In Teyvat, songs held magical power. Some could heal. Some could summon Whopperflowers. Some could attract thunderbirds. And some… could make alchemy materials explode.
"Pfft~" Sucrose couldn't help but laugh from the sidelines.
Albedo, expressionless, turned to her and said, "Would you like to try, then?"
"N-no, thank you. If even Master Albedo failed, how could I possibly succeed…" Sucrose declined quickly.
"We're searching for suitable vessels and rituals right now. I believe encouraging diverse thinking will improve efficiency," Albedo said earnestly.
"Then… may I give it a try?" Sucrose looked to Victor Wang for approval, since he'd provided most of the materials.
Seeing Victor Wang nod, Sucrose took the measured portions from Albedo and tossed them into a large cauldron, turning up the flame.
There was already a bubbling green liquid in the cauldron. Once the new materials were added, something happened—whether an alchemical reaction or a result of the heat, the liquid began to boil rapidly. Thick, sticky bubbles burst and reformed again and again, with clouds of smoke rising from each explosion.
For a moment, Victor Wang saw a crowd of tiny people—dressed in vibrant, colorful clothes—dancing atop Albedo and Sucrose's shoulders. One even yanked at Albedo's collar and sang mockingly at him.
"I think I'm poisoned."
"No, you're not."
A fat cat with a grin that stretched across its whole face, baring two full rows of teeth, floated out from the smoke and blinked onto Sucrose's shoulder, speaking directly to Victor Wang.
"Oh? Then can you tell me the formula for the alchemy device I want to make?" Victor Wang asked casually.
The Cheshire Cat yawned lazily. "You already know it. It's in your mind. Why not give it a try?"
Albedo, watching Sucrose—eyes glowing, drooling slightly—and Victor Wang, muttering to himself, asked, "Who are you talking to?"
"An imaginary friend. The smoke has a hallucinogenic effect—but apparently not on you."
Victor Wang opened the windows. After confirming no one was outside, he used Anemo to blow out all the smoke. The little people and the Cheshire Cat vanished with the breeze.
"Wonderland, don't leave! Come back!" Sucrose suddenly lunged for the window, nearly knocking Victor Wang over.
Feeling a soft impact, Victor Wang cleared his throat, placed his hands on Sucrose's shoulders, and steadied her. Then he whispered a farewell to the fleeting illusion outside the window.
"Go on and try it. You'll thank me…" The voice faded as the Cheshire Cat disappeared into the wind.
In Sucrose's eyes, Wonderland was drifting farther and farther away. She was so distraught she nearly burst into tears, trying to lean out the window to pull it back—but Victor Wang held her firmly in place.
It took her more than ten seconds to come back to her senses. Then she realized what she had just done.
"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! I didn't think it would turn out like this!" Sucrose lowered her head in panic, hands clenched in front of her, twisting awkwardly as her cheeks flushed bright red.
"Seems the hallucinogenic effect is quite potent. Might be worth developing as a weapon. The formula is…" Albedo showed no mercy as he recorded the composition of the 'Magical Soul Soup' and moved on to consider new unconventional methods.
"How about I give it a shot?"
Since there was no telling what would work and what wouldn't, Victor Wang figured it was better to waste materials himself than have others do it. Thinking back to the Cheshire Cat's words, he volunteered.
This involved eight materials—meaning he'd need to split his consciousness eight ways. Not something just anyone could handle. Albedo asked, "You've studied alchemy?"
"I've studied synthesis of a few potions, but this seems more advanced. Can you explain the process?"
"I've explained briefly before. Once your consciousness enters the alchemical space, you'll need to compress the seven materials using your mind. But be careful—shrinking them increases their instability. If they're too large, they won't meet your needs.
"After compressing them to the right size, guide those semi-material, semi-elemental substances into the Magic Crystal Chunk. You must avoid placing reactive elements too close, but you also want to minimize the device's size… so spacing is tricky.
"Once the fusion succeeds, shape it into something usable with your imagination. Theoretically, the Magic Crystal Chunk is ideal for absorbing excess elemental energy and for releasing it smoothly."
"That's all? And this will let it produce elemental particles?"
"That's harder to explain." Albedo pulled out a notebook. "I wrote the theoretical derivation last night. Want to take a look?"
Victor Wang flipped through it. Dozens of pages, written in familiar script—but utterly incomprehensible. After a long look, he finally deciphered the message hidden between the lines: Don't ask about alchemy stuff.
"…I'll just go ahead and try the experiment."
The concept of multi-threaded consciousness was a basic alchemy skill. Since Victor Wang claimed to have studied it, Albedo didn't question further. Still, he offered a warning: "It's prone to explosions. Be careful."
"Got it."
Mentally prepared, Victor Wang picked up the seven materials and the Magic Crystal Chunk, dividing them into four pairs and placing each in a different corner of the lab.
He then stood in the center and walked four counter-clockwise steps in a square, silently reciting:
"The Immortal Lord of Heaven and Earth for Blessings."
"The Sky Lord of Heaven and Earth for Blessings."
"The Exalted Thearch of Heaven and Earth for Blessings."
"The Celestial Worthy of Heaven and Earth for Blessings."
It was a ritual from a novel he liked—a respectful homage, nothing more.
Upon completing the fourth step, he closed his eyes and entered the alchemical space. Eight materials floated in the cardinal directions.
Eight split strands of consciousness latched onto them. Excluding the Magic Crystal Chunk, the other seven were compressed, forming dense steel-ball-like orbs of concentrated elemental power, which rotated around him.
That was step one. Step two was embedding them into the Magic Crystal Chunk—where Albedo and Sucrose had failed.
Victor Wang carefully spaced the elements: separating Cryo and Pyro with Geo, and Anemo and Hydro with Dendro. Electro stayed far from the others. One by one, he pressed them into the Chunk.
No explosion.
It worked? That's it? Was it really just a ritual issue?
The bluish-purple Magic Crystal Chunk now shimmered with rainbow hues.
Now, what shape to mold it into…?
In the end, Victor Wang chose to shape it like a pocket watch. The face had seven segments, each representing an element, and the hand could be rotated.
"It worked!"
Opening his eyes, he saw a crystalline, multicolored pocket watch in his palm.
He eagerly turned the hand to Cryo, then pressed it down—a Cryo particle materialized in front of him.
"It really worked!"
Click. But before Albedo could jot down his notes, a sharp crack split the watch in two. A spiderweb of fractures spread rapidly until it shattered into glittering shards on the floor.
Victor Wang, hand frozen midair, looked at Albedo in disbelief. "This…"
"I suggest trying again. We still have enough material."
Victor Wang nodded—but this time, he used a different ritual. He had a hunch: maybe his Hilichurlian identity played a key role. Otherwise, how could Albedo fail so many times?
He gathered the eight materials, stood in place, and chanted: "Om Mani Padme Hum," "Rin, Byou, Tou, Sha, Kai, Jin, Retsu, Zai, Zen," "By order of the Supreme Elder—so let it be done!"
And once again… it succeeded.
Before Victor Wang could test it, Albedo took it for analysis. After some observation, he concluded, "It appears the Magic Crystal Chunk isn't durable enough to hold this much elemental power."
He turned the dial. As expected, the watch shattered once again.
"So, what now? Isn't the Magic Crystal Chunk top-tier ore?"
"No, no. It's far from the best. Materials used to forge four-star and five-star weapons—that's top-tier."
Albedo paced. He didn't have such materials in his lab. He did have some four-star weapons, but sacrificing one for an experiment would be far too costly.
"I've got a four-star sword. Can we use it?" Victor Wang drew the Wentian Sword.
"In theory, yes. But if it fails…"
"Then I'll have to give up anyway, right?"
There would be chances to get more weapon billets later. After weighing the risks, Victor Wang decided to gamble.
He arranged the remaining materials—enough for ten more experiments—to ensure future usability. Then he stood in the center, sword in hand, and repeated his successful process.
All went smoothly.
This time, he wouldn't make another pocket watch. He had to embed the elemental power into the sword without altering its shape… So, he added a dial to the cross-guard.
One by one, the seven elements were embedded—not merely as enchantments, but as true elemental infusions. Though the energy was embedded in the guard, the entire blade shimmered with radiant color.
Carefully, Victor Wang reshaped the cross-guard. A dial, flush with the surface, appeared at its center.
Positioned just right—his thumb could turn it unnoticed mid-combat. Perfect for catching foes off guard.
Phew. Done.
The dial, like a sideways combination lock, had seven slots. Each had a symbol for its element. Even though Anemo didn't strictly need to be included, leaving it out just felt wrong.
Now came the moment of truth.
Under the watchful gaze of Albedo and Sucrose, Victor Wang rotated the dial to Pyro. Pressed down.
With a soft hum, a single Pyro particle floated from the Wentian Sword.
["You! Are you… my master?"]