Chapter 8: Magical Girl Balala
Huff, huff, huff, huff.
Chen Mo panted heavily, gripping his sister’s hand as they dashed through the streets, finally bursting into their modest apartment. He slammed the door shut, turned the lock, drew the curtains, and only then, after making sure they hadn’t been followed, did he allow himself a moment’s relief.
“Brother, what on earth happened? Why are you so panicked?” Ning Xuan looked at him, puzzled.
Chen Mo gulped down a glass of water, trying to suppress the terror that gripped his heart, then spoke earnestly, “Didn’t you notice anything? Your body has undergone a tremendous change!”
Ning Xuan looked at her small hands, then checked her reflection in a mirror, tilting her head coyly, “No, I look the same—still as cute and pretty as ever!”
Then Chen Mo remembered—Ning Xuan had chosen the mage apprentice class, so her physical changes must not be obvious.
From the very moment he stepped out of the Evolution Sphere, Chen Mo had felt his body transform. After all, he’d spent 2.2 million points to buy 220 attribute points. Now, he could feel boundless strength surging through him, and his enhanced mind allowed him to focus his will, perceiving every detail around him—including Security Captain Xiao Yong reporting the Evolution Sphere incident up the chain.
That was why Chen Mo grabbed his sister and made their escape the instant he realized what was happening.
His expression grave, Chen Mo asked, “Xuan, did you buy your starter equipment?”
She grinned mischievously. “Of course! I had twenty thousand points. I bought a starter wand, a mage robe, and new shoes—it cost me three thousand points. I’m saving the other seventeen thousand. Once I have a hundred thousand, I can advance to mage!”
“Good! Put on your wand, robe, and shoes right now!”
Ning Xuan burst out laughing, clutching her stomach. “Brother, you’re killing me! This isn’t a game anymore. How am I supposed to ‘put them on’? Have you been playing too many games?”
Chen Mo replied seriously, “Your AI assistant should be able to open your inventory. Just take out your equipment and put it on.”
Ning Xuan shook her head in exasperation. “Oh, brother, you’re hopeless. Your IQ is getting lower by the day… But fine, don’t get mad—I’ll try. Not that it’s actually going to work…”
Her words died in her throat, her eyes nearly popping out of her head.
Before their eyes, a gray-lit mage robe materialized and slipped onto Ning Xuan’s body by some miracle. She had merely communicated with her AI mentally, asking it to bring out her robe, and it had actually appeared on her.
“Brother! What is happening? This is unreal!” Ning Xuan was both frightened and delighted, at a loss for what to do.
A faint smile tugged at Chen Mo’s lips. “Just as I suspected. The Evolution Sphere not only enhances a person’s physique and mind, but the equipment you obtain in the instance can be brought into reality. I don’t know how it’s possible, but this will surely upend the entire order of the world!”
Bling—bling—
A wand embedded with a blue gemstone appeared in Ning Xuan’s hand, and black-heeled mage shoes adorned her feet.
She spun in delight, admiring her new look, fear completely forgotten. “Brother, look at me! My new clothes, my new shoes—aren’t they pretty? Bah la la, little magical fairy, transform!”
Buzz! Buzz!
Blue light radiated from Ning Xuan’s body, a surge of spiritual energy bursting forth, so powerful that even the old rickety stool beside her was pushed several meters away.
“Brother? What’s happening to me?” she cried, startled by her new appearance. A faint blue aura now surrounded her like a protective barrier.
Role switch!
Chen Mo’s eyes lit up. “I get it—this is a role switch! Xuan, try switching back!”
Ning Xuan brandished her wand and called out with exaggerated seriousness, “Bah la la, little magical fairy, transform!”
The blue shield vanished, along with the robe, wand, and shoes. Instantly, Ning Xuan was back to being an ordinary girl in her patched cotton jacket.
“Wow! This is amazing! Brother, have I really turned into a magical fairy?”
Chen Mo laughed, tapping her nose. “Look at you, showing off! It’s not just you—anyone who’s entered the Evolution Sphere can switch roles!”
Ning Xuan’s eyes widened as she pouted. “Really? Then why don’t you transform?”
“I…” Chen Mo hesitated. He had tried switching, but as an ordinary person, nothing changed at all—it was still just him.
“Ahem. Well, my role is too powerful to reveal casually. Anyway, forget that. Xuan, try your freezing spell—let’s see how it works.”
“Bah la la, little magical fairy, transform!” Ning Xuan raised her hands, fingers spread, spinning around ceremoniously.
Bling—bling—
Sure enough, the robe, wand, and shoes appeared on her, and the blue shield shimmered around her again.
She pointed her wand at Chen Mo. “Brother, do I cast it on you?”
“If you want to live on your own from now on, go ahead!”
She giggled. “Scared, are you? Don’t worry! I’d never use magic on the best brother in the world—I’ll have to practice on my precious toy instead!”
She aimed her wand at a one-eared Pikachu plushie in the corner, something she’d salvaged herself from a pile of trash.
Freeze!
A cold, white mist gathered around the blue gem on her wand. The room’s temperature plummeted, and the frost swirled, hurtling toward the Pikachu.
Zzz—
In an instant, the poor Pikachu was encased in ice, transformed into a frozen sculpture.
Meanwhile, Chen Mo activated his data analysis, observing Ning Xuan’s stats. Unlike within the Evolution Sphere, what appeared above her head now was her combat data:
[Ning Xuan. LV8]
[Mage Apprentice]
[HP: 500]
[MP: 1000]
[Physical Damage: 1]
[Spell Power: 50]
[Skill 1: Freeze; Ice-control spell; Damage coefficient unknown]
Incredible—so strong already, and only eight years old!
After she cast the freeze spell, Ning Xuan’s MP dropped from 1000 to 900, indicating the spell cost 100 points to cast.
Two seconds after Pikachu was frozen—crack! The ice shattered, Pikachu returned to normal, and the frost dissipated.
[Data updated]
[Skill 1: Freeze; Ice-control spell, freezes target for two seconds; Cooldown: 60 seconds; Cast speed: Instant; Damage coefficient: Spell Power x1]
So that’s how it works. Chen Mo’s AI wasn’t high-level enough to reveal all of Ning Xuan’s stats, but it could analyze and update data based on battle actions, gradually enriching its database.
Chen Mo dared not reveal his secrets to his sister—not because he didn’t trust her, but because he couldn’t know whether the AI in her head was friend or foe. Telling her could spell disaster for them both. Until he was stronger, he had to keep his secrets hidden. Perhaps, he thought, he was the only person on earth without such an AI.
“Hooray! This is amazing!” Ning Xuan cheered, twirling and leaping. “I can use magic! Brother, we’ll never need to worry about food spoiling again—I’ll just freeze it, and we won’t need a refrigerator!”
Chen Mo was speechless. So all her excitement was because she could preserve food with her magic?
“Ning Xuan! Calm down and think—what will happen now that you can use magic?”
She was, after all, only thirteen, and couldn’t restrain her excitement. “And that annoying deskmate of mine, Chen Shu—he always makes fun of my patched clothes, says I smell, and bullies me all the time. When school starts, I’ll freeze him and see if he dares laugh at me again!”
Chen Mo could only sigh. “Oh, my silly sister! You’re not the only one who can use magic now. Tomorrow you might see an old man out for morning exercises transform into an armored warrior with a shout, or an auntie dancing in the square suddenly spinning with the speed of the wind. Do you know what that means?”
Ning Xuan frowned, thinking hard. “Um…um…does it mean I don’t have to help old people cross the street anymore?”
Defeated, Chen Mo stopped beating around the bush. “Do you know why Emperor Qin collected all the weapons and melted them down into statues when he unified China? Or why the new government strictly controls guns and knives? Because for a society to remain stable, ordinary people must remain ordinary—any force that threatens those in power must be suppressed. Otherwise, chaos will reign! But now, from primary schoolers to the elderly, anyone can easily gain power even more terrifying than firearms! The authorities cannot allow such power to exist unchecked—they will suppress and control it. And once ordinary people have tasted power, do you think they’ll accept being oppressed again? The two sides will inevitably clash, and the world will be transformed… Hey! Ning Xuan! Are you even listening?”
Not a word had reached her ears. She was lost in her reflection, admiring herself. “So pretty, so lovely—how am I so cute? I can’t wait for school to start so the girls in class can see my beautiful mage robe!”
Oh well.
Chen Mo forced a smile. That’s right—why make her understand so much? She was still a child. Let her enjoy her fairy-tale world; he would shoulder whatever dangers arose.
He silently vowed to himself: in this changing world, he would grow strong enough to protect his sister—and himself.