Cyno slowly regained consciousness, jostled by the movement. He blinked groggily at his surroundings and realized they seemed to be somewhere in the forest.
"Am I still alive? Those monsters didn't look like the kind to show mercy. Why am I here?"
The questions in his mind brought him fully awake in an instant.
He realized someone was carrying him on their back while running, heading deeper into the forest.
Looking closer, Cyno saw that Tighnari was being carried too, and an almost endless number of monsters were chasing them.
Now fully conscious, Cyno tried to get down from Zoro's back, but Zoro had him pinned beneath his arm as if he were trapped under some gigantic steel mechanism. He couldn't move a muscle.
Left with no choice, Cyno called out, "Hey, you! Put me down! And why did you bring us here?"
Zoro, who was running away with the two of them, felt his temper flare at that. You were the one who said the town was just ahead in this direction. I've been running for ages, and now we're deep in the forest without seeing it. And somehow this is my fault?
So Zoro simply let them both go, then cleared a swath of monsters with a single strike.
As soon as Cyno was released, he landed in a backflip, caught Tighnari, and set him down gently.
Then he looked up and saw the result of Zoro's strike. He couldn't help marveling at how powerful the man was.
But Cyno quickly came back to his senses and asked, "Why did you knock us both out and bring us here? Were you trying to lure the monsters?"
After clearing a swath of monsters, Zoro heard Cyno's question and said irritably, "Hey, you're the one who pointed this way and said your town was nearby. I've run a long way, and we're already deep in the forest, but I still haven't seen it."
?
What the hell?
I was fighting outside Sumeru City, wasn't I? You could see exactly where the city was! I even pointed the way for him. It was right there in plain sight!
Cyno's questions kept piling up. After talking it over, he finally confirmed one thing.
This incredibly powerful man was named Zoro, and he was horribly bad with directions!
So bad that he could see a building right in front of him and still end up in the forest.
Exhausted, Cyno woke Tighnari and explained what had happened. The two of them decided to lead the way, with Zoro following behind.
After a difficult exchange, they also realized that relying on Zoro to lead them would be no better than walking straight into a mob of monsters to die.
A few minutes later.
Looking thoroughly unwilling, Zoro followed behind Cyno and Tighnari as they continued onward...
As they led the way, monsters closed in around them, their vast numbers surging toward them like an ocean!
They covered the mountains and plains, and monsters even filled the sky. At a glance, there had to be at least hundreds of thousands of them!
Cyno and Tighnari looked desperate at the sight. Zoro had shown incredible strength throughout their journey, but even he could be buried beneath a horde this huge.
"Looks like this is where we meet our end. I don't know why so many monsters appeared all of a sudden. I hope everyone in Sumeru City is safe..." Tighnari said, full of worry.
"Let's fight them. We'll kill as many as we can, at least to take a little pressure off everyone else!" Cyno said fiercely. His polearm reappeared in his hand, crackling with Electro.
"Don't worry so much. It'll be fine. These monsters aren't enough to withstand two strikes from me!" Despite his words, Zoro equipped all three of his swords, one clenched between his teeth and one in each hand.
His aura turned razor-sharp!
Seeing Zoro wield three swords, the two couldn't help wondering: could he really fight with one clenched in his mouth?
"Nine mountains and eight seas make one world. Gather a thousand worlds, and they form a 'Small Thousand World.' Multiply that world by three, and nothing can withstand my strike. Three-Sword Style Secret Technique... Santoryu Ogi: Ichidai Sanzen Daisen Sekai!"
As he chanted the verse, Zoro's expression grew intensely serious. His power began to surge, joining with the strength He Lingxuan had given him. This strike would shake the heavens!
SLASH!!!
A flash of white light swept past. Cyno and Tighnari barely had time to react before the thousands upon thousands of monsters were reduced to scraps!
But then something unexpected happened. The incoming monsters were drawn to the remains and absorbed them, combining into one gigantic monster after another!
The auras they gave off even made Zoro feel a little troubled.
Just as Zoro was about to unleash his secret technique again, he seemed to sense something and looked up at the sky.
Blinding golden light filled the heavens and earth, tearing through even the dense clouds!
It was as if the dawn of hope had fallen upon the world!
The golden light came from one golden Ki Blade after another!
They stretched across the whole sky, outshining the stars and outnumbering them!
Yet Zoro wasn't the least bit alarmed by the sight. He could sense that the power within those golden Ki Blades belonged to He Lingxuan!
The aura of the golden Ki Blades resonated with the enormous power within his own body.
"Finally! That power is incredible!"
Zoro looked up at the countless golden Ki Blades and the power contained in every sword, unable to hide his amazement.
"Th-this is a divine miracle?!"
Everyone who witnessed the sight cried out in astonishment. The next second, the golden Ki Blades fell from the sky like divine punishment, precisely killing every monster!
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Beneath the divine might of the golden Ki Blades, the seemingly endless horde of monsters was wiped out in moments, vanishing without a trace!
Teyvat, Fontaine.
The ones who descended here were Li Jiahao and Lin Qiye!
When they arrived, they saw that the situation seemed to be more or less under control. The one holding back the disaster was the Chief Justice, Neuvillette, who stood high above the Court of Fontaine!
He had another identity: the Dragon King who wielded Hydro in the world of Genshin Impact. Though he was only the second Dragon King, his strength was in no way inferior. He simply hadn't reclaimed the Authority of the Dragon Sovereign.
What he was doing now was manipulating Fontaine's vast waters to crush the monsters beneath the sea or drive them away from human settlements!
Seeing that the monsters were under control, Lin Qiye and Li Jiahao exchanged glances. It seemed this place would be fine without them.
But what happened next made them reconsider.
A monster so enormous that its full size couldn't be seen—in truth, a skeleton—rose to its feet!
It was the skeleton of Elynas, a terrifying creature created by a mysterious alchemist and brought down long ago.
The Weird's power had corrupted it!
Before you continue