Chiyo lowered her head for one last look at her body, which was about to fade away, her eyes filled with longing for life and reluctance to leave it.
But she knew she had already been killed more than four hundred years ago by the Maguu Kenki that possessed her son's memories. Because of that, she had clung to existence within the Puppet Core for centuries, all so she could see Ei once more and tell her she was sorry.
Now that her lingering obsession had been resolved, she could truly let go.
Watching Chiyo's soul begin to fade, Ei felt as though a knife were cutting through her heart. She had thought that after so many farewells, her heart had become as hard as stone. Yet when she truly faced parting with Chiyo once again, she was still filled with reluctance.
She turned to Yae Miko and hurriedly asked, "Miko, can the Sacred Sakura's power keep Chiyo's soul in this world forever? Even if only her soul remains, that would be enough."
Hearing Ei's excessive request, Miko could only shake her head helplessly. "Ei, you're not thinking straight. The Sacred Sakura's power isn't all-powerful. Helping Lady Chiyo's fragmented soul briefly regain her senses is already the limit of what it can do."
That despairing answer brought Ei unbearable anguish. She was already one of Teyvat's Seven Archons, possessing power ordinary people could scarcely imagine. Yet even with such power, she remained utterly helpless in the face of partings of life and death.
Ei instinctively looked toward Zhongli beside her, hoping that the oldest of the Seven Archons could offer her some hope. But even Zhongli could only shake his head helplessly in this situation.
Watching this unfold, Zhongli's heart was immensely heavy as well. In his more than six