Chapter 35: Venus

The entire mall trembled, the sound of collapsing buildings outside deafening.

Massive stones plummeted from the sky, kicking up dust and scattering debris, shattering the tempered glass surrounding the mall.

Bai Yao, clutching her bags, followed the orderly evacuating crowd.

But in a life-or-death crisis, there were always a few who acted recklessly, heedless of others.

“Hey, move it! My grandson’s waiting for me to cook him something good!”

A rude old woman—no, “crone” fit better—shouted coarsely, her spit flying forward.

Bai Yao frowned instinctively, her stomach churning at the sight.

She was grateful not to be standing in front of her.

“Quit pushing! Who here isn’t in a hurry?”

“Young man, have some respect! I’m old, shouldn’t you let me go first?”

“Argue, argue, keep arguing, and you’ll both end up dead!”

Someone from behind, short-tempered, shoved between them, rushing ahead.

“You! How dare you cut me off! Get back here!”

The crone’s shrill voice was ignored as the person hurried away.

Bai Yao slipped through the crowd, escaping the crumbling mall.

Outside, a massive creature with a ten-meter wingspan soared through the air.

Its hard wings sliced through tall buildings, sending sharp glass shards raining down, injuring many.

Some unlucky souls were pierced through the head by massive glass fragments, dying instantly.

Bai Yao stared at the pollution entity: huge wings, a lizard-like body.

It resembled a creature from fantasy—a dragon.

As a magical girl, she’d heard Xiao Bai talk about their world.

It had two types of magical creatures: dark and light.

They weren’t opposites but coexisted peacefully for generations.

Among them, the magical dragon clan was the strongest.

They wielded unimaginable power and magic, rumored to rival witches.

Seeing a polluted magical dragon, Bai Yao’s heart grew heavy with unease.

Such a powerful creature, corrupted?

Huang Ran and Long Shu were sidelined due to their framing, and it was unclear if replacement magical girls had arrived.

Bai Yao gripped her left hand, hesitating.

Should she act?

Or wait for Greedy?

Greedy had promised to handle six pollution incidents a month.

But she’d just left—hardly the type to return.

And her timing was too convenient; the entity appeared right after she vanished.

Was Greedy behind this?

Bai Yao couldn’t help linking it to her.

A blinding white light, like a searing sun, fell from the sky, striking the entity.

Golden high ponytail, gold-and-white knight armor, wielding a long spear.

“Where’d this little lizard come from, acting so bold?”

A new magical girl!

Bai Yao’s eyes lit up, a spark of joy rising within her.

This magical girl’s outfit wasn’t flower-themed but resembled a Western holy knight.

“Roar!”

The entity bellowed, its immense power blasting the golden girl back.

They clashed in the sky.

Golden light flashed, dragon breath spewed.

The golden girl, Venus, fought decisively, closing in for melee, her close-combat prowess faintly overpowering the entity.

“Dragon-slaying hero…”

Bai Yao clasped her hands at her chest, murmuring softly.

A flush crept onto her cheeks, whether from the summer heat or Venus’s appearance.

“A hero battling an evil dragon—perfect for a puppet show, right?”

Bai Yao didn’t notice her growing excitement.

Suddenly!

Venus’s face twisted in pain, failing to dodge the entity’s attack, and was slammed into the ground.

A man appeared in the sky, and Bai Yao’s face darkened at his attire.

“Hahaha, what a magical girl, nothing special!”

Augustus landed on the polluted dragon’s back, laughing wildly.

He hadn’t been this thrilled in ages.

“Venus, didn’t expect you here. What a coincidence.”

His voice dripped with mockery; he and Venus were old acquaintances.

Venus climbed from the crater, spitting blood.

“Filthy crow, not hiding in your sewer? You dare show up?”

She slung her spear over her shoulder, anger flashing across her face.

If Augustus hadn’t ambushed her, she wouldn’t have been hit.

The blow broke a rib; a dragon’s strength was no joke.

Luckily, Venus excelled in close combat, her body tougher than most magical girls, or that hit might’ve left her half-dead.

“Talk all you want; you won’t have many chances left.”

Augustus was supremely confident in his polluted dragon.

Its magic neared calamity-level—while no match for a witch, it could easily handle a few transcendent magical girls.

“Got any nonsense, tell it to my spear!”

Venus gripped her spear, knees bending.

“Mere magical girl, daring to boast before my polluted dragon!” Augustus’s voice cracked with rage.

Both readied themselves, charging simultaneously.

Golden starlight met black dragon breath, about to collide.

A voice, devoid of emotion, rang out.

“Stop.”

Soft, calm, yet clear, it reached everyone’s ears.

In that moment, everything froze—Venus, Augustus, the fleeing crowd, even the falling building fragments.

Everything stopped!

Rustle!

The sound of a script flipping echoed clearly in the frozen space.

Pride, eyes closed, savored the sound, then slowly opened them.

Her right hand twitched slightly, her blood-red lips parting.

Her cold voice conjured Augustus’s recent terror—the crushing, helpless fear of his life in Pride’s hands.

But Augustus quickly regained his composure; he wasn’t the same as before.

Even if his dragon couldn’t match a witch, so what?

Couldn’t he escape?

He’d fled from Pride once before!

If he did it once, he could do it again!