It was back. Everything was back.
Sophie’s eyes welled with tears of joy.
Even if it would only last for a short while...
Right now, she had returned to the transcendent realm of an Earthly Immortal!
【Log: Your Physique has surpassed 200.】
【Log: Your Strength has surpassed 200.】
【Log: Your Intelligence has surpassed 200.】
【Log: Your Agility has surpassed 200.】
【Log: Your Perception has surpassed 200.】
【Log: The Eclipse Domain no longer affects you.】
Well, she was still a bit weak.
She still couldn't beat Dino.
But she could live with that.
“Sophie, next...” Kaila, drained of strength, wobbled as she tried to stand.
Sophie waved her hand.
She was no longer the soft, delicate little Sophie who always needed protection.
She reached out and, with a single arm, scooped the half-kneeling Kaila up by the waist.
Kaila let out a startled cry.
The usually powerful Hero felt light as a feather in her arms.
“So... Sophie?” Kaila clearly hadn't expected this move, and a blush instantly bloomed on her face.
She looked up blankly, only to see Sophie flashing her a confident smile.
“Hehe, let me play the hero for once,” Sophie teased.
“...” Kaila said nothing.
She didn't have the energy to speak right now.
The Eclipse Domain was stronger than she had imagined.
Or rather, this was the first time she had truly felt the effects of a Witch’s domain.
Even her immunity to various negative status effects had failed.
She felt incredibly weak.
But.
Right now, she felt safe.
“You’ve worked hard,” Sophie said again.
She held the resting Hero a little tighter.
As she spoke, Sophie’s other hand rose elegantly, her fingers dancing lightly in the void.
There was no incantation, no deliberate preparation of spell gestures.
Mana moved like an extension of her fingertips, responding perfectly to her will.
First, her threads swept through the area, instantly detonating all the Astral Funnels that were firing away non-stop.
【Log: High-precision mana manipulation detected. Your proficiency meets the requirements...】
【Log: You have learned the new skill [Puppetry (Special) Lv. 1]. Would you like to spend attribute points...】
【Log: System is re-evaluating your proficiency... Evaluating...】
【Log: Evaluation complete! Due to high proficiency, [Puppetry] has been automatically learned and leveled up to Lv. 2!】
【Log: Anomaly detected... Re-evaluating...】
【Log: Evaluation complete! Your [Puppetry] skill has reached the pinnacle. Current level changed to: Lv. Max!】
The system logs scrolled rapidly.
Sophie flicked her fingers, indifferent to the notifications.
She didn't need the system's help for this skill at all.
Clang—
As Sophie’s fingers plucked the air, the strangling net tightened.
“?”
The various clones of Chengzhong Dino scattered across the area sensed this mana fluctuation at the same time.
“How dare you show off such meager skills before a master.”
Their fingers flew, and ghastly white threads turned into a violent torrent, surging to intercept Sophie’s mana threads.
Two completely different sets of threads collided mid-air with a thunderous crash.
At first, it was a fierce clash. Ghastly white and pale purple rubbed against each other, creating ear-piercing explosions as space was sliced into fine cracks.
Chengzhong Dino’s threads were full of aggression, but Sophie’s threads were calm and composed, refusing to meet Dino’s threads head-on.
The threads intertwined like two dancers in the sky. Gradually, the initial hostility dissipated as they sensed each other, replaced by a familiar rhythm—as if they were dance steps practiced together since childhood, long since integrated into their shared memory.
Like two master dancers who had finally found each other's tempo after the initial testing, they began to move in sync.
Purple light and white radiance intertwined and spun in the air, setting off earth-shattering mana explosions.
Stone puppets, plant puppets, and the Count puppets all exploded.
But this time, there were no more threads to stitch them back together.
All the threads were working toward a grander goal.
They tangled and lingered, dancing an elegant and magnificent waltz.
The puppets shattered into a sky full of stardust, adding a brilliant backdrop to the dance.
The next second.
All the Chengzhong Dinos distributed across the battlefield pulled their fine threads simultaneously.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—
Thousands of blue figures soared from the ground, flying toward the moon.
They merged rapidly in mid-air like hundreds of rivers returning to the sea.
Finally, they transformed into a single figure.
No one had ever seen the Puppet Witch let go of her threads—except in front of that person.
A stunning cinematic moment.
“Dino,” Sophie greeted.
Chengzhong Dino stood before Sophie, reaching out a fair little hand to gently and carefully straighten Sophie’s collar, which had become messy from the battle.
Then, she clenched her fist and lightly thumped Sophie’s chest.
“Elder Brother... why are you helping an outsider bully me?” She looked at Sophie with a resentful gaze. “And, this is the seventh one.”
“Ahem, ahem.” Sophie coughed twice. “There’s a reason for this.”
“That’s what you said last time,” Chengzhong Dino said with a stern little face.
“This time is different.”
“Right, that’s also what you said last time.”
Sophie was speechless.
Chengzhong Dino stared at her for a moment and curled her lip.
But her gaze continued to drift between Sophie and Kaila.
“What is her name?”
“Kaila.”
“Oh, Miss Knight is asleep.” Chengzhong Dino had a smile on her face as she reached out her hand.
Sophie’s pupils shrank, and she instinctively took a step back.
“Fine, if Elder Brother doesn't want me to touch her, then forget it,” Dino said regretfully.
She looked up at Miaoyue. “Is Elder Brother going to stay in Miss Moon’s territory for a while longer?”
Sophie didn't speak.
Dino didn't press for an answer, only offering a small smile.
“In that case—”
“I’ll head back first. Should I make something for Elder Brother to eat?”
“I might not be able to go back today.”
“It doesn't matter.” Dino tilted her head. “You can come back tomorrow. Or the day after. Tomorrow, next year, a hundred years, a thousand years from now... you can come back whenever you want.”
“Elder Brother, when you’ve had enough fun outside, come home early.”
“I’ll still be at home waiting for you.”
“Definitely, definitely,” Sophie said perfunctorily.
Chengzhong Dino nodded, took two steps, and then turned around again.
She spoke gently to the sleeping person in Sophie’s arms.
“Miss Knight.”
Kaila, of course, did not answer.
Dino didn't mind. She spoke very seriously and politely to that defenseless sleeping face:
“Thank you for escorting my Elder Brother.”
“Once Elder Brother returns home—”
“I’ll remember you.”
After saying that, she smiled again, turned elegantly, and left.
“Wait, wait, wait,” Sophie said hurriedly.
Dino tilted her head and looked back.
“Could you do your brother a favor? I’m flat broke right now and need some equipment that can boost my attributes for protection—specifically something that raises them to a certain value.”
Sophie asked quickly.
“Where is your money?”
“That... that was five or six hundred years ago. I spent it all.”
“It has been five hundred thirty-two years, eight months, thirteen days, six hours, four minutes, twenty-four seconds, and twenty-three milliseconds,” Chengzhong Dino said. “Elder Brother doesn't even remember.”
“Is... is that so,” Sophie said.
Complaining aside, Dino reached up and took off the small top hat decorated with blue ribbons that she always wore tilted on her head.
“Don't lose it.”
She tossed the top hat toward Sophie with a huff.
The little hat traced an elegant arc in the air and landed steadily on Sophie’s head.
“Thanks, Dino! You’re the best!” Sophie was overjoyed.
【Magic Top Hat (Mythic Equipment). A top hat hand-woven by the Puppet Witch. It absolutely does not have any surveillance, eavesdropping, or tracking functions. It is absolutely safe. When worn, it raises all attributes to 15 (attributes already higher than 15 are unaffected). Has the [Indestructible] trait.】
Dino did not respond further.
Her figure gradually faded.
The ghastly white mana threads that had filled the entire battlefield vanished without a trace in an instant, like a receding tide.
The battlefield, once filled with chaotic mana, fell silent.
Sophie looked down at Kaila, who was sleeping soundly in her arms, and then at Miaoyue, who was still within her Invincibility Art.
Then, she let out a long sigh of relief.
Her back was already drenched in cold sweat.
Fortunately, with her current combat strength, she hadn't reached the point where Chengzhong Dino felt that “Elder Brother needs protection.”
Therefore, for the time being, she should be able to move freely.
She would deal with the other Witches' problems first.
After all, Solitude’s deepest nightmare—the New Moon Witch—had been blackened for five hundred and fifteen years.
And Chengzhong Dino...
Had been blackened for over one thousand three hundred years.
Rate on N.U.
