Player World.
The scene visible to the players differed greatly from what Yelan and the others saw in the game. Here, it filled the entire screen, rendered with breathtaking realism and accompanied by dramatic music.
The fall of Liyue unfolded before the players' eyes, leaving them utterly stunned.
[What the hell is this?!]
[Aaaah! No! Not my beloved Liyue!]
[Holy shit, I saw Keqing! She looks like she was stabbed through the heart!]
[Where's Zhongli? Where did he go?!]
[Is this the scene Qingge fears most? Who wouldn't be terrified by this?!]
[Liyue has fallen... I can't believe I'm seeing this.]
[What's the point of showing this scene? Is it foreshadowing something?]
[Shut up, you idiot! If that's true, the game's lifespan is over!]
The players in the live stream erupted into a frenzy of discussion, their comments flooding the chat like a tidal wave.
Chen Xiyao sat before her computer, a chill gripping her heart.
She couldn't bear to imagine Liyue in such a state. It was her favorite nation in the game, designed with a distinctly Chinese cultural background.
This was the scene Qingge feared most...
As the supreme commander of the Millelith, Liyue's elite military force, her greatest fear was the nation's downfall.
Had she, as Kaiyang, often doubted her ability to fulfill this weighty responsibility?
-
At the very bottom of The Chasm, Mu Qingge had recovered from the visions she had just witnessed, though her heart still trembled with awe.
Everyone around her stared at her, but no one spoke immediately.
Yelan placed a hand on Qingge's shoulder and gave it a firm pat.
Qingge exhaled deeply and said, "There's no way out here. I'm feeling quite tired. Let's go back the way we came and figure out what to do next."
She truly felt exhausted, that sudden wave of fatigue hitting her like a tidal surge.
Paimon looked equally listless. "I'm so tired too," she groaned.
Kuki Shinobu frowned. "Something's off. I feel tired as well, but we shouldn't be accumulating fatigue in this space."
Qingge theorized, "Perhaps all the fatigue we didn't feel accumulating before is now bursting forth at once."
That seemed likely. While their bodies could still endure the strain, their mental fatigue had reached its breaking point.
This also explained why Paimon appeared to be in the worst condition—after all, she had experienced the passage of what felt like several months.
Kuki Shinobu cautioned, "In that case, from now on, regardless of how we feel physically, we must eat regularly and rest properly. We can't let a sudden burst of fatigue or hunger cripple us."
The group found a narrow path nearby, a shortcut that quickly led them back to their original location.
"Are you alright?" Yelan asked.
Qingge shook her head. Everyone had their fears. She had assumed Qingge's greatest fear would be her younger sister's death in their original world, but it turned out to be Liyue...
It seemed the limitations of that door only applied to Qingge's avatar.
But...
Perhaps even Jiang Mumu hadn't realized it, but when she saw the ravaged state of Liyue behind that door, her heart was utterly shattered.
She had lived a long time in her original world, but she had also lived a long time in Teyvat.
Moreover, here were seven avatars, each with their own distinct lives. Teyvat was her second homeland.
"If Liyue truly faces unprecedented danger, I will charge to the front lines! I will never allow the Abyss's claws to defile Liyue!"
Qingge's words rang with unwavering resolve, momentarily stunning Yelan.
After a long moment, Yelan snapped back to reality and nodded firmly.
"Yes, I'll stand with you."
-
Back in their original location, the group found themselves in another stalemate.
They remained stumped by the problem of finding an exit.
Paimon was in terrible shape. Lumine cleared a spot for her to lie down and rest.
The group's condition was deeply unsettling, and Qingge still didn't know what state Xiao was in.
Given the chaos caused by the Malice at the bottom of the abyss, Qingge worried that something unexpected might occur.
To accelerate the plot's progression, she, Yanfei, and Lumine had discovered anomalies in this space ahead of schedule. They pinpointed a region of spatial distortion and successfully established contact with Xiao.
"Conqueror of Demons, can you hear me? How's it going over there?"
Xiao's voice crackled through the rift. "I'm fine. You haven't found a way out yet?"
Lumine: "We're trapped here. We can't find an exit. Where are you now?"
Yanfei: "Conqueror of Demons, listen. We might be in separate spaces, but our voices occasionally pierce through. This means there are moments when the divided spaces converge."
From the other side of the rift, Xiao said, "Everything here is in chaos..."
Qingge: "Come over here first! We'll figure out the rest together!"
Xiao: "No. The Yaksha's taint is harmful to mortals."
Yanfei: "No, the situation is far more dangerous than that. This space is exploiting our instinct to find our companions by creating traps. If you're not with us, we might endanger ourselves trying to find you."
"We already stumbled into a dangerous place searching for you earlier. The Traveler even entered a hazardous room!"
Lumine: "It's true!"
Across the space, Xiao remained silent for a moment before asking, "What should I do?"
Yanfei: "Conqueror of Demons, try to pinpoint the source of our voices. If you can find the clearest signal, try manipulating something there—it might help."
After a few more minutes of tense waiting, Xiao finally broke through the spatial barrier and appeared before them.
His shoulders bore severe scars, and his aura was noticeably weakened.
Lumine stepped forward anxiously. "Xiao, are you alright?"
Xiao instinctively retreated a step. "I'm fine."
With Xiao found, the group shared all the information they had gathered. However, they remained clueless about how to escape.
Xiao then revealed why he had come here: he had been drawn by the legendary Unnamed Yaksha who fought against the Black Beast Tide from Khaenri'ah in this very place.
After returning to their starting point, everyone regrouped.
Following a brief discussion, Xiao proposed that in a critical moment, he would prioritize sending everyone out first.
Yelan strongly disapproved of Xiao's idea and his so-called "plan." As they argued, Itto suddenly burst into laughter.
"A full-power strike can break through space? Ha ha! How lucky for me to overhear that!"
"What's with all this 'one stays, one goes' nonsense? I don't want to hear it! After all this talk, what we really need is... this!"
Itto struck a fighting stance, his Vision glowing brightly as Geo Elemental Power converged on his fist.
"Come on! Let this mighty one show you what kind of damn thing dares to trap people in here!"
Yelan had barely shouted, "Wait!" when Itto unleashed a full-power strike against the wall.
A deafening roar echoed as a new path indeed opened where Itto had struck.
"Damn it! Looks like I didn't break through completely, but at least there's a new path now!"
"Hero stuff... I'll handle it... just fine..."
As soon as he finished speaking, Itto's body went limp, and Kuki Shinobu immediately caught him.