Cold.
A bone-deep cold, not of air but of the soul. As though some primordial beast had fixed its gaze across the void, ready to crush him into nothingness.
Orien's blood froze, his breath stopped. His mind went blank, filled only with the system's shrieking alarm.
[Warning! Extreme hostility detected! Source: Highest danger level! Evade immediately!]
Raiden Shogun. Her killing intent had locked onto him.
Even across oceans, the Archon's power bore down. Orien felt the storm gathering in Inazuma—a blade of lightning hanging above, ready to split space and smite him.
He would die. Even a glancing touch would annihilate him.
Escape? Against a god's will, his little Thunder Shadow Flash (Raieishan) was a joke.
"Shit!" Panic drove his body faster than thought. Instinct alone saved him—
He yanked out the charm Yae Miko had given him, the Amulet of the Grand Narukami Shrine, and crushed it with all his might!
Crack!
The shards blazed.
A shield of violet petals wrapped him tight, lightning coiling but strangely gentle, resonant with the Shogun's own yet subtly different.
At that instant—
BOOM!
A blade of lightning, world-ending, split the skies above Whispering Forest! Clouds tore apart, earth wailed. It was not mere elemental power, but the will of Musou no Hitotachi itself—cutting all, preserving "eternity."
The strike fell.
The canyon where Orien hid vanished in searing light.
He saw only the endless purple glare. If not for the shield, he'd already be ashes.
The impact shook the forest. Hundreds of meters around were leveled flat, a charred crater gaping in the ground.
Inside, Orien lay battered, blood spilling from nose and ears. The shield cracked, groaning under the strain. But—it had held.
The blow of a god, stopped.
Far in Tenshukaku, Ei's eyes narrowed. She had felt the fox's aura woven into the shield. A colder, sharper light flashed in her gaze.
Then—
The amulet's last power ignited. The shield collapsed inward, wrapped Orien in light, and tore a hole in space. A random teleport—one shot only.
Ei's will surged again to cut it short—
—but a voice, lilting and sly, brushed her thoughts.
"My, my, Ei. Swinging blades toward Mondstadt's skies… wouldn't that cause quite the diplomatic mess?"
Yae Miko. Mischief and guile in every syllable. A psychic ripple tangled Ei's lock.
"Yae Miko? You would shelter this one who profanes eternity?" Ei's voice was sharp, thunder rising.
"Shelter? Not at all," Miko purred. "But such an amusing little 'variable'… would it not be wasteful to snuff him out so soon? He even dragged the Fatui's little rat into the open for us, did he not?"
Ei's silence was cold, her blade unsheathed in spirit—but the quarry had slipped, vanished into the rift.
…
The transit was torment. Orien spun, crushed, stretched through impossible angles. Seconds, or centuries.
Then—crash!
He hit sand hard, rolled, gagged. His whole body screamed.
At last he lifted his head.
Sea breeze. Wet air, salty and sharp. A lush jungle loomed inland, alien trees towering. Waves lapped the shore.
"Where… is this?" he muttered. The amulet's teleport had thrown him gods knew where.
Pain racked him, energy gone, but—he was alive. He had survived the wrath of a god.
"Yae Miko… that fox…" His heart pounded with unease. He owed her his life, but she had only spared him for her own amusement.
Still—alive was alive.
He summoned the system.
[Host: Orien]
[Condition: Light internal injuries, energy exhausted, spirit fatigued]
[Breakdown Value: 159,105]
Nearly one hundred sixty thousand.
He stared, then laughed, near-hysterical.
"I'm rich! Hahaha!"
Whatever his wounds, the haul was worth it. Enough to buy power. Enough to climb higher.
"System! Open the lottery—epic pool!"
The wheel shimmered purple, prizes gleaming. Five-star weapons, powerful skills, strange artifacts.
Five draws, at five thousand each.
The wheel spun.
—A scroll: Knights of Favonius Swordsmanship: Essentials.
—A catalyst: Sacrificial Fragments.
—Trash: Bird Eggs ×10.
—A surge of flame: Elemental Burst: Niwabi Fire-Dance (Yoimiya) (Beginner).
—And lastly, a shard edged faintly in gold: False Sky Fragment.
"Jackpot!" Orien crowed. Swordsmanship mastery, gear, Yoimiya's Burst, and a relic tied to the sky's lie. His strength soared.
He demanded another set of draws, drunk on the thrill, forgetting for now the brush with death.
Sun blazed down on the strange coast. In the distance, unseen beasts cried in the rainforest.
The land was foreign to him, yet familiar to the world.
He had arrived in Sumeru.
The storm would rise again.
(End of Chapter)
[Check Out My P@treon For 20+ Extra Chapters On All My Fanfics!!] [[email protected]/Draumel]
[Thank You For Your Support!]