What kind of magic? This is called cultivating immortality!

She pointed her longsword directly at the witch, her voice booming like thunder: "Come and fight!"

However, the arrogant witch Perede did not seem to have any interest in fighting when faced with this challenge.

She merely scoffed, holding the Gluttony witch Gratoni, who had turned into an infant, firmly in her arms. Then she turned and stepped into a portal that had suddenly appeared before her, disappearing without a trace.

With Porreid's departure, time, which had been paused, finally resumed its normal flow.

The stagnant air began to flow again, the light and shadow slowly shifted, and the members of the Floating Light Squad, whose time had been paused, all regained their ability to move.

During the brief moment when time seemed to stand still, their senses and thoughts continued to operate, allowing them to clearly perceive everything that was happening around them.

That is why, when they regained their ability to move, the rest of the team members all looked terrified and were trembling with fear.

Everyone had long heard of the Arrogant Witch's fearsome reputation, but after witnessing her in action, they realized the terrifying extent of her strength, which completely exceeded their preconceived notions.

Like a god high above, mortals cannot contend with him.

The original Gluttony Witch Gratoni was already an insurmountable enemy for them, but even so, they still possessed the power to resist.

But with the appearance of the Witch of Pride, everything became an illusion. She directly used her time-stopping power to freeze the entire scene, leaving them only able to passively perceive everything that was happening, without even the slightest room to struggle.

This was a complete and utter crushing defeat stemming from a significant difference in strength, leaving them with a deep-seated despair.

Zhong Hui, standing to the side, seemed largely unaffected, only frowning as he pondered: that witch's cultivation level seemed to have already surpassed the Void Refining Realm... and she had also cultivated the Great Dao of Time, no wonder her methods were so bizarre and powerful...

No, it seems I need to speed up my cultivation... break through to the Nascent Soul Realm as soon as possible, so that I can have some ability to protect myself... he thought to himself.

"How are you all? Are you all alright?"

A faint, ethereal voice drifted over, like a shot of adrenaline, barely calming the panicked hearts of the crowd.

The reason is simple: the person who spoke was none other than Xiao Henu, the strongest magical girl recognized throughout the entire Jiangbei region.

With a cool and aloof expression, she approached the group, sword in hand, and asked with concern, "Is anyone injured?"

Mu Yue suppressed her fear, but her voice still carried a hint of lingering apprehension: "We're mostly unharmed, but the captain is still unconscious and hasn't woken up yet..."

"Cough...cough..."

Before he could finish speaking, Yao Ri, who was lying in Mu Yue's arms, let out a weak cough.

"team leader!"

The crowd's faces lit up with joy, and they all crowded around.

Yao Ri slowly opened his eyes, his vision blurred and overlapping, and it took a while for his gaze to focus.

Seeing that it was her teammates, she breathed a sigh of relief, then asked in confusion, "Oh, it's you guys... Where's the Gluttony Witch? Did I kill her with my ultimate move?"

"Captain, you're overthinking it."

Fluorescent spoke timidly: "After you activated your liberation form and burned yourself, you fell into a coma and were captured by the Gluttony Witch. You were almost eaten. Fortunately, Lord Xiao Henu arrived in time, and you and we were saved."

"No way? Cough cough... I gave it my all, and I ended up being captured? Cough cough..." Yao Ri's pale face was full of disbelief, and he kept coughing softly.

"You're so old, how can you still be as impulsive as a young person? You even activated your liberation mode, do you really not want to live anymore?" Xiao Henu came over and teased him half-jokingly.

"What do you mean I'm too old? I'm not even thirty yet!" Yao Ri rolled his eyes and then complained, "If you had come earlier, would I have had to risk my life?"

"So you're blaming me?" Xiao Henu's eyes widened.

"Otherwise, can you blame me?" Yao Ri retorted without backing down.

"Alright, alright, I won't argue with an injured person like you."

Xiao Henu suppressed his smile and changed the subject: "You are seriously injured right now, and most importantly, the gemstone is already half-tainted. You don't need to participate in the upcoming operation to exterminate the witch. Just stay in Fangyuan City and recuperate."

Will headquarters agree?

"They're nothing! If it weren't for the government..."

Xiao Henu, who was usually ethereal and otherworldly, rarely swore. Seemingly realizing that it would damage his image, he quickly changed his words, "Anyway, I will help you apply for it. There's no reason why headquarters wouldn't give me this favor."

Yao Ri nodded gently: "Okay."

Seeing her indifferent reaction, Xiao Henu couldn't help but remind her, "I've helped you so much, aren't you going to say thank you?"

Yao Ri smiled helplessly and retorted, "You're the person in charge, and I'm your subordinate. Isn't it your job to protect your subordinate?"

The other magical girls bit their lips, clearly not expecting that the head of the Jiangbei region would have such a funny side in private.

"I don't want to play with you guys." Xiao Henu pouted. "I'm leaving first. I can't stay away from the camp for too long."

"Wait a minute," Yao Ri said promptly.

"what?"

"I need the Seed of Lamentation to purify the Soul Gem."

"You don't have any stock on you?"

"I am very poor."

"But you've protected the city and repelled the witch, so headquarters will definitely give you a reward."

"Is this your first time joining headquarters? Let alone headquarters, even the government behind it is desperately short of high-grade Grief Seeds." Yao Ri rolled his eyes. "Besides, it's not like I'm slaying a witch. At most, headquarters will issue a few B-grade Grief Seeds as a token gesture. Unless there are a lot of them, they won't be very effective against me."

She paused for a moment, then continued, "Of course, if you don't want to give it to me, I certainly won't force you. After all, you're the boss. But you have to remember to come and offer me incense on this day every year."

After saying that, she pretended to wipe away tears, looking miserable and desolate.

"Alright, alright, I'm scared of you." Xiao Henu reluctantly took out an A-grade Grief Seed. "I got this from killing a witch who was comparable to a four-star magical girl. You got it for free."

Yao Ri caught the Seed of Sorrow that was thrown to him, then made a heart shape with his hands towards Xiao He Nu, "Thank you, love you!"

"Don't love me, I'm not a lesbian."

After saying this, Xiao Henu mounted his sword and left.

What's wrong with Lala? Did Lala eat at your house? Fine, for the sake of the Seed of Lamentation, I won't argue with you this time... Radiant Sun put away the Seed of Lamentation with a broad smile.

She turned to Altai and said, "Notify the local government of Fangyuan City and have them come over to handle the aftermath. Then the mission will be successfully completed, and everyone can get some rest."

Chapter 30 The Witch's Scheme

Within a void of pitch blackness, a portal shimmering with soft light suddenly appeared, and the arrogant witch Pered emerged from behind it.

As she arrived, the other five Seven Sins Witches appeared one after another in this deathly silent space, and they all gathered around her.

One of the witches leaned closer, looking at Gluttony, who had turned into a baby in Arrogance's arms. She gently tapped Gluttony's cheek with her fingertip and said softly with a smile, "You always refuse to listen to your sisters and like to act on your own. Now you've suffered the consequences. Do you know you were wrong?"

"Greed, you'd better not accuse her," another witch in black chimed in, her tone tinged with a hint of mockery. "Otherwise, with her temper, after you say that, she'll probably be secretly crying under the covers tonight."

"Hehehe."

The other witches chuckled in unison, adding a touch of playful warmth to the atmosphere.

As the object of everyone's ridicule, Gluttony's cheeks instantly turned bright red, and he buried his face in his arrogant chest in shame, refusing to show his face.

Her older sisters are so mean! They never include her in their playtime, but when she makes a mistake, they gang up on her and make fun of her...

"What's so great about that? So what if they were born into this world earlier than me?" Gluttony thought angrily to himself, burying his face even deeper.

His arrogant gaze swept over the witches, his voice carrying the authority of a superior, "What are you all doing gathered here? Have you finished the tasks I assigned you?"

"Big sister, Lilia is already handling the cleanup." A purple-clad witch replied.

"Don't worry, this plan will definitely succeed."

"That's right, that's right, the bait has been laid, now we just wait for the prey to take the bait."

Hearing the witches' confident words, Arrogant said in a deep voice, "This operation is of utmost importance. Everyone, go and check everything carefully again. I don't want a repeat of the failure that happened in Crimson Sakura City."

Upon hearing this, the expressions of the witches, who had been calm and collected just moments before, all changed.

In the previous attack on Red Cherry City, the Seven Sins Witches mobilized more than half of their forces, along with a group of high-ranking witches such as Dream Weaver Lilia and Flesh Creator Kegust, all in an effort to bring about a devastating disaster for China.

But what were the results?

Not only did they fail to successfully destroy Crimson City, but the destructive monsters they created were all wiped out by the magical girls who came to reinforce them. Even those hiding behind the scenes were discovered by the magical girls and ultimately suffered a humiliating retreat.

Especially the magical girl named Cecilia, who was like a god of war descended to earth, successively activating her dual forms, wearing golden armor and wielding a magnificent spear. Her combat power was unparalleled and invincible, and she chased them for thousands of miles by herself.

If it weren't for the appearance of an ancient witch to rescue them, this group would probably have been surrounded by magical girls from various countries who rushed to their aid.

When that time comes, the losses will be devastating.

Now that the eldest sister has brought this up again, how could the witches not react?

Arrogance stopped wasting words and waved his hand, "Execute my orders."

"Yes, eldest sister."

The witches responded in unison, and the next second, their figures vanished from the boundless darkness.

After everyone had completely left, Arrogance lowered his head, looked at Gluttony in his arms, and said, "You must remember your importance. From now on, you must never act on your own. Go and recuperate in the Demon Pool."

Gluttony suddenly raised her little head, stared directly at her eldest sister, her face full of indignation: "You always say I'm very important, but you never take me with you on any mission! Even this time, you didn't let me participate in the slightest part of the battle plan!"

Her voice grew increasingly hurried, as if she were pouring out all the emotions she had been holding back for so long. "I was so bored by myself that I took Xiao Guai out. I was thinking of finding a city to cause a ruckus, and my sisters would definitely look at me in a new light..."

As she finished speaking, her voice began to tremble, and she sobbed, "Sister... I'm so lonely all by myself."

"You are a witch."

Pride put down Gluttony, her voice devoid of any emotion, as cold as ice: "We bear a vital responsibility. As witches destined to destroy the world, from the moment of our birth, we need no superfluous feelings."

"The road ahead is long, and the journey to conquer this world is arduous. There will always be a time when we need your help, and our sisters will have to rely on you then. But at least, definitely not now."

After saying that, she left without looking back.

In the empty, dark space, only Gluttony's lonely figure remained.

……

Fangyuan City, July 15th.

This is the first day after the witch crisis subsided.

The battle that took place by the roadside that night had already spread throughout the country through various channels.

The municipal government did not intend to conceal the news; on the contrary, it actively exaggerated the details and fueled the spread of the news.

Firstly, the commotion from the battle that night was so great that almost all of the more than 10,000 teachers and students from Fangyuan University who were nearby noticed it. Those students who loved to watch the excitement had already spread the news online, and the municipal government couldn't cover it up even if it wanted to.

Secondly, the magical girl was the winner of this battle, successfully defeating one of the Seven Deadly Sins, the witch. Why keep such exciting news hidden? It should be announced to the world so that the entire nation knows.