While I was in Mondstadt, I never imagined becoming a god.

Page 86

Every line of the Nuo mask worn by the Great Sage Who Subdues Demons is etched in my memory.

The Nuo mask covered the doll's originally calm face, revealing only a pair of empty eyes, which were now filled with the projected golden light, shining with the same golden pupil color as Xiao's.

not enough.

Xu Chuan beckoned with his finger.

The projection of the Corruption Sword covered it, and the dark purple sword was enveloped in pale golden light, transforming into He Puyuan.

The cannons started moving.

The Nuo mask covered his face, and he held the Pu Yuan sword in his hand, with cyan wind elements swirling around the blade.

It charged into the tide of souls, its sword sweeping across, cleaving the dark red wandering souls in two.

His movements were swift and decisive, each sword strike aimed at maximizing damage.

The wind element detached from the sword blade, transforming into azure wind blades that pierced the depths of the soul tide, tearing open rift after rift. It was almost frenzied.

This was Xu Chuan's order to it: kill the enemy with all its might, regardless of the cost, like a demon about to lose control, eroded to its limit by karmic obstacles.

The cyan wind element rampaged through the dark red soul tide, each burst creating a small vacuum.

Xu Chuan was multitasking, maintaining the projection and repairing the Taiwei Instrument Panel while simultaneously controlling every movement of the cannon.

He perfectly replicated the image of Xiao fighting from his memory onto the cannon.

The surge of souls has changed.

It wasn't a change across the board, but rather a slight hesitation appearing in the soul tide from a particular direction.

Those dark red wandering souls were originally rushing towards Xu Chuan from all directions in a uniform manner.

But now, the tide of souls surging from the direction of the cannon has slowed down by half a beat.

It wasn't that they were suppressed by the wind element; it was that they were hesitating on their own.

It felt like I was seeing something familiar, but I wasn't sure.

Xu Chuan noticed this subtle change.

"Change is a good thing."

But not enough.

Xiao's illusory form could only make the soul tide hesitate, but it was not enough to lure Fu She out.

Before his death, Fushe made a pact with Boyang to guard this secret place to the death. His obsession was to "guard" it, not to "kill" it.

Seeing only a yaksha, which resembles a demon, fighting here is not enough to trigger its remaining consciousness.

It had seen too many illusions, projections from the abyss, projections from the memories of intruders; it could no longer distinguish between the real and the fake.

For hundreds of years, it has huddled in a corner of this space.

Xu Chuan made a firm decision.

Since this won't work, let's do something drastic.

The cannon's movements suddenly slowed down.

Beneath the Nuo mask, the brightness of the golden eyes began to flicker, like a lamp that was about to run out of oil.

Its body swayed, its knees bent, and it knelt on one knee at the edge of the Taiwei Yipan.

He Puyuan's projected sword tip pressed against the array plate, mimicking the appearance of karmic obstacles reaching their limit, supporting his body so as not to fall down.

Then Xu Chuan made his move.

A giant hand, formed from golden light, descended from the sky, its five fingers joined together, the tips like spears, piercing through the cannon's back and exiting through its chest.

The moment the golden light pierced through the doll's body, a green chess piece was pushed out of its chest cavity.

The moment the Heart of God left the body, the azure wind element around the cannon completely dissipated, and the puppet's body lost all support, collapsing onto the Taiwei Instrument Plate like a truly empty shell.

The Nuo mask was still covering his face, but his golden eyes had already disappeared.

He Puyuan's projected sword body began to disintegrate from the tip, with pale golden light particles peeling off piece by piece and being swallowed by the soul tide.

The cannon's aura plummeted.

The puppet, once driven by the heart of the wind god, has become a mere shell, unable even to stand.

Its life is like a candle flickering in the wind, ready to be extinguished at any moment.

"Roar--"

A roar exploded from the depths of the soul tide.

It is not rambling, nor is it a remnant of obsession.

Centuries of silence have worn away all the syllables, leaving only the most primal emotions.

It was anger and grief, the anger that could awaken the dormant soul of an immortal from its slumber as one watched a companion die before their eyes.

The soul tide was torn apart by Xu Chuan's golden light, and the dark red wandering souls surged to both sides, making way for a wide passage.

At the end of the passage, a dark red figure, several times more solid than the other wandering spirits, was rushing towards them.

Its outline still retains traces of a human form, with broad shoulders, thick arms, and marks on its fists indicating that it had once held a weapon.

The face had been worn away, leaving only a few irregular holes, from which a light deeper than dark red, almost black, seeped out.

Floating dwelling.

Xu Chuan has been waiting for you.

He walked on air.

The Taiwei Instrument Disc beneath his feet emitted a series of cracking sounds the moment he left the ground; the speed at which the projection filled in couldn't keep up with the speed at which it shattered.

He didn't look back. He took a step outside the golden light barrier, and the dark red soul tide squeezed in from both sides, touching the cyan-gold flames burning around him, and hissed and evaporated.

He went against the tide of souls, heading in the direction from which the floating house was rushing.

The two beams of light collided in the middle of the passage.

Fushe's fist came crashing down.

Xu Chuan did not dodge.

He extended his right hand, fingers spread, palm facing Fushe's fist.

They captured the spirits and dispatched the generals.

He gathered the floating soul in his palms with both hands, and the power of binding spirits and commanding generals enveloped it from all directions.

He peeled this obsession, which had never been touched by anyone for hundreds of years, from the dark red tide of souls, and gathered and compressed it little by little.

Xu Chuan pressed Fu She's soul into the cannon's chest cavity.

The moment it touched the inner wall of the doll's body, it was like water seeping into parched soil, silently melting into it.

Xu Chuan breathed a long sigh of relief.

From the moment I stepped into this space, my tense shoulders finally relaxed.

Exhaustion seeped from the very marrow of his bones; he could almost hear his meridians groaning under the strain.

There's still a tough battle ahead.

He bent down to pick up the Heart of the Wind God, grabbed the cannon casing with one hand and tucked it under his arm, while placing the other hand on the remains of the Taiwei Instrument Plate.

The array plate was shattered beyond recognition, with less than a tenth of its original material remaining. It was only thanks to the projections he had repeatedly layered over the past few days that it was barely maintaining its shape.

The projection magic was activated again, and pale golden light surged from the palm, enveloping the debris, filling the cracks, biting the broken pieces, and reshaping it.

Then he manipulated the Taiwei Instrument Disc and ascended upwards.

It's not about running away.

The array plate supported him and the cannon, rising from the center of the soul tide.

Dark red wandering spirits surged beneath his feet, thinning as they rose higher, their light growing brighter with each ascent. It wasn't his golden light, but the icy blue light of the Heavenly Nail—seeping down from the farthest reaches of the sky, piercing through rock layers, through seals, and across the boundary between this space and the mortal world.

His actions angered the community.

An endless tide of souls surged forth instantly.

Chapter 100 The Strongest Strike

In Liyue Harbor, the last vestiges of orange-red light slid down from the eaves, and the entire city briefly dimmed.

Paimon flew to Ying's shoulder, half a foot lower than usual.

Her forearms hung limply, and she looked like a deflated balloon.

"There are just too many mountains in Liyue."

Her voice was weak and drawn out at the end.

"One after another, each one taller than the last, why do all those immortals like to live on the mountain?"

Ying turned her head to look at her and nodded in approval.

Paimon continued to mutter, "Xu Chuan is probably living the high life in Liyue Harbor right now."

I don't think so.

Ying shook her head, shifting her gaze away from Paimon.

"He seems very comfortable and gets along well anywhere."

"But in places we can't see, he must have paid a heavy price, a price that most people couldn't afford."

Paimon scratched his head and gave a vague "Oh."

Then her gaze was drawn to the aroma of grilled fish wafting from the direction of the dock, and she was instantly jolted awake as if pulled by a string.

"Let's go, let's go find Xu Chuan quickly."

"That guy must know where to find good food in Liyue Harbor!"

She grabbed Ying's clothes and flew forward with all her might.

……

Deep within the towering abyss of layered rocks, beneath the Heavenly Nail.

Xu Chuan did not live a life of luxury in Liyue Harbor as Paimon had imagined.

Before him, the dark blue secret passage was twisting and cracking.

Xu Chuan stared at the passage.

The secret realm is about to collapse.

In the worst-case scenario, the secret realm would completely collapse, and the wandering souls that had been imprisoned for hundreds of years would be freed and surge out from the depths of the giant abyss of layered rocks.

They can no longer distinguish friend from foe; only their most primal instincts remain.

Xu Chuan turned his gaze away from the passageway and closed his eyes.

There are only two methods now.

First, stabilize the shattered space of the secret realm, and then repair it.

However, he lacks spatial abilities.

Projection magic can fill the material of the instrument panel, but it cannot fill the gaps in space.

Second, in one go, he exorcised all the wandering souls within the secret realm.

Completely destroy it, leaving no future trouble.

These were the only two things he could think of.

It all sounds like a fantasy.

But the current situation leaves him no room for delay.

Even if we summon Xiao now, it will take him time to get here from Dihua Island.