Without the Musou Isshin in hand, Raiden Ei directly chose to condense a katana using her divine power.
But she stood in the Plane of Euthymia for a while, and still didn't see the Puppet Shogun.
"Why aren't you coming?" Raiden Ei frowned. "Are you avoiding the fight?"
"Utterly boring." The Puppet Shogun's voice held a hint of mockery. "Can't even articulate properly. Do you think using kitchen knives and past experiences will make him follow you? Truly wishful thinking."
"Besides, I won't fight you. If he found out, he might think I'm some violent person~"
Wait, what?
How did those words even come out of your mouth?
Raiden Ei couldn't even grip the hilt steadily.
She felt her worldview had been severely shaken.
Although she now knew the Puppet Shogun was malfunctioning, she never expected it to be this bad.
After speaking, the Puppet Shogun truly ignored Raiden Ei any further.
Raiden Ei was now somewhat at a loss.
Couldn't leave, couldn't get a response no matter how she called out.
It was as if she had been forgotten.
But clearly, things hadn't deteriorated to that extent yet.
At least Lu Heng remembered why he had come to Tenshukaku.
"Don't waste time," Lu Heng said. "Let Ei come out."
"Wah." The Puppet Shogun was extremely aggrieved.
But she still listened to Lu Heng and handed over control of the body to Raiden Ei.
To prevent Raiden Ei from not returning control later, she kept a part of herself running quietly in the background.
Regaining control, Raiden Ei opened her eyes.
After assessing the situation, Raiden Ei said helplessly, "The Shogun is thoroughly broken. The key is, repairing her will be more difficult than creating a new embryo."
"Then let's leave it like this for now." Yae Miko chuckled.
Although the Puppet Shogun seemed broken, the negative effects seemed targeted only at Raiden Ei.
As for the mental damage the Puppet Shogun inflicted on those around her, one could get used to it after a while—it was fine, really.
"No, I must repair her when I have time!" Raiden Ei said firmly, her eyes burning with anger.
She needed to make the Puppet Shogun understand clearly who the true master of this body was!
"Now you want to repair her…" "What were you doing back then?" Yae Miko shook her head with a smile.
Back then, Raiden Ei hadn't left herself any room for retreat at all.
Afraid she might change her mind midway, she literally left herself no way out.
If not for her strong will ultimately leading her to victory, the consequences could have been severe.
As for now…
Yae Miko wasn't worried.
After all, the Puppet Shogun seemed to have been tamed by Lu Heng.
Even though Lu Heng hadn't done anything, the Puppet Shogun indeed listened to him.
So, Yae Miko was mostly in a mood to enjoy the spectacle.
It might do Ei some good to be confined by the Puppet Shogun for a few days, given her habit of secluding herself.
Yae Miko suddenly had another brilliant idea.
She glanced at Lu Heng, then looked down at the Musou Isshin in her hand.
Once Makoto was revived, Ei would undoubtedly be eager to reunite with her sister.
And confining her at such a time… Ah, that felt too cruel!
It might drive Ei mad.
Yae Miko felt a bit regretful.
After all, she wasn't that wicked, so she couldn't bring herself to do it.
"Let's not talk about the puppet for now," Lu Heng said, rubbing his temples. "Can we focus on the main matter at hand?"
"Oh, right!" Raiden Ei, who had been angered into confusion by the Puppet Shogun, came to her senses and remembered why she had invited Lu Heng over.
She asked nervously, "How do you plan to begin? Do I need to make any preparations or such?"
"No need," Lu Heng shook his head. "I have many methods to revive Raiden Makoto. It depends on which one you choose."
"You can choose?" Raiden Ei was astonished.
She and Yae Miko had no solutions at all, yet Lu Heng offered multiple options!
"Of course," Lu Heng smiled, raising a finger. "First method: I'll stabilize Raiden Makoto's remaining consciousness. This preserves her remnant soul, and after nurturing it, she will 'replenish herself' gradually, like a child growing up. As for the body, I assume that's not a problem for you?"
"Not a problem," Raiden Ei shook her head.
She could even modify her own body; creating a new one wasn't difficult.
Previously limited by materials, but now with the card shop, material constraints were much less of an issue.
"Is there a more perfect method?" Yae Miko asked.
"There is," Lu Heng nodded, raising a second finger. "The second method is quite something." Both of them looked serious.
"Again, I'll take action, directly travel back in time to five hundred years ago, and bring Raiden Makoto back intact to the present."
"Ah?" Raiden Ei and Yae Miko exchanged glances.
Going back to the era five hundred years ago and bringing Makoto to the present?
Both found it hard to believe what they were hearing.
"Are you sure?" Raiden Ei looked horrified.
Then, she shook her head. "For you, it seems… Never mind, forget I asked." Remembering the terrifying figure she had seen from Lu Heng's perspective earlier, Raiden Ei immediately understood.
If Lu Heng could crush Teyvat with a slight flick of his finger, traveling five hundred years into the past to bring someone to the present didn't sound all that astonishing anymore.
"I have a question," Yae Miko said. "Could this involve temporal issues? Like causing anomalies in Inazuma due to this resurrection method?"
"I've considered that," Lu Heng nodded. "I'll create an avatar for Makoto, let the avatar die in Khaenri'ah, and then I'll take her away normally."
This resurrection method sounded simple, but in reality, it involved too many variables to be taken lightly.
The slightest misstep could lead to catastrophic consequences.
However, it was relatively straightforward for Lu Heng.
"Besides, someone will help clean up afterward," Lu Heng said.
"Who?" Yae Miko asked curiously.
Raiden Ei also looked puzzled.
"Istaroth," Lu Heng shrugged.
Yae Miko's eye twitched.
That was a name neither she nor Ei dared to utter lightly.
"And what about Makoto's consciousness within the Musou Isshin?" Raiden Ei asked.
"Merge them, of course," Lu Heng said. "After all, it's just a faint will she left behind back then. Resolving it is simple."
"Then I leave it to you," Raiden Ei said solemnly.
"No need for thanks; it's within the terms of our transaction," Lu Heng said, reaching out to Yae Miko for the Musou Isshin.
Raiden Ei then looked at Yae Miko. "Miko…"
Yae Miko handed the Musou Isshin to Lu Heng and said with a smile, "Touched, aren't you? If you're not good to me in the future, I'm going with Lu Heng."
Lu Heng looked at Raiden Ei and said, "You'd better not be too good to her. Or just kick her out of Inazuma."
"?" Raiden Ei looked alert. "I would never mistreat Miko!" Lu Heng looked regretful.
Yae Miko laughed even more delightedly upon seeing this.
"Alright, now it's time to work," Lu Heng said. There was a purpose in asking for the Musou Isshin.
As he spoke, a tremendous will descended upon the Musou Isshin.
Anomalies undetectable to Raiden Ei were clearly visible to Lu Heng.
After scanning the faint will of Raiden Makoto slumbering within, Lu Heng had grasped Makoto's essence, greatly facilitating his定位 of her.
In the next moment, spatial turbulence swirled around Lu Heng.
Raiden Ei and Yae Miko quickly stepped back.
It was beginning. Raiden Ei's emotions fluctuated intensely. She called out to Lu Heng, "I entrust my sister to you!"
"Please come back safely," Yae Miko couldn't help but worry.
"You two," Lu Heng shook his head with a smile.
This was what they called concern leading to confusion.
After all, Raiden Makoto was extremely important to both of them, and Lu Heng could understand.
"Alright, I'm off now," Lu Heng said.
Small, gilded seal script characters emerged one after another around him.
He vanished instantly.
From Lu Heng's perspective.
Time was rapidly rewinding.
In the blink of an eye, he had arrived in Inazuma City a hundred years ago.
Another blink, two hundred years ago.
Time flashed by.
After witnessing a terrifying catastrophe, Lu Heng arrived in Inazuma just before the disaster occurred.
His integrated cyber-divination was already calculating.
In an instant, cyber-divination provided him with a convergence point.
Lu Heng stepped forward and appeared on a mountain path in the next moment.
This was on Yougou Mountain; the path was somewhat rugged.
Lu Heng stood waiting.
Half an hour later.
A woman in a white-and-purple kimono, holding an umbrella, appeared on the path ahead.
She had long, knee-length gradient dark purple hair tied into a braid with a pink shimenawa rope, swaying gently in the mountain breeze.
A small fan-like ornament was pinned in her hair. Her eyes were lowered, watching the path underfoot, her fair face carrying a faint worry.
Even without cyber-divination, Lu Heng recognized her at a glance.
This woman, whose face was ninety percent similar to Raiden Ei's but whose demeanor was gentle, was none other than Raiden Ei's sister—Raiden Makoto!
She was the Raiden Shogun of this era, revered as the Narukami Ogosho!
Raiden Makoto turned a corner and saw the figure in white standing by the path.
Their eyes met.
Raiden Makoto was surprised to see Lu Heng here. With slight curiosity, she asked, "You don't seem to be from Inazuma? Are you here to pray at the Grand Narukami Shrine?"
Raiden Makoto's white-and-purple kimono suited her temperament, with her personal pattern on the swinging sleeves.
The kimono's hem ended at her thighs, below which were a pair of long, jade-smooth legs.
Lu Heng inwardly praised the sight, then shook his head. "I'm not here to pray."
"Not here to pray?" Raiden Makoto was even more surprised.
Then, her eyes noticed the Musou Isshin in Lu Heng's hand, and she was taken aback.
Why was the Musou Isshin in his hand?
Raiden Makoto sensed it; her Musou Isshin was still on her person. But the one in his hand was…
"Here." Lu Heng directly condensed a point of light and tossed it to her.
Raiden Makoto hesitated briefly, then crushed the light point.
A segment of information, like a memory fragment, was parsed and understood by her.
Raiden Makoto immediately understood Lu Heng's purpose.
Simultaneously, she learned what would happen over the next five hundred years.
She murmured with complex emotions, "To entrust vast Inazuma to her like that… I really have wronged her…" Taking a deep breath, Raiden Makoto composed herself and bowed slightly to Lu Heng. "Thank you for your trouble."
Lu Heng smiled. "Time is relatively ample. For me, it's only been a few seconds, but for you, in terms of perception, it truly will be five hundred years without seeing friends and family."
"So, are you prepared to 'sleep' for five hundred years?" Lu Heng asked.
Raiden Makoto hesitated. "For you, even staying a few days would only be a few seconds?"
"Whether I stay half a day or a few days, it makes no difference to me," Lu Heng shook his head.
Raiden Makoto then asked, "Then do you have free time to tour this ancient Inazuma? It's an Inazuma that hasn't yet experienced disaster."
Lu Heng chuckled. "I've already seen it on my way here. Is it that you want to do something in these next few days?"
Seeing through her, Raiden Makoto said somewhat sheepishly, "After all, I'll be sleeping for five hundred years. I'd like to take the remaining time to travel more and see more of this era."
Lu Heng raised an eyebrow. "Feeling nostalgic?"
"Not really?" Raiden Makoto thought for a moment. "Perhaps I want to leave myself with a memory that isn't so 'abrupt' before sleeping? And I do need a little psychological preparation."
"I see," Lu Heng said, understanding.
Since she was about to leave this era, it made sense to take a longer look.
"Is that alright?" Raiden Makoto asked somewhat anxiously.
"Why would I disagree?" Lu Heng shrugged, then asked, "So, where's the first stop?"
"Inazuma City snack stall!" Raiden Makoto said.
Lu Heng was taken aback.
Raiden Makoto's first choice completely surprised him.
He had thought she would return to the Grand Narukami Shrine or Tenshukaku.
Never expected it to be a snack stall?
"I am the deity pursuing the transient," Raiden Makoto explained with a soft smile. "The moment fireworks bloom, the instant taste buds are satisfied—these are what I seek." With that, it was indeed hard to argue.
Lu Heng laughed. "Then let's go. I'd also like to try what snacks in this era's Inazuma are like."
"Then let's go." Raiden Makoto's mood was no longer as worried as when she had descended the mountain.
She had received the Heavenly Principles' summons and was preparing to inform Ei before heading to Khaenri'ah.
Never expected to encounter Lu Heng on the mountainside before even descending.
Fate had taken a new turn.
Raiden Makoto did not fear death, but after learning about Ei's mental journey over the five hundred years, she felt her sister still needed her, so she calmly accepted Lu Heng's arrangement for her.
As they walked down the mountain, Raiden Makoto asked, "Will Saiguu and the others have a chance like mine in the future?"
Lu Heng paused briefly, then said, "At least not for now." That meant there would be chances later.
Raiden Makoto was completely reassured.
Soon, the two appeared in Inazuma City.
In this era, because the gentle and approachable Raiden Makoto was the one appearing before the people, the atmosphere in Inazuma wasn't as oppressive as in later times.
Raiden Makoto brought Lu Heng to a snack stall. "Try this, and this too." She happily shared snacks she found delicious with Lu Heng.
Lu Heng also found them tasty, but he asked a crucial question, "Did you bring Mora?" Raiden Makoto's smile froze slightly upon hearing this.
After searching herself, she said helplessly, "It seems we're trapped here until someone brings us Mora."
"But unfortunately, our time isn't as ample as we imagined. Staying too long would waste your time," Lu Heng shook his head with a laugh, then said with a strange expression, "Remember to have Ei reimburse me later."
Raiden Makoto nodded happily.
Thus, a complete process was formed: Raiden Makoto treated, Lu Heng paid, and eventually, Raiden Ei reimbursed Lu Heng.
Holding several snacks, they left the stall.
Raiden Makoto said, "There's a small festival tomorrow. Are you interested?"
"Since it interests you, it must be worth seeing. We can go," Lu Heng said. "Also, next time, don't ask like that. What if I really wasn't interested? Wouldn't that make you miss out on something wonderful?"
Raiden Makoto was slightly taken aback. Her eyes curved into smiles. "Okay~ Also, I'll remember to bring Mora tomorrow."
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T/N:
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