As he spoke, Acting Grand Master Jean looked up at Arkz, a sly smile on her face.
The usually serious Acting Grand Master Jean now wore a trace of playfulness in her smile.
Arkz also smiled. Moments like this, where Acting Grand Master Jean appeared so youthful, were rare.
Arkz took advantage of Acting Grand Master Jean's action and increased the force of his slash.
"Attack from a Regular Knight: Passed. Shield sustained no damage."
"Attack from an Elite Knight: Passed. Shield sustained minor damage."
"Attack equivalent to a Knight Squad Leader: Passed. Shield developed cracks, estimated to withstand ten more strikes."
"Full-power attack from an Elite Captain: Failed. Shield shattered."
Although it failed to withstand the Elite Captain's attack, everyone looked satisfied.
Elite Captains within the Knights of Favonius were also known as reserve candidates for Title Knights. Most Elite Captains were not significantly weaker than Title Knights; the main difference was that they lacked sufficient opportunities to earn merits.
Clearly, even though the shield ring was shattered, the strike from the Elite Captain had genuinely been stopped.
This result exceeded everyone's expectations.
Acting Grand Master Jean and Diluc seemed extremely satisfied with the defensive capability of this shield ring.
Seeing this, Arkz asked,
"Master Diluc, would you like to test the defensive capabilities of the shield ring as well?"
Diluc shook his head, a hint of eagerness appearing on his handsome, cat-like face.
"No need. I trust your ability."
"I witnessed the entire testing process just now, and I am very satisfied with the shield ring's capabilities."
"If possible, I would like to finalize our cooperation sooner."
For Diluc, the Knights of Favonius were an object of his dislike, while the Fatui and the Abyss Order were enemies he utterly loathed.
If the opponent were the Fatui, Diluc would choose to cooperate with the Knights of Favonius, holding his nose to do so.
Of course.
Diluc would absolutely never entrust his entire back completely to the Knights of Favonius.
After all.
It was because of the Knights of Favonius' betrayal that he chose to leave the Knights of Favonius.
In Diluc's view, reaching a cooperation with Arkz would lead to a massive and rapid enhancement for both the forces of his Dawn Winery and the strength of the Knights of Favonius.
At that time, they would have enough confidence to openly drive the Fatui out of Mondstadt.
For Diluc, seeing the Fatui appear in Mondstadt was like seeing cockroaches and rats flying around his own house—something he absolutely could not tolerate.
Therefore, Diluc had always been trying to find a way to make these Fatui 'obediently' come to Mondstadt.
No matter what means were used.
Today, he saw that opportunity in Arkz's elemental weapon.
Facing Diluc's eagerness and urging, Arkz remained very calm.
"Master Diluc, even if you're in a hurry, there's no need to rush this moment."
"We still have another item that hasn't been tested yet."
Diluc took a deep breath, suppressing the excitement and agitation in his heart, and spoke slowly:
"Then let me test this one."
"It just so happens that I am quite curious about this elemental weapon called the [charging pistol]."
This was a lie.
In reality, as soon as Arkz gave Diluc the three items, including the [Cleanse Pendant], Diluc immediately began testing them in the training room at Dawn Winery.
Diluc was already very familiar with the power of the charging pistol.
His active proposal to be the next tester was intended to emphasize his status as a partner.
In fact, the hidden strength of Dawn Winery, as the hidden force guarding Mondstadt, was not entirely a secret among Mondstadt's high-ranking officials.
It was just that, considering on one hand Dawn Winery controlled Mondstadt's economic lifeline, and on the other, the Knights of Favonius truly owed Diluc, they would show Dawn Winery some leniency in less critical areas.
However, the strength of the hidden faction was, after all, the strength of the hidden faction. If it were brought into the open, the Knights of Favonius only needed to dispatch a few Knight Squads to sweep away all the forces of Dawn Winery except for Diluc.
As the official state power, the strength and foundation of the Knights of Favonius were absolutely incomparable to a privately organized force.
It was precisely because he understood this point that Diluc wanted to finalize this cooperation sooner.
After all, the longer time dragged on, the greater the possibility that he, the partner, would be kicked out.
"Then I'll trouble you, Senior."
Jean had no objection to this and moved aside to give up her spot.
Diluc gave Acting Grand Master Jean a deep look in response.
Diluc took the charging pistol handed over by Arkz and skillfully checked the magazine.
The energy source for the charging pistol came from electro crystals. This type of ore was distributed throughout the Teyvat continent, but Inazuma, the Nation of Electro, had the largest reserves and highest quality of electro crystal mines.
While Diluc was adjusting the charging pistol, Arkz was not idle.
He called over Ellin, who had been watching the show from the sidelines.
"Uncle, what is it?"
"I remember you're very good at making wooden stakes, aren't you?"
"Go to the warehouse, grab some wood, and make some stakes to use as testing props."
As the saying goes, long illness makes a doctor. Ellin, a future Knight whose skill in chopping wooden stakes was maxed out, was not only adept at chopping them but also very skilled at making them.
In a short while, Ellin produced over a dozen exquisitely crafted wooden stakes.
These stakes looked very sturdy; it was clear they weren't crudely made.
Aqiu, who was also watching the spectacle, couldn't help but exclaim,
"Ellin, you have this skill too!"
Acting Grand Master Jean nodded upon seeing this. This skill in crafting woodwork was so good that even if Ellin hadn't passed the assessment for a Regular Knight, it would allow her to join the logistics unit through special exception to make training props for the Knights.
Watching Ellin quickly erect the wooden stakes with a'swoosh swoosh swoosh,' even Diluc couldn't help but look at the young girl with surprise.
The testing targets were ready; the formal test could begin.
Arkz spoke, "The shooting power of the charging pistol is related to the output energy."
"The more energy output, the greater the power, but naturally, the faster the electro crystal is consumed."
"Mhm, you ask how to adjust it?"
"Do you see the sliding switch on the side?"
"Sliding it adjusts the output power. The more the energy bar lights up, the higher the power. If the energy bar isn't lit, it means it hasn't been activated."
Diluc looked at the sliding switch on the side, feeling somewhat novel.
"Is this a new function you added? The charging pistol you gave me before didn't have this adjustment feature; it only had a few fixed modes."
Arkz retorted,
"Isn't this also for Mondstadt's ideal of freedom?"
"Look, you can adjust how much power you want to output—so free!"
Uh...
A thought flashed through everyone's minds simultaneously.
"Perhaps it doesn't need to be *that* free."
Diluc took a deep breath and began testing the charging pistol.
First was the quarter-power mode.
As a flash of lightning streaked out, the wooden stake Ellin had set up was accurately pierced, and even the farm fence behind the stake was blasted with a large hole.
"Just at quarter power, it already has this much force?"
Noticing the damaged fence behind, Diluc lowered the muzzle of the charging pistol slightly.
-------------------------
If you enjoy this story, you can read 70+ advanced chapters on Patreon!
Webnovel will keep getting 1 new chapter every day but Patreon readers can stay far ahead.
Maybe it's not a big deal now… maybe it will be later.
[email protected]/Rexlent
"And If you're enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!"