Chapter 5 – Purifying Azhdaha

After the white light, an ear-splitting roar echoed throughout Liyue, forming a crater on the spot, while Azhdaha was petrified.

“Friend, you may act now.”

Morax looked toward Qiu Bai.

“Mm.”

Without hesitation, Qiu Bai teleported in front of Azhdaha and infused a massive amount of Yang Qi into the Dragon King’s body.

“Tsk, it’s still not enough. I have no choice but to expend my Origin!”

Gritting his teeth, Qiu Bai channeled a vast quantity of Origin Yang Qi into Azhdaha. A dazzling white light illuminated the land.

The newly formed, desolate crater, under this brilliant radiance, sprouted flowers and grass, soon transforming into a vast forest.

“Friend, what are you doing?!”

Morax sensed something amiss.

The other Adepti also realized: “Oh no! The Adeptus Lord intends to sacrifice his own Origin!”

Morax’s expression grew complicated. He hadn’t expected this friend to go to such lengths to save Azhdaha.

Such an act would not only result in a slumber lasting millennia but also diminish his consciousness.

Guoba: “Lu lu lu (^▽^).”

But what he didn’t know was that Qiu Bai had a system.

“Morax, I may sleep for a long time.”

“But you are a friend worth having. When I awaken, let us share a cup of tea together…”

As he finished speaking, Qiu Bai’s eyelids gradually grew heavy, and his body began to slump forward.

“Friend!”

Before Qiu Bai could fall, Morax caught and supported him, his expression profoundly complex as he looked at his friend.

There was guilt, astonishment, and the reluctance of parting with a companion.

“Very well. When that time comes, I shall certainly share a pot of fine tea with you.”

Morax gazed at the slumbering Qiu Bai and spoke with deep emotion.

“Rex Lapis! Adeptus Lord!”

The other Adepti also watched the sleeping Qiu Bai with complex emotions. Ganyu covered her mouth, tears streaming down as if unable to believe what she was witnessing.

“Please entrust the Adeptus Lord to me. He previously told me that when he fell into slumber, he wished to be sealed within his own abode.”

Cloud Retainer now took human form. Crane-white hair cascaded down her back, and she wore a white Daoist robe, with a crane mark upon her brow.

Even so, it could not conceal her striking curves.

“Very well.”

With a heavy heart, Rex Lapis passed the Qiu Bai he supported into Cloud Retainer’s hands.

Cloud Retainer gently cradled Qiu Bai in her arms, gazing worriedly at his face, lost in thought.

Then, holding Qiu Bai, Cloud Retainer flew toward Jueyun Karst.

Throughout this, Morax watched until Cloud Retainer’s figure vanished beyond the horizon.

If Qiu Bai were awake at this moment, he would surely exclaim in shock: “So beautiful! Sorry Ganyu, Cloud Retainer, I’m coming!”

Beside them, the stone encasing Azhdaha cracked and shattered. His massive form transformed into a middle-aged man with a pair of dragon horns, his eyes filled with confusion.

“Morax, where is this? Why am I here?”

Azhdaha looked toward Morax with questions in his eyes.

“Azhdaha, let me recount all that has transpired.”

Morax spoke to the Dragon King with a complicated expression.

After hearing Morax’s account, Azhdaha’s face also showed profound complexity.

“To think that in the few centuries since we last met, you have already made new friends.”

Azhdaha sighed with emotion.

“I never imagined that even I could be corrupted by the so-called ‘Darkest Calamity’ without even realizing it.”

“Morax, you should go check that place. If there’s no solution, just seal it off. The residents of Liyue must not set foot there.”

Morax fell into deep thought.

“The Darkest Calamity… To think such a thing still exists in Liyue. Azhdaha, I will go investigate shortly. You should return and recuperate first.”

After Morax and Azhdaha conversed a while longer, the assembled Adepti and the Dragon King Azhdaha each returned to their respective dwellings.

Spring passed into winter and summer, seasons shifting with the flow of time. Five hundred years elapsed.

A Pitch-Black Beast Tide, originating from Khaenri’ah and sweeping across all of Teyvat, was assaulting the seven nations.

Accompanying it were not only demonic beasts, but also numerous Greater Demons lurking beyond the seas—these could also be called followers of the Demon Gods.

These followers of the Demon Gods, bearing grudges because Morax had suppressed their deities during the Archon War, invaded Liyue to attack him. Their targets were not ordinary mortals, but those Adepti.

Under the directive of Rex Lapis, the Millelith formed battle formations to resist.

“The Yaksha clan will defend Liyue to the death! Not a single step shall these demonic beasts take into Liyue!”

“Has Morax gone there? But as long as I remain in Liyue, these beasts shall never set foot within its borders!!”

The Dragon King Azhdaha transformed into his true form, colossal as a mountain range, and stationed himself at the Guyun Stone Forest.

The pitch-black beast tide crashed against Azhdaha, but their attacks and bites were little more than tickles to the Dragon King.

A single stomp crushed vast swathes of them; a mighty roar could shake thousands of demonic beasts to death.

He summoned geo-constructs to smash into the tide, shifted his Elemental Power to freeze the sea, yet even so, the demonic beasts could not be exterminated in a short time.

The Great General Alatus, Xiao, was also holding the front line at Dihua Marsh alongside numerous Millelith soldiers.

All the Adepti were defending their respective battle lines. The sky was overcast with dark clouds; the pitch-black beast tide flooded into Liyue like an ocean. Countless houses were destroyed, warriors sacrificed.

The Immortal-Demon War had begun.

This great war lasted a full half-month. Many Yaksha, tainted by Karmic Debt, perished in madness.

“Everyone, hold the line two hundred miles outside The Chasm!!”

A Yaksha named Bosacius lured away the majority of the demonic beasts, sealing himself along with them within The Chasm.

Because Liyue had the Dragon King Azhdaha, our protagonist had not changed nothing—at least, he had protected the vast majority of Liyue’s houses and people.

Just as this Immortal-Demon War was nearing its end…

Somewhere in the lands of Liyue, a young girl gathering herbs climbed the mountain, lost her footing, tumbled down a cliff, and accidentally strayed into a mystical realm. Her right leg was unfortunately injured in the fall.

In her panic, the girl hid inside a cave to rest, bandaging her wounds there.

Before she could properly tend to her injuries, she faintly heard noises that seemed not of this mortal world.

It turned out she was now within the scope of the Immortal-Demon War and had unfortunately been caught in the crossfire. The powers of Adepti and demons were far more than a young girl could withstand. Her body suffered multiple injuries, leaving her too weak to move.

At that moment, she saw an exceptionally handsome youth, pristine and untainted, lying upon a piece of Cor Lapis. She wanted to call for help.

But she was gravely injured, the cave entrance was blocked by a fallen boulder, and outside the cave, Adepti and demons were battling—making it even more dangerous.

Now, unless a miracle occurred, her life was ebbing away with each passing moment.

Before dying, the little girl uttered her final wish: “If only time could stop in the past, how wonderful that would be…”

Along with this thought came strings of tears, slipping from the dying girl’s eyes.

To stop time, to return to the days when she was alive and well—this was now the girl’s most urgent wish.

Perhaps due to her fear of death, her desperate longing to live, and her overwhelming yearning for her loved ones, a shining Vision finally appeared beside the little girl.

At this moment, ice—representing freezing and preservation—responded to Qiqi’s desire. Yet for the dying girl, the Vision could not free her from the grasp of death.