Jiang Yan no longer knew how long he had been fighting the Lord of the Abyss.
All he knew was that time and time again, he shattered the Lord of the Abyss, while the Lord of the Abyss relied on its undying nature to continuously inflict Abyssal curses upon him.
Yet with the existence of the Time Gem, as well as the Horse Talisman and the Dog Talisman, the corrosion of the Abyss was essentially ineffective against Jiang Yan.
Though not entirely ineffective.
Because with every attachment of Abyssal corruption, it grew stronger and stronger, and the Lord of the Abyss' reconstruction became faster and faster.
At times, Jiang Yan didn't even have the chance to fully negate the Abyssal corrosion before the next round of battle began.
The Lord of the Abyss wasn't having an easy time either.
Reconstructing its body did not come without a price.
What's more, in order to ensure that Jiang Yan would be affected by Abyssal corruption, the Lord of the Abyss accelerated its reconstruction more and more, causing increasingly severe losses to itself.
The two could be said to be injuring each other.
Jiang Yan was practically tanking the Abyssal corrosion head-on while rampaging against the Lord of the Abyss.
Meanwhile, the Lord of the Abyss was enduring ever-growing self-inflicted losses, forcibly trading injuries with Jiang Yan.
And so, they fought.
For who knew how long.
…
On the surface of Teyvat.
The tremors on the surface lasted only a short while before the Heavenly Principles and the Seven Archons stabilized the ley lines.
Although the Heavenly Principles prevented them from investigating what was happening deep within the ley lines, Morax knew very well who had caused this disturbance.
Though worry lingered in his heart, the clone Jiang Yan had not disappeared, which meant Jiang Yan's life was not in danger.
And just like that, two thousand years passed in the blink of an eye.
Over those two thousand years, the land shook countless times.
But because the Heavenly Principles and the Seven Archons reinforced the ley lines, at the very least, these tremors did not push the world back to the brink of collapse.
Liyue Harbor.
"Jiang Yan! This policy will have far too great an impact on Liyue!"
Guizhong slammed the document in her hand down hard in front of the clone Jiang Yan, anger written across her face.
"Oh? Go on."
The clone Jiang Yan didn't even lift his head as he spoke indifferently.
"Raising civilian and commercial taxes so rashly will not only cause unrest among the Eight Trades, but also provoke resentment among the common people!"
Guizhong tried to persuade him.
After taking charge, although the clone Jiang Yan had maintained the policies previously set by the main body, he lacked the same concern for the people.
In his way of thinking, once he issued an order, the people only needed to carry it out.
Public opinion?
They were merely mortals.
Inheriting a cold-blooded, emotionless personality, this clone Jiang Yan handled affairs in an extremely iron-fisted and radical manner.
For the sake of this round of military expansion alone, Jiang Yan had not hesitated in the slightest, directly ordering an increase in Liyue's taxes.
"Resentment? So what?"
"Only when Liyue prospers and the military is strong can peace and stability be maintained."
Jiang Yan said coldly.
"Perhaps they won't accept it at first, but as long as this policy continues for some time, they will."
"If anyone has grievances, let them come and talk to me in person."
Hearing Jiang Yan's cold and ruthless words, Guizhong stared at him in disbelief.
She shook her head and stepped back repeatedly. Looking at his expressionless face, she finally spoke:
"Jiang Yan… you've changed."
Yes, Jiang Yan had clearly changed.
He no longer empathized with the people.
He had become cold.
He no longer seemed like the gentle, playful young man Guizhong once knew.
Even Ganyu, who loved him deeply, had a fierce argument with him, and the two had fallen into a cold war.
"Heh. People always change, don't they?"
The clone Jiang Yan said no more.
He couldn't expose the fact that the main body was no longer in Liyue.
Suddenly, his expression changed.
He clutched his chest and collapsed to the ground.
"Jiang Yan!!!"
Seeing Jiang Yan fall to the ground in agony, Guizhong's eyes widened as she cried out in panic.
At the same time, Ganyu on the second floor heard the commotion upstairs, as well as Guizhong's scream.
She hurried upstairs, only to see Guizhong kneeling on the ground, supporting Jiang Yan, whose face was pale and twisted in pain.
"Ah Yan!"
At this moment, Ganyu no longer cared about the cold war between them. She rushed forward, her face full of panic.
"Go… go get Morax!"
"Quick!!"
The clone Jiang Yan roared hoarsely.
"Alright, I'll go—hang on!"
Guizhong completely lost her composure. She scrambled to her feet and stumbled out in a panic.
"Ah Yan… Ah Yan…"
Ganyu held Jiang Yan anxiously, calling out to him in fear.
Then she noticed something that made her panic even more—Jiang Yan's limbs were extremely stiff.
She lifted his sleeve and her eyes widened in horror.
At that moment, Jiang Yan's body was rapidly turning into wood.
"So it seems… even though the main body left me safeguards, it still isn't enough."
The clone Jiang Yan let out a bitter smile and murmured.
"Ganyu."
Suddenly, Jiang Yan spoke softly.
But when Ganyu looked at his face, wooden patterns had already begun spreading up his neck.
"I'm sorry. For these past two thousand years, I've been deceiving you."
"I'm nothing more than one of Jiang Yan's clones. For two thousand years… I've neglected you…"
"I'm sorry…"
As he finished speaking, Jiang Yan's entire body transformed into a wooden figure. With a bang, it collapsed into scattered pieces.
Ganyu stared with wide eyes, her body trembling uncontrollably.
At that moment, Guizhong burst back in with Morax and the assembled Adepti, pushing the door open in panic.
"Jiang Yan!"
When they saw Ganyu kneeling on the ground in a daze, holding a pile of wooden fragments in her arms, everyone's hearts sank.
A terrible premonition rose within them.
"No!!"
Suddenly, a terrifying aura erupted from Morax. His eyes widened as he stared in disbelief at the pile of wood in Ganyu's arms.
At that instant, Jiang Yan's words from before surfaced in his mind.
"Don't tell anyone about my departure. I'll leave behind a clone, as proof that I'm still alive."
And now—
The clone Jiang Yan was gone.
Which meant…
Morax didn't dare continue the thought.
"Rex Lapis?"
Seeing Morax so utterly shaken, the Adepti looked at him in confusion.
"Rex Lapis."
Ganyu suddenly spoke. She looked at Morax, hope flickering in her eyes.
"Jiang Yan just said that he was only a clone."
"That's true… right?"
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