Morax stood frozen, eyes wide in disbelief. A faint tremor ran through his body as a deep sense of helplessness washed over him. To the people of Liyue, he was the invincible, all-powerful Geo God. But now, when Brother Elliot was in trouble, he could do nothing—only watch. Watch as Elliot walked away right before his eyes.
Slowly, Morax's hands fell to his sides. The others who witnessed this scene also fell silent. They had all been brought to Liyue by Elliot. Now they remained here—while Elliot had vanished, destination unknown...
...
Liyue, Qingce Village.
[I told you, that guy's mind's a mess after too many reincarnations. He's even forgotten something this important.]
[You can't go at him head-on. If he loses control, he really might kill himself.]
[Just like last time—if we'd stopped even a second later, he would've blown a hole through his own head.]
[So next time, we can't force the invasion like before. We'll slowly erode his consciousness and push him to use the mask's power.]
[Once he exhausts the mask's power, ours will grow stronger. If we keep this up, we'll eventually crush his mental defenses with ease.]
[Anyway, he's finally come back to this place. It's so damn comfortable here. If he just stays put, we won't even have to invade his mind like before.]
[Exactly. Why not stay here? Why wander off? Isn't this place much nicer than the outside?]
As soon as Elliot arrived at Qingce Village, he immediately deactivated the mask's power. Unexpectedly, the moment he did, the voices of his karmic debts echoed in his mind. From what they said, after devouring the Abyss this time, they hadn't launched their usual brutal assault on his spirit. Instead, they deliberately gave him some breathing room.
Elliot noticed something strange about this invasion—it wasn't as intense as before. Normally, it would leave him in unbearable pain. The last time he'd driven a rock spike into his own head had been because the agony made him lose all reason. Had he retained even a shred of sanity, Elliot would never have done something so deranged.
After all, he had already lived through eight cycles of reincarnation. He had no intention of failing now, at the end of his ninth life. But to his surprise, his desperate act had frightened the karmic debts within him. They feared that after all their painstaking efforts to devour his consciousness, he might suddenly go mad and end his own life—leaving them with nothing.
So this time, they chose a gentler approach—slowly eroding his spirit and siphoning his awareness, forcing him to draw on the mask's power. Once he used it, they would absorb the backlash to strengthen themselves, and when the time was right, take full control.
This mask—unless absolutely necessary—must never be used!
Elliot thought to himself as he looked around. Something about this place felt off. Since arriving, the karmic debts inside him had become oddly relaxed—their invasions sluggish, their tone almost content, as if lulled into complacency.
"My mission is to participate in the Archon War, limited to the Liyue region," he murmured.
"Could this place be the final resting point the system prepared for me?"
"Once I've stabilized Liyue, maybe I'm meant to retire here—to rest, and quietly await the war's end?"
"After all, it's far from Liyue. No one will bother me here. As long as I suppress my aura, no one will find me."
With that thought, Elliot settled down in Qingce Village. Gradually, his assumption seemed to prove true. In Qingce Village, he felt an unprecedented peace. The karmic debts rarely disturbed him anymore. Sometimes, their idle chatter was even amusing. He spent his days sipping tea alone, living a simple, tranquil life.
Clang!
"The cup!"
He didn't know how much time had passed when, during an ordinary tea session, the cup slipped and fell. Panicking, Elliot quickly picked it up. It was mostly intact—but a small chip had appeared along the rim.
A sharp pain pierced his heart. Staring at the chipped cup, long-buried memories surged violently to the surface. Centuries of time had nearly erased his past lives from memory—yet in that moment, everything returned.
"I have to go back. I must go back." The resolve in Elliot's heart solidified.
Coming back to his senses, he glanced at the time he had recorded.
"The war is almost over..."
He tracked time through the Lantern Rite of Liyue. Though far away, he could see the vast, empty sky dotted with unfamiliar human stars.
"It's almost over. Finally, it's almost over."
Relief washed over him as a faint smile spread across his face. The good days were finally coming...
But just as that thought crossed his mind, his heart suddenly jolted. Memories of his ninth life flashed rapidly through his mind. His pupils widened, trembling as if struck by lightning. In that instant, everything became clear.
"I know! I know everything now!!!"
Elliot shot to his feet, his gaze quivering like the earth in upheaval.
...