The villainous magical girl's daily mission is to find fault.

Chapter 717 Using problems to explain problems will only create more problems.

This wasn't Qiu Baiyang's first encounter with Xin Yuehu; his impression of the golden-haired fox girl was that she was "quite reliable when facing important matters."

However, she was also well aware of the damage that Xin Yuehu caused when she caused trouble in various parts of Rongcheng. In particular, when her arcade was also targeted by Xin Yuehu, Qiu Baiyang was once in a state of panic, thinking, "Is this little guy going to dismantle all my arcade machines?"

Fortunately, it turned out that she was just playing around.

The iris flower also provided a clue: Heart Moon Fox was very proactive in dealing with matters related to this alternate dimension. Not only did she give Hyacinth a lot of useful items, but she also specifically guided Lilac to enter through the spatial rift to participate in the investigation and provide support.

Does this mean she has a very high level of understanding of this alternate dimension?

"...We cannot rule out the possibility you just mentioned."

Lilac nodded, but then added:

"But I always feel that if we just go looking for Xin Yuehu like this... wouldn't it be a bit too hasty?"

"That's true, but we don't have any other good options right now," Qiu Baiyang said helplessly.

Finding Xin Yuehu might yield detailed clues about that alternate dimension, and she might even help with the investigation.

If that's the case, perhaps Xin Yuehu...

With this thought in mind, Qiu Baiyang turned his gaze to the magical light screen in front of Nightingale, which was broadcasting the entire battle of the hyacinths, and carefully examined the other "Qiu Baiyang" in the alternate dimension who was very similar to himself.

……

Half an hour later.

The battle in the alternate dimension was a foregone conclusion.

Without needing to protect specific individuals, Hyacinth was able to unleash her full power, abandoning the sword and shield form she had learned from Hellcat and charging around in pure greatsword mode. No hydra or jellyfish could withstand even a single blow from her.

Even Chi Xue, who was fighting alongside him in the other dimension, was quite astonished by this sky-blue melee newcomer. After fighting for a while, she would turn around and look at Hyacinth's high-speed combo that left afterimages as she wielded her greatsword.

Even after successfully rescuing two unconscious missing persons from the building surrounded by hydra and returning them to Qiu Baiyang and the two stargazers, she still couldn't help but take a second look at the hyacinth, which was still fiercely battling the hydra swarm.

"Is she really a newbie? Her combat experience and fighting spirit are probably unmatched even by us."

Akayuki from another dimension gave this assessment.

After that, everything went smoothly. Hyacinth and "Red Snow" destroyed the giant hydra, while Albatross and "Autumn Poplar" stayed behind to eliminate the tiny hydra that were trying to regenerate. They then escorted the two unconscious and injured missing persons to the "rescue area" mentioned by "Lilac"—which was the garden meadow where the spatial rift existed.

This time, the people entering the alternate dimension were no longer Lilac from the present world, but the Hero Association's field rescue team, to avoid a repeat of yesterday's tense situation.

"Little Purple, you seem to be quite unfriendly to your other self."

Watching the video of Shooting Star receiving two missing persons from Albatross, Qiu Baiyang breathed a sigh of relief and said to Lilac beside him.

The latter was staring intently at the other "Lilac" in the video of the Divine Stone interacting with the meteor. When Qiu Baiyang said this, he just shrugged and did not intend to answer.

Qiu Baiyang didn't ask any further questions. She knew her former companion's personality very well and guessed that she had probably experienced similar unpleasantness in the past, which was why she was so wary of someone who seemed to be impersonating her.

As the rescue team successfully returned with the two missing persons and Hyacinth, Bai Ling also returned to the real world from the alternate dimension. She thought she could solve the problem with a lot of information, but the series of problems that emerged yesterday not only failed to be solved, but actually increased.

Bai Ling was the first to be affected.

"Regarding the stargazer next to the albatross, Bai Ling, you've been in contact with her for a while. Have you come to any conclusions?" Nightingale asked.

"...She is indeed the adorable senior I know." Bai Ling pondered for a long time before uttering this brief but weighty conclusion.

"She knows many things that only my senior and I know, but when I asked her what this alternate dimension was all about, she refused to talk about it and deliberately steered the conversation away from the truth, subtly telling me not to focus on it."

Bai Ling pinched her chin with her mink paws, her brows furrowed—although no one knew how a fluffy white mink could frown—she certainly displayed that expression.

"But your appearance is too strange."

"I could sense her exhaustion, but she was deliberately hiding it, as if... as if she didn't want me to know the true nature of this alternate dimension."

"As for albatrosses, we have no way of talking about them."

The group looked at each other in silence, none of them having any clue.

The only people in the world who know the albatross best are her three former teammates. Theoretically, they could simply have her teammates go in with the albatross to subtly find out about her albatross.

However, Chi Xueqiu, Bai Yang, and Zi Dingxiang clearly existed in that alternate dimension. Even they themselves could not distinguish the other from their real selves. In addition, Zi Dingxiang seemed to have some unspeakable secret and was hostile to another being who was very similar to her, making this simple way of distinguishing them very complicated.

This further solidified Qiu Baiyang's initial judgment: to discuss cooperation with Xin Yuehu.

Later, on the villain's rooftop.

"I see... So that's why you came to see me, Miss Qiu Baiyang?"

In the reception room, the familiars served chilled drinks to the people sitting by the coffee table. Su Tianqing picked up her water glass, took a sip, and said calmly.

She had already listened to Qiu Baiyang's entire account, from the encounter between Hyacinth and Bai Ling to the attack on the missing persons by the hydra; almost every detail had been recounted by her.

The other party genuinely wanted to cooperate, and Su Tianqing could feel the sincerity emanating from Qiu Baiyang.

"So, what question do you want the answer to from me?" Su Tianqing leaned forward slightly and asked Qiu Baiyang.

"Let me state upfront that I did not go into that strange place to explore. I only have some possible guesses, not answers. Even the spatial rift last time was something Miss Lilac tried her luck with."

"I understand, I just want to confirm some things, like..."

Qiu Baiyang asked many questions, including some professional questions about magic. Su Tianqing didn't intend to hide anything, since she herself didn't really understand the true situation of this alternate dimension, so she simply treated it as an information exchange.

After Qiu Baiyang left, seemingly lost in thought, Su Tianqing looked at Cheshire Rabbit, who had remained silent on the sofa beside the coffee table, and asked:

"Bunny, what's your opinion?"

Xia Taotao shook her head slightly, contrary to her usual behavior.

"I don't have much more to say for now; we don't know enough about it."

"Is that alternate dimension a mental image or some unknown space? Why is it that only Albatross and her stargazer seem to be keeping up with the times, while everyone else, and even the city, seems to be stuck in the timeline of sixteen years ago?"

Several questions were posed in succession, and Xia Taotao rested her head on her hands, lost in thought.

The initial questions were not resolved; instead, the whole matter became even more perplexing.

The only piece of evidence that could potentially be a breakthrough is the encrypted divine stone from the meerkats in Bai Ling's possession. However, the encryption of this thing is not something that anyone can crack. It was designed for secure transmission, otherwise it wouldn't have become a communication device used by magical girls.

Even after today's group activity ended, they still hadn't come to any conclusions. The villainous companions all went home to rest, and Su Tianqing was no exception.

A magical light screen was projected in front of Su Tianqing, showing a documentary channel's marine animal world, specifically the segment on hydra and jellyfish.

It's both a way to pass the time before bed and a way to find a possible answer to the confusion in my heart.

"Jellyfish do not have a complex respiratory system, nor do they have a brain or skeleton, yet they are among the oldest life forms in the ocean and can even reverse their life form."

"The hydra grows an umbrella-shaped appendage, which falls off and transforms into a jellyfish. The jellyfish separates into offspring, which then form new hydras, and this cycle repeats itself."

"In this cycle, the jellyfish is immortal; scientists call it 'immortal life'."

Su Tianqing narrowed her eyes as she stared at the commentator's lines on the screen.

An immortal...life...?