"Official business?"
Lumine's right eyelid twitched—she had a bad feeling about this.
Paimon blinked in confusion.
"So… what exactly are you trying to do?"
Childe shrugged nonchalantly.
"Nothing much. I just intend to awaken the ancient god slumbering beneath Guyun Stone Forest."
Lumine was stunned. She had known the Fatui had big plans—but this big?
He's actually trying to release a god?!
Seeing as Lumine might one day become a fellow comrade, Childe didn't bother hiding anything.
"The God of the Vortex—Osial—was defeated by the Geo Archon Morax during the Archon War, and was sealed beneath the sea by a stone spear."
"If such a god were to attack Liyue Harbor, a city now without divine protection…"
"Heh…"
"Well, I'm sure you can imagine the outcome~"
Paimon scratched her head, utterly lost.
"But… but the Archon War ended two thousand years ago! And now there are only the Seven left—how do you plan on reviving a god from the distant past…?"
Childe chuckled.
"Simple. I've already made the necessary preparations."
"You remember the Sigil of Permission Adventurine gave you?"
Lumine's eyes widened as realization hit.
"Don't tell me…"
Childe spread his arms. One after another, Sigils of Permission floated from his sleeves, circling around him in a glowing spiral.
"When you gather this many Sigils of Permission, combined with the power granted to me by Her Majesty the Tsaritsa…"
"Temporarily unsealing the stone spear holding Osial? Doesn't sound too hard, does it?"
In that instant, dark clouds surged over Liyue Harbor. A massive waterspout twisted up from the ocean, piercing the sky.
Guyun Stone Forest trembled.
A furious roar echoed from the deep sea—ancient and wrathful.
"ROAAAR!!!"
Childe raised his hand again, channeling the power of the talismans.
"Just wait and see, oh nation without a god."
"Will you be swallowed by ancient malice once more?!"
The glow of the Sigils of Permission dimmed and finally faded.
Childe transformed into a surge of water, vanishing upward—only his voice remained echoing through the Golden House.
"Well then, have fun down here~"
Lumine snapped out of her daze.
"Quick, Paimon! After him!"
"Eh? Oh—right!"
...
Lumine and Paimon rushed out of the Golden House—only to be met with heavy rain and howling winds.
Paimon stamped her feet.
"Darn it! We lost him!"
Suddenly, she pointed at the sky.
"Traveler, look! What's that?!"
Following her finger, Lumine spotted it.
The Jade Chamber was soaring through the skies, heading toward Liyue Harbor's bay.
"Paimon, let's go!"
They chased after it.
Fortunately, someone aboard the Jade Chamber noticed them and lowered a rope to pull them up.
"Whew… we made it… that was exhausting…"
Paimon panted, but didn't forget to complain.
"If we hadn't happened to see the Jade Chamber flying above the Golden House, we wouldn't have even known which way to go…"
Lumine sighed in relief.
"Good thing we caught up. The God of the Vortex is still in the sea. He hasn't made landfall yet."
A familiar voice cut in. "You two… why are you here?"
Lumine turned her head.
"Huh? No one's there… Did I imagine it?"
"…Such disrespect toward an adeptus."
Only then did Lumine look down—and see none other than the Conqueror of Demons, Xiao, one of the three adepti they had met at Wangshu Inn.
Behind Xiao stood the other adepti—along with the Liyue Qixing.
Paimon scratched her head.
"Eh? Oh! It's the adepti! Why are you guys on the Jade Chamber? Weren't you arguing with the Qixing before? Uh… did you finish yelling at each other?"
Ningguang stepped forward to explain.
"The adepti have decided that, in this time of crisis, both sides must set aside their differences—for now—and stand united against our common foe."
The Mighty and Illuminated Adeptus: Moon Carver gave a cold snort, but didn't deny it.
Paimon nodded in understanding.
"Oh, I get it now. So, what's the plan to defend Liyue?"
She glanced toward the sea—and shivered.
"That thing is huge!"
Osial's five heads writhed and twisted, reaching toward the clouds.
The monstrous waves he summoned blotted out the sun.
And the harbor, freshly rebuilt over the last three years, was again reduced to rubble by the onslaught.
"Ugh… Just looking at him from here… makes it hard to breathe," Paimon muttered.
Ningguang clenched her fist. The threat they faced now was far worse than the unrest three years ago.
Keqing gripped her Lion's Roar tightly, whispering to herself.
"So this… is what the Archon War was like, two thousand years ago?"
Paimon grew anxious.
"Can all of you really take on the God of the Vortex?"
Ningguang paused, then answered solemnly.
"We just discussed that. And the answer is… uncertain."
"Eh?!"
Ningguang sighed.
"Three years ago, when Osial's wife Beisht was unleashed, we could barely handle it."
"But now we face Osial himself. Even if he's not at full strength… defeating him will be incredibly difficult."
"Not to mention the lingering malice a god leaves behind after death—it would wreak havoc on the land, beyond what normal people could hope to resist."
"I wouldn't be so sure~"
Lumine turned toward the voice.
It was Cloud Retainer, standing beside Shenhe, her white hair as bright as snow.
"Before his passing, Rex Lapis entrusted someone to repair the Guizhong Ballista, damaged during the battle three years ago."
"Now that it has been restored, by my estimates, it should be capable of wounding even a god."
"As for the aftermath of the god's death… we adepti shall form a formation with ourselves at its core to seal away the residual malice."
Shenhe's eyes widened, her gaze sorrowful as she looked at her master.
But Cloud Retainer's expression was firm—and the other adepti matched her resolve.
She spread her wings, summoning the Guizhong Ballista.
Each of the three adepti took control of one, channeling their immense power into the weapons.
Beams of energy shot toward Osial.
He howled in pain.
It was effective!
Everyone—from the Qixing to Lumine—stared in awe.
As expected of those who had defended Liyue for millennia.
And if the adepti stood strong—then mortals could not afford to fall behind.
Ningguang rose into the air, forming hand seals.
Array after array lit up the sky as the Jade Chamber's mounted cannons unleashed volleys of energy at the monstrous god.
"Everyone—"
"For Liyue's future!"
"Solid as the Thousand Rocks, Unshaken as the Lofty Peaks!"
They all shouted in unison.
"Solid as the Thousand Rocks, Unshaken as the Lofty Peaks!"
...
Meanwhile, in the empty Ministry of Civil Affairs—
A masked figure strolled in.
"Lord Morax, you're still sipping tea at a time like this~?"
Zhongli glanced up at the visitor and chuckled softly.
"It is not yet the time…"
_
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