Chapter 72: Peril in Crisis

As one of the basic system spells, the mana barrier is a mandatory course for most magicians, even for magical girls.

Barriers serve many purposes: first, they can be used for defense to repel others' mana attacks; second, they can create enclosed spaces, whether for trapping enemies, protecting oneself, soundproofing, or serving as an experimental field, making them highly practical.

Just like the massive mana barrier currently enveloping the Fuli Academy, this is also an application of that same spell.

However, Tian Sheng cannot achieve such a level; even if one's power reached the Controller stage, it would be impossible to cover such a huge complex with a mana barrier—it must have been the work of an entire group.

Presumably, it was the group chasing right behind him.

Selecting a die that looked the freshest from the ones in his hand, he clenched it tightly; as faint mana surged through it, intricate, shimmering patterns lit up on the die.

Behind him, the black-robed figure's hands also erupted with brilliant light; immediately afterward, several crimson mana bullets, as if burning, shot forth from his hands, aiming straight for the top of Tian Sheng's head.

At that exact instant, just as the mana bullets were about to strike, Tian Sheng thrust the die backward; in the blink of an eye, a hexagonal mana barrier suddenly unfolded behind him.

Several mana bullets struck the mana barrier behind Tian Sheng, cracking it almost instantly and emitting a grating, teeth-aching shriek as if metal were being torn apart.

The spell used by the black-robed figure is called Flame Bullet, a common offensive spell of the energy-shaping category; among spells of the same level, its destructive power is relatively high, and its might far exceeds that of ordinary small-caliber firearms.

During the clash, both could clearly see that besides the Flame Bullets hitting the barrier, those that missed slammed into the wall of the adjacent corridor, easily smashing out several deep craters.

The two spells held their ground behind Tian Sheng for less than two seconds; finally, the Flame Bullets extinguished, but his mana barrier also exploded outright.

Boom!

With the spell structure shattered at the closest possible distance to his body, the powerful shockwave from the Flame Bullet explosion propelled Tian Sheng forward, exceeding his original running speed, sending him flying into midair, where he then began tumbling uncontrollably.

It seems this is as far as I can go.

As he soared through the air, he vaguely understood this.

Once he landed, the two behind him would surely have prepared their next spell, and by then, he and the little girl on his shoulder would likely be unable to escape.

He did not know those people's target was Bai Jingxuan, but that did not stop him from hoping that this child, whose brief ten-year life had been filled with misfortune, would survive.

In spell research, he was a novice who could hardly be called a magician; but in real life, he was the caretaker of this Fuli Academy.

The duty of a caretaker told him that these children, who had fallen into this place due to misfortunes in life, deserved a happy future.

So, summoning his last strength, he let go of his grip midair, chose a relatively low angle, and hurled Bai Jingxuan from his shoulder.

After a moment, he landed first, crashing onto the ground, wincing in pain with a grimace.

Not far away, Bai Jingxuan fared slightly better; she landed on her side, rolling several times along the corridor before coming to a stop.

She lifted her head, blinking through her dust-covered face, and looked at Tian Sheng with some astonishment.

"Your illness shouldn't have lasted that long, right?"

Tian Sheng, lying prone on the ground, forced an ugly smile at Bai Jingxuan: "Don't let Uncle Tian's efforts go to waste; run quickly."

Only then did Bai Jingxuan realize that some sensation had already returned to her legs.

Yet, compared to her legs regaining sensation and lightness, she felt her heart instantly become unbearably heavy.

She was a sensible child; she knew what to do and when.

Even though she was unwilling, she understood the current situation, grasped Tian Sheng's meaning, and knew that turning and leaving was the only way to truly honor him.

"Thank you."

Without hesitation, she whispered, then pushed herself up with her hands, scrambling to her feet, and stumbled away, running toward the distance.

Behind her, Tian Sheng grinned as he watched her leave, then clenched the die in his hand, his face hardening with grim determination as he unleashed his next spell toward his pursuers.

The futile battle began once more.

Hearing the fierce clash of spells behind her, Bai Jingxuan almost turned back, but she suppressed the impulse, gritting her teeth and continuing to run.

Before long, she finally reached the staircase on the other side of the corridor.

And right there, she encountered another presence she had not expected.

"... Moko?"

She saw through the corridor's glass window a pink, cat-shaped fairy repeatedly tapping on the window, its mouth wide open as if shouting something.

With no time to hesitate, she pushed the window open and let Moko inside.

"Xiao Xuan! Hah, hah... I finally found you! Run!"

Moko leaped in from outside, first shouting excitedly, then pausing to catch its breath for a moment before continuing: "I overheard their conversation; their target is you!"

It delivered an outdated piece of information with an agitated tone.

"Mm, I know."

Bai Jingxuan, equally out of breath but inwardly calm, nodded.

"Eh? You already know?"

Moko first froze, looking somewhat embarrassed on its face, then straightened its expression and said seriously: "Anyway, the entire Fuli Academy is now sealed off by a mana barrier; escaping is unrealistic, but we can find a place to hide first!"

"Where should we hide?" Bai Jingxuan asked, somewhat bewildered.

"Eh? You don't know where to hide?"

Moko froze again, showing a bit more embarrassment on its face, but quickly grew serious once more: "Just keep running for now! Those guys behind us are about to catch up! The sound of the battle just now will attract other bad guys!"

It was not wrong about that.

After all, it had been drawn here by the sound of the explosion.

Upon discovering the Fuli Academy was sealed off, Moko's first thought was to return and find Bai Jingxuan, but along the way, it overheard the black-robed figures' conversation and learned their target was precisely its friend.

Rushing in panic to Bai Jingxuan's room, it found no one inside; like a headless fly, it could only wander aimlessly, searching for the girl.

Moreover, mana fluctuations generated by magicians were everywhere in the Fuli Academy at that moment, completely confusing its already weak sensing ability.

It even thought the girl had already been captured by those people and had once considered venturing into more dangerous areas to investigate; if not for the explosion just now, it would never have found this place.

But unfortunately, as a fairy with no combat ability, even if it had successfully reunited with Bai Jingxuan, aside from providing that outdated piece of information, it possessed no power to protect her. After a brief exchange, it could only urge Bai Jingxuan to flee toward a safer direction.

So, after choosing a direction, they ran together toward the third floor.

Running all the way to the third floor, they saw people in the corridor running downstairs, forcing them to head to the fourth floor instead.

Bai Jingxuan was still running, but the scene before her in the corridor gradually lost all meaning.

The act of Tian Sheng saving her from danger just now reminded her of memories from even further back.

Her thoughts were no longer in this Fuli Academy at all; she had returned to three years ago, to the disaster that changed her life, amidst the noise, the screaming, and the excruciating pain in her left eye, feeling those arms that had embraced her from the sky.

Under fear and chaos, that was the safest harbor.

She could even remember, when she struggled to open her right eye wide to see what was happening, the girl in a pink puffy dress that appeared before her eyes.

Was that the legendary Magical Girl?

"Are you okay? Can you hold on a bit longer?"

The girl's hair color was similar to her dress, the same reassuring cherry pink; she looked at her with a worried and caring expression, held one hand out, and several strange patterns invisible to the naked eye flew from her hand, landing on her left eye, which had already become numb from pain.

Then, Bai Jingxuan felt the pain was gone.

Her consciousness was hazy at that time; she didn't know what to say, so she could only nod gently at the girl, but she couldn't even say words of thanks.

"Then, wait a little longer; soon you will all be safe."

The girl placed Bai Jingxuan, who was in her arms, onto slightly flat ground: "If you are afraid, just close your eyes."

Then, she rose into the air again amidst a glow of pink light.

Bai Jingxuan did not close her eyes; although she was afraid and felt dizzy from blood loss, she persistently watched the direction the girl had left, wanting to see the outcome of everything.

She saw the girl fly in front of the monster; she saw the girl block the monster's attack with radiant magic; she saw a flashy wand appear in the girl's hand.

Then, she heard the solemn incantation belonging to that pink girl:

"Magical Girl, Flower Card Certification Number, Sakura, Elimination Mission Start!"

That was the last scene she remembered before fainting.

The scene in her memory began to blur, and Bai Jingxuan's steps gradually slowed.

She did not continue running; her speed became slower and slower, until finally stopping in place.

Mo Ke, who had been fleeing with her, noticed no one was beside her, then turned back, saw Bai Jingxuan standing motionless, immediately turned back, and asked with some worry: "What's wrong? Is the condition acting up?"

"Fairy Little... Mo Ke."

Bai Jingxuan's thoughts gradually gathered, stepping out of the memory, and the scenery before her eyes became clear again.

The memory left by that pink Magical Girl in the crisis seemed like a seed, always buried deep in Bai Jingxuan's heart.

After three years, this seed had been covered in dust several times, even losing its vitality, yet now, in another crisis, she found it again and picked it up.

The former her was just an ordinary victim in the beast attack, looking up at the light of the Magical Girl from the ground, watching her own savior.

And now, everyone in the Fuli Academy is also in crisis; the Dean, Uncle Tian, the caregivers, other children and the elderly... among these people who usually helped her and lived with her, how many urgently need such a savior?

It is time to make a decision, and time to stand up.

She took a deep breath, opened her mouth, and felt her mind was clearer than ever before:

"Please tell me, what must I do now to become a Magical Girl?"