After finally sending Keqing on her way, Yun Fan glanced at the sky. It was nearly evening.
"Really, that girl is so clingy. Why didn't I notice it before?" Yun Fan sighed, rubbing his forehead. All afternoon, Keqing had been circling around, trying to get information about the so-called "great calamity." But he had managed to dodge her questions, so it shouldn't be a problem for now.
"After the Rite of Parting, I'll head to Mt. Aocang. I owe Shenhe an explanation."
---
"Have you found any traces of Lesser Lord Kusanali?"
In the Sumeru Akademiya, Azar, the Grand Sage, sat on his imposing chair, frowning at the row of intelligence officers below. His tone was heavy with pressure.
"G-Grand Sage, according to our investigation, Lesser Lord Kusanali has... gone to Liyue," one of the officers stammered.
"Liyue? What is she doing there?" Azar's frown deepened. Although the Geo Archon had fallen, Liyue was still a nation that their nearly godless country couldn't compare to. A centipede dies but never falls, and Liyue had stood strong for thousands of years.
And then there was the enigmatic Divine Sovereign. Though he had never appeared in public, the title alone suggested he was on par with the Geo Archon. Liyue was not a nation they dared to offend.
After a moment of contemplation, Azar ordered, "Send a few trusted agents to Liyue secretly. Investigate Lesser Lord Kusanali's whereabouts. If the opportunity arises, bring her back. But make sure the Liyue authorities don't notice."
---
"Void Archives, begin the second trial."
After a day of "busywork," as night fell and the world grew quiet, Yun Fan lay comfortably in bed, mentally communicating with the Void Archives.
'Assessing holder's comprehensive strength... Assessment complete.'
'Initiating second trial...'
Like the first trial, Yun Fan felt a momentary disorientation before finding himself in the same gray, mysterious space.
Meanwhile, on another timeline of the Imaginary Tree...
"I never thought Ruo Shui could do something like this," Fu Hua, the Herrscher of Sentience, watched the concert on TV, particularly impressed by Ruo Shui's DJ skills.
"Impressive, right? I taught her that," Senti popped up out of nowhere, proudly boasting to Fu Hua.
"You taught her?"
"Hmph, you really don't get it, do you, old fossil? Ruo Shui is... huh?" Senti paused, her hands still kneading a piece of dough, as a voice echoed in her mind. After processing the information, a thoughtful expression crossed her face.
"Primordial Laws... Invitation... Trial... What is this?" Senti didn't fully understand, but she accepted the invitation anyway, lured by the tempting rewards promised by the so-called Primordial Laws.
After accepting, like Yun Fan, Senti felt her consciousness blur. When she regained focus, she found herself in a gray space, with a silver-haired young man standing not far away.
Just as Senti was wondering what to do, a prompt sounded.
'Unlocking Herrscher of Sentience's full power. Trial commencing.'
As the voice faded, Senti felt a warm current flow through her body, filling her with strength. The full power of Fu Hua's prime had returned!
"Hahaha! This is the true Fu Hua, the true Herrscher of Sentience, the true me! Hahaha..." Senti covered her face with one hand, laughing maniacally, her voice echoing like a deafening roar.
"Uh..." Yun Fan, standing across from her, had a dark expression. This girl was really something.
"Hahaha..." After a while, Senti finally stopped laughing. Her red eyes scrutinized Yun Fan.
"You're the trial participant the Primordial Laws mentioned, right? I don't fully understand what's going on, but it promised that if I defeat you, I'll return to my world at full strength. So..."
Senti raised her head, her eyes glowing with a terrifying red light.
"Become the stepping stone for my return to power!" With that, Senti moved, vanishing from Yun Fan's sight in a flash of red, leaving only an afterimage behind.
"That won't do," Yun Fan smiled, swiftly turning and raising a shield that had somehow appeared in his hand.
Clang! The sound of metal clashing echoed through the space. Senti had reappeared behind Yun Fan, her black-and-red sword colliding with his shield, sparks flying and briefly illuminating the gray void.
"Not bad reflexes," Senti said, her sword arcing toward Yun Fan's chest in a follow-up strike.
"Won't work," Yun Fan shook his head, tilting his shield to deflect her attacks.
"I don't believe it!" Senti, her competitive spirit ignited, swung her sword faster, her arm moving so quickly it nearly sparked. But her attacks still didn't achieve the desired effect.
"Tch!" Senti clicked her tongue, changing tactics. Her sword transformed into a black-and-red whip made of Honkai alloy.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
The whip cracked through the air, creating sonic booms. After testing it out, Senti nodded in satisfaction, then lashed out at Yun Fan.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The sound of metal clashing filled the space again, but this time, Yun Fan's defense wasn't as effortless.
Unlike a sword, the whip was flexible and could curve around the shield, striking Yun Fan from the sides and back.
"In the name of Landau, forged through ice and snow, this resolve shall never end!" Yun Fan threw his shield, temporarily repelling the whip, then slammed his fist into the ground, unleashing a burst of ice energy.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Massive ice walls, over thirty feet tall, erupted from the ground, surrounding Yun Fan and shielding him.
Senti's whip struck the ice walls, causing them to tremble, but they didn't break easily.
"Come out, you coward! Hiding like this isn't manly!" Senti, now truly angry, whipped the ice walls with increasing force. Under her relentless assault, the walls finally shattered.
"Blade—Merciless!" As the ice walls crumbled, Yun Fan's glaive shot through the mist, a bolt of purple lightning aimed straight at Senti's flat chest.
"You jerk!" Realizing Yun Fan's blade was targeting her modest chest, Senti transformed her whip into a spear. Ignoring the lightning energy on Yun Fan's blade, she gritted her teeth and charged forward.
She couldn't let him hit her. If he did, her already flat chest would become a crater!
Clang!
The moment the spear and blade collided, Senti felt a terrifying force travel through the spear, numbing her arms and sending a sharp pain through her palms.
"You... ah!" Before she could speak, the lightning energy on Yun Fan's blade surged into her body, wreaking havoc.