Lu Bu, the Thunder General, is my adoptive father in Genshin Impact.

Rumble!!!

Lightning flashed, raising a cloud of dust, and the shockwave sent smoke and dust flying everywhere, burying the figure of the young traveler.

Xiao Yi panicked a little. Had he accidentally destroyed Ying?! Was the Teyvat journey truly over?

Before he could get close enough to examine her, the girl shot out of the dust like an arrow, leaping across the short distance in two or three steps, and finally came to an abrupt stop in front of Xiao Yi and Gan Yu.

"Congratulations." Xiao Yi clapped.

"Congratulations." Gan Yu clapped.

"Congratulations, traveler," Paimon said, clapping as he appeared out of nowhere.

The black mud covering the surface of the fluorescent body receded, revealing the traveler's face, which was weary yet tinged with joy. She breathed a sigh of relief and said, "The lightning element from the outside world would affect the function of the black mud, but fortunately I regained control in time."

"You've already mastered it." Xiao Yi looked the other person up and down. "This black armor has no flaws except for being a bit ugly."

After all, the youthful figure of a girl paired with this appearance creates a somewhat inexplicable sense of incongruity.

Just then, the black mud on Ying's body suddenly changed slightly, transforming into the shape of her original flowing dress—only the color was completely opposite, a deep, pure black, but far more natural and beautiful than before.

Xiao Yi suddenly had a strange idea: after Yingmei was hit on the head by him, she became increasingly angry and turned evil.

"It's so beautiful!" Gan Yu exclaimed.

“Travelers finally have new clothes,” Paimon remarked.

"It definitely feels different," Xiao Yi commented.

Ying stroked the black hem of her skirt and said helplessly, "Despite your praise, I still have to say that this armor has been draining my lightning elemental power. If it weren't for the need to adapt, I would really like to take it off right now and feed it to Paimon."

"Why is it Paimon again!" the floating object protested.

"Don't rush," Xiao Yi said, gazing into the distance thoughtfully. "The day of the decisive battle with the scattered soldiers will come soon."

Chapter 231 The Final Ultimatum, the Scattered Soldiers

Despite the warning that the skirmishers were about to launch an attack, Xiao Yi didn't care and continued to prepare for the portal celebration ceremony. Before long, the official celebration day arrived in Liyue and Inazuma.

This was a celebration for both the public and businesspeople, because after dozens of days of safety testing, it had been confirmed that the portal would not pose any danger and could be officially put into use, which is why ordinary people were allowed to participate in the event.

Nevertheless, venue resources remain limited, and participants must go through multiple rounds of screening. In the end, the majority are still high-ranking officials and dignitaries, with only a very small number of ordinary people fortunate enough to qualify.

After all, if, due to some special circumstances, a Liyue resident goes missing in Inazuma, or an Inazuma resident goes missing in Liyue, such trivial matters are quite troublesome. The Sky Lords and the Thousand Rock Army have been rehearsing for many days to ensure the smooth running of the event.

Lonely Cloud Pavilion, an area that is usually sparsely populated, is now packed with people. The venue is set up around the teleportation portal, where people can celebrate the birth of this great building.

Before receiving permission, neither the Liyue citizens nor the Inazuma citizens participating in the event can step through this portal. They need to listen to the speech of the event organizer until the organizer announces the official start of the festival before they can move freely.

The person in charge for Liyue was Ningguang, the star of Tianquan. She was giving a speech on the podium in front of the portal, with Gan Yu and Xiao Yi standing silently behind her.

Although Xiao Yi couldn't see what was happening on the other side of the portal, if nothing unexpected happened, Miss Ying was supposed to be giving a speech there, and he had come to Guyun Pavilion to prevent the scattered troops from launching a surprise attack from Liyue.

In short, all possible threats must be eliminated.

Xiao Yi looked up at the enormous object floating in the sky. This was already the third one of the Jade Pavilion. After the mess in Liyue was over, Ningguang rebuilt the Jade Pavilion. Xiao Yi told her about the possibility of the skirmishers causing trouble. Without saying a word, Tianquan flew this enormous object, which could be used as a bomber or a nuclear bomb, above the Lonely Cloud Pavilion in case of any unforeseen circumstances.

At this point, Ningguang finished her brief speech.

(Xiao Yi: Miss Ying, are you done with it?)

(Voiceover: I've already finished my prepared lines a long time ago. I'm standing on the stage, silently watching the people. Perhaps because I'm a deity, they don't have any objections.)

(Xiao Yi: I wouldn't dare to object either—can we officially begin?)

(Shadow: Hmm.)

Xiao Yi said softly, "Ningguang, that's enough."

Ningguang nodded gently and elegantly announced the official start of the event: "May you all find your own happiness on this day that will be remembered in history. I hereby announce that the celebration ceremony for the successful connection between Liyue and Inazuma is now officially beginning!"

Although it was called a celebration, it was actually a social carnival for merchants. So much so that a temporary auction house was even set up in Guyun Pavilion. However, the transaction of tens of millions of Mora did not represent everything. Some small shops were also able to earn money to support their families.

At Guyun Pavilion, various small stalls were set up, selling snacks and other recreational foods. Most of the vendors at Guyun Pavilion were from Inazuma, while those from Bayun Island were small merchants from Liyue. Their local foods would shine in foreign lands, bringing Mora in exchange.

Xiao Yi vigilantly observed the crowd, making sure he didn't miss any threats. Just then, a warning came from Thor's side.

(Shadow: I sensed it. That brat Guo Pang is here, on a mountaintop about three thousand meters from the teleportation portal, but he shows no intention of taking any action.)

Having learned his lesson from the decoy, Xiao Yi didn't rush over immediately to avoid alerting the enemy.

(Xiao Yi: So, the Traveler is still with you, right? Have her sneak over there and see if it's really the Scatter Soldier.)

(Shadow: Walk.)

……

On the tree-covered mountaintop, a boy wearing a huge straw hat gazed into the distance at the bustling celebration surrounding the teleportation portal. But the excitement had nothing to do with him; he only felt a headache-inducing clamor.

“It’s pathetic that a dying man is laughing like a fool.” The stragglers seemed to be talking to themselves, then turned to look at the bushes behind them. “Don’t you think so? Speaking of which, this should be our third meeting now, Traveler.”

The bushes rustled twice, and Ying, dressed in a black dress, emerged from them. She wasn't accompanied by the usual white floating object—Paymon had gone to inform them.

"Let's see the treasure!" Ying took out the Dust Song Pot.

Before the scattered soldiers could make a move, the green smoke released by the pot had already enveloped him and the blonde girl. The two disappeared in the ethereal smoke, leaving only the immortal magic weapon floating in mid-air.

……

On a sun-drenched archipelago, Ying and Sanbing stood about ten meters apart on a very spacious but not very large island without any buildings.

"Heh, what a nice environment. You want to stop me here? Do you want to choose this place as your final resting place?" The skirmisher's tone suddenly became oppressive. "This kind of simple barrier, like a shabby room, can be broken with just a little effort from me!"

Lightning began to flicker in his hand. He didn't know if Xiao Yi had gone easy on him during training or if the strength of the skirmishers far exceeded his expectations, but Ying couldn't help but feel nervous.

The girl stood still, waiting for the other person to approach step by step.

“Scattered soldiers, no, I should call you the fallen nation, this is the final ultimatum. If you stop now, Ying may forgive you.” Ying warned solemnly, “Otherwise, when Xiao Yi comes, he will not have any mercy on you, and things will be very bad then.”

In short, you shouldn't go any further.

Unexpectedly, as soon as Ying finished speaking, the scattered soldiers actually stopped in their tracks.

But he showed no remorse whatsoever, his face plastered with a smug smile: "Wait for him to come over? I'd love for that kid to be right in front of me right now. Besides, you said I shouldn't have moved forward, but what can you do to me if I do..."

After saying that, he took a step forward.

boom!!!

An explosion and shockwave emerged from beneath the sand, from the unknown ground where the skirmisher had just stepped. However, the mine's power was not significant, and it didn't even raise much dust.

Ying knew that the plan was proceeding smoothly.

As the smoke cleared, the once arrogant and domineering boy in the straw hat was now as disheveled as a drowned rat, his entire body covered in a sticky liquid that dripped down in strands.

"You, you, you dare to..." His dignity could not be trampled on by outsiders. Just as the stragglers were about to release lightning element to eliminate the obstacle in front of him, he found that he could not perfectly drive the power. "How, how is this possible!"

The concentrated current, spread by the mucus covering his body, not only failed to eliminate these filthy and disgusting things, but was also severely restricted by them.

Ying took out a blunt sword from under her skirt and walked towards the soldiers, saying, "This is the ultimate slime that you can make your power uncontrollable, created by the combined efforts of all the Inazuma people and the sacrifice of 86,420 slimes!"

Chapter 232 Xiao Yi, as Steadfast as a Rock

"What an arrogant bastard! You think these disgusting things can stop me?" Knowing he couldn't remove the slime from his body quickly, the skirmisher unleashed a powerful burst of lightning to pierce through it, facing the approaching Shadow wielding a bladeless sword. "You'll regret this, everyone will regret this, whether it's Thor or that kid!"

Clearly, this slime mine, though not very damaging, had a strong humiliating effect and excellent control, completely triggered Guo Pang's anger. He even went so far as to use extremely laborious methods to bring his elemental power to a barely usable level.

Upon discovering that the slime had not completely restrained its opponent, Ying did not panic. Her pure black dress began to undulate, a warm-up for adjusting the amount of lightning element she was infusing.

Although Ying had met Sanbing three times, there had never been a conflict. Despite hearing about Ying's fighting style from him, she had never actually fought him, so she was always prone to making mistakes. Therefore, the girl was extremely cautious.

The soldier suddenly flung his hand, and a purple energy object flew towards Ying, its target undoubtedly her exposed fair neck.

Sure enough, just as Thor said, this guy is skilled in insidious hidden weapons.

The skirmisher waited for the traveler to dodge so he could predict his trajectory and throw more darts to end the fight, but the traveler's actions far exceeded his expectations.

Ying didn't dodge or flinch, and the dart struck her neck directly. At the critical moment, her pure black dress began to extend and harden, like armor, blocking the fatal attack.

"You think I'll give you a opening? You might as well give up." Ying deliberately wore a disdainful expression, mocking, "This kind of childish thinking is really terrible. I've fought other members of the Fatui, and the young master's fighting skills are far superior to yours."

This was taught to her by Xiao Yi. Fighting powerful intelligent beings is very different from fighting monsters and beasts. Beings have emotions, and you can use psychological tactics to target their minds, making them anxious and impatient, and eventually expose their weaknesses.

Clearly, skirmishers, with their character flaws, are very susceptible to this tactic.

In addition, guidance on the expression of the fluorescent dust: Yae no Miko.

The enraged Guo Beng disregarded physical limitations and ignored the slime covering his body, fighting at full power and throwing countless flying knives, some daggers, some shuriken, and some even kitchen knives, which densely surrounded the traveler girl like raindrops.

Fortunately, the satellite communication system had conducted training on how to deal with flying objects.

"These are far inferior to Gan Yu's arrows!"

She charged toward the skirmisher without hesitation. Although his methods involved throwing objects, these were all energy bodies constructed from lightning elements. Moreover, the skirmisher started with a ranged attack, revealing his weakness in close combat. As long as she closed the distance, she could subdue him.

Moreover, the opponent's movements were restricted by the slime, so forget about destroying the Dust Song Pot, even escaping was a pipe dream.

Countless flying knives grazed her dark skirt, striking her exposed skin, neck, and head. Each time, just as she was about to be injured, her black mud armor blocked the attack in time. In the end, the traveler girl successfully reduced the distance between them to almost zero.

However, something unexpected happened. The soldier who looked like a mage suddenly threw a punch. Before Ying could even stand still and make her move, he delivered a deliberate, powerful punch to her abdomen—a punch filled with a large amount of lightning element.

Because it was a direct contact attack, the absorption effect of the slime was greatly reduced. Although the black mud hardened in time to block the damage, the difference in the lightning elemental power between the two was too great, and in the end, Luminosity lost control of the black mud.

Fortunately, the stragglers didn't know how to manipulate the black mud, so they didn't have the authority to seize the weapon. Instead, they smashed the black mud completely with a single punch.

Ying's clothes returned to their pure white appearance, and the black mud that had covered them turned into liquid and flew away with her into the distance. The girl landed on the ground and struggled to get up, while her armor lay on the ground like a lump of mud. Even injecting lightning elements into it could not awaken it.

Ying thought to herself: It seems I can only rely on my own strength.

Just then, the stragglers' lightning darts flew right in front of her. The traveler girl quickly thought of a way to break the deadlock—staying still would definitely get her focused, while dodging would expose her weakness. The correct method was to deflect them with her bladeless sword.

Immediately afterwards, Ying realized that she had made a mistake in her judgment.

The darts aimed straight at her face weren't just one, but came in a storm-like barrage, just like before. She could only use wind elements to disperse these attacks, but she was also likely to be affected and lose her ability to fight.

boom!!!

A massive bolt of lightning struck from the sky, obliterating all the flying objects and creating a large crater in front of the luminous figure, shimmering with lightning.

Xiao Yi knelt in the pit, then rose like a Terminator. He poured his power into the black mud on the ground beside him, and the mud immediately returned to his hair.

"The hero has arrived!" Xiao Yi then turned to the traveler, "Surprised? Unexpected?"

The soldier knew this guy wasn't easy to deal with, but he didn't expect him to be so stupid as to expose his back to him. What gave him the courage? Was it that pile of mud he had just collected?