Every word in her voice trembled, like a candle flame flickering in the wind, ready to be extinguished at any moment.
Lumine felt as if she could see the young girl from her memories, being gradually enveloped by the dark energy of the Abyss. She reached out, trying to grasp something, but only caught a handful of cold darkness.
"Why... why are you giving up on me too?" Her voice suddenly dropped, tinged with a hint of desperation.
It was as if she were asking Lumine, yet also asking herself.
"I never wanted to destroy Liyue... I just... I just wanted to show them that I could protect this place too... I'm not useless, I'm not a monster..."
Faint sobs mingled with her words, like muffled cries that made one's chest ache with pain.
"You said we'd watch the Lantern Rite together... You said the little statue I carved was cute..." Those past promises had now become thorns piercing her heart, and each mention made her voice tremble with pain. "Don't abandon me... I beg you..."
The final words were so faint they were almost inaudible, like a feather landing on the water's surface, creating only the faintest ripple before completely vanishing into the snow-white space.
Lumine's heart jolted. Just as she was about to speak, the snow-white space around her shattered, its countless fragments dissolving into the air.
The scene before her turned upside down, and she landed hard on the ground. The familiar sensation beneath her feet was none other than the streets of Liyue Harbor!
She moved her fingers in pleasant surprise, then tentatively lifted her arms, finding that her body could finally move freely.
Looking up, she saw the dazzling sun hanging in the sky, its glare making her squint.
The streets were bustling with people. Children laughing and playing chased butterflies, their silver-bell-like laughter echoing at the entrance of the alley.
Vendors hawked their wares, and cooking smoke rose in lazy curls from the restaurants.
"Could it be... that this was all a dream?" Lumine murmured to herself, reaching down to touch the ground beneath her feet. The texture was unmistakably real. "Or was Yunqin's invasion of Liyue, with the Blood Moon hanging in the sky, the absurd nightmare?"
While she was still puzzled, a commotion of voices nearby caught her attention.
A crowd had gathered, pointing and whispering. Their discussions rose and fell, mingled with the gasps of children.
Lumine's heart stirred as she walked over, gently pushing through the crowd. In the open space at the street corner stood a brand-new statue carved from Rock Jade.
The statue depicted a young girl. Her brows and eyes held a hint of stubbornness, yet her lips were curved into a slight smile. In her hand, she held a faintly glowing Moonlight Strings. It was Yunqin herself!
A line of text was carved into the base of the statue, the handwriting gentle yet powerful, carrying a sense of profound weight from the passage of time, as if it had been written by an old man's hand.
"Guardian of Liyue... Yunqin?"
Lumine's pupils constricted to the size of pinpricks as her fingertips uncontrollably stroked the Rock Jade surface of the statue.
The cool touch seeped through the gaps between her fingers into her palm, and even the fine lines on the Rock Jade simulating Yunqin's hair were clearly discernible.
But the five gentle words "Guardian of Liyue" carved into the base were like a red-hot heavy hammer, smashing cruelly against her chaotic thoughts, leaving her entire body numb.
"This is Lady Yunqin!" an old man leaning on a wooden cane beside her suddenly spoke up, his voice filled with the relief and gratitude of a survivor.
His withered hand stroked the base of the statue, his fingertips repeatedly rubbing over the words "Guardian."
"If she hadn't held Liyue Harbor to the death with the Abyssal Moon Power, those venom-spitting Seaborn would have crushed us all to pieces! I saw her standing on the crescent moon with my own eyes. When the zither's notes rang out, those monsters fell like wheat!"
"Isn't that right!" An auntie next to him pressed closer, her tone filled with almost fanatical adoration. She was even holding a string of candied haws with Yunqin's portrait printed on them, the pattern on the sugar frosting sparkling. "I heard she charged into the Abyssal Rift single-handedly and used the Moonlight Strings to bind that nine-headed monster to death!"
"I say, Rex Lapis's fall symbolizes Lady Yunqin's power. Liyue should let Lady Yunqin become the New God!"
"From now on, Yunqin will be our Liyue's Great God of the Abyssal Moon! We will enshrine Lady Yunqin as the Exalted Abyssal Moon God from now on!"
An excited shout suddenly erupted from the crowd, instantly igniting everyone's emotions.
"Great God of the Abyssal Moon! Exalted Abyssal Moon God!"
"Great God of the Abyssal Moon! Exalted Abyssal Moon God!"
"Great God of the Abyssal Moon! Exalted Abyssal Moon God!"
"..."
The rising and falling shouts surged like a tide, the people raising their hands, their eyes full of pious fervor.
Lumine felt a chill run through her entire body, her fingertips trembling uncontrollably.
This was not the Liyue she knew, and even less the Yunqin she knew!
Just then, a loud shout pierced through the noisy crowd: "The Rite of Descension has begun! Lady Yunqin will attend in person to bestow blessings! Everyone, hurry, or you won't see the God's face!"
Before the words had even fallen, the crowd surrounding the statue instantly seemed to have their backbone drawn out, surging like a tide in the other direction.
Lumine's heart tightened, and only one thought remained in her chaotic mind: She had to see Yunqin, she had to figure out if all this was an illusion or a mad reality!
She ran with the crowd, almost by instinct, Anemo swirling silently beneath her feet, yet she dared not use her full strength.
She feared this fragile "reality" would shatter like foam.
The sights along the way left her increasingly dazed: Liyue Harbor looked just as she remembered, but the stalls lining the streets were filled with clay figurines bearing Yunqin's profile. The figurines held miniature Moonlight Strings, their lips curved in an arrogant smile.
Banners hung from the lintels of every household, their fabric embroidered with flowing Abyssal Moon patterns.
When the copper bells dangling below chimed, they would whisper fragmented prayers to "Lady Yunqin."
Even the sign for "Glaze Lily Sundries" had been changed to "Exalted Abyssal Moon God Offering Shop," and the shop assistants at the door wore short-sleeved shirts printed with Yunqin's portrait, warmly greeting customers.
Her traces were everywhere, as if she had already been Liyue's faith for a thousand years, rather than the girl who had been on Mt. Aocang just half a year ago.
Lumine was swept along in the shoulder-to-shoulder crowd, her ears filled with the constant murmur of "Lady Yunqin." Her mind felt as if it had been stuffed with a wad of soaked cotton, heavy and dull, until the boundary between reality and illusion blurred.
Perhaps the calamity of the Blood Moon hanging in the sky was the dream?
And this Liyue, so filled with Yunqin's traces, was the reality?
The moment this thought emerged, she ruthlessly crushed it.
Finally reaching the Rite of Descension site at the foot of Mt. Tianheng, she found the ceremony had already begun.
Lumine pushed through the cheering crowd. The moment she looked up, the blood in her veins seemed to freeze instantly, and even her breath stopped.
On the high platform, the figures of three familiar illuminated beasts were suspended by heavy iron chains: Cloud Retainer's wings hung limp, her pure white feathers stained with filth and rotting vegetables, her once-spirit-filled phoenix eyes now murky and gray.
Moon Carver's antlers were broken, one missing, his head drooping weakly like ancient jade covered in dust.
Mountain Shaper's four limbs hung stiffly, his eyes terrifyingly hollow.