Changsheng looked into Fujin's eyes: "With your power of the 'Votive Rainjade,' surely there is a way to clear the river channels, guiding the floodwaters to flow along the original courses as much as possible to minimize overflow, correct?"
Fujin froze for a moment, then, touched, she replied:
"Yes... it is possible. I used to talk to you about the 'Votive Rainjade' every day, but I thought you never actually listened..."
Changsheng offered a rare, slight curve of her lips:
"You couldn't tell? It's a good thing I didn't agree to let you explain those complex 'theories' of yours, otherwise, how much precious time would have been wasted..."
Amused by her words, Fujin revealed a fleeting smile, though worry quickly returned to her face:
"Preparing the ritual won't take much time. Compared to that..."
She gazed down at their Lord, who was exerting herself to hack away at the mountain body.
"It looks like there is still some time before the mountain is completely destroyed. I want to use this opportunity to prepare some temporary shelters for the people first, to save as many lives as possible and transfer more supplies."
Changsheng nodded immediately:
"We will go together. Call Lingyuan; with one more person, we can be faster."
...
In a dense, rarely traversed forest on Mount Lingmeng.
Lingyuan, having revealed her true Suanni form, stood before Fujin and Changsheng. Her body was wreathed in the spiritual breath of the wild, and her beastly pupils were filled with doubt and confusion.
She asked directly in her delicate voice:
"I do not understand... The flood is a natural disaster, and opposing an Archon is seeking one's own death. You have cultivated for hundreds of years, possessing long lives and the carefree freedom of the mountains. Why would you risk the destruction of both body and soul to do such a heaven-defying thing for these humans, whose lives are as fleeting as the morning dew?"
She tilted her massive head slightly, the confusion in her eyes deepening:
"Do you like humans that much?"
Fujin looked at this friend who had long kept company with mountain beasts and spoke softly:
"It is not a matter of simply liking them or not. When we watch those mortals use the methods we taught them to plant tea trees all over the mountains and produce fragrant tea leaves, revealing smiles of satisfaction on their faces; when we use our medical arts to cure their ailments and see them regain a new life, their eyes filled with grateful tears; when we celebrate the harvest with them, sharing simple food and stories, feeling that sincere joy... We can feel that our hundreds of years of cultivation are not meaningless. We are needed by them... and right now, they need us!"
Lingyuan listened quietly, remaining silent for a long time.
Seeing this, Changsheng sighed softly:
"It doesn't matter, Lingyuan." She turned to Fujin, preparing to assign tasks, "Time is tight. I will look for locations suitable for building shelters, you go and..."
"Wait," Lingyuan spoke suddenly, interrupting Changsheng.
She stared intently at her two friends, asking with worry:
"Can you come back safely?"
Changsheng took a deep breath and said solemnly:
"Of course. Just set your mind at ease; we know our limits."
Fujin also tried to make her voice sound lighter:
"It's not like we are going to fight the Lord head-on. We are just going to save people and make preparations. It's not as dangerous as you think."
Lingyuan looked at them silently for a moment before finally nodding gently:
"...Fine. I will help you."
...
In the time that followed, the three split up, racing against the clock and the impending disaster.
Relying on her years of traversing the mountains and her rich experience in identifying geography, Changsheng quickly found several concealed locations within the mountainous area. These spots had higher elevation and stable foundations, making them unlikely to be directly impacted by the flood or suffer from landslides. She designated them as temporary shelters.
Fujin, utilizing her adeptal power, waved her sleeves. Amidst flowing azure light, she cleaved ancient trees blocking the way, moving them aside. She shattered or pushed away giant rocks obstructing the path and filled deep ravines, carving out several roads in the rugged mountain forests that would allow the populace to travel quickly.
As for Lingyuan, she exerted her ability to command the beasts. She drove the birds and beasts of the forest to serve as her eyes, ears, and assistants.
The mountain beasts ran and roared, driving and guiding the people scattered across the wilds onto the paths opened by Fujin, eventually leading them in an orderly fashion into the shelters selected by Changsheng to settle temporarily.
The tense rescue and preparation work proceeded in silence and efficiency.
Meanwhile, in the distance, the muffled, thunderous sounds of the mountain body cracking were becoming increasingly frequent and clear.
...
Columbina knew time was pressing and worried that her flight speed was still not fast enough.
She turned back to Coppelia and said urgently, "Can you use wind to give us a push?"
Coppelia understood and immediately mobilized her Anemo elemental energy with full force.
The surrounding airflow converged behind them, forming a powerful and continuous thrust.
Their speed increased abruptly. Like azure meteors, they swiftly flew over the entire sky of Chenyu Vale, arriving straight at the temporary Millelith garrison outside the vale.
The garrison was heavily guarded, but relying on their bearing as "adepti," Coppelia and Columbina soon spoke with the Millelith leader stationed there.
Coppelia spoke concisely: "General, the Archon of Chenyu Vale has lost control. She is destroying the body of Mount Mingyuan, intending to unleash a flood! The people in the vale have begun to evacuate; the situation is critically urgent!"
Hearing this, the leader's expression changed steeply, but he quickly regained his composure: "Is this true?! But that Archon was already heavily wounded by Rex Lapis when she went south."
Coppelia affirmed: "It is absolutely true! I saw it with my own eyes. Although she is heavily wounded, given enough time, her power is still sufficient to shatter the mountain. Furthermore, she has completely lost her sanity now and is extremely dangerous. Please send troops to help evacuate the residents of Chenyu Vale and notify Liyue to prepare for flood control as early as possible!"
The leader frowned, a difficult expression appearing on his face: "To be honest with you two adepti, Liyue is currently in a troubled time as well. The 'Dust Archon,' Lady Guizhong, has recently fallen. The adepti are currently overwhelmed and deeply grieving over this matter. Coupled with the judgment that the Archon of Chenyu Vale had already been severely wounded and lacked the power to counterattack, no adepti were sent here to assist in defense. Although there are methods for long-distance communication in my army, they cannot transmit such complex and urgent messages."
Coppelia's heart sank, and she pressed, "Then do you know roughly where the adepti are right now?"
The leader ordered a military map to be brought out and spread open: "The adepti should all be at Guili Assembly at this moment."
"Can you mark the location on the map where we are most likely to encounter an adeptus?" Coppelia said decisively. "We will go personally to seek reinforcements!"
The leader marked the location as requested. Coppelia put away the map and delayed no longer.
By this time, the Millelith, having learned the news of the flood, had also moved quickly into action. Horns blared long and loud as squads of soldiers began to gear up, preparing to march into the vale to assist the populace in facing this incoming natural disaster.
Coppelia and Columbina soared into the air once more, leaving the valley entrance. Following the Bishui River and the rolling mountain ranges to its south, they flew at full speed toward Guili Assembly according to the map's guidance.
En route, Columbina kept her eyes fixed firmly ahead, controlling their flight posture.
Coppelia, meanwhile, dedicated most of her energy to manipulating the Anemo elements, maintaining their extremely high flight speed.
At this rate, perhaps they would reach their destination before the sun went down.
However, just as they rounded a perilous mountain peak, Columbina suddenly grabbed Coppelia, pulling her into an extremely abrupt, sharp turn in mid-air!
The powerful centrifugal force caught Coppelia off guard, nearly causing her to lose her balance.
"What is it?!" Coppelia steadied her form and asked hurriedly.
"A strange bird!" Columbina answered while leading Coppelia through various swift evasive maneuvers in the air, dodging attacks.
Coppelia immediately focused her gaze and soon locked onto the attacker.
It was indeed a "strange bird." Its entire body presented an unnatural pale cyan hue. Sharp, twisted bone spikes grew from its head, spine, and wing joints!
Its body and wings were covered in strange patterns that were regular yet filled with a primitive aura.
Under Coppelia's instantly activated Elemental Sight, she could clearly "see" a massive amount of violent, savage elemental power surging within this strange bird's body—energy that felt almost ready to spill over, filled with a sense of distortion and ominousness.
That thing was... A distant memory leaped into Coppelia's mind—
A Consecrated Beast?!
An Anemo version of the Consecrated Red Vulture?
____
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