A table of mountain delicacies worth hundreds of thousands of Mora tasted bland and joyless. With no more conversation left, Victor Wang took the initiative to excuse himself.
In the afternoon came the 50-to-20 round of the bubble-blowing contest. Each division was split into ten groups, with five contestants each, and only the top two advancing.
By coincidence, Victor Wang and Xingqiu were placed in the same group. Still, they secured first and second place respectively, successfully advancing. In other divisions, Hu Tao, Lumine, and Chongyun also advanced. The real bloodbath would come tomorrow…
That evening, once again at the South Wharf, Victor Wang boarded the same ship as yesterday and reported his conversation with Diergis to Ye Caizhen in broad strokes.
This had been the agreed condition.
"'What kept me alive was not the glory of old, but rather…'" Ye Caizhen slowly repeated the line. "He looked sorrowful when he said this… Hm. But was that really all? Are you sure you didn't miss anything?"
Turning his head aside, Victor Wang felt a little guilty. He kept his gaze steady, eyes to nose, nose to heart, saying nothing…
"Heh, did he not mention a god hidden from the public eye? Answer truthfully. To me, this is no secret."
"…There was indeed such a god of Khaenri'ah. Your father seems to be searching for Him."
"The power of the Abyss… He never once told me of this. He always said he didn't want me involved with Khaenri'ah. But now… he has changed."
"Miss, searching for something does not necessarily mean what you think it does." A deep voice rang out. It was Jun Zheng, the one who had never spoken in front of Victor Wang until now.
"Uncle Jun Zheng, I already know what he intends to do…"
Victor Wang glanced around, puzzled. "What are you talking about?"
"You didn't see the emergency summons this afternoon?"
"No."
Ye Caizhen sighed. "Do you still remember the missing Noctilucous Jade from Mingyun Village?"
"I remember. I heard it was transported to Guyun Stone Forest, then fell into the sea during the last incident."
"And do you remember the suspected Battle Technique Hunter pirates by Guyun Stone Forest?"
"Of course, wasn't that intelligence from me?"
"Indeed, from you. Yet you yourself seemed not to take it seriously."
"So?"
"After we received that report, we sent people disguised as salvage crews to watch the waters around Guyun Stone Forest. We didn't catch pirates—but we did catch others, also disguised as salvagers, secretly throwing things into the sea. Guess what they were discarding?"
"Don't tell me… Noctilucous Jade?"
"Exactly."
Ye Caizhen looked toward the dark depths of the Guyun Sea below the ship, a trace of worry in her eyes.
"The batch of Noctilucous Jade sunk at Guyun Sea was not all that had been stolen. The batch east of Guyun Stone Forest came from the same source. Without doubt, the Abyss Order intends to use this jade for mischief.
"Through further investigation, we also discovered the last batch at the bottom of Yaoguang Shoal. In this way, with Guyun Sea, Yaoguang Shoal, and east of Guyun Stone Forest forming the three points, and Guyun Stone Forest as the core, a massive formation takes shape."
"This!" Victor Wang was startled. "The Abyss Order wants to release the Archon sealed beneath Guyun Stone Forest?"
Casting him a glance, Ye Caizhen shook her head slightly. "To break the seal of the Geo Archon requires a force surpassing even an Archon, unless one uses something as unorthodox as the Sigil of Permission. Those Noctilucous Jade alone aren't nearly enough. According to the 'Formation Master,' this resembles a teleportation array. But given its immense scale, what it is meant to transport cannot be anything ordinary."
"…!"
The ultimate killing machine, the Mechanical Archon Squid!
That was when Dainsleif first appeared—the Abyss Order sought to use the technology behind the "Tillers" to transform Osial's body. Using that Defiled Statue of the Inverted God as the base, they would graft on the limbs of the Overlord of the Vortex, Osial to forge a Mechanical Archon.
Yet that plan… later known as the "Loom of Fate," would be broken by Dainsleif and Lumine. The Abyss Order might succeed in acquiring Osial's limbs, but they failed to obtain the Eye of the very first Tiller.
Victor Wang suddenly understood. The Abyss Order had always been rather quiet in Liyue—this was indeed their only major move.
His acting switched on, and he asked with feigned surprise, "So you issued the emergency summons in order to thwart the Abyss Order's plan?"
"Yes. Unfortunately, the Death Star is not present. I don't know how much strength we can muster."
Choosing to ignore that oddly familiar codename for now, Victor Wang asked again, "So you suspect your father's return at this particular moment is actually in service of the Abyss Order?"
With a faint, sorrowful sigh, Ye Caizhen said, "I only wish it were merely suspicion."
"Miss…"
"Heh… Uncle Jun Zheng, don't worry about me. You watched me grow up—you know I cannot be so easily defeated. And don't worry about my father either. With that damned curse of immortality, he cannot die anyway. If I think carefully… what could I even do to him?"
"…"
The ship, once filled with voices, suddenly fell into an inexplicable silence. It was as though time itself had stopped, with only the sound of the sea flowing quietly beneath the night sky.
"Kunpeng, tomorrow, same place, same time. If you have no pressing matters, lend us your strength. The organization needs you."
"Can't we rely on the power of the Liyue Qixing or the Adepti?"
"…They belong under the command of the Seven Archons. Unless absolutely necessary, we must keep our distance."
So Ye Caizhen felt the same. It seemed Diluc's attitude toward the Knights of Favonius wasn't just personal enmity—North Wing also intended to distance themselves from the Archons. Victor Wang nodded. "Understood. I'll be there."
The night passed without further words.
The next day dawned, bringing the third day of the bubble-blowing contest.
The morning held the fiery 20-to-4 round. Twenty contestants were split into four groups of five. Only one from each group would advance.
Those left standing had already passed the first two rounds—among hundreds, they were the true elites. Victor Wang scanned his four opponents.
This time, he was fortunate—not grouped with Xingqiu. But the figure on the far left, dressed in a black robe… looked uncannily like himself?
"Contestants, are you ready?"
To maintain fairness, the judges rotated daily between divisions. Today's chief judge happened to be Zhongli, long unseen. He sat with poise before the five contestants, raising a signal board—the battle began instantly.
The panel Ningguang had assembled was highly professional. Each contestant had a timer, two recorders, and the rules were simple: objectively judged by speed, size, and shape of the bubbles, plus one subjective score from the judge.
In short: the faster, bigger, and prettier the bubble, the higher the rank. The only caveat—bursting a bubble would result in the lowest possible rank.
Each contestant had to blow three times, with their final score being the average ranking across all three. Even if you placed first twice, one failure with a burst bubble would ruin you. A 1-1-5 average was worse than a steady 2-2-2.
Thus, in earlier rounds, with many advancement slots, no one had pushed too hard.
Victor Wang had done the same.
But now, he felt immense pressure. As he hesitated on whether to push his bubble to dangerous limits, the black-robed figure on the far left had already blown a bubble larger than he dared attempt.
"First place: The Mysterious One. Second place: Victor. Third place: Peng Yin…"
The Mysterious One? They had registered under that name?
Hearing Zhongli's impartial declaration, Victor Wang gave a wry smile. It seemed he would have to go all out.
"Contestants, are you ready?"
Once again, Zhongli raised the signal board.
In a flash, Victor Wang blew with all his might. The bubble swelled, expanded, grew thinner. His entire being was focused on this single act, until a large, round bubble floated before him.
No, not enough. Not enough…
The bubble was on the verge of collapse, fragile to the point it might pop at any second. Yet it was already larger than any he had ever made. He stopped just in time. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the Mysterious One also stop—their bubble seemed… smaller than his?
"First place: Victor. Second place: The Mysterious One. Third place: Peng Yin…"
The Mysterious One appeared dissatisfied. Turning slightly, they cast a glance toward Victor Wang.
Until now, their face had been hidden beneath the hood. But in that brief moment, Victor Wang glimpsed a smooth chin, lips pressed into a line, and the tip of a delicate nose. Not a man… but a woman.
Thinking further, he noticed the hood bulging oddly, as if something were hidden beneath it. Victor Wang grew thoughtful.
Is it you?
A smile tugged at his lips. Whoever it was, he would not hold back.
"Contestants, are you ready?"
The third round began.
Focusing all his attention, the world faded away—there was nothing but the bubble. When he returned to his senses, his bubble was as large as before.
Steady!
He had feared it might burst, but relief surged in his heart. Then his gaze shifted—only to see that the figure on the far left had blown an even larger bubble, as though holding back until now.
"First place: The Mysterious One. Second place: Victor. Third place: Peng Yin… Congratulations to The Mysterious One for advancing."
The morning matches ended. Xingqiu, Hu Tao, and Chongyun all advanced. Victor Wang became the second member of the Bubble Gum Squad to be eliminated.
The afternoon matches were even harsher. Only one from each division could reach the finals. Hu Tao and Lumine—one would fall. Xingqiu and The Mysterious One—likewise.
Before the match, Xingqiu, full of determination, patted Victor Wang's shoulder. "I'll avenge you!"
"Uh…"
…
"Congratulations to The Mysterious One, champion of the North Bridge Division. Tomorrow's finals will be held at People's Plaza. Contestants and spectators, please note the change of venue."
As Zhongli's steady voice fell, Xingqiu slumped in disbelief. "Impossible! This Mysterious One is so strong!"
Victor Wang instead offered comfort. "It's all about participation, it's all about participation."
Later, at Wanmin Restaurant, the squad gathered to exchange news—only to find that the Bubble Gum Squad had been completely wiped out.
At South Wharf Division, Hu Tao, heavily favored, had been defeated by Lumine.
At Chihu Rock Division, Chongyun, the dark horse who had quietly advanced to the finals, was defeated by Hanfeng the Cold Blade.
At Feiyun Slope Division, where none of the Bubble Gum Squad competed, word was that a contestant from Mondstadt had taken the crown.
Everyone's eyes turned to the only familiar face left in the finals—Lumine.
"Lumine, since you defeated me, you must go further. The hope of our Bubble Gum Squad rests on you now!"
"Everyone, I'll do my best!"