beat Thousand-Pinweed, are you? I heard Teacher Shion has always been unhappy with Thousand-Pinweed’s Harry Potter Branch Sect.”
“If you guys can actually handle my teacher, does it matter what I think?”
“Alright. In any case, since the plan is already set in motion, there’s no stopping it now. Once we send Shion to that place, you’ll see whether or not we can deal with your teacher.”
“I’ll pray for you all.” Tiyana gave a faint smile. “I hope you can actually pull it off.”
Her tone, however, was filled with undisguised contempt and disbelief.
“Heh.” Fengqin didn’t say much else. She just continued, “Lend me some of those straw dolls of yours?”
Tiyana pulled a big handful from her pocket. “Which one do you want? The empathetic kind or the voodoo kind?”
“What’s the difference?”
“Empathetic straw dolls lean more toward business, voodoo straw dolls lean more toward sports…”
“…”
After splitting the dolls, it wasn’t long before the two of them parted ways to attend to their own matters.
Tiyana didn’t think too much about it. She headed straight for Chongxu.
As a true-transmission, she naturally had a ticket to enter Chongxu.
Along the way, Fengqin said something to her through the empathetic straw doll, but Tiyana didn’t really listen.
Because it was too annoyingly chattering, she casually threw it away.
In truth, Tiyana wasn’t very fond of these people.
Fengqin seemed to have some connection with her teacher, possibly related to some kind of world authority.
Back when Azure Cloud Sect held a meeting, Tiyana heard Lady Bingtang mention them.
But she really had no interest.
After all, for someone standing on the edge of a cliff, desperately holding onto their own rope to avoid falling, just that alone already took all her effort.
She had no time to care about whether anyone else lived or died.
Everyone thought she was the least noticeable true-transmission in the Azure Cloud Sect, the one most distant from the sect.
Not many people knew that Tiyana actually used to have a very good relationship with the Sect Master and was very close to her.
After all, back then, she had just been kicked out of the Weave Realm Travelers and was taken in by Azure Cloud.
Aside from the Sect Master and Bingtang, Tiyana wasn’t familiar with this world at all.
Among the seven true-transmissions, she was the second to join the sect, right after Senior Sister Bai Mei. When she joined, there wasn’t even such a thing as true-transmissions yet.
But from beginning to end, her presence had always been low-key. This was also the reason the Sect Master had suggested she pursue the Path of Caution, because sometimes even the Sect Master would unintentionally overlook her.
Back then, the sect didn’t have many disciples, just two or three. Even if she was overlooked, the Sect Master would come to her senses and remember her, then mention her.
Because she was so easy to overlook, Tiyana used to like hugging the Sect Master from behind, constantly asserting her presence.
Unfortunately, somewhere along the line, the Azure Cloud Sect started getting more and more disciples, more and more. The spot next to the Sect Master that was once hers got taken by others.
At that time, she thought she was a tragic heroine, being pushed aside by a bunch of evil girls. She’d silently cry and grieve all by herself, waiting for the Sect Master to come and comfort her. But in reality, the Sect Master just outright forgot about her.
Becoming one of the seven true-transmissions, then establishing herself as a wandering cultivator, the representative of the Cautious Cultivation Type, her relationship with the Sect Master drifted back and forth, and that was that.
It felt like it had rusted.
Sometimes she missed the days when the sect had fewer people. She wished the Azure Cloud Sect was still that small, tiny sect it had been back then.
Their bond and memories were soaked through with moisture, then eroded by the wind of time, turning into irreversible wounds. Flakes of rust-like spots grew, and under the constant polishing of reality, they kept peeling away, scattering fine bits of rust dust.
Even though the rust dust no longer mattered, it had once been a part of her body, or rather, a part of her life.
It still stung a little.
She had long since stopped thinking about pointless things like staying by the Sect Master’s side or getting closer to her.
At the very least, she couldn’t let the Sect Master truly forget about her completely and throw her away, right?
When she entered Chongxu, the administrator outside, that one called Little Yu, deducted some of her items and money.
That guy even claimed to be Shion’s stepmother.
Said that everyone in Azure Cloud Sect had to show her some respect.
Tiyana scoffed. The only one who could be the Sect Master’s stepmother was Lady Bingtang.
And also the mother of the seven true-transmissions.
Then she stepped into Chongxu. Compared to before, Chongxu was now a lot freer. Although the buildings were gradually being restored to how they were, the quality of life had improved drastically compared to earlier.
At the very least, there were no longer restrictions on emotions like crying or laughing.
But freedom had its limits. Motorcycles with ghostly flames roaring through the main streets, ramming straight into roadside buildings and such… that was still a bit dangerous.
Magical Girl Ruri’s promotional posters could be seen everywhere, the hero who saved Chongxu.
As for the Sect Master and Su, due to too much controversy, they hadn’t managed to form a strong fan base in Chongxu.
A motley crew.
Walking through the bright lights and hustle and bustle, she soon reached the deep mountains. There, the large signboard reading “Harry Potter Branch Sect” and the oversized LED scrolling screen hanging in the air unfolded right before her eyes.
This girl was really going all out to get the Sect Master’s attention…
Sneering inwardly, Tiyana naturally knew what Thousand-Pinweed was thinking. Back then, they’d even been allies.
As the true-transmission the Sect Master cared about the least, to compete with the other true-transmissions, joining forces naturally seemed like the best choice.
But in the end, she was betrayed by Thousand-Pinweed.
This girl had secretly made so much progress in her relationship with the Sect Master, and she never said a word about it!
Always saying she was hated by the Sect Master, always going against her, when in reality, the Sect Master cared about her the most now!
During the last meeting, the Sect Master specifically said she hoped the true-transmissions would work hard and not be inferior to Thousand-Pinweed.
She was practically the center of attention!
The moment she stepped into the Harry Potter Branch Sect, it was packed with people!
From survivors of the old world to Chongxu residents, and even members of the Witch Association—all kinds of people were gathered together. It was like a bustling tea party…
Sure enough, she absolutely had to come down hard on Thousand-Pinweed!
But just as she stepped into the Harry Potter Branch Sect, Thousand-Pinweed, as if she had already anticipated it, came out personally to greet her.
“Yo, long time no see, Tiyana.” Thousand-Pinweed led her to the back courtyard, avoiding the eyes of the many disciples in front.
“This branch sect of yours…”
Tiyana wasn’t polite at all and said directly, “I think you’re trying to replace our main sect in Beihai?”
“…You’re really quick to throw accusations around.” Thousand-Pinweed didn’t seem bothered. She just guided her to sit in the pavilion in the back courtyard. “Instead of worrying about me, you should worry about yourself.”
“Heh… Not even putting ‘Azure Cloud Sect’ on the signboard. Isn’t that trying to start your own faction?” Tiyana said. “Traitor, spy, warlord, splitting up Azure Cloud…”
Thousand-Pinweed: “Talk about turning the tables! That’s what you are!”
“Anti-Shionist, careerist, walking the Harry Potter line, anti-cultivation-immortality!”
“You don’t get to lecture me! You traitorous wandering cultivator!”
“Will you two stop arguing? The Sect Master doesn’t like either of you.”
Jiegeng’s voice came from a distance, and the two of them immediately fell silent.
In the quiet back courtyard, the antique decorations bore the shadows of Hogwarts in many places.
Yet outside, the advertising loudspeakers, the multicolored LED lights, the wires, the big screens, and all kinds of modern setups shattered the ancient atmosphere here.
Thousand-Pinweed poured a cup of tea. “Not long ago, news came from the sect that Senior Sister Bai Mei had an accident.”
“Yeah, well, I was the one who sealed her, after all.”
“Oh? Now that’s strange.” Thousand-Pinweed gave a faint smile. “I never said Senior Sister Bai Mei was ‘sealed.’”
Tiyana covered her face. “Harry Potter’s deduction skills are pretty low-grade. Don’t show off your low-IQ reasoning.”
“It’s perfectly rigorous, alright!” Then Thousand-Pinweed realized. “Wait a minute, why did you just confess like that?”
“What else was I supposed to do?” Tiyana looked at the foolish Harry Potter fan and pressed the voodoo doll in her hand. “I am the culprit. And it’s not just Senior Apprentice Sister. I’m going to take out all the remaining seven true-transmissions.”
“The second-to-last of the seven true-transmissions sure talks big!”
Thousand-Pinweed’s magic wand spun in her hand, her witch hat fluttering in the wind. The small tea pavilion was instantly sent flying.
“Don’t forget who taught you all those curse magic.”
“Shield Charm!”
The effect of the voodoo straw doll was instantly bounced back.
“You wretched big bully, little dark seed, backstabber, fence-sitter, stumbling block, parasite, anti-Harry Potter, pro-Shion faction, criminal mastermind, anti-web novel element, dark magic girl!”
As Thousand-Pinweed spoke, layers upon layers of magical hats fell over Tiyana’s head, covering her completely!
Tiyana just pressed another empathetic straw doll, intending to deflect Thousand-Pinweed’s hat magic.
But she heard Thousand-Pinweed sneer:
“Senior Sister Bai Mei could be sealed using a clever trick. But against me, those little toys of yours won’t work.”
“Is that so?”
Tiyana grabbed Thousand-Pinweed’s wrist and smiled helplessly. “Maybe it is.”
Just as Thousand-Pinweed was about to use Harry Potter’s hat magic to completely subdue her, a crack suddenly tore open in the sky.
“But, I recall, Thousand-Pinweed, you’ve lost to Senior Apprentice Sister before.”
A waterfall of sword energy erupted from the crack, locking onto Thousand-Pinweed.
Then it came crashing down!
“You probably can’t withstand Senior Apprentice Sister’s sword energy, can you?”
When the horrifying sword energy cascaded down from the sky like a waterfall, the entire Chongxu region trembled. Keke couldn’t help but look up.
That familiar sword energy, so sharp it was unmatched, nearly on par with Shion’s level…
The senior apprentice sister of the Azure Cloud Sect, the one who had cut her down from Full Bloom with a single sword.
Just looking at it made Keke bite her lip.
If she could reach that level, would Shion finally take her seriously?
“Heh.” The Prince beside her suddenly sneered. “I didn’t expect Azure Cloud to have a civil war.”
Keke and White Fox both immediately leaned in. “Azure Cloud Sect is having a civil war?”
“That’s Thousand-Pinweed’s territory over there. And that fluctuation just now was probably Thousand-Pinweed’s magic. This sword energy, you should recognize it too. Back when I entered Full Bloom, I had to avoid its edge. Magical Girl Bai Mei, the one who sealed her in another space.”
White Fox asked seriously, “Will they turn against Shion?”
“Don’t even think about it.” The Prince shot her a glance. “No matter how they fight among themselves, the Azure Cloud Sect disciples will always be loyal to their Sect Master in the end. Don’t doubt the loyalty of Azure Cloud Sect disciples. Their brainwashing work is very thorough.”
“Can we get involved?”
“If you want to face an opponent with infinitely growing attack power, go ahead. I’m not going.” The Prince touched his Void Mirror again. “Bai Mei’s Personal Reality is second only to Shion’s in strength.”
“I hope their mutual slaughter can defeat them.”
Keke listened from the side, feeling a mix of emotions.
Back in the Azure Cloud Sect, everyone had been very good to her. Thinking about those Magical Girls she respected and admired killing each other made her feel uncomfortable.
“I’m going to the bathroom.”
So while the Prince and White Fox continued their rest, she slipped out of the hotel alone.
Outside, quite a few people had gathered, most of them staring in the direction of the Harry Potter Branch Sect in the distance.
After all, such a huge commotion was hard to ignore.
She pushed through the crowd and went to a hidden corner.
Keke planned to transform first, then go observe from nearby.
She knew the Azure Cloud Sect’s style. When they fought, they went all out. It would be bad if someone got seriously injured or killed.
Even if her strength wasn’t enough, Keke felt she should go and help protect them.
“Magical Girl Ruri.”
Before she could transform, an Incubator had already floated up beside her. With a cat-like body and fluttering wings on its back, it looked at her with a cute, expectant expression. “Excuse me, would you be interested in becoming the strongest Magical Girl?”
Originally, she had no intention of entertaining it.
But hearing those words, Keke couldn’t help but feel a stirring in her heart.
However, the Disaster Control Bureau had also publicized that the Incubator’s intentions were not pure.
Keke just asked back, “Are you looking for the wrong person?”
“I’m looking for you, exactly. You must have seen her too, haven’t you? That other version of yourself, the one calling herself Black Keke.”
Keke clutched her Miracle Seed. The sword energy explosions in the distance stirred up a fierce wind, whipping her hair wildly. “How do you know?”
“The Magic Kingdom, or rather, we Incubators, naturally know everything about Magical Girls. Black Keke is a you from another reincarnation cycle. But that’s not all. What she hasn’t told you or your brother is that Black Keke’s goal is to kill you.”
Keke’s pupils contracted slightly. She stared at the Incubator. “I don’t believe you.”
“You must also know that Black Keke can borrow your Personal Reality to speak directly to you, right?”
The credibility of its words increased with each statement.
“Because you are the same person, your Personal Realities are shared. But by the same token, so are your power and miracles. As long as you live, Black Keke cannot grow stronger. To gain more power, she must kill you and completely claim your Personal Reality and miraculous power. That’s why she wants to push you away, to separate you from Shion, so she can devour you.”
Keke fell silent. The sword energy in the distance dissipated, and the storm of battle gradually began to subside.
“But the seizure of power works both ways. She can take your Personal Reality and miracles by devouring you. And by devouring her, you can also obtain her past memories and experiences, including her methods for getting stronger, and the possibilities at the end of a Magical Girl’s path.”
The Incubator tilted its head and gave her a cute smile. “I know your kindness as a Magical Girl. So when she makes her move against you, the Magic Kingdom will help you defeat her, seize her memories and abilities. This is called self-defense. It perfectly aligns with your virtues as a Magical Girl, doesn’t it?”
“When that time comes, the Magic Kingdom will open its doors wide for you, helping you become a Magical Girl loved by the world. You alone will bear all the miracles and hardships, saving everyone, saving the world.”
“Can I surpass Teacher Shion?”
She habitually added the word “Teacher.” Just saying “Shion” alone never felt right.
“I can’t guarantee it, because that depends on your own potential and effort. But the Magic Kingdom assures you that you can achieve many things she absolutely cannot.”
The Incubator held a twig in its mouth and handed it to Keke.
“To change the future—that End of All Things that is approaching—only you are worthy of defeating it.”
Even without touching it, Keke could feel the power emanating from it.
It was a power that could sever karma and allow one to transcend the world.
“Come on, Magical Girl Ruri. Become the strongest Magical Girl!”
Just as Keke reached out her hand, about to touch the twig.
A vast, overwhelming purple magic instantly blanketed the entire Chongxu!