novelraw Chapter 202: The Magical Girl’s Humiliating Defeat
Chapter 202: The Magical Girl’s Humiliating Defeat
Inside the Mirror Space.
Ailin—formerly the one called Shouye—was admiring the Dream Core that Jialan had given him, then looked up at the old woman in front of him.
The old woman named Jade Fox had greed in her eyes.
It looked as if she wanted to swallow the Dream Core whole.
Ailin said nothing, only pinched the Dream Core in his hand again.
The exterior felt like cotton candy, while the interior texture was like jelly.
Its shell was some strange box built with mana, and once it was taken out, Ailin could feel the Dream Core steadily leaking away.
“Once it leaves the box, the Dream Core will gradually vanish. Don’t forget,” Ailin warned, “We need to hurry. The return route hasn’t finished opening yet.”
“Almost done. You know how it is—visiting coordinates need a three-way handshake.”
“Each handshake has to pass human-machine interaction, then identity verification. The Mirror Kingdom’s security tech is expensive and tedious, but it’s safe. No one will be able to find it.” The old woman manipulated a mirror, the image inside constantly shifting, “I’ve already set everything up in your old world where you live. Once we go over, we can start immediately.”Ailin looked puzzled, “Are you sure you want to go to that old world?”
“At my age—”
The old woman let out a chilling, low laugh, “I’m not afraid of death. Even if I get polluted, it doesn’t matter. I don’t have many days left anyway.”
“If you die, what will happen to your old world?”
“It will have successors.”
Ailin didn’t press the matter. After all, someone else’s old world had nothing to do with her.
People band together not out of empathy.
It’s simply because the new world’s Disaster Control Bureau, and the Azure Cloud Sect, are both too extreme.
Otherwise, civil war would have broken out long ago.
The Black Mountain Realm that the old woman belonged to had no strong figures left; once she died, the remaining dregs wouldn’t last long.
They might not even need to lift a finger, the Black Mountain Realm would collapse on its own.
Her confident talk about successors probably showed she didn’t know how weak the people in her old world really were.
They couldn’t even negotiate with the Mirror Kingdom’s Prince.
They might not even be able to log onto the old-world chat group before dying off.
But none of this concerned Ailin.
After all, one less old world meant one less competitor.
They banded together now because they shared an enemy. Once they had the strength to fight those enemies, old worlds would be rivals again—no need to worry about enemies’ feelings...
The two of them fell silent, quietly waiting for the return-channel countdown to take them back to the old world where Ailin was.
Suddenly, the entire Mirror Space shook.
Ailin slammed the Dream Core’s box shut. The massive tremor knocked the old woman to the ground!
The mirror used for the countdown instantly developed cracks.
Ailin immediately steadied the mirror and switched the view to the outside.
A yellow light flashed, and she knew exactly who it was.
The old world had frequent dealings with Shan Lan. This yellow magical girl was the infamous Yellow Death in the old world.
Though she hadn’t acted in a long time, her ruthlessness once kept many old-worlders wary.
Her reputation was also a main reason she’d been able to obtain a Dream Core this time.
Shan Lan was not only the Witch Association’s Vice President, she also had plenty of ties with the Disaster Control Bureau in South China—hardly anyone dared provoke her.
Most importantly, she was strong.
Undeniably powerful.
Boom!
That powerful Yellow Death was struck by a terrifying force and launched like a shell, crashing through a building.
This magical girl, feared in the old world, was then kicked like a ball and flung away again!
The magical girl who had nearly suppressed her earlier now battered her with no resistance.
Ailin was dazed for a moment.
But that was not the main point.
The crucial thing was...
There was no mana whatsoever!
“Who is her opponent?” The old woman scrambled to her feet. Her withered face, every wrinkle trembling from the spatial shock of the battle—her pupils seemed about to fall from their sockets!
“Why is there no mana perceptible in the mirror!”
This was what stunned Ailin.
Sure, Yellow Death encountering an opponent was surprising, and she might be watching with a smirk to see her get beaten.
Azure Cloud Sect’s magical girls were ostentatious, and the magical girl Ruri had shown power not necessarily weaker than Yellow Death’s.
So it would be normal for Jialan to get beaten—if she were invincible she would have long since rebuked Azure Cloud Sect.
But the person beating her now had zero mana!
Not a magical girl, not a Disaster Beast, not even the old-world dregs’ constructs.
They were just using physical rules to brutally beat a Blooming-rank magical girl!
They had the Mirror Kingdom’s high-tech monitoring—any trace of mana should be detected!
For a moment both of them silently stared at the combat in the image.
They couldn’t leave yet anyway; the return countdown was still running in the background.
“Relax, the Mirror Space is still safe—”
Before Ailin could finish, the magical girl slammed down like a meteor, spraying asphalt and stone dust like a waterfall!
Old Woman: “Are you sure it’s safe?!”
That rushing mud-and-debris flow was heading straight toward the Mirror Space entrance!
Ailin: “I said the Mirror Space is safe...”
Before she finished, a giant boulder struck the entrance first!
A crack appeared on the Mirror Space wall connecting to the entrance.
Ailin’s eyes widened. “Impossible. Purely physical stone impacts can affect...”
The mudslide scourged the outside entrance, and the Mirror Space violently trembled!
“Are you sure it’s okay?!”
Ailin braced herself against the table and shouted, “Is now the time to be asking that?! Is the countdown not finished yet?!”
“Almost!”
Ailin’s pupils tightened as she watched the mud-and-asphalt flow relentlessly batter the Mirror Space gateway.
The Mirror Space began to destabilize.
The old woman screamed: “The Prince’s technology is defective! This Mirror Space is abnormally fragile!”
“Hurry and finish the transfer! I’ll stabilize the Mirror Space!”
But before Ailin could finish expanding the barrier, a fluctuation appeared above the Mirror Space.
“Get down!”
The aftershock smashed the mana barrier. Ailin shoved the old woman prone; above them the ripped-open space cascaded down, turbulent winds roaring past the two of them.
When Ailin re-established the mana barrier and sealed the breach overhead, the old woman was flat on the control system like a madwoman.
“Hurry, hurry!”
Ailin maintained the Mirror Space’s stability with mana while watching the raging mudslide outside.
Then she noticed something strange.
At the top of the mudflow, part of it carried a curse power.
She was from the Curse Realm originally, so she immediately sensed that familiar force.
Curses were different from mana. Generally they were hard to detect, but curses themselves could also erode mana.
Though born from Polluted Magic, once a curse activated it didn’t contain mana.
Simply put, those recorded in the Death Note, if not dead, could still hurt magical girls and Disaster Beasts with their bodies even without transforming.
The Curse Realm had already demonstrated this.
However, clearly, the curse portion attached to these mudflows was not from the Death Note.
It was a different, higher-grade curse—one without malevolence?
Ailin blinked, lost for a moment.
She didn’t know of any Curse Realm curse that lacked malice.
Curses inherently were meant to bring death to the cursed.
But clearly this curse wasn’t aimed at killing.
If it couldn’t kill, how could it be called a curse? Yet what she sensed was indeed a curse.
For a moment Ailin’s mind waged a tug-of-war, unable to make sense of it.
But she couldn’t dwell on it—if the Mirror Space didn’t finish the transfer, she and the old woman would die here!
“Is it done yet?”
The mana pressure on the Mirror Space increased—the space began to contract.
Jagged fragments of collapsing space kept cutting at their skin, drawing blood. Ailin couldn’t help but roar in anger:
“Dammit, Mirror Kingdom Prince, why does the countdown take so long!”
“All right, all right!”
The old woman cried out excitedly, “We’re ready to go!”
At the moment a blinding white light wrapped them and they vanished,
the entire Mirror Space suddenly contracted and collapsed!
The space turbulence roared and instantly swallowed the spot where the two had been standing!
Jialan watched as Simo Tu casually smashed the mental landscape. That calm expression finally cracked.
“Are you a magical girl or am I?!”
Jiang Si actually nodded once: “I am.”
“You are—what the hell!”
Jialan lost her mind.
Before the mental landscape unfolded, Jialan had still been confident.
After all, even the Golden Calamity Dragon King had been controlled long enough last time for her to use mental-dash.
Now the opponent had entered a mental landscape—surely they’d transform?
She had prepared countless counters for Simo Tu’s transformation.
But she’d never thought the opponent could break the field without transforming!
Right from the start, Jialan hadn’t expected to win—she couldn’t beat the Golden Calamity Dragon King, so fighting to this point wasn’t for victory.
She just refused to lose to a Simo Tu who didn’t use mana!
Now, Simo Tu nonchalantly controlled her without transforming. Furious and humiliated, she felt utterly wronged!
“Why won’t you transform!”
If you transform and beat me, fine—I’d accept it!
Refusing to transform, insisting on beating me with bare flesh—are you trying to shame me?!
My honor and mission as a magical girl—
Are you going to trample that?!
Simo Tu’s pupils looked at her emotionlessly. “Why should I transform?”
“It’s what you do when facing a magical girl—transform into a Disaster Beast! Transform into a witch! Winning against a magical girl with just your body, what kind of skill is that!”
Yun Ke next to her was stunned—did she hear that wrong?
Wait, what does he mean beating a magical girl with his body isn’t a feat?
Isn’t beating a magical girl with one’s body precisely a feat?
“Then transform if you have the guts. If you transform and kill me, I will accept it. If I’m being unreasonable, let Shion kill me!”
At this moment Xilan finally came to, rubbing the back of her head. Seeing Jialan and then Simo Tu, she immediately flung herself at Simo Tu’s feet and clutched his left leg.
“Boss! You must stand up for me! I told her to give you the Vice President spot, but she knocked me out without a word! She wasn’t hitting my head—she was hitting your face, your mask, your mouth, your teeth, your ears, your eyes! Simo Tu-sama!”
Sobbing with loyalty, she turned to Jialan with bared teeth.
In an instant she transformed from a husky into a rabid street dog.
“Simo Tu-sama the war god returns—you're done, I swear! Jialan, bow and swear to me and Simo Tu-sama, and maybe I’ll spare you a little life! Kneel!”
Her face changed so smoothly that Yun Ke gaped.
Is this even human?
Though she’d already seen Xilan’s shameless adoration for Simo Tu, Yun Ke never imagined she could sink this low.
People could really be so shameless?
Xilan, you’re truly born to be a bootlicker!
Yun Ke felt uneasy sitting there, thinking she might have to serve with someone like this in the past—her brain went white.
She inwardly wished Xilan dead.
Yun Ke then looked at Jialan.
As expected, Jialan didn’t even glance at Xilan.
After all, Vice President Jialan was proud—she wouldn’t be moved by this bootlicker’s few words.
Jialan simply sat down, having given up on continuing the fight with Simo Tu.
It was a wise move; she really couldn’t win.
Jialan was not someone who ignored reality.
Mature and charismatic—Vice President…
“I’ve already reported to headquarters that you colluded with the Mirror Kingdom and betrayed the Witch Association.” Jialan sat decisively, “Transform. Transform and fight me. If you don’t transform, you will forever be a traitor to the Witch Association! Don’t dream of the new Witch Association—your vice-presidential post will never happen!”
Yun Ke clenched her fists.
No—Jialan can’t bow like this...
“Oh, whatever.” Simo Tu answered indifferently, “I don’t need the Witch Association’s approval.”
“You do, you definitely do! Please, you must need it!”
Jialan’s voice grew urgent: “The new Witch Association can’t compare to the old one without legacy!”
Wait—Jialan, what are you saying...?
Shouldn’t you be proudly claiming you’ll crush him and his new Witch Association?
Even so, Simo Tu replied calmly: “Doesn’t matter.”
Hearing Simo Tu’s reaction, Jialan’s tone grew frantic:
“If you transform I’ll explain to headquarters—you and the Mirror Kingdom were only temporarily cooperating. I’ll give you the Vice President spot!”
Yun Ke’s eyes widened as she looked at the lofty vice president.
By the end, Jialan kneeled, her tone carrying a pleading edge.
Even a whiff of tears.
“Please transform and defeat me... I beg you.”
This wasn’t bowing; this was prostration, Jialan!
Yun Ke couldn’t hold it anymore and shouted, “Look at you—what a third-rate scoundrel you’ve become! Jialan! You’ve protected nothing! Are you still the Witch Association’s Vice President like this!”
“I won’t take a lecture from you!”
But facing Simo Tu’s pleading tone, Jialan’s expression turned ruthless in an instant. “Shut up, Yun Ke!”
Tears welled up in Yun Ke’s eyes.
Jialan herself felt as if her heart were being sliced.
To be this humiliated in front of everyone, even her former subordinate Yun Ke watched in dismay.
But there was no other way!
She really couldn’t lose to this man with no mana!
This was about her dignity and bottom line as a magical girl!
So even if it was ugly, even if debasing, she had to protect—
My mission as a magical girl!
“If you’re willing to transform and beat me, I’ll do whatever you want! New Witch Association, whatever Dream Core you seek—I’ll help!”
Simo Tu, who had shown little reaction until now, finally showed a slight change in expression.
“You know where the Dream Core is?”
“That thing I sent out—of course I know where it is!”
Xilan sneered, “Aren’t you proud.”
Simo Tu finally nodded, “Speak truthfully.”
Jialan’s face lit with wild joy. “I never break my word!”
Only then did Simo Tu finally take out a Grief Seed.
In Xilan’s worshipping gaze and Yun Ke’s stunned look, the Grief Seed emitted a pitch-black gleam.
It enveloped Simo Tu’s entire body!
“When Yin and Yang are reversed and in chaos—”
Wings suddenly opened and fluttered, whipping up a gale.
“When demonic blood stains the azure sky!”
When the pitch-black calamity dragon appeared, Yun Ke felt fear and submission from her core.
She involuntarily knelt!
She was a Complete Witch, and Complete Witches were particularly sensitive to corrupted magic.
Complete Witches were the Witch Association’s imitation of magical girls using Polluted Magic, but at essence they were Disaster Beasts.
A typical trait of Disaster Beasts is that higher-tier beasts have absolute control and suppression over lower-tier beasts!
Either submit, or die!
It was imprinted in the core of Disaster Beasts—also her instinct as a Complete Witch!
She finally understood why Xilan could shamelessly worship—many lower-level Disaster Beasts utterly obey higher-level ones.
“Yes! This is it!”
But Jialan showed no fear or suppression—her words and expression were full of ecstatic relief.
“Come on! Kill—”
Before she could finish, the calamity dragon’s thick, black tail flashed past!
Yun Ke saw nothing further. The magical girl was smashed backward; trees, utility poles, and streetlamps snapped with sharp cracks and fell to the ground.
The shock made the soles of her feet tingle.
Yun Ke gasped and turned her head slightly.
Jialan slid down from the ornamental rock she’d been thrown onto.
Her already-fragile magical outfit finally detached completely!
Yet Jialan showed no fear or unease, only a relieved, peaceful smile.
“Ah, defeated by a Disaster Beast dragon. Lost the fight. What can you do—who hasn’t lost outside?” she said.
Crazy.
Yun Ke couldn’t help cursing in her heart.
The old filter on Jialan’s image was shattered without a trace.
Yun Ke had expected Xilan to seize the moment and demand Simo Tu kill Jialan.
But Xilan lay obediently on the ground, motionless and silent.
Yun Ke later learned that Xilan had been too close; the force of Simo Tu’s transformation had been so fierce she had been knocked unconscious.
The calamity dragon strode to stand before Jialan.
Jialan only raised both hands. “I surrender. I surrender. Ask whatever you want; I’ll tell you. Giving you the vice-presidential position is fine.”
“Who took the Dream Core?”
Jialan paused. “Dream Core? Why would you want that? That thing is useless to people who use Polluted Magic...”
The dragon tail slammed into the side and pierced the ornamental rock behind her!
Splintering stone struck Jialan’s face; her expression went pale.
“Just answer the question.”
“The Dream Core was taken by people from an old world.”
“Which old world?”
“The Curse Realm.”
Simo Tu tilted his head, “Are you mocking me?”
Jialan shook her head immediately. “I’m not. It was taken by people from the Curse Realm! But they were people who once escaped from the Curse Realm.”
Jialan took a deep breath.
“They infected another old world, causing everyone there to die. Now they want to use the Dream Core’s power to fully Bloom and come into this world.”
“What if they infect this world?”
Jialan smiled slightly. “There’s Azure Cloud Sect here—what’s there to fear?”
Jiang Si’s tail knocked her unconscious.