Something's wrong with how I'm watching anime.

Before long, a sliver of seven-colored light emanated from within the crystal. Although the light was incredibly faint, it still brought a look of surprise and anticipation to the pink-haired girl's face.

With a gentle wave of her hand, a rainbow appeared before her, stretching like a bridge from her feet into the crystal world.

............

It has gradually begun to show signs of separation, becoming a distorted worldline in another parallel world.

Centered around Nagisa Momoe, Iroha Tamaki and many other magical girls are conducting a massive ritual.

The soul materialized and became a tangible gem.

The Soul Gem is the essence of a magical girl, while the physical body is merely a vessel used as a tool.

Under Nagisa Hyakue's direction, the Soul Gems of many magical girls were brought together, resulting in the exposure of their consciousnesses and the ability to sense each other's thoughts.

The thoughts of everyone were intertwined, which was an extremely wonderful feeling.

At least that's how it is under Baijiangzhu's command.

The ceremony held at Hyakue Nagisa was essentially a large-scale prayer.

It uses the most sincere and beautiful wish that each girl makes on the eve of becoming a magical girl, contrary to the filthy magic of witches.

This pure willpower can directly ignore the many barriers set up by unknown entities in Kamihama City and even on this distorted world line, and directly communicate with the magical girls' gods, the Law of Cycles.

In fact, the ritual was very effective. All the magical students present, including Huan Caiyu, could feel the incredibly warm presence above their heads as their consciousness rose.

It's like being exposed to warm sunshine after being out of the cold shadows for a long time; your soul is cleansed from the inside out.

Many magical girls shed tears; after experiencing that warmth, they were inexplicably overwhelmed with emotion.

If before everyone had doubts about Hyakue Nagisa's words and was skeptical about the existence of the so-called divine principle of the circle that truly brings salvation, now everyone believes that this deity does exist and that true salvation does exist.

However, during the ceremony, an uninvited guest quietly arrived.

Satomi Touka and Hiiragi Nemu, accompanied by their many subordinates, looked at the girls gathered in the square.

"Too flashy..."

Satomi Touka calmly offered her comments, stating the facts.

Indeed, the sky over Kamihama City has been overcast lately, with thick, dark clouds covering the city.

The light emanating from the girls' prayers was clearly visible to the other magical girls. Not to mention the astonishing magical power emanating from the plaza.

Nagisa Hyakue and Iroha Tamaki also noticed the arrival of the Magius Wings.

With a complicated expression, Miyako looked at Touka Satomi and Nemuru Hiiragi.

Despite not having seen each other for so long, she still felt a sense of unfamiliarity with these two friends of her sister.

Environmental concerns...

Huan Caiyu instinctively wanted to ask where her sister was, but after glancing around, she forced herself to calm down.

Fortunately, Hyakue Nagisa, who was surrounded by everyone, opened her eyes and stood up from the ground.

"The ceremony is complete, communication has been established, and now all we need to do is wait quietly."

Unlike her previous attitude of always retreating when encountering Magius's Wings, Nagisa Hyakue's face was now full of confidence.

This is not only because many companions have gathered around him, but also because after completing the ritual and connecting with the Law of the Circle, his status as an apostle has been restored.

The Law of Cycles has been able to transmit divine power. Although this power is only a negligible part for the Law of Cycles itself, Nagisa Hyakue can use it to dominate among magical girls.

With such a solid backing, there's no need to worry about Magius's Wings, the local bully in Kamihama City.

"You guys seem very confident..."

Satomi Touka waved her hand, and the surrounding reality was violently distorted, with countless witch reactions swarming in.

The witch's barrier overlapped and descended upon this area, instantly turning it into a ghostly realm.

Even though she already knew that Magius's Wings wouldn't go in to spread rumors, and that she was secretly raising witches, Tamaki Iroha's expression changed.

But Nagisa Hyakue took Tamaki Iroha's hand.

She pulled Huan Caiyu behind her and stepped forward herself.

A black doll appeared in her hand, and the feathers on her forehead shone brightly.

Where the light shone, darkness and distortion smiled like ice and snow, and witches of various shapes suddenly let out miserable howls.

"There are many witches. Are the Seeds of Lamentation plundered from the incubators you dissected?"

"However, this is useless to me."

Baijiang Zhuge was no longer as timid as before, and boldly pointed at Satomi Touka and Hiiragi Nemu across the street.

"Although your wishes are good, you have already gone astray. You should stop now."

Bai Jiangzhu's blunt accusations seemed quite confident to those around him, and the immense magical power unleashed in a single burst was indeed eye-catching.

But Satomi Touka remained unmoved, coldly glancing at the colorful feather on Hyakue Nagisa's forehead.

"Is this your source of confidence, derived from the power of those in power?"

"However, if you are an apostle of the gods, then so am I..."

The gray-haired girl's phantom appeared behind Satomi Touka and Hiiragi Nemu, unleashing a power like a black hole.

Then? The four hundred and eight camphor trees each returned to their respective places.

Satomi Touka's response startled Hyakue Nagisa, but she was speechless the next moment when she looked up.

Not only was he unable to speak, but his entire body seemed to be trapped in severe constraints.

As Satomi Touka's figure solidified behind her, the gray-haired girl, similar in age and build, gradually solidified. The colors of the surrounding world slowly faded, as if a black hole had formed around the gray-haired girl.

However, the others in the gray world were not affected in the slightest. Iroha Tamaki and the many magical girls who had gathered together maintained their original forms, but it was as if they had been frozen in time.

Looking up at the gray-haired girl with a disdainful smile and a blank expression as she pointed a finger at him, Nagisa Hyakue suddenly had an epiphany.

It's not that the world is to be absorbed by the gray-haired girl, but that one's own power is to be extracted from her.

That feeling is like using a three-dimensional world as a canvas, and the power to detach from that world as an eraser, completely wiping yourself away.

Such power undoubtedly belongs to another level, or rather, the lowest level of the world, as a power of concepts and rules.

Just as the moment the Law of Cycles was born, the fixed history of the past was altered, and the concept of witches was completely erased from the world, I too will face a similar fate at this moment, my existence vanishing into nothingness in a way that transcends time and space.

Just as Hyakue Nagisa was about to be erased by 'nothingness', the feathers on her forehead seemed to sense the host's crisis and shone brightly once again.

This light pierced through the gradually colorless world, bringing color back to the world of Hyakue-no-Nagisa.

Suddenly freed from her restraints, Hyakue Nagisa couldn't help but bend over.

But the colorful feather on her forehead slowly fell to the ground and then completely disappeared. This meant that the divine power bestowed upon her by the Law of Circles had now been completely exhausted.

When Nagisa looked up again, she saw that the almost solid gray-haired girl behind Touka Satomi was also slowly dissipating, staring intently at her as she did so. This sent a chill down Nagisa's spine.

Bai Jiangzhu could hardly forget the life-or-death crisis that had just almost caused the car to overturn.

But in reality, apart from Satomi Touka, Hiiragi Nemu, and Nagisa Momoe herself, no one knew what had happened in that brief moment. Why did Nagisa Momoe suddenly bend over with a look of fear, and why did her powerful magical energy suddenly drop so drastically?

"That is..."

Bai Jiangzhu seemed lost in thought, muttering to himself in a low voice.

Before summoning the gray-haired girl, the other party had said, 'You are an apostle of the gods, and so am I.'

That kind of power is far beyond the reach of magical girls.

"As expected, you have someone behind you..."

The distortion of this worldline is not due to any wish; the source of the distortion is something else entirely, and perhaps that source is far more terrifying than we imagine.

Bai Jiangzhu subconsciously looked up at the sky.

That kind of existence is beyond my ability to deal with; the only one who can respond is the Circular Principle, which is currently guarding outside the world line.

Although Nagisa Momoe spoke haltingly, Touka Satomi knew what she was thinking.

To this, Satomi Touka neither agreed nor disagreed, and said:

"Those in high positions should remain in high positions, and ordinary people should remain ordinary people. Let's rely on our own strength to solve our own problems."

Now that Hyakue Nagisa has lost her support, her strength is not actually that great if it weren't for the blessing of the Law of Cycles. At least compared to the other Apostles.

Fortunately, the power of almost the same magnitude as the Circular Principle also disappeared from Satomi Touka's body. Now that this cheat-like external assistance has vanished, the difference in perception between the two sides won't be too great.

Momoe Nagisa glanced at her companions behind her and thought to herself. Meanwhile, Tamaki Iroha walked past Momoe Nagisa and took the lead.

Satomi Touka seemed to have guessed what Momoe Nagisa was thinking. She lowered her eyes and spoke in a somewhat cold tone:

"They're really confident..."

Touka Satomi gently stroked her Soul Gem, unlike the pure-colored Soul Gems of other magical girls. While retaining their original colors, Touka Satomi and Nemu Hiiragi's Soul Gems appeared much more somber, as if pure gems were inlaid in the material of a Lament Seed.

Magic raged around Touka Satomi and Nemu Hiiragi, and everyone's expression changed.

What surprised everyone was not the terrifying magical power, but the pitch-black shadows cast around the two girls. It was a symbol that only witches possessed.

But the shock didn't end there. Despite this clear process of falling into witchhood, the soul gems on Satomi Touka and Hiiragi Nemu remained stable, showing no signs of breaking.

As everyone watched, Satomi Touka and Hiiragi Nemu, while maintaining their own consciousness and physical form, created their own witch barrier, giving birth to a witch that floated behind them like a shadow, representing their tragic future.

While everyone was stunned by Satomi Touka's state, Satomi Touka snapped her fingers.

Behind her, the witch's avatar lit a match that served as her wings.

"Red apples are very nutritious fruits. If you don't eat them today, you will feel very unwell."

As soon as the words were spoken, many magical girls felt a wave of weakness.

"Is this Satomi Touka's ability?"

Baijiang Zhu was also affected, but she still gritted her teeth and comforted everyone:

"Don't panic! The ritual is complete, and the Law of Cycles will soon be invoked..."

Although the other side seems to have a powerful backer, Hyakue Nagisa believes that if the Law of Cycles can truly descend upon this worldline, it will be able to turn the tide and change everything.

But regarding Hyakue Nagisa's words, Satomi Touka, who was floating in the distance within the barrier and looking down at everyone, sighed:

Didn't you hear what I said before?