I dug up the magical girl's corpse.

Chapter 89 Bitter Battle

Lin Yongxi let out a low shout, and the [Ice Jade] staff in his hand transformed into a streak of emerald green light.

She no longer limited herself to simple chopping and smashing, but instead developed a more agile and varied set of stick techniques.

With a flick of his wrist, the tip of the long staff twirled into several sharp, elusive flourishes, like a venomous snake spitting its tongue, instantly enveloping several vital points on Duan Zhiyao's upper body!

The staff whistled through the air, carrying a bone-chilling cold—that was the magical property inherent in [Ice Emerald].

"bring it on!"

Duan Zhiyao's eyes narrowed, and she dared not be careless. She crossed her arms to protect her head and face, the blue-green iolite luster flowing across her arms as she withstood several tentative blows. The staff collided with her gem-like arms, producing a crisp "clink-clink" sound, but leaving behind faint white marks and fine cracks.

[Imaginary Body] Although it's not a real transformation yet, its rigidity is absolutely unquestionable.

In particular, cordierite typically has a hardness of 7 to 7.5, which is higher than that of garnet. Such defensive properties are extremely superior at the same stage.

"Good speed, but unfortunately lacking in power!"

Duan Zhiyao sneered, and seizing an opportunity when the stick's momentum slowed down, his right fist, like a cannonball, slammed into Lin Yongxi's center!

Don't even think about it.

Lin Yongxi reacted with lightning speed. She twirled the long staff in her hand, changing the sweeping motion into a flicking one, the end of the staff precisely striking the side of Duan Zhiyao's wrist, deflecting the force of his punch. At the same time, she twisted her waist, using the momentum of her opponent's forward charge, and the long staff smoothly drew a semi-circle, whistling through the air, and swept fiercely towards Duan Zhiyao's lower body!

All the lessons she had learned from Chen Mu over the years were finally coming in handy here.

Duan Zhiyao hadn't expected this weapon to be so troublesome. She frowned, her feet stomping rapidly as she retreated, narrowly avoiding the sweeping kick. But Lin Yongxi's attacks were relentless, like a tidal wave. If one strike missed, he would immediately change tactics, pointing, stabbing, sweeping, or chopping with his staff. The emerald green staff shadows almost wove a large net, enveloping Duan Zhiyao within it.

Although her staff skills were not yet perfect, her strength lay in the smooth transitions between moves and the rapid shifts between offense and defense. Combined with the length advantage and magical properties of [Ice Jade], she forced Duan Zhiyao to retreat repeatedly, relying only on the hard body of [Iolite] and her faster reflexes to block and dodge, making it difficult for her to mount an effective counterattack.

This is, after all, a magical weapon personally crafted by the Radiant Magical Girl [Tourmaline], and it is definitely not an ordinary item.

Ding! Clang! Click!

The crisp sounds of collisions and the subtle tinkling of gemstones breaking rang out continuously.

Duan Zhiyao's arms, shoulders, and even side were struck one after another by the long staff, leaving shallow pits and cracks. Although these injuries were not serious, the feeling of being suppressed, as well as the constant vibrations and chills coming from his body, made Duan Zhiyao's face grow increasingly grim.

"Is that all you've got?"

Lin Yongxi became more and more proficient in his fighting, and his stick techniques became increasingly fierce, even showing a touch of ruthlessness.

She seized the slight stiffness in Duan Zhiyao's eyes after his parry and thrust her long staff straight at his throat!

Duan Zhiyao's pupils contracted slightly. At the critical moment, he suddenly tilted his head back and his left hand shot out like lightning, grabbing the stick that was thrusting towards him!

"Got you!"

She let out a low growl, her five fingers gripping the [Ice Jade] tightly in reverse, the blue-green gemstone light spreading from her palm toward the long staff, attempting to snatch it away!

It was very powerful!

"Duan Zhiyao's magic level is higher than mine, especially with the enhancement of her gem body. I probably can't defeat her!"

Lin Yongxi was startled and immediately transformed his left hand into a knife, carrying a chilling aura, and slashed fiercely at Duan Zhiyao's wrist that was gripping the stick!

Duan Zhiyao neither dodged nor evaded, letting Lin Yongxi's hand chop strike her wrist with a muffled "clang," leaving only a white mark on her gem-like skin.

This is the absolute advantage of the Gemstone Body; ordinary attacks cannot even penetrate its armor.

"That's not enough!"

She grinned maliciously, and with a sudden burst of strength from her left hand gripping the long stick, she tried to pull Lin Yongxi over along with the stick!

However, the moment she exerted her strength, a cold glint flashed in Lin Yongxi's eyes. Instead of resisting, she followed the pull and lunged forward as if weightless! At the same time, her left hand, which had been free, clenched its five fingers together, and an extremely dazzling white light instantly condensed at the fingertip!

"Isn't that enough?"

[Flash of Light]!

Although it was only a fleeting glimpse, the sudden burst of blinding light and destructive aura still made Duan Zhiyao's hair stand on end!

She subconsciously released her grip on the long stick, quickly stepped back, crossed her arms to protect her chest, and the blue iolite light shone brightly in an instant!

laugh--!

"Just kidding." At that moment, Lin Yongxi smiled.

The light vanished in an instant.

"Um?"

Duan Zhiyao was stunned for a moment. She had already assumed a defensive posture and was waiting for the attack when she realized something was wrong.

No, I've been scammed!

Lin Yongxi's [Instant Light] was not released at all! Rather, she was just lying! She was deceiving herself into focusing on defense and loosening her grip on the long staff.

She then took advantage of the gap to successfully retrieve her magical weapon, and then retreated far away from the danger zone, standing on the other side of the arena.

"You can take it back?" Duan Zhiyao was a little embarrassed at first, then laughed self-deprecatingly.

"Just a simple feint."

Lin Yongxi smiled. This was one of the experiments she had been doing recently. The principle of [Instant Light] was very simple; it was just a pure burst of magical power. Therefore, to make it more varied, she thought of this variation: if the burst was just a pretense, with a sliver of light spilling out as a deception, and then suddenly stopped and retracted...

That way you can fool your opponent.

Such tricks may seem useless, but in reality, the more the opponent fears them, the easier it is for them to be fooled, which adds an advantage to the psychological game.

You never know when I'll actually use the [Instant Light].

"How enviable, to have such talent and such excellent magic."

Duan Zhiyao shook his head. Lin Yongxi's talent was indeed astonishing. Who would have thought that he was the real dark horse, the newcomer who had emerged just a few months ago?

The two distanced themselves again, facing each other from afar.

Duan Zhiyao glanced down at the bluish-green pebbles and flaking fragments on her arm. She hadn't expected that Lin Yongxi's staff techniques were not only difficult to deal with, but that he could also unleash that terrifying [Instant Light] so quickly in close combat. It was impossible to predict when the opponent would use his true power, making him a very difficult threat to deal with.

"I take back what I said last time. It seems you don't need the power of the [Imaginary Body] to let me experience real combat."

Lin Yongxi was also slightly out of breath, her grip on the long staff tightening. The series of attacks that had just occurred seemed to have suppressed her opponent, but in reality, she had expended considerable energy. Duan Zhiyao's [Imaginary Body] was even more resilient than expected; ordinary attacks were unlikely to cause substantial damage, and continuing to use [Ice Jade] would damage her weapon.

The suppression did not translate into a victory.

"But that's the end of it."

After a brief standoff, Duan Zhiyao slowly exhaled, her eyes becoming incredibly sharp: "You should have realized it by now... my [toxicity]."

Lin Yongxi frowned and made an unpleasant "tsk" sound.