In the depths of the ocean, everything is pitch black. Thick, cold darkness presses in from all sides.
Yet amid that freezing sea of ink, a muscular man glows with a nauseating purple light. The radiance pulses like a diseased heartbeat, refusing to be extinguished by the abyss.
The Abyss energy coursing through his blood acts as a protective layer—a bubble of corruption that holds back the crushing water pressure from destroying his lungs.
He floats in that watery void, his tattered clothes swaying slowly in the sluggish undercurrents. His large, rough hands—veins now glowing purple—still grip tightly to the collars of the two Millelith soldiers.
Sergeant Wu and Soldier Chen.
The two soldiers have no divine protection. They hover in semi-consciousness, lungs burning for oxygen, eyes bulging from the pressure that threatens to burst their eardrums.
Yet the purple aura from the Boss's hands spreads across their bodies, forming a thin membrane that cruelly preserves their lives—just long enough to prolong their suffering.
Sergeant Wu struggles. His trembling right hand reaches for the Boss's arm, but his body is too weak. Tiny air bubbles escape his open mouth, but he cannot scream.
Meanwhile, Soldier Chen squeezes his eyes shut, tears blending with the seawater. Pure terror consumes his soul.
At that moment, beneath the Boss's floating feet, the absolute darkness suddenly splits.
Two enormous pairs of eyes ignite from the bottomless depths. They glow bright purple, yet possess horizontal pupils like a reptile's.
It is the giant octopus monster—the same one that previously swallowed the Boss!
It had been waiting down there, drawn by the abundant energy radiating from the Abyss aura.
The Boss looks downward, meeting the giant gaze without the slightest fear.
Then, with a motion as casual as discarding trash, the Boss releases his grip on the two Millelith collars.
The purple aura bubbles protecting them burst instantly.
Wu and Chen don't even have time to scream. The overwhelming water pressure slams into them. Their bodies slowly sink, pulled by gravity toward the two enormous pairs of eyes waiting below.
In an instant, the Millelith vanish, swallowed by the darkness directly above the monster's eyes. The water churns briefly, forming a small vortex from the giant mouth opening and closing.
Slowly, those two pairs of eyes dim and fade, retreating back into the blanket of the abyss.
But the Boss is not finished. Floating alone now in the oppressive water, he suddenly points his right hand downward—directly toward where those eyes disappeared. His fingers splay like claws.
Moments later, thick purple aura gathers in his palm. The energy swirls, condenses, then erupts outward like an inverted comet.
He fires a pillar of pure Abyss energy straight into the pitch-black ocean floor!
As if deliberately feeding the purple aura, force-feeding it to the entity below. The purple light illuminates the trench for several seconds, revealing the writhing silhouettes of massive tentacles.
Gradually, the surrounding water begins to change. The freezing temperature starts to boil. Giant bubbles rise. Water pressure increases exponentially, creating deadly swirling currents.
As though the colossal creature in the depths is furious. Furious at being forced to swallow this foreign, corrupting energy!
Then, amid the boiling water, those giant eyes reignite. Slowly but surely, they rise toward the Boss. The silhouette of the massive octopus becomes visible, blotting out the entire view below.
The Boss does not move. He makes no attempt to swim away.
He simply spreads both arms wide, chest thrust forward, welcoming the monster's arrival like a martyr greeting the executioner's blade.
Then the thick tentacles—covered in barbed suckers, the same ones that once dragged him into the deep—shoot upward. They pierce the water at bullet speed, emerging from the darkness and seizing the Boss's body.
The tentacles coil around his waist, legs, and neck, pulling with force capable of snapping an iron ship.
Then, accompanied by a terrifying vortex of current, the giant maw filled with thousands of serrated teeth opens wide—and swallows him whole.
The Boss's world turns black once more. He enters the monster's stomach. But this time, he does not die. His purple energy spreads within the creature's gut, seeping into its organs.
The giant octopus thrashes, slamming its tentacles against the trench walls, shattering ancient coral from the agony of corruption overtaking its mind.
But at that moment, the octopus's rampage suddenly stops.
The water in the deepest trench vibrates with an extremely low frequency—one that cannot be heard, yet can crush souls.
Far… impossibly far beneath the struggling giant octopus, at the bottom of every bottom that serves as a prison for gods… ten pairs of eyes ignite from the densest ocean depths.
At first those eyes glow blue, radiating cold divinity. Slowly they approach, rising.
Their mere presence makes the surrounding water feel as heavy as lead. The giant octopus that swallowed the Boss—the creature humans once called a sea god—now appears no more than a helpless jellyfish.
Then, as though pulled by invisible gravity, the octopus is dragged downward. It thrashes, tentacles desperately clutching trench walls, but the walls crumble. It cannot resist the suction!
With one unseen jaw movement in the darkness, the giant octopus—along with the Boss inside it—is devoured by something far greater.
Moments later, those ten ancient blue eyes vanish. They close.
For several minutes, the ocean falls into deadly silence. Time seems frozen at the trench bottom. No currents, no bubbles, no life.
After a silence that feels eternal, those ten eyes reopen.
But now they no longer glow blue. They blaze with blinding, painful purple light.
It has been absorbed by Abyss energy!
The water at the trench floor suddenly erupts upward, creating a shockwave that races thousands of miles to the surface. Rocks embedded in the seabed begin cracking, collapsing one by one under unbearable pressure.
Slowly, the figure behind those ten pairs of eyes becomes visible as it rises from the ocean floor.
Its form is the embodiment of storm and maelstrom. A five-headed hydra, body entirely composed of compacted seawater harder than steel, yet now veined with glowing purple energy like lightning within storm clouds. Each head possesses jaws capable of swallowing an entire galleon whole, eyes burning with hatred.
It is Osial!
Overlord of the Vortex. Rex Lapis's sworn enemy!
With terrifying speed, the massive five-headed hydra's shadow cleaves through the dark sea. Its colossal body begins to move. Each sweep of its heads generates undercurrents capable of sweeping away entire fleets. Slowly but inevitably, it changes course.
It heads toward Liyue Harbor!
…
"Are you feeling better?" Ganyu's voice breaks the lingering silence after your sobs fade. Her tone is soft, dropping to the gentlest whisper, as though she fears any louder sound might shatter you in your fragile, glass-like state.
At this moment, her steady breathing brushes the tip of your ear, carrying the fresh scent of Glaze Lily that miraculously dispels the fishy blood smell and terror that had been choking your lungs.
You remain silent for several breaths. Slowly, you become aware of your position against her. Your hands, which had been clutching the fabric at her back—stained with your sweat and tears—gradually loosen. The tense muscles in your jaw begin to relax. Your heartbeat, which had been hammering your ribs like a frenzied war drum, starts finding its natural rhythm again, syncing with Ganyu's calm pulse behind her chest.
"Mm—" you murmur, voice still hoarse and heavy.
You release the embrace slowly and awkwardly.
As your bodies part, the cold night air immediately rushes into the space between you, making you unconsciously miss the warmth that just left.
You bow your head deeply. Your face feels scorching hot, flushed red to the tips of your ears.
Sudden shame replaces the earlier panic!
You—a man who should never show weakness—had just wailed and sobbed like a lost child in the arms of the woman you were supposed to approach with elegance.
Unable to bear the embarrassment, you turn your face away, staring at the scattered ice shards from your shattered door on the floor, reflecting pale moonlight.
"Sorry," you say quietly, breaking the awkward silence hanging in the air. "Sorry for making you see me like this. It's pathetic."
Hearing the apology laced with self-loathing, Ganyu tilts her head gently. Her bells chime softly, cling. The sound draws you back to the present.
"Why apologize?" Ganyu asks, voice filled with pure confusion.
She closes her clear purple eyes briefly, long lashes trembling slightly as though filtering the negative emotions radiating from you. When she opens them again, her gaze is so clear and full of understanding.
"Didn't I already say we're friends?" she continues, lips curving into a gentle, soothing arc. "And friends… help each other. Isn't that how the human world works? When one falls, the other extends a hand. You don't always have to look strong in front of me."
Friends, huh… The word echoes in your mind. Usually sweet, it now somehow feels like a tiny needle piercing your solar plexus.
Honestly, hearing that hurts, you know…
You're trapped by the boundaries you created yourself. You want her to see you as a man, yet at the same time you realize that right now—with bloodstained hands and a trauma-gnawed soul—being a friend she can hug is already an undeserved blessing. You don't deserve to demand more.
Suppressing that irrational pain, you exhale and force a smile. It might look slightly stiff and trembling at the edges, but you try your best to show her efforts have succeeded in calming you.
"Still… I want to thank you," you say, meeting her eyes this time. "If you hadn't broken down that door… if you weren't here… I don't know what I would've done to myself in this dark room."
Hearing the sincerity in your words, Ganyu's smile slowly blooms. The smile of a half-qilin girl relieved to see her friend whole again.
"Then treat me sometime," she says half-jokingly, eyes narrowing into beautiful crescent moons. "As compensation for making me run all over Liyue at night like this."
You chuckle softly. The laugh sounds strange—like a machine long overdue for oil—but it's real. You lift the back of your hand, wiping the remaining drying tears from the corners of your eyes, then nod firmly.
"Mm—of course. I'll treat you to the sweetest food in the entire harbor. Crystal lotuses glazed in sugar, Universal Peace, whatever you want. Consider it my promise."
Feeling calmer, you take a deep breath. The oxygen entering your lungs feels lighter now. The suffocating sensation that had gripped you earlier has faded. Your face gradually returns to its normal expression, though your eyes still bear faint traces of swelling.
"By the way…" Your tone shifts to something more relaxed and curious. "How did you know where I live? I don't think I ever filled out any Liyue residency form or told you my address."
Ganyu responds immediately. But this time, instead of a gentle smile, she puts on a slight pout. Her pale cheeks puff out a little, lips pursing.
The expression—so rare and out of character for her usual grace—makes your heart leap without warning!
So cute!
"I asked people around here," Ganyu answers, her tone carrying a touch of adorable complaint. "Do you know how hard that was? I went everywhere—from the Yuehai Pavilion courtyard, down the stairs, into alleys near the tea house, asking everyone who passed by. But almost no one knew, or they gave wrong directions."
She raises one hand, counting on her fingers. "I asked a madam who just came back from shopping—she didn't know. I asked an uncle selling fruit—he only saw you enter a dark alley. It's hard, searching for one person without clear clues."
Ganyu lowers her hand and sighs in relief. "Fortunately, I got lucky. Nearby, I met a mother walking with her child. That madam often sees you coming and going from this inn, so she pointed me straight here."
You tilt your head, feeling both confused and amazed.
"I didn't expect…" you say honestly. "I rarely talk to them. I just leave for work, then come back. I don't even greet people around the inn much. How could they know and remember me so clearly?"
Ganyu looks at you, her gaze sweeping briefly from your face down to your shoes, then back up. A faint playful glint flickers in her purple eyes.
"Because you… stand out, perhaps?" Ganyu pauses, as if searching for words. She nods gently toward your shoes. "I mean… it's very rare to see someone walking around Liyue wearing shoes with such a strange design. They look like artifacts from another world."
She then stares intently at your face, the playful smile growing clearer. "And… your face. Your clothes might blend with locals, but your facial features… your jawline, the way you look around… they're slightly different from native Liyue people. That's why people remember you easily."
You fall silent. Your brain processes her string of words.
Hey, are you indirectly saying my face is weird? Or… ugly? your mind begins to stir.
Have you gotten good at insulting people now, Miss Secretary?! And you use the word "stand out" to cover the fact that I look like an alien in this city?!
Though your heart protests, you can't help but feel amused seeing her expression—so innocent while saying it. You laugh softly, a far freer laugh than before.
"Could be," you say, accepting her gentle jab with good humor. "I'll take 'different' as a compliment to my exotic handsomeness."
Ganyu laughs along, covering her mouth elegantly with one hand.
Then your gaze shifts from her face downward—toward what remains of your room's door.
The thick old wooden door has now become jagged chunks of ice scattered across the wooden floor. Some ice fragments still cling to the bent hinges, radiating a cold aura that freezes the surrounding air. The broken edges look sharp as monster teeth.
You swallow, imagining if that power had been directed at you.
"Truly terrifying…" you murmur softly, tone shifting between awe and dread. You shake your head slowly. "You know, Ganyu—if I hadn't seen this kind of magic before… if I didn't know you could use some kind of ice sorcery… I'd probably faint on the spot from shock. Though I'm still very shocked… I mean, who wouldn't be shocked when a bedroom door suddenly freezes and explodes like it was hit by a cannon."
You look at Ganyu, then close your eyes while massaging your temples, pretending to feel the financial burden. You curve the corner of your lips into a wry smile.
"I'm just a poor laborer renting someone else's shack. The compensation money for this solid wooden door and its shattered hinges won't be cheap. The inn owner will probably behead me tomorrow morning."
Ganyu, hearing the joking complaint, shakes her head gently. She folds both hands in front of her stomach, posture returning to that of the meticulous Qixing Secretary.
Then her eyes fix on you, staring straight into your retinas with an intensity that makes you hold your breath.
"It's relatively cheap," she says. She steps forward half a pace, shortening the distance between you again. Moonlight from outside now illuminates part of her face, making her eyes glow within the room's darkness.
"I can save you, after all," she continues, voice shifting to something very soft yet carrying extraordinary depth. "No pile of Mora in this world is more valuable than ensuring you're still breathing and safe tonight. Replacing a single door is a trivial price for that."
At this moment, time seems to freeze—just like your door earlier.
And your face, which had returned to normal color, slowly begins flushing again. Heat spreads from your neck, crawling across your cheeks, reaching your forehead.
You immediately look away for a moment, pretending to brush dust from your sleeve, unable to meet her honest, intense purple gaze.
Why is this Adeptus so skilled at making people blush?! you scream inwardly, cursing your weakness against this unintentional seduction.
Did she spend her thousands of years specifically studying how to mortify people half to death with deadly sweet sentences? And how can someone say something so romantic without looking embarrassed at all?! Her face stays calm, as if she's just reading a weather report! So unfair! This fantasy world is completely unreasonable!
You take a long breath, trying to extinguish the fireworks exploding in your chest. You must maintain the last scraps of your dignity as a man.
When you finally regain control of your expression and look back at her, you see Ganyu slowly rising from her slightly bent position. She smooths her slightly wrinkled clothes from dust and ice shards.
Seeing her prepare to leave, you—who had been sitting on the floor—quickly follow. Using your knees as support, you stand too, though your legs still feel slightly weak.
"Are… you leaving already?" you ask. Your voice comes out soft, and without meaning to, a faint note of sadness and reluctance slips into the end of your sentence. You feel like a child who doesn't want his mother to leave him in a dark room.
Ganyu looks at you and nods gently. Her beautiful blue hair sways with the motion of her head.
"Yes. It wouldn't be good if I stayed here too long," she says. "People at the inn might start wondering if they heard the commotion earlier, and a Yuehai Pavilion member in your room at this hour would only bring unnecessary trouble for you tomorrow morning."
She looks at you again. This time her gaze sweeps from your feet to your head. She sees your posture no longer hunched, your breathing steady, and your eyes—though tired—no longer shrouded in madness.
A relieved smile—very beautiful—curves her lips. "You need rest too," she adds gently.
Soon after, her gaze leaves your face and falls toward your partially open room window. The window faces the sea directly, offering an unobstructed view of the night sky.
She walks slowly toward it, steps graceful, as though dancing through air rather than across dirty wooden floorboards. Ice shards part from her path as though possessing awareness.
She stops right at the wooden window frame. Sea breeze blows in, lifting strands of her hair. The full moon at its zenith bathes her face, shoulders, and entire figure in pure, cold silver light.
Her pale skin glows under moonlight. The dark red qilin horns on her head look like a natural magical crown. In this moment, she doesn't look like a bureaucrat buried in paperwork. She doesn't look like a shy girl sleeping under a tree.
"Besides, look…" She pauses. Her voice sounds like a mystical melody blending with the distant waves. And she turns. She rotates her body halfway, her gaze piercing the distance between you, returning to you. A thin, peaceful, eternal smile graces her lips.
"It's already night," she concludes very poetically.
You stand frozen in the middle of the room. Time stops again. Your heart seems to forget how to beat.
You are shocked—utterly shocked—by her breathtaking beauty. The light, the angle, the wind, and her figure create a living painting too perfect for ordinary human eyes to process.
She stands there like a moon goddess descended from her heavenly throne, revealing her sacred form right before you, in your narrow, dusty inn room.
Your mouth hangs open, lips parted searching for air. Your mind blanks. Every word, every vocabulary from your language and Teyvat's, evaporates. Not a single syllable escapes your mouth. You can only admire her in silence, terrified that if you speak, this beautiful illusion before you will shatter and vanish.
Soon after the speechless shock, you finally regain awareness. You slowly close your mouth. Your eyes stare straight at her.
The corners of your lips begin to move, rising bit by bit, following the pull of emotion in your chest. A smile forms there. The most genuine smile you've shown since being stranded in this world.
The two of you gaze at each other in comfortable silence.
But at that moment… GRRRRRRRR… A very deep, low rumbling sound echoes. The sound doesn't come from outside, not from the sky, but from the depths of the earth itself.
Your footing—the wooden floor beneath your shoes—suddenly trembles!
The vibration starts subtle, like the hum of a giant bee, making your soles tingle. But within seconds, the shaking intensifies dramatically.
The wooden floor begins creaking and warping. Your wardrobe rattles violently, doors swinging open and slamming repeatedly. The hanging oil lamp in the outer hallway swings wildly, casting dancing mad shadows on the walls.
The tremor travels up from your feet to your spine, making you lose balance. You stagger backward, grabbing the bedpost to avoid falling again.
You look at Ganyu in panic. She too appears startled, gripping the window frame tightly, eyes wide as she stares out toward the sea and the city suddenly gripped by mass panic. Shouts from Liyue residents begin echoing, breaking the night.
An earthquake!
…
A/N: I think there's nothing more to explain… we're nearing the end of the story, so it's no surprise the situation gets more chaotic with each chapter, especially considering how Liyue's last boss has already appeared here. So it's time for the Adepti to cook, though… it feels pointless, feels futile because Osial in this story has been buffed by the Abyss lol. Feel free to check my Patreon—I write much faster there than on this platform!