Chapter 35: The Hunt Begins: Gentian’s Arrival

Ziyuan strolled leisurely along the second-floor corridor.

Her gaze appeared to drift idly over the readers around her. Yet, in truth, every single inch of the space lay firmly within the bounds of her perception.

The peculiar ‘Gathered Form’ remained within the library, a presence she keenly sensed. However, she found herself unable to pinpoint its precise location.

In her untransformed state, her sensory abilities were, after all, inherently limited.

Just then, a series of unmistakably flamboyant footsteps echoed from the direction of the entrance.

‘Who wears high heels to a library?’

Ziyuan tilted her head slightly, her eyes falling upon the figure who had just stepped into the foyer.

It was a girl clad in a black and white vintage court dress. A white stand-collar shirt, a meticulously tied black cravat, and a high-waisted, multi-layered black gauze skirt swayed gently with her steps.

The skirt’s hem flowed like a cloud. Her long black hair cascaded over her shoulders, its ends curving naturally.

Though her appearance was somewhat unfamiliar, Ziyuan recognized the face.

It was Gentian.

She had brazenly entered the library, still in her magical girl transformation.

Ziyuan’s gaze lingered on her for two seconds before shifting to her surroundings—no one else. It seemed Cornflower hadn’t accompanied her.

Ziyuan lowered her eyes, a faint curve gracing her lips. The notoriously ‘problem child’ had arrived; who would bail her out this time? She merely hoped Gentian wouldn’t cause any trouble.

She had no intention of greeting her. Instead, she simply remained leaning against a bookshelf, her eyes occasionally sweeping in that direction.

****

The moment Gentian stepped into the foyer, she felt it.

Several ‘unusual’ gazes swept over her from different directions. These weren’t human gazes; they belonged to the ‘Erodes’ lurking in the shadows, sensing the magical energy emanating from her.

She smirked, walking directly towards the stairs. Her high heels clicked crisply against the floor, a steady, unhurried rhythm, as if she were strolling through her own garden.

Upon reaching the third floor, she glanced at the floor guide, then proceeded deeper into the lending section.

****

Lin Mo leaned against a row of bookshelves, pretending to flip through a book.

She had already circled the first and second floors, discovering nothing. The group chat messages hadn’t updated, indicating that the peculiar ‘Gathered Form’ was still within the library, yet she remained unable to pinpoint its precise location.

Just then, she heard those distinct footsteps.

She instinctively looked up—

A figure in a black and white vintage court dress was approaching from the end of the corridor. A white stand-collar shirt, a black cravat, cascading layers of black gauze skirt, and long black hair draped over her shoulders.

That walking posture, that slightly lifted chin, that cold and alluring face…

‘This is… Senior Gentian?’

Lin Mo quickly lowered her head, though her peripheral vision couldn’t help but drift in that direction.

Gentian seemed to notice her gaze, tilting her head slightly to cast a casual, assessing glance her way. Then, she withdrew her gaze and continued forward.

Lin Mo breathed a sigh of relief.

She, of course, recognized this Second-Order Bloom Wielder. When on missions in the past, she often saw Teacher Cornflower and Gentian partnered together.

However, their personalities were truly vastly different—or perhaps, this was a form of complementarity?

****

On the same floor, on the opposite side.

Su Xinxin stood before a row of bookshelves, her eyes scanning the spines, but her thoughts were entirely elsewhere.

That peculiar ‘Gathered Form’ still hadn’t been found. Moreover, Jasmine had said she was also on the third floor, yet the two hadn’t met so far—or perhaps they had, but simply hadn’t recognized each other.

She returned a book to the shelf, then turned to look at the people seated at the tables. Perhaps one of them was Jasmine?

Just then, she saw a girl in a black and white vintage court dress approaching from the end of the corridor.

A white stand-collar shirt, a black cravat, and cascading layers of black gauze skirt swayed gently with her steps. Long black hair cascaded over her shoulders, her features cold and alluring, with an aura of ‘do not approach’ in her eyes.

Su Xinxin watched the figure walk past her, then disappear at the end of the corridor.

“That’s… who was that again?” she mentally asked Xiao Ming.

“Already forgotten?” Xiao Ming’s voice chimed. “That’s Gentian, a Second-Order Bloom Wielder. The one who fought in Star River Grand Street last time.”

Su Xinxin was stunned.

The figure in the dark purplish-blue miniskirt, wielding a long whip and defeating evil spirits, and the girl just now, in a vintage court dress, walking with such flair—were they the same person?

“She… changed clothes?”

“Probably to be a bit more discreet,” Xiao Ming said. “Though she’s still a bit high-profile, even so.”

Su Xinxin withdrew her gaze, continuing to pretend to read, but her peripheral vision couldn’t help but drift in that direction.

****

Gentian walked for a while longer, finally stopping.

She could sense several ‘Erodes’ lurking nearby. Most were low-level N-grade ‘Dust,’ clinging like specks of dust to readers or in corners.

There were also two or three lower-grade R-grade ‘Wandering Souls,’ slowly drifting between the bookshelves. The true target—that peculiar ‘Gathered Form’—had an even fainter aura, seemingly on an upper layer.

She smirked, then lifted her right foot, her heel tapping lightly on the ground.

*Thump.*

A barely audible crisp sound.

From the point where her toe landed, a deep purple wave of magical energy suddenly rippled outwards!

The wave spread rapidly along the ground, like mercury flowing across a surface, instantly sweeping across a radius of tens of meters. Wherever the wave passed, countless intricate, gentian-shaped purple light patterns emerged from the cracks in the floor, bookshelves, and tables and chairs.

These were the ‘Dance Step Marks’ she had quietly laid down along her path. It turned out that every spot she had passed earlier had left extremely subtle traces of magical energy.

These traces were like a meticulously woven spiderweb, silently lurking, waiting only for this moment of her ignition.

And now—

Shadow Dance — Bloom!

Gentian lightly snapped her fingers.

Those latent purple light patterns bloomed at the same instant!

Innumerable hair-thin purple light threads surged from those marks, like the tenacious roots of a gentian flower deeply rooted in harsh, cold lands. They precisely pierced the core of every ‘Erode’ hidden in the shadows.

The N-grade ‘Dust’ didn’t even have time to react before being pierced, shredded, and silently dissipated by these purple light threads.

A few lower-grade R-grade ‘Wandering Souls’ were fortunate enough to survive the initial strike. They immediately sensed something was wrong and tried to flee.

But the purple light threads, as if alive, transformed into fleeting purple blades in mid-air, chasing after them—piercing—and annihilating them.

The entire process took less than three seconds.

Gentian withdrew her foot, her skirt gently swirling into an elegant arc around her.

She scanned the depths of the bookshelves, her eyes narrowing slightly.

There were still some stragglers.

****

On the east side of the third floor, near the audio-visual arts space.

One ‘Wandering Soul’ seemed to sense danger, desperately trying to burrow into a thick art compendium. A thin layer of dust had accumulated on the book’s spine, suggesting it had been in this quiet corner for a very long time.

Such forgotten corners were the best sanctuary for ‘Erodes.’

It believed it was safe once hidden within the pages.

Gentian did not walk over.

She simply stood still, raising her right hand, her index and middle fingers pressed together. She casually drew a line in that direction.

Shadow Whip — Bind!

A hair-thin stream of purple magic shot from her fingertips, transforming into a fleeting purple whip-shadow in mid-air. The whip-shadow, like an arrow released from a bowstring, precisely entered the spine’s crack, directly targeting the ‘Wandering Soul’s’ core.

Soon, the mass of grayish-black mist instantly disintegrated, turning into a few specks of light that quietly seeped from between the pages, then dissipated into the air.

Gentian withdrew her hand and continued walking.

Reaching another row of bookshelves, she suddenly stopped.

She tilted her head, looking towards a certain corner.

There, another ‘Wandering Soul’ was curled up in the gap between two thick books, believing itself to be well hidden.

Gentian didn’t even bother to raise her hand again.

She simply stood there, her gaze fixed on that corner, a faint, almost imperceptible smile playing on her lips.

The next second, a surge of purple magic erupted directly from her, as if she herself were a core constantly radiating energy outwards. The magic condensed into several fine lines in mid-air, silently drilling into that gap—entwining—tightening—shredding.

The ‘Wandering Soul’ had no chance to even dodge before it completely dissipated.

Gentian withdrew her gaze, continuing forward as if nothing had happened.

Her high heels clicked crisply against the floor, the rhythm still unhurried and steady.

So, the warm-up was over.

Next—it was time to hunt the one upstairs!

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