The group unanimously avoided mentioning anything about Magical Girls, focusing wholeheartedly on company operations.
Without Hibiscus saying much, everyone understood the reasoning.
So the "famous Salvation Church" was just this framework, but having spoken the words, they should establish a place to belong. After all, Magical Girls would inevitably experience explosive growth in the future, and facing Disaster Beast tracking and hunting, they needed to band together for warmth.
The reasons weren't complicated—humans are social animals. After transforming identities, they urgently seek resonance with similar social groups. This is a psychological protection mechanism; otherwise it would be unhealthy.
Magical Girls are destined for long solitude. Being able to meet companions in the early stages is a blessing cultivated over several lifetimes, so they all valued this opportunity.
The best assist came from Gallup.
The mercenary company's so-called "collecting magic power talented individuals" was nothing but "capturing Magical Girls" in the eyes of these informed parties, and combat had indeed occurred. With both Disaster Beasts and mercenaries as major enemies, even Jin Yulu, a person within the system, had to consider seeking alternatives. Not to mention Jin Ruochu and Nan Zhiyi, who had already been spoiled by Hibiscus about parts of the future and understood they must unite.
They had no choice. If the world responded with rejection or wariness, they could only establish their own society.
These young girls, none older than 20, had made their decision when they came to the office building today—to throw themselves into a brand new world with all their might. From another perspective, wasn't this also a way to create achievements and leave their names in history?
The four discussed work with tacit understanding.
As the surface shell of the Salvation Church, it was equivalent to a home and naturally had to be managed well, so Nan Zhiyi, Jin Ruochu, and Jin Yulu brainstormed together.
Hibiscus listened and learned, as she was the only management novice among them. But she could often hit the nail on the head regarding direction, relying not only on information provided by netizens but more importantly on screening and organizing. Investment wasn't as simple as "buying houses guarantees profit."
Don't look at how she didn't manage much and wasn't even familiar with the company floors—she had crammed enough knowledge in specific business operations to cope.
It just didn't require the chairman to personally take action.
The small company had only 230 employees in total, but now had elite-level CEO, COO, and department managers in place—truly a luxury configuration.
Not to mention Nan Zhiyi, whose talents hadn't yet bloomed, the other two had absolutely dazzling résumés and could handle the small company with ease.
Hibiscus watched them gesture grandly, pointing at the country with passionate words. Such trivial matters as management weren't worth mentioning. As they chatted, they somehow set their goal as a "trillion-yuan market cap listed company," which sounded presumptuous.
So be it.
What's the difference between people without dreams and salted fish? This luxury team wouldn't be worthy of her hard work recruiting talent if they didn't achieve something.
Thinking irresponsibly, Hibiscus could actually throw Jin Ruochu completely into places suitable for her to make money.
Like horror games.
The world's number one massive multiplayer online horror game:
The A-share market.
After settling company matters, the girls headed to the chairman's office and closed the door. What came next was the real focus. Nan Zhiyi pointedly raised an issue: "We still lack an absolutely profitable signature product. Can the technology you used to cure dock infection victims be promoted?"
So what insights did the oldest Magical Girl present, humanity's strongest fighter, street doctor, gambling god, and prospective university student have to offer while remaining low-key and silent?
"Of course. I just need to infuse healing magic power into pills, and you can learn it too."
Hibiscus made the final decision.
As long as magic power was sufficient, she alone could match a production line. Unfortunately, currently it could only be sold as an extremely rare luxury super-effective medicine to the powerful, but from another perspective, it might be more profitable. After she briefly introduced the basic effects, Jin Ruochu immediately guaranteed success. After all, coming from a pharmaceutical company background, there would definitely be no problem, and only incredible luck could handle such special medicine.
"For quick approval and to avoid some behind-the-scenes struggles, we'll first establish a joint venture with Changfeng Group, then divest later."
Nan Zhiyi said warily: "You're a monopoly enterprise in this industry."
The implication was distrust.
Jin Ruochu patted her ample chest confidently: "Don't worry, Changfeng Group will only provide the nameplate without contributing a penny. The place I'm about to dedicate my life to is Dr. Mu's team, like getting married..."
She timely fell silent with an embarrassed cough. Although Hibiscus had long adapted to the pink-haired airhead protagonist's shocking statements, Nan Zhiyi frowned and sighed.
"Since that's settled, we've decided on our money tree, but what about initial startup funding?"
"I know many debt channels—official, bank, and underworld. With our current real estate, we can easily raise nine figures. Actually, I recommend being bolder and directly borrowing ten figures." Jin Yulu said nonchalantly.
"Aren't you afraid of economic prosecution?"
"My future chief lawyer and president, what do you know about the costs of economic crimes? Blacklist? Asset auction? Or a few years in prison, at most execution? To be honest, while testing my magic limits at home these past few days, I already emptied 4 clips into myself." Jin Yulu made a gun gesture aimed at her temple. "Go ahead and expand, leverage, play financial games. Before the new order is established, we must fully exploit the old order's backward rules for money."
Nan Zhiyi laughed heartily: "I was being pedantic. You're right—blame the imperfect system."
Jin Ruochu, who had always honestly done business following her father, was dumbfounded. How were her companions considering owing hundreds of billions without planning to pay it back?
"Forget about that outlaw lawyer. Captain Jin, as a former guard, do you really think this way?"
"When entrusted by someone, be loyal to their cause. Since I decided to fight alongside Boss Mu, I must share the superior's worries. As long as it's part of the plan, I don't care how much debt I carry."
Such high awareness!
Hibiscus, who had been listening as an observer, perked up. The burden on her shoulders grew heavier, as she couldn't disappoint their expectations. She was deciding the fate of Magical Girls.
She somewhat believed what netizens said about "eight magics corresponding to eight personality traits." For example, Jin Yulu's mythology series magic corresponding to "cautious type, loyalist" was already prepared to go through fire and water. The soldier's iron-blooded temperament reminded everyone this wasn't a game.
Thinking about leading them into danger made Hibiscus feel somewhat guilty. As compensation, she should at least satisfy material foundations like money.
"Go ahead. We really need money."
"What if we can't pay it back?" Jin Ruochu asked carefully.
"I have upper, middle, and lower strategies." Hibiscus held up three fingers. "Lower strategy: go to casinos. Middle strategy: I can empty another bank's vault to repay the debt to one bank. As long as they're on the same street, one sum of money can be repaid to ten banks in a single day."
Her teasing remark made the girls laugh until they swayed like flowers. Indeed, once you opened your mind, using magic made the whole matter irrelevant.
Nan Zhiyi pursued: "What's the upper strategy?"
"Naturally, take the money and run."
The more Jin Ruochu listened, the more wrong it sounded. They were clearly discussing production of infection disease medicine, but suddenly turned to stealing, cheating, and defaulting.
Fine, fine, worthy of the primitive accumulation stage of capital.
Even the "distinguished war hero" participated, with the style seamlessly transitioning from special forces elite to gang member. But after thinking briefly, she collected herself. After all, Jin Changfeng had often boasted to his daughter about how he made his fortune through deception in the old days.
Whatever. Rather, it gave Jin Ruochu a chance to show her skills, guaranteed to make the special medicine sell worldwide.
Hibiscus demonstrated the Healing Technique that could eliminate infection disease on the spot. As long as they had the technology, there would be no problem.
Opening a clinic at the docks wasn't pure charity. She had thought from the beginning that someday she'd launch medicine targeting infection diseases. Now that the team was just forming, it could finally be brought out.
Jin Yulu borrowed a phone and immediately began contacting various parties. Many creditors, hearing that the Changfeng Financial Group young miss had original shares, didn't doubt it and treated it as buying friendship with money. At worst, her father would help repay the debt.
As more and more confirmed investors appeared, Jin Ruochu nearby looked uncomfortable and went to the bathroom—apparently breakfast was wasted.
Great, causal magic was taking effect.
Nan Zhiyi, as the most hands-on person, recorded all key points and compiled the proposal. Everything proceeded in an orderly fashion.
Evening.
Moonlight was bright, stars peaceful. The office building finished work on time, lights going out one by one. In the silence, only a few windows remained lit. Ordinary people might feel nervous and creeped out, but the four girls in the office were still enthusiastically formulating plans. The urgent matters were two production lines: real estate and pharmaceuticals. One purely money-burning investment line: electronic information technology. With the general direction set, there were no problems. The discussion came to a conclusion.
CEO Nan Zhiyi organized the thick stack of documents into folders and put them in the safe, then clapped her hands and asked: "It's late. Let's talk business."
Everyone's gaze focused on the somewhat lazy silver-haired girl in the boss chair, who had somehow entered weak transformation state.
They hadn't forgotten their true purpose in coming here was training. Admittedly, being wealthy was appealing, but for Magical Girls about to possess extraordinary power, the attraction was greatly reduced. Nothing was more real than power itself.
Hibiscus was very satisfied with the three determined gazes.
"Remember the event timeline I mentioned before? Major historical nodes are never up to us to decide. Before the Catastrophic Disaster Beast landing in November, Disaster Beast activity will escalate each month. It's now late August, and their activity will become more frequent. They've definitely targeted Ningfeng Harbor—who told it to be so lively?"
"So we need to relocate frequently, not giving Disaster Beasts a chance to focus fire, or the city will suffer too."
"We could hide if we wanted to. There's a location that both ensures safety and can serve as the future Salvation Church base. Have you heard of Hermit Island?"
Everyone shook their heads.
"Then you should have heard of Pacific Fallen Zone Island 24."
As soon as Hibiscus said this, the atmosphere became heavy. Even ordinary people knew about this strategic location that the military had long failed to capture, rumored to contain precious relics.
The most famous rumor about Island 24 was the large-scale disappearance incident and the official's tight-lipped attitude, spawning countless conspiracy theories like inhumane experiments, training grounds, secret prisons, cult rituals, etc. Now suddenly mentioning it was like bringing urban legends into serious discussion. Could an ordinary civilian a thousand miles away know top secrets?
Logically, it seemed impossible. After all, that small 20,000 square kilometer island had accumulated 50,000 troops and 4 fleet rotations—a well-known hard nut to crack. There shouldn't be intelligence leaks either. In other words, any "leak" could only be Hibiscus's prophetic ability at work again.
Could it really work?
The girl said eerily: "Everyone got it wrong. The real Island 24 is elsewhere, where there's a space attribute relic. But it also contains shocking knowledge poison, so we must be careful."
"Precisely because of this, it's an excellent headquarters location and can serve as a position to intercept or evade Disaster Beasts."
"Our target is to occupy Hermit Island, including the space relic, then find a way to rescue future Magical Girls from the Americas laboratory."
"...Another reason is there's an official VIP worth winning over there."
Hibiscus's thoughts were clear and her words shocking, much more excited than when discussing business earlier.
Jin Ruochu was dumbfounded: "Dr. Mu, that's not how you make plans. With our current combat power, is it enough? Even fleets can't capture that place for long—wouldn't we be delivering ourselves as food?"
"What do you all think?"
"I'll accompany you through any mountain of knives or sea of fire." Nan Zhiyi nodded.
Jin Yulu said coldly: "Everyone's too complacent. I don't see any serious atmosphere for fighting Disaster Beasts. Whatever training was decided before needs to be tripled, and I'll lead by example with five times."
"Ah?"
"Good, very spirited." Hibiscus clapped encouragingly.
In the fanatical atmosphere, only Jin Ruochu stood there stunned, thinking am I the only normal person? Why does everyone become abnormal when it comes to magic topics? But on second thought, there was no choice. Isn't it just Disaster Beasts, some broken island, some dragon's den and tiger's lair that even the military can't take down? Damn it, are there any normal Magical Girls? I'll fight you—might as well risk my life to accompany you.
She raised both hands and cheered "Long live!" The late-night office building echoed with ghostly wails, scaring away stray cats under the dim streetlights.
"Stop, stop, stop." Hibiscus crossed her hands in front. "I don't mean to force you to do anything, just reminding you that time is tight. Forget those plans just now, because the prerequisite for everything is power. Otherwise everything is shelved—at worst we'll just live quietly behind closed doors."
"No, we must save people. I know how perverted those experimental madmen are. Magical Girls shouldn't fall into their hands."
Hearing Jin Yulu's words, Jin Ruochu nodded in empathy.
The mercenary company's arrogant behavior was proof enough.
Perhaps other Magical Girls would awaken peacefully, grow peacefully, then be swept along unremarkably by the tide, but they had nothing to do with the ordinary.
Nan Zhiyi asked: "What's your minimum psychological expectation before we can go to Hermit Island?"
Hibiscus pondered with her chin in her hand for a moment before declaring: "Taking the short board effect, at minimum we need to reach Triple Awakening. Another reason I'm going there is that contact with large numbers of Disaster Beasts can train magic power to support the next stage of plans. Most importantly, endurance—otherwise, if we can't fight for long periods, we can't go anywhere."
"Let's start quickly, I can't wait." Jin Yulu rubbed her hands together, faintly releasing aura.
"No, I have one more experiment before that."
"What?"
"First, use all your magic power to condense it into a light orb... Feels draining, right? Now the experiment begins."
Hibiscus went to the water dispenser and filled three cups, placing them on the table. "One cup each, see the effect."
The sudden request made the girls hesitate briefly, but then Nan Zhiyi, Jin Ruochu, and Jin Yulu successively raised their cups and drained them. Colorless and tasteless—just pure water...
Wait!
Power surged throughout their bodies, the magic power that had just been depleted rapidly recovered, flowing endlessly as if finding no limit, making them linger in the sensation.
Unfortunately, this wonderful feeling lasted only an instant before disappearing, otherwise it could have fully restored their magic power.
Hibiscus proactively explained: "Actually, my time magic can store usually unused magic power dissolved in water. As you can see, it supplements magic power to a certain degree. This is good news—it can both ensure continuous training and provide surprises in battle. I'll make some of these magic recovery potions."
"Time magic is really amazing."
The girls' sincere admiration nearly made Hibiscus break character. What time magic—it was a lie, completely unrelated. She had divided one drop from a Small Mana Recovery Potion.
When she discovered that system rewards like Evil-Repelling Incense and technique knowledge could be shared, she had been thinking whether the most commonly used potions might work too. She hadn't tried before because she had few in stock, but now with fixed income from status updates, she was relatively well-off and simply took a mana recovery potion to experiment.
First, it wouldn't manifest, but from her perspective she indeed divided a drop into a cup of water.
Second, even dividing a drop would make the potion show as [Damaged] status.
Third, the effect was far inferior to the original but could be given to multiple people in small amounts repeatedly.
Hibiscus had gained another trump card. Just her chugging potions alone wasn't enough—improving teammates' effects was equally good. Facts proved it worked.
She roughly introduced potion types and mechanisms...
Nan Zhiyi exclaimed: "This stuff is simply strategic resources. If the Salvation Church possesses mana recovery potions, we'd definitely secure the throne as the number one Magical Girl force. Officials would certainly compete for talent then, but they can't provide mana recovery potions, health recovery potions, or enhancement potions. I understand now, Hibiscus—what you're giving everyone is absolutely unique treasure, perhaps even more exaggerated than your foresight."
"You flatter me. Actually, I haven't figured out its specific composition even now. It's not replicable, difficult to mass-produce. Just treat it as a special ability."
"Rarity makes things precious. The mere existence of potions is important," Jin Ruochu said excitedly. "In the early stage, we'll provide them free to Magical Girls. When they can't do without them, they should be tied together for life. The Church should become a lifetime employment enterprise."
Jin Yulu couldn't wait: "Long-term matters can be discussed later. I'm only curious whether we're fighting today?"
"Let's go."
Hibiscus led the group to Ningfeng Harbor's abandoned district.
This place had weathered many storms—broken walls and ruins. Over the years, not only were parts submerged due to rising sea levels, but there were also infected areas. Over 100,000 people had to leave their homes. It happened to be far from the city, with buildings covered in moss and vines, no different from suburbs—suitable as a transitional training ground.
Actually, she didn't expect to train anything significant. The key was being able to use power like one's own limbs. Once they had a base, they could truly show their capabilities.
"If we make noise, will it attract investigation?" Jin Yulu asked.
"Don't worry. From childhood to adulthood, things I didn't want people to know were never discovered—like playing with phones at night, sneaking to internet cafes, skipping classes, etc. Everyone will share in my luck." Jin Ruochu proudly put her hands on her hips.
Hearing this, the other three nodded without doubt. Honestly, truly—witnessing time magic made one marvel at its grandeur, witnessing causal magic made one marvel at its mystery.
Clap!
Hibiscus clapped her hands: "Next I'll explain your magic—no, comprehensive training directions. Remember every word I say..."
She shared the training plans provided by netizens combined with her own understanding to the three attentive students.
"...In summary, being the strongest magic of each series doesn't mean actually being powerful. It more means meeting selection criteria. For example, having at least damage immunity mechanisms—Jin Ruochu's damage transfer, Jin Yulu's survival of the fittest. Furthermore, they must have precise control, wide-range killing, high single-target damage, crowd control removal or immunity... See? The strongest magics are definitely comprehensive. You'll eventually develop skills with the effects I mentioned."
"Actually, speaking purely of effects, Origin plus Regalia could work too, but magic is more convenient and frees up energy for the other two to focus on magic power and comprehensive enhancement."
"Talk is cheap. Practice reveals truth. Here I come."
Before Hibiscus finished speaking, she activated time acceleration. The sluggishness instantly captured the three girls, including their expressions slowly changing from attentive listening to shock. They never expected actual combat training had already begun.
"Enemies won't say 'here I come.' Be careful of first-encounter kills. So how will you respond?"
The reason she didn't use time stop was because it consumed the most mana and was usually used to charge up for guaranteed one-hit kills—only used in life-or-death battles. Also, Hibiscus was trying to reduce dependence on time stop, since it had minimal effect against "three-high" opponents. New skills had more development potential.
Crack!
Suddenly the ground beneath Jin Yulu's feet cracked—obviously she was resisting with full force.
"Well done. World Serpent's essence isn't adaptation but self-contained circulation, weakening any effect through repetition. The more you're hit, the stronger you become."
Before she finished speaking, a starry sphere just large enough to encompass one person firmly protected Nan Zhiyi. On the other side, suddenly collapsing concrete blocks fell at high speed, still doing their utmost to cover Jin Ruochu despite the sluggish effects.
"Very good. You're all prodigies, but mechanism battles are too boring. I'd rather everyone use Origin and Regalia to resist."
The continuously expanding Small Universe domain forced her to retreat and first cancel time acceleration.
"Aren't you afraid I'll break the domain and severely injure you?"
"I won't give you the chance."
Jin Ruochu's high kick was fierce but easily dodged by Hibiscus, whose attributes far exceeded hers. She said lightly: "Haven't you heard? Good legs don't go past the knee—too big an opening."
She countered with a strike right to the girl's ankle bend, with force sufficient to temporarily immobilize a Magical Girl.
Bang!
A stray dog not far away exploded into a blood mist.
"I have my animal friends." Jin Ruochu smiled darkly.
"Who wants to be that kind of friend! You've gone bad."
Jin Ruochu slightly sidestepped to make room for Jin Yulu. The next moment, two professionally trained combat experts crossed in battle, advancing and retreating with fierce, watertight fists and feet blocking Hibiscus's path. Even with numerical differences, she felt the craftiness of their techniques—her punches were deflected, her blocks caused bone-numbing vibrations. Most importantly, their mechanisms were disgusting enough to make her hesitant.
Damage transfer would send away damage that could easily greatly reduce her combat effectiveness.
Survival of the fittest would weaken forces that couldn't critically hit her.
"You two damage immunity monsters are quite troublesome."