"Damn it, just a little more!"
Chongyun and Victor Wang watched helplessly as the Geo Hypostasis, on the brink of death, regenerated and raised four fresh stone pillars to support itself.
Pillars, pillars, and more pillars—this fight was stifling. Eighty percent of the battle had been spent smashing pillars, yet without destroying them, the Geo Hypostasis' impregnable shield would never drop, and it couldn't truly be slain.
"No problem. Next time it goes into its death state, only one pillar will remain."
"Mm."
As they spoke, Chongyun dodged a surge of stone and charged toward the pillar with his claymore. He had just struck twice when the Geo Hypostasis shifted, leaping to another pillar.
"Same tactic as before—you break one, I'll break one, leave it no place to hide."
"That's all we can do."
Perched high atop a distant pillar, the Geo Hypostasis began firing stone projectiles.
Chongyun took cover behind one of the pillars, letting it shield him, while hacking it down. Victor Wang did the same, blasting with explosions of Overloaded from flame and lightning.
Once two of the four pillars were destroyed, the Geo Hypostasis grew restless. Rising high, it flooded the last two pillars with geo energy, causing them to pulse with shockwaves that prevented either fighter from approaching.
"What are you two doing?"
"What is that monster… Five-Spice Rock? Looks so clumsy, haha! Even I can dodge those attacks!"
Seizing the pause, a nearby ship drifted closer, its idle crew calling out with laughter. A few even considered coming ashore to take a look.
Chongyun called out kindly, "This place is dangerous, please don't approach!"
One of the crew, a cocky young man, tossed a rock at the Geo Hypostasis. It shattered instantly against the shockwave.
"Whoa! Really dangerous, huh?"
"Exactly, so please stay back."
"Relax, we'll just watch from here—we won't come closer."
Once the tremors subsided, Victor Wang and Chongyun pressed their assault, braving falling stones to topple the last pillars.
"Now you've nowhere to run!"
Ice and fire struck as one, pushing the Hypostasis into its death state. Together, they shattered its final pillar.
The ocher core shuddered, then broke apart, dropping a golden stone pillar encased in hardened geo, and a translucent but fractured gem shard—Basalt Pillar and Prithiva Topaz Chunk.
"Whew, finally got it. Good thing you had that claymore—if I'd been alone, this would've been torture."
"I didn't expect the Geo Hypostasis to be so… infuriating." Chongyun chewed a stick of mint gum, instantly calming the fiery blood of his pure-yang constitution. "This is so much more convenient than popsicles."
"The portable packs are on the market already?"
"Mm. Just released today—"
"You two! With strength like that, how about joining us to search for treasure?" The sailors from before hurried over, issuing an invitation.
"Treasure? What treasure?" Victor Wang asked, curious despite himself.
"You really don't know? Look at all the ships gathered around Guyun Stone Forest—the sea folk have been talking about it non-stop!
"The Tianquan, Lady Ningguang, who controls Liyue's wealth and commerce, supposedly poured her life's savings into Guyun, as if declaring: 'Want my treasure? Go find it, I've left it all in Guyun Stone Forest!'
That rumor has drawn fleets from all over—even from Mondstadt and Sumeru."
Chongyun frowned. "That's Lady Ningguang's property. Aren't you afraid of the consequences?"
The group laughed boisterously. "We'll just sell whatever we find! Let the buyers worry about Ningguang, not us!"
"Exactly—once it's sold, it has nothing to do with us!"
"But…" one of them added, "most of the floating wreckage has already been salvaged. The real valuables sank to the seafloor. Too slow for ordinary divers, but with your help…"
The cocky young man rubbed his fingers in a money gesture. "Shall we cooperate?"
Victor Wang refused without hesitation.
Chongyun, unable to bear it, countered: "Why not return the treasures to Lady Ningguang? She would surely reward you. That way you'd have no need to live in fear—wouldn't that be better?"
The sailors gawked at him, incredulous. Then they burst into laughter, some even staring at him like he was a fool.
Victor Wang sighed. Ningguang had sacrificed the Jade Chamber for Liyue Harbor, yet in their eyes it was nothing but a pile of coins. Still, she surely anticipated this reaction—it wasn't his place to intervene.
"Chongyun, let's go."
They avoided further quarrel, boarding their small craft to head back toward Liyue.
"No wonder the seas are suddenly so crowded…"
"Look closely—some of those salvage ships belong to the authorities. Lady Ningguang herself is recovering what she can. But with the Jade Chamber's size, of course some will fall into outsiders' hands."
But once they left Guyun's waters, something felt off. The earlier ship was following them at a steady distance. Their little boat was already at top speed—there was no shaking pursuit.
When no other ships were in sight, the vessel accelerated and closed in.
"They're up to no good."
Victor Wang and Chongyun grew alert.
"Gentlemen, won't you reconsider joining us? We'll split the spoils fifty-fifty!"
"Another step and you'll be in the Sea of Clouds—there are no treasures there."
"Heh… fire!"
The ship dropped its disguise. A row of dark cannon ports yawned open, the smell of gunpowder thick in the air.
The two leapt from their small craft, striding swiftly across ice.
"So, real pirates after all. Eliminating you will be a service to the people."
Victor Wang stopped Chongyun from charging. With his Wentian Sword, he unleashed a volley of wind blades at the crew. Had they been ordinary pirates, they would already be dead.
But the sun's reflection flashed on mirrored shields—the wind was blocked entirely.
Chongyun's gaze sharpened. "A Vision-bearer… among pirates?"
"No. This smells of something else…"
Battle Technique Hunters perhaps. They'd likely been observing earlier, targeting their abilities. Worse, after the draining fight against the Hypostasis, he and Chongyun were not at full strength—while the enemy was fresh.
"If things go wrong, we withdraw."
"Withdraw? Where will you run on this open sea? If you can escape, I'll call you grandfathers!" The cocky youth grinned wide, baring his teeth.
He drew his bow, firing three arrows in quick succession, each arrowhead bending the air with compressed force.
Balancing on patches of ice was already difficult—space was tight, and unstable.
Victor Wang parried with his sword, then leapt beside Chongyun, choosing to stand together on the same platform.
"Hmph! Boys, attack!"
A rain of crossbows and muskets followed. Individually they were nothing, but each defense required energy—and the enemy surely had more to come.
Victor Wang whipped up a wave with wind, and Chongyun froze it into a solid ice wall, shielding them for now.
"They came prepared—they wouldn't act without confidence of victory."
"Then this isn't a fight we should take."
The pirate cannons fired, blasting the ice barrier apart in fire and smoke.
Under cover of the blast, the two mounted the Wentian Sword and soared into the sky.
"Hold onto my shoulder!"
Instead of retreating, they darted forward, above the pirate ship's mast.
"Three… two… one!"
Victor Wang hurled a pyro-infused Erosion Blast. At half-mast it met Chongyun's massive ice blade—detonating in a fiery blast.
The sail was ripped in half instantly. But the crew stood unharmed, shielded by a dome of icy mirrors.
From the cabin, a black-robed figure emerged. With a flick of his hand, a hail of nearly invisible ice needles streaked forth, glinting faintly in the sun.
Victor Wang's instincts screamed. "Go!"
They veered away at top speed before the needles could strike.
"Boss, a rare miscalculation, wasn't it?" the cocky youth jeered, bowing mock-respectfully. His voice carried a mocking edge.
"Repair the sails. We return. Continue the treasure hunt."