Genshin Impact: Back From Teyvat - The Archon Follows Me Home!

"Strange, you actually recognize me?"

Hu Tao pointed to herself, then dragged along the sulky ghost with a look of disbelief as she walked over.

"Have we met before?"

Lu Chen glanced at the pitiful ghost in her grip. It looked like a balloon, its "body" stretched long and thin. When Hu Tao stopped in front of him, it even let out a springy "pop" sound.

The ghost gave Hu Tao a resentful look, then turned its eyes on him.

What is this ghost made of?

Lu Chen fell into deep thought.

"Ah, this is my new friend, Floaty!" Hu Tao patted the ghost's head.

"New friend?" Lu Chen asked, puzzled. "Don't tell me you found it in this tomb?"

"Exactly!" Hu Tao nodded earnestly. "I saw this poor ghost was pretty lonely, so I became friends with it."

"You even know its name?" Lu Chen looked at the odd pair curiously.

Hu Tao shook her head. "All my ghost friends are called Floaty."

So just a nickname... Lu Chen smiled wryly. Still the same old Master Hu, with the same odd logic...

"Wait! You haven't answered me yet!" Hu Tao gripped the ghost with one hand and put her other on her hip, her tone growing suspicious.

"I'm Lu Chen," he replied.

"Lu... Chen..."

Hu Tao stared at the ugly middle-aged man before her and went quiet for a moment.

Then suddenly—

"Lu—! Chen—?!"

She pointed at his face in shock. "You—you're the Lu Chen I know? The one who traveled with Lumine?"

"Yeah." Lu Chen nodded.

"What happened to you!?" Hu Tao leaned in close, peering at his face like she'd seen a ghost. "Why do you look so old? And so ugly?"

"It's a long story..."

Hu Tao let out a dramatic sigh. "I heard you guys snuck into Inazuma, and that there's a war going on over there... Don't tell me someone messed up your face..."

She slapped her flat chest and declared with gusto, "Tell me who did it, and Wangsheng Funeral Parlor will get revenge for you!"

"What kind of nonsense..." Lu Chen said, exasperated. "I did it myself. It's just a disguise..."

As he explained, he looked around. Where was Zhongli?

This should've been a perfect reunion—Master Hu and the best staff of Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, gathering in another world. Too bad he wasn't here to see it.

"Disguise?" Hu Tao blinked, still confused.

Why would anyone need to make themselves this ugly?

She was about to ask more when Lu Chen suddenly sensed danger. He pulled out the Lion's Roar, eyes narrowing as he scanned the darkness ahead.

The Geo aura was growing stronger, and the ground started to tremble. Dust rained down from the ceiling of the underground palace.

"It's coming." Lu Chen motioned for Hu Tao to fall back, carefully tracking the movements in the dark.

"What kind of monster is this? I knew something was off when I came down here. I was tailing those stupid thieves, and after they ran off, the main tomb suddenly changed..."

What she described matched the formation of a Domain—two timelines overlapping.

As for the cause of the Ley Line distortion...

"A strong Geo presence, a massive lair, Liyue-style architecture..." Lu Chen analyzed aloud. There weren't many boss-class monsters that fit.

The answer was becoming obvious.

The mystery was about to be revealed.

As the tremors intensified, his flashlight finally lit up an enormous figure.

Glowing yellow pupils shimmered with Geo energy. The creature loomed over the two small humans—and then, a deafening roar shook the entire tomb.

"It's the Primordial Geovishap," Lu Chen said.

"Whoa! It's a big one!"

Master Hu cracked her knuckles, a long spear suddenly materializing in her hand.

"Looks like we woke it up with our noise."

Lu Chen tightened his grip on the Lion's Roar and smiled. "Then let's help it get back to sleep."

"Let's do it!"

Even faced with such a behemoth, the two were still all smiles. As the Primordial Geovishap awakened, its eyes locked on them and it charged forward, radiating a crushing aura.

Its foreclaws were nearly as thick as Lu Chen's RV. A blast of wind hit, and he leapt into the air just as the claws came crashing down.

At the same time, Lu Chen glanced at Hu Tao.

Master Hu moved with equal agility, rolling and dodging to avoid the initial strike.

Lu Chen knew this monster well. The first attack was always a triple combo. He stayed airborne, dodging back with Anemo manipulation.

Another gust—still a miss. Frustrated, the Geovishap raised both claws and slammed them into the ground with a roar.

A massive fissure split open below. The entire underground palace shook violently.

Lu Chen tensed. Hu Tao couldn't fly, and staying grounded against this thing was dangerous.

But then he realized he was overthinking it.

Hu Tao had already retreated out of the danger zone, and a faint golden glow swirled around her.

She stared in surprise at the light enveloping her.

"Solid as a rock—"

Old Master Zhong's voice always had a calming effect.

They turned to see Zhongli at the entrance, standing tall and calm.

"Hey! It's Zhongli!" Hu Tao's plum-blossom eyes lit up. "What are you doing here?"

She glanced over his white shirt and slacks, even more confused. "And what's with the weird outfit?"

"It's a long story. We'll talk later." Lu Chen descended and shouted back at Zhongli,

"Old man! Gimme a shield—I'm going solo on the Geovishap!"

Zhongli gave a small nod. He had no intention of stepping in directly, but lending a hand was no problem.

"All is accepted..."

As he spoke, the familiar protective shield enveloped Lu Chen.

"Alright!"

When the Geovishap lunged again, Lu Chen didn't even flinch.

He charged straight into it, letting those massive limbs hammer away. With each blow, the jade shield around him only flickered slightly.

Lu Chen looked up with a smirk.

That's it?

Maybe provoked, the Geovishap roared and changed tactics, unleashing a breath imbued with Cryo.

Lu Chen felt the chill pierce to the bone.

But the jade shield held firm—though now it flickered violently.

Zhongli's shield was just that good. Dodging would feel like an insult to it.

Bracing against the blast, Lu Chen charged forward and leapt high again.

Sure, it was a Lv50 fighting a Lv90—massive gap.

But at this point, he couldn't be measured by stats alone.

He switched Lion's Roar to Debate Club, channeling all his strength into the hefty weapon, and brought it crashing down on the Primordial Geovishap.

Debate Club exploded with brilliant Geo light, the energy extending from the weapon's tip like a massive sword of light stretching dozens of meters.

"EX—Curry Stick!!!"

The sword of light descended—time seemed to freeze.

Wait, wrong scene.

What he meant to say was:

"Time to clean up the battlefield! I'll be sure to uphold knightly decorum."