Chapter 342: Battle of the End!
"Fine."
With just that one word, the Magical Outfit on Iris began to stir restlessly.
Her perpetually calm aura shattered, instantly consumed by brutality and ferocity!
It was as if in a single moment, she had fallen from a serene immortal into a beast driven solely by slaughter!
Immediately after, Iris casually waved her hand.
That overbearing power, capable of devouring the entire universe, dyed the whole expanse of flowers into a blood-red tidal wave of fury!
The crimson tide surged, transforming into an immense river, boundless and laden with terrifying pressure, engulfing Witch Shion, scouring her Magical Outfit. High in the sky, countless eyes flickered frantically like perilous crimson omens.
A suffocating, overwhelming pressure spread, actually forcing Shion to take a step back.
Yet Shion raised an eyebrow, the fighting spirit and excitement in her eyes undiminished—in fact, they burned even hotter!
Surging mana rippled outward, reinforced by her Divine Sense, forcibly stepping forward against Iris's world-ending aura.
A patch of flowers beneath Shion's feet bent low, turning from blood-red to a stark, dead white.
The corrosive nature of dregs' polluted magic, even against the master of corrupted magic, remained utterly domineering!
Shion pressed forward relentlessly; with each step, her Magical Outfit let out harsh, grating cries of "creak, creak," as if it might collapse at any moment.
Yet her steps remained utterly unwavering.
Within the river of crimson flower sea, remnants of countless defeated challengers rose and fell one after another—sighs, wails, cries of pain, screams intertwined, twisted faces surfacing and sinking one after another.
But Shion's expression never changed. Step by step, she moved forward, nearly trampling the sea of flowers as she approached Iris.
Until, on her Magical Outfit, countless eyes suddenly came alive, blinking with vitality.
"Though I hate to spoil the fun,"
The End Beast's flower thicket surged, erupting into a torrent of laughter, and the countless eyes in the sky squinted as if mocking.
"But don't you find it boring, challenging me with corrupted magic?"
The mere hint of exposed edge and fang was so sharp and brutal it sent chills through the heart.
Yet Shion merely curled her lips in disdain.
Three types of mana began to violently converge within her body!
Above her head, a pair of translucent dragon horns slowly grew forth, crystalline and exquisite, yet radiating a domineering majesty no less than that of the End Beast.
Behind her, a thick dragon tail burst through the air, extending heavily and smashing down into the flower thicket!
In an instant, withering spread, the thicket's laughter transformed into wailing and screams, and the squinting eyes, as if pierced by something, all shut tight, with only blood gushing from the depths of the pupils, staining the entire garden crimson.
Iris finally turned her head, facing the girl before her directly.
"If your full power is nothing more than this—"
The Dragon Lord raised her head, looking down on Iris, her golden eyes filled with arrogance and disappointment. "I take back what I said earlier."
Iris lowered her head slightly, as if with some apology. "Sorry, I'll be a bit more serious."
Then, all the corrupted magic under heaven, from ancient times to the present, began to converge toward Iris!
With just a slight gesture, this commotion alone made the Dragon Lord take notice.
Jiang Si, who had been transforming into the Golden Calamity Dragon King to suppress Tiyana, was directly forced out of his transformation state.
His hands were still prying apart the mouth of Tiyana's last head, preparing to blast a breath of flame inside.
But after losing his transformation state, that breath turned into nothing but a puff of air.
The previously murderous atmosphere suddenly became awkward. Tiyana's serpent head blinked its eyes, as if laughing, and its forked tongue extended, licking her Sect Master's face. "That tickles, Sect Master. Blow a few more times."
Jiang Si bit down on her forked tongue.
Tiyana didn't mind at all; instead, she swallowed Jiang Si whole into her belly!
Her vertical pupils sharpened with a hint of excitement.
From the very beginning, she had been waiting—waiting for the End Beast to awaken and take control of corrupted magic.
All the corrupted magic power under heaven surged toward the End, and even pure mana would be polluted.
But she alone remained unaffected!
This was the trump card!
After devouring the Sect Master, Tiyana immediately submerged him in the viscous acidic fluid. Within her stomach, tiny white snakes, like her own hands, burrowed all over the Sect Master's body, continuously injecting venom and anesthetic effects, binding him tightly so he couldn't move. Multiple layers of sealing were completed in an instant.
Tiyana had won!
...
As Iris's corrupted magic grew stronger and stronger, even Dragon Lord Shion became serious.
Her dragon claws gently traced in the air, writing out the four characters for "End Beast."
Iris glanced at it, slightly surprised. "What beautiful calligraphy."
"It's average."
Back when he was teaching Keke to practice calligraphy, he had practiced quite a bit himself, but unfortunately, Keke's handwriting still wasn't much to look at.
On the other hand, she herself had perfected the standard Song script to the point of mastery.
Then, Shion flicked her sleeve.
The name of the End Beast was concealed.
The converging corrupted magic scattered in an instant!
Even Iris showed an expression of disbelief. "What is this?"
"A Perception Obstruction." Dragon Lord Shion said calmly. "Do you still remember what your name is?"
"Iris."
"That's right, hold onto that."
The lord of all corrupted magic under heaven was the End Beast.
Thus, it could forcibly seize all corrupted magic from ancient times to the present, strengthening itself.
But now, Dragon Lord Shion, by using the Perception Obstruction, had concealed the name of the End Beast.
Now that the End Beast itself had forgotten its own name and, under Shion's guidance, personally acknowledged it.
Thus, the corrupted magic that was supposed to converge upon the End Beast, unable to find its master, naturally dispersed.
Not only all the corrupted magic under heaven, but even Tiyana, the agent who had summoned the End Beast's gaze, forgot the source of her power!
When Jiang Si, having crawled out from Tiyana's belly, punched the great serpent she had transformed into, the golden-haired, blue-eyed true-transmission immediately reverted to her original form, and that punch landed on her chest.
The cushioning from her ample flesh only sent Tiyana stumbling back a few steps.
Tiyana immediately covered her right chest and raised her hand. "I'm going to tattle to Lady Bingtang!"
"First make sure your own actions won't get you expelled from Azure Cloud!"
With both of them having lost their mana, they engaged in direct physical combat!
Tiyana's extensive ground techniques, even Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, surprised Jiang Si quite a bit.
This girl had actually gone and trained in a full set of combat martial arts.
And when Tiyana wrapped her legs and arms around his neck, trying to lock him down and block his counterattacks, Jiang Si used pure force to overcome finesse, stood up, and smashed Tiyana straight through the ground!
Back in the original Beihai, Black Keke, who had been wondering how to fish Jiang Si out, kept slapping her own forehead.
"No, no, what was I about to do? Corrupted magic, who was the source of corrupted magic again? Jiang Si, what was Jiang Si looking for? Iris? No... why is my memory getting messed up..."
Shion's Perception Obstruction naturally had more effects below. The Weave Realm Travelers, the Witch Association—many who knew the name of the End Beast—suddenly couldn't recall it.
To the point that the End Beast's power couldn't even reach the new world below.
Among them, the most affected were the Weave Realm Travelers.
Just as Tiyana had turned all the Magical Girls to stone, the Weave Realm Travelers naturally mobilized as well.
Although Tiyana summoning the End Beast's gaze was somewhat beyond expectations, the fact that the Magical Girls simultaneously lost their power was still within the plan.
And some Weave Realm Travelers weren't in a hurry to retake the world anyway—having slept for so long within the seals, finally getting out, they were naturally flying around freely, cheering and celebrating!
Then, all the corrupted magic was drained away.
Of course, having it drained wasn't a big problem—as long as the End Beast still existed, using Grief Seeds to produce more corrupted magic was simple.
The problem was that the End Beast's name had been concealed.
Thus, the Grief Seeds couldn't find any corrupted magic to convert and became completely ineffective!
As everyone knows, most witches, Magical Girls, and even those who use corrupted magic power, actually have insufficient physical durability.
Once they lose the protection of mana, they aren't much different from ordinary people.
When all the corrupted magic was drained, the Weave Realm Travelers soaring freely in the high sky, like ordinary people, fell to the ground, splattering everywhere in pieces.
Some Weave Realm Travelers found Xilan and demanded to know why she didn't transform into the End of All Things. When she said that Simo Tu wouldn't allow it,
This group of Weave Realm Travelers mocked Simo Tu-sama without knowing their place. "That thing—if you turned into the End of All Things, you'd crush him in one step. And you're acting like a stray dog's..."
Xilan naturally flew into a rage, but when she fought them, she realized she couldn't win.
Without transforming into the End of All Things, she was thoroughly beaten by the Weave Realm Travelers. Just as Xilan was feeling wronged,
All the Weave Realm Travelers lost their corrupted magic.
And they could no longer regain corrupted magic.
Of course, even so, the Weave Realm Travelers weren't afraid—because Xilan had lost her corrupted magic too.
But there was one thing they hadn't anticipated.
That was that Xilan, due to her witch ability,
Had always carried a gun.
Realizing that everyone was powerless, Xilan smiled and drew her pistol.
One bullet, one little brat.
These domineering Weave Realm Travelers were immediately sent running for their lives by Xilan's little gun!
Then they shouted excitedly:
"Don't know what happened, but it must be Simo Tu-sama's doing! Simo Tu-sama rules!"
Aside from that, some Weave Realm Travelers mocked the Mirror Kingdom's incompetence for taking so long to conquer South China. Taking advantage of the Magical Girls all losing their power, they rushed ahead to South China, planning to use the corrupted magic power to create Disaster Beasts and witches to conquer the region together.
They had planned to first destroy the petrified Magical Girl statues of South China.
But the people of South China, even without their Magical Girls, still blocked them with astonishingly stubborn will, protecting the Magical Girls' statues.
Just as the Weave Realm Travelers were about to mock these people for overestimating themselves and the Mirror Kingdom's incompetence,
The witches and Disaster Beasts, having been drained of their corrupted magic power, were easily felled by pistols and iron shovels.
The mockery among the Weave Realm Travelers vanished instantly, replaced by stunned silence.
Then, the common folk of South China, armed with iron spades and hammers, overwhelmed the defenseless Weave Realm Travelers in a tidal wave of the people.
From within the isolated space, watching all this, the Prince couldn't help but sneer coldly.
"Really thought South China was easy pickings? A bunch of useless fools seeking death."
But seeing these worthless idiots self-destruct, she couldn't be bothered to pay attention anymore.
No wonder those yet-to-be-petrified Magical Girls of Azure Cloud Sect hadn't made a move.
Was this within his expectations too?
Just how far could those eyes see...
While corrupted magic was being absorbed, it also affected people's emotions.
At the very least, the Prince, finding that both Keke and the new world were safe, couldn't resist chatting with the system.
"Si, are you there?"
[I'm here, darling.]
"Honestly, if you had a physical body, what would you be doing right now?"
[I'd be praising you fiercely, kissing you, darling. I really, really like you.]
"...Why are you such a creep?"
[Because you, my master, are too irresistible. Inside and out, you're irresistible.]
"Specifically where am I irresistible?"
[The following is a summary of some recent specific recruitment information, covering multiple industries and regions, for your reference: Main directions include, the Disaster Control Bureau, Azure Cloud Sect, recruiting...]
"Shut up, you!"
Stupid system.
The Prince sighed, thought it over, and still couldn't bear to change Jiang Si's AI voice.
In the distance, more Weave Realm Travelers who had lost their corrupted magic fell from the sky, smashing into pulp. The Prince snorted coldly, glanced at the sleeping White Fox beside her, and got up, planning to first check on the Saint Hall's situation.
...
While the new world was in chaos from the loss of corrupted magic,
In the End's domain, Shion and Iris sat facing each other, the atmosphere eerily quiet, like a tea party.
"Iris, how do you feel now?"
Having lost her name, Iris wasn't anxious. She simply smiled gently. "Mm, not great. Though I like the name Iris very much, stealing it from her is still a bit inappropriate."
Shion paused mid-motion. Just as she had expected.
So it really had no effect on her, huh?
The eyeballs above Iris all opened wide.
Calls came from different people in other worlds:
"End Beast! Descend!"
The name Shion had concealed gradually began to resurface.
As long as beings in other timespaces still remembered the name of the End Beast and called upon it, naturally it could no longer be hidden.
An existence of One Proof Eternal Proof, across different timespaces, was always singular.
Using this trait to forcibly break through the Perception Obstruction was indeed beyond Shion's expectations.
Then, Iris suddenly touched Dragon Lord Shion's dragon horn. Her fingertip slid tenderly down from the tip of the horn, all the way to Shion's heart.
"I told you, if you use corrupted magic, you shouldn't challenge me. Only a Magical Girl is worthy of being my opponent."
Iris's voice remained proud and arrogant, but with some restraint.
Having reclaimed the End Beast's name and once again becoming the calamitous origin of corrupted magic, she forcibly seized the corrupted magic power within Dragon Lord Shion's body!
The originally perfect Golden Core developed cracks, and corrupted magic continuously poured out from within, gathering upon the End Beast.
Even dregs' polluted magic and pure mana were gradually being corrupted, turning into corrupted magic, which the End Beast then absorbed for its own use!
Iris looked up, only to see Shion's expression as calm as ever, letting it absorb her corrupted magic, even as her Golden Core completely shattered!
The victor was decided...
Just as this thought crossed Iris's mind, with a hint of regret, a miniature Shion, like a cloth doll, bounced out of the shattered Golden Core!
"Golden Core shatters, Nascent Soul emerges."
Shion said calmly. "A perfected Golden Sphere, flawlessly without leakage, actually doesn't affect the transformation. It was merely a decoy from the start."
After all, a transformation anchored by a Personal Reality had nothing to do with a Golden Core—it was just a ball of energy...
Cultivating Immortality was one thing, magic was another; whichever was convenient, use whichever.
"But guess why I let you absorb my mana?"
Hearing Shion's question, Iris was startled, then sensed the anomaly.
Those traces of Shion's mana absorbed into her body carried a powerful Personal Reality!
"This technique is called the extension of the Mental Landscape."
Attaching a Personal Reality to mana was generally impossible—it was like turning heaven upside down.
But by using the Mental Landscape, one could achieve such an inconceivable feat!
Just as Iris was about to expel the mana, Shion activated her mystic arts again.
The name of the End Beast was erased once more!
Iris showed a disappointed expression. "Pointless..."
Then she noticed the anomaly.
This time, it wasn't just the name that disappeared.
The things she had done, her appearance, even all the abilities associated with her were all concealed.
Corrupted magic and Disaster Beasts, even witches, vanished from the world!
"This isn't just a Perception Obstruction this time." Shion said calmly.
"This is the Great Forest Wood Concealing Green!"
Before Iris could ask what that meant,
The next second, she found that the name of the End Beast had appeared on Shion's person!
Reject Zen, Execute Usurpation.
Since the One Proof Eternal Proof method could break through concealed means,
Then she would forcibly graft the name onto herself, toppling the End Beast from its supreme throne.
The lord of corrupted magic should have abdicated, but the End was a ferocious beast, so she rejected abdication and executed usurpation!
She, Dragon Lord Shion, would become the new lord of corrupted magic!
From this moment onward, the End Beast would no longer be a forbidden name, unable to summon the true End Beast.
She would prevent it from ever descending through the four rituals!
Iris couldn't help but marvel, "Why does the same magic still work?"
"Do you know how many ways there are to write the character 'Mu'?"
"Just one, isn't it?" Iris rested her chin on her hand, staring blankly at her.
"Twenty-four."
"There are twenty-four ways to write 'Mu,' so naturally there are twenty-four ways to conceal it. [A Mu], [Yi Mu], [Jiao Mu], [Dou Mu], [Pine and Cypress Mu], [Willow Mu]... Taking two of these concealment methods—[Great Forest Wood] and [Mu Concealing Green]—both are [Calamity] techniques, methods of usurpation, all pointing to [Calamity]. This is the Great Dao of Calamity! Naturally different from before."
Iris denied it. "It feels the same to me. The second concealment was just an expanded Perception Obstruction, wasn't it?"
"Ignorance." Dragon Lord Shion smiled proudly. Having gained the upper hand, she was in a good mood and naturally offered an explanation. "One is a method at the Dao Master level, the other is a method at the Annual Ruler level. Their names aren't even the same—how can they be the same?"
Iris could only sigh, as if giving up. "I don't understand. You're the boss, whatever you say."
And below, Jiang Si, who had been reduced to physical combat, immediately, after Shion obtained the name of the End Beast, stripped Tiyana of the power of the End Beast's descending gaze!
Countless eyes appeared on his body, but golden light flashed, drowning out the myriad eyes. Jiang Si transformed into the three-headed Golden Calamity Dragon King!
Tiyana was left with only a Magical Girl transformation. Standing before the Golden Calamity Dragon King now, she looked like a stark-naked little girl. She looked up at her Sect Master's majestic form and smiled softly.
"There's no way to play this!"
Though it was all still within calculations, sometimes even if you calculate everything, you still have no cards to play!
As Tiyana was engulfed by the breath, the End Beast's central pupil finally shattered. Jiang Si, Tiyana, and Jiegeng were all sent back to the new world.
Thus, Dragon Lord Shion stood up. "Let's stop the probing here. Dharma combat isn't really a fight."
In essence, the Fruit Position style of combat—constantly 'my ability is this, your ability is that'—was like playing cards against each other.
In her view, it was far inferior to Gangster-Style Cultivation, where a treasure weapon spun around once, and heads rolled—much more satisfying.
Sitting here, I say my piece, you say yours, and once it's said, it's as good as fought.
It was like a microwave and an air fryer duking it out—either flashing lights or venting steam, turn-based with one skill each.
Let's just go straight to hand-to-hand combat.
Yet Iris let out a sigh. "I've lost."
"...You don't want your name back?" Shion reminded her again. "Without the name of the End Beast, you'll never be able to descend again."
Hey, we've only exchanged a few light beams—not even real blows—and you're saying you won't fight anymore?
Get up!
"It doesn't matter."
Iris smiled indifferently. "Consider this name a gift. Even if we really fought now, I probably wouldn't be your match. Feel free to strike."
Shion glared at her coldly. "Because you can't fully descend?"
Iris sat down. "That's right. Though I'd love to have a full-strength battle with you, either to prove I'm the strongest or to realize my own weakness, unfortunately, now isn't the time."
There it was, the classic "not the time."
Send your parents to the grave, and we'll see if it's time then.
"After all, to ensure the birth of an opponent like you, I had to seal away part of my power."
Shion paused.
So that was it. She had cut herself, sealing away the power of One Proof Eternal Proof?
For a moment, Shion saw her in a new light.
She claimed not to know her own strength or weakness, yet she could so easily discard greater power.
Wasn't that ample proof? A true invincible heart.
"You can't perform extreme ascension?" Dragon Lord Shion sat down as well. "Take back your power."
Iris shook her head slightly. "Then everything done so far would be in vain. You don't want this world to disappear in an instant, do you? The outcome of the end is already decided. Infinite possibilities lie only within the cycle of reincarnation. Only when you change the past can I reclaim my power and fight you to my heart's content."
Shion's brow furrowed. "Not changing the future, but changing the past?"
Iris casually pulled at the air,
As if drawing back a curtain.
Then, the countless flickering eyes across the sky were instantly coated with a filter,
Turning into a dense, surging mass of leaves!
Shion looked down, and there, upon the barren land littered with Keke's corpses, twisted old tree roots coiled together, stretching all the way into the distance.
The colossal, radiant World Tree was reflected in her eyes!
"It's not that the future is destined for destruction, but that the future has already been destroyed. The World Tree? That's what you call it, isn't it? Actually, I prefer to call it the world's graveyard."
"What it carries are all worlds that have already perished—including yours."