The Lord of Vishaps, having absorbed Electro, let out a mighty roar, fully restoring its vigor.
"Stop resisting. Even if you change elements, the result will be the same."
"Hmph!"
Zhongli sighed, as golden Geo chains rose from the ground again, attempting to bind the Lord of Vishaps. But the dragon refused to sit and wait for death, its body brimming with crackling Electro that clashed with Geo, canceling each other out.
Another battle where even a stray blow could send me straight to the afterlife…
"Please, give me a chance to mediate this fight." Victor Wang was watching with his heart in his throat when a weak voice suddenly echoed in his ear.
"Who?!"
"I am the benevolent will of the Lord of Vishaps. I barely managed to break free while it was weakened. I know this is abrupt, but please—step outside the barrier and let me borrow your body for a while. I won't last long…"
The same consciousness that once possessed Kun Jun?
"Please!"
"…"
Victor Wang took a step forward. Outside the barrier, he could clearly feel the turbulent swirl of Anemo in the air. The clash between the two far-off powers had stirred even the other elements into chaos.
"Thank you."
A consciousness burrowed into his mind. Yet Victor Wang did not faint, nor lose control. He could still command his own body, though another will now shared control. It was a strange feeling.
"Cough… ugh!"
After adjusting to the new vessel, the benevolent will of the Lord of Vishaps shouted aloud: "Lord of Vishaps, Morax, stop this! End this meaningless battle!"
"Insignificant ant—you have no right to speak!"
"And what if I do?"
Victor Wang saw his own body radiate with a mysterious brilliance, very much like the adeptal power Granny Ping had once bestowed upon him. Suddenly, rocks, mountains, and the very earth itself felt harmonious and close, as if he could command them with the mere twitch of a finger.
"This is… my power? Impossible! Unless… who are you truly?!" The Lord of Vishaps ended its struggle, suspicion roiling in its heart.
Zhongli, too, refrained from striking. Instead, he turned his gaze toward Victor Wang.
"As you see, Lord of Vishaps—I am you."
"If you truly were me, why stand beside the traitor?!"
"Long time no see, Morax."
'Victor Wang' first nodded courteously to Zhongli, before turning back to the Lord of Vishaps.
"When the seal weakened, your leaking power took form as a child, lingering by the Dragon-Queller Tree to whisper grievances of being suppressed, and prophecies of your return.
"But I am the other power born when the seal loosened. I was frail, so weak that I could not take form on my own, barely able even to separate from you. Luckily, this opportunity came—allowing me to carry on your true memories before you are completely eroded."
"True memories? Nonsense!"
'Victor Wang' asked Zhongli: "…Morax, will you say it, or shall I?"
"It matters not—decide as you wish."
"Haha, still the same as ever. Then I'll speak."
'Victor Wang' recalled: "What erosion is, Lord of Vishaps, needs no explanation. You remember it well from countless battles fought alongside Morax. But erosion robs you of thought, makes you forget the faces of old companions, forget the harbor of Liyue you once protected. It leaves you irritable, violent, aggressive."
"It was humans who attacked the ley lines I depended upon!"
"True. Liyue's excessive mining destabilized the ley lines, making us suffer. And erosion made it worse—we lost the ability to coexist with humans, losing reason, becoming beasts.
"That is why you attacked The Chasm, and why war with Morax broke out. He tried to halt your erosion with his power, but it was futile.
"Yet, back then, you were not this far gone. In the end, you chose to be sealed yourself.
"And I am that final contract, the witness of your pact with Morax. Be angry if you must, but you cannot deny me."
"No… no…"
Zhongli closed his eyes and sighed. "The dragon of the land shakes heaven and earth. Even at my peak, I could not face you alone, much less seal you. Only because, in your heart, you still held affection—for me, for Liyue, and for all life above the earth."
'Victor Wang' denied this on behalf of the dragon, laughing: "Hahaha, those days are gone. And yet, though you have lost your Gnosis, your strength still surpasses that of the Lord of Vishaps. Truly, the strongest soul among us."
What?! So, Zhongli is stronger than the Lord of Vishaps now?
Victor Wang was astonished.
Zhongli did not deny it. "To pick up, and then to let go. I spent a thousand years learning to pick up, and countless more to truly let go—only now, at last."
Terrified, the Lord of Vishaps staggered back, roaring: "No! I will not admit it! Morax is but an ant!"
"Morax is no ant. You have forgotten too deeply. The one who recognized Morax most was you—was me."
'Victor Wang' instead stepped closer, hand pressed to his chest, gaze sharp as a spear. "What you forget remains in me. I am your memory of coexistence with humankind."
"Heavenly movements shift the stars, and mountains and seas take form."
"…From barren land, stars are born, shining… like the blazing sun…"
'Victor Wang' smiled, as the radiance on his body flowed into the Lord of Vishaps. "See? You do remember."
"This feeling… strange… these, these are…"
"In this way, even if I fade, the memories will live on. When the seal loosens again, perhaps another me will be born. I have fulfilled my contract."
"How… how can this be…"
The Lord of Vishaps fell silent, watching memories and emotions it thought had never belonged to it.
"Morax!" 'Victor Wang' asked Zhongli again: "Now, can you do it?"
"Heh—I can try."
The two old friends exchanged a smile.
Zhongli raised his right hand toward the Lord of Vishaps. His fingers slowly curled shut. In response, radiant golden light rose from the earth, strands of brilliance entwining, wrapping around the dragon that no longer resisted, forming a colossal golden sphere.
With a forceful clench of Zhongli's hand, the sphere sealed shut. It shrank, its light growing brighter and brighter, until it became a small sun above the land, radiating searing heat and crushing gravity.
"Haha, standing upon the earth yet yearning for the heavens—splendid!"
When the light and heat dissipated, what remained was a translucent, fist-sized amber orb. Inside, the Lord of Vishaps was sealed once more.
"Are you satisfied, Lord of Vishaps?"
"To call this satisfaction would be meaningless—it is only aftermath."
"Your strength is spent."
"As keen-eyed as ever. And now you go by Zhongli, yes?"
"Correct."
"Such change. Tell me—how did you lose your Gnosis?"
Zhongli briefly explained his plan of feigned death.
"So, this is letting go?"
"I believe so."
"Hmm. Dragons are born of the land, pure in nature. Perhaps that is why we surpass Archons… Yet I thought you had already seen through it all."
"Contracts are also shackles."
"Haha. Look at it another way—Liyue Harbor abandoned not only me, but you as well."
Zhongli sighed deeply. "…Thank you, Lord of Vishaps."
"…No thanks needed. The key things, I will never forget—even at erosion's end."
"Are you leaving?"
"Haha… Morax, if fate allows, we shall meet again."
Victor Wang watched as the light upon his body faded completely. The strange sensation of sharing his body with another vanished.
"Zhongli… your important friend is gone."
"Yes. Yesterday's memories remain vivid."
"What is erosion, truly? Is there no way to resolve it?"
"Erosion is the toll of time's long river. No being can escape it. But… I seek a path to resist erosion."
There was weight in Zhongli's tone, his gaze meaningful. Victor Wang scratched his head and asked: "What? Don't tell me you mean… me?"
"Nothing of the sort."
"No, no—like when I let Venti cleanse my elements, I'm willing to grant you one request… if it's within my power."
Zhongli looked toward the amber sphere sealing the Lord of Vishaps. After a moment's thought, he said: "Then, if one day you gain the strength, and Liyue happens to need protection—please, I entrust it to you."
"Ahaha… That request is even more far-fetched than asking me to ascend Celestia. Unreal… but I'll promise."
If the path to resisting erosion truly lies with him, yet Zhongli still chose to prioritize Liyue Harbor… Perhaps because that too was what the Lord of Vishaps had wished to protect, what all who sacrificed for Liyue had sought to protect.
"In fact, as a friend… if there's something else I can help with, I'd be willing."
"Your heart is enough. Now, let's cleanse your elements."
"Alright!"
Victor Wang raised his sword and pulled from the Inner Space a mountain of Cor Lapis and drops from the Geo Hypostasis. But then he remembered something crucial.
"Wait a second! The Lord of Vishaps is sealed again—what about the missing materials? Do we have to release it and beat it up again?"