The Pureglass Workshop—a hidden laboratory buried beneath the forest.
It was the secret site where the Akademiya and the Fatui once collaborated on the god-creation project.
Its defenses rivaled those of the Automaton controlled by Scaramouche.
"I didn't expect the Akademiya to secretly build such a place."
Nahida's tone carried surprise.
"You're the God of Wisdom, aren't you supposed to know everything?" Lumine commented dryly, her voice a soul-deep jab. "This isn't some remote corner. It's right outside Sumeru City."
Nahida scratched her head in embarrassment. She truly wasn't clear on the god-creation plan—after all, it had never been uploaded to the Akasha.
Inside the workshop, beyond the towering Automaton God, a masked man with blue hair stood calmly before the control console.
"An honor to meet you, Your Majesty, Greater Lord Rukkhadevata."
Dottore turned with practiced ease, his tone polite, his expression unruffled.
Despite his expulsion from the Akademiya, he still held sincere respect for the first God of Wisdom.
If he had been able to meet her in the past, there would have been countless questions he'd have asked.
"Dottore. With your talent and intellect, you could have stood among the Akademiya's highest ranks. Why step into the realm of forbidden knowledge?"
Rukkhadevata's voice was calm.
She already knew his past through the Akasha. There was no regret in her tone—keeping someone like him within the Akademiya would have been far too dangerous.
Dottore smiled faintly. "For a scholar, curiosity and the pursuit of the unknown are temptations stronger than reason itself."
His gaze shifted toward Koji and Lumine.
"The two of you must be the newest 'comrades' who joined the Fatui not long ago."
He studied them with open interest.
Both were unique beyond comprehension—Koji with his unfathomable power, and Lumine, wielder of five elements. To him, they were rarer than gods themselves—living research material.
"Doctor Dottore," Koji said with a pleasant smile, "we don't enjoy being stared at. So do us a favor—and die."
Lumine folded her arms, chin high. "Careful, or I'll have Aether come beat you up."
"The Prince of the Abyss Order… I admit, I'd rather not provoke that one," Dottore said blandly.
He wasn't lying—there were few things even he dared not touch.
"Nahida," Rukkhadevata said quietly, "you understand that this project cannot succeed."
Nahida clenched her fists, her eyes bright with resolve.
"Dottore, your god-creation plan will fail!"
Dottore laughed softly. "Little Kusanali, compared to the Greater Lord, you're still far too green. For me, the god-creation plan was only an experiment. Failure costs me nothing."
Even with Scaramouche's Automaton lost to Raiden Shogun, he still had plenty of data and materials left from the Akademiya.
"The resources and dream energy came from your Akademiya. I merely provided some… technical support."
"Then start," he said, stepping into the Automaton's control chamber.
"Let me witness the power of my fellow scholars."
"All three segments together," Rukkhadevata murmured, "he can now control the complete Automaton God."
"Koji, I'll go first!"
Lumine took a deep breath. She was no longer the "lightning camera-head" from before, but a wielder of five elements.
The wind lent her swiftness, the rock gave her defense, grass became her domain.
When grass reacted with water, Dendro cores bloomed across the floor.
Thunder crackled—the element of her fiercest assault—combining with the cores to create Overbloom explosions that chased their target with relentless precision.
These were the fruits of her duel with the Raiden Shogun.
Her full strength hadn't yet returned, but her mastery of elemental fusion made her unpredictable and fast.
"A body of five elements… truly a fascinating constitution, Descender," Dottore said with a grin, commanding the Automaton to attack.
Each strike shook the cavern, gouging deep craters in the stone, but the machine couldn't match Lumine's speed.
Clang!
Her blade, Wufeng, struck its metal plating—leaving only a faint black mark.
Her hand went numb from the shock. "This thing is ridiculously tough."
"Lumine, you need help?" Koji yawned.
"Fine, you handle it."
She retreated; Wufeng was too ordinary now to keep up.
With a light flick of his wrist, Koji drew a different sword—
The Divine Blade: Dawn.
The moment the sword left its sheath, it sang like a dragon.
A radiant beam, sharp as sunrise, cut across the workshop.
Even before he swung, the gathered elements around them bowed to its presence.
Dottore's pupils contracted. He felt a killing intent so overwhelming it froze his limbs.
If that sword fell, he would die—without question.
Then, the world split apart.
The blade's brilliance tore the heavens, its edge severing even space itself.
With one slash, both Dottore and the Automaton were erased—consumed by light and silence.
Nahida stared wide-eyed. "Is this… the power of a god?"
She could feel it. If that sword had been aimed at her, she too would have vanished instantly.
The roof of the workshop was gone, the forest canopy above sliced apart, sunlight streaming through the clean rift left behind.
"Few gods could ever reach such strength," Rukkhadevata said with a wry smile.
To her, Koji's power was beyond anything Teyvat had ever known.
"Koji, I want a sword like that too!" Lumine clung to his arm, her voice half teasing, half envious.
He chuckled. "All right. When we have time, I'll forge one for you."
"Eula, you want one too?"
"Then I'll trouble you," Eula said softly.
After witnessing the Divine Blade: Dawn, who wouldn't?
Rukkhadevata shook her head helplessly. "No, Koji. You don't owe Sumeru any compensation. You've rid us of a great disaster."
With Dottore's Sumeru segments destroyed, the threat was gone.
(End of Chapter)
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