When the topic shifted to Mu Yang,
Lumine immediately perked up.
It had been a long time since she last saw Mu Yang.
From the Lantern Rite Festival until now, she hadn't received any news about him.
She wanted to go to Chenyu Vale, but Zhongli said unless Mu Yang showed himself willingly,
no one would be able to find him no matter who went looking.
So mysterious.
And now? He finally reappears but doesn't even say a word, instead running off to Inazuma.
"Captain Beidou, did Mu Yang mention why he went to Inazuma?"
Beidou shook her head. "He didn't say. I wouldn't dare pry into Adeptus matters."
Paimon crossed her arms. "Since when is the 'Uncrowned Lord of the Ocean' afraid to ask questions?"
Lumine glanced at Paimon. "Since when do you know so much about the Captain's affairs?"
Paimon puffed up proudly. "I read it in a Liyue novel."
"Hahaha..." The two of them clowning around amused Beidou greatly.
The screen faded to black.
「After several days of sailing...」
By now, the Alcor had approached Inazuma.
As soon as Lumine stepped onto the deck, she saw the distant, rolling thunder.
The atmosphere was oppressive and terrifying to the extreme.
Lumine murmured, "Is this the power of Inazuma's deity...?"
[So this is how the Sakoku Decree works… a god's power is kinda insane]
[I get it now, this is Zhongli's lightning tribulation]
[Zhongli: I can't win, let Morax handle it]
[What kind of insane luck did that girl Zhuzi at the port have to raft through this thunderstorm?]
[Super High School Level Luck]
Paimon trembled in fear.
"We're not actually going to sail through that, are we?!"
"Oh? Is Paimon scared?"
"A little..."
Lumine glanced at the sailors.
They were exactly the same as they'd been days prior—their expressions showed no change despite the impending thunderstorm.
She motioned for Paimon to look around—no one else seemed afraid.
"That's only because they've made this trip so many times already!"
Paimon huffed indignantly.
"What's got you two so worked up?"
Beidou emerged from the captain's quarters just in time to hear Paimon shouting at Lumine.
"Captain Beidou, um… are we really going to be okay?"
Paimon pointed at the thunderstorm raging in the distance, bolts of lightning striking vertically from the sky.
"What's wrong, Paimon? Scared? Aren't you Teyvat's greatest guide?"
Beidou grinned. "This isn't very guide-like of you."
Lumine smirked and nodded in agreement.
Paimon turned to Lumine pleadingly.
"I can't take it—quick, give me something to eat to calm my nerves!"
Lumine: ???
"You can't just leave me to die, Lumine..."
With these two clowns around, the journey was anything but dull.
After laughing, Beidou reassured Paimon.
"Don't worry about the thunderstorm. The area inside it is even safer than the open sea right now."
"Seems the Captain isn't very good at comforting people," Paimon muttered.
Of course, Paimon didn't believe a word of it.
The sheer terror of that thunderstorm was palpable even from this distance.
To claim the thunderstorm zone was safe? That was just a blatant lie.
Lumine wasn't convinced either.
She knew Beidou was capable.
The Crux Fleet's reputation was well-earned.
But this was the Electro Archon's will they were dealing with.
If you play with fire, you're bound to get burned.
Captain, that kind of mindset is dangerous!
Seeing their skeptical expressions, Beidou added,
"You'll understand soon enough. If you don't believe me, at least believe in Mu Yang."
[Beidou's wording here is interesting]
[Yang back at it again with his shenanigans?]
Before long,
the ship reached the edge of the thunderstorm zone.
Here, the thunder roared so loudly that even Lumine and Paimon, standing face-to-face, couldn't hear each other.
As usual, Beidou signaled to the crew:
Prepare to enter the storm.
Yet the sailors seemed completely relaxed.
Not a trace of tension—as if this were just another day at sea.
Was this the composure of seasoned sailors?
Lumine couldn't help but marvel.
And what did Beidou mean by "believe in Mu Yang"?
Before she could ponder further, the Alcor plunged into the lightning!
Paimon clung to Lumine for dear life.
"WAAAAAH—!"
...
"Paimon... Paimon!"
Lumine gently patted Paimon's back,
urging her to stop making a scene—it was embarrassing.
Paimon opened her eyes to find the entire crew stifling laughter.
"W-what's so funny? It's normal to be scared, okay? Hmph..."
Then Paimon realized something was off.
"I can hear you! Where's the thunder? Why'd it stop?"
She looked around.
Floating alongside the ship were two coiling ice dragons.
Wherever the dragons passed, the Electro Archon's thunderstorm was completely nullified.
Even the deafening thunder had vanished without a trace.
Had the earlier spectacle just been an illusion?!
Beidou walked over, laughing. "See? Now you believe me, don't you?"
Lumine stared at the familiar dragons.
She could sense that person's power.
"Did Mu Yang do this?"
Beidou nodded. "He said this would cover the fare. He even set up the illusion."
"At first, I thought someone else might try to compete, but Mu Yang's thoughtfulness saved me the trouble."
——————
Guinaifen's Livestream.
Little Gui's heart rate skyrocketed at the sight of the ice dragons—art in motion.
Overwhelmed with excitement,
she threw her head back and collapsed into her chair.
Peaceful.jpg
If not for her still-fluctuating heart rate, someone would've called an ambulance.
'Thank you Mu Yang for the paid message': Spread the word—streamer got knocked out by Mu Yang's double-headed dragon (10,000)
[??? Bro, you good?]
[Mu Yang's classic pro gamer move—he's turned Cryo Visions into an art form]
[First time seeing someone pay for passage like this]
[Raiden Shogun: I have no objections]
[Damn, it's just a cutscene—why's it gotta be so cool?!]
[This isn't the MiHoYo I know—where's the trademark black screen + text?]
[Mu Yang—the budget burner]
[Looks like Mu Yang's gotten even stronger. My bet? He's here to challenge the Raiden Shogun.]
[Yo, is the streamer actually dead?]
"Not yet! I need to see my hubby first!"
Guinaifen sat back up.
If this weren't an unskippable cutscene,
she'd have mashed the skip button into oblivion.
I NEED TO SEE MU YANG RIGHT NOW!!!
——————
Meanwhile.
At the Grand Narukami Shrine.
Mu Yang lounged in the room Yae Miko had arranged for him, watching the stream.
He pulled up the popularity panel, satisfied with the spike—
exactly as expected.
What was Inazuma's thunderstorm?
As Zhongli himself put it: A manifestation of the Raiden Shogun's will.
And now? He'd torn a hole straight through it,
escorting Liyue's merchant ships safely through.
So, how many points would you give this move?