Finally, I cleared it!
Lumine leaned on her Dull Blade, tears of relief streaming down her face.
After hundreds of battles, she could now close her eyes and predict a Consecrated Beast's next attack just by sensing the flow of Anemo.
Throughout this ordeal, Lumine considered giving up countless times. But the thought of Nahida waiting to be rescued always spurred her to rise again, grip her Dull Blade, and fight the Consecrated Beasts with everything she had.
In fact, after her hundredth battle, Lumine could already complete the challenge without taking any damage, but she still received the lowest possible rating.
The hundreds of battles that followed were spent constantly optimizing her damage output. She focused on positioning to group the Consecrated Beasts as tightly as possible, aiming every strike at their weak points.
But even with near-perfect execution, her damage still wasn't enough.
Finally, Lumine pushed herself to her absolute limit, unleashing even more powerful attacks in a shorter timeframe.
She had long since mastered the flexible use of her four Elemental Powers, even fusing and enhancing them. To improve further, she had to integrate that mysterious power within her.
However, its overwhelming nature required precise control over the ratio between it and her Elemental Power in every attack.
And this time, Lumine finally succeeded.
Though only a single strike was successful, the power it unleashed shocked even her.
Suddenly, Lumine felt it had all been worth it. The monsters here were utterly disgusting, but the profound, earth-shattering change she felt within herself brought an immense sense of satisfaction.
But it was time to leave.
Just then, a gate shrouded in black mist materialized not far in front of Lumine.
Lumine charged through without hesitation. After all, she had no other choice.
Fortunately, nothing unexpected happened. Her vision blurred, and she quickly found herself standing on the Sea of Clouds once more.
Lumine scanned her surroundings and saw the Ship of Dreams nearby.
So, I was dragged to that strange place the moment I left the ship, she realized.
Suddenly, she noticed something odd about the Ship of Dreams—it seemed to be overgrown with countless black vines.
Oh no, something's wrong!
Lumine's expression changed. With a single push of her foot, she instantly appeared on the ship's deck, leaving behind a ripple of grayish-white energy where she had stood.
"Nahida!"
Her eyes swept across the scene, and she almost immediately spotted Nahida's figure. Then she froze.
Two Nahidas?!
In her line of sight, two figures of Nahida were suspended from the mast, their bodies tightly bound by coils of black vines. The scene was unsettlingly bizarre.
Lumine quickly snapped back to her senses. Although she didn't know what had happened, she could sense that both Nahidas' auras were incredibly weak. No matter which one was real, the situation was dire.
She flashed forward again, appearing beside the two Nahidas in the next instant. With a gentle swing of her Dull Blade, a stream of grayish-white energy flashed through the air, instantly severing the black vines binding them without harming their bodies. The strike was perfectly executed.
The two Nahidas fell from mid-air, and Lumine caught one in each arm. With a swift turn, she landed on the deck of the Ship of Dreams. A slight push of her foot sent a wave of grayish-white energy spreading outward. Any black vines touched by the energy disintegrated into dust, quickly clearing a space on the deck. Finally, she gently laid the two figures down.
Lumine tried to wake them, but when her attempts failed, a flicker of anxiety crossed her face.
I must have wasted too much time in that strange place.
No, I have to find Neuvillette immediately.
With this thought, Lumine turned to leave. But just then, an incredibly excited voice echoed in her ear.
"Traveler!!!"
"Thank goodness, you're safe!"
Paimon?
Lumine looked toward the source of the voice and saw Paimon, also entangled in black vines, her face lit up with joyful surprise.
Lumine rushed forward, quickly freed Paimon, and immediately asked what had happened.
"Nahida and the others failed," Paimon explained urgently. "Dr. Edward created these vines. Anyone entangled by them seems to fall into a deep sleep."
"Oh, and Neuvillette was here earlier! The other Nahida is Greater Lord Rukkhadevata. She was the one who stabilized Nahida's body when it went haywire before."
"It's hard to explain everything... Traveler, just put on your Akasha Terminal and see for yourself!"
Hearing Paimon's explanation, Lumine quickly put her Akasha Terminal back on. The scene that unfolded before her made her pupils shrink. A Black Sun hung high in the sky, radiating an overwhelming sense of oppression. It pulsed with intense negative emotions, and countless black threads seemed to connect it to the endless Akasha, continuously feeding it a torrent of negativity.
With her newfound understanding of the mysterious power within her, Lumine almost immediately grasped the situation.
This power could corrupt almost anything to strengthen itself. The Black Sun was the embodiment of this force, devouring the negative emotions from the hearts of all Sumerians. As it fed, its aura grew increasingly terrifying.
Dr. Edward did this?
She remembered his plan being something else entirely, hadn't it?
Regardless, Sumeru was clearly in grave danger. She had to find a way to wake everyone up.
To Lumine's shock, she even saw Neuvillette's unconscious form among the others.
Even Neuvillette was taken down? A flicker of unease stirred in her heart.
But she quickly regained her composure. After escaping that place, she truly believed there was little left in this world that could truly stop her.
Wait a minute...
Lumine looked at Paimon with a strange expression.
"Something's wrong. Very, very wrong!"
"Paimon, what's going on with you? Everyone else is asleep, but you're still bouncing around?"
This wasn't the first time Lumine had encountered a situation like this. Her gaze swept over Paimon, searching for any hidden secrets.
"T-Traveler, why are you looking at me like that?"
Paimon tensed under Lumine's sharp stare, stammering, "Your eyes are so scary..."
Lumine gave Paimon a meaningful look but decided to let it go for now.
She then began to strategize how to break the current stalemate.
The key seems to be Nahida. I should rescue her first, then we can regroup and plan our next move.
With this in mind, Lumine turned toward the Irminsul. She didn't know how to reach Nahida directly, so finding the great tree was her only lead.
Just as Lumine was about to set off, Paimon called out to stop her.
In response to Lumine's questioning gaze, Paimon quickly explained what had happened.
When Lumine heard that Nahida's location was under the influence of the Laws of Time, she couldn't help but frown.
Even though she could feel her own power had grown considerably, she wasn't confident she could move freely under such immense power.
Thank goodness Paimon warned me, she thought. Otherwise, I would have walked right into a trap.
For a moment, Lumine was at a loss for what to do.
To her surprise, Paimon had an idea.
For some unknown reason, although Paimon had been ensnared by the black vines, she hadn't fallen into a deep sleep. During that time, she had discovered a crucial message in the Akasha: a Fontainian named Clorinde possessed a slate that could nullify the effects of the Laws of Time.
Hearing this, Lumine knew it was their only viable option, even if they couldn't verify its authenticity. She instructed Paimon to stay on the Ship of Dreams while she retraced her steps alone, searching for a way back to Sumeru City.
Lumine was now incredibly fast. In no time at all, she faintly sensed an aura resonating with the mysterious power within her. Following this sensation, she tore open a passage through space, and the next instant, she was back in Sumeru City.
Before Lumine could even rejoice at her return to the city's streets, she was utterly stunned by the scene before her.
The sky above was dominated by the same oppressive Black Sun. The heavens were choked with a dense, sprawling web of black vines, almost completely blocking the cold light radiating from the dark star. Sumeru City now resembled a jungle so thick it was horrifying.
Looking down, she saw that the city's streets and buildings were overrun with countless black vines. Faint, grayish-white energy pulsed through their veins.
Lumine recalled Sumeru as it was before she left. The sight before her now felt profoundly twisted and absurd.
Moreover, she felt a strange sense of familiarity with the scene. She remembered having a similar dream after escaping the Sabzeruz Festival's time loop...
The truth dawned on her. All those strange dreams she'd been having were likely Dr. Edward's doing all along.
However, Lumine couldn't bring herself to feel much hatred. After all, it was thanks to Dr. Edward that she had mastered a new and incredibly powerful force. It was because of him that she was now so strong.
Lumine did her best to calm her turbulent emotions, then transformed into a streak of grayish-white light, darting through the streets of Sumeru City.
Before long, she reached the Akademiya. At the location indicated in the message, she found an ample-chested woman.
Lumine froze. She glanced at the woman, then down at her own chest, and her composure instantly shattered.
Is a bust like that even physically possible?!
I don't believe it! This has to be a dream!
After a brief internal struggle, Lumine accepted reality. She raised her sword and freed the woman.
Once released from the black vines' grasp, the woman's face contorted with a brief struggle before her eyes slowly fluttered open.
Clorinde stared blankly at Lumine, who filled most of her vision. Then, her gaze sharpened, becoming calm and piercing.
Clorinde didn't need an explanation. She glanced at the others still hanging around them, realizing she was the only one Lumine had rescued. Without hesitation, she pulled a slate from her clothes and thrust it into Lumine's hands.
"This is what you want," she said calmly. "I hope it helps."
Lumine accepted the slate, her eyes lingering on Clorinde. A thousand questions swirled in her mind, but she knew this wasn't the time to ask. She pushed them aside for now.
"Do you need help?"
Clorinde pushed herself to her feet, her body still weak. "Never mind," she said, quickly shaking her head. "Forget I said anything. In my current condition, I'd only slow you down."
Lumine offered Clorinde a kind smile before opening a spatial rift to the Dream World and diving through.
After Lumine vanished, Clorinde turned her attention back to the suspended figures. She slowly drew her sword.
The next second, brilliant purple light flashed rapidly, accompanied by the faint rumble of thunder...
This time, Lumine bypassed the Ship of Dreams and headed straight for Irminsul.
As she traveled, Lumine watched the scenes unfolding in the Akasha, a growing anxiety tightening in her chest.
Even in that brief delay, she could feel the oppressive aura of the Black Sun intensifying.
Time was running out. Soon, it would be impossible to stop what was coming.
Suddenly, Lumine spotted Neuvillette bound by black vines. She rushed to free him, but he remained unconscious, just like Nahida and Greater Lord Rukkhadevata.
Lumine moved Neuvillette to a safe place before approaching Irminsul. She placed her hand on its trunk, calming her mind and focusing her senses.
Abruptly, she felt the slate in her possession begin to tremble faintly. A surge of joy went through her as she quickly took it out.
The slate floated into the air on its own, emitting a dazzling light.
The light formed a beam that shot directly into Irminsul.
Simultaneously, Lumine saw a blinding ray of light pierce the gray-black expanse of the Akasha. After a brief pause, it struck a mysterious and solemn coffin.
Crack!
A sound like shattering glass echoed through the space, and time resumed its flow.
Lumine's heart pounded with excitement. Not only had the slate proven its worth, but it had also revealed the exact locations of the others.
With this realization, Lumine hesitated no longer. She immediately immersed her consciousness into Irminsul.
Soon, she materialized within the consciousness space, where the minds of Nahida and the others appeared before her.
But Lumine didn't rush to free them. Instead, her gaze lifted to the Black Sun hanging high in the sky.
She had a faint premonition: if she could strike it down here, the anomalies plaguing the world would cease.
So, Lumine moved.
Slowly, she raised her Dull Blade. Her mind flashed with countless battle scenes—hundreds, thousands of them.
Each time, she had pushed herself to the limit, calculating every enemy move, refining the cost of each attack. And then, there was that final, world-shattering strike—a sword blow that had drained the color from the heavens, a single attack infused with her unwavering resolve and the culmination of all her combat wisdom!
The Dull Blade, now wreathed in gray-white flames, swung down with immense force. The strike seemed to transcend space itself.
Under Lumine's calm gaze, the Black Sun in the sky... cracked!