Ten minutes later.

Nangong Shiyu was being chased through the alleys by dozens of gangsters wielding machetes. If Xia Zixin hadn't taught her that magic to enhance her physical abilities earlier, she'd probably have been pinned down and captured by now.

Though she could cheat with magic, sprinting through the narrow alleys at Bolt-like speeds was utterly exhausting. Nangong Shiyu panted heavily, her whole body burning as if ignited by flames.

Thanks to Xia Zixin's terrible idea, the gangsters chasing her hadn't been shaken off. Just thinking about that plan made Nangong Shiyu furious.

Xia Zixin's original plan was for Nangong Shiyu to shout at the gangsters: "If you've got the guts, come catch me! Catch me, and I'll be your plaything!" to lure away most of the guards, while Xia Zixin slipped in alone to rescue the little girl's brother.

The plan sounded great, but—

"You're out of your mind! Have you forgotten you can't leave me now?"

"Hehe, sorry about that. But it's not just my fault, you know? You forgot too, didn't you?"

Exactly. Both had forgotten that Xia Zixin, bound to the Thunder God's Mystic Pearl, was now possessing Nangong Shiyu. That's why their flawless diversion plan had turned into this awkward mess.

"So hurry up and think of something!" Nangong Shiyu shouted at Xia Zixin, who had de-materialized and gone invisible. "Or materialize right now and take down all these gangsters!"

"There are too many. I might not win against them all."

"Bullshit."

"I'm just being honest."

"Give me a convincing reason."

"Well, actually, I..." Xia Zixin's words trailed off mysteriously.

"What is it?"

"Nothing. Just know that I can't beat this many people, Little Shiyu."

So, the situation was truly awkward. The one who could fight refused to for some reason, while the one who couldn't do anything but run was left with no options.

Just five meters behind Nangong Shiyu, a pack of thugs chased like hungry wolves. Their eyes, fixed on her fleeing back, gleamed with repulsive lust.

Nangong Shiyu glanced back at the gangsters. It felt as if dozens of infrared laser sights from G36 rifles were targeting her, sending chills down her spine.

In any case, she absolutely couldn't be caught! If she was, who knew what would happen! Nangong Shiyu screamed inwardly. She didn't want to imagine that scene at all. Who would want to picture themselves surrounded by men as a plaything? Only a masochistic pervert would.

Anyway, how could she escape this predicament? Nangong Shiyu had no clue whatsoever.

Just as Nangong Shiyu was fretting over this, several figures wielding meat cleavers suddenly appeared at the end of the alley ahead, blocking her path completely.

Blocked ahead, pursued behind. Faced with this pincer attack, Nangong Shiyu panicked instantly. Walls on both sides offered no escape. Concrete beneath her feet. Above... the sky?

"Aaaaah! I don't care anymore!" Just as the two groups closed in to grab her, Nangong Shiyu planted her feet, bent her knees, channeled magic into her legs, and leaped upward like a rocket.

However... after a long while, Nangong Shiyu realized she wasn't stopping her ascent. She looked down at the panoramic view of Tianmu City below, her gaze dazed, cold sweat beading on her forehead.

"What... is this?"

"You used way too much magic, Little Shiyu!" Xia Zixin shouted frantically. "Idiot! You'll die if you fall from here! Fool! Moron!"

The airflow above her dwindled, while gravity's pull grew stronger. From high above, Nangong Shiyu gazed down at Tianmu City's sparkling lights, peaceful and serene. "From up here, Tianmu City really looks like such a harmonious place," she sighed sincerely. But she knew it was just a facade. Beneath the peaceful surface, in the darkness untouched by these lights, bloody clashes still occurred. She recalled the little girl, probably under ten years old, and sighed. Everywhere, darkness breeds where light doesn't reach. Of course, it wasn't her concern or her duty to fix. She had no power to change it anyway. After all, it had nothing to do with her.

"Waaaaah! We're falling!" Xia Zixin's scream snapped Nangong Shiyu back to reality. She glanced down at Tianmu City below, then up at the beautiful starry sky, and slowly closed her eyes.

A gust of wind surged upward from below, flipping Nangong Shiyu's short skirt and exposing her pure white panties to the air. Though she wanted to hold down her skirt, she focused her mind on her back and whispered softly— "Lightning, become my wings. Help me fly."

Just like that day, Nangong Shiyu commanded the lightning within her. Feeling the sky, the moon, and the stars, the first thought that came to her mind was flight. She wanted to fly. To soar like a bird. She knew she had no time to wonder why or how she wanted to fly. All she knew was that she needed to grow wings and soar through the sky. Calm. Calm. Calm. She focused all her energy. As if a pair of wings sprouted from her back, ready to carry her through the heavens.

"What are you doing?! We're gonna die! We're gonna die!" By now, Xia Zixin, who had been calm, panicked. Seeing Nangong Shiyu close her eyes, she thought she'd given up. "This isn't the time for a Leap of Faith! Channel magic to your feet! Hurry! Or wrap yourself in a magic shield!" But Nangong Shiyu ignored Xia Zixin's whispers. Her heart was like a silent, empty starry sky—calm, undisturbed. Below, the ground rushed closer. She was about to be smashed to pulp— "Waaaaah!"

Just as Xia Zixin was shouting at her, visible lightning erupted from Nangong Shiyu's back, crackling loudly. "Huh? Shiyu, you actually..." The lightning wove into wing-like shapes behind her, suddenly spreading and flapping. As Nangong Shiyu's body was about to hit the ground, a violent gust of wind whipped through the dark alley, knocking down the cleaver-wielding gangsters.

"W-what the hell is that?!"

"I don't know..."

"Holy shit! What the fuck?!"

The gangsters scrambled up, screaming as they fled without looking back. Within half a minute, all dozens of them vanished without a trace. Only Nangong Shiyu remained, panting in mid-air, and Xia Zixin in her spiritual form.

"Shiyu... you actually... how did you do it?" Xia Zixin's voice was full of astonishment, seemingly shocked by Nangong Shiyu's feat.

"I don't know," Nangong Shiyu said, wide-eyed at the lightning wings behind her, breathing a sigh of relief. "I just suddenly wanted to try it. Didn't expect it to work."

"You really scared me." Xia Zixin materialized below Nangong Shiyu, looking up at her floating above. Her face was a picture of disbelief. "Growing wings... I never even thought of that."

"Eh? Really?" Nangong Shiyu flapped her wings gently, descending slowly until her toes touched the ground. Then she cut off the magic flow to her back, and the lightning wings vanished into the air.

"Yeah, that's something even I, your big sister, never thought of doing!" Xia Zixin sighed in relief, looking at Nangong Shiyu with a proud smile.

"Really?" Nangong Shiyu hadn't realized that creating wings was something even Xia Zixin hadn't done. That meant she'd made huge progress.

"So how exactly did you do it?! You just became the Thunder God yesterday and pulled this off! It makes me, the 232nd generation Thunder God, so jealous!" Xia Zixin grabbed Nangong Shiyu's shoulders and shook her.

"Well... I just tweaked the magic theory you taught me for changing clothes a bit. That's how I made the wings."

"Eek! So it was that simple? Just ordinary magic wings imbued with lightning? Aaah! Why didn't I think of that before?! Waaah! Wings are so beautiful and cool! Why didn't I think of this when I was the Thunder God?! It makes me so mad!"

"Alright, alright, stop it," Nangong Shiyu said, grabbing Xia Zixin's shaking arms and pulling them off her shoulders. "If you keep shaking me like this, I'll turn into an idiot. Besides, aren't you supposed to rescue that little girl's brother? If we don't go now, it might be too late."

"Oh right!" Xia Zixin snapped back to seriousness. "Yes, yes! Let's hurry!" She grabbed Nangong Shiyu's arm and dashed toward the building they'd left earlier.