Chapter 73: The Emergence of the Lung Beast

The shriek vanished swiftly.

Compared to the previous ‘Bat-Serpent’ beast, this monster took even longer to manifest.

Su Qingyao quickly assessed the beast, which was about to become Su Muxue’s adversary.

At first glance, what materialized before them was a six to seven-meter-long, deep purple swan with crystal-clear feathers—though ‘swan’ was merely a vague approximation of its features.

Its body was morbidly stretched into a slender, streamlined form, dominated by excessively massive wings that could even fold in front of it like ribs on a skeletal frame.

As it unfurled its wings, tearing through the magical orb that served as its cocoon, a roar like the shriek of a dying bird instantly echoed throughout the entire ruin.

Following this, clusters of purple wind swirled from its flapping wings, then launched aimlessly towards the magical girls encircling it.

Two of its three pairs of wings unfurled naturally, spreading like lung lobes, interwoven with blood-stained streaks that expanded and contracted with each breath.

A grotesque, alien beauty intertwined within this beast. Facing its blood-soaked magic, the magical girls instinctively tightened their grip on their staves.

The third pair of wings, uncannily resembling human hands, wrapped their feathered arms around its vulnerable neck, allowing its already elongated throat to stretch directly towards the onlookers, its eyes openly displaying a hint of disdain.

To Su Qingyao, those hands clasped tightly to its neck symbolized both magic’s proximity to humanity and, simultaneously, a profound danger.

“There’s a probability it’s a Fourth-tier beast.”

Xu Yanqing, who had been meticulously timing everything, frowned as an ominous premonition stirred within her.

Yet, with battle imminent, Xu Yanqing could only draw her staff, preparing to cast her spells.

“I hope Su Muxue and the others manage to succeed.”

Xu Yanqing took a deep breath.

Beyond the distant barrier, Su Qingyao, having witnessed the beast and discerned its true nature, slowly and with some difficulty loosened her grip on her staff.

‘A Fourth-tier beast.’

‘Barely, but Su Muxue and her team might be able to handle it.’

Additionally, Su Qingyao channeled a surge of her own magic into the spell formation beneath her feet.

For those energy clusters weren’t exclusive magic of this ‘swan’—or rather, this ‘Lung Beast.’

****

Su Muxue wrinkled her nose, smelling the thick, pungent stench that permeated the air.

“It seems this one isn’t weaker than the one Lin Xiaoxiao’s group faced,” Fang Xiaobai’s voice echoed from behind her.

Behind Su Muxue, beads of sweat trickled down Fang Xiaobai’s face. Her unique magic had been continuously active since the battle began.

Yet, the feedback she received was exceptionally strange.

The beast’s magic registered as “none”; in other words, it hadn’t released any magical power from the very beginning.

The projectiles earlier were entirely composed of ambient magical energy.

“Yan Xiyu, please stay close to Su Muxue. You only need to keep up with her.”

Despite her confusion, Fang Xiaobai didn’t halt her tactical deployment.

Almost entirely unlike the suppression formation of the previous group, Fang Xiaobai divided the six magical girl reserves, including herself, into two teams.

Yan Xiyu, Fang Xiaobai, and Su Muxue formed one team, while the remaining three formed another.

At first glance, this grouping seemed highly illogical, splitting their combat power into two extremes: one high, one low.

However, the one with truly lower combat power was Fang Xiaobai herself, who needed to conserve her magic for sustained flight and spellcasting.

As for why:

“Another attack is coming!” Fang Xiaobai cried out, her expression tense. The three reserve magical girls opposite their position quickly retreated.

Immediately after, Su Muxue wielded her staff, chanting her unique spell.

Yan Xiyu waved her staff, swiftly conjuring an arc of water. Su Muxue’s magic immediately imbued it, shaping it into a shield wall complete with a ramming point.

Only after the defense was fully erected did the majority of the barrage finally arrive, directed almost entirely towards Su Muxue’s group. Only a few stray projectiles flew towards the less conspicuous reserve team, which they easily dodged.

This was the significance of Fang Xiaobai’s magic.

If she hadn’t been able to predict the flow of magic beforehand, this group of reserves would have suffered severe damage the moment the Swan Beast emerged from its cocoon.

Su Muxue couldn’t directly control the ‘ice wall’ itself, nor could she perceive its damage. Thus, she could only counter by manipulating extreme cold, continuously expanding and thickening the ice barrier.

The profound magical barrage almost formed a torrent, suddenly illuminating the night sky. The only advantage was that the beast itself couldn’t move while casting its magic.

This was why Fang Xiaobai was merely tense, not despairing.

“Hmph!”

Bai Aili, with her subtle Russian features, softly exclaimed, unleashing a magical energy cannon forged through her chant.

The white cannon blast struck the curled edge of a wing. As it hit the blood-soaked feathers, it hissed, evaporating the blood, then immediately tore open a gaping hole.

There was no sensation of torn muscle at the break, but rather an opening like melted crystal.

“Good,” Bai Aili’s eyes lit up.

Just as it seemed, while the beast’s attacks were terrifying, its defense was considerably weaker.

Considering Fang Xiaobai’s impromptu deployment, their attacks could serve as the ‘damage output’.

“Guh—”

The beast squeezed a long, hoarse roar from its throat, devoid of discernible emotion.

It canceled its magic, twisting its head, its narrow eyes fixing on the magical girls who had attacked it.

Startled, Bai Aili quickly retreated. The lessons from the previous group were fresh in her mind, leaving no room for overconfidence.

The Swan Beast flapped its wings, preparing to pursue.

However, the combined magic of Yan Xiyu and Su Muxue unleashed an ice spear, forcing the beast to move defensively and refocus its attention on the two most troublesome opponents.

Fang Xiaobai’s deployment on this flank was predicated on the remarkable synergy between Su Muxue and Yan Xiyu.

“Haraval!”

Yan Xiyu raised her staff, muttering incantations unique to ‘mages.’

Indeed, although the source of Yan Xiyu’s magic was undoubtedly a magical girl’s core.

She herself had extensively studied systems centered around mage-type magic.

In other words, Yan Xiyu resembled a ‘mage’ more than a magical girl.

Coincidentally, as a mage, Yan Xiyu excelled precisely at ice magic, which could serve as a casting medium for Su Muxue.

Su Muxue, having also completed her chant and awaiting the trigger for release, pointed her staff at the blue, spindle-shaped ice spike that had materialized under Yan Xiyu’s incantation.

“Low temperature.”

Su Muxue’s spellcasting was concise. Her magic could generate terrifyingly low temperatures with minimal magical expenditure.

For this beast with its weak defenses, it could inflict considerable damage.

It had to be said, their luck was quite favorable.