The Azure Solo at the Bottom of the Abyss

Deep beneath Stormterror's Lair lay a deathly silent ruin, beyond the reach of even Teyvat's starlight.

It had once been a secret base where the Abyss Order plotted to control Stormterror, Dvalin.

But now, the whispers of conspiracy had vanished from the ancient ruins, leaving only the chilling stench of blood.

Several Abyss Mages who usually threw their weight around in the wilds of Mondstadt were now trembling without a shred of dignity, prostrate on the cold flagstones.

The Abyss Mage at their head could barely hold its staff, its furry body convulsing violently with terror.

It raised its head and pleaded toward the deep darkness ahead, its voice thick with tears:

"Y-Your Highness, please intervene! That glowing branch lodged in Dvalin's back... that wasn't the power of the Ley Lines at all."

The Hydro Abyss Mage recalled what had happened underground just moments ago, its voice trembling so badly it nearly broke:

"We originally planned to use that power to completely corrupt Dvalin's will... but our comrades who went to touch the branch didn't gain any power. Instead... instead, their bodies fell apart!"

Another Pyro Abyss Mage chimed in, terrified:

"They turned into monsters that knew nothing but killing! Our elemental shields were as fragile as paper before those monsters. They didn't follow the laws of elemental reactions at all! Your Highness... we need your power to suppress that light!"

As far as they knew, if the noble-blooded "Your Highness" intervened, the mighty power of the Abyss would be enough to sweep away any unknown threat.

Tap.

Tap.

Tap.

From the darkness came the rhythmic, elegant sound of leather shoes striking the ground.

The footsteps were neither hurried nor slow, each falling to a particular beat. They echoed through the vast underground ruins, producing a resonance that made their hearts tremble.

The Abyss Mages froze.

Those footsteps... definitely didn't belong to the blond "Your Highness."

As the footsteps drew closer, a tall figure slowly emerged from the shadows.

The newcomer wore an elegant, well-tailored, pure-blue medieval nobleman's outfit over a pristine white shirt.

He had long silver-gray hair, somewhat disheveled yet strikingly artistic, and a face so handsome it was almost uncanny.

In his right hand, he casually dragged a huge, strangely shaped scythe that gleamed with a cold silver light.

If Wei Zhenzu had been there and seen those iconic blue clothes and that silver scythe, he would surely have been so frightened that he would have clapped his big iron pot over his head and fled Teyvat overnight with the bus on his shoulders.

The uninvited guest tilted his head slightly, an arrogant smile in his azure eyes.

He gently extended his white-gloved left hand and stroked the scythe's sharp blade, his gaze hazy to the point of appearing deranged.

Hum-

As he stroked it, the enormous silver scythe gave a faint, low vibrating hum that could tear a soul apart.

"Don't you think you're being too noisy?"

The man maintained his elegant smile, but his tone betrayed extreme displeasure at having his enjoyment disturbed.

"W-who are you?! Where is our Highness?"

The Hydro Abyss Mage finally realized something was wrong. Terrified, it raised its staff and tried to gather Hydro energy.

The man didn't even look directly at it. He merely swung the scythe in his hand.

There was no flash of the blade, no burst of Elemental Power.

Only a barely perceptible azure arc swept through the air, accompanied by a hum.

The Hydro Abyss Mage's voice cut off abruptly. Its prized elemental shield, along with its furry body, was instantly sliced into countless neat geometric fragments that scattered silently across the ground.

The remaining Abyss Mages fell silent in an instant, too frightened even to breathe.

"Noise should be eliminated."

He raised his head, his hazy eyes seeming to see straight through the thick rock overhead to the "Golden Bough" glowing on Dvalin's back at the top of the tower.

A smile slowly curved his lips, tragically beautiful and tinged with fervor.

"Everything is lost..."

He seemed to be confiding in the void, yet also delivering a grand monologue.

He spread his arms as though embracing the Golden Bough energy scattered across Teyvat:

"But the gears of fate work in mysterious ways. Here, on this alien world's soil, they have prepared one final encore for me. Can you feel it? The resonance within that light, the trembling of those lost souls..."

He gently pressed his pale cheek against the cold metal face of the scythe's blade and murmured softly, yet chillingly:

"Let us play the music of that time once more, we who could never understand one another in our lifetimes, lonely and alone..."

"This time, no one can stop us."

"Wait for me... Angelica..."

As that deranged call faded, the Abyssal Aura throughout the underground ruins was forcibly suppressed and assimilated by a domineering surge of azure energy.

The man turned, the hem of his blue coat tracing an elegant arc through the darkness.

He seemed to have sensed the uninvited guests who had entered the upper levels of the ruins, and the smile on his lips grew wider.

"It seems the first invited guests have already taken their seats. Then, let this azure symphony... prepare to begin."