When the Abyss Herald spoke those words, Lumine stared at him in disbelief and blurted out,
"Is my brother out of his mind?! He wants enchanted weapons from me?"
"Is he not afraid of getting punched to death by Ryen in one hit?!"
At the mention of Ryen, the Abyss Herald seemed to recall a certain memory,
a companion whose space had been shattered and whose life had been ended effortlessly.
A subtle shiver ran through him.
But this trip was unavoidable.
Enchanted weapons, even enchanted armor, were things the Abyss had to obtain.
The last time Aether met Lumine, the more he thought about it afterward, the more something felt off.
He quietly dispatched people to investigate the situation across Teyvat.
That investigation nearly broke him.
In Mondstadt and Liyue, the entire nations were fortified so tightly that not even an Abyss Mage could infiltrate.
Even Abyss Heralds sent merely to scout were wiped out in moments by bizarre, unfamiliar military forces.
At least four Abyss Heralds had died in Liyue alone.
Most of them never even managed to send back meaningful intelligence,
some were obliterated the instant thunder roared across the battlefield,
others vanished the moment cavalry charges were mentioned.
Abyss portals were no longer safe to open.
After exhausting all options, only one Abyss Herald stationed in Inazuma managed to return a single line of intelligence:
Enchanted weapons do not belong to this world.
To obtain that single piece of information, the Abyss paid the price of more than ten powerful Abyss Heralds.
Even for the Abyss Order, that loss was painful.
But for Aether, and for the Abyss as a whole, the information was invaluable.
Otherworldly equipment,
it seemed to have already been mass-issued across Liyue and Mondstadt, and even Inazuma and Snezhnaya possessed it.
The strategic implications were enormous.
For a future war against Celestia, such power was indispensable.
The problem was that Lumine had been living in Liyue,
right beneath Mt. Tianheng, the most heavily defended region in all of Teyvat.
Not even approaching Mt. Tianheng was possible.
The moment Abyss forces appeared anywhere on Liyue soil, fanatical Millelith units swarmed in instantly.
Those soldiers were terrifyingly abnormal,
their strength rivaled even Vision holders.
And they never fought alone.
The Millelith were an army.
Whenever they mobilized, it was in formations of at least fifty.
Fifty Millelith soldiers were more than enough to eradicate an Abyss Herald.
With no other option, Aether could only order covert surveillance.
It was only after Lumine finally left Liyue that he rushed to send someone.
As for Abyss activity in Liyue, Ningguang and the others were well aware.
They simply didn't care.
Modern Liyue could crush the Abyss Order on its own.
Killing an Abyss Herald was little more than slaying a high-tier monster.
Not worth mentioning.
Frequent Abyss movement was understandable anyway,
after all, Lumine was Aether's sister.
Ningguang merely glanced at the report and tossed it aside.
Had she known the Abyss's true objective, she would have deployed overwhelming force and swept the Abyss Order clean out of Liyue in minutes.
The Abyss Herald fell silent for a moment before speaking softly,
"His Highness has unavoidable reasons. Enchanted weapons are extremely important to him."
"Obviously they're important!"
Lumine rolled her eyes.
"He wants something and expects me to hand it over?
I searched for him for so long and he never came to see me. Now that he needs me, he doesn't even show up in person!"
"What does he think I am, a vending machine?!"
The Abyss Herald did not respond.
Otherworldly artifacts were of critical importance not just to the Abyss Order, but to the Abyss itself.
Yet the reality was absurd,
At this point, even small merchant caravans from Liyue were capable of killing Abyss Heralds.
To put it bluntly:
they simply couldn't win.
Mobilizing the Abyss's main forces could seize such equipment, but the nature of the conflict would change entirely.
If the Abyss dared to launch a large-scale assault, Liyue would respond with full military deployment.
Others might not know where the Abyss hailed from,
but Morax certainly would.
According to intelligence, the Four-Nation Alliance alone possessed at least four or five gods.
Add to that their terrifying armies,
Once they marched, it would spell the Abyss Order's annihilation.
Aether did not dare provoke Zhongli.
After weighing all options, asking Lumine for help was the only viable path.
The Abyss Herald collected his thoughts and repeated,
"Please understand, Princess. His Highness has no choice."
"Nice words," Lumine scoffed.
"Who doesn't have their own difficulties?"
"When he doesn't need me, he won't even say my name.
Now he needs help, suddenly I'm a Princess?"
The Abyss Herald felt a trace of embarrassment.
Lumine frowned, thinking.
To be honest, enchanted weapons weren't valuable anymore.
They still sold well in Liyue, yes, but they were mass-produced junk at this point.
Even the Millelith light infantry were preparing to replace their equipment.
Only factions unfamiliar with the Minecraft world still coveted enchanted weapons.
Besides, even Albedo hadn't deciphered their underlying principles yet.
Lumine doubted her brother could manage it.
But then she thought of that single bucket of water,
treated by the people of Aaru Village as a divine miracle.
Value was relative.
With that thought, Lumine cleared her throat.
"Enchanted weapons, huh… Well, since he is my brother, it's not completely impossible."
The Abyss Herald's eyes lit up.
"But, "
He froze immediately.
"His Highness said he would provide appropriate compensation for Your Highness."
Lumine's eyes brightened.
Now that's more like it.
Lumine chuckled inwardly and casually produced an enchanted iron sword and an enchanted bow.
Their appearance was utterly unremarkable, plain iron, no ornamentation, yet an indescribable aura of laws and rules flowed faintly across their surfaces.
The Abyss Herald felt it instantly.
His heart burned with excitement, and in that moment, he finally understood why Aether was so determined to obtain enchanted equipment.
These things truly represented a chance,
a real possibility to oppose Heavenly Principles.
Seeing the Abyss Herald visibly stirred, Lumine laughed to herself again.
Truth be told, she hadn't used items like these in eight hundred years.
They were nothing more than dusty junk thrown into her Serenitea Pot.
Still, she maintained a calm expression and asked lightly,
"So, what are you planning to trade for them?"
"What does Her Highness wish to receive?"
The Abyss Herald countered.
Lumine felt a trace of disdain.
If Ningguang were here, she would have seized the initiative instantly and crushed the price to the lowest possible point.
Her brother's Abyss Heralds were strong, yes, but none of them had much of a head for negotiation.
After a moment of thought, Lumine decided she was being unfair.
After spending so long around Ningguang and watching her effortlessly dominate entire markets,
she had almost forgotten that there was only one Ningguang in the world.
"What I want," Lumine said leisurely, "depends on what you can give me."
She looked at the Abyss Herald with an easy smile.
"Mora, materials, weapons, equipment… I lack nothing. So, what exactly can move me?"
The Abyss Herald fell silent, seemingly contacting Aether.
After a long pause, he spoke softly,
"The Abyss Order will completely withdraw from Liyue. Permanently."
Lumine raised an eyebrow, considered for a moment, then replied decisively,
"And Mondstadt, Inazuma, and Snezhnaya as well."
In Liyue's case, it didn't matter whether the Abyss withdrew or not.
Even if they all came at once, they wouldn't survive the combined force of nearly twenty adepti, three gods, and tens of thousands of enhanced Millelith soldiers.
Mondstadt, while not as overwhelming as Liyue, had joined early and possessed formidable combat strength.
But Inazuma and Snezhnaya were different.
They had only recently joined the alliance. Their internal situations were still unstable, and their military enhancements were limited.
If the Abyss Order refrained from stirring chaos there, things would be far smoother.
And if she reported this back to Ei and the others,
Surely they'd be delighted and thank her warmly.
At that thought, Lumine's imagination ran wild.
Big sister… hugging…
Just imagining being hugged tightly by the gentle Raiden Ei and the Tsaritsa made Lumine's heart flutter with joy.
The Abyss Herald hadn't expected Lumine to include all three nations.
He began to reassess just how deep the Four-Nation Alliance truly ran.
Aether's voice echoed in his mind.
The Abyss Herald paused, then replied,
"Mondstadt and Inazuma are acceptable. Snezhnaya… is not."
"Why is Snezhnaya the exception?!"
Lumine immediately crossed her arms, glaring at him in displeasure.
The Abyss Herald did not answer.
Lumine tested the waters.
"The Fatui? The Jester?"
The Abyss Herald froze for a split second, then maintained his silence.
That was enough.
Lumine had her answer.
The Abyss Order was connected to the Fatui,
or more precisely, to Pierro, the Jester.
That information alone was valuable enough to report back to the Tsaritsa.
With that, Lumine was already satisfied.
She nodded.
"Fine then. One more condition."
"The enchanted weapons I give you must not be handed to the Jester."
"Otherwise, Ryen will get angry."
"And when he gets angry," she added casually,
"there's nothing we can do to stop him."
The Abyss Herald once again recalled the image of Ryen casually shattering space and crushing someone to death.
His heart trembled.
He nodded immediately.
"No problem."
"Deal."
Lumine casually tossed the enchanted weapons toward the Abyss Herald.
He had intended to catch them effortlessly, but the moment he sensed the heavy, compressed wind pressure, his expression changed.
Startled, he hurriedly activated his elemental power.
The instant the weapons landed in his hands, their weight nearly made him lose his grip.
Yet instead of embarrassment, his excitement only grew.
So it wasn't just the enchantments,
The weapons themselves were bound by an absurdly strange weight law.
This was a monumental achievement.
"Iron sword enchanted with Sharpness, Knockback, Unbreaking, and Fire Aspect.
Bow enchanted with Unbreaking, Power, and Infinity."
The Abyss Herald memorized every word carefully and nodded.
"Thank you for informing me, Princess."
Lumine waved her hand dismissively, signaling him to leave.
The Abyss Herald hesitated, then added one final piece of information,
"Please be cautious, Princess. The Fatui's Doctor has already arrived in Sumeru. His power is abnormal. According to our intelligence, the God Creation Project has successfully produced a divine vessel."
"Additionally, the Fatui Harbinger Scaramouche is also in Sumeru."
Lumine's eyes flickered.
"Two Harbingers?"
The Abyss Herald nodded slightly and said nothing more.
After all, while the Abyss cooperated with the Jester,
selling out allies could only go so far.
He opened a portal, glanced at the bewildered Dehya and the others behind Lumine, then fixed his gaze briefly on Cyno.
He memorized that face.
After all, Cyno had stalled him for quite some time today.
The Abyss Herald held grudges too.
This mission had earned him a great merit, he would certainly be rewarded and break through to a higher level.
And when that time came…
This debt would be repaid.
With that thought, the Abyss Herald turned and flew into the portal, his voice echoing as it closed,
"Princess, should you encounter any danger in Sumeru,
the Abyss Order and His Highness will ensure that Sumeru pays the price."
~~----------------------
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