Chapter 17: The Unforeseen Anomaly and a Magical Ascent

“Who would have thought we’d be so ‘lucky’ today.”

Lin Xi sighed as she ran towards the source of the anomalous Otherworld energy concentration.

According to the usual intervals for otherworldly beast appearances, today should have been clear; yet, the fact remained that they had emerged.

That being said, the appearance of otherworldly beasts wasn’t exactly rare. After all, Tiangong City’s sprawling area was significantly larger than even the first-tier cities before the [Otherworld] had intersected with this one. A larger foundation naturally meant more otherworldly beasts; it was simply a matter of whether it was their turn to deal with them.

Bai Li, running alongside Lin Xi, also felt a pang of confusion.

She couldn’t recall instructing any of her subordinate otherworldly beasts to cause trouble today. Moreover, given their strength and territorial influence, it was unlikely they would allow other beasts to intrude on their turf. This implied that the newly appeared beasts weren’t hers, or perhaps her own had gone berserk.

“The exact location is… approximately two kilometers away!”

With that, Lin Xi retrieved a gem from her magical space. Pink energy flowed around the gem’s periphery, encasing its white, bud-like core, appearing both protective and restrictive.

As Lin Xi channeled her magic to activate the gem, the scenery around her began to transform.

A fantastical white flower field, like an illusion, materialized, with a young Lin Xi standing amidst it. Two figures, one pink and one black, appeared beside her. The pink one shared Lin Xi’s appearance and hair color, while the black one had the same shoulder-length twin-tail hairstyle and blue eyes. Both figures gently placed their hands on Lin Xi’s back, then softly urged her forward.

Propelled by their touch, Lin Xi dashed forward, a third white silhouette gradually appearing before her. As she ran, Lin Xi extended a hand, as if to grasp the figure.

Just as Lin Xi was about to reach the figure, she suddenly stumbled, nearly falling forward. However, the white silhouette turned and caught her, and together they tumbled into the flower field.

White petals swirled through the air, and amidst the myriad of white petals filling her vision, Lin Xi precisely seized the single black one. Immediately, countless white flowers enveloped her body.

A pink, blue, and white off-the-shoulder dress, adorned with white flowers, materialized on Lin Xi as she transformed back into a girl. Her feet were clad in white stockings and small leather shoes, perfectly complementing the dress. The pink, white-bud Soul Gem (TL Note: A magical artifact, often central to a magical girl’s powers and transformation) transformed into a brooch, appearing on her chest.

“Alright, let’s go.”

Lin Xi, now in her magical girl form, turned back and said to Bai Li.

Having witnessed the entire transformation up close, Bai Li simply stood frozen, utterly dumbfounded. ‘Lin Xi is so cute, Lin Xi is so beautiful, Lin Xi is so amazing…’ her mind chanted incessantly, almost to the point of drooling.

“Bai Li?”

“…Ah, mhm.”

Called back to reality by the address, Bai Li finally snapped out of her daze.

‘This won’t do,’ Bai Li mused. ‘If merely watching a transformation up close has this effect, what if I were to witness more? I’d surely drop dead on the spot.’

“Bai Li, aren’t you transforming?”

“Well, about that…”

Although Bai Li had been classified as a magical girl, she wasn’t truly one, nor did she possess a Soul Gem like Lin Xi’s.

That said, not all magical girls necessarily had Soul Gems; even among those with similar powers, subtle differences often emerged. Lin Xi’s gem, at best, served as a reserve of magic and a convenient tool for casting certain spells, meaning it should more accurately be called a “Magic Gem.”

Every aspect of Lin Xi’s magical girl attire—from its material and color to its placement and type, even its repair after damage—was, metaphorically speaking, a distinct spell, a “code.” The Soul Gem (TL Note: A magical artifact, often central to a magical girl’s powers and transformation), then, integrated these “codes” into a “program,” allowing her to use them freely and even activate them fully automatically.

Moreover, being a condensed form of magic itself, the gem also served as a magical reservoir, akin to a backup energy source. In the future, it would truly function as a “Soul Gem,” meaning that even if her physical body were destroyed, she could recover as long as the gem remained intact, and vice versa.

Upon closer inspection, this was essentially an enhanced version of a Soul Gem, boasting numerous additional features like automatic spellcasting, magic reserves, and a “second life,” all while being largely free of the typical drawbacks.

“Ah, I forgot,” Lin Xi murmured. “It’s only natural that you can’t fully master your powers so soon after awakening. But this two-kilometer distance…”

Lin Xi glanced at the distance displayed on her phone.

Two kilometers was neither particularly long nor short, but for someone who had just awakened their powers and struggled to use them effectively, and who needed to rush there, it was a considerable distance.

Even with a slight boost to physical capabilities, maintaining a full-speed run for approximately ten minutes would prove taxing.

Yet, one shouldn’t forget Bai Li’s unique ability.

“Don’t worry,” Bai Li reassured her. “In my current state, I should be able to keep up by running.”

Her innate ability, which enhanced her physical capabilities, wasn’t merely a glass cannon (TL Note: A term for something with high offense but low defense) that only boosted attack power.

Instead, it was an all-encompassing enhancement, akin to a tank with high attack speed, incredible swiftness, and exceptional agility, capable of effortlessly breaking the sound barrier to achieve supersonic speeds.

However, her magical aptitude was comparatively lacking, making it difficult to use spells to counteract the sonic booms and other effects generated by her running.

Consequently, whenever she ran, she became akin to an almost indestructible dump truck, or even more formidable than a vehicle, as she could genuinely smash through tanks and warships.

This was also the inconvenience of her overwhelming power, which was why she had recently sought Yu Menghua’s advice on how to control it.

Still, she didn’t actually need to reach supersonic speeds at the moment.

Lin Xi’s maximum flying speed was only about half the speed of sound, meaning two kilometers would take several tens of seconds.

If Bai Li truly ran at full power, she could likely reach the destination in an instant.

“My ability is always active; even without transforming, I possess sufficiently high physical capabilities, so you don’t need to worry about me…”

“Very well then.”

However, before Bai Li could even finish speaking, Lin Xi had already appeared before her and scooped her up.

“Eh?”

Suddenly finding herself in a princess carry, Bai Li let out a bewildered “Eh?”, her mind clearly unable to process the sudden turn of events.

“Let’s go.”

“…Wait, this is…!?”

At this moment, she, a girl slightly taller than Lin Xi, was being princess-carried by Lin Xi, who was also a girl, and one who embodied the true, classic, adorable magical girl aesthetic.

This sudden situation caused Bai Li to become flustered and disoriented, her usually stoic face now clearly betraying a blush of embarrassment.

Lin Xi remained silent, merely flying steadfastly towards the incident’s location.