Furrowing her brow, Miko's tone grew serious.
"Explain in detail."
Lumine smiled faintly and spoke in a calm, steady voice.
"The root of everything… is Ryen."
"Ryen is an outsider, just like me — but far stronger."
"He possesses a power so pure that he can face Celestia head-on."
"And he commands an entire vast, boundless world — a primitive realm of endless wilderness."
"The Totem of Undying you saw — it's one of the treasures born from that world."
"That world… is the very foundation of why the three nations dare to stand against Celestia."
"Liyue, Mondstadt, and Snezhnaya have already sent people there to establish settlements and begin development."
"Before I left, Liyue had nearly completed a grand new city within that world."
"As Ningguang herself said: If we can win, that's best. If we can't, we retreat into that world — build up our strength, and come back to fight again!"
"With an entire world as our backup — and with countless miraculous creations from it — the fight against Celestia has a very high margin for error."
Miko's reaction wasn't as dramatic as Ayato Kamisato's had been when he first heard this.
She had long suspected something.
The Totem of Undying — that artifact could never have originated in Teyvat.
It violated the very laws of this world.
If anyone in Teyvat had truly created something like that…
The next instant, a Skyfrost Nail would have come crashing down from Celestia.
Still, knowing it didn't make her feel any better.
"A whole world… how astonishing," Miko murmured, shaking her head slowly.
"No wonder the three nations are so eager to oppose Celestia. With an entire world to retreat to, even if they lose, their nations can still survive."
"And with divine artifacts like the Totem of Undying… maybe, just maybe, they really could defeat Celestia someday."
"It seems Liyue and the others have grown far stronger than I imagined."
Hearing that, Ayaka immediately picked up the thread, nodding earnestly.
"Extremely strong!"
"Liyue was the first to establish a foothold in that world."
"Before I left, over four thousand people had already settled there."
"Recently, Liyue managed to defeat and slay Osial — without relying on the Geo Archon or the adepti."
"The Millelith now number in the tens of thousands, organized into five major battle divisions."
Seeing Miko's growing curiosity, Ayaka decided to explain further.
"The first division is the Millelith Heavy Cavalry. They ride warhorses native to that world."
"Those horses fear neither monsters nor death — they're the finest mounts imaginable."
"The heavy cavalry wear armor weighing tens of tons, and their steeds are fully armored as well. When two thousand of them charge together, nothing on land can stop them."
Miko was visibly shaken.
"Tens of tons…? Truly unstoppable. Even a high-ranking Archon's familiar wouldn't survive facing such an army."
Ayaka nodded and continued.
"The second division is the Light Infantry, numbering two thousand five hundred. They wear enchanted armor weighing over ten tons each and carry top-tier alchemical potions."
"All 2,500 soldiers have gained the ability to wield elemental power directly from that world."
"Fire, Cryo, Electro — they can freely trigger elemental reactions on their own. Combined with the special resources found in that realm, their combat abilities are nothing short of miraculous."
"They even carry invisibility potions as standard equipment — they can slip behind enemy lines and launch surprise attacks at any time."
Yae Miko fell silent. To be honest, for a moment she couldn't even picture such a battlefield.
"The third division," Ayaka continued, "is the Hot Weapons Unit — a force of twenty-five hundred. The power of firearms is so immense that even Liyue enforces strict control over their use."
"We've seen it before — when the Hot Weapons Unit attacks as a group, even Osial suffered immensely under their assault, barely able to resist."
"If Osial hadn't been constantly regenerating his wounds through the sea's power, that unit alone would have been enough to annihilate a god."
"The most terrifying part," Ayaka's tone grew heavy, "is that Miss Ningguang holds in her hands the ultimate weapon gifted by Ryen."
"That thing… even the Geo Archon himself admitted — if struck by it, he would certainly die."
"A single firearm poses little threat to a god. But when thousands unite into a steel flood, even a god must fall under a storm of metal."
"This," Ayaka said, "is one of Liyue's ultimate armies."
Yae Miko pursed her lips, looking somewhat dazedly at Ayaka.
"One of them…? You mean… they have more armies like that?"
"Yes." Ayaka nodded firmly.
"The Naval Fleet! Liyue possesses iron warships, transformed using technology from that other world."
"Even the attacks of the god Osial failed to destroy Liyue's warships."
"When those ships activate — with redstone cannons and machine guns, combined with Jade Chamber's aerial bombardment…"
Ayaka paused for a moment, then softly said,
"Lady Yae, you must be aware of Inazuma's Divine Thunder Cannon stationed on Narukami Island, right?"
Miko gave a small nod.
Ayaka's voice grew distant and cold.
"Liyue has hundreds of such cannons. And they can all move freely."
"In the air, in the sea, and on the ground — they can operate anywhere."
"Moreover, they're rapid-firing weapons. Lady Yae, you can imagine what kind of scene that would be."
"When the god attacked, Liyue deployed just three warships, along with the Jade Chamber."
"The firepower completely suppressed Osial, leaving him utterly unable to fight back."
"Even the cannons mounted on the Jade Chamber alone could, in half a day, bombard and sink an island the size of Narukami into the sea."