Thankfully, Chu Xi's physique had improved significantly after obtaining her Vision, or she would never have been able to keep up with Lumine and Paimon.
Lumine seemed to have almost limitless stamina; she could sprint for hours without tiring. As for Paimon, who flew constantly, the little creature never complained of tiredness either.
"Chu Xi, are you okay?" Paimon asked worriedly, noticing the sweat beading on Chu Xi's forehead.
"I'm fine, Paimon," Chu Xi assured her.
Lumine's face filled with apology. "I'm sorry, Chu Xi, for making you run around with us like this."
"No, no, no! I'm the one who should be grateful for your help. Besides, none of this is your fault. If anyone's to blame, it's the Fatui and the Sages."
"Chu Xi, can your body keep up?"
"Mhm, mhm! No problem, Traveler."
Her actions were also for Sumeru's sake. With Silaya away, she could help out in her place. When Silaya returned, she would tell her all about it, and Chu Xi imagined Silaya showering her with gratitude.
Thinking this, Chu Xi felt her sprint grow lighter.
-
The streamer Penguin was playing a game, with another phone beside him displaying the ongoing Genshin Impact quest, its storyline progressing exactly as his own.
Earlier, he had impulsively chosen the second option, losing 3,200 Primogems and Chu Xi, who would have entered the storyline.
Penguin regretted his decision deeply. To make matters worse, he had advanced the story too far afterward, making the "disconnect and reconnect" trick utterly useless.
Now, watching other players complete the quest with Chu Xi constantly by their side, his longing for her only intensified.
In Penguin's live stream chat, many viewers who had also chosen the second option were now drowning in regret alongside him.
[If only I'd chosen the first option unlike the streamer! My Chu Xi, my Primogems!]
[I've completed the entire storyline, and the only difference between the two options seems to be Primogems and Chu Xi. That's it.]
[So Mihoyo designed the second option purely to troll us?]
[Not necessarily, but so far, that seems to be the only difference.]
Arriving at Pardis Dhyai, Lumine and Paimon immediately spotted Katheryne waiting nearby.
"Wait, isn't that—?!"
The group rushed over and, seeing Katheryne perfectly unharmed, Paimon let out a huge sigh of relief.
"You're really okay! Thank goodness! We were so worried about you..."
Lumine: "It must be Nahida's consciousness, right?"
Paimon crossed her arms. "Hey, Lumine, we were having such a touching reunion, and you had to ruin the mood!"
Nahida: "Paimon, Lumine is wise to be cautious of me right now. After all, the Doctor has demonstrated technology capable of manipulating people's minds... You have no way of knowing what happened when I faced him alone after we parted."
"Just like after a disastrous downpour, the puddles on the ground can sometimes mimic the sky above."
There it was—that familiar art of metaphor. It had to be Nahida.
Nahida explained her reason for coming here: she had completed restoring the subconscious minds of Sumeru's residents before the Doctor could succeed, transferring her consciousness away at the last moment.
At the same time, Nahida revealed that the Doctor had already begun researching the Akasha. If he continued at this pace, capturing Nahida's consciousness would only be a matter of time.
Lumine: "We need to hurry. If we keep dragging this out, we'll become increasingly passive."
Paimon stomped her feet in frustration: "Damn it... It feels like we're being played! He's such a troublesome opponent... And they say the Doctor had easily secured the Second Seat through sheer force alone."
The group entered Pardis Dhyai together and encountered an unexpected person: Haypasia.
Haypasia claimed she could help Lumine and Paimon connect directly with the God's consciousness. After consulting Nahida, Lumine agreed to follow Haypasia's instructions.
Haypasia lit the Spirit Borneol.
Lumine and Paimon clasped Haypasia's hands, and under the fragrance's influence, their consciousnesses gradually sank into darkness.
[I have been betrayed thrice, and thus I understand that all things in this world are merely veils of deception.]
Then they heard a familiar voice—Scaramouche!
Could the second Harbinger stationed in Sumeru actually be Scaramouche?!
[My fury shall never be quenched!]
[One was a god, my creator, my "Mother."]
[Driven by power, she abandoned me as useless.]
[The second were humans, my family, my friends.]
[Bound by fear, they saw me as an abominable thing.]
[The third were my Kindred, my expectations, fledgling birds with wings not yet fully grown.]
[Controlled by their mortal lifespans, they broke their promises to me.]
[Humans are utterly untrustworthy, and even the gods inspire my hatred.]
[I have forsaken all, rejecting and mocking everything in the mortal realm.]
[My heart will never again be tainted by worldly affections.]
[Having cast aside humanity's base emotions, the emptiness within me will become as pure as the pristine scroll from the moment of my birth.]
[It will be filled with the divine heart of the supreme god, overflowing with divinity.]
[Heh heh heh... HA HA HA HA!]
[Fear not, for pain is but fleeting.]
[Your era... is about to end.]
The last thing Lumine saw was Scaramouche, suspended in mid-air and connected to numerous tubes, his open eyes coldly staring at her.
Paimon also regained consciousness.
"Was... what we just saw... Scaramouche's past?! So much of it aligns!"
Haypasia suddenly clasped her hands together, her face radiant with devotion.
"Did you see it? Did you feel it? The sublime god, the sublime will, the sublime emotion!"
Startled by Haypasia's sudden behavior, Lumine and Paimon turned to look at her.
"Alas... how unfortunate... how tragic... how regrettable that the heart beating within my chest is but a filthy, human one... Great god, can you forgive me? Can you grant me salvation?"
Paimon's eyes widened. "Haypasia, what are you saying?!"
Haypasia suddenly clutched her head. "Hiss... Why are you being so harsh with me? Why is everyone avoiding me?"
She began muttering to herself, her voice drifting between coherence and madness. The others exchanged worried glances.
After muttering for a while, Haypasia suddenly fled, clutching her head. Lumine was about to give chase when Nahida's voice echoed in her mind.
"Wait! Something's wrong with the surroundings!"
Lumine sensed it too—a large group of people was rapidly approaching.
The moment they emerged from cover, they were confronted by a massive force of Corps of Thirty soldiers.
The soldiers charged at Lumine and her companions, swinging their weapons with lethal intent.
Lumine leaped into the air and kicked one soldier flying, sending him crashing into the ranks behind, toppling a large number of men.
"Too many! Run!"