Chapter 40: The Emergence of Silver Frost

As the light dissipated, a brand-new magical girl emerged onto this desperate battlefield.

Clad in silver-white magical attire adorned with ice crystals, her skirt flowed with fragmented starlight. Her raven hair transformed into waist-length deep blue, and a translucent ice crystal crown on her forehead silently proclaimed her nobility.

Her face still bore its perpetually unchanging icy expression. Yet, within those clear, cold eyes, a frost flame capable of freezing souls had ignited.

Magical Girl Silver Frost’s transformation was complete!

Almost simultaneously, a majestic voice resounded directly within her mind.

[You are tasked with assisting a monarch.]

[In this time of crisis, I temporarily lend you divine power to overcome the ordeal.]

‘Assist a monarch?’

Xia Xingyan paused for a fleeting moment, but there was no time for contemplation.

She abruptly turned her head, her gaze locking onto the dying pink-haired figure in the distance.

It was she who, in her darkest hour, had given her the courage to live!

The next second, she violently shattered the ground beneath her feet, transforming into a stream of icy blue light, and surged ferociously towards the witch.

Tian Lanxing, this time, it’s my turn to save you!

****

One minute earlier.

The Black-robed cadre was reveling in the pleasure of torment.

The Abyssal energy at his fingertips transformed into sharp needles, and each time they pierced the pink-haired girl’s body, they elicited her pained groans, along with the desperate cries of the other two girls.

This sensation of crushing hope little by little was utterly exquisite.

“The legendary Tian Lanxing, my foot! She’s lying in my hands now like a dead dog!”

Just as he was about to deliver another brutal blow to Hua Mu’ai, intending to completely cripple her limbs, his movements froze mid-air.

An ineffable tremor emanated from between heaven and earth.

He looked up in horror, as a brilliant, dazzling pillar of rainbow light shot into the sky.

The night sky had been pierced.

“This… what is this?”

The smug expression on the Black-robed cadre’s face instantly froze.

‘Had a magical girl awakened?’

‘No! That’s impossible!’

‘Even a newly awakened magical girl’s Star Power fluctuations couldn’t possibly reach such an outrageous level!’

‘Awakening directly to Celestial Star-tier?’

‘What kind of joke is this?!’

‘Even during the Golden Age seventeen years ago, when monsters emerged in droves, no one was ever rumored to have achieved such a feat.’

Magical girl ranks were divided into: Apprentice, Starlight-tier, Luminous Star-tier, Celestial Star-tier, and the strongest, Star God-tier.

In the brief moment of his distraction, a blue stream of light erupted from the pillar, and in an instant, it was upon him!

‘Too fast!’

The Black-robed cadre’s hair stood on end, and he instinctively gathered all the Abyssal energy in his body for defense.

Then, he felt a flash before his eyes, and a biting, bone-chilling wind assaulted his face.

The next second, the wrist that had been gripping Hua Mu’ai’s neck was empty.

‘Where did she go?!’

He turned his head in alarm, only to see the figure already dozens of meters away, cradling the pink-haired girl in her arms.

Hua Mu’ai’s consciousness was hazy, the excruciating pain throughout her body nearly causing her to faint.

She struggled to open one eye, only to see the magical girl, clad in silver-white magical attire, with her back to her, her deep blue hair fluttering in the night wind.

‘Such potent Star Power…’

‘Has the GSA’s reinforcement arrived?’

After carefully setting Hua Mu’ai down, Xia Xingyan turned and raised her hand, as cold energy surged in her palm, solidifying into a translucent ice crystal longsword.

The Black-robed cadre was consumed by fury; this sudden newcomer dared to ruin his fun!

“So what if she’s Celestial Star-tier? She’s still courting death!”

He roared, and attacked alongside Xiangyanghua.

In an instant, innumerable dark vines, like colossal pythons, erupted from the ground in all directions, coiling frantically towards Xia Xingyan.

Wielding her ice sword, Xia Xingyan’s figure weaved and dodged amidst the onslaught of vines. Her movements were graceful, and each swing of her sword left a cold arc of light in its wake, slicing through the attacking vines.

However, having only just awakened, she possessed immense power but utterly lacked combat experience.

Her opponents, on the other hand, were a cunning, seasoned cadre of the Dawn Inheritors, and a Level Five witch transformed by Abyssal energy, left with nothing but killing instinct.

Even though Xia Xingyan immediately displayed the terrifying strength of a Celestial Star-tier, under the combined assault of the two, she quickly found herself at a disadvantage.

The vines controlled by Xiangyanghua were endless; for every one severed, ten more erupted from the earth. Meanwhile, the Black-robed cadre, like an annoying fly, relentlessly harassed and ambushed her from the sidelines.

Finally, Xiangyanghua lost her patience. She abruptly gathered all the vines together, forming a colossal black palm that lunged towards Xia Xingyan!

This single strike virtually sealed off all her escape routes!

Xia Xingyan forcefully pushed off the ground, narrowly evading the direct impact of the colossal palm.

However, the colossal palm did not dissipate; instead, it transformed into a terrifying tide of vines, spreading rapidly forward.

‘This is bad!’

‘Any further back and it would be where she had placed Tian Lanxing.’

‘But due to the intense energy consumption just now, she was no longer capable of using her previous speed to rescue someone!’

Xia Xingyan’s mind went blank, leaving only a single thought.

‘No!’

‘She could no longer bear the despair of falling back into darkness.’

‘When I was eleven, you pulled me back from the edge of that cold rooftop.’

‘Now, it’s my turn to save you!’

Abandoning any attempt to defend with Star Power, she poured all her strength into her legs, and charged forward with resolute determination!

Seeing the overwhelming vines about to engulf Hua Mu’ai, Xia Xingyan knew that it was too late to flee with her.

She threw herself in front of Hua Mu’ai, clutching her petite body tightly.

All the dark vines struck Xia Xingyan’s back, but the girl in her arms remained unharmed.

As the final blow from the vines landed, Xia Xingyan could no longer hold on.

A mouthful of fresh blood gushed from her lips, staining Hua Mu’ai’s collar crimson. Then, her entire body crumpled softly to the ground.

‘This is good…’

‘Finally… I could do something for you…’

‘So this is what it feels like… to risk your life protecting someone…’

The overpowering scent of blood, jolted Hua Mu’ai’s hazy consciousness into clearer awareness.

She laboriously shifted her gaze, to see the magical girl who had saved her lying beside her.

The other’s breath was faint, already on the verge of death.

The girl’s back was a bloody mess, her magnificent silver-white magical attire torn to shreds.

Her Star Power was rapidly draining away.

Hua Mu’ai looked at the dying girl before her, and with all her remaining strength, voiced her confusion.

“Why… why would you risk your life to save me…?”

Upon hearing her voice, Xia Xingyan’s body stirred slightly.

With great difficulty, she turned her head, little by little, to look at Hua Mu’ai.

On that perpetually unchanging icy face, her muscles seemed to be fighting against something, straining to move.

Then, under Hua Mu’ai’s watchful gaze, her lips pulled into an incredibly stiff curve.

It was a smile uglier than a cry, yet it was so clumsy it was heartbreaking.

“Tian Lanxing…”

Xia Xingyan’s voice was weak, carrying a hint of relieved liberation.

“I… I can actually smile, you know…”

“Please… don’t call me expressionless anymore, okay?”