53: Chapter 53 Su Bai's Forced Transformation

The entire room fell silent.

Even quieter than when the shadow demon had appeared moments ago.

Director He Jin finally broke free from the thin film of flame, his voice cracking completely. "Deputy Commander Xiao!! You are a Rank 9 Deputy Commander!! You're transforming into a Magical Girl?! Your military rank!! Your image!! Your—your—!!"

"My what?"

Deputy Commander Xiao Hongyan cast a half-smile toward him. "Am I not pretty in Gothic Lolita?"

Director He Jin gaped, his face turning the color of pig liver.

"It's not a matter of whether you look good or not!!! It's—it's a matter of protocol!!!"

"Protocol my foot."

Deputy Commander Xiao Hongyan couldn't be bothered to argue with him. A ripple of magical energy had already begun to pulse at her fingertips—the precursor to channeling it into a card.

"I've watched the Monthly Exam footage. After transforming, not only does one's strength not weaken, but it actually ranks up. Once I transform as a Rank 9, I might even touch the threshold of Rank 10. Isn't this a guaranteed win—"

"Guaranteed win my ass!!"

Another voice exploded from outside the window.

It wasn't Director He Jin.

It was a young girl's voice. Cold and low, carrying a hint of irritation that only arises when someone's private territory has been intruded upon.

The sky outside the window—cracked open.

This was not a metaphor. Space itself was forcibly folded, jumping from one coordinate to another. While the edges of the fold were still radiating pale-golden spatial ripples—

a petite figure was already standing right in the center of the reception room.

Silvery-white long hair. Crimson eyes. A deep blue high-ranking Card Creator robe. A physique of a twelve- or thirteen-year-old.

Li Qingyue.

9th-tier Supreme. The founder of space-time theory.

Her bare feet hovered three centimeters above the ground.

On that porcelain doll-like little face—there was no expression.

But within her crimson eyes, a suppressed anger flickered.

"Xiao Hongyan."

"Yo. Old hag." Deputy Commander Xiao Hongyan turned around and crossed her arms. "You got here pretty fast."

"You just told him to drop out?"

"Why? Do you have an issue with that?"

"I do."

Li Qingyue touched down on the ground. She walked over to Su Bai—using her twelve- or thirteen-year-old frame to shield Su Bai from Deputy Commander Xiao Hongyan.

"I took an interest in this child first. I said so right at the Monthly Exam—to have him come see me. As for taking him as my disciple, I have already reported it to the Sanctuary."

"Took an interest first?" Deputy Commander Xiao Hongyan raised an eyebrow. "Just because you saw him first means he's yours? Well, I've taken an interest in him now—why don't you ask him who he wants to go with?"

Both of them turned their heads at the same time.

Looking at Su Bai.

One was a 9th-tier Supreme loli. The other was a Rank 9 Deputy Commander mature beauty.

One was cold as ice, the other burning like fire.

One was the founder of space-time theory. The other was the war goddess of the frontline legion.

Two Rank 9 auras clashed fiercely in the air—though they hadn't made a move, frost on the window frame and flames beneath the windowsill had already spread across half of their respective walls.

And the intersection of their gazes—

was Su Bai.

Lin Weiwei stood in the corner, her mouth hanging open wide enough to fit an egg.

Lin Xiao's expression could no longer be described merely as "shocked"—her Ice Bow Card had slipped out again at some point, hovering in midair and spinning rapidly.

Chairman Lin was completely petrified.

His lips trembled silently. He was probably saying—"Holy shit."

Director He Jin was crouching in the corner, secretly recording with his phone.

"Su Bai."

Li Qingyue spoke, her voice returning to its cold tone. "According to our agreement, you were supposed to come see me after the Monthly Exam. Although there is an unexpected situation now, we can treat this as an—early meeting. Do you have anything you want to say?"

"Kid Su Bai."

Deputy Commander Xiao Hongyan's amber eyes narrowed. "I'm a practical person. I don't deal in empty words. The terms offered by the military are always the best. As for this one—"

She glanced at Li Qingyue.

"If you follow her, you'll have to write papers all day long. It'll bore you to death."

"Xiao Hongyan." Li Qingyue's voice dropped half an octave. "Watch your language."

"What? Am I wrong? Isn't your Sanctuary just a bunch of old men holding meetings all day—"

"Enough."

Li Qingyue raised her hand.

The golden legendary card held between her fingers spun slowly.

"Xiao Hongyan. If you block me again—I don't mind letting the universal balance recalibrate your brain."

"Oh?"

Deputy Commander Xiao Hongyan's Flame Throne rose behind her, the firelight reflecting in her amber pupils.

"Bring it on. I didn't get to fight to my heart's content during the last drill. This is perfect—"

"You two."

Su Bai raised his hand.

Both of them looked at him at the same time.

"Could we first... deal with that shadow demon over there who isn't dead yet?"

The shadow demon indeed wasn't dead yet.

It had been suppressed beneath Deputy Commander Xiao Hongyan's Flame Throne for over five minutes. More than half of the black mist making up its body had evaporated, and even the eyeballs in its sockets were beginning to blur.

But it was not dead yet.

Far from dead—its body was slowly, bit by bit, seeping back into the material world.

Deputy Commander Xiao Hongyan glanced back at the shadow demon.

Then, she casually snapped her fingers.

The Flame Throne crashed down with a boom—the shadow demon let out a wail even shriller than before, its entire body compressed into a palm-sized sphere that continuously leaked black mist.

"Kill it after the interrogation."

Deputy Commander Xiao Hongyan stuffed the small sphere into her military uniform pocket, her tone as casual as saying, "I'll do the dishes tomorrow."

Then she turned back around and crossed her arms.

"Alright, old hag Qingyue. There's no rush to fight. Let's solve the other issue first."

Her gaze swept toward the corner.

Li Chengyuan and Li Haoran.

The father and son were still standing by the wall.

Li Chengyuan's face was no longer just pale—it was gray. From his eye sockets to his cheeks to his lips, all color had drained away, leaving only a dusty layer of deathly stillness. When he saw Deputy Commander Xiao Hongyan's gaze shift toward them, his hand had already reached into his coat—where a high-rank card meant for self-destruction was hidden.

But Deputy Commander Xiao Hongyan didn't give him the chance to act.

She merely glanced at him.

Just a single glance.

Li Haoran staggered back two steps, his back hitting the wall, his entire spine trembling. His dustproof cloak finally stopped fluttering—slumping completely over his shoulders like a crumpled rag.

"Li Chengyuan." Deputy Commander Xiao Hongyan's voice suddenly turned flat, not out of politeness—but as a pronouncement. "The Li Family. A prestigious card creation family spanning four generations. Holding three rare material supply chains, two magic crystal mines, and a private card creation research institute. On the surface, a commercial giant of the human faction—"

She paused.

"But in reality, a high-level agent of the Abyss infiltrating human cities. The evidence—"

She pointed to the small sphere emitting black smoke in her military uniform pocket.

"Is right here in my pocket."

Li Chengyuan did not speak.

He knew that whatever he said would be useless now.

A Rank 9 shadow demon was being played with like a ball, five death soldiers who willingly sacrificed themselves had been turned to ash, and their fifteen-minute window of opportunity was completely blocked by a crazy military woman who didn't play by the rules.

And the straw that broke the camel's back—was that silver-haired loli in the deep blue robe, with the body of a twelve- or thirteen-year-old.

Li Qingyue stood behind him.

No one saw when she had moved.

But her finger was already pressed against the back of Li Chengyuan's head.

"Li Chengyuan. The magic power leak in the West District that you just arranged—was neutralized three seconds ago. The Sanctuary Guard has detained all of your family's executives. Your secret rooms, your human experimentation laboratories, and all your transaction records on the Abyssal black market—everything. It has all been thoroughly investigated and cleared."

She paused.

"Do you have anything else to say?"

Li Chengyuan closed his eyes.

As for Li Haoran—

He suddenly moved.

He pulled out a spare combat magic card from his coat. His movement was so fast that he didn't look like someone who had been trembling in fear just moments ago. The magical glow of the card's activation burst from his fingertips—only to be instantly enveloped by a thin film of flame.

It wasn't Deputy Commander Xiao Hongyan's flame.

Nor was it Li Qingyue's spatial confinement.

It was Su Bai.

More precisely—it was the dark pink magic card in Su Bai's pocket.

Kyubey's tail poked out from the edge of Su Bai's pocket, a fluffy ball of white fur. Those red glass eyes stared at Li Haoran from the edge of the pocket.

[That killing intent just now—it was very fresh. Very suitable to become a Magical Girl.]

Li Haoran's movements froze.

Not because he was attacked—but because he heard Kyubey's voice. That completely emotionless, mechanical voice that sounded as if it had traveled across dimensions.

"Su Bai—!!"

His voice cracked. From the Monthly Exam until now, his elegant composure was finally shattered into worthless pieces at this moment.

"You lowly—mere Rank 1s—"

Before he could finish his sentence—

Deputy Commander Xiao Hongyan's finger was already resting on his shoulder.

"Little kid."

Her voice was very soft.

"Watch who you're insulting. Insulting my prospective recruit is the same as insulting me. People who insult me usually don't end up well. What happened to your father just now—was only the beginning."

Li Haoran fell to his knees.

Not because he was forced down, but because his legs had given out on their own.

"Alright."

Director He Jin finally stood up from the corner, straightening his glasses and tucking his briefcase back under his arm. "Deputy Commander Xiao, let me help you organize what you want to say. First, to add—under the operational procedures of military ethics, you cannot directly recruit a student with no military background or actual service experience to become a lieutenant colonel."

No one paid him any attention.

"Secondly, we have not yet verified the actual combat capabilities of a Magical Girl—"

Still, no one paid him any attention.

Director He Jin pushed up his glasses.

"So—won't we know if I just have a fight with him?"

Deputy Commander Xiao Hongyan finally turned to glance at him.

"He Jin, are you serious? Aren't you in charge of logistics?"

"Being in charge of logistics doesn't mean I can't fight." Director He Jin took an analysis recorder from his briefcase, clipped it to his collar, and began to make serious preparations. "I'll fight Su Bai. I'll suppress my strength to his level. Let the data do the talking."

"Wait—"

Lin Xiao was the first to react.

"Wait a minute. Su Bai hasn't changed classes yet. He's a Level 1 blank slate—no, wait, he's Level 19, but he hasn't used the Magical Girl transformation yet—shouldn't you find a death row prisoner to test it first—"

"No need to find a death row prisoner."

Su Bai spoke up.

Everyone looked at him.

"I'll test it."

Two words. Crisp and confident.

Li Qingyue's eyebrows furrowed.

"Su Bai. Weren't you against this before—"

"Before was before."

Su Bai pulled the dark pink magic card out of his card pouch. Kyubey poked half of its head out from the card face, its red eyes staring unblinkingly at him.

[Su Bai. Have you finally come around? Do you need me to open with my classic lines?]

"No need."

Su Bai took a deep breath.

"I said we should let results do the talking. And the class change quest requires ten Magical Girls, right? For the first one, I'll do it myself."

Li Qingyue fell silent.

Then, her cheeks puffed up slightly.

She was angry.

But not quite.

On that porcelain doll-like little face—her eyes were wide and round, the corners of her mouth pressed down by half a millimeter—she didn't look cold, but rather had a subtle expression somewhere between irritation and grievance.

"You adamantly refused to test it before. Now, in front of Xiao Hongyan, you say you'll test it—Su Bai, are you taking revenge on me for not giving you an SSS grade earlier?"

"No."

"Then why?"

"Because there are no side effects to testing it now."

"?"

Su Bai didn't explain.

He simply held the Kyubey Card up in front of him.

"Transform."

The moment those two words left his mouth—

Kyubey's red eyes lit up.

It wasn't the previous pinkish-black, eerie glow that looked like strawberry milkshake mixed with abyssal sludge. Instead, it was a pure, bright pink carrying some indescribable power of laws.

[Critical Refund—Magical Girl Transformation (No Side Effects Version)]

[Activate?]

Su Bai took a deep breath.

"Activate."