“This truly was a delightful battle to watch, Miss Ciyue, don’t you think?” Lei Mang said.
Lan Xi returned, carrying the unconscious Ying Xian.
“The fight between those two was indeed spectacular, but I don’t think Lan Xi has the strength to continue fighting,” Ciyue spoke honestly.
Lan Xi’s energy was truly depleted. The Complete Battle Form Release requires a tremendous amount of magic power to sustain, and recovery doesn’t happen in just a few hours.
“Then… Miss Ciyue, should I take over as the examiner for the next match? To be honest, I’m not sure my abilities are suited for such a task.”
Ciyue shook her head and said, “I’ll take it.”
“The remaining teams really have bad luck,” Lei Mang teased.
“No, training isn’t about winning or losing. It’s about gaining experience. As long as you fight against opponents with rich combat experience, regardless of their strength, you gain equal benefits,” Ciyue explained.
“You’re right. I’m actually looking forward to Bai Lingluo’s performance, hmm…”
“Ah? We’re going to fight… fight… fight against Predecessor Ciyue!?” Lin Xing knelt to the ground, utterly despairing.
“Is she really an opponent we can defeat? Bai Lingluo, Predecessor Chen Lisi, what should we do?”
“We just grit our teeth and go for it. What else can we do? As the saying goes, three cobblers are better than Zhuge Liang. We have numbers, and Predecessor Ciyue will definitely hold back. We still have a chance,” Chen Lisi said, hands on her hips.
“Alright! I’ve been wanting to fight Sister Ciyue for a long time!” Bai Lingluo said happily, her eyes sparkling.
Seeing Bai Lingluo and Chen Lisi’s mysterious confidence, Lin Xing helplessly said, “You two… I’ll just hide in the back then…”
“Huh? Little Sister Lin Xing, you can’t hide behind us. Didn’t you say before that you could beat me? You can’t run away now,” Chen Lisi said with a sly smile.
Lin Shuqing’s squad was urgently holding a Combat Strategy Meeting titled “How to Deal with Predecessor Ciyue,” but each of the three members had different ideas.
They all agreed that although Ciyue was very strong, she would definitely hold back.
Lin Shuqing thought that since Ciyue excelled at long-range combat, they should close the distance quickly; Tian Lan believed that even the strongest enemy has weaknesses and insisted they observe first to find Ciyue’s flaws instead of rushing in; Ziyuan thought that although Ciyue was holding back, she was still invincible and they had no chance…
Ciyue’s first match was against Ye Liu, Li Jing, and Xiao Si.
Ciyue indeed held back quite a bit. Ye Liu’s invisibility granted her many opportunities for sneak attacks, but none succeeded; after each failed attempt, Ye Liu was easily defeated by Ciyue.
Li Jing’s summoned creature was nothing but a paper tiger and was instantly wiped out.
Only Xiao Si gave Ciyue some trouble, sneaking in attacks with Magic Cannon whenever Ciyue showed even the slightest lapse. But after the other two were dealt with, Xiao Si was no problem either.
“You all need to seriously reflect on this operation,” Ciyue told the three of them at the end.
Next was Lin Shuqing’s squad.
The first to be defeated was the reckless Lin Shuqing, who thought close-quarters combat with Ciyue would give her an advantage.
Two sets of martial arts boxing strikes from Ciyue sent Lin Shuqing sprawling.
The second was Tian Lan.
She kept launching Magic Crystal attacks from afar, but Ciyue fired a Magic Cannon to take her down — Ciyue even thought she had dodged it and fired another shot to finish her off.
The third was Ziyuan. Ciyue had to admit that Ziyuan did have a talent for close combat and exchanged several blows with her, but it wasn’t enough to win.
“You still lack coordination.” Ciyue clapped her hands and concluded.
“Ah! It’s our turn already, what do we do, what do we do…” Lin Xing said nervously, wringing her hands.
“We need to coordinate well. Fighting her one-on-one is a disadvantage. The previous two squads have already proven that,” Bai Lingluo said.
“So what’s our strategy?” Chen Lisi asked.
“I’ll distract her. Chen Lisi will support from a distance. I’ll find ways to expose her weaknesses, and when she shows them, Chen Lisi will strike — she’ll definitely respond. When she deals with Chen Lisi’s Magic Cannon, Lin Xing will teleport behind her for a sneak attack.”
Bai Lingluo devised an effective plan.
“That’s indeed a good plan. Lin Xing, what do you think?”
Lin Xing said uncertainly, “I have to deliver the final finishing blow? I’m not sure if I can do it.”
Bai Lingluo patted her head, “Come on, you can do it.”
The three of them headed toward the training ground, which was covered in scorched marks and white crystal remnants left by Magic Cannon attacks.
“Come on, Sister Ciyue!”
Bai Lingluo raised her war halberd with both hands and charged toward Ciyue.
“You’re really brave.”
Ciyue controlled crystallized magic, erecting a massive Crystal Wall ahead of Bai Lingluo to block her advance.
“Chen Lisi!” Bai Lingluo shouted.
“Of course I know.”
Chen Lisi formed a firing array and launched a Magic Cannon that pierced through the Crystal Wall, clearing the path for Bai Lingluo.
“Watch out above!” Lin Xing warned Bai Lingluo.
Countless exploding silver spikes descended from the sky.
Bai Lingluo leapt, weaving between the giant silver spikes as they pierced the ground and exploded.
“Getting close to you is truly a difficult task.”
Bai Lingluo dodged various Magic Crystal attacks from all directions midair.
“I’m going to support Bai Lingluo. Lin Xing, quietly find a good spot to hide and wait for a chance to launch a sneak attack,” Chen Lisi said before flying into the sky.
Chen Lisi opened fire from above, distracting Ciyue so Bai Lingluo could get closer.
Ciyue remained wary of Chen Lisi’s Magic Cannon. She anticipated the attacks early and dodged several shots, but when she snapped back to attention, Bai Lingluo was already right in front of her face.
“Sister Ciyue, face my resolve!”
Bai Lingluo swung her war halberd with all her might, unleashing a Magical Slash. The blinding light exploded in midair.
Ciyue manifested a blue greatsword to intercept the strike.
“Bai Lingluo, if that’s the case, I’ll take this a little more seriously.”
Ciyue gripped the greatsword with both hands, and the huge blade sliced through the sky, releasing a far more powerful Magical Slash than Bai Lingluo’s previous strike.
The slash even pierced the outer layer of the training ground’s Magic Power Barrier, shooting skyward and exploding at high altitude.
“Hey! Ease up on the power!” Lei Mang joked from outside the arena.
When the light dissipated, Bai Lingluo reappeared.
“Sigh, you can’t just rely on brute force against agile enemies. What a headache.” Ciyue sighed.
“Sister Ciyue, it’s my turn now!” Bai Lingluo said excitedly.
She raised her war halberd and chopped down at Ciyue, who naturally blocked with her sword. Unexpectedly, Bai Lingluo lowered her halberd and attacked bare-handed!
Ciyue also put down her greatsword and engaged in fist-to-fist combat.
“Like this, I can get up close and personal with Sister Ciyue!”
“Wait, don’t you have the wrong idea about ‘getting close’?”
The two awkwardly fought in midair. Ciyue landed a punch on Bai Lingluo, who immediately returned the favor.
This was the fairest fight between an S-Class Magical Girl and an A-class Magical Girl — neither used magic, just their fists, so even magic shields were ineffective at such close range.
“…$7!”
Ciyue was hurt, but Bai Lingluo showed no sign of stopping; she didn’t seem to mind the pain either.
Ciyue pushed Bai Lingluo away and quickly created distance.
“Now’s the time!” Chen Lisi seized the opportunity to launch a ranged attack.
The Magic Cannon grazed Bai Lingluo’s feet and shot straight toward Ciyue.
“Good teamwork.”
Ciyue held up her Magic Shield, blocking Chen Lisi’s sustained attacks.
But Bai Lingluo’s attack came from above as well. Ciyue hurriedly formed a Crystal Shield with her other hand to defend.
“In that case, you’ve miscalculated!”
Lin Xing appeared at the perfect time and place, delivering the perfect strike.
Ciyue had indeed anticipated this move but was powerless to stop it — Lin Xing’s skill was just too hard to counter.
“Hahaha! Am I amazing?” Lin Xing said proudly.
“If not for Bai Lingluo’s plan, we probably couldn’t have beaten Predecessor Ciyue,” Chen Lisi said modestly.
Bai Lingluo quickly caught the fallen Ciyue, who had been knocked down by Lin Xing. Being carried princess-style by Bai Lingluo, Ciyue felt a little embarrassed.
“You’re very skilled and coordinated,” Ciyue commented gently while being held.
Bai Lingluo blushed with excitement. “Does Sister Ciyue approve of me?”
“Of course I do. But could you put me down now? I’m fine…”
“No way! Sister Ciyue, just consider this my reward! Let me hold you a little longer.”
Ciyue sighed.