"By my decree, rise!"
As Xin Yan's words fell, a rune-covered orange barrier sprang up across Liyue Harbor, keeping the towering waves at bay.
"So this is the power of the Empress..."
Such a comforting warmth... Feeling the calming heat, Keqing murmured softly.
And for some reason... this warmth feels like the heat of her palm. Keqing suddenly recalled how Workhorse Na had kept finding excuses to pester her.
She'd grab her hand without a word and drag her everywhere, disrupting her work.
Keqing had spent days dodging her, but now... Could the Empress actually have feelings for her? At the thought, Keqing's face flushed crimson; she kept sneaking glances at the Blazing Sun above, her heartstrings quivering like plucked strings.
A devoted reader of the Empress's scriptures, the revelation that her idol returned her feelings filled her with joy.
Yet knowing the Empress was the very 'clingy suitor' she'd tried to avoid left her feelings tangled.
"You dared strike at Liyue—this time it won't end in mere suppression."
High above, Xin Yan stared at Osial with icy eyes, as though looking at a corpse.
Osial did not wait for death; every part of him merged into a colossal serpent.
Power capable of annihilating Liyue Harbor gathered in its maw, aimed at the sun in the sky.
Osial's energy built at terrifying speed. With a roar, he fired a thick Hydro-elemental spiral blast.
Xin Yan gripped her spear and hurled it at the watery cannon.
Whoosh—
A straight orange streak tore through the night, piercing the water beam and dispersing it in an instant.
The sight jolted Osial into clarity.
Wasn't this the God of Serene Flames who once beat him senseless alongside Morax?!
Barely lucid moments ago, he now recognized her clearly—time to run!
Osial's titanic body dove into the sea, but Xin Yan read his intent.
"You're not getting away!"
The Blazing Sun plummeted; a vast stretch of sea instantly vaporized, rising as storm clouds above.
Beneath the waves, Osial writhed—he felt himself about to evaporate.
"If you won't spare me, I'll drag Liyue to the grave with me!"
Fierce light flashed in Osial's eyes; his massive form burst from the water and slammed toward the runic barrier guarding Liyue Harbor.
He would shatter that shield with all his might; even in death, the aftermath would leave Liyue in chaos.
Reading his intent, Xin Yan's brows drew together.
She had only just regained her memories; her power was far from whole.
Though her flames could cleanse a God's grudge, not all would burn away in time.
If Osial died inside the harbor, the fallout would be disastrous.
She sent the barrier forward to meet him, reinforcing its strength.
With a boom, Osial was knocked back into the sea; cracks spider-webbed across the shield.
"Now's the chance..."
Kiana transformed into a Fire Dragon, coiling around Osial.
"Aaaargh!!!"
Amid a heart-rending scream, Osial's body visibly shrank, evaporating away.
And the flames devouring him only blazed higher, feeding on the very water.
As though the sea itself were fuel for her fire.
Osial struggled frantically, but the more he writhed, the tighter the dragon squeezed.
"You intend to devour me?!"
Panic seized Osial; he stared in horror at Xin Yan within the flames.
"I'll simply seal you—and the grudge you'll leave at death—within my body, to burn as eternal kindling for the Flames of Salary."
Compressing Osial further, Xin Yan regarded him with calm detachment.
It was the safest course; killing him outright would leave a sea of divine resentment to cleanse.
Locked within her, he would remain trapped as long as she lived, until every last trace burned away.
"You'll regret this!"
Most of his body gone, the now-meter-long Osial howled before Xin Yan fully absorbed him.
Inside her, he felt searing flames and writhing black, ominous breath.
"This is—!"
Before he could speak further, the dark breath and fire consumed him entirely.
Thus the God of the Vortex perished for good.
His lingering resentment blazed within Xin Yan's body.
Having devoured Osial, she dismissed the dragon and the cracking barrier, returning to the Qunyu Pavilion.
The instant she landed, Xin Yan dropped to one knee, pale as paper, clutching her chest and gasping.
Abyssal breath briefly surfaced across her skin before she forced it back down.
"You scared me, sis..."
Kiana, moments from intervening, exhaled in relief, then fixed her gaze on Xin Yan's body.
"That aura inside you... it's the Abyss, isn't it?"
"As expected of my sister—you noticed."
Xin Yan rose unsteadily, steps wavering, a weak smile on her lips.
As she started to collapse, three figures rushed in to catch her.
"Nana!"
"Your Majesty!" x2
Hu Tao, Ganyu, and Keqing steadied her, worry etched on their faces as they gazed at her bloodless cheeks.
Realization struck; the three exchanged glances.
A flicker of vigilance flashed deep in Hu Tao's eyes.
Keqing mirrored the caution, gaze wary.
Ganyu, undistracted, fretted only for Xin Yan, terrified she might vanish again.
Years ago, Xin Yan had burned herself to nearly nothing before them, leaving only a spark that terrified them all.
A decade and a half later, that spark had rekindled into Xin Yan, filling every heart with joy.
But the reborn Empress had lost every memory, as innocent as a newborn.
Now, at last, she remembered everything!
"Xin Yan!"
A host of adeptus gathered, eyes full of worry.
Yet they could do nothing.
Five centuries ago, the power of the Abyss had swept across all Liyue.
Before everyone, the Empress absorbed the Abyss into herself, seemingly perishing in the act.
That deed had saved the entire nation.
Otherwise, such an Abyss would have erased Liyue from existence.
Now, that Abyss was likely afflicting Xin Yan.
"Kiana, her aura feels like 'Destruction' and 'Nothingness'..."
Bianca studied Xin Yan, certainty in her tone.
Kiana nodded.
"Because its essence is entropy incarnate—the cosmic law that all living things must end."
Kiana saw through the Abyss at a glance.
Calling it a nihilistic urge toward ruin wouldn't be wrong.
"Is there a way to fix it?"
Looking at that pale face—so like her sister's—Bianca asked with aching heart.
"Sever it, or overwhelm it with absolute will—and become it."
"..."
Bianca fell silent.
Severing such an ill-omened force would only birth another calamity wherever it was cast.
As for becoming it—even the strongest will would merely become its puppet.
At that moment Kiana stepped before Xin Yan.
"Using her own essence as a foundation, plus the power of a God—it can be done."
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