“This place is no longer suitable for ordinary life to survive.”
The closer she got to the pitch-black vortex, the more Luo Shuangyue felt that there was something wrong with the surrounding environment.
However, in this place, having problems was not a problem at all.
After all, this was where a Demon Emperor was about to descend.
If the commotion here was small, that would be what was truly abnormal.
After entering the area affected by the Black Calamity, Luo Shuangyue saw how everything around her transformed from a passable forest into a horrifying, pitch-black, muddy swamp.
And it was foreseeable that the Core Region would be even more terrifying than where she stood now.
That place was likely already a Demonic Energy Sea, with solidified, muddy demonic energy spreading across the mountains and plains.
Ordinary life would die a death worse than death itself after even the slightest contact.
But for Demons, this environment was quite comfortable.
Phantom Scythe could no longer hold back and drilled out of Luo Shuangyue’s body,
gulping down the nearby demonic energy in big mouthfuls, using it to strengthen herself, and incidentally transmitting some energy to Luo Shuangyue.
Luo Shuangyue also let loose.
A faint layer of black smoke seeped from her body, constantly devouring the demonic energy around her.
This way of feeding was much more convenient and efficient than using her mouth to absorb it.
“Even just staying here until the Demon Emperor descends wouldn’t be a loss for me.” Clenching her fist, Luo Shuangyue’s mood was excellent.
The Black Calamity caused by an emperor-ranked Demon was indeed different from that of lesser Demons.
Just absorbing for a short while already matched the results of an entire day’s effort before.
If only she could stay here for a month or two, she felt she could easily return to the Demon Emperor realm.
Unfortunately, this Cavern Disaster wouldn’t last that long.
Just as she was pondering how much she could gain—and what risks she would face—if she continued forward, a shining Meteora suddenly streaked rapidly across the sky from the other side.
The pitch-black vortex of demonic energy was torn open by the Meteora, leaving a conspicuous gap.
The Meteora’s target was clear: the very center of the vortex, the region where the Demon Emperor’s true body resided.
Even from a distance, just a glimpse made Luo Shuangyue feel as if her eyes were burning.
That Meteora contained terrifying power, no less than the full strike of the peak magic girls she knew.
But why would such an attack appear?
Could it be that the natives of this world had come to stop the birth of the Demon Emperor?
Luo Shuangyue was temporarily left in the dark.
She saw the white Meteora intercepted mid-flight by a beam of pitch-black starlight.
A giant white firework blossomed in the sky, blowing a massive hole in the demonic energy vortex.
Pitch-black starlight? Did Anxing make a move?
“There are two factions here… The situation seems a bit chaotic?” Realizing this, Luo Shuangyue’s thoughts immediately became lively.
Since it wasn’t just Anxing on the Demons’ side in this place, perhaps she could take advantage of Anxing and the others fighting, and quietly do some mischief herself.
Like sneaking off to nibble at the Offering to the Demon Emperor, or giving some psychological counseling before the Elegant Emperor was born.
All of these were fine choices!
But before that, she had to make some arrangements for the two girls behind her.
“Zheng, you and Xiaozi shouldn’t go any further. From here on, this is something I have to do alone.” Luo Shuangyue turned to Zheng and spoke.
What she was about to do involved navigating between two forces that could easily crush her, using their strength against each other.
Doing this alone was one thing—if her scheme was exposed, she could still run.
But with two little ones who needed her care following along, her actions would be far less convenient.
So, to ensure her plan went smoothly, Luo Shuangyue decided it would be best to leave Zheng and Yi here together.
“Alright, then we’ll wait for you here.” Zheng looked into Luo Shuangyue’s eyes, and after a few seconds, she nodded.
This time, Luo Shuangyue wasn’t consulting her, but telling her what to do.
Zheng knew that whenever Luo Shuangyue wore this expression, nothing she said would matter.
What’s more, Luo Shuangyue’s choice wasn’t wrong.
If what happened next was truly dangerous, having the two of them as burdens would only make things worse for Luo Shuangyue.
So, she didn’t mind staying somewhere safe and watching Luo Shuangyue show her skills.
As for Xiaozi, that girl was Luo Shuangyue’s full-fledged yes-girl—she would never have any objections as long as Luo Shuangyue gave an order.
“This unfamiliar miss, we are willing to trust your words, but please forgive our caution—we are not confident in breaking through that monster’s defenses.”
On the other side of the blackened area, a seven-person squad was arguing on a patch of relatively clean grassland.
Unlike Demons, who could enter polluted black areas at will, these beings, once inside, would have to use a massive amount of power just to resist the demonic energy’s erosion, severely weakening their combat strength.
Within this squad, there was an existence utterly out of place compared to the rest—a beautiful girl in a purple dress, like a flower fairy who had flitted out of a dream, exuding a softness with every movement.
At her side, a silver Dragon Girl with a single horn rested her chin in her hand, staring bored into the distance at the dreadful vortex.
Yes, these two were Xia Mo and Taya, who had been separated from Luo Shuangyue for over a month.
They had found the path to the Sanctuary, managed to reach its edge, and just so happened to run into the Sanctuary’s Patrol Team.
When the Patrol Team saw Xia Mo with Taya—who had been presumed lost in the Deadland and unlikely to ever return—they immediately assumed Xia Mo was a Demon skilled in disguise and nearly fought her.
Fortunately, Taya quickly proved her own identity, explaining that she had ended up elsewhere due to an issue with the Teleportation Array and had only recently found her way back.
The Patrol Team was skeptical, unsure whether to let these two suspicious girls into the Sanctuary or interrogate them further.
As they hesitated, the Black Calamity erupted—on an unprecedented scale, and in a rather delicate location.
The Patrol Team quickly received orders from the Sanctuary: go to the site of the Black Calamity and investigate; if there was a chance, kill the emerging monster in its cradle.
There was no more hesitation—they brought Xia Mo and Taya along and headed here to face the massive vortex in the sky.
At this point, Xia Mo had no reason to hide anything.
She explained all she knew about Demon disasters to these oddly-shaped but generally good-natured beings from another world.
Within this Patrol Team, there were two members whose strength, in Xia Mo’s eyes, was not inferior to that of any Demon Emperor.
However, if they were to venture deep into the area where the Black Calamity had erupted to engage in battle, it was likely that even two against one would find it difficult to take down a Demon Emperor.
So Xia Mo first suggested they try a remote tactic, a little sneak attack; if it worked, all the better, and if not, they could at least observe the monsters’ defensive deployment here.
“That one is quite a lively monster. Among so many monsters, her strength is really quite something. I’m afraid we wouldn’t be able to defeat her in there,” whispered a Flower Sprite whose appearance was only vaguely humanoid.
She had neither a head nor a mouth—her speech depended entirely on the vibration of her leafy appendages, sending waves through the air.
This made her voice sound just a bit odd.
As for the other member of the Patrol Team who could stand against a Demon Emperor, she was even less human-like than the Flower Sprite.
She was, in fact, a large silver sphere.
According to her own introduction, her name was White Meteor, and her means of attack was to create white meteors with magic power and smash them at her enemies.
Although her technique was rather single-minded, it had the advantage of brute force and a truly impressive range—she was the only one in the team capable of threatening the vortex of demonic energy from such a distance.
As for the other three members, their strength was roughly on par with Xia Mo’s. In this battle, they wouldn’t be of much use.
“So let’s charge in and take out those monsters!” However, one among them seemed to have little self-awareness, still eager to charge ahead.
Xia Mo glanced at the one who had just spoken—it was a Fiery Bull, three people tall, with three pairs of flaming horns atop its head. According to its own boasts, not even the toughest monsters could withstand a single charge from its horns.
Xia Mo had her doubts. She suspected that even at full force, the Fiery Bull’s attack wasn’t as powerful as her own Magic Artillery at full strength.
“I can only provide all the information I have; as for the final decision, that’s still up to all of you.” Xia Mo spread her hands—she was, after all, just an outsider, and could do little to influence matters here.
She didn’t have the overwhelming strength to make the final call, and her identity as a foreigner was an awkward one—no matter what she did now, it would be problematic.
All she could do was share what she knew with these beings from another world, and then offer a word of warning when they made questionable decisions—that was the extent of her abilities.
Rushing headlong to confront Anxing and risking her life for a chance to weaken a nascent Demon Emperor? Xia Mo thought that sounded like too great a loss.
Even back on the Mother Star, if she didn’t have a compelling reason to fight to the death, she would retreat and request support from the Magic Department at the first sign of a Demon Emperor.
Tasks for an Initial Bloom-class Magical Girl definitely did not include delivering afternoon treats to Demon Emperors.
Besides, her current goal was to hurry to the Sanctuary and find the Holy Sovereign.
As the strongest existence in this world, the Holy Sovereign should be able to answer many of her questions.
Perhaps with a mere wave of the hand, the Holy Sovereign could send her and Luo Shuangyue back home.
So at this moment, Xia Mo wasn’t interested in fighting the Demon Emperors to the bitter end—especially after learning that the Sanctuary likely wouldn’t be sending any further support.
“If things are truly as you say, and we’re the only ones here who can fight, and neither of you can break through Anxing’s defenses…” Xia Mo sighed regretfully.
She didn’t want to see a Demon Emperor descend upon this world unopposed, but as the saying goes, even a clever woman can’t cook a meal without rice—there was nothing she could do to stop it.
If she were now a Blooming-Rank Magical Girl, she’d have confidence in working with these two Patrol Team members to break through Anxing’s defenses and deal irreparable damage to the nascent Demon Emperor, crippling that coming demon from the very start.
But she wasn’t. She was just an ordinary Initial Bloom-class Magical Girl.
The distance to the Full Bloom Class was still a long, long journey ahead.
Just as she thought things were set, and that they could only watch helplessly as the Demon Emperor descended, a silver butterfly suddenly beat its wings and flew out of the space behind her.
The moment the butterfly appeared, Xia Mo’s body tensed—she felt an unfathomable power condensed upon that butterfly.
The butterfly was truly terrifying—so terrifying that Xia Mo felt if it wished, it could obliterate everyone present in an instant.
“Holy Sovereign?!”
“That’s the Messenger of the Sage Lord!”
“Heavens, could it be that the Holy Sovereign is watching over us….”
Exclamations rose one after another from the Patrol Team members.
So this was the Messenger of the Sage Lord? Xia Mo stared intently at the silver butterfly, feeling a bit of hesitation in her heart.
She didn’t know why, but she had a sense of déjà vu—somehow, it felt as though she’d seen this butterfly somewhere before.
The butterfly flapped its wings, releasing information Xia Mo could not comprehend.
These messages were encrypted with magic power, impossible for an outsider like her to decipher.
The Patrol Team members, however, broke into delighted expressions the moment they received the butterfly’s instructions.
The deadlock they’d been facing was suddenly no longer a dead end!
“In that case, we have a chance to kill this monster in its cradle!” The Flower Sprite danced with excitement, her tendrils waving.
“We’ll be heroes of the Sanctuary!”
“That’s right! As long as we follow the Holy Sovereign’s plan, step by step…”
The Patrol Team members began chatting excitedly.
Xia Mo, still clueless, helplessly poked the nearby Taya and asked what exactly the Patrol Team had heard.
What she couldn’t understand, surely Taya, as a native, would be able to explain?
“The Holy Sovereign says she’ll continue to watch over us, and she can provide us with one full-powered attack—if we give her an accurate coordinate.” Taya rubbed her nose as she relayed the message to Xia Mo.
Simply put, the natives now had the ability to call down a nuclear strike.
As long as they could break through the monsters’ defenses and throw the silver butterfly, used as a beacon, into the vortex, the Holy Sovereign could launch a Map Cannon from afar, wiping out the yet-to-be-born monster from this world entirely.
Breaking through the Demon Emperor’s obstruction and successfully halting the gestation of a new Demon Emperor was one thing; breaking through, then tossing an agile beacon into the vortex, was another entirely—the difficulty levels were worlds apart.
It was no exaggeration to say that their previously near-zero chance of success had soared to a highly promising figure, all thanks to the Holy Sovereign’s cannon.