Meng Xingyao gazed proudly at her masterpiece, triumphantly shaking her fair little fist.
"No wonder Cat Sister never uses skills; this feeling of landing solid punches is so satisfying!"
At that moment, as she looked at her fist with her blue hair fluttering in the wind, something stirred deep within the blue Magical Girl's heart, like an unnoticed seed quietly beginning to sprout.
"Well then, next..."
Meng Xingyao trailed off, her gaze slowly shifting elsewhere as her fingers unconsciously rubbed her chin.
Even from over a thousand meters away, she could still sense that familiar aura.
Meng Xingyao couldn't help but click her tongue inwardly.
My god, this magic suit is totally OP! Cat Sister is my real sister from now on; I have to treat her like royalty!
Her heart brimmed with joy, and her clenched fist still trembled slightly. She had long since thrown her original plan of ambushing Cipher completely out the window.
But before thinking about that—
"Little Hong!"
[Received. Searching for target. Locking on.]
Meng Xingyao stopped paying attention to the person on the ground and lightly tapped her toes, floating back into the air as her blue skirt spread around her like a flowing nebula.
Holding the Magic Wand steadily in her left hand, she slowly raised her right hand, extending her index finger and thumb while curling the remaining three fingers into the shape of a gun. A concentrated glimmer shone at her fingertip, pointing straight ahead.
As she lowered her hand, the four Floating Turrets around her rotated in perfect sync, their muzzles aligning precisely with her finger. Their cold metallic casings reflected the blue glow in her eyes.
[Target locked—]
The moment the mechanical voice finished speaking, dense blue psionic energy surged into the muzzles like a bursting tide. The previously dim barrels instantly blazed with blue light as energy flooded through them.
Meng Xingyao grinned, excitement flashing across her eyes.
Meng Xingyao (๑•̀ᴗ-) σ: "Fire!!!"
Following her shout, four brilliant blue beams erupted from the muzzles, tearing through the air with sharp whistles like meteors streaking across the sky, accurately locking onto the figure still sprinting several kilometers away.
A second earlier, the fleeing man had felt a sudden chill crawl down the back of his neck. Before he could react, a blinding blue light exploded behind him in the corner of his vision.
In the next instant, his consciousness plunged into darkness like a kite with a snapped string, and he completely lost awareness.
Rumble—
A few wisps of pale white smoke slowly drifted from the turret muzzles, curling through the air before gradually dissipating.
Meng Xingyao stood with her hands on her hips, staring intently at the distant explosion, a triumphant smile spreading across her lips.
"Yay! A direct hit! As expected of me!"
While Meng Xingyao was celebrating her successful shot, Cipher stood below with sparkling eyes, resting her chin in one hand while her fluffy Tail wagged uncontrollably behind her.
"As expected of something made by Silver Wolf—top quality indeed. This railgun is just too cool. I'm actually a little jealous, meow~"
Although she had no desire to become a high-risk Magical Girl herself, she had to admit it looked incredibly cool.
Cipher (ಡωಡ): "But now, aside from the outfit and holding a Magic Wand... it doesn't seem to have much to do with being a Magical Girl anymore, does it?"
Cipher shook her head slightly, stretched lazily, and slowly stood up.
Anyway, what's Meng Xingyao's is basically mine!
And what's mine is naturally still mine.
In that case, I'll hold off on targeting the Little Princess for now.
High in the sky, Meng Xingyao stood with her hands on her hips, basking in her excitement for quite a while before suddenly slapping her forehead.
"Oops! I forgot to check whether that guy is 'departed'!"
Just as she was about to fly over and investigate, a familiar flash of golden lightning suddenly appeared below.
With Little Hong's reminder, Meng Xingyao immediately noticed Cipher's arrival, along with four other people.
Besides the three Cipher had taken down herself, the fourth person was none other than the man Meng Xingyao had just blasted from afar.
"Hehe, Cat Sister! I just fired a shot and— Ouch!"
Meng Xingyao happily pounced toward Cipher, but before she could wrap an arm around her shoulder, Cipher pressed a hand against her forehead and gave it a crisp flick.
Cipher withdrew her hand helplessly. Looking at Meng Xingyao's dissatisfied expression, she shook her head.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Little Princess, haven't you realized it yet?"
"What?"
Meng Xingyao rubbed her forehead pitifully, completely clueless about what Cipher meant, assuming she was simply being mysterious.
[Master, please look...]
With Little Hong's reminder, Meng Xingyao finally noticed the blind spot.
Five people lying on the ground...
No, to be precise, four?
She rubbed her eyes, unable to believe what she was seeing.
Comparing them again and again with her memories, the man she had knocked unconscious with a single punch and the one Cipher had brought back looked exactly the same!
Realization struck, and her eyes widened.
"Even that one was a clone?!"
"That's what happens when you get carried away. Remember to take everything more seriously in the future, meow."
With that, Cipher turned into a streak of golden lightning once again, instantly disappearing from the Little Princess's sight, leaving Meng Xingyao standing there in a daze.
The very next second, Cipher returned with another bewildered man in her hand.
"Where is this...? Wait?!!"
The instant the man opened his eyes and saw Meng Xingyao and Cipher, his confusion immediately turned into terror.
"Didn't I already escape?! Why am I back here again? You—"
Before the man could continue rambling, Cipher casually delivered a chop to the back of his neck, knocking him unconscious once more.
She clapped her hands and tossed him onto the ground, her blue eyes filled with disdain.
[It is estimated that when this person initially created the Earth Wall for cover, he took the opportunity to escape underground.]
After hearing Little Hong's analysis, Meng Xingyao nodded thoughtfully before turning toward Cipher with eyes full of curiosity.
"Cat Sister, how did you find him? He even escaped underground! Can you actually pinpoint his location? That's amazing!"
Cipher's furry ears twitched as she shrugged casually.
"It may not be as flashy as the Little Princess's abilities, but playing cat and mouse is my specialty~"
Her Tail swayed lazily as she continued,
"That little mouse dug pretty fast, but unfortunately, tunneling makes quite a bit of noise."
"I followed the sound for about ten kilometers and caught him the moment he poked his head out for some fresh air. So I simply brought him back, meow."
Meng Xingyao: (●—●)
Running dozens of kilometers in a second and returning instantly with someone...
Meng Xingyao secretly glanced at the golden high heels on Cipher's feet.
Hiss—
Could those seemingly ordinary shoes actually be a pair of Divine Artifacts, granting unparalleled speed?
Or was Cat Sister simply that unreasonable as a demigod?
Running like the wind in high heels, just like a female protagonist in a game...
This seemingly casual display felt like a bucket of cold water poured over Meng Xingyao's head, instantly cooling all the excitement she had built up moments ago.
The wicked little thoughts in her heart vanished along with it.
Still, whether it was her competitive spirit or simply her unwillingness to admit defeat...
She quietly asked Little Hong in her mind.
'Little Hong, Little Hong, hurry and help me analyze Sister Cipher's ability data! I refuse to believe she doesn't have a weakness!'
Her tone was full of determination, though it also carried a trace of caution, as if she were afraid someone might discover her little scheme.
[Received. Data analysis in progress.]
[...]
[Analysis failed...]
[Unable to parse...]