Chương 237: Hesitation and Choice: A Wicked Game

Watching Yin Xue finally fly towards Xing Xian in the distance after giving her repeated instructions, Liu Li took another deep breath and forced herself to turn her gaze to the beast-like humans who were still roaring and trying to break free of their restraints.

She tried to repeat Yin Xue's words in her mind over and over again.

—We haven't harmed them, we're merely restricting their movements. Whether they can be salvaged is something we'll have to wait and see.

So now—I must fight!

With her ice blade gripped tightly, Liuli transformed into a streak of deep blue light and plunged into the chaotic monster horde once more. This time, her actions were indeed much more decisive than before, and the chilling aura emanating from her wielding ice blade was even more ferocious.

However, whenever the ice blade accidentally cuts through that grayish-white skin and she feels the flesh and blood that are so different from those of a real beast, Liuli's heart trembles uncontrollably.

Whenever those "monsters" let out even more mournful roars due to excruciating pain, she could almost hear the cries of humans dying.

She felt like a cold-blooded hand, cruelly dismembering a group of defenseless kin.

"No—that's not how it is!"

Ruri tried hard to recall the words that Jiying and Xingshuang had taught her, and to recall Yinxue's firm gaze just now. She tried to dispel the negative emotions that were constantly eroding her will and force herself to concentrate on fulfilling her duties as a magical girl.

But—she still couldn't do it; that kindness that came from the depths of her soul had now become the heaviest shackle.

Just then, a figure filled with violence and coldness rushed towards her at an astonishing speed, its sharp claws gleaming with cold light extending at the same time.

It was an unusually tall monster covered in bony armor. Its behavior did not seem chaotic and disorderly like its other counterparts; instead, it had a clear purpose.

"Such speed! It's clearly different from the previous ones!"

Liuli's heart skipped a beat, and her icy blue eyes suddenly narrowed. She immediately stopped fighting with the other monsters, focused all her attention on assuming a defensive stance, and faced this powerful "otherworldly" creature head-on.

But she was horrified to discover that even when facing this being, which was clearly more dangerous and closer to a true virtual beast, her heart was still filled with struggle.

Was it ever human?

If I kill it here, what difference will there be between me and that damned Mirror Lord?

This thought haunted Liuli like a nightmare, causing her to hesitate inevitably, and making the ice blade in her hand feel heavier than ever before.

This slight hesitation became the fatal flaw.

Liuli sensed the threat and saw that the "alien" was moving faster than she could have imagined, but she ultimately made the same choice as before—flying backward to try to create distance.

This time, however, her opponent will not give her any more chances.

"Bang--!"

A muffled thud resounded, and Liuli felt an irresistible, terrifying force surge through her arm. In an instant, the ice blade slipped from her grasp, transforming back into the wand's original form in mid-air before crashing to the ground.

She herself was also violently thrown back by this force, flying backwards for more than ten meters like a kite with a broken string, before crashing heavily onto the cold ground with a painful groan.

"Ugh————" The intense impact made Liuli dizzy, and her bones felt like they were falling apart.

But what terrified her even more than the physical pain was that the creature didn't stop after it had succeeded. It let out another murderous roar and pounced on her again as she lay on the ground!

—First, get moving!

Let's get moving, Luo Bingli!

If this continues—it will really drag them down— Ruri's heart was screaming wildly, desperately trying to rouse her unruly body, wanting to get up, wanting to retrieve her wand, wanting—at least to do something, instead of waiting helplessly for the attack to come like this.

However, she failed.

She watched helplessly as those gleaming claws rapidly enlarged in her eyes, and in the end, she could only cross her arms in front of her like a helpless child before closing her eyes.

"laugh--!"

The sound of flesh being pierced suddenly rang out, but the expected excruciating pain did not come.

Liuli slowly opened her eyes, trembling, and then her gaze froze instantly.

All he could see were the sharp bone claws, less than a meter away, hanging limply in mid-air. The monster's entire body was pierced by several tough vines that had appeared out of nowhere, pinning it to the spot, unable to move an inch.

"Waaaaah————·————" The monster let out a agonizing roar, and dark purple blood gushed down the sharp barbs of the vines, spreading into eerie blood flowers on the ground.

Not far behind the monster, Yin Xue, the summoner of the vines, barely managed to steady her slightly unsteady figure caused by the extreme acceleration.

Without even glancing again at the monster still struggling in vain, she walked past it quickly to Liuli's side, her face filled with lingering fear and concern. She asked urgently, "Lili! Are you alright?!"

"Yin Xue—you—" Liu Li's lips trembled slightly as she instinctively grabbed Yin Xue's arm. She pointed to the monster that was still twitching slightly and asked with difficulty, "That—that—you—" Yin Xue glanced back, her voice instantly lowering: "Don't worry, I avoided the vital points."

She paused, then added, as if explaining to Ruri, and also as if convincing herself, "... of course, it's the vital point of being human; if they were to die from such an injury in a short time—they couldn't be called human."

These words pierced Liuli's heart, causing her body, which was trembling slightly with fear, to stiffen abruptly.

But Yin Xue didn't give her any more time to think or wallow in her pain. She quickly switched back to her cheerful and energetic self, cupped Liuli's cheeks in her hands, forced her to look at her, and asked again in a worried tone, "More important than that, Xiaoli, you're the most important! Are you alright? Is anything bothering you?"

Liuli stared blankly at Yinxue, watching her expression change in an instant, listening to her feigned ease and concern, and recalling her calm, almost cruel judgment and incredibly precise attack just now. Her heart felt as if something had clenched it tightly.

For the first time, she realized with such clarity that her best friend, her partner who always needed her care and occasionally acted spoiled and unreasonable, possessed a resilience and strength far exceeding her imagination.

But she herself—because of her laughable naiveté and fatal hesitation—made her do this—an act burdened with a heavy sense of guilt.

A strong sense of guilt and self-reproach welled up in her heart, and Liuli's eyes instantly reddened.

She didn't answer Yin Xue's question, but instead bit her lower lip tightly, finally burying her head deeply in Yin Xue's arms and letting out a suppressed sob.

"I'm sorry—Snow—I'm sorry—I've dragged you down again—"

"Huh? Huh?!" Yin Xue was slightly taken aback by the sudden hug and crying, but then her expression was replaced by a mixture of helplessness and tenderness.

She turned and hugged her trembling companion tightly, gently patting her back and softly comforting her, "It's alright, it's alright, Xiao Li, I'm so glad you're okay, I'm so glad you're okay—"

"But—but I—" Hearing this comforting words, Liuli cried even louder, as if she wanted to release all her fear, self-blame, grievances, and hatred for her own weakness through these scalding tears.

Not far away in mid-air, Xingxian, who had been silently watching all of this, finally breathed a sigh of relief after seeing this scene, and slowly put away the gear pocket watch in her hand that was ready to be activated at any time.

She was both relieved that she didn't have to force herself to use the energy-consuming magic armor when she was in poor condition, and deeply surprised by the decisiveness and calmness that Yin Xue showed in that instant.

After binding the last few scattered monsters with magic threads and sending them to Yin Xue like garbage, she slowly flew to their side.

Yin Xue maintained the posture of holding Liu Li, only slightly turning her body to summon several thick vines again, firmly binding the monsters sent by Xing Xian to their original positions.

Then, she looked up at Xingxian flying towards her and asked, "These—are these the last few?"

"Yes, they've all been taken care of." Xingxian nodded slightly, her tone tinged with seriousness.

"Fortunately—they weren't allowed to leave this commercial street."

Yin Xue responded, her expression unchanged, but she unconsciously tightened her grip on Liu Li's arm.

Xingxian looked at her unusually calm demeanor, then at the "oddity" still firmly pinned to the spot by the vines, hesitated for a moment, and then asked softly, "Yinxue—are you alright?"

Upon hearing this, Yin Xue glared helplessly at Xing Xian, then gestured with her chin towards Liu Li, who was still tightly hugging her and crying her eyes out.

Unexpectedly, after hearing the question, Liuli slowly raised her head and looked at Yinxue with her teary, icy blue eyes, as if she also wanted to hear the answer to the question.

Faced with two pairs of equally concerned eyes, Yin Xue finally couldn't hold back anymore.

She said somewhat irritably, "I could tolerate all the trouble you've caused me before, but now you have to ask me this question to embarrass me?"

"Do you only feel satisfied if I tell you that I'm also feeling terrible?"

Upon hearing this, Xingxian gave a slightly embarrassed smile: "Sorry—" Liuli sniffed and asked in a thick nasal voice, "Then—since you're not feeling well—" Why—why do that?

"Idiot, is that even a question?"

Yin Xue smiled and reached out her other hand to gently stroke Liu Li's soft blue hair, replying softly, "Of course it's because—if we didn't do that, Xiao Li, you would get hurt."

Upon hearing this simple and straightforward explanation, Liuli trembled slightly, and her cheeks flushed bright red.

She lowered her head in embarrassment, burying her face in Yin Xue's warm and soft embrace again, refusing to lift it up.

Yin Xue continued to stroke the other's head, gently comforting her.

Xingxian looked at the heartwarming scene before her and couldn't help but smile. Then, she subconsciously began to observe her surroundings and take final precautions.

Just then, she suddenly noticed that at the end of the shopping street, a car was driving towards them at a moderate speed.

At first, Xingxian subconsciously thought that reinforcements from the Bureau of Extraordinary Affairs had finally arrived.

After all, apart from professional field agents from the Bureau of Extraordinary Affairs, no ordinary person would dare to drive to this place at this time—a place where a riot had just occurred and which had been evacuated.

However, when the car got closer, Xingxian immediately sensed that something was wrong.

It wasn't the kind of specially modified black SUV that the field agents of the Bureau of Paranormal Affairs usually used in her memory. Instead, it was a brightly colored, exaggeratedly designed vehicle with a huge speaker mounted on the roof—a roadshow vehicle?

The huge speaker on the roof of the car was playing some kind of extremely cheerful background music on a loop. The festive melody created an extremely eerie and unsettling contrast with the surrounding mess.

More importantly———— Xingxian's gaze passed through the windshield of the roadshow vehicle and clearly saw the figure in the driver's seat—leisurely holding the steering wheel with one hand and gently tapping the rhythm of the music with the other.

And—the pure white mask with the eerie smile on his face!

"Liuli! Yinxue!"

Xingxian's face turned icy cold in an instant. Without time for explanation, she shouted at the top of her lungs, "We'll talk about it when we get back! Be on high alert immediately—Jingjue has appeared!"

The moment she received the notification, she transformed into a streak of pale purple light and rushed towards the eerie promotional vehicle without hesitation.

However, just before her attack hit, the figure wearing a smiling mask vanished from the driver's seat like a ghost, only to reappear on the roof of the roadshow vehicle a second later.

Xingxian immediately stopped her forward momentum. Instead of rushing forward, she hovered in mid-air, staring intently at the figure wearing a smiling mask below.

At the same time, she raised her arm and gestured behind her, signaling Liuli and Yinxue behind her to keep watch at a distance and not to approach easily.

"Hehe—my dear Inspector, how have you been?" Jingjue stood on the roof of the carriage, leisurely adjusting his collar, and asked with a light laugh, "You look so energetic now. Has your injury from yesterday recovered well?"

Xingxian ignored his malicious provocation and instead coldly questioned, "Jingjue, what is your purpose here? Are these—humans you've transformed into monsters—all your creations?! And what's inside this vehicle?!"

"Why be so cold, Inspector General?" Mirror Lord continued in an aria-like tone, "Didn't we—get along quite well yesterday?"

Xingxian snorted coldly and retorted mercilessly, "If you're referring to the time when I was treated like a dead dog and severely punished by my companion Jiying, and suffered huge losses—that did indeed make me feel quite pleased."

Hearing Xingxian ruthlessly expose his wounds, a very soft, cold laugh seemed to come from beneath Jingjue's pure white smiling mask.

He abandoned his feigned composure and elegance, his voice turning icy: "To be honest, I'm quite surprised. Why would you, as the kingdom's inspector, cooperate with someone who is essentially closer to me?"

"If it weren't for that damned outcast—" Jingjue suddenly reached out his hand obsessively towards Xingxian, as if trying to touch something from afar, "My plan should have been realized long ago."

"Whether it's you yourself, or that captivating power of yours," he suddenly clenched his fist, "it should, and inevitably will, be used by me!"

"I make my own decisions about who I cooperate with, and judging from the results, my choice was quite correct, wasn't it?" Xingxian retorted defiantly.

"The feeling of having your perfect plan completely disrupted by an unexpected character—it's not pleasant, is it?"

"Hmph—it's alright." Mirror Lord's voice returned to its calm tone.

"It's just—waiting a little longer."

"All your secrets, and those of that damned outsider, will ultimately belong to me."

"Then come and try," Xingxian said in a deep voice.

"So, what exactly is your purpose? You just lost so many important things yesterday, and you're already so eager to act again today?"

"Oh, you mean this—" Mirror Lord's gaze swept over the three magical girls who were watching him warily, and a mischievous chuckle escaped from beneath his mask: "I wonder what you all think of my carefully prepared 'appetizer' performance?"

"Of course, it doesn't matter if the evaluation isn't high, because—"

"The next, even more spectacular performance is about to begin here!"

As he spoke, he bowed deeply to the three girls in an extremely exaggerated yet elegant manner.

The next moment, several magical threads that Xingxian had secretly prepared shot out and bound Jingjue tightly to the spot.

As Xingxian manipulated the threads, attempting to cut the other person's body, she coldly replied, "Sorry, none of us are particularly interested in drama. You'd better skip your shoddy acting!"

"Hahahaha!"

However, the bound Mirror Lord showed no sign of panic. Instead, he let out a loud laugh filled with pleasure and mockery, and said in a pitying tone, "I'm sorry, my dear Inspector, from the very beginning—you were already in the audience."

As soon as he finished speaking, Jingjue's body, which was bound by magic threads, suddenly burst out with a dazzling white light.

"boom-!!!"

The violent explosion instantly engulfed him, and the powerful shockwave spread outwards, creating a strong air current in mid-air.

Strangely, although the explosion was quite powerful, the roadshow vehicle that remained parked in place seemed to have been specially reinforced, or perhaps the clone had deliberately controlled it before self-destructing, because it was completely undamaged.

The next moment, accompanied by a tooth-grinding metallic scraping sound, the rear door of the roadshow vehicle slowly opened amidst a cloud of smoke and dust.

Meanwhile, Jingjue's malicious and mocking words echoed like a nightmare in the ears of the three girls: "Some of the 'cute pets' inside are beyond saving, while others—perhaps—can still be saved."

Of course, there were also some—true virtual beasts mixed in.

"Come on, my lovely magical girls, make your choice."

"This game—it must be really fun, right?"