Barbara Follows Lin Xuan? Jean's World Comes Crashing Down

Jean had not arrived yet, but Ye Xuan was already there.

When Jean hurried over, she saw him standing amid rows of fallen people, his eyes lowered and his expression grave as he examined their frozen bodies.

Jean strode over and asked softly, "Lord Ye Xuan, have you run into a problem?"

Ye Xuan nodded slowly. "They've been pinned to the instant before death by the power of time. My healing power-the Horse Talisman's authority-sweeps away all external forces imposed on the body, returning the flesh to an unharmed state."

Jean stared. "Is there... a problem with that?"

"That's exactly where the problem lies. If the power dispels the time power locking their lives in place first, they'll cross the line between life and death before their injuries can be healed, and die for good."

"Once they truly die, their consciousnesses disperse and their souls return to the Ley Line, there'll be no saving them."

The world allowed a consciousness to be matched with a new vessel, but it did not allow a vessel to gather a dispersed consciousness.

It was not that he had no solution.

The Dog Talisman's power of immortality could keep them alive, and combined with the Horse Talisman's healing, it would eliminate the risk.

But the Dog Talisman's power only worked on its holder. To share it with so many people, he would have to take the talisman out of his body in front of everyone.

Smart people would realize that the Dog Talisman had the power of immortality, and doing that would bring Ye Xuan considerable trouble.

Ye Xuan raised his eyes toward Venti, who stood nearby. "Barbatos, when I heal them, can you protect their souls and keep the Ley Line from drawing away their consciousnesses?"

Venti nodded lightly. "I can."

"Then let's begin."

Venti raised a hand and plucked the strings of his lyre. A melodious tune spread on the wind, and gentle breezes wrapped around everyone, layer upon layer, like an invisible barrier steadily supporting each soul that was about to drift away.

It was Ye Xuan's turn.

"Noble horse, drive away all external forces."

A pale blue glow spread from his body, following the paths of the wind to reach every person.

Those gruesome wounds and shattered bones gradually mended as the blue light flowed over them, and every grievous injury vanished.

Lawrence was the first to push himself up into a sitting position.

He looked around in confusion and spotted Jean at once. His voice was still dazed from waking. "Where am I? Acting Grand Master Jean, Swan, he-"

Jean said, "I've already executed Swan."

The others woke one after another, slowly sitting up. To them, everything that had just happened was more like a cool, peaceful sleep on a summer night. They retained no memory of the agony or their brush with death.

Next came the deeply moving reunions with their loved ones, and Ye Xuan was moved beyond measure.

He would never call these people Mondstadt's unruly commoners again. They had actually filled his Wish Power back up.

The sheer bliss nearly made him moan aloud, and he could hardly wait to go home and draw the lottery.

Ye Xuan turned to Jean. "I'll leave the rest to you. You don't need me here anymore."

He whispered something else in Jean's ear, then left.

The disturbance had shaken heaven and earth, but in the end, only two people had truly been beyond saving.

One was Swan, and the other was the person Ye Xuan had killed with his own hands back then.

Everyone's attention was on their friends and family who had returned from the dead. Hardly anyone noticed the two corpses.

Only Lawrence gazed at Swan's remains, his heart full of sorrow.

He remembered long ago, when they had both been trainee knights, skipping stones by Cider Lake: the evening breeze, the lake water, and the carefree laughter of boys.

His gaze sharpened when he saw a purple object lying quietly beside Swan, its shape much like that of a Vision.

Lawrence reached down, picked it up, and looked at Jean. "Acting Grand Master Jean, what is this?"

Diluc stepped forward from beside them, his gaze turning cold. "A Delusion. It's something the Fatui made, trading life for power."

Lawrence's brows knitted tightly. "Where did Swan get this? How come I never heard about it?"

"It came from the Fatui," Diluc said coolly.

Lawrence committed that name firmly to memory.

When monsters had besieged the city before, the Fatui had come to help. He had thought they were lending a hand in goodwill, but he had never expected them to hide something like this behind the scenes.

He suddenly remembered that Swan had used this power back then and had even tricked him into believing it was an alchemical potion. A wave of regret swept through him. If only he had noticed sooner...

"Everyone, the Dragon of the East has broken free of the Abyss's control with Lord Barbatos's help. Everything is over now. Please go home and spend some time with your loved ones."

Jean also wanted to find some peace and quiet and sort out the arrangements for the days ahead.

With three Vision-wielding fighters gone at once, a gap had suddenly opened in the City of Mondstadt's defenses.

She turned to Venti, her tone earnest. "Lord Barbatos, could you stay with the Knights of Favonius and keep watch for the time being?"

Venti shook his head gently, even putting on an appearance of exhaustion as he sighed. "Alas, I was badly injured when I fought Dvalin earlier, and I overtaxed my strength helping to steady everyone's souls just now. I'll need to rest and recuperate for a while."

He paused, then added, as if something had just occurred to him, "Oh, right, Barbara is working with Ye Xuan now, and he's given her great power. If you run into trouble, you can rely on your little sister more."

Jean's head buzzed.

What part of that was good news?

After Eula had left with Ye Xuan, she had never returned to the Knights of Favonius.

A thought surfaced beyond her control, and her heart tightened at once. Barbara couldn't possibly...

She could not help imagining a scene a year from now: if a little nephew appeared, how would she explain it to her parents when they returned from their long journey?

At that thought, Jean's gaze sharpened as she looked at Venti.

"Lord Barbatos, please stay with the Knights of Favonius and handle official business."

Venti stared. "Huh? Didn't I say I was badly injured and needed to recuperate..."

"Lord Ye Xuan told me before he left that you weren't injured at all." Jean looked straight at him. "Your combat strength ranks among the foremost of Teyvat's gods. You're simply lazy by nature and unwilling to get involved in government affairs."

Venti inwardly lamented his plight.

This was far too unfair to him. He was clearly the weakest of the gods!

But judging by Jean's attitude, she would not believe him no matter how he argued.

He had no choice but to agree for now and obediently return to the Knights of Favonius to deal with official business. Once Jean let down her guard, he would find a chance to slip out for a drink.

After settling Venti's situation, Jean looked at Diluc, who stood nearby.

"Master Diluc, I know you're unwilling to rejoin the Knights of Favonius. But could I trouble you to keep an eye on Lord Barbatos for me? I need to visit the Church of Favonius."

Diluc understood that Jean wanted to check on Barbara. He nodded. "Leave it to me."