Black mist violently churned around the towering Poison Dragon Knight, seeping from the gaps in its armor. At Lu Qiuyun's command, it abruptly coalesced.
Its crimson gaze pierced through the layers of the crowd, locking onto Lydia's figure with pinpoint accuracy. Half of its exposed heart pulsed madly, its dark red light causing the surrounding black mist to ripple.
When it glimpsed the softly glowing Anemo Vision at Lydia's waist, a low, guttural roar escaped its throat. Black mist streamed from the armor's edges, leaving long, dark streaks across the ground with each step, each footfall causing the earth to tremble slightly.
On the other side, the slender Poison Dragon Knight abruptly halted its attack. The Ice Sword it had been about to thrust at Noelle snapped back.
The black mist clinging to the blade instantly condensed into razor-sharp ice spikes, while the ice-blue Vision beneath its armor flared with an intense light.
With a flicker, its figure dissolved into an afterimage, accelerating toward Lydia at blinding speed!
Favonius Knights lunged to intercept with their shields, but the knight effortlessly flicked its Ice Sword, shattering the shields like glass.
The Knights didn't even have time to cry out before the icy blades slashed them down, their bodies collapsing to the ground. The piercing "whoosh" of the Ice Sword slicing through the air cut through the battlefield like a sonic dagger.
"Lydia! Watch out!"
Lumine's reaction was lightning-fast. She instinctively yanked Lydia behind her, drawing the Dull Blade in a flash. Anemo coalesced around the blade, forming a pale cyan aura.
But she was a fraction too late. The towering Poison Dragon Knight vanished from his spot, instantly teleporting before Lydia!
The fist encased in Abyss Armor loomed larger and larger in Lydia's pupils. The force of the punch sent her snow-white hair whipping backward, making Lumine's pupils contract slightly.
Lydia's heart clenched as if gripped by an invisible hand. Her hand holding Festering Desire trembled slightly with tension, and the sword's black and white glow dimmed.
Just as the fist was about to strike, a vibrant teal wind barrier erupted between them!
Clang! The fist slammed into the barrier with a deafening crash.
The violent collision of Abyssal energy and Anemo elements sent shockwaves rippling outward, scattering nearby rubble. Lydia stumbled back two steps, barely maintaining her footing.
"Dare to lay a hand on her—and you'll regret it!"
Venti's voice, brimming with unprecedented fury, shattered the battlefield's tense stalemate.
Perched atop Dvalin's broad back, his eyes burned with murderous intent. His lips were pressed into a thin, straight line, and even the tips of his fingers had turned white with rage.
He gripped the Elegy for the End tightly in his hand, Anemo energy coalescing furiously on the bowstring, forming an even more savage wind arrow than before.
The azure-green light radiating from the arrow shaft was so blindingly bright that no one dared look directly at it.
He lowered his gaze to the cold corpses of the Knights scattered across the ground—some cleaved in half at the waist, others blasted apart into mangled remains...
Then, he looked up at Lydia, cornered by the Poison Dragon Knights. Her pale face and blood-stained skirt were like needles piercing his heart, threatening to erupt the rage burning within his chest.
These monsters had not only slaughtered his people under the very nose of Mondstadt's guardian Archon, but they dared to covet the person he cherished most.
This was utterly unforgivable!
"Die!" Venti's voice was laced with murderous intent. He drew back the bowstring, the wind arrow gleaming with blinding azure light, its tip aimed precisely at the hearts of the two Poison Dragon Knights.
With the power of the Anemo Archon, this arrow would instantly annihilate the monsters, leaving them no chance to regenerate!
But just as the arrow was about to leave the string, a earth-shattering roar suddenly echoed from the direction of Dragonspine.
"ROAR—!"
The roar, laced with bone-chilling cold and a dense Abyssal aura, instantly swept across the battlefield. Even Dvalin couldn't help but shudder, his wings trembling slightly.
Venti and Dvalin turned simultaneously, their eyes widening as the clouds above Dragonspine were violently torn apart. A Demon Dragon two to three times Dvalin's size spread its massive wings and soared into view!
Its body was a macabre fusion of ice, snow, and withered bones, each bone entwined with thick Abyss black mist. As its wings beat, it scattered icy shards laced with poisonous mist.
Those crimson eyes locked onto Dvalin, burning with an unyielding hatred—it was Durin, resurrected from death!
Before Dvalin could react, Durin suddenly accelerated, his massive dragon head clamping down on Dvalin's neck!
"AUGH—!" Dvalin roared in agony, his voice filled with disbelief.
His wings thrashed wildly, desperate to break free from Durin's jaws, his claws raking deep furrows across Durin's scales, yet failing to budge the colossal beast.
The two colossal dragons locked in aerial combat high above, black mist and Anemo energy swirling into a massive vortex. Scales of Dvalin's azure hide and icy shards from Durin rained down, crashing to the ground with deafening thuds, leaving deep craters in their wake.
The violent shaking of Dvalin instantly threw Venti off balance, sending him tumbling from the dragon's back.
Reacting instinctively, Venti channeled Anemo energy to stabilize himself, but Durin's assault came in rapid succession.
A stream of pitch-black Abyssal Breath suddenly shot toward him.
Wherever the breath passed, the air sizzled and corroded.
The breath grazed Venti's cloak and slammed into the ground, instantly blasting a crater several meters wide. Black miasma began to spread visibly across the earth.
"Dvalin!" Venti cried out.
In the next instant, Dvalin, fueled by a surge of ferocity, broke free from Durin's entanglement. He struggled to fly to Venti's side, blood still seeping from the wound on his neck.
When he saw Durin's monstrous transformation, his pupils widened in shock.
Durin's Abyssal aura was now more than ten times more terrifying than when he fell in battle in life. The Abyss energy within him seemed on the verge of overflowing.
Even the surrounding air had been dyed black, and each of his breaths caused the very fabric of space to distort slightly.
"Roar!" Without hesitation, Durin lowered his massive dragon head slightly and began condensing dark purple Abyss energy in his maw.
The energy grew increasingly dense, gradually forming a sphere larger than his head, dimming even the surrounding light.
Its gaze locked relentlessly on Mondstadt.
Lydia was right in the path of the impending attack!
To its crimson eyes, the girl appeared as insignificant as an ant.
"No!" Jean's voice rang with urgency.
She lunged forward to pull Lydia to safety, but the Poison Dragon Knight suddenly blocked her path, his Ice Sword slashing through the air, wreathed in black mist.
Jean could only raise her own blade to parry. The collision of ice and Anemo elements sent a jolt through her arm, trapping her in place.
The energy sphere detached and hurtled toward Mondstadt.
A blinding white light erupted from Venti's form. His green attire instantly transformed into pristine white divine attire, revealing his true form as the Archon.
The Elegy for the End shattered into stardust and vanished, replaced by a new longbow—the Skyward Harp—that materialized in his hand.
"Crowned and ascended... Barbatos," Diluc murmured, his eyes wide with astonishment as he watched Venti soar into the sky.
Venti materialized above Mondstadt in an instant, gripping the Skyward Harp. Anemo energy and the collective will of his people coalesced on the bowstring, forming a golden Divine Arrow.
"The wind rises," his voice boomed through the clouds, resonating across the battlefield.
The arrow, imbued with immense power, streaked toward Durin's Abyssal Breath!
Boom—!
The instant the Divine Arrow collided with the Abyssal Breath, an explosion erupted, far more violent than any previous clash.
Golden light and black miasma intertwined high above, forming a colossal mushroom cloud of energy. The shockwave swept outward like a tsunami, causing the walls of Mondstadt to tremble slightly.
The Knights instinctively raised their shields to defend themselves, while Lumine reflexively pulled Lydia behind her, erecting a barrier of Anemo energy.
The explosive force knocked Durin back several steps, his massive dragon head swaying slightly, clearly wounded.
Roaring in fury, Durin glared at Venti with crimson eyes, flapping his wings and charging toward him again, dense black miasma coiling around his claws.
Venti exchanged a glance with Dvalin, and they nodded in unison.
We must lure Durin higher into the sky. Otherwise, Mondstadt will be caught in the crossfire, endangering its citizens!
"Dvalin, follow me!" Venti called out, soaring upward first.
Dvalin followed suit, unleashing a barrage of wind blades. Though the blades couldn't seriously harm Durin, they precisely drew the dragon's wrath.
Completely enraged, Durin bellowed and flapped his wings, pursuing the pair skyward. His colossal form gradually vanished into the clouds, leaving only the echoing dragon roars and the thunderous clashes of elemental energy reverberating from the heavens.
On the ground, the two Poison Dragon Knights were momentarily stunned by the violent explosion high above.
The black miasma surrounding them flickered and dispersed slightly, and the beating of Durin's heart slowed slightly.
Seizing this fleeting opportunity, Lumine condensed Anemo energy beneath her feet, creating a faint azure wind field. Her figure flashed like lightning as she darted behind the towering Poison Dragon Knight. The Dull Blade, wreathed in a wind blade, struck viciously at its back!
Clang—!
The blade slammed heavily against the armor, sparks flying.
Though it failed to inflict a serious wound, the impact hurled the knight back several meters, leaving a shallow scratch on its Abyss Armor.
"Lydia, are you alright?" Lumine rushed back to Lydia's side.
She scrutinized Lydia from head to toe, her eyes filled with concern as she noticed the blood still seeping from the wound on her arm. Lumine reached out to help treat the injury, but Lydia gently pushed her hand away.