Magical Girl? There's No Going Back Now!

"I'm really looking forward to next Wednesday's concert more and more." After finishing replenishing magic, Li Xuan picked up Xu Rou, who was drenched in fragrant sweat, then summoned another huge mass of Fallen Blood and poured it into the nearly full bathtub.

"The performance details have been confirmed: 7:30 p.m. next Wednesday, at a newly opened Live House in the southern district. Its name seems to be EiDG. The band is registered as 'King's Edict,' and the number of members and their lineup all match."

The day after replenishing magic, Li Xuan went to Qi Mo's home to ask about the progress, and she immediately brought out all the intelligence regarding the performance.

"Good. Get me ten tickets. This time, I'll give her something big right there at the venue." Li Xuan rubbed his hands together.

"Master, do we really have to strike while they're all together? Wouldn't it be safer to pick them off one by one?" Qi Mo asked worriedly.

"For Grade A magical girls, as long as they're still in the same city, they can rush over to support each other very quickly. Picking them off individually is a good idea, but taking advantage of one of them going out alone won't work on them." Li Xuan shook his head.

"But if all four gather together, their combat power will be terrifying." Qi Mo reminded him.

"We only need to create chaos, then fish in troubled waters." Li Xuan smiled.

"Chaos? Is there really a way to throw four Grade A magical girls into chaos?"

"Of course. I've held impart sessions for over ten days just for this! Besides, they've prepared so much for this show. Wouldn't it be a shame not to listen?" Li Xuan gave a mysterious smile.

Days passed one by one. Felia had composed music for the lyrics Yao brought back, and the four band members gathered to practice day and night.

Having secured the position of lead vocalist, Yao's enthusiasm had reached unprecedented heights. Even ensemble rehearsals, which she usually did not actively participate in, were never missed, and every time she practiced until she was drenched in fragrant sweat before she was willing to stop.

The day of the performance soon arrived. The four of them brought their instruments to the Live House, while Li Xuan, who had been watching everything from the Delusive Badlands, began his long-planned operation.

After gathering the five magical girls under his command and announcing that they would not be going inside to watch the performance, Xu Rou, who had been eagerly anticipating the concert, seemed somewhat disappointed.

"What? We're not going in to watch? Then why did we buy tickets in the first place?"

"These tickets aren't for us. I'll hypnotize a few passersby and have them watch the concert for us," Li Xuan replied.

"Watch it for us? But can't Master directly see what they're doing?" Qi Mo asked curiously.

"You'll find out when the time comes."

Li Xuan smiled mysteriously, opened a portal to the room where he held impart sessions, and moved the bathtub full of Fallen Blood outside.

"The time to march has arrived. Everyone, please watch quietly."

Li Xuan looked at the bathtub of scarlet liquid. Li Sijie would probably be delighted to soak in it, but at this moment, this crimson liquid had a more important mission.

"Awaken, my legion!" Li Xuan raised both hands high. The liquid in the bathtub immediately churned violently as if boiling. The Fallen Blood accumulated from countless magic replenishments instantly transformed into surging pillars of blood, shooting into distant, unknowable voids before becoming a vast army of dark monsters that slowly descended onto the platform.

Their numbers were so immense that the newly built giant platform was completely filled in an instant. The sheer quantity left the magical girls staring in astonishment.

Next, Li Xuan opened another portal and transported over the large batch of Wine of Ecstasy brewed over the past few days. Countless tentacles flung the bottles into the air, shattered them with Evil Energy, and turned them into a sky full of wine mist that spread across the platform packed with monsters.

"This is... Evil Energy enhancement, enhanced magical attacks, improved defense, increased endurance... My god, with so many boosts, I feel like I could take on a Grade A magical girl alone!" Wu Yan clenched her fists in shock as she felt the enhancement brought by the wine mist.

"Not quite, but your combat strength and that of these monsters have indeed been greatly enhanced. And this is only the beginning," Li Xuan said confidently.

"So Master had such a powerful trump card? Four Grade A magical girls... perhaps we really can fight them? I want to come too!" Tang Xi immediately changed her mind after seeing Li Xuan's hidden strength.

"That would be even better. You, Xu Rou, and Qi Mo will form one group. Tan Xiang and Wu Yan will form another. Act according to my instructions. For now, take Bing Rui to Qi Mo's home and tie her up. Leave no one in the Delusive Badlands." As Li Xuan spoke, he handed several bottles of Wine of Ecstasy to each group and gave them their respective plans.

"Yes!" The two groups of magical girls took their bottles and left the Delusive Badlands, while Li Xuan turned his eyes toward the endless void.

"You're there, aren't you?" Li Xuan asked softly.

"I am, Cousin." Mian Yin's voice soon echoed through his consciousness.

"You've always wanted to live in my dreams, but I never agreed. It wasn't a rejection. The time simply hadn't come yet."

"You're willing to let me move in? Please rest assured, Mian Yin will only eat a tiny bit of dream residue. I'll never do anything to hurt Cousin!" Mian Yin's voice was filled with excitement.

"Don't get happy yet. You need to do something for me before you can live in my dreams." Li Xuan struck while the iron was hot.

"Please tell me! What can Mian Yin do for Cousin?" Mian Yin asked excitedly.

"It's simple. Guard this Delusive Badlands. If any woman you don't recognize enters, torture her in her dreams using every method you can."

"That won't be a problem. I've eaten quite a few nightmares too. Although the memories are blurry, awakening the fear in someone's heart isn't difficult." Mian Yin spoke confidently.

"Then I'll leave it to you."

After making all the arrangements, Li Xuan gave his mighty monster army one final sweep of his gaze before getting up and heading to the outside of the venue.

"Friend, want a ticket? A ticket for today's concert? Just fifty extra for my trouble~ Hey, don't go! Twenty works too!"

There were still two hours until the Witch Band went onstage. Pretending to be a ticket scalper, Li Xuan stood at the entrance and randomly hypnotized ten lucky passersby. He gave each of them a ticket to watch the show, then casually attached a tiny snake-shaped monster to each of them.

Not only did these monsters possess stealthy assassin traits from the moment they were created, they had also been specially soaked in Wine of Ecstasy that blocked Evil Energy. Thus, even Yao, whose senses were incredibly sharp, would find it extremely difficult to notice them.

While Li Xuan was selling scalped tickets, Yao, who was about to go onstage, was nervous beyond belief. Although she had always coveted the lead vocalist position, that was only because she wanted the spotlight. Deep down, she had never truly been ready to become the lead singer.

Though she appeared arrogant and overbearing, she was actually terrified of failure and of being looked down upon. So over the past few days, she had practiced desperately, listening to the prepared songs over and over until every note was etched into her mind.

Even during rehearsal, Yao had sung until her throat was hoarse. If Felia had not used magic to treat her, she might have lost her voice from overtraining.

The moment that would decide her fate finally arrived. After the previous band's performance ended, a staff member signaled that the members of King's Edict could take the stage.

The time to begin had arrived. This should have been the moment for thunderous cheers, but because the band had no fan base at all, only scattered applause came from below.

Amid that lukewarm atmosphere, Yao tightly hugged her guitar and walked onto the stage. With her head lowered, she did not dare look at the sea of dark silhouettes in the audience.

"Yao, come over here. The lead vocalist needs to stand in the middle," Felia reminded her.

"Ah! Right! I'm the lead vocalist now!" Yao suddenly snapped out of it. She had still been standing at the side out of habit, so she hurried to the microphone stand.

Am I really ready? What if I fail... No, I absolutely can't think about failure now. I have to win everyone over.

Yao kept encouraging herself, but even so, she was still terribly nervous inside.

Felia spoke a few warm-up lines and briefly introduced the band members, but Yao's mind was blank and she did not hear a single word. Only when the deep bass began did she realize it was time for her to sing.

The band's first song went poorly. Yao was so nervous that she failed to keep up with her teammates' rhythm several times. She was not used to singing while playing, and even her guitar performance, which she had always been proud of, went slightly out of tune.

Seeing the audience grow dissatisfied, with some even beginning to boo, Yao immediately broke out in a cold sweat. Her footing turned unsteady, and the guitar in her hands had never felt so heavy.

She helplessly turned to look at her teammates. Saroye wore a blank expression, Black Cat was still absentmindedly chewing on her fingers, and only Felia noticed her unease and gave her an encouraging look.

"I can do it. I can do it!"

Seeing that someone in the band still supported her, Yao clenched her fists and mustered the courage to face the audience and begin the next song.

However, just as the second song's intro began, one of Yao's guitar strings suddenly snapped.

"Why now of all times?!"

Yao's mind instantly went blank, leaving only one terrifying thought: It's over.

The audience had little patience for a band they had never heard of. The venue quickly filled with boos, and some people even urged them to get off the stage already.

The staff hurriedly handed over a spare guitar, but after Yao tried playing it a few times, she found that it felt completely different. She could only try to remove the strings from the spare guitar and replace the broken string on her own.

But her hands were already trembling from nervousness, and she could not even complete the simple act of changing a string. As the audience began playing on their phones, Yao furrowed her brows, unsure whether she should force herself to finish the performance or leave the stage in disgrace.

At that moment, Saroye, who had been standing at the edge of the stage, suddenly walked over. She snapped her fingers to wake the drowsy Black Cat, telling her to play a solo first to avoid an awkward silence, then went over to Yao and skillfully changed her strings for her.

At that moment, the staff informed the band through their earpieces that because they had delayed for too long, they were required to skip the second song and immediately perform their third, original song.

"I can't do this anymore. Why don't you take over as lead vocalist?" Yao said uncertainly.

"What are you talking about? The lyrics you wrote are so good. You can definitely sing them! You're the woman who's going to bring death to me. How can you lose heart here?" Saroye said, giving Yao two heavy pats on the shoulder.

"That's right... Bearing the name of King's Edict, I can't lose!"

Seeing that the one lending her a hand was Saroye, who had always been at odds with her, Yao could not help but feel a trace of warmth in her heart. Her restless mind finally began to settle, and she took the restrung guitar and began tuning it.

"Everyone, our next song is an original piece by our band, Dancing Cicada. We hope you'll enjoy it!"

After an opening line so ordinary it was almost dull, the intro began. Yao played her guitar and began singing with the determination of someone who had burned all her bridges.

"I came unwillingly into summer,

And everything fills me with disgust.

No one came to choose for me,

Between honesty and deceit.

Never did I see, between black and white,

Those interwoven keys.

Never did I see, the bends, slides, and taps,

Those chaotic chords.

Without realizing it, I stepped beyond the fence,

And on a treetop danced a cicada.

Its whole life

Would be wasted in this miserable summer.

No one would ever know again

That you were once a dancing cicada..."

When the song ended, the entire venue fell silent. Yao stood there blankly with her guitar, so immersed in the performance that she could not even tell whether it had gone well or badly.

Then, someone finally seemed to remember that they were supposed to applaud. That person's clapping was like a shout that triggered an avalanche, setting off thunderous applause and cheers throughout the venue.

"We did it!" Yao excitedly looked at her teammates, and all three gave her approving smiles.

"Not bad, not bad. Though wasn't the lead vocalist trying a little too hard?" Li Xuan laughed as he watched the full livestream outside the venue through the Hunting Radar.

"Your performance is over. Now it's time for mine." As Li Xuan finished speaking, every light inside the Live House suddenly went out, plunging the venue into darkness.

Following Li Xuan's instructions, the ten passersby who had bought scalped tickets each removed the monster attached to their bodies and pointed it at the band members onstage.

"Bang bang bang bang!!!"

With a rapid burst of gunfire, the mouths of those tiny monsters fired bullet after bullet formed from Evil Energy.

The first to react was unexpectedly Black Cat, who had seemed completely inattentive. She opened her mouth and said something incomprehensible, and dozens of black bullets froze in midair.

"It's Evil Energy! There are monsters here! Seal off the entire venue!" Yao shouted. In an instant, she used a barrier to close every exit, trapping the panicked audience inside.

"It's the main culprit behind the Magical Girl Disappearance Case! He must have blended in with the audience. Damn it, the Evil Energy presence is hidden too well. Even I can't accurately distinguish it... No wonder he was able to hide in Clear Lotus City for so long!"

Yao stared at the people below in panic, trying her best to identify which of them were monsters in disguise. But the Evil Energy aura was far too faint, and because its source was actually only tiny monsters, she could not pinpoint any individual person. Even Yao, with her powerful perception, was left at a loss.

At that moment, Felia, who had been watching from behind, stood up. She walked over to Black Cat, fed her a candy ball, and pointed at the audience below. "Make them quiet."

Black Cat popped the candy into her mouth and shouted down in a muffled voice, "Word Spirit: Full-Scope Capture, scream and run in circles."

The bewildered audience below shuddered the moment they heard Black Cat's words, then began screaming loudly and running around in meaningless circles.

"Wrong! Tell them to be quiet!" Felia helplessly fed her another candy ball. Black Cat stood up on her chair in satisfaction. "Word Spirit: Full-Scope Capture, everyone gather in front of the stage, then stand still and remain quiet."

The audience members who had just been screaming and running immediately froze in place as if their internet cables had been unplugged. Even the backstage staff came forward and stood before the stage. Though their eyes were still filled with panic, their bodies could no longer move a single step.

"What? She actually overrode my Mind Interference? No, the Mind Interference is still in effect, but Black Cat's magic forcibly controlled their bodies—and its priority is even higher than my hypnosis?"

Li Xuan was shocked by what he saw. He had known before that Black Cat's awakened ability was absurdly powerful, but he had never expected her ordinary magic to be this strong. Just by speaking, she could achieve complete control over the situation.

The venue, which had been in complete chaos moments earlier, instantly became quiet. Only then did Felia stride confidently to the center of the stage and address her companions around her in a strong, resonant voice.

"Everyone, do not panic. All of this is within my expectations."

"You mean you expected monsters to sneak in as well?" Saroye asked in surprise.

"Precisely."

"But how are we supposed to know which ones are monsters and which ones are ordinary people?" Yao asked helplessly.

"Simple. We just need to gun them all down once." Felia smiled slightly and pulled two heavy machine guns from beneath her skirt, each of which would normally require an entire machine-gun crew to operate, holding one in each hand.

"You can't! If you kill too many people, you'll lose your qualifications as a magical girl!" Yao hurriedly tried to stop her.

"Kill people? You seem to have misunderstood something. The Heavenly Father's Ten Commandments state in the sixth commandment: thou shalt not kill. Saroye should understand this well. As a nun of the Orthodoxy, how could I possibly violate the doctrine?" Felia smiled.