Chapter 62: The Show Begins!
As expected, things unfolded exactly as Felina had predicted.
Although rescuing Osial was an incredibly dangerous act that would bring great trouble to Felina, Beisht managed to suppress her urges for about half a month after Felina left.
But in the end, reason is inevitably eroded by time.
As she watched the stone spear pierce through her husband's body, pinning him to the ocean floor, and felt the anguish he endured, Beisht's heart ached in ways words could not express.
No wife who deeply loved her husband could bear to see him suppressed in such agony until death. Witnessing Osial's miserable and painful state, she naturally developed the urge to rescue him.
When she couldn't see her husband, she only wished to catch a glimpse of him, even if just for a moment.
But when she was able to stay by his side freely, she began to dream: If only my husband could be free, and we could swim through the seas together, living a happy life as husband and wife.
And as she gazed upon her imprisoned husband, another thought arose: Is my husband doomed to be suppressed like this, never able to find release until death?
This is the innate human desire for better things—a natural longing that even gods and their followers cannot escape.
At first, fear of the dangers and concern about troubling Felina allowed Beisht to suppress her desires.
But as time passed, and as she watched Osial suffer day after day, her feelings of heartache and yearning only grew, magnified with each moment.
Eventually, her reason could no longer contain her longing.
On the 17th day after Felina's departure, Beisht finally acted.
That day, the waters around the Lone Cloud Pavilion turned turbulent.
Beisht summoned a tsunami with her power, relentlessly battering the mountain-like stone spear that pinned Osial to the seafloor.
The tsunami crashed against the spear, causing the mountains of the Lone Cloud Pavilion to tremble violently.
Initially, with Felina's power shielding her, Beisht was difficult to detect.
But now, as she unleashed her full strength, her ominous aura erupted completely. Combined with the massive disturbance at the Lone Cloud Pavilion, it was impossible for her actions to go unnoticed.
By the time she summoned the fourth wave of tsunamis against the stone spear, two streaks of light shot over from the direction of Liyue.
The first to arrive were the Geo Archon Morax and the Conqueror of Demons, Xiao.
Meanwhile, in Fontaine, Felina was shopping with Furina when she received a message from Zhongli.
"It's begun. Come quickly!"
Upon hearing this, Felina's expression changed drastically. Without a second thought, she launched herself into the air, transforming into a streak of light heading toward Liyue.
"The remnant of the Vortex?" Zhongli's voice rang out from above the Lone Cloud Pavilion, his gaze fixed on Beisht amidst the waves below.
Sensing Zhongli's arrival, Beisht's heart sank, and she became intensely nervous.
"The power of the Hydro Archon? I see… No wonder I couldn't detect your approach to the Lone Cloud Pavilion. So, it was the assistance of the Hydro Archon," Zhongli said, his tone calm but laced with an invisible pressure as he looked down at Beisht.
Hearing this, Beisht's heart tightened, and she thought to herself, I was too impulsive after all. I've dragged Felina into this.
But Zhongli had no intention of granting them a reprieve.
"Since you're here, then I shall take this opportunity to eradicate the Overlord of the Vortex and all its remnants today!"
As his words fell, an enormous surge of elemental power began to gather in the skies above.
A profound sense of danger immediately surged in Beisht's heart.
She knew Zhongli was condensing a stone spear. It was with such a spear, a thousand years ago, that her husband had been suppressed here.
If this spear were to descend, she would undoubtedly perish.
Yet, in the face of this life-and-death crisis, the thought of escape no longer crossed her mind.
For all these years, she had fled enough.
Under the might of the Geo Archon, Beisht chose to fight to the death!
She unleashed all her power, and for a moment, the waters around the Lone Cloud Pavilion surged violently!
Summoning massive tsunamis imbued with powerful hydro elemental energy, she fearlessly charged alongside the waves, slamming directly into the colossal stone spear pinning her husband.
Boom!
Her body struck the stone spear, and the tsunami followed, crashing into it with immense force.
The sheer impact caused the ground to quake, and the sea surface churned in turmoil.
However, as she made her final desperate effort, the enormous stone spear, radiating a vast golden light, descended with overwhelming power!
The spear, like the sun, carried an unstoppable, oppressive force as it hurtled toward her. If it struck, she would undoubtedly perish!
But at that moment, a massive pillar of water erupted from the sea, colliding head-on with the descending stone spear.
It turned out that Beisht's efforts had not been in vain. Her repeated attempts to shake the spear had finally caused its suppressive power to loosen.
With the suppression weakened, Osial managed to regain a portion of his power, and the water pillar was his doing.
The water pillar collided with the stone spear, sending water splashing in all directions, seemingly trying to shatter the spear.
However, Osial was far from his prime. The water pillar he summoned only managed to hold off the spear for a few seconds before shattering into a spray of water.
The spear, carrying its immense force, continued to descend.
Fortunately, Osial had bought Beisht a few seconds. She dodged just in time as the spear smashed into the sea.
Above the Lone Cloud Pavilion, geo energy roiled through the air while massive waves surged across the sea below.
Elsewhere, the adepti of Liyue had already arrived, each taking positions around Liyue Harbor to create barriers with their adeptal energy, shielding the harbor from the impacts of the tsunami and the battle.
Meanwhile, Zhongli engaged Osial and Beisht in battle!
The fight, however, was not particularly fierce.
After all, with Osial only able to utilize a fraction of his power and Beisht aiding him, neither could stand against Zhongli.
Ten minutes later—
The surface of the sea around the Lone Cloud Pavilion was littered with shattered debris.
Dark clouds loomed overhead, and the waters below rippled incessantly.
Across the vast ocean, five massive stone spears stood embedded.
Osial and Beisht were both severely weakened, their auras feeble and fading. Clearly, the battle had left them gravely injured.
"You and I have fought long enough, Osial. It is time to end this," Zhongli said, his voice carrying the weight of judgment.
"Prepare to die."
The power of geo surged violently as two enormous stone spears materialized in the sky, their sharp tips aimed directly at the heads of Osial and Beisht.
As Zhongli lowered his hand, the spears, radiating blinding golden light, began their descent!
"It's over!"
Watching the spears fall, despair consumed Osial and Beisht.
Previously, Zhongli had refrained from killing them due to concerns over the pollution caused by the remnants of a defeated god. But now, Osial could clearly feel Zhongli's murderous intent.
Evidently, Beisht's attempt to break the spear and free Osial had changed Zhongli's mind. He was now determined to eliminate these two threats to Liyue.
Pinned down by the stone spears, Osial and Beisht knew that everything was over.
In their current gravely injured state, they had no way to escape the crushing pressure of the stone spears.
Yet, as death loomed closer, beyond their despair, their hearts were filled with a deep and overwhelming guilt.
Felina, as the god overseeing Fontaine, had risked offending the Geo Archon and inciting conflict between two nations to help reunite them as a couple.
Even before leaving, she had explicitly warned them not to attempt to disturb the stone spear, as doing so would undoubtedly bring about disaster and death.
However, the allure of freedom and happiness had proven too strong. They couldn't resist the temptation and had ultimately made an attempt to break free.
And now, the result of their attempt was this very moment—they were about to meet their end.
In their minds, they had originally thought that although their actions would expose Felina's assistance to the Geo Archon and bring trouble to her and Fontaine, once they escaped, they would flee to Fontaine.
There, they would offer their strength to Fontaine and Felina, seeking both her protection and a way to repay her kindness.
But now, as the stone spears descended, all of those plans and fantasies had become meaningless.
Had they not attempted to disrupt the stone spear, at the very least, they could have remained together as a couple.
But now, not only had they failed to escape, but both were also about to face certain death. Worse still, they had brought immense trouble to Felina and Furina, as well as to Fontaine itself.
In the face of this inevitable death, and weighed down by guilt toward their benefactor, their hearts were filled with torment.
For them, death was not the most terrifying part. The true pain came from having betrayed Felina.
Felina had done so much for them, treating them as friends, even warning them against disturbing the stone spear before her departure.
Yet they had betrayed Felina, repaid her kindness with disobedience, and brought great trouble upon her and Fontaine.
For beings like them, who valued loyalty and righteousness, this was the most unbearable regret of all!
"If we survive this, we will never again fail Sister Felina and Sister Furina!"
This thought arose in the minds of Osial and Beisht as death loomed over them.
The golden light from the stone spears illuminated the sea around the Lone Cloud Pavilion, casting a dazzling glow. The overwhelming force of the spears made it nearly impossible for the gravely injured Osial and Beisht to even lift their heads.
And just when they believed they could only die with regret, something unexpected happened!
A massive water blade tore through the air from the western sky, its blue brilliance surpassing the golden light of the stone spears. Its speed was unparalleled.
In the blink of an eye, the water blade swept across with the sharpness of a supreme sword, slicing through the two enormous stone spears. As the water blade exploded into a burst of spray, it struck the severed spears, shattering them into countless fragments.
"!!!"
This sudden development caught everyone off guard, leaving Zhongli and the gathered adepti stunned.
Osial and Beisht were equally astonished!
In this world, there were only a handful of powerful individuals capable of unleashing such a devastating water-element attack.
And among them, one person instantly came to mind for both of them.
It was someone both the least likely and the most likely to appear here. Or rather, it was a god.
Why the least likely? Because this person was the god of a nation and would never risk completely severing ties with the Geo Archon to step in at this moment and protect them.
Why the most likely? Because this person was the only water-element power wielder who had ever shown them kindness, their only friend.
As the stone spears shattered, the gravely injured pair lifted their heads. Standing before them was a young girl dressed in blue.
The girl stood between them and Morax, shielding them with her presence.
"Sister Furina!"
Even at this moment, they remembered their promise to keep Felina's dual personality a secret, and so they called out Furina's name instead of Felina's.
As soon as they called out, it immediately confirmed their acquaintance with Felina, the Hydro Archon of Fontaine.
Zhongli's brows furrowed deeply upon hearing it.
"Hydro Archon Focalors!"
"I had previously sensed your power on the remnants of the Vortex, but I chose not to dwell on it due to our prior cooperation."
"Now it is clear that you are indeed acquainted with Osial and his remaining followers and have even chosen to assist them."
Zhongli's sharp gaze locked onto Felina, his expression extremely solemn, his tone icy.
"In light of your past help in resolving the calamity of Azhdaha, I will allow you to leave now without further questioning your role in this incident. The friendship between Liyue and Fontaine will remain intact."
"But if you refuse, do not blame me for being ruthless!"
As these words fell, before Felina could react, Osial and Beisht cried out in alarm.
"Furina! Leave us behind!"
"You warned us not to disturb the stone spear, yet we betrayed your trust and brought calamity to you and Fontaine."
"The mere fact that you came here to help us has already moved us deeply!"
"It was our betrayal that caused this; our deaths are well deserved. Our only regret is that we owe you so much and can never repay your kindness!"
"You've already done more than enough for us. Don't risk yourself and Fontaine for our sake—it's not worth it!"
"There's still time—go now!"
Osial and Beisht shouted repeatedly, their voices hoarse, each word carrying the weight of their desperation and anguish.
But Felina merely waved her hand, cutting them off mid-sentence.
"As a ruler, one often finds oneself torn between personal feelings and the interests of one's nation—it is a difficult choice."
"As a god, I am fully aware that coming here today will bring trouble to Fontaine. I did not wish to come."
"But you saved one of my most cherished followers and are my friends."
"To see my friends in distress and do nothing to help—that, on a personal level, I cannot do!"
"I am the God of Justice, and to stand by as my friends perish without aiding them would violate the very justice I hold dear. So, I came!"
Felina's voice was firm and resolute, her words resonating deeply in the hearts of Osial and Beisht, leaving their eyes brimming with tears.
Felina had done far too much for them.
Even as she struggled with the conflict between national interests and personal feelings, she ultimately chose to save them.
They did not blame Felina for her internal conflict between duty and friendship. On the contrary, it proved that she had made a deliberate and considered decision to come to their aid.
This bond of friendship touched them deeply.
In this moment, their gratitude was beyond words. All they could do was gaze up at the girl in the sky, their eyes filled with respect and reverence.
Felina hovered in midair, Hydro elemental energy surging around her, her fist clenched in an attack-ready stance, her sharp gaze fixed firmly on Zhongli.
"To be pinned to the ocean floor, unable to break free, and to endure endless pain and torment every day—seeking freedom and relief from this suffering is only human!"
"To see her beloved husband suffer, and as a wife, to wish to help him find release—this too is only human!"
"My two friends have done nothing wrong."
"The Archon War has long since ended, Morax. Why must you insist on eradicating them completely?"
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