New Year's Blessing for the Endless Night

"Is this really okay?"

Crouching at the base of the towering stone tower, Xia Liang slowly used magic to remove the patterns connecting to the ground, and couldn't help but ask, "You said that destroying this thing would stop the Claw Mark's plan, but what if it's a time bomb? If we handle it so carelessly, won't we just detonate it?"

"No problem, I've already investigated. This thing doesn't have any magic supply or storage inside; in other words, it's just an auxiliary device at best."

Standing atop the stone tower, White Thistle was doing similar work to Xia Liang, her voice calm. "Since there's no risk in destroying it, why not take advantage of the enemy's predicament and get rid of it?"

"But is it really okay if we don't go to help?"

Xia Liang glanced in the direction Lin Xiaolu and the others had left, and said with slight worry, "That enemy... they probably can't handle him, right?"

"The Wood Lily might have some issues, but the Mimosa is actually quite remarkable."

White Thistle remained unfazed. "I trust my teammates. As for your Fangting City... I think those two are quite strong too. After all, they beat us in the previous competition. You should trust them even more than I do."

"Thank you for the compliment."

Xia Liang couldn't help but chuckle awkwardly twice.

To be honest, she really couldn't understand the abilities of her two teammates anymore.

Although she was the fastest to Blossoming abilities in the entire Fangting City Squad, in recent situations requiring real combat, she wondered if it was just her imagination, but the other two people performed better than her.

Bai Jingxuan already possessed a similar rate of improvement to me, and recently her strength has progressed exceptionally well. During her battle with the woman with the Claw Mark, she even displayed a transformation highly similar to the one with the Claw Mark.

Not only did Larkspur and the others show no surprise at this transformation, but Bai Jingxuan herself seemed completely accustomed to it. It's not hard to imagine that she had already mastered this transformation without her knowledge.

Lin Xiaolu's progress was initially unremarkable, even slow, but recently, especially after the competition with Bai'an City, Lin Xiaolu has mastered the Turbidification Technique, seems to have had a breakthrough, and her combat skills are improving by leaps and bounds. If she were to awaken her Magic Armament one day, she would likely possess combat abilities far exceeding those of the Blossoming stage.

Thinking about it this way, it seems that I, who stayed here to destroy the device, am actually the weakest member of the team in terms of combat strength?

"Hmm, now that I think about it, could it be that I'm worrying for nothing?"

The sudden thought that popped into Xia Liang's mind made her eyes widen slightly; she herself was somewhat surprised.

However, before she could even let her thoughts wander, White Thistle, standing atop the tower, spoke up again, "Of course, trusting our teammates doesn't mean putting all the pressure on them. So after we finish our current tasks, we still need to hurry up and provide support to ensure everything goes smoothly."

"After all, many times, to win against the enemy, simply doing your job well isn't enough; doing a little more gives your teammates more room to maneuver."

As White Thistle spoke, he gradually quickened his pace. "If you want to be a good team leader in Fangting City in the future, you need to learn to leave room for your team in many situations. This is something I'm currently working hard to learn."

"... Team leader, me?" Xia Liang looked up blankly.

"Aren't you your team leader?" White Thistle asked, looking down in confusion.

"I don't think so? After all, the current squad leader is a junior... namely, Larkspur. It seems that White Rose takes the lead in most things at other times."

After a moment's thought, Xia Liang quickly came to a conclusion. "No matter how I think about it, 'team leader' doesn't seem like a position that concerns me. Why do you think I'm the team leader?"

"It's something like temperament or personality; I feel you're more like the other two than they are."

White Thistle withdrew her gaze and continued looking at the stone tower, "If that's not the case, then please forgive me. I didn't mean to sow discord between you."

"It's nothing, it's nothing. I was just asking casually."

Xia Liang smiled and waved her hand, then focused on her work again. "Well, I've never received similar feedback before, so it's a little surprising."

"So, who is your actual team leader?" White Thistle asked casually, as if trying to change the subject.

"She's a junior colleague, after all, she's a senior, she knows a lot, and everyone trusts her," Xia Liang replied.

"That's not what I meant by 'team leader.' After all, in most cities, the Magical Girl Squad are senior members of the team, including our captain from Bai'an City, who is also a senior member who didn't come to Fangting this time. Everyone respects her very much."

White Thistle explained, "What I'm asking is, among all of you magical girls from Fangting City, who is the leader? For example, since you're all going to participate in the Kingdom assessment, who will be the nominal captain?"

Is this important?

"Perhaps? At least from my perspective, it's important."

White Thistle stared at the patterns in front of him. "Perhaps it's because my mentor has high expectations of me, hoping that I can 'become the team leader,' so over time, I've unconsciously started to care about this issue. After all, one day, our predecessors will retire, and we will become someone else's predecessors. At that time, who should make the decisions in the team?"

"That sounds like a distant topic. I think it's okay if we don't think about it right now, right?"

Xia Liang smiled helplessly, "Well... if you really want me to say, it would probably be White Rose."

"White Rose? Her?"

White Thistle asked with some surprise, "You're planning to make that kid the team leader?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"It's hard to explain 'why' about this kind of question."

Xia Liang shook her head and said in a low voice, "However, in my personal opinion, if one of the three has to be the leader, it definitely won't be me. Of the remaining two, White Rose seems to be the most likely candidate."

"Because the Inspector General favors her more?" White Thistle asked, puzzled.

"Of course not," Xia Liang chuckled, reminding him, "Also, you just said you weren't planning on stirring up trouble."

"Ah, I'm sorry." White Thistle realized her slip of the tongue and immediately apologized.

The two fell silent for a moment, focusing intently on working on the patterns on the stone tower.

After a while, when they had finished their work, the Blue Moon that had been hanging high in the sky suddenly seemed to have been hit by something and faded a lot in an instant.

Before the two could react to this change, the blackness and other magical forces that had been fiercely confronting each other in the nearby mountains and forests suddenly dissipated.

As if by prior arrangement, the battlefield on both sides simultaneously shifted in position, as if silently urging the two of them onward.

"Looks like we need to hurry," White Thistle said slowly.

"Yes, let's finish this as soon as possible," Xia Liang agreed.

Both of them continued to focus on their work, deliberately avoiding further conversation, as if the previous topic had never existed.

As Xia Liang observed from afar, the battle between Larkspur and her two companions and Yuan was indeed drawing to a close.

This judgment was initially made by Margaret.

She was able to make this judgment because, just now, after a long and fierce battle, she keenly noticed that the wine glass in Yuan's hand only contained a glass of wine that had turned reddish-black.

The layering phenomenon that had always existed within the Iris Wine Cup had disappeared imperceptibly as it was repeatedly attacked.

If the previous deduction is correct, then this can basically be considered as the kite's Beastheart Liberation having failed.

No one present was surprised by the result. After all, from the moment Iris failed to dodge the first attack, the battle had become a contest of endurance. As long as Larkspur and the others could keep attacking Iris without losing any of their own combat strength, Iris would gradually weaken until she completely lost the boost from the Beastheart Liberation and returned to her normal combat strength.

This was an open conspiracy, but Yuan had no choice but to fight back.

After all, for her, the goal of this battle was always to defeat the Cornflower.

Damaging the City Barrier Network and attracting beasts to Fangting are unimportant; they are merely means to force the other side to fight. What matters is the mission that White Wolf initially assigned to her— the Beast Source, Cornflower, and Bai Jingxuan.

Bringing back these three objectives is of paramount importance.

As long as we can defeat the Cornflower- on, it doesn't matter if the stone tower is destroyed. In fact, it would be better if the stone tower were destroyed, as long as we can achieve our goal.

Iris knows the White Wolf very well.

She knew that when the White Wolf said "slaughter the Fangting City to blackmail Cornflower," the emphasis was never on "slaughtering the Fangting City." As long as she completed her mission, whether or not she had actually carried out the "slaughter" was completely unimportant.

White Wolf only cares about two things: first, whether he has achieved the goal she mentioned; and second, whether he has remembered the details she emphasized.

The former goes without saying, and as for the latter, if everything goes smoothly, even if the stone tower is destroyed, it won't be a big deal. When he goes back to report to the White Wolf and is asked "whether he did it her way", he can simply bring Semi over to prove that he did put in effort on the stone tower project, even if it was ultimately ruined.

That's right, Yuan didn't want to engage in pointless slaughter.

Whether her colleagues criticized her for being soft-hearted or her enemies denounced her as hypocritical, it didn't matter what others said; she simply didn't want to.

Those who practice martial arts must uphold morality, and one of the core tenets of morality is not to bully the weak.

This was a phrase her master taught her, and she has never forgotten it.

She knew that once she chose to defect with White Wolf and join Claw Mark, all sense of morality had vanished. But even so, like a drowning person, she clung tightly to this last straw, unwilling to let go.

That's why she came up with this seemingly pointless plan—to use the promise of "destroying Fangting City's protective network" as bait to force the local magical girls to fight, then defeat them, and finally kidnap them and run away.

If they win during this process, they can finish quickly and escape with their "spoils" before the device is detonated. The remaining magical girls will then have time to deal with the stone tower.

If they lose, the outcome is obvious: the stone tower will undoubtedly be demolished by the Fangting City Squad without causing any damage.

Therefore, if Yuan wants to achieve the goal that best serves her own interests throughout the entire plan, then naturally only one option remains:

Win, and win as quickly as possible.

That's why she tried to stop everyone halfway, and that's why she used Beastheart Liberation from the start, wanting to win directly with an overwhelming difference in strength.

Ultimately, things turned out this way.

Forget about a quick victory; she's even been forced to relinquish her Beastheart Liberation.

One wrong step leads to another. Perhaps it was due to being too eager for quick success, perhaps it was due to underestimating the strength of the Fangting City Squad of three, or perhaps it was because Margaret's Flourishing Bloom exposed their weakness...

In conclusion, the kite has indeed been driven into a desperate situation.

The Larkspur perched on a branch not far from her, watching her silently; Hong Siyu floated high in the distance, overlooking the battlefield; Margaret stood in front of her, silently swirling the wine glass in her hand.

All three women had varying degrees of damage to their clothing and their hair was somewhat disheveled, which was enough to prove that they had all suffered some degree of injury, but there was no doubt that they still retained a certain degree of fighting ability.

Even the Larkspur, which was in the worst condition, showed no sign of dejection at this moment.

Having fought to this point, no one had the energy to say anything more. Everyone was standing firm on their own willpower, afraid that if they lost their nerve even slightly, they would no longer be able to maintain their high level of concentration.

"Oh."

However, the kite still smiled.

Not for others, but for oneself.

Because no matter what happens next, she is finally content.

To face one's enemy squarely, to fight a battle fair and square using all means, and then to face defeat with dignity.

This is not shameful; on the contrary, it is what all martial artists should strive for.

No matter how detailed your plans are for "after victory," a loss is a loss. Your opponent defeated you under fair and just conditions. To deny this result is to be inferior.

Cornflower.

She murmured, her hoarse voice almost screaming, "Aren't you really going to consider coming to Claw Mark?"

"... I have no penchant for putting myself in danger."

Upon hearing this, Larkspur paused slightly, then gently shook her head. "The promises made by your leader are indeed tempting, but I cannot trust her, nor can I trust Claw Mark."

"Is that so?" Yuan sighed helplessly, shrugging as if resigned to her fate. "Then it seems that tonight's grand event will have to end here."

"Is this an admission of defeat?"

Margaret, standing at the very front, looked puzzled. "You're not feeling well anymore, old lady."

"Sigh, you young man, you're quite handsome, but you never say a kind word."

Yuan glared at her with some dissatisfaction. "But you're not wrong. I lost. Your abilities are all well-developed, your basic skills are solid, and your teamwork is indeed exquisite. I didn't lose unjustly."

"What do you mean? Why are you suddenly praising me?"

Margaret covered her mouth in slight surprise. "What's next? Demand that prisoners be treated well? Or utter some more harsh words before disaster strikes?"

The Larkspur looked at the kite with considerable confusion, unable to understand what the kite was up to.

"Making threats... I guess that counts?"

Yuan chuckled twice, "However, I still don't intend to be caught here, so even though I've lost, please understand my next actions."

After she finished speaking, she suddenly raised her hand and gently tapped her heart twice.

The two taps did not generate any special magical fluctuations, nor did they make any significant noise. They were quieter than any of the techniques that Iris had used before, so much so that at first, none of the three people in Fangting City knew what she was doing.

But then, almost instantly, everyone felt something disappear from their bodies.

It's not about withdrawing, reducing, or weakening; it's about disappearing in an instant.

Brush.

The first to be affected was Larkspur. Her body had already suffered serious injuries, and even after using magic to repair them, she was still in poor condition, so she almost fell off the tree. Fortunately, she adjusted her center of gravity in time and only fell onto a branch below.

Then, it was Hong Siyu. Floating in mid-air, she seemed to suddenly lose the ability to fly, plummeting directly from the sky and crashing to the ground.

As for Margaret, although she didn't make a fool of herself, at the same moment, she also noticed a startling fact.

The wine in his glass, which had been a vibrant color, suddenly turned into a glass of water.

Even after this phenomenon was revealed, the outline of her wine glass slowly faded, flickered slightly, and then disappeared without a trace. The surrounding Wonderland scenery vanished in an instant, as if erased by an eraser.

Then there's the magical clothing on her body. The clothing that symbolizes a magical girl's transformation also turns into starlight and dissipates, becoming the pajamas she wore at the base before she came here.

At this moment, even the most oblivious magical girl should understand that what has "disappeared" is none other than the magic that has always existed within their bodies.

What happened? Why did this happen?

This was also the thought in the minds of everyone present except for Yuan.

When the Larkspur, leaning against the tree trunk, raised its head and looked in the direction of the kite, it discovered that a white outline was rapidly spreading outwards from the kite's body.

At first glance, nothing seemed to have changed in the area covered by the white outline. However, when the outline touched the Blue Moon in the sky, the already precarious Blue Moon crumbled upon contact and vanished completely from the night.

The sky returned to its moonless, deep black.

"I'm sorry, but if I could, I wouldn't have wanted to resort to such underhanded tactics."

Yuan smiled apologetically, "But there's nothing I can do. I can't win a normal fight, so when I'm running away, I can only resort to cheating."

Like everyone else present, her magical attire had completely vanished, and she had reverted to the Daoist robe she always wore.

However, compared to the crowd who had lost their magic and suddenly turned back into ordinary people, she seemed completely unaffected, walking lightly as if strolling in a garden.

As she spoke, she walked straight past Margaret, and even though Margaret tried to stop her, she easily dodged her with a slight sway.

She walked up to the Larkspur, slightly raised her head, and looked into its Larkspur.

The Larkspur met her gaze expressionlessly, showing no sign of distress.

Even though she no longer possessed any magic power, it didn't stop her from gazing into the eyes of the kite.

"Interesting."

Yuan stared at her for a moment, then laughed, "Cornflower, you are indeed more special than I imagined."

"Thank you for the compliment. If you continue fighting like this, perhaps you'll see some other unique aspects." Larkspur narrowed his eyes slightly, his words showing no sign of weakness.

"Do you know why things are like this now?" Yuan tilted her head.

"Isn't this your Wonderland?" Larkspur's voice was completely flat.

"Impressive, you have a really good eye." Yuan seemed genuinely impressed and clapped her hands happily.

"You said before that if you used 'Wonderland,' it would make the battle very 'unfair,' which is what you were referring to right now, right?"

The Larkspur lowered her eyelids. "In fact, the reason your leader only sent you on this mission is entirely based on the premise that 'you possess such Wonderland '."

"I previously divided your 'qi', and at the time I always felt that this energy seemed to have another source and purpose within you; otherwise, considering the amount of magic power I consumed, it would have been far too much."

"Even your 'Beastheart Liberation' only becomes several times more effective under the influence of this Wonderland, doesn't it?"

Not long after she finished speaking, she felt the treetop beneath her suddenly sink, and the branches that had been more than enough to support her bent and deformed. All of this was because Yuan had somehow sat down next to her.

"You really won't come with me?" she asked. "This is the last time I'll ask you. I can assure you personally that if you go to Claw Mark, neither the leader, the deputy leader, nor I will harm you in any way."

"... I would be honored to decline," the Larkspur replied matter-of-factly.

"Sigh, you little brat," Yuan sighed helplessly. "You're so stubborn it's infuriating. I really want to just knock you out and carry you away."

"You can give it a try." Larkspur lowered his eyes.

"Yeah, I know you still have some tricks up your sleeve, but I don't plan to start a fight in this state. I've said before, it's too boring."

Yuan shook her head. "I just want to take a closer look at the Sapphire Scepter that so many people covet, and see what kind of person is truly behind it."

"... I am not Gem Scepter."

Larkspur tightened her grip on the tree trunk slightly, but her face remained expressionless. "If your leader came to me for this kind of thing, she might as well go back and tell her that whoever wants the codename 'Cornflower' can have it."

"I wouldn't dare to guess what she's thinking."

Yuan laughed again, "But I've taken your words to heart; there will be people who need it."

The Larkspur did not respond to her again.

So Yuan jumped down from the treetop quite naturally, patted her bottom, waved to her with her back turned, and lightly leaped into the distance.

A few seconds later, everyone felt their magical power return to normal.

At the same time, in the distant night sky, a figure carrying a Black Cat Fairy in its hand flew towards an even more distant horizon.

With the magical girl's eyesight, Larkspur could actually see that she had opened her mouth and was shouting something in his direction.

And the words that failed to convey their meaning are actually quite simple:

"Congratulations on your victory, and Happy New Year!"