Yunqin let out a muffled groan as a searing pain, like countless tiny insects gnawing at her flesh and bone, radiated from her shoulder.
She was acutely aware of her shortcomings: her strength was less pure than Xiao Qin's, and her defense was slightly weaker, having just awakened.
But she was a living being, growing stronger through combat, and she knew her and Hydro Qin's weaknesses better than anyone.
Xiao Qin, on the other hand, was nothing more than a puppet that could only copy the past.
"You only know how to copy our moves, but you don't know how to adapt!" Yunqin suddenly exerted her strength, forcing herself free from the entangling dark energy. "In a fight where we both take damage, I might not lose!"
She took the initiative to attack, her fist carrying the crushing pressure of the Geo element as it hurtled straight toward Xiao Qin's face.
Xiao Qin raised her hand to block, and the moment their fists and palms collided, dark energy and golden light erupted violently.
Yunqin was sent reeling back several steps, a trace of bright red blood trickling from the corner of her mouth, her chest heaving slightly as her qi and blood surged.
Yet Xiao Qin was also forced back by this resolute power, the dark energy around her body churning in chaos, a flicker of disbelief crossing her eyes.
She never expected that this "original version" would dare to fight so desperately!
This kind of confrontation continued for an unknown amount of time. The wounds on Yunqin's shoulder and arm bled continuously, but her gaze remained blazing, like a burning star.
Through repeated clashes, she had figured out Xiao Qin's attack patterns.
The copied power was strong, but it lacked fluidity.
The opponent always copied her and Hydro Qin's past moves, with no innovation at all, and even the angles of attack were identical.
Finally, the moment Xiao Qin again condensed a water blade and stabbed toward her old wound, a sharp light flashed in Yunqin's eyes.
She deliberately left an opening, not dodging, letting the water blade pierce her chest, and blood instantly gushed out, staining the lower half of her body red.
Using the momentum of her forward lean, she gathered all her strength into her right fist, golden light continuously condensing on it, even faintly revealing a trace of divine pressure!
This unquestionable power smashed violently into Xiao Qin's chest!
"Bang!"
The moment the golden light penetrated the dark energy barrier, it made a piercing "sizzle" sound, smashing solidly into Xiao Qin's chest.
Xiao Qin let out a shrill roar, her body flying backward like a kite with a broken string, falling heavily onto the sea's surface and kicking up a large splash of black water.
The dark energy around her body churned wildly, like an out-of-control beast, and a large amount of black mist spewed from the corner of her mouth, mixed with dark red blood, clearly having suffered a heavy blow.
But at the same instant, Hydro Qin, who was floating in mid-air, suddenly trembled all over, and the Hydro Element violin in her hands shattered with a "clash" into countless water droplets.
She suddenly covered her chest as a mouthful of bright red blood sprayed from the corner of her mouth, and the blood droplets fell onto the sea's surface, spreading into circles of eye-piercing ripples that formed a sharp contrast with the black seawater.
The pain swept through her entire body like a tide, and tearing agony radiated from all her limbs and bones, as if an invisible knife were churning inside her body.
Hydro Qin's face was as white as paper, her figure swaying and unsteady, and even maintaining her levitation had become exceptionally difficult.
She looked down at her trembling hands, a trace of realization flashing in her eyes as her voice was as soft as a sigh: "So that's how it is... We were originally one entity, and the injuries she suffers will eventually backlash onto me."
This was a bond destined since the moment her consciousness was torn apart by the Abyss, no matter how much they wanted to break free from each other, they could not escape this connection of blood and soul.
She struggled to lift her head, her gaze crossing the chaotic battlefield to look at Zhongli and Venti.
The two gods were focusing all their attention, putting all their efforts into stripping the Abyssal Black Miasma from Osial and Beisht.
The golden light of the divine attire was so brilliant it was dazzling, and they paid no attention to her strange condition over here.
Hydro Qin gently bit her lower lip, swallowing the cry of pain that had reached her lips, without making a sound.
She could not let this little pain disturb them, nor could she let everyone's efforts go to waste.
Her gaze slowly turned toward Liyue Harbor, and even across the vast distance, she could still see the faint, unextinguished lights there.
Though the harbor in the midst of war appeared battered, it still exuded a tenacious vitality and warmth, with the common people sleeping in shelters, not a single panicked cry heard.
A trace of unconcealable longing flickered in Hydro Qin's eyes, an emotion she had never felt before.
She had once hated this land, hated the people here for ostracizing her, and hated Morax for his "indifference"...
But now, seeing it stand strong under the protection of the Dual Gods, seeing it still full of hope even in the midst of disaster.
An inexplicable sense of belonging welled up in her heart, as if she could also become a part of this Liyue Harbor.
Finally, she cast her gaze toward the distant deep sea, where a massive vortex swirled. That was the source of her bloodline, the place where Osial and Beisht were sealed, and the "home" she had yearned for countless times in her dreams.
She sighed softly, a trace of regret flickering in her eyes before quickly being replaced by resignation. Her voice was tinged with hoarseness: "In the end... will I still never reach that place?"
How she longed to see her parents' true faces...
How she longed to properly speak a word to them in a world without the Abyss, without hatred, to properly feel the warmth that belonged to family once...
But this simple wish, perhaps, could never be fulfilled again.
A sharp pain struck again, and Hydro Qin's vision went black.
A sensation of falling wrapped around her, growing heavier and heavier. Hydro Qin could clearly feel the strength in her body rapidly draining away along with the pain.
It was not the coldness of being swallowed by the Abyss, but a warm, vivid life force, like seawater that could not be held between fingers.
She subconsciously curled her fingers, trying to condense a wisp of Hydro Element to support herself, but her fingertips only gave off a few faint blue glows, like a candle flickering in the wind, instantly dissipating in the battlefield's gale.
Tearing pain spread from her limbs and bones, and each breath tasted of rust, yet her attention was already no longer on this pain.
"So... this is how much it hurts," Hydro Qin murmured softly in her heart, her unfocused gaze subconsciously drifting toward the direction of the fierce battle.
There, golden light and black miasma were clashing wildly. Even through the rain of flying rock shards and black water, she could still sense Yunqin's nearly stubborn resolution.
She remembered how, when Yunqin struck Xiao Qin's chest with that punch just now, a sudden, twisting pain had shot through her own body, as if a knife had brutally twisted in her heart.
She remembered the bone-deep loneliness and terror from the moment her consciousness had been torn apart by the Abyss.
So, this is the... price... that bastard mentioned?
"We were once one..." Hydro Qin's eyelashes trembled slightly, stained with undried blood droplets. A flicker of complex emotion passed through her eyes.
She had countless times ridiculed this "naively foolish" self—ridiculed herself for stupidly praying to the Lord of Geo, ridiculed herself for enduring hardships for the people of Liyue, and ridiculed herself for still holding onto hope for Morax in the end.
But now, looking at Yunqin's wounded back as she refused to retreat, looking at her firm resolve as she pierced the black miasma with a Stone Spear...
The towering hatred in her heart melted like ice in warm water, gradually being replaced by a strange emotion.