Chapter 144: Daylight
He was getting closer and closer to the Sustainer of Heavenly Principles.
A system prompt appeared in his mind.
[Your life is rapidly burning away!]
Seeing this message, Yuxie didn't hold back.
He couldn't retreat.
To challenge an omniscient, all-powerful god with the strength of a mortal would surely come at a cost.
He could nullify the Sustainer's attacks and protect himself from injury, but that alone was not enough.
Everything in his field of vision seemed to burn. Yuxie gripped his sword even tighter.
Amidst the thunderstorm, he finally leaped into the air.
It was as if he transformed into a lightning bolt itself, streaking towards the Sustainer of Heavenly Principles.
But the Sustainer remained indifferent, merely raising a hand.
"Preposterous!"
The Sustainer's voice seemed to ring directly in Yuxie's mind.
"Sustainer of Heavenly Principles, do you bleed?" Yuxie asked.
As his words fell, a brilliant flash of sword light passed by.
The thick clouds and violent thunderstorm in the sky were cleaved apart by the sword light, and the silver moonlight once again bathed the yellow sands below.
That sword light also grazed past the Sustainer of Heavenly Principles. Her robes were torn at the shoulder, and a few drops of blood scattered in the wind.
The Sustainer of Heavenly Principles had bled, wounded by a mortal's sword.
Such a thing should not have happened, but the reality before them was more convincing than anything.
Yuxie fell from the sky, landing steadily on the ground, and looked once again at the Sustainer of Heavenly Principles above.
The Sustainer turned her gaze towards him. In her usually calm eyes, a hint of shock finally appeared.
"Why go so far for the Three God-Kings of Sumeru? You are just a mortal."
"Can mortals not do these things?" Yuxie replied calmly.
"What you're doing is meaningless," the Sustainer said. "Your life is but a hundred years. In the end, you will gain nothing."
"I just don't want to see such a sad ending." Yuxie paused. "Keeper of Heavenly Law, if you promise not to interfere with the Three God-Kings' covenant, and let Sumeru continue as it is, I will leave now."
"Each kingdom can only have one earthly ruler. This is for the long-term stability of Teyvat, and to facilitate the will of Celestia being conveyed to the mortal realm. Mortal, your actions now are as extreme as can be. They cannot be forgiven, you must understand." The Sustainer's gaze narrowed. "I am the Sustainer of Heavenly Principles."
"Is that so?" Yuxie said softly. "I am just a mortal."
With those words, Yuxie moved forward again.
This time, an unprecedented power began to gather within him. His life force burned once more.
It was as if the fire in the depths of his soul had ignited, a flame that nothing could extinguish.
In Yuxie's eyes, everything turned red. The sky and earth were connected by the crimson hue, and the moon in the sky had also turned a fiery red.
System warnings kept popping up, but Yuxie did not stop his movements.
His steps grew faster, and the buzzing sound of the blade seemed sharp enough to pierce the eardrums.
"Sustainer of Heavenly Principles, just take a nap for now. When you wake up, think carefully about what kind of gods Teyvat really needs.
"If, by then, you're still like this, I wouldn't mind putting you to sleep again.
"Don't worry, if something really needs Celestia's intervention to solve, I'll wake you up."
All of Yuxie's power gathered on the blade as he struck with the strongest and final slash of his life.
A fierce wind followed, shaking the very heavens and earth.
That brilliant flash of sword light was like the sun rising from the desert, and in an instant, the entire desert lit up as if it were daylight.
Yuxie's entire life burned away in that moment, like a firework bursting into dazzling light.
Thousands of miles away, Al-Ahmar saw the brilliant white light rise from the depths of the desert.
"What... what is this? It's like the sun..." one of his attendants exclaimed in astonishment.
Al-Ahmar looked towards the direction of the white light, his expression serious, and he fell silent for a long time.
......
"Buer, I'm sorry. To be honest, I don't even know if I'll make it back after this journey."
"There are some things I must do now, because I still have the ability to do them. If I wait until I'm old, I'll be left with nothing but good intentions and no strength to act."
"As for what I'm doing... Well, if it works, then you, Nabu, and Al-Ahmar's covenant should be able to last. Sumeru's future won't have to be limited to just one god sitting on the throne."
"So forgive me for leaving without a word. I'm afraid that if I see you, my resolve will waver."
"Actually... I'm not foolish. I know how you see me. Sometimes I think, I must be really lucky. The Greater Lord Rukkhadevata cares so much about me. I've always thought of myself as someone who doesn't stand out much."
"But in the end, I'm just a mortal. The time I can spend with you is limited to a mere hundred years. In the span of your life, those years are but a fleeting moment."
"So I can't bear to start, I can't be so selfish as to make it even harder for you to forget me."
"Buer, you are a qualified Archon and a gentle one. I've thought that since the first day I met you."
"I'm lucky to have met you. If it weren't for you, when I first came to Sumeru, I might have had to sleep on the streets."
"I'm so glad to have had you as my divine landlord. Thank you."
"Goodbye, Buer."
"Keep smiling more, your smile is really beautiful."
"Thank you for liking me."
Under the shade of a tree, Buer finished reading the letter, folded it, and placed it back into the envelope.
Her eyes, unknowingly, had already become moist, and the tears slipped from her eyes, falling onto the envelope and splattering into a beautiful tear-streaked pattern.
Buer carefully put the envelope away, gently wiping the tears from her eyes and the marks on her face, gazing into the distance.
Yuxie would never return. The bright white light that Al-Ahmar had seen rise from the desert was probably the final act of Yuxie, wasn't it?
His life ended in such a brilliant light.
With the body of a mortal, he had changed the fates of three gods.
The gentle breeze brushed by, and Buer tried to force a smile, but in the end, tears began to flow again.
It was hard to tell how much time had passed, but by the time night fell, Buer's mood had finally calmed down a little.
She remained sitting under the tree, gazing at the distant scenery.
Silent, like a statue waiting for someone to return home.
"Did you read the letter Yuxie left for you?" Nabu's voice suddenly broke the silence. Nabu had unknowingly sat beside Buer.
"I've read it," Buer replied softly. "How about you?"
"I've read it too," Nabu said. "To be honest, I cried for a long time. The two of us... we really are fools. And now... it's too late. Yuxie did so much for us, yet we couldn't even say 'thank you' to him..."
"Buer, do you think... Yuxie will come back?"
Buer followed Nabu's gaze and looked into the distance.
The distant night was hazy. Would anyone return from that hazy night?
Would the one who left ever return to where it all began?
When we meet again, how should I greet you? With tears, or with a smile?
End of Arc 6
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