Behind the mask, Dottore's eyes reflected the fist Gu Chen hurled toward him.
Aside from its speed, it looked almost ordinary.
Yet alarms screamed inside Dottore's mind.
He felt danger—from that single punch!
There was no time to dodge.
Dottore raised his arm, clenched his fist, and met Gu Chen head-on.
BOOM!
The collision was like two artillery shells smashing together midair.
Terrifying qi-and-blood power clashed violently with elemental energy, exploding outward and whipping up a savage gale.
The intertwined forces shredded the carriage and the horses pulling it into fragments.
Amid the explosion, the crisp sound of bones snapping was completely drowned out.
Dottore's arm went limp.
His gaze turned icy.
His forearm—was broken.
That seemingly tangible qi-and-blood force pierced through his skin like a blunt weapon, slammed into flesh and bone, then coiled inside his arm like a dragon or serpent.
Crack after crack.
Bone fractured.
Tendons twisted like rope.
Horrifying.
For the first time, Dottore truly felt the terror of martial dao.
Just one exchange of punches—and his right arm had already lost all strength.
His arrogance slowly faded.
He had to admit it.
The person before him—this youth not yet even of age—
was already standing on the same level as him.
Before he could finish that thought—
A violent wind surged toward him.
After retracting his fist, Gu Chen flowed seamlessly into an elbow strike, swinging horizontally toward Dottore's chin.
Dottore's eyelids twitched violently.
He abandoned all composure and elegance and leaned back sharply.
The wind pressure shattered the bird-beak mask on his face, revealing a pair of blood-red eyes.
Dottore retreated several steps.
Those crimson eyes fixed on Gu Chen as his lips curled into a twisted grin.
"So this is martial dao after cultivating body-refinement… truly fascinating."
"Fascinating?"
Gu Chen smiled, rolling his neck and pushing up his sleeves.
"That was just a warm-up."
"To hear the Dao in the morning—death in the evening would be worth it. You're desperate to understand martial dao and body-refinement."
"Now you've seen it."
"You should die without regret."
Before his words even fully fell—
Gu Chen shot forward like an arrow released from the bowstring.
Dottore grabbed his injured arm with his left hand and twisted it violently back into place, then opened and clenched his right hand.
"Then let me see just how strong such an experimental specimen truly is!"
He charged straight at Gu Chen.
In an instant, the two collided.
Gu Chen feinted, slipping past Dottore's punch—
Then drove a solid blow straight into Dottore's chest.
The immense force caved in his chest inward, while a massive bulge erupted from his back.
Dottore's face went pale, yet his eyes burned with even greater madness and excitement.
He clamped his left hand onto Gu Chen's shoulder and unleashed a violent surge of elemental power.
Gu Chen's expression didn't change.
He lifted his knee and smashed it into Dottore's abdomen, sending his entire body flying upward—
Then followed with a brutal elbow strike to Dottore's spine.
BOOM!
Dottore slammed into the ground.
His spine shattered.
"AAARGH—!"
Dottore roared.
His body reacted on instinct, forcing his arms to support him.
Gu Chen seized one of his arms and twisted it savagely.
Crack!
The arm dislocated—bones crushed where Gu Chen's grip held fast.
The other arm suffered the same fate.
"Rest now," Gu Chen said softly.
He punched Dottore squarely in the back, qi and blood piercing through flesh and surging directly into his heart.
"Kh—kh…"
Dottore opened his mouth, blood foam spilling out—mixed with shredded pieces of internal organs.
"Kh—kh… you're… underestimating… me!!"
His eyes burned even redder as thick black mist erupted from his body.
"A Delusion?"
Gu Chen scoffed.
Dottore let out a muffled groan and bit down hard—
Crack.
His back teeth shattered.
In the next instant, veins bulged across his forehead.
His body began to swell—like an overinflated balloon.
In the blink of an eye, Dottore had grown to more than three times his original size.
Gu Chen frowned slightly and chopped down with a hand blade.
Qi-and-blood sharpened like sword energy, slicing a bloody gash across Dottore's body.
"ROOOAR—!"
Dottore roared, his hands now larger than a human head as they clawed toward Gu Chen.
Gu Chen tapped the ground lightly and drifted backward, landing over ten meters away.
"Kh… kh…"
Dottore slowly stood up.
As he did, cracking sounds echoed throughout his entire skeleton, one after another.
He now resembled a Fatui Vanguard Heavy Guard—
grotesquely obese, visibly deformed.
Over four meters tall.
At his widest point, several people would be needed just to encircle his waist.
[Kaeya]: Holy hell! Modifying others wasn't enough—Dottore even modified himself?!
[Arataki Itto]: That thing's huge… one punch and I'd be dead.
[Raiden Ei]: So many buffs—Delusion, enhancement drugs, unknown forces… Husband might actually be in danger!
[Azhdaha]: Damn… seems we underestimated the top-ranked Harbingers. He's way stronger than Tartaglia.
[Tartaglia]: What do you mean by that?!
[Zhongli]: By common rationality, while Dottore's form is horrifying, his combat power is equally so.
[Venti]: Old man, you're really just stating the obvious!
[Jean]: Mr. Gu Chen will be alright… right?
[Lisa]: Oh my~ already worrying about your man before marriage?
[Jean]: …
[Albedo]: No need to panic. Mr. Gu Chen looks very calm.
[Nilou]: Just believe in him!
[Collei]: He's almost eighteen now—not little-brother Gu Chen anymore! Go, Mr. Gu!!!
"Monster…"
Varka frowned deeply.
He looked at Gu Chen.
"Can you handle it?"
Gu Chen narrowed his eyes.
"It's a bit troublesome."
A bit troublesome?
That was the first time Varka had ever heard Gu Chen say that.
"Don't worry," Gu Chen shook his head.
"Just keep the battlefield secured."
"Understood."
Varka glanced toward Springvale, then Dawn Winery.
The shockwaves weren't massive—but that terrifying aura traveled far.
If civilians rushed over to help, they'd likely die from collateral damage.
Just as Varka feared—
At Dawn Winery, sensing the distant pressure, many people prepared to investigate.
Diluc stopped them.
"No need to worry. The Grand Master and Vice Captain are eliminating traitors and enemies. That level of battle is beyond us. Stay here and wait for the result."
"Oh… so it's internal cleanup."
"Then it's fine—but traitors in the Knights?!"
"Unthinkable!"
Among the crowd, Eroch's expression flickered.
So that's what they were doing.
They were intercepting Dottore.
Before he could think further—
Several elite knights stepped forward.
"Eroch! By joint order of the Grand Master and Vice Captain, you are charged with betraying the Knights of Favonius. The evidence is conclusive. You are under arrest."
The winery erupted in shock.
Inspector Eroch—a traitor?!
"You disappoint me," Bishop Simon said, shaking his head.
"I didn't! You're framing me!" Eroch shouted desperately.
"The evidence is solid," Diluc snorted.
"Detain him on the spot. Break his limbs. Await judgment upon the Grand Master's return."
"Yes!"
Eroch's arms and legs were broken, shackled, gagged.
His eyes burned with hatred.
This—this was how nobles once treated slaves.
And now it was happening to him.
But he knew—
There was no escape.
Because he had betrayed the Knights.
His accomplices were arrested as well.
Not one escaped.
At the same time—
Mondstadt City.
The Fatui had been pre-arranged.
If anything went wrong, they were to burn and kill in retaliation.
Now—was the moment.
As a Fatui Debt Collector rushed toward a tavern—
Two elite knights appeared, swords flashing.
His limbs were severed in an instant.
He was dragged away like a dead dog.
Similar scenes unfolded all across the city.
At the Knights' Headquarters Library—
Lisa yawned lazily.
"More work~"
The door burst open.
Several Fatui rushed in.
Lisa raised her hand, lightning crackling at her fingertips.
"So~ will you surrender peacefully…"
"Or would you like to experience something… tingly?"
At the towering statue of Barbatos outside the cathedral—
A boy dressed in Baroque-style clothing sat casually in the statue's cupped hands.
Black hair.
Green-gradient braids.
A green beret adorned with a Cecilia flower.
He yawned.
"Oh my~ just woke up and there's already such a big show?"
He flipped down and scurried up to the Knights' headquarters rooftop to watch.
Out in the wilderness—
The battle raged on.
The land was utterly ruined, craters of varying sizes pocking the earth.
Dottore roared.
Gu Chen's punch smashed into his belly, layers of fat rippling like waves to disperse the force—
But the qi-and-blood had already penetrated deep into his body.
No matter how strong one was, internal organs were fragile.
Especially against an equal—or superior—opponent.
Varka watched closely.
Qi-and-blood thickness defined martial mastery.
When qi-and-blood could leave the body, it formed jin.
Gu Chen had once said—
Once this jin entered the body, it shredded the organs completely.
Dottore's stomach was likely already destroyed.
BOOM!
Gu Chen took a punch to the chest—his aura destabilized briefly—
Then he whipped a roundhouse kick into Dottore's temple, smashing him into the ground.
Gu Chen leapt high—
And slammed a fist straight down.
BOOM!
Dottore's chest caved in.
The earth within hundreds of meters sank with it.
Another massive crater formed.
Dottore lay within it, gasping, struggling to rise.
Varka rushed to the edge.
Gu Chen inhaled sharply and punched again.
PUFF—
His fist, wrapped in jin, pierced through Dottore's chest like a blade.
Gu Chen flipped his hand—
And grasped a heart the size of half an adult's head.
Realizing what had happened, Dottore screamed hoarsely:
"No!! You can't kill me!! You'll pay for this!!"
"When you lose," Gu Chen said calmly,
"you die."
"You're no exception."
CRACK!
His grip tightened.
Wind-like jin tore through—
The heart shattered into fragments.
Dottore's massive body shrank, deflating like a punctured balloon.
He tried to breathe—failed.
Only wet, rasping sounds escaped his throat.
His crimson eyes dimmed, yet he stared at Gu Chen, lips curling into a chilling smile.
"You… wait… I… will… return…"
Gu Chen straightened his tie, brushed dust from his clothes, and spoke indifferently:
"If this is all you have, you were never worthy of being my opponent."
Dottore's gaze reflected Gu Chen's departing back.
His fading voice followed—
"I'll give you time to prepare."
"So next time… I can kill you even more easily."
Spurt.
Blood overflowed.
The light vanished from Dottore's eyes.
[Tartaglia]: Holy sh— "I'll give you time to prepare!" That's pure dominance!
[Kaeya]: He's not even eighteen yet! His growth rate is terrifying—next time Dottore might actually be weaker than today!
[Azhdaha]: Damn! From start to finish—nothing but cool!
[Wriothesley]: Heh… that tie-adjusting move—I've learned it.
[Osial]: I just saw Venti. If he fought Gu Chen right now, would he get one-punched?
[Venti]: Hey! We're on the same side! Stop slandering me!
[Nilou]: He's so handsome…!
[Collei]: AHHHHH GU CHEN!!! IDOL!!!
[Tighnari]: She's gone. Completely gone.
[Cyno]: Perfectly normal. She's a looks fan, charisma fan, CP fan… at least she's not crawling on the floor screaming yet.
[Kamisato Ayaka]: …So handsome.
[Barbara]: His confidence is overflowing from the screen…
[Lisa]: Oh? Is it his confidence overflowing—or yours?
[Barbara]: !!
[Yae Miko]: Heh~ as expected of brother-in-law. The fan club is about to riot~
[Sangonomiya Kokomi]: Everyone—please restrain yourselves…
[Paimon]: Isn't this a bit much?!
[Hu Tao]: No no, you don't understand how cool my husband just was.
[Furina]: That's the kind of handsome that doesn't care if anyone else lives or dies.
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