Both sides fell into a tense standoff.
The air was thick with tension, as if ready to explode at any moment.
Jasmine and Violet led the city guards to quickly form a encirclement, trapping Tao Yao and Hiyakura in the center.
The guards held weapons, their eyes vigilantly fixed on Tao Yao, ready to take action at any moment.
Tao Yao did not seem intimidated by this sudden situation.
She maintained her composure, even wearing a hint of a smile on her lips.
Her gaze swept back and forth between Jasmine and Violet, as if evaluating the situation.
Hiyakura appeared somewhat at a loss.
She stood between Tao Yao and her companions, filled with contradictions and confusion.
Her eyes wandered between the two sides, unsure of what to do.
"Tao Yao, you are surrounded!"
Jasmine shouted, her voice brimming with intimidation, "Surrender!"
Violet gripped her katana tightly, ready to strike at any moment.
Her eyes were sharp, closely watching every movement of Tao Yao.
However, facing this situation, Tao Yao appeared unusually calm.
She let out a gentle sigh, a faint expression of regret on her face.
"Wonderful times are always so fleeting."
Tao Yao softly said, looking gently at Hiyakura, "Little Hiyakura, let's meet again next time."
As soon as her words fell, Tao Yao suddenly pulled something from her bosom.
In an instant, before anyone could react.
She forcefully slammed the small object onto the ground.
"Bang!"
With a loud bang, thick smoke instantly filled the air, enveloping the entire street.
Immediately after, several muffled sounds followed, accompanied by blinding flashes.
"Damn!!"
Jasmine shouted, "Don't let her escape!"
However, the smoke was too dense, and the flashes were exceedingly glaring.
The guards found it hard to discern direction and could only search frantically through the smoke.
In the chaos, Tao Yao's figure moved like a ghost, deftly weaving through the mist.
She nimbly avoided the guards' searches and quickly disappeared into the night.
When the smoke finally cleared, Tao Yao had long vanished.
"Damn it! Let her escape!"
Jasmine gritted her teeth in frustration, "Quick, split up and search! She can't have gone far!"
The guards immediately dispersed, starting to search for traces of Tao Yao in the nearby streets and alleys.
However, no matter how hard they tried, they couldn't find any sign of the mysterious woman.
In the end, Jasmine had to admit the failure of this operation.
Furrowing her brows, she solemnly said:
"She must still be in Qingyang City. We'll search slowly, and we'll eventually catch her!"
Violet nodded in agreement.
However, when she turned to Hiyakura, a look of worry appeared on her face.
Jasmine also noticed Hiyakura's unusual behavior.
She angrily walked up to Hiyakura, questioning her with a hint of frustration:
"What's wrong with you? Why were you standing there just now? Were you charmed by that bad woman?"
Hiyakura lowered her head, not daring to meet Jasmine's eyes.
Her heart was filled with confusion and unease as she struggled to answer the question.
"I... I don't know..."
Hiyakura softly replied, her voice trembling slightly, "I just... didn't know what to do for a moment..."
Jasmine sighed, her tone softening a bit: "Hiyakura, you have to understand, that Tao Yao is a very dangerous person. The way she presents herself to you may be a means to confuse you; you must stay alert."
"..."
Hiyakura fell silent.
Violet also approached her and gently patted Hiyakura's shoulder: "Don't be too hard on yourself. This was our oversight; we shouldn't have let you act alone."
Hiyakura looked up at her two companions' concerned gazes, feeling a surge of complicated emotions.
She wanted to tell them that Tao Yao was not as evil as they imagined.
She wanted to say that in their brief interaction, she had seen a gentle and considerate Tao Yao.
However, those words ultimately stayed unspoken.
Hiyakura knew that even if she spoke, Jasmine and Violet would find it hard to believe.
"I'm sorry…"
Hiyakura ultimately just softly apologized, "I will be more careful in the future."
Jasmine and Violet exchanged a glance, as if realizing that Hiyakura might have concealed something.
But at this moment, they were more concerned about how to quickly find Tao Yao's whereabouts.
"Alright, let's head back."
Jasmine said, "We need to come up with a new plan to find that Tao Yao as soon as possible."
The three walked silently on their way back.
Night was deepening, and the number of pedestrians on the street was dwindling.
Hiyakura's mind replayed everything that had happened today, especially Tao Yao's last words.
"My dream is to destroy this rotten world, to..."
That unfinished sentence became a mystery in Hiyakura's heart.
She couldn't help but imagine what Tao Yao really wanted to do to this world?
She said this world was rotten.
Could it be that she wanted to destroy this world?
Hiyakura didn't understand, nor could she think clearly…
…
Night fell.
The streets of Qingyang City gradually quieted down.
Meanwhile, beyond the world.
In the group chat of "Sakura Fubuki's Little Nest," the atmosphere was unusually lively.
This group had grown from dozens of members to hundreds, and its popularity was soaring.
In the group, there were some familiar faces.
Like "Pure Widow" and "Lin Xi Cao," as well as Sakura Fubuki's secondary account "Sakura Fubuki's Iron Fan."
There were also quite a few new members.
"Wah wah wah, so boring!"
A user named "Magical Girl Madoka" lamented.
"Yeah, the tasks are all done, it feels like there's nothing else to do," another new member, "Gundam Pilot Amuro," agreed.
"By the way, has Hiyakura's five-star form been released? Do we know who the next version's new character is?" a newcomer named "Moe is Justice" asked.
"I'm not quite sure."
Lin Xi Cao replied, "But according to insider leaks, it seems to be Lily?"
"Huh? Lily?!"
A newcomer called "Lemon Essence" exclaimed, "Yay, it was worth it for me to hoard one version; finally, a character with a five-star survival position used."
"Speaking of which, have you all felt that the game has become increasingly boring lately?"
Pure Widow suddenly tossed out a topic, "Apart from opening treasure chests, it's just exploring the map. The puzzles are quite interesting, but playing too much wears you out! Recently, I log on for just a few minutes every day, there's really not much to do."
"That's because you all played too hard!" Lin Xi Cao rebutted, "You finished all the content in one go, of course, it'll feel boring!"
"That's true." Lemon Essence agreed, "But the map of Liuguang City is not that big; even if there are many puzzle elements and treasure chests, it can't withstand us playing too quickly."
"Sigh, I hope the next version comes out quickly," Magical Girl Madoka continued, "It really is entering a drought period now; aside from looking at waifus, there's nothing left to play."
Such conversations were not only happening in the "Sakura Fubuki's Little Nest" group.
It was the current state of almost all "Fairy Journey" players.
The game content had been quickly exhausted, and players had fallen into a boring wait for the next version.
However.
Just as players complained about the game being boring.
As the game's acknowledged antagonist, Tao Yao was now enjoying her leisurely time.
At this moment, she was comfortably soaking in the bathwater prepared by the maid at her home, closing her eyes and enjoying the warm water flow, feeling utterly content.
"Xiao Xiao," Tao Yao suddenly spoke, calling out to her system spirit, "How is the game now?"
With Tao Yao's call, a small spirit sprang out from thin air.
The system spirit Xiao Xiao floated in the air and began reporting the current state of the game to Tao Yao.
[Master, according to the latest data, players generally reflect that the game content is somewhat lacking.]
[Many players express that besides daily tasks and exploring the map, there's not much left to do.]
[The puzzle elements are well-received, but frequent puzzles can be tiring.]
[Additionally, a considerable number of players have completed most of the content, and their daily log-in time has obviously decreased. They are all looking forward to the next version update.]
Tao Yao nodded thoughtfully.
After a moment of silence, Tao Yao asked: "Xiao Xiao, how much popularity have I accumulated now?"
[Master, your current popularity value has surpassed ten thousand and reached 10,238 points.]
"Oh?"
Tao Yao raised an eyebrow, "If I use it all up, will it be enough to organize an event?"
[Master, do you mean…]
Xiao Xiao hesitated to ask, as if guessing something.
"Precisely."
Tao Yao revealed a mysterious smile.
"For the next version of the game, let's add some light and fun activities for the players."