Chapter Five: I Will Not Allow Such Things

It was early morning when he opened his eyes.

Jiang Si rubbed his eyes and lifted the seed in his hand. Sunlight filtered through the curtains, making the purple seed appear crystal clear, like a gemstone.

Suppressing his sense of satisfaction, Jiang Si got out of bed to check the homework on his desk. It wasn't finished yet; he needed to get to school early to catch up. The increasing volume of high school assignments was causing quite a headache for his path of cultivation.

He got up, packed his homework into his bag, changed, washed up, and headed downstairs, where he found his younger sister already eating. There were simple scrambled eggs and some leftover steamed buns from the night before.

"Keke, your teacher called yesterday. Your math grades have dropped," he said while washing up, adding a reminder, "Study hard."

Jiang Keke—Keke was a nickname. Their parents had intended to give her a formal name later, but the accident three years ago meant they never would, so the nickname had stuck.

"Mm." Her attitude was icy.

Ever since Jiang Si skipped their parents' funeral three years ago, their relationship had remained in this state. Jiang Si had no intention of mending things, and Keke barely wanted to speak a word to him. Though they had lived together for years, they were no different from strangers.

Relatives had considered taking Keke in, but no one wanted to adopt a cold-blooded child like Jiang Si. He showed no emotion regarding his parents' death—not a tear, not a hint of sorrow—and no one wanted to raise such a boy. Many had wanted to adopt Keke, but she refused to leave the house their parents had left behind.

And so, they had lived like this for three years. She had entered middle school, and he had reached high school.

"The parent-teacher meeting..."

"I don't want to trouble you," she interrupted before he could finish.

He had attended two of her meetings. Since their parents were gone, it was only natural for an older brother to go, but he wasn't much older than her, and his presence always drew snickers. He heard that her classmates teased her after every meeting, and it seemed she didn't want him going this time.

While relatives could help, it was best to avoid relying on them. The more they were involved, the stronger their grounds to adopt Keke would become, until she had no way to refuse.

Jiang Si didn't care if she were adopted; in fact, he thought it would be better for him. Since becoming a magical girl, he had much to research, and Keke’s presence was ultimately an inconvenience. To Jiang Si, his path of seeking the Dao always came first. Out of respect for the upbringing his parents had provided, he didn't mind looking after her, but if she chose to leave, it would be much more convenient.

After he finished washing up and sat at the table, Keke stood, grabbed her half-eaten bread and her schoolbag, and walked out, as if being near him caused an allergic reaction. Jiang Si was used to it. He finished the cold leftovers, grabbed his own bag, and headed out.

Although he could fly in his magical girl form, it was a secret identity he didn't want to expose. In recent years, the frequency of "Calamity Beasts" in Beihai had spiked, and the authorities had finally relaxed the memory-wiping protocols regarding magical girls. People could now be heard discussing them on the streets. If he transformed carelessly, he would be identified, tracked, and his identity compromised.

Protagonists in web novels never reveal their secrets easily, not even to family.

During the morning rush, even though Jiang Si had left early, the bus was packed. Once inside, he was at the mercy of the crowd, only finding stability by grabbing a pole near the window. The smell of breakfast, the lively chatter of students, and the gentle morning sun dispelling the night's chill made him yawn; a wave of drowsiness washed over him.

In the past, these mundane details had made him restless and irritable. Now, holding the power of a magical girl with the Great Dao within reach, he finally felt a sense of peace.

*Not bad,* he thought. Just as he was about to doze off, the sunlight suddenly vanished. A massive shadow loomed over them.

The bus, filled with students and commuters, began to shake violently. Screams and shouts erupted. The peaceful morning was shattered.

Jiang Si glanced up. A horrifying, giant eyeball had appeared above the bus, the gale it stirred rocking the vehicle.

*A Calamity Beast.*

He had seen and dealt with many over the past three years. Perhaps because there were more magical girls in Beihai now, the beasts appeared more frequently. They often seemed to be born from the collective resentment of students and workers who didn't want to face their day. That was how it worked—they simply manifested where such negative energy accumulated.

As the chaos grew, he felt the purple seed in his pocket.

Just as the eyeball whipped up a gale strong enough to lift the bus, a flash of ice-blue light pierced the distorted eye. Blood flowed like tears, and the icy light quickly saturated the eyeball, blooming in a dazzling display. When the glow faded, the eye was encased in layers of ice, frozen solid.

A magical girl landed lightly upon the frozen mass. Amidst the cheers from the bus, she struck the ice with her wand, and the terrifying beast shattered into crystalline dust that scattered in the air.

With a graceful flourish of her ribbons, the blue-clad girl flew backward through the ice like a sprite. Before she vanished, she waved at the bus with a smile, her lips moving as if saying something.

Jiang Si looked away and released his grip on the magical seed. He wouldn't need to worry about finding a way to transform now.

After she disappeared, the bus erupted into debate.

"It's her again! The blue magical girl!"
"Codename: Winter Monarch. A rogue magical girl. Her eyes are shaped like six-petaled ice flowers. Her power is low temperature and ice manipulation..."
"You remember everything so clearly."
"She's an unofficial magical girl. I heard the Disaster Strategy Bureau is always looking for her."
"I wonder if they'll end up fighting..."

She was a minor celebrity. The bus swayed and continued on its way.

When he arrived at school, Jiang Si was squeezed out with the flow of people. Though the ride was crowded, the crowds dispersed as students headed to their various destinations. The appearance of the magical girl was soon forgotten. With the Disaster Strategy Bureau stationed in Beihai, fixed magical girl squads usually handled things. Magical girls weren't rare—they appeared wherever there were Calamity Beasts. The buzz around Winter Monarch was due to her independent status, creating an uneasy tension with the Bureau.

Not long after the blue-clad girl vanished, unnoticed, a girl in a white knit sweater and navy pleated skirt emerged from a secluded alley near the school gate. Passersby seemed to ignore her. It wasn't until she reached the roadside, clutching a bag with a teddy bear charm and shedding a few ice crystals, that students approached to greet her. She merely offered a polite smile.

She looked toward the bus stop, eyes full of anticipation, searching for someone. But after a long wait, she couldn't find the person she wanted. As the next bus arrived and the crowd swelled, she stomped her foot. "Skipping class again!"

Jiang Si never said he was going to school. In the past, without supernatural power, he had to compromise and play the part of a student. But now that he possessed such power, why continue to compromise? If he did, he would have transformed in vain. Academic studies had become an obstacle to his path of cultivation and his quest for immortality; it was time to cast them aside. He had already found his own path; he no longer needed the tool that was school.

And he certainly didn't need homework.

"Jiang Si!"

He looked back to see the girl with the teddy bear bag running toward him. "Wait for me!"

Jiang Si ignored her, but the girl was fast. She caught up in no time, walking beside him, panting slightly. "Why are you ignoring me?"

"You looked busy."

"I wasn't!" She adjusted her hair, tilting her head slightly, her ice-blue, water-drop earrings shimmering. "My performance just now wasn't bad, right?"

"Mm."

Bing Tang, sixteen, high school student, Jiang Si's desk mate.

She was the girl he had saved three years ago when he first learned to transform. Magical girls had the power to erase memories, but when he had turned to wipe hers, he had instead seen her transform in the face of despair. They had stared at each other in the rain for a long time. They hadn't killed each other—at the time, Jiang Si wasn't sure he could win—but they had kept a close watch to ensure their secrets remained safe.

Over time, this magical girl known as "Winter Monarch" had become his friend, the only one who knew his true identity. Together, they had formed a magical girl organization independent of the Disaster Strategy Bureau. After all, every web novel protagonist needed their own organization and subordinates.

"The Bureau issued another warning yesterday, telling me to either join them or leave BH City," Bing Tang said, shaking her head with frustration. "They were the ones who showed up late."

The Bureau was always a step behind. When Calamity Beasts first appeared in BH City, they had only sent observers. It wasn't until the second year, when the frequency of attacks became abnormal, that they finally established a branch office. Now, they were pressuring Winter Monarch to join.

"Ignore them."

After a brief reply, Jiang Si and Bing Tang arrived at an abandoned factory. It wasn't far from the school; from the second floor, one could see the school buildings. Jiang Si tapped a section of the concrete floor, placed the purple seed down, and watched as intricate patterns flowed from it, constructing a complex magic circle.

The circle dissipated, revealing a hidden door. They stepped inside and descended into the deep underground until they reached a plaque: *Illusion Moon Cave Abode!*

The rustic wooden sign was full of "immortal" flavor—it had taken Jiang Si a lot of effort to craft. He was quite satisfied with the result. At the entrance, the sound of a "spiritual spring" tinkled—a water circulation system that had cost him two thousand credits to simulate a waterfall.

Inside, the cave was winding, the walls covered in vines—all fake, as real ones were too expensive and hard to maintain. Nearby stood a stone carving of a "spiritual beast"—which looked suspiciously like a goofy husky. That had been Bing Tang's contribution.

Heaven help him, only a few years ago did Jiang Si realize this world had no web novels. Their entire entertainment industry—songs, novels, manga, movies—was completely foreign to him. So, things that were common sense to Jiang Si sounded like gibberish to Bing Tang. When he asked for a stone carving of a spiritual beast to add to the cave's "immortal air," she had brought back a husky.

He had lit two cigarettes on a stone pedestal to simulate the swirling aura of a celestial dwelling.

If he had more money, he could make it look better, but this was fine. Jiang Si was satisfied; he wasn't in a hurry. Besides the decor, the most prominent items were exercise equipment: dumbbells, barbells, a squat rack, punching bags, resistance bands...

Jiang Si threw his bag aside and began to train. He had done this every day for years, never slacking, and Bing Tang was used to it. She took his bag. "Did you finish your homework?"

"No."

"I'll do it for you."

Jiang Si said nothing, focusing entirely on his workout. Before becoming a magical girl, his physical limits had plateaued. After gaining his power, training began to yield results again. Though the gains were small, he could clearly feel his strength and body growing with every session, his ceiling constantly rising.

The results weren't visible externally. *“After becoming a magical girl, the body will only mature naturally with time; it will not change due to external factors, to better protect the magical girl...”* That was what the mascot had said. Although the mascot was mostly asleep and rarely appeared, it had taught Jiang Si the basics.

The lack of external change was a good thing for Jiang Si; it was deceptive. But as long as he could grow stronger, there was no reason to give up. A true web novel protagonist had to be an all-around powerhouse. Physical strength was essential.

"Did you find the magical girl level classification?" Bing Tang asked, copying his homework. She pulled out her phone. "Found it. The Bureau only has four levels: Sprout, Seedling, Bloom, and Full Blossom."

"Only four?"

"Mm."

Jiang Si shook his head. "Trash. As an official organization, they don't even have a detailed classification. Vague levels should have been phased out long ago."

He delivered a side kick, shattering the punching bag.

"For instance, my current physical strength doesn't match a peak Sprout-level magical girl, but a novice Sprout is no match for me," Jiang Si said, clenching his fist. "My level isn't defined by the official system. I'm categorized as a Sprout, but in reality, I am at the Half-Step Sprout Grand Perfection."