Newton District

As the owner of Magical Girl, Mrs. Hudson's eye for fashion was truly astounding.

Even with those exaggerated glasses still on, Sally became the focus of the entire clothing store the moment she stepped out of the Fitting Room. The young ladies of high society and wealthy heiresses who had come for the store's reputation were all overshadowed by Sally's beauty.

But Sally was still Sally. The girl had been frightened off by the scrutinizing, astonished stares.

However, because she had been so eager to drag Tang Qi away, she failed to notice the startling figures on the bill in his hand.

This clothing store, which catered mainly to young girls and wealthy ladies, had won the favor of Messer City's upper class not only because of Mrs. Hudson's incredible taste, but also because of its expensive service.

But compared to Divine Eagle Gold Coins, which were of little use to Tang Qi, the Misfortune Mark now on the back of his hand was what he truly needed.

His thirst for power made him eager to use it.

Fortunately, he still had his reason, and he suppressed the impulse.

After leaving Midtown Avenue, he sent the drastically transformed Sally home.

He went nowhere else, returning to the Brick House on campus as quickly as possible.

Tang Qi looked unchanged on the outside, but inwardly, he was utterly exhausted.

His battle with the Misfortune Witch's Sub-Personality had taken place within a special space created by the Witch.

It had not drained his physical strength, but the Furnace Power he had accumulated over many days had been completely exhausted. The course of his comeback seemed to have been within Tang Qi's expectations all along. The poor Witch Sub-Personality had encountered Tang Qi, both cunning and cheating, the moment she emerged.

Though she possessed immense magical power, she had been forced to hold back, allowing Tang Qi, a rookie who had only just entered the Supernatural Realm, to trap her.

Still, luck had played a part in it as well.

If any single step had gone wrong, Tang Qi would have paid a tremendous price even if he had survived.

Fortunately, he had won.

A Misfortune Mark had practically revealed a shortcut before Tang Qi's eyes.

And through his conversation with the Misfortune Witch's Sub-Personality, Tang Qi learned that the Golden Furnace Meditation Method he cultivated had an extraordinary origin. Moreover, the method he had figured out himself—burning those negative, evil, aberrant souls to add fuel to the furnace he had transformed into—

Had also received the Misfortune Witch's Sub-Personality's approval.

That was equivalent to giving Tang Qi an extra safeguard. Yet his cautious nature kept him from using it immediately, and he returned home instead.

Standing in the small living room on the first floor, Tang Qi went straight into the kitchen and carefully prepared two dishes and a soup for himself. After eating, he felt his energy recover somewhat, but he still neither cultivated nor went out.

Instead, he came to the workbench and followed the same procedure as before.

Once again, he melted a piece of Blue Sea Salt.

The result was another thirty Sea Demon Bullets.

After putting away the bullets one by one, Tang Qi returned to the second-floor bedroom. He sat cross-legged on the Moon-Patterned Carpet as before, and when the first ray of moonlight fell upon him, he entered meditation again.

"Boom~"

The golden sun appeared. Perhaps because Tang Qi had depleted his Mental Power, its blazing radiance was somewhat weaker than usual.

But soon, after the aberrations pouring through the crack had been burned to ashes, the sun's brilliance surged once more.

A night passed. When Tang Qi entered the Main Teaching Building carrying his books, the light in his eyes showed that his depleted Mental Power had been fully restored, even becoming more abundant than before. That fit perfectly with the idea that one would improve after a fierce battle.

Tang Qi had originally thought that he would see quite a lively scene today.

After all, Sally's appearance at Magical Girl last night had made even him, someone who had endured the bombardment of internet beauties on Previous Life Earth, gasp in admiration. Surely the hormone-driven visual creatures of St. Thorn High School would be unable to remain calm either.

But unfortunately, and rather unexpectedly, that was not the case.

Sally had come, but she was still "Unlucky Sally."

Her messy golden hair, baggy pants, loose sweater, and an extra old-fashioned knitted cap made her look plain and dowdy.

Sally walked up to Tang Qi and explained, looking both aggrieved and apologetic, "I-It was my mother. She said that before my coming-of-age ceremony, I have to keep looking like that. But I kept the dress. Let's return it after school."

"It's all right, Sally. I understand your mother. But you have to keep that dress too. It won't affect our relationship."

Tang Qi quickly understood and began comforting Sally instead.

Making Sally maintain a dowdy, ordinary appearance was evidently one of the few things Sally's mother could do to preserve her sense of security.

Perhaps she did not want Sally to draw too much attention and spread the misfortune.

Or perhaps she simply wanted to protect Sally.

"If you feel sorry about it, perhaps you can help me take notes in class. You know, I have other matters to attend to."

Tang Qi comforted her, then raised the Monster Files in his hand, successfully diverting Sally's attention.

After school, Tang Qi said goodbye to Sally.

However, he did not return to the Brick House.

Instead, he walked to the stop outside Thorn High School. After studying the sign for a while, he finally chose a Red Bus that had just arrived.

It happened to be evening, one of Messer City's busiest periods.

Tang Qi sat in his seat, silently watching the sights of this unfamiliar yet familiar city through the glass.

This seemed to be a bus with a rather long route. It soon passed through the damp, filthy Bronx District and headed toward the next district.

Eventually, the Red Bus stopped at an old-looking stop.

When the bus departed, a young figure stepped out from the stop.

"Buzz"

Tang Qi slowly walked out of the stop. His hands were empty, as though he had brought nothing with him, and he gazed curiously at the scene before him.

This place seemed to have once been glorious.

The old buildings were now mottled and weathered, yet they still carried the extravagant, fervent atmosphere of the city's early prosperity. After their decline, and beneath the accumulation of Years, they had acquired an artistic quality that made people unable to help but admire them.

Tang Qi knew where this was. This was Newton District.

Yes, Messer City had once enjoyed a period of prosperity. That could be said of Mihuang State as well.

And the starting point of that glory had been Newton District.

But now, this had become a district with very little presence. Only some nostalgic residents, artists, and similar groups enjoyed settling here.

Because it had once been prosperous, the rent here was not cheap despite its decline.

Thus, the district was spacious and weighty, but far less densely populated than Bronx District.

That was one of the reasons Tang Qi had chosen this place tonight. He intended to use the "Misfortune Mark" here.

For his first use, to avoid anything terrible happening, Tang Qi had deliberately avoided Bronx District, where obvious aberrations were concentrated and erupted frequently.

I hope you won't disappoint me.

Tang Qi silently watched the mark on the back of his hand gradually emerge, speaking silently in his heart.