Chapter 39: The Awakening of Frost Star

“I don’t know!”

Tears streamed down Gu Qianqian’s face from the pain, yet she stubbornly shook her head.

“Excellent.”

The Black-robed cadre’s patience had finally worn thin.

He flung Gu Qianqian violently to the ground, his Void Abyss energy coalescing into a sharp spike aimed directly at her heart.

“Since you’re so loyal, I’ll send you on your way first!”

****

Time rewound to one minute earlier.

Hua Mu’ai, hidden behind a nearby cluster of flowers, felt her heart pound wildly, her body growing cold.

‘There’s no way I can win!’

The blaring alarms of her combat instincts and the overwhelming power before her screamed a single truth: rushing out now would be no different from a suicide mission.

That unreliable Yuena had claimed she needed time to recover, but who knew how long that would take!

Perhaps the stoic girl (TL Note: referring to Xia Xingyan, known for her perpetually calm and unexpressive demeanor) was right.

Fleeing was the most rational choice.

But if Qianqian died and she escaped alone, it would all be utterly meaningless!

The moment the Black-robed cadre aimed his Void Abyss energy spike at Gu Qianqian’s heart, the string of rationality in Hua Mu’ai’s mind snapped.

“Stop!”

She cried out, rushing forward, successfully drawing the attention of the black-robed figure.

“I am the Tian Lanxing you’re looking for! Release them at once!”

She spread her arms wide, using her petite frame to shield Gu Qianqian and Lin Xiaolu.

The Black-robed cadre narrowed his eyes, observing the sudden intrusion of the pink-haired girl with intrigued amusement.

“Tian Lanxing, you?”

He scoffed, his hand moving like lightning to seize her slender neck, lifting Hua Mu’ai entirely off the ground.

A suffocating sensation instantly overwhelmed her.

After a brief probe, the mockery on the Black-robed cadre’s face deepened. “You don’t even possess the most basic Star power. How dare you impersonate Tian Lanxing? Are you seeking death?”

“Let go of Senior!”

“You’re not allowed to hurt Captain!”

Witnessing this scene, Gu Qianqian and Lin Xiaolu’s eyes turned crimson as they struggled desperately, screaming out.

‘Hm?’

The Black-robed cadre raised an eyebrow.

After integrating a portion of the Void Abyss, he had unexpectedly gained the ability to perceive emotions.

The terror and fury emanating from these two young girls were undeniably genuine.

Coupled with their cries of “Senior” and “Captain”…

A glint of playful amusement flickered in the Black-robed cadre’s eyes.

‘Could this frail, pink-haired girl truly be Tian Lanxing?’

To confirm his suspicion, he decided to play a game.

“It seems your affections run deep.”

The hand gripping Hua Mu’ai’s neck suddenly tightened, while his other hand conjured a long black needle from the Void Abyss, plunging it directly into Hua Mu’ai’s shoulder!

“Ah!”

Intense pain surged through her, drawing a sharp cry from Hua Mu’ai as her body trembled violently.

The chilling Void Abyss energy rampaged within her, inflicting torment far beyond mere physical pain.

“Senior!”

“No!”

Gu Qianqian and Lin Xiaolu’s anguished cries pierced Hua Mu’ai’s heart like daggers.

“Heh heh, it seems it’s true.” The Black-robed cadre laughed cruelly, withdrawing the long needle only to brutally plunge it into her other side. “How pathetic. How could the legendary Tian Lanxing be reduced to such a wretched state?”

“Pfft!”

As the second energy needle pierced her flesh, Hua Mu’ai convulsed again.

The excruciating pain made her curl into a ball, blood gushing uncontrollably from her mouth.

Just as her consciousness began to blur, Yuena’s urgent voice suddenly echoed in her mind.

[J-just hold on a little longer! Almost there! It’ll… it’ll be ready soon!]

With that, Yuena’s voice fell silent once more.

‘I’m practically dying from the pain, and this wretched fairy still tells me to wait!’ Hua Mu’ai cursed inwardly.

The Black-robed cadre savored Hua Mu’ai’s agony and the two girls’ despair, leaning close to Hua Mu’ai’s ear to whisper.

“Tell me, why have you become like this? Where is your power?”

“I… I don’t know…” Hua Mu’ai struggled to force out a few words.

“It matters not if you refuse to speak. If you truly are Tian Lanxing, offering such a magnificent gift before The Mentor’s throne will surely pave the way for a boundless future.”

****

In the distance.

Through her binoculars, Xia Xingyan took in everything unfolding on the plaza.

As she watched Hua Mu’ai being choked by the Black-robed cadre, her body repeatedly pierced by black energy needles, cracks finally appeared on her eternally stoic, ‘iceberg’ face.

“Uncle Chen, quickly send someone to save her!” Her voice was filled with urgency.

“Miss, no!” Uncle Chen’s voice came through the communicator, carrying an unyielding firmness for the first time. “The opponent is a Level Five witch; our people would only be throwing their lives away!”

“Then I’ll go myself!”

Xia Xingyan lowered the binoculars, poised to rush towards the witch.

Seeing this, the two black-suited bodyguards beside her immediately stepped forward, grabbing her arms on either side.

“Miss, please calm down!”

“Let go of me!” Xia Xingyan struggled frantically, her strength astonishing. “Uncle Chen! I command you! Tell them to release me!”

She fought with all her might to charge forward, but her body remained pinned, forcing her to watch helplessly as Hua Mu’ai was tortured in the distance, drawing ever closer to death.

‘Why is it always like this again!’

Tian Lanxing was the light of her life.

She was the hero who had pulled her back from the brink of death in her darkest hour.

Nearly every beautiful moment in her life was connected to the name “Tian Lanxing.”

Over a decade ago, she had believed she lost that light forever.

Through countless lonely days and nights, she could only reminisce and fantasize about her idol through old footage and cold merchandise.

When she learned that Tian Lanxing had reappeared in the world, her once-dimmed world was instantly re-illuminated.

She had once again come alive beneath that radiance, utterly unable to bear a second loss!

“Aaaaaah!”

Xia Xingyan threw her head back, letting out a piercing shriek as pain and despair erupted from her like a volcano.

She watched herself drift further and further from that figure, her heart aching with a suffocating pain.

‘I don’t want to…’

‘I won’t lose her again!’

In the midst of this overwhelming agony and fierce unwillingness, an unprecedented power awakened from the depths of her soul!

Brilliant, kaleidoscopic light soared upwards from her, instantly tearing through the night sky!

The radiance was so dazzling that it even suppressed the foul black aura emanating from the witch in the distance!

The two bodyguards holding her were blasted away by this force, watching the scene before them in utter shock.

Everyone knew this was the precursor to a Magical Girl’s awakening!

Amidst the magnificent, multicolored glow, a crystal-clear “Heart Stone” quietly floated before Xia Xingyan.

Carved entirely like crystal, with a brilliant star embedded at its center, it took on the elegant form of a snowflake.

Xia Xingyan reached out and grasped it without hesitation.

A cold sensation washed over her as an endless surge of power coursed through her body.

Raising the Heart Stone, she uttered the transformation incantation, a spell long etched into her very soul, in a clear and resolute voice.

“By the name of Winter’s Frost, I shall judge the sins of this world!”

“Crown of Frost Stars!”

“Unleash!!”