"Then we'll head out first."
Amber, Kaeya, and Lisa left the Knights' headquarters swiftly.
The one staying behind in Mondstadt was naturally the Acting Grand Master, Jean.
Suppressing the Fatui delegation required not only strength but also someone with sufficient authority.
Jean asked, "Jiang Chen, you should be familiar with the Temples of the Four Winds, right?"
"Yeah, I know where they are."
Jiang Chen nodded.
Although he hadn't paid attention to their exact locations before, during the battle with Stormterror earlier he had noticed three glowing locations from the sky and remembered them.
"Amber and the others' safety… I'll leave that to you."
"Don't worry."
Jiang Chen waved casually.
Lumine glanced back at Jean, who was leaning against the desk deep in thought, before following Jiang Chen outside and walking beside him.
"Jiang Chen, what exactly are the Temples of the Four Winds?"
Lumine tilted her head slightly and asked.
Her soft voice sounded especially pleasant.
"Yeah, yeah, what kind of secret code were they talking about?"
Paimon climbed onto Jiang Chen's head.
"Exactly what it sounds like."
Jiang Chen grabbed Paimon and lifted her down before explaining.
"They're temples dedicated to the Four Winds guardians:
the Wolf of the North Wind,
the Falcon of the West Wind,
the Lion of the South Wind,
and the Dragon of the East Wind."
"They were once the four great powers that protected Mondstadt."
"The four guardians of Mondstadt?"
Paimon floated aside and asked in confusion.
"If that's the case, why can Stormterror use their power to attack Mondstadt?"
"Do you remember what word Jean and Lisa used before saying 'Four Winds temples' earlier?"
Jiang Chen asked.
"Word before…?"
Paimon looked troubled, clearly not good at thinking too hard.
"Abandoned?"
Lumine guessed.
"Exactly."
Jiang Chen nodded.
"If they're abandoned, that means no one is watching them anymore."
"So it's perfectly normal for someone else to take advantage of them."
"I see."
Lumine nodded in understanding, then asked,
"Are we going there now?"
"Are you tired?"
Jiang Chen asked her.
"I'm fine."
"Do you want to change clothes first?"
Jiang Chen glanced at the tears in her skirt, which had been ripped when she bandaged his hands.
Lumine's ears immediately turned red.
She pulled the remaining fabric to cover the exposed areas.
"We're about to go adventuring anyway. I'll change after the adventure."
Out in the wild, getting scratches and torn clothes was common.
When it was just her and Paimon, it wouldn't have mattered.
But with Jiang Chen around, she suddenly felt a little shy.
"Alright, let's go."
Jiang Chen first returned briefly to the Good Hunter restaurant to grab a spare Wind Glider, then jumped down from the window.
Together they headed toward the city gate.
Mondstadt was still covered in dark clouds and fierce winds.
Leaves and trash flew everywhere.
Even Timmie, who usually fed pigeons on the bridge, was nowhere to be seen.
But not far outside the city, the weather suddenly became bright and clear again.
Looking back, Mondstadt was still wrapped in chaotic Anemo energy, as if it were a completely different world from the wilderness.
From afar, they saw Amber waiting in front of a ruin.
A glowing crimson elemental mark was carved into the temple gate.
Amber jumped and waved at them.
"Boss Jiang Chen! Lumine! Over here!"
"I've already done a preliminary investigation of the temple!"
"How is it?" Jiang Chen asked.
"This is the Temple of the West Wind Eagle."
"There should only be some Hilichurls and Slimes inside."
"Would something like that really be inside a temple?"
Lumine asked curiously.
"Well, since it's abandoned, that's totally normal."
Paimon repeated what she had just learned.
"Then it shouldn't be too hard."
Lumine said.
She had already fought Slimes in the wild, and before entering Mondstadt she had helped Amber clear a Hilichurl camp.
"Can you feel it?"
"The wind here feels strange. The dragon's power is still affecting this place."
Amber urged,
"Let's hurry inside!"
"Alright."
Jiang Chen nodded and placed his hand on the temple gate.
Anemo energy surged.
The gate, which had been glowing with a crimson mark, was instantly filled with wind energy.
It slowly opened inward, revealing a mechanism corridor.
Another door blocked the path ahead.
At the corner of the mechanism door was a control console.
Jiang Chen skillfully injected elemental power into it.
With a heavy rumbling sound, the mechanism door opened.
The group walked inside.
"There!"
"At the deepest part of the temple!"
From a platform, Amber pointed toward a structure high in the distance, nearly a hundred meters away.
"Wow, that high? How do we get there?"
Paimon worried.
"Let's move closer first. Since it's a temple, there must be a way up."
Amber drew her bow.
Pyro energy gathered on the arrow as she fired at the thorny vines blocking the path.
The vines ignited instantly and burned to ashes.
"Let's go."
Amber led the way.
Along the path, more thorn bushes blocked the route.
After burning them away, the surrounding Pyro energy in the air became stronger, making Amber's abilities even easier to use.
"Everyone, get down."
After turning a corner, she whispered and gestured for them to crouch.
Below the platform, three Hilichurls were wandering.
Each held a wooden club and shield, seemingly unaware of their presence.
Jiang Chen glanced at them.
Their information automatically appeared in his mind.
Lv9, Lv9, Lv10.
On their side:
Lumine Lv2Amber Lv3Jiang Chen Lv9
Level differences didn't necessarily mean they couldn't fight.
But it required skill and tactics.
For example—
Amber had already quietly taken out Baron Bunny.