So then, did Cloud Retainer intentionally feign weakness just now, deliberately exposing a flaw to lure Zhongli into attacking—only to coordinate with Madame Ping and land a fatal blow on him?
But the most critical question now was—when did Madame Ping become an accomplice of Cloud Retainer and Dottore?
He hadn't noticed a single sign...
So then, did Cloud Retainer intentionally feign weakness just now, deliberately exposing a flaw to lure Zhongli into attacking—only to coordinate with Madame Ping and land a fatal blow on him?
But the most critical question now was—when did Madame Ping become an accomplice of Cloud Retainer and Dottore?
He hadn't noticed a single sign...
And more than that—wasn't it Madame Ping who had saved him when he was wounded by the Eerie Ganyu?
If she were truly an enemy, then why save him back then?
If she'd simply left him alone, he would've died on the spot…
But soon, Su Yuan recalled the message from his right palm:
There may be more than one Adeptus under the control of Eerie force...
At the time, he'd thought it was just another misleading rule hint from his right hand, sowing confusion.
But now, could it be that the one he trusted most—Madame Ping—had already long been corrupted by the Eerie?
Su Yuan also remembered how, after a previous death and rewind, the message from his left palm had warned him:
Be wary of Madame Ping...
Back then, he found the message rather baffling.
Plus, since the hints from his left hand weren't always accurate—and Madame Ping had even saved him—he hadn't given it much thought...
But looking back now... could the signs of Madame Ping's condition have already started to show even then?
Zhongli, whose chest had just been pierced by Madame Ping, struggled to turn his head and looked in Su Yuan's direction, as if wanting to say something…
But Madame Ping didn't give him the chance.
With a single sweep of her hand, she cleanly severed Zhongli's head...
Then, she turned her gaze toward Su Yuan, smiling cheerfully as she said:
"Su Yuan, so you're the one bullying my disciple, huh?"
"As her master, I can't just stand by and watch my disciple get pushed around…"
In the next instant, a surge of Eerie power suddenly erupted from Madame Ping's body—confirming without a doubt that she, too, had been corrupted and taken over by the Eerie!
"Disciple…?"
Hearing her words, Su Yuan's head began to ache violently, as though some buried memory was trying to resurface…
Fragments of vague memories flashed through Su Yuan's mind...
It seemed to be a distant memory...
Xiangling—she had been corrupted and controlled by the Eerie...
Then... who was it that killed Xiangling?
After Xiangling's death, an Eerie-possessed Madame Ping, overwhelmed with grief and rage, had arrived at the scene, seeking revenge for her...
But she failed—and was killed by that person…
That person—who was it???
And then—there were fragments that seemed to belong to recent days…
Xiangling had been killed by an Eerie-possessed Shenhe...
But after Xiangling's death, Madame Ping had never shown up at the scene...
Yes—that was the moment…
One of the conditions for Madame Ping's descent into Eerie corruption should have been the loss of someone deeply dear to her…
And yet, Xiangling's death didn't trigger her to appear or fall into Eerie corruption on the spot…
Which could only mean—by that time, Madame Ping had already long been corrupted and taken over by the Eerie…
Piecing together those fragmented memories, Su Yuan seemed to finally understand why the message on his left palm had warned him to be careful of Madame Ping…
"Su Yuan! What on earth are you doing???"
Tartaglia's anxious voice snapped Su Yuan back to his senses:
"What just happened? Your body suddenly became unstable—I can't control it anymore!"
In battles between top-tier fighters, a single moment of distraction—a tiny opening—could decide everything...
Just that brief moment when Su Yuan froze from the splitting headache caused Tartaglia to lose control of Su Yuan's body—and made it impossible to continue the fight against Xiangling…
As a result, Su Yuan was kicked to the ground by Xiangling.
She pressed the tip of her spear against his forehead, leaving him completely immobilized...
Lying on the ground, Su Yuan looked up at the smile on Dottore's face and realized—this time, he had lost.
And he had lost completely.
Too many unforeseen events had occurred, pulling the situation far beyond his control…
"Streetward Rambler, would you mind taking Su Yuan, Furina, and myself somewhere... quieter?" Dottore said to "Madame Ping" with a smile.
Madame Ping nodded, then pulled out the Serenitea Pot—a realm unto itself—and absorbed Dottore, Su Yuan, and Furina into it...
Inside the Serenitea Pot, Dottore looked at Su Yuan and Furina with delight and spoke with visible joy:
"I don't know why Furina showed up here, but for me, this is a blessing beyond measure…"
"The two people I most desire to obtain have appeared before me at the same time…"
"And—there's no Neuvillette to get in my way this time…"
Su Yuan stepped protectively in front of Furina, staring warily at Dottore as he couldn't help but speak:
"Dottore... was it because of you that Cloud Retainer and Madame Ping fell into Eerie corruption?"
"And what about Azhdaha and those Geovishaps? Do you realize how many Liyue citizens and Millelith soldiers were killed because of them?"
"Aren't you afraid of retribution for doing all of this?"
"D-Don't get so full of yourself, Dottore!"
Furina also mustered her courage and spoke up at Dottore:
"I may not be in Fontaine now, but Neuvillette is definitely searching for me—and on his way here with everything he's got!"
"Once Neuvillette gets here and teams up with Su Yuan again, you're finished!"
"It doesn't matter, hehe…"
Dottore chuckled dismissively, completely unfazed:
"Even assuming Neuvillette does know where you are—which is unlikely—do you really think Su Yuan is still capable of working in sync with him like before?"
"Su Yuan, if I'm not mistaken, in order to help Neuvillette become a complete dragon, you already returned all the ancient dragon blood to him, didn't you?"
"True, what happened in Inazuma proved that your body is… unique. Even after losing your source of power, you were still able to hold on for a short while…"
"But you've been away from Fontaine for quite some time now. You probably can't even control Hydro anymore—let alone part the clouds and bring clear skies…"
"Besides—even if you could still work with Neuvillette and somehow defeat me, all you'd be destroying is one of my segments."
"I have many segments. I can afford to lose again and again. But you—you only get to lose once…"
"And this time… it's my victory."
Listening to Dottore's words, Su Yuan thought to himself—he didn't only have one chance!
The real key now was—if he could somehow trigger a death rewind, he could reset everything from the beginning!
Su Yuan felt a pang of regret.
If only he could still use Kokomi's emergency talisman…
Why did he have to find out what was inside that pouch?
Now, he and Furina were trapped alone in the space inside the Serenitea Pot—facing Dottore directly…
And everyone else outside was probably already killed by Cloud Retainer and Madame Ping…
If Dottore refused to kill him, and instead chose to subject him and Furina to endless experiments and torture...
Then things would truly become difficult...
So where was the key to breaking the deadlock?
What exactly could trigger a death rewind now?
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