The black sword aura struck with an apocalyptic force, tearing the air apart with piercing shrieks.
Yunqin's pupils contracted sharply. She poured all her strength into mobilizing the Geo element, trying to make the Geo platform swerve sharply to the side.
But the sword aura was too fast. The Geo platform was instantly shattered by the strike. Pale gold Geo element fragments scattered like broken glass, splashing into the black mist before being instantly swallowed by the Abyssal aura.
Losing her foothold, Yunqin plummeted straight down from the sky.
The wound on her arm was torn by the rushing wind of her descent, and an agonizing pain spread through her veins to her entire body.
She subconsciously reached out to grab something, but her fingertips only brushed past cold air.
"Yunqin! Grab onto me!" Paimon screamed in terror, flying over with all her might and reaching out to grab the hem of Yunqin's clothes.
But the size difference between them was too vast. How could her meager strength possibly hold onto the falling Yunqin?
The moment Paimon's fingertips brushed against Yunqin, she was blown back by the air currents. She could only watch helplessly as Yunqin crashed heavily onto the ground.
The instant she landed, the surrounding Abyss energy seemed to have found what it had been yearning for, surging madly toward Yunqin.
The black mist moved like a living creature, coiling around her limbs and burrowing into her body through the wound on her arm—wherever it passed, a searing pain like raging fire flared across her skin.
Yunqin wanted to resist, but her body grew increasingly heavy, and her consciousness began to blur. Her vision gradually faded to black, leaving her to watch helplessly as the Abyssal aura slowly gnawed away at her body.
"Yunqin! Don't fall asleep! Wake up!" Paimon let go and flew frantically into the air, her little face flushed red.
While shouting at Yunqin, she desperately called out to the out-of-control Lumine: "Traveler! Hurry up and wake up!"
Lumine stood motionless, her eyes as empty as a soulless puppet. The Festering Desire in her hand emanated a cold gleam, completely unresponsive to Paimon's cries.
Just as Yunqin's vision completely plunged into darkness and her last finger was swallowed by the Abyssal aura, two blurry yet shocking images suddenly surfaced in her mind.
Two deep-sea "demonic beasts" radiating terrifying pressure were suspended in the pitch-black sea. Their exact appearances were obscured, revealing only colossal bodies large enough to blot out the sky.
Strangely, Yunqin did not feel any fear. Instead, she could clearly sense some sort of indescribable connection between herself and them.
"Who are you..."
"I am... the Vortex..."
-
Yunqin was completely swallowed by the Abyss, and the entire space began to shake violently.
The Abyss churned wildly like boiling seawater, constantly eroding everything around it.
Lumine's body was also undergoing a terrifying transformation.
Festering Desire gradually shifted from a physical blade into a viscous black liquid. It slowly crept up her arm, eventually converging to form a suit of armor gleaming with an Abyssal luster across her body.
Paimon flew frantically back and forth in the air, her tiny voice turning hoarse from screaming: "Traveler! Wake up! Yunqin is gone! Stop this!"
Just as she let out one last, heart-wrenching scream of "Traveler!", Lumine's unfocused eyes suddenly shifted.
Looking at the scenery destroyed by the Abyss before her, and then down at the Abyss Armor exuding an evil aura on her own body, she bit her lip so hard it bled, the metallic taste of blood spreading in her mouth.
"No... This isn't what I wanted to do..."
Lumine clenched her fists tightly, her nails digging deep into her palms. The Anemo and Geo elements within her body erupted simultaneously, pale green and golden light coursing around her.
The Abyss Armor on her body began to fade away bit by bit. Black liquid dripped from her fingertips, hitting the ground with a sizzling sound.
At the same time, in the place where Yunqin had been engulfed, a trace of pale blue light broke through the envelopment of the Abyss.
Immediately after, a terrifying burst of Hydro Element erupted, violently repelling the surrounding Abyss.
Paimon and Lumine looked up simultaneously, only to see "Yunqin" slowly stepping out from the boundless Hydro Element. Her pitch-black hair was wrapped in dense Hydro Element, as if fine sea waves were flowing through it.
Her Vision emitted a dazzling blue light. The water-glistening violin she held in her hand was as translucent as ice, its strings made of flowing lines of Hydro. With a gentle quiver, the soft sound of sea waves could be heard.
"Yunqin" gently plucked the strings, and a melodious rhythm flowed throughout the Serenitea Pot.
The music was intoxicatingly beautiful, as if it could cleanse the soul. Even the lingering Abyssal aura seemed to become docile, no longer so ferocious.
She walked toward Lumine step by step, faint water ripples forming beneath her feet with each pace.
As if encountering a natural enemy, the dense Abyssal aura automatically gave way to form a path, not daring to come within half a meter of the Hydro Element surrounding her.
Walking up to Lumine, "Yunqin" stopped and looked her up and down. Her gaze lingered for a moment on the Abyss Armor she was wearing and the Festering Desire that was beginning to reform in her hand.
"A filthy thing of the Abyss, daring to covet the body of a god? You truly do not know your place." An undisguised sneer of disdain curled the corners of her lips.
As her words fell, the instrument bow in her hand tapped lightly against Lumine's chest like a sharp sword gleaming with watery light.
There was no violent collision, nor any piercing sound.
Instantly, the glow of the Festering Desire in Lumine's hand began to dissipate rapidly. Black mist continuously poured out from the blade, eventually turning into a wisp of faint smoke and vanishing completely into the air.
The surrounding scenery that had been corrupted by the Abyss also faded away like a fleeting illusion, as if the terrifying mutation from just a moment ago had never happened.
The Festering Desire in Lumine's hand lost all its vitality and dropped to the ground with a clang.
Drained of her strength, Lumine slumped to the ground, panting heavily. Her forehead was covered in cold sweat, her face was as pale as paper, and her eyes were filled with the relief and lingering fear of having barely survived.
Paimon hurriedly flew to Lumine's side, her small hands gently patting her back while she warily watched "Yunqin," terrified that she might attack: "Y-You... don't come any closer! ノ(=°ω°)ノ"
"Yunqin" paid no mind to their guardedness. She merely cast a faint glance at Paimon, her tone so calm it lacked even the slightest ripple: "To think humanity today is so fragile."
Her gaze fell upon Festering Desire on the ground, watching the tiny tentacle formed from the Abyssal aura crawl out of it.
The tentacle was still trying to squirm toward Lumine, but she crushed it under her foot. With a hiss, the tentacle instantly dissipated, leaving not a single trace behind.
"Who exactly are you?" Lumine caught her breath and looked up, her eyes filled with wariness and confusion. "You aren't Yunqin. Yunqin wouldn't have this kind of power, nor would she say such things."
Hearing this question, "Yunqin" tilted her head, seemingly giving serious thought to whether she should reveal her identity.
After a few seconds, she let out a disdainful chuckle, her tone carrying a hint of teasing that broke the heavy atmosphere: "I can be the incarnation of the ocean, or I can be Yunqin. By asking who I am, are you trying to offer me a proper title?"
Lumine and Paimon were both stunned, their eyes wide.
They never expected that this "Yunqin," with her formidable power and icy aura, would suddenly make such a joke.
Their previously tense nerves relaxed a bit. Paimon even forgot her fear, her tiny mouth slightly agape, at a loss for how to respond.
Seeing their dumbfounded expressions, "Yunqin" couldn't help but laugh. The laughter was no longer cold; instead, it carried a bit of a young girl's vivacity, forming a fascinating contrast with her powerful aura.
"The past seventeen years have been too boring. Every day, I've had to just stay in this body, watching her learn those dull adeptal arts and listening to those old Adepti tell stories from a thousand years ago."
She paused, her gaze falling on Lumine and Paimon, her tone turning a bit more serious.
"If you don't mind, take me to see the human world as it is today... to see the fireworks of Liyue Harbor?"
Seeing that Lumine and Paimon were still hesitating, she added, with a barely perceptible trace of compromise in her tone, "I can make a contract with you. If your evaluation goes well, perhaps I won't hurt Yunqin, and maybe... I won't ever appear again."
"After all, I also want to know what exactly is worth yearning for in this world protected by the God."
Lumine and Paimon exchanged a glance.
Yunqin's consciousness was obviously suppressed by her. If they refused outright, given her power, she got angry, the consequences would be unimaginable.
If they agreed, not only could they temporarily appease her, but they could also lead her to Cloud Retainer and the other Adepti. When the time came, they could figure out a way to restrain her and protect Yunqin.
Moreover, if she truly kept her word and never appeared again or threatened Liyue, it would be the best of both worlds.
"Alright, the contract is formed." Lumine took a deep breath and nodded, having made her decision. "We will take you to see Liyue Harbor, but you must not harm any innocent people."
"Yunqin" nodded with satisfaction, a faint smile curving her lips.
She looked around the Serenitea Pot, which had returned to its original state, and let out a soft sigh. "This girl's consciousness is still resisting. If it weren't for her, I wouldn't have held back just now."
She raised her hand, picked up the Cleansing Bell on the table, and gently stroked the cloud patterns on the bell with her fingers before shaking it once—the crisp chime echoed in the air, carrying a soothing power.
"Let's go, let's not delay our actual business."
"If the Geo Archon finds out we dawdled in the pot for so long, he might start nagging again."
As her words fell, a gentle adeptal energy enveloped the three of them.
This adeptal energy was different from Madame Ping's; instead, it carried a faint scent of seawater, like the morning sea breeze, gentle yet firm.
With a flash of pale blue light, their figures disappeared from within the Serenitea Pot.