After destroying the anemo mech, Lu Chen's only remaining opponent was the young Doctor.
With Nahida and Scaramouche still inside Irminsul, the ruins of the God-Making Workshop had grown unusually quiet.
Shaken by Lu Chen's overwhelming display of strength, the young Doctor had completely abandoned his offensive. The barrage of fire had ceased, and now he poured the endless energy of the Gnosis into maintaining the seemingly unbreakable jade shield.
"It's useless. Your energy will run out eventually." Lu Chen sneered.
The giant sword of light in his hand slashed down again and again. With each strike, the glow of the shield grew dimmer.
At this pace, the Doctor might not even last long enough for his energy to run dry.
Geo was famed for defense, but the Light Realm was on another level. Even with only six elements under his control, Lu Chen's attacks slowly penetrated the supposedly indestructible mech.
The once-pristine artificial god was now covered in scars, its joints creaking like a broken-down machine on its last legs.
Watching the Doctor struggle like a trapped beast, Lu Chen chuckled. "What are you waiting for? Don't tell me you're expecting reinforcements?"
Extending his perception outward, he saw Ei fighting the Doctor and Capitano. Their battle had raged from the east to the west of Sumeru City, the skies roaring with thunder.
As expected of Ei—she held her own against two enemies without faltering.
Wait. Something was off...
Lu Chen realized that only Ei was fighting. Where were Venti and the old man?
He extended his senses further and found Zhongli, who had raised a massive golden shield wall, enclosing the battlefield like an arena. Capitano's army was shut outside, keeping civilians safe from the chaos of gods clashing.
"Hm... I suppose that counts as helping," Lu Chen muttered. Then he searched for Venti.
He finally found him—sitting on a bench with several bottles of wine, watching like it was a show.
"Seriously?!" Lu Chen nearly spat blood. "At a time like this, couldn't you actually help?!"
But looking closer, he realized Venti hadn't been idle. Next to the bench, an old man was bound tightly on the ground. Judging by his robes, he was none other than Azar, the Grand Sage of the Akademiya.
Clever—catch the king first. With the Grand Sage captured, the Akademiya and The Eremites were scrambling to rescue him, splitting their focus.
"Forget it..." Lu Chen sighed. Clearly, neither the Anemo nor Geo Archons wanted to push things too far. That was consistent with their usual way.
He turned back to the battered Doctor. At last, a crack split through the jade shield under his relentless strikes.
The core of the mech flickered wildly as the Doctor frantically tried to patch the breach.
But Lu Chen gave him no chance. Slipping through the slowed flow of time, he vanished in an instant—
—and reappeared within the jade shield.
The Doctor's response was desperate. He dispelled the shield entirely, and the energy core surged upward, tearing through the ceiling. Above them, a massive golden star formed, filling the sky.
If it fell, it wouldn't only crush Lu Chen—it would crush the Doctor as well.
It was a mad, suicidal gambit.
The young Doctor's lips twisted into a grin. "Die! Let's die together! If my plan is ruined, then you won't live either!"
Lu Chen tilted his head at the star above. "Bad memory, aren't you?"
"What—?!" The Doctor's eyes went wide.
Lu Chen was gone. All that remained in the workshop was the blazing golden sphere overhead, its light growing ever brighter.
But the power of the temporal rift wasn't mere invisibility. Lu Chen had stepped into another dimension, one outside Teyvat itself—a privilege granted by the real Teyvat system.
It was the very ability that allowed him to live carefree in his seaside villa, beyond the reach of any organization.
"Stop... stop..."
The Doctor's plan to drag Lu Chen to death had turned into nothing more than his own suicide.
The energy core dimmed. The golden star shrank smaller and smaller—until it vanished completely.
The young Doctor slumped, his will to fight extinguished. No matter what he tried, his enemy's incomprehensible abilities countered him utterly.
"Where... did you come from..." His voice trembled. "Why do you always ruin my plans?!"
Lu Chen's laughter drifted through the air as he reappeared before the mech. "What, are you going to blame me?"
He never wanted to be at odds with the Fatui, but wherever he went, they showed up. There was no helping it. The Fatui and the Abyss were this world's designated villains.
The Lion's Roar, the very blade that had ended the boy Doctor, pierced toward the cockpit. Lu Chen intended to give this one the same fate.
The blade ripped into the mech, revealing the young Doctor's bloodshot eyes. In forcing control of the artificial god, he had already pushed his body past its limits.
But just as the blade was about to pierce his chest, the air twisted.
Lu Chen thought reinforcements had arrived—
—but the figure that appeared was Scaramouche.
"You..."
"Let me!" Scaramouche's voice shook with fury.
Lu Chen stared in shock. Scaramouche looked worse than the dying Doctor—hair disheveled, face contorted, his violet eyes blazing with hatred fixed on the cockpit.
"How's Irminsul... What happened to you?"
Lu Chen had never seen him like this. Not even back in Tenshukaku had Scaramouche shown such burning hatred.
"I'll kill you!"
Snarling, Scaramouche lunged, sword raised.
The Doctor's fear melted into mocking amusement as he saw him approach. His lips curled in a faint smile. "So you know..."
"Die!"
The blade plunged into his chest. Scaramouche twisted it savagely, blood spraying out.
With a vicious cry, he ripped out the beating heart, still steaming—then crushed it underfoot, shattering it into gore.
"Scaramouche..."
Nahida's voice rang out from below.
Lu Chen turned to her. "What did you see inside? What happened to him?"
The mech crashed to the ground, and the glowing Gnosis drifted gently into Lu Chen's hand.
Scaramouche landed beside him. In his eyes, Lu Chen saw it: the raging flame of vengeance.
Nahida's state was a little better. She had clearly been crying—two faint tear streaks still marked her cheeks.
"What happened to you two..." Lu Chen asked, bewildered. "What did you see in Irminsul?"
"Don't worry about me." Nahida shook her head, gaze falling on Scaramouche, who was still staring at the wreckage.
"In Irminsul, all of Teyvat's history is stored. There, he saw the truth of the disaster at Tatarasuna."
Her voice lowered. "It was the Doctor who caused it. And Niwa—the one said to have 'fled in fear of his crimes'—never betrayed him. Like the craftsmen, he too was killed by the Doctor. Yet he bore the blame and misunderstanding for centuries..."
"I see..." Lu Chen fell silent. Many things were becoming clear.
Scaramouche had been deceived into joining the Fatui, and for the sake of false revenge, he had committed countless sins—nearly wiping out the Raiden swordsmith lineage.
And now, he learned it had all been for nothing.
Scaramouche suddenly burst out laughing—wild, broken laughter.
"Dottore? Hahaha... Dottore!!"
"For a fabricated lie... I step by step did everything I thought was right..."
Lu Chen watched him. Beneath the laughter was grief too raw to hide.
"My friend, Niwa... he never betrayed me..."
"Then everything I did... what meaning did it have?"
"What meaning does my existence have?"
He slumped, lifeless, like a puppet with its strings cut.
Lu Chen sighed softly. For a moment, it seemed as if Scaramouche had lost his will to live.
The hall was silent for a long while.
Then Lu Chen spoke. "You may have been deceived into striking innocents, but your true enemy is still alive."
"Yes." Scaramouche lifted his head slowly. A spark flickered in his violet eyes.
"Dottore..."
"Dottore!"
"No matter how many slices he has! No matter where he hides! I'll kill him—utterly!"
Nahida watched him and shook her head helplessly. Revenge had become his only drive once more.
Lu Chen shrugged at her. For now, that was enough.
He stepped up to Scaramouche with a grin. "Nahida told me you've always wanted to defeat me. But like this? Whether it's killing Dottore or me, you don't stand a chance right now."
He extended his hand. "In your state, I could crush you with one hand."
Scaramouche stared at it, then locked eyes with Lu Chen instead of taking it.
Lu Chen smirked. "Don't get me wrong—I'm not worried about you. But if something happens to you, do you think Ei or Nahida would be happy?"
"Hmph."
Scaramouche sneered. "So even you can be two-faced."
Then he seized Lu Chen's wrist tightly—and stood once more.