Magical Girls of A-Class and above do not rely on their magical rods in battle; for them, the rod is more of an auxiliary tool. They manifest weapons most suitable for themselves during combat.
Bai Lingluo’s weapon was a three-meter-long halberd, specializing in close-quarters combat.
Qianqi and Meijia wielded a longbow and a staff respectively.
The trio, accompanied by several armed drones, entered the abandoned supermarket.
“There are still footprints on the ground. Let’s follow them.” Bai Lingluo, being a close-combat Magical Girl, took the lead.
The drones constantly scanned the surroundings, alert for any threats.
The ground trembled beneath them, with occasional roars of Extradimensional Beasts echoing through the air.
“They’re still fighting. We need to hurry!”
“Miao Ke’er, watch out!”
Kong Ling swung her longsword as she dashed beside Miao Ke’er, cutting an Aberrant Beast behind her in half.
“There are more and more of them! Watch out for ambushes from the shadows!” Ying Xian weaved between the beasts, wielding a sharp dagger, swiftly slashing each creature into pieces.
“Damn it, I’m coming to support you!” Miao Ke’er raised her magical rod, forming a massive Spell Formation on the ground. Dozens of Puppet Soldiers emerged from it.
“Summoning Art!”
This was Miao Ke’er’s special ability, allowing her to control Puppet Soldiers in battle.
The Puppet Soldiers formed a circular formation around Miao Ke’er, protecting the team from attacks.
“The exit is blocked!” Ying Xian said. “They set up an ambush, tracking us all the way. This is a coordinated trap.”
By the time they realized it, it was too late. The original fire escape entrance had been destroyed.
“There should be another exit in the underground parking lot, right?” Miao Ke’er asked.
“Sorry, no. Earlier drone scans showed all exits are blocked by rubble!” Kong Ling panted, her strength nearly depleted.
“We can only wait for reinforcements. Hold on as long as we can. Hopefully, no big monsters come charging at us…” Ying Xian said, crouching to recover under the Puppet Soldiers’ protection.
The Puppet Soldiers fought the Extradimensional Beasts, but outnumbered, they gradually fell behind.
Controlling the Puppet Soldiers consumed a huge amount of magic power, and Miao Ke’er was already running low.
“Can the reinforcements arrive any faster… I don’t want to die here…” Miao Ke’er said fearfully.
“I don’t want to die either…”
Bai Lingluo noticed different footprints—clearly not made by humans. “Are those Extradimensional Beast tracks? They’ve been followed.”
“Watch out!” Meijia shouted.
An ambushing Beast attacked Bai Lingluo, but was immediately pierced by a spell.
“Thanks.”
“If you want to thank me, buy me a cup of milk tea after this mission,” Meijia joked.
“Sure.” Bai Lingluo agreed happily.
“Buy me one too!” Qianqi pouted.
The squad pressed on, arriving at the end of the footprints.
The tracks stopped at a collapsed section.
“Looks like the beasts blocked their retreat. This should be the fire escape of this supermarket,” Qianqi said.
“I’ll blast it open!”
Meijia gathered magic power at the center of her staff.
“Hey! Be careful, don’t blow up the whole place,” Qianqi warned.
“Hmph, don’t worry. I’ve practiced this kind of blasting spell countless times.”
Meijia controlled the power and released it. With a loud explosion, a large hole appeared in the rubble.
The three rushed inside immediately.
“We found them!” Bai Lingluo caught up with Kong Ling’s squad.
At this moment, Miao Ke’er was unconscious from exhaustion, and both Kong Ling and Ying Xian were in poor condition.
“Kong Ling, we’re here to rescue you!”
Bai Lingluo spun her halberd, unleashing a massive horizontal slash, cutting a row of Extradimensional Beasts in half.
“Senior Bai Lingluo, hurry… run.” Kong Ling used her last strength to speak while being supported, badly wounded and bleeding heavily before fainting.
“You two, get them out of here quickly!”
Ying Xian refused Qianqi’s help. “I can walk on my own. Bai Lingluo, be careful. A Duke-Class Aberrant Beast just appeared… don’t confront it head-on.”
“I understand.”
Qianqi carried Kong Ling on her back, Meijia carried Miao Ke’er, and the five retreated quickly under Bai Lingluo and the drones’ cover.
The Extradimensional Beasts chasing after them were slaughtered by Bai Lingluo.
“Bai Lingluo, you should retreat now.” The comms operator instructed her.
“Roger… wait!”
Sensing something off, Bai Lingluo immediately assumed a defensive stance.
The ground shook violently.
A sharp, nearly eardrum-shredding screech erupted from behind.
“There!”
Boom!
The surrounding area began to collapse under the powerful shockwave.
“Bai Lingluo!” the operator called out.
“No! The entire building has collapsed. We’ve lost contact with her.”
A massive cloud of dust rose from the center of the abandoned town.
“Teams Two, Six, and Seven, check the situation immediately!” Ma Xinyin ordered. She had come to the frontline command specifically to lead the Magical Girls.
As the dust settled, two figures stood in the center.
Bai Lingluo was covered in wounds, but thankfully the Magic Barrier protected her from the deadly weight of the collapsing debris.
She clearly saw her opponent—a terrifying creature far larger than herself, with a long tail and scaly body.
Its limbs ended in sharp claws, resembling a gigantic crocodile. It was those claws that had just attacked her.
Seeing that the opponent was still alive, the battle resumed.
The Beast’s claws clashed against the Magical Girl’s halberd in a brutal, direct confrontation.
The Extradimensional Beast was a mindless monster, incapable of feeling pain from its wounds, fighting solely on reckless instinct.
Close combat with such a beast required fearless courage and quick adaptability. For this reason, most Magical Girls preferred to avoid close-quarters fighting.
The Duke-Class Aberrant Beast spread its claws wide and roared, releasing a powerful shockwave that pushed back other Magical Girls coming to aid.
Drones flying overhead appeared to be hit by electromagnetic interference and fell.
“What’s going on?” Ma Xinyin asked her assistant.
“That Beast can disrupt electronic devices,” the assistant replied. Some special Extradimensional Beasts interfere with electronic components and communications.
Bai Lingluo still stood firm in front of it. Seeing her unmoving, the Beast charged at her at a speed unbefitting its size.
“Phh!”
The halberd blocked the Beast’s attack, and Bai Lingluo used the momentum to leap back, creating distance.
“Attack it quickly!” The surrounding Magical Girls cast spells on the Beast.
The Beast was engulfed in brilliant light.
However, as the light faded, the Beast had only shed its outer shell. The attack had only pierced its external armor.
Another roar shook the entire valley.
“Bai Lingluo, retreat now! Let the reinforcements handle it!” Ma Xinyin spoke over the comms, cutting through the noise.
But the Beast gave Bai Lingluo no chance to retreat and charged again.
“Here it comes again!”
Bai Lingluo raised her halberd to block, but the Beast feigned an attack. Its left limb suddenly stopped, plunged into the ground, then used the leverage to swing its electrified tail at her.
Before she could react, Bai Lingluo’s Magic Barrier was shattered, and the tail struck her abdomen with immense force, sending her flying dozens of meters.
She coughed up a mouthful of blood, her limbs scratched by rubble, blood staining her pure white skirt.
Struggling to stand, Bai Lingluo caught sight of the Beast’s massive form in her peripheral vision.
“Hurry! Protect her!”
Qianqi quickly flew in front of the Beast, drawing her longbow and firing a Magic Arrow.
To everyone’s shock, the Beast swiftly sidestepped the arrow aimed at it…
“Impossible!” Qianqi broke into a cold sweat.
From the side, Meijia and a group of arriving A-class Magical Girls unleashed spells on the Beast simultaneously.
The Beast simply raised its claw on that side, and a black barrier appeared, absorbing and nullifying all spells fired.
“This isn’t right! How can an Extradimensional Beast have a Magic Barrier!?”
Meijia’s eyes widened in disbelief, but before she could fully grasp what was happening, a beam of light engulfed her…
The black barrier reflected all incoming magic power, doubling it back to the attackers.
The flanking Magical Girls were wiped out, leaving only a few charred corpses. In the distance, a residential building collapsed under the residual magic force.
Meijia was dead… Qianqi couldn’t accept the truth and froze in place before the Beast’s claws tore her apart easily.
Cough cough cough…
Witnessing her comrades’ deaths, Bai Lingluo yearned for revenge, struggling desperately but unable to rise.
How could a seventeen-year-old girl, grievously wounded, stand against such a monster?
The shadow of the Beast slowly enveloped her.
“Bai Lingluo! Bai Lingluo! Are you still alive…?” A voice came from the comms. But the device quickly malfunctioned, and silence fell…
“Why am I fighting?”
Bai Lingluo asked herself, a blurry image of her sister appearing before her.
Was this a fleeting vision?
As the Beast’s attack was about to strike her, her mind went blank.
“I’m going to die, aren’t I?”
“No, you can’t die yet.” A familiar voice said.
“Fulfill her will.”
Back to reality, Bai Lingluo suddenly raised her head. The Beast’s claw descended, aiming to pierce her.
She rolled backward, dodging the deadly strike.
Her body was filled with renewed strength, and her reflexes sharpened once again.
Qianqi’s corpse lay before her, but Bai Lingluo had no time for grief. The Beast, shocked and enraged by her sudden revival, launched a relentless series of attacks.
Bai Lingluo gritted her teeth and manifested another halberd.
When the Beast again attempted the same feint, she leapt aside to avoid the tail sweep, then swung her halberd in midair, striking the Beast’s head.
The Beast staggered back several steps.
Seizing the opportunity, she flew to a higher position.
Standing atop a pile of rubble from collapsed buildings, she planted her feet firmly on broken stones and channeled magic into the tip of her halberd.
The Beast leapt high, intending to deliver a crushing blow.
But Bai Lingluo was faster. As the Beast soared overhead, she mustered all her strength and hurled the fully charged halberd at the airborne Beast.
“Die.”
The halberd pierced through the Beast’s center. The remaining part transformed into a beam of light shooting toward the sky.
A massive explosion erupted in midair, the dazzling flash nearly swallowing the entire town.
The Beast was blasted hundreds of meters away, crashing heavily to the ground.
That single strike shattered the Beast’s core. The Duke-Class Aberrant Beast had fallen.
With the battle over, Magical Girls from other squads finally dared to enter the scene.
“The seven A-class Magical Girls of Team Two were completely wiped out; additionally, Qianqi and Meijia from Bai Lingluo’s squad also sacrificed their lives. The bodies have been swiftly handled,” the assistant reported to Ma Xinyin.
Ma Xinyin clenched her fist and slammed it heavily on the table.
“In times of peace, losing so many Magical Girls… I truly have failed in my duty.”
“Director, you mustn’t blame yourself. Duke-Class Aberrant Beasts are formidable enemies; sacrifices are unavoidable…” the assistant comforted.
“How is Bai Lingluo now?”
“She’s unconscious and being sent to the battlefield hospital for treatment.”
Originally, Zhonghe Province’s 26 A-class Magical Girls instantly lost nine members, dealing a heavy blow to the Magic Control Bureau’s strength.
Yet, the Kingdom-Class Aberrant Beast in the cave had not yet appeared…
“Director! The Staff Department just called!” the assistant hurried over with news.
“Hey, Xiao Ma, your team suffered severe losses. Should I dispatch Special Forces and Air Power to support you?”
“General Chen… This is mainly my fault. I will take responsibility after this. The Extradimensional Beast threat is not yet eliminated.”
“We were fighting a Duke-Class Aberrant Beast; the Kingdom-Class one hasn’t shown itself, and we’ve already lost a third of our A-class forces.”
“Conventional forces would suffer heavy casualties fighting the Kingdom-Class. I request immediate reinforcement…”
“Hm, I’ll report the request for approval.”
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