Before taking action, Sangonomiya Kokomi's group sensed more than one Mark fluctuation on Arlecchino's side, but in the end, only Arlecchino remained.
It was precisely for this reason that Lumine did not try to communicate with Arlecchino, but instead drew her sword before the other party could act, to prevent Arlecchino from choosing one of the weaker members among them as her target.
As for Arlecchino's strength, although Lumine had not witnessed it firsthand, she had sensed the familiar Power of Nihility in the aura of the battle Arlecchino had just fought. This meant there was a high probability that one of her opponents was Scaramouche.
Scaramouche's current strength had absolutely reached the level of a god, and Arlecchino, who had defeated him, would only be even more powerful. Lumine could not afford to lower her guard.
"Everyone, prioritize your own safety!"
Sangonomiya Kokomi waved her hand, and a layer of pale blue light enveloped everyone. Instantly, everyone felt a refreshing coolness, and a dense vitality continuously replenished their stamina.
"Protection of the Deep Sea!"
As the Electro Elemental Power eroded the ocean, the power provided to Sangonomiya Kokomi by the sea grew stronger and stronger. Terrifying Hydro Elemental Power swirled around Sangonomiya Kokomi, and the Dragon Blood in her body surged through her veins as if it had been completely activated.
After this full-power eruption, Sangonomiya Kokomi felt a distinct difference. Her affinity for the Hydro Element had actually increased further.
Indeed, the Bathysmal Vishap's bloodline partially originated from the purest Elemental Dragon Sovereigns of Teyvat. After the Dragon Blood was infused, Sangonomiya Kokomi's body seemed to truly awaken, and a pair of illusory dragon horns even appeared on her forehead!
Golden vertical pupils appeared. The noble aura emanating from Sangonomiya Kokomi at this moment made everyone present stare in awe. Those eyes, which looked down upon everything, faintly exerted a slight suppression on the others.
Arlecchino, who was already fighting Lumine, frowned. She had thought that as long as Lumine was defeated, victory would be in the bag. Now it seemed there was another troublesome character.
But it didn't matter. The final victor of this battle could only be her!
"Lady Sangonomiya?"
Gorou sensed the aura emanating from Sangonomiya Kokomi at this moment and spoke in surprise.
At this time, a distinct bloodline aura even emanated from Sangonomiya Kokomi's body. This seemed to be a manifestation that only occurred in the next stage of bloodline tempering.
"Lady Sangonomiya, have you broken through your bloodline?"
After hearing Gorou's question, Sangonomiya Kokomi nodded.
"Yes, the Dragon Blood concentration in my body has decreased to 3%, but I can clearly feel that my power has grown stronger."
"I'm not entirely sure what specifically happened. After the battle is over, I'll carefully recall the sensations I experienced and share my findings with everyone."
"I'll go help the Traveler first!"
With that, Sangonomiya Kokomi immediately joined the fight.
At this moment, as Sangonomiya Kokomi drew closer, Arlecchino immediately felt a dense Hydro Element surging around her.
Although this Hydro Element did not attack her directly, it could still affect her movements, making her body feel as if it had sunk into a swamp, drastically slowing her speed.
Sangonomiya Kokomi also knew that although her strength was much greater than before, she was still far weaker than Arlecchino. Therefore, she did not get too close to Arlecchino. Instead, she relied on her control over Hydro Elemental Power to the best of her ability, striving to hinder Arlecchino and create opportunities for Lumine.
"The Great Itto is here too!"
Seeing the three of them fighting so brilliantly, Arataki Itto couldn't help but join the fray. He raised his hand and threw his Ushi at Arlecchino.
"Go, Ushi! I choose you!"
Ushi, thrown by Arataki Itto, glanced at the blood-aura-shrouded Arlecchino, then turned back to look at Arataki Itto, his head full of question marks.
No way, bro, you want me to fight her?!
Finally, after Ushi shot Arataki Itto an extremely resentful glare, his body rapidly expanded, and he charged head-on to gore Arlecchino. Unfortunately, because his movements were so slow, Arlecchino easily dodged the attack.
However, Arataki Itto seemed to have already predicted that this attack would not be effective. He directly anticipated the position where Arlecchino would dodge, swinging his large club downward with all his might to smash into her.
"Haha, Royal Descent!"
Arataki Itto's angle was extremely cunning. After Arlecchino saw Lumine gathering her strength, she gave up on dodging and swung her Crimson Scythe from below, slashing an upward semi-circular blade of light.
On one side was Arataki Itto, covered in strong, rippling muscles; on the other was Arlecchino, with her slender figure and delicate arms. The result of their frontal clash was completely unexpected. After a momentary pause, Arataki Itto was sent flying by Arlecchino.
"What a troublesome boss!"
Watching the scene, Kuki Shinobu felt a surge of nervousness. After muttering a comment that sounded like a complaint but was actually born of worry, she lowered her body and rushed forward to back up Arataki Itto, continuously throwing kunai imbued with Evil-Purging Lightning Power as she moved.
"I will protect you all!"
Although Thoma knew his shield would be as fragile as paper before Arlecchino, he still did his best to provide everyone with a little psychological comfort.
Enjou reverted to his prime form, unleashed his full power, and lobbed fireballs from a distance to restrict Arlecchino's movements.
Kamisato Ayaka transformed into a sphere of Cryo Elemental Power and zipped toward Arlecchino's position. At the very moment she was about to reach her, she materialized and swung her sword, while a blinding Lightning Flash erupted from her body.
Completely caught off guard by Kamisato Ayaka's mastery of two elemental powers and her sudden, several-fold increase in speed, Arlecchino even suffered a significant blow.
Seeing everyone join the fight, Gorou first surveyed the battlefield and then looked down at the Geo Vision on his body, his mind torn between exposing himself and continuing to hide his true identity.
His persona as General Gorou's little sister could only fool his own men, who had already been completely captivated by her beauty. Gorou could guarantee that if he dared to show even a glimpse of his original abilities, he would absolutely be exposed!
Even if he didn't use his abilities, Lumine would definitely recognize him at a glance with his unique shooting technique.
If only he could master other Elemental Powers like Thoma, at least he wouldn't be in such an awkward situation, where everyone else was fighting while he was the only one still standing here foolishly.
Wait, it seems he's not the only one.
Gorou silently turned his head to look at Paimon, who was already searching for the best spot to watch the battle, and didn't know what expression to make anymore.
"What are you standing there for? Hurry up and join in."
The miniature Daphne standing on Gorou's shoulder grabbed his face with both hands and twisted his head back.
"How am I supposed to join the fight?"
Gorou spoke somewhat helplessly.
"Won't I be exposed the moment I make a move?"
"Daphne, how about you lend me your power to use temporarily?"
"No problem, feel free to use it!"
Daphne replied very readily, which immediately made Gorou hesitate again.
"Daphne, won't I be affected by you if I do this?"
"I thought you had finally figured it out."
After hearing Daphne's words, Gorou's heart immediately panicked, and he subconsciously squeezed his legs tightly together.
That was close! Thank goodness he asked, or he would have been finished!
"Forget it, forget it. I'll just keep watching."
In the end, Gorou still gave up. Unless it was absolutely necessary, he still didn't want to easily give up Little Gorou.
"Besides, everyone has the advantage right now..."
Before Gorou could even finish his sentence, Arataki Itto was kicked flying out.
Kuki Shinobu stepped forward to help Arataki Itto absorb the force, but she was also sent flying along with him.
Kamisato Ayaka was forced to reveal herself by the dense Pyro Elemental Power, and then Arlecchino swung several crimson blade flashes toward her.
Although lightning flashes surged over Kamisato Ayaka's body again, barely blocking these few attacks, she was still sent flying by the overwhelming power within them.
Sangonomiya Kokomi was so eager to save others that Arlecchino seized the opportunity to make countless blood spikes rise from the ground, viciously piercing Sangonomiya Kokomi's body. Fortunately, Sangonomiya Kokomi dodged the vital organs at the critical moment, and the injuries on her body were nothing much to her; as long as she used Hydro Elemental Power, the injuries on her body could quickly be smoothed away.
However, Sangonomiya Kokomi's injury caused Lumine to be momentarily distracted, and then Arlecchino flashed before Lumine, releasing the Crimson Moon again before Lumine could make any move. The terrifyingly bloody scent immediately stunned Lumine, even making her forget to resist.
As for Enjou, he was still just scratching the surface!
After seeing this scene, Gorou cursed his jinxed mouth while urgently speaking to Daphne.
"Daphne, lend me your power!"
At this point, he couldn't care about anything else. Whether to choose his friends or Little Gorou, Gorou ultimately chose the former.
In this instant, Gorou felt as if he had lost something important, but in the next second, a special power beyond his imagination surged within his body.
Because Daphne had described it and demonstrated it herself before, Gorou knew this power was the Mana that Daphne used.
At this moment, Gorou felt as if he could accomplish anything, and his confidence rapidly swelled.
Then Gorou raised his hand toward Arlecchino, and a pink heart-shaped bow and arrow appeared in his hand, even the arrowhead was heart-shaped.
"???"
At this moment, a string of question marks slowly formed on Gorou's forehead.
Heh, he actually thought Daphne would genuinely help him, only to be played again!
However, Daphne was now comforting him from the side.
"This is the most suitable power I've prepared for you. Hurry up and let that woman see how formidable you are!"
"Are you trying to make me use this bow to make her fall in love and eliminate her threat mentally?!"
While Gorou complained wildly, he still couldn't help but draw the bow to its fullest, locking onto Arlecchino's body.
Although this scene was a bit too strange, especially with the heart-shaped bow and arrow in Gorou's hand making Arlecchino feel that this style was completely out of place with the others, the aura Gorou was displaying at this moment was extremely powerful, forcing Arlecchino to take this opponent seriously.
This was the third one. When did the small Inazuma become so powerful, and another person with Archon-level power appeared.
While Arlecchino was thinking, she continued to attack Lumine, feeling that Lumine was still the biggest threat. As long as she could take this opportunity to eliminate her, she was confident she could easily deal with the other minor characters.
However, when Arlecchino saw Lumine's eyes, no longer dull but filled with a lively spark, an ominous premonition instantly seized her heart.
The next second, a Black Sun slowly rose from Lumine's body, and Lumine also emitted a terrifying aura that made Arlecchino's heart tremble with fear.
Around the Black Sun was a ring of blinding white light, and countless grayish-white particles were scattered by it, forming an incomparably magnificent trajectory.
This is... the same special power Scaramouche used before?!
Arlecchino never expected that both Lumine and Scaramouche would master such a powerful force. No, by comparison, Lumine's mastery was even higher; that Black Sun truly made Arlecchino feel a threat of death.
Sure enough, the next instant, the Black Sun swiftly devoured the Crimson Moon above Arlecchino's head, followed by a dazzling and eye-catching blade of light.
This blade seemed to make the heavens and earth lose their color. Arlecchino had no time to react before the grayish-white blade of light swept past her side, subsequently tearing both the clouds and the sky in half...
-
At this moment, Aether was staring at the mark on the back of his right hand, slightly lost in thought.
Any wish?
Could it even make everyone on the Teyvat continent break free from their predetermined fates?
To achieve this, Aether had been laying groundwork until now.
The Loom of Fate was the final product of this plan, but after all, it was merely a crude imitation, and it remained to be seen whether it could truly realize his goal.
As for whether Persephone's earlier words were trustworthy, judging from everything she had shown so far, the possibility of deception was not great.
Even if his goal couldn't be fully achieved, as long as the Loom of Fate could be made more real, it would be completely sufficient.
Furthermore, he possessed the strength to seize that final opportunity, but he was somewhat hesitant whether to reveal too much of his power now.
If the members of that mysterious faction were not stirring up trouble on the Teyvat continent, Aether would abandon this idea without hesitation. Revealing too much would be extremely unfavorable for his next actions.
However, that Numbered Member's strength was so eye-catching that Aether felt even if he revealed a portion of his own power, it wouldn't attract much attention.
But if he were to truly get involved, there was one person he absolutely had to deal with.
In the end, Aether still did not erase the black Mark on the back of his hand, deciding to wait and see for now.
"Your Highness the Prince, Her Highness the Princess does not seem to be on Narukami Island."
At this moment, Ziyan respectfully approached Aether and reported the intelligence he had gathered.
"Not on Narukami Island..."
Aether frowned slightly, then looked toward Seirai Island.
Though not very obvious, he felt the fluctuations emanating from several, or even dozens of Marks from that direction.
Could his sister have fallen into trouble again?
Just as Aether was about to order a move in that direction, a cold sword blade suddenly pointed directly at Ziyan by his side.
If it were before, Aether would have directly abandoned Ziyan and torn open space to leave.
However, when Aether thought of Ziyan's two older brothers who had died miserably at his hands, he could no longer bring himself to abandon him so easily, and instead swung his sword to parry the attack.
Their weapons clashed, locked in a contest of strength.
Aether looked at the other man and spoke with an indescribable coldness.
"Dainsleif."
"Why have you not died yet?"
"Before I completely stop your plan, before I have exacted revenge on those five sinners, how dare I die so easily?!"
Dainsleif's voice carried a bone-deep hatred, and the power in his hands surged, even forcing Aether back.