The moment Huohuo agreed, Tail entered her body. As soon as they swapped, Tail took control—gripping the flag already jammed into Cirrus and began to rapidly thrust it back and forth.
"Ahahahaha! Ever since I saw this thing, I've wanted to try this out, so fun! So fun! Cirrus, come feel my joy! Domain Expansion: Idle Death Gamble~ WRYYYYYY!!!"
Whether it was Pei Guang's influence or a hidden side of Tail itself, right now Tail was thoroughly enjoying the moment. Using Huohuo's body to hop around and jab the flag like a plunger, Tail thought to itself: being sealed in Huohuo might not be so bad after all.
If it'd stayed a wandering spirit, who knew when it'd ever get to have this much fun?
Back when Pei Guang first imbued the weapon with its unique effect, Tail had already fantasized about how fun it would be to use it. But until now, it hadn't had the chance to possess Huohuo. Besides, with Pei Guang around, it'd had to hold back.
But now? Things were different. Huohuo had no idea what to do, so Tail had to step up: lead by example, show her how it's done.
As Tail continued to jab Cirrus like it was unclogging a drain, Cirrus could feel its strength rapidly draining away.
"Stop! Stop it!"
Tail: "Stop? Why would I stop? Cirrus, come on, move! Aren't you supposed to be powerful? AHAHAHAHA!"
Tail was overwhelmed with glee. It didn't care why a stealth attack and backstab had rendered Cirrus immobilized or severely weakened: it just wanted to soak in the pleasure of the moment.
After being a tail for so many years, was it wrong to indulge a little?
Cirrus wanted to resist, but every thrust of the flag drained more of its energy. And while thrusting, Tail also stuffed all the spells and talismans Huohuo had learned into the wound—without any restraint.
The flag acted exactly like a plunger, stuffing those runes deep into Cirrus's body. Already deflated, Cirrus now had a whole mass of foreign energy stuffed inside it. At that moment, the amalgamated body of countless Heliobus began to show signs of collapse.
Cirrus tried to think of a way out. If it were just Huohuo and Tail, maybe it could've come up with something. But unfortunately, Pei Guang, Stelle, and Xueyi were also here.
Pei Guang and Stelle walked over, watching the immobilized Cirrus being tortured by Tail. They both wore wide grins.
"Perfect! Cirrus, do you know why I didn't fight back this whole time?"
Cirrus suddenly had a very bad feeling. But it still asked instinctively, "W-Why?"
Pei Guang flashed a bright smile. "Because I was afraid you'd die too completely. I still need you Heliobus for crafting stuff."
Stelle glanced at Pei Guang. "Why are you wasting words on it? Let's tear it apart. But Ah Guang, how do we do that: blow it up or what?"
Pei Guang thought for a moment. "No need to complicate things. This will do."
He pulled out two bone saws. "Big body like this? Just saw it apart. If that doesn't work, then—this."
He then revealed a chisel and hammer. "Look how round it is: tap off a few fragments, they'll definitely come in handy."
Watching this display, Xueyi opened her mouth but couldn't find anything to say.
In that moment, she finally understood why the captured disciples of the Alchemy Commission always talked about having encountered an 'abomination.' Turns out Pei Guang was a walking abomination.
But then again, as cruel as it may seem, Xueyi didn't really mind. The Ten-Lords Commission had suffered horribly at the hands of the Heliobus. If it weren't for Pei Guang, who knows how many would've died?
Honestly, if every Heliobus were as reasonable as Tail, the Commission or even the Xianzhou Alliance might have been willing to give them space to coexist.
But the problem was that most Heliobi, under the influence of human emotions, refused to communicate properly. Showing mercy to them meant posing a threat to both the Ten-Lords Commission and even the people of the Xianzhou.
Besides, now that they knew Pei Guang could refine Heliobi, Xueyi was hoping he would refine them all.
It was actually Tail who gasped at the scene beside them, sucking in a cold breath. "I knew you were ruthless, but I didn't think you were this ruthless."
Pei Guang glanced at Tail, who was still going at it, and asked, "Hmm? What's wrong? Are you thinking of stopping us?"
Tail shuddered. "No, no! I wouldn't dare. Please, both of you, enjoy yourselves. No matter what you do, I fully support you, Pei Guang. Go right ahead!"
Pei Guang said, "Hey now, why are you being so formal with us? If you were the one stopping us, Tail, we'd actually listen. But since you're giving us the green light, we won't hold back."
That wasn't just politeness: over the course of their journey, Pei Guang had found Tail pretty agreeable and had come to see him as a real part of the team. As long as it was a companion speaking, Pei Guang was more than willing to listen.
Come on: how many tragedies have there been in games, anime, and novels just because people didn't listen to their teammates? That's why Pei Guang made it a point to follow through when his companions had ideas.
But since Tail didn't have much else to say, Pei Guang got straight to work. With a chisel in one hand and a hammer in the other, he struck down—and Cirrus's body exploded on the spot.
As Cirrus's body burst apart, scattering Heliobi into the air, Pei Guang got excited.
Pei Guang exclaimed, "Look! So many Heliobi! Maybe it's not nine hundred, but with one transformation device for each of us, plus one Stand each, that's more than enough!"
But Stelle's expression turned a little grim as she watched the Heliobi. "Ah Guang… look, there are a lot of them, but some of them seem to be running off?"
Pei Guang turned toward Stelle. "Don't worry! You're forgetting how Fyxestroll Garden is set up. There's a seal in place to block these Heliobi from escaping. What, you think they can really get out of here? If they actually manage to escape, I'll just—"
Before he could finish, Stelle immediately covered his mouth. "Ah Guang! Calm down. Don't get too excited. Don't forget you lose every bet you make, and definitely don't jinx it!"
Stelle was absolutely right to stop him, because just then, Xueyi quietly added, "Because the Heliobi refined the entire Fyxestroll Garden, the barrier has developed some issues. Those Heliobi actually can escape from here…"
When Xueyi said that, Pei Guang fell silent. He'd just been excited, mouthing off without really meaning it. He just wanted to bluff his way into a meal… not make that nonsense actually come true!