When Ying arrived at Jade Chamber, the battle had already begun.
That pavilion suspended in mid-air has now become the last barrier for the entire Liyue.
Three immortals stood side by side on one side of the pavilion.
Moon Carver, Mountain Shaper, and Cloud Retainer. Not long ago, they were confronting the Liyue Qixing at Yujing Terrace, but now they have put aside their grudges.
On the other side of the pavilion, the Liyue Qixing stood ready in formation.
Ningguang stood at the forefront, her golden robes fluttering in the sea breeze.
Keqing's hand rested on the sword hilt, purple lightning swirling at her fingertips.
Ganyu had already drawn her bow, the icy blue arrow aimed at the sea.
The Millelith stood in formation at the edge of the pavilion, their spears forming a forest, yet not a single one retreated.
Xiao did not stand with the others.
He stood guard at the corner closest to the sea, his blue light emanating from Primordial Jade Winged-Spear, blocking the direction where the tentacles were most concentrated.
Ying didn't say a word more.
She drew her sword and rushed to her position, her Elemental Power spreading along the blade as she stood beside Ganyu.
The first tentacle was aimed at the core of the Jade Chamber.
He raised his hand, Moon Carver.
A thick rock ridge rose from the void, forcefully taking the hit.
A crack appeared in the rock ridge with a loud bang, but it did not shatter.
"No matter how many came, we blocked them all."
The old immortal's voice was calm and steady.
The Mountain Shaper was immediately followed.
He spread his arms, and a huge screen of water spread out along the outer edge of the pavilion, diverting the surging waves to both sides.
The seawater crashed against the water screen and shattered into a mist that filled the sky, but it couldn't penetrate even a step into the pavilion.
Cloud Retainer a move.
Her eyes were fixed on the sea, as if she were calculating something.
Several tentacles bypassed the front and silently reached up from below.
Watch your step!
Ganyu strings.
The ice arrow pierced the air, striking the tentacles squarely. Frost spread along the tentacles, freezing them in mid-air.
Keqing moved.
Her figure moved so fast that she was reduced to a streak of purple light.
The lightning sword flashed repeatedly, and the frozen tentacles snapped off and fell into the sea.
"Such a fast sword!"
Ying said to herself.
She wasn't idle either.
One of the stray tentacles lashed out towards the Millelith. She raised her hand and swung her sword, her Elemental Power condensing into a blade of light, slicing the tentacle in two before it could fall.
The soldiers glanced back at her, their grip on their guns tightening even more.
The Xiao at the very front is the fiercest in battle.
He stood guard alone in one corner, and the tentacles swarmed towards him like madmen.
Azure light exploded around him, Primordial Jade Winged-Spear, one of his tentacles was pierced.
His movements were perfectly precise and efficient.
Each step of retreating, advancing, thrusting, and slashing was clean and crisp, as if it had been repeated countless times over thousands of years.
But his breathing was heavier than before.
The four people Golden House could see all of this clearly from a distance.
"That's the Three-Eyed Five-Manifestation Immortal recorded in the Liyue Book."
Varesa gazed at the figure on the Jade Chamber and said softly.
"The immortal and the Liyue Qixing were locked in a fierce battle at Yujing Terrace just a few days ago."
"Now we're standing together."
"They were never enemies."
Zhongli said in a low voice.
"But both require a stepping stone and a suitable opportunity."
" Osial was at that opportune moment."
The Childe also got up and stood on the other side, watching with great concentration.
He carefully observed the battle situation and discerned the strengths and weaknesses of each defensive line.
The rocky ridge Moon Carver, won't last long.
He suddenly spoke.
Mountain Shaper was being depleted, so was Keqing's Thunder Sword.
" Osial's tentacles seemed endless."
He paused, his azure eyes narrowing.
"This is a battle of attrition."
"And they couldn't outlast a single Archon."
The battle continues.
Just as the Childe had predicted, the cracks on the rocky ridge Moon Carver were increasing.
The light from the water screen Mountain Shaper and streams visibly dimmed.
Keqing's lightning sword was still fast, but a hint of fatigue was visible in its light.
The tentacles keep coming back.
Cut one off, and three more immediately emerge from the seabed.
The people in the Jade Chamber were gradually forced into a tug-of-war.
"This can't go on."
Cloud Retainer finally withdrew his gaze from the sea.
She turned around and looked at a huge, dusty crossbow in the corner of the Jade Chamber.
The crossbow was made entirely of black stone, with ancient patterns engraved on its body, and was now covered in a thick layer of dust.
" Guizhong Ballista."
She said the name.
"That's a demon-suppressing mechanism left behind by the Archon of Dust in his Guizhong days."
"When Guizhong perished, this mechanism belonged to Liyue and has been sealed here ever since."
Unfortunately, due to years of neglect, its power has diminished considerably.
Her eyes gradually brightened.
"But if the power of all the immortals were used to re-infuse the immortal energy, and I were to personally improve it..."
"It can severely damage this demon Archon."
Ningguang did not hesitate for a moment.
"Take action."
"Just tell me what you need."
The immortals immediately surrounded the Guizhong Ballista.
Cloud Retainer and squatted down, his fingertips flying up and down on the machine body, reconnecting the dusty machinery piece by piece.
The Moon Carver slowly channeled immortal power into the crossbow, and the cracks healed once again in the golden light.
Mountain Shaper unfolds its palm, a gentle, moist force of water seeps into the mechanism, causing the rusted gears to turn again.
Xiao took a half step back from the front, planted Primordial Jade Winged-Spear in the ground, and the blue light flowed into the crossbow along the stone surface.
"Let's do it too."
Ganyu pulled Ying forward.
The power of ice and the Elemental Power of luminescence were poured in together, and the light on the arrowhead shone even brighter.
Keqing guard around the group, sweeping her lightning sword to block the tentacles that rushed towards them.
Everyone's strength was converging on that crossbow.
The arrowheads of the Guizhong Ballista were adorned with intertwined and shimmering gold, cyan, blue, and ice-colored light.
The light grew stronger and brighter until it transformed into a pillar of light that shot into the sky, turning half the night sky a golden blue.
"Launch!"
At Cloud Retainer, Liu Yun personally pulled the trigger.
Buzz--!
The Guizhong Ballista shook violently.
The pillar of light, imbued with the power of all the immortals, shot out from the sky with a piercing shriek, and pierced straight into Osial's body.
"Roar--!!!"
Osial let out a bloodcurdling scream of extreme pain.
Its thickest main tentacles were pierced through by the beam of light, and golden and blue light flashed wildly at the wounds.
The tentacles broke off one after another, trailing thick smoke as they fell into the sea, creating towering waves.
"You hit it!"
Paimon hung in mid-air, clapping his hands excitedly.
"Wow, that's amazing! Guizhong Ballista is incredible!"
Everyone in the Jade Chamber perked up.
Golden House, the Childe's brows furrowed even more deeply.
Don't be too happy yet.
He said in a low voice.
"It didn't die."
"A severely wounded Archon is the most terrifying."
His words soon came true.
After being severely injured, Osial was completely enraged.
It no longer bothered with the ports, nor did it probe further.
All the remaining tentacles turned around at once, like countless frenzied giant pythons, and surged wildly towards the Jade Chamber and the Guizhong Ballista.
"Protect the Guizhong Ballista!"
Ningguang shouted loudly.
Everyone rushed towards the location of the crossbow.
Water curtains, rock ridges, sword light, and lightning blades rose up layer by layer in front of the crossbow.
But that was a demon Archon's desperate counterattack, it came too fast and too fiercely.
Countless tentacles pounded down like a torrential rain.
The water screen shattered.
The rock ridge collapsed.
Thunder Sword and sword light were forced to retreat repeatedly.
Boom!
The thickest tentacle bypassed all the defenses and, under the cover of the waves, lashed hard at the Guizhong Ballista.
The machine, which had just been so imposing, let out a mournful cry as it could no longer bear the weight.
The arrowhead broke off.
The mechanism broke apart.
Gears and parts flew everywhere.
Under the watchful eyes of all the immortals, the entire Guizhong Ballista was completely destroyed, and its wreckage rolled into the sea.
The Jade Chamber was deathly silent.
Ganyu's face was deathly pale.
" The Guizhong Ballista... is gone."
The only weapon that could seriously damage Osial was gone.
Although Osial was seriously injured, he was not sealed away.
Its tentacles still protrude from the seabed, and the whirlpools on the surface of the sea are still spinning.
What should we do now?
Paimon's voice trembled with tears.
" The Guizhong Ballista is gone, what can we use to fight it now?"
No one answered.
The immortals remained silent, and the Liyue Qixing remained silent.
Even Ningguang, who was usually calm and collected, didn't speak immediately.
Golden House, Bai You gazed in the direction where the crossbow had disappeared and gently exhaled.
She knew the real moment had arrived.
The shocking storyline she witnessed in the game.
She raised her head and looked at the golden-clad figure in the Jade Chamber.
Ningguang needs to make a choice.
She said softly.
Ningguang took a step forward from the Jade Chamber.
She walked to the railing, looking down at Liyue Harbor below.
In the port, the Millelith was still evacuating civilians.
The high ground was crowded with civilians who had escaped.
There were children crying, elderly people praying with their hands clasped together, and women holding their loved ones tightly in their arms.
She raised her head again and glanced at the Jade Chamber behind her.
She built this pavilion suspended in mid-air.
She recalled that many years ago, she was just a young girl selling goods at the port.
She started from scratch, earning one Mora at a time, climbing Mora ladder step by step.
She wanted to exchange every Mora she earned for something tangible.
And so this building came into being.
Every piece of glass, every item of furniture, and every book in this collection is imbued with her painstaking efforts.
She once stood in the same spot, gazing at the harbor below, and uttered a single sentence.
One day, the shadow of the Jade Chamber will loom over the Seven Nations.
That was her dream.
But now, as she looked at that building, her gaze gradually calmed.
Ladies and gentlemen.
She suddenly spoke.
Her voice wasn't loud, but it clearly reached everyone's ears amidst the chaos of the battlefield.
" The Jade Chamber is the culmination of my life's work."
"I once thought this was my proudest work."
She turned around, her gaze slowly sweeping over the crowd.
"But I only understand today."
Its true purpose was never to hang in the sky for people to look up at.
Her gaze swept past the crowd and landed on the suffering people at her feet.
"It was on the day Liyue needed it most."
"Let it fall for Liyue."
Special thanks to Yunyouya for the "Great God Certification" x1, Baiyuanwuling for the "Completed 666" x1, and Yinhai for the "Update Request Charm" x8.
And thank you everyone for the gifts! つ♡⊂