"Hehe, how about that? My strength isn't bad, right?" Yu Jin performed a flourish with the great cavalry spear on Torrent's back, then put it away.
His arm was about to ache to death from holding such a large spear.
"Amazing, I don't even know how to evaluate you anymore." Venti looked at Yu Jin, who was riding on Torrent's back, his heart filled with mixed emotions.
He had originally thought that if he carved out Yu Jin's past projection, Yu Jin would at least be able to fight three hundred rounds, but he didn't expect the battle to be one-sided from beginning to end.
Yu Jin fighting his own projection was like a father beating his son. Venti looked at Yu Jin, who was currently feeding fruit into Torrent's mouth, and felt that the only meaning of this battle was to make Yu Jin sweat a little.
"Do you have any other moves? Bring them all out!" Yu Jin sat on the horse's back, waved his hand grandly, and said with great pride.
He hadn't had enough fun yet!
"Yes, I do, but they're not combat skills," Venti said, standing up from the ground and dusting himself off.
He indeed had many abilities he hadn't used yet, but those were more geared towards support. Ultimately, the Anemo Archon was not a deity skilled in combat.
"However, they can be used to wipe away sweat," Venti chuckled softly, then began to pluck the strings of his lyre again.
This time, in addition to the melodious lyre music, there was also Venti's singing. The two intertwined, forming a beautiful poem.
A gentle breeze blew forth from Venti's dancing fingers. The wind brushed against Yu Jin's body, and Torrent's mane also swayed with the wind.
It was a warm and beautiful scene, but Yu Jin didn't feel a trace of happiness! Because the poem Venti sang was newly composed by him, and it was a poem compiled with Yu Jin as the protagonist.
Listening to the praises in the poem, Yu Jin couldn't help but shiver. Venti singing about him in such a laudatory tone made goosebumps rise all over his body.
However, Yu Jin looked at Venti, who had his eyes closed, seemingly completely immersed in the poem, and forcefully suppressed his urge to punch him.
"Just this once, just this once!" Yu Jin constantly warned himself in his heart. Why hadn't he realized before that listening to others' praises was such an uncomfortable thing?
Now Yu Jin finally understood why Venti was so poor; so he sang praises to others like this every day?
Things like "the strong one who cuts off the past," "a body beyond words," "a will as vast as the sea," anyone who heard such things would be numb for a while.
Yu Jin led Torrent by the reins, wandering aimlessly. Venti said he had no combat skills, but in Yu Jin's opinion, this poem caused him far more DMG than the projection of his past self.
And it was a rare psychological DMG.
Venti sang with a faint smile and closed eyes. He already had a draft in his mind, and the verses flowed out one by one.
But Venti was not as calm as he appeared. On the contrary, he was very confused, more confused than all his previous confusions combined.
All things have names, and with names, they can be called. What can be called can be sung by Venti.
Venti is a bard, a recorder and a praiser. In his heart, there are a thousand poems about heroes, freedom, and courage, and a thousand corresponding virtues and powers.
Venti was both singing about Yu Jin and recording him. The poems recorded by him, even if the giant trees beneath the earth withered, would still not change their color.
But now an accident had occurred; the poem about Yu Jin, even when sung from his mouth, had no power.
The name "Yu Jin" did not seem to refer to anything. A poem with this name as its protagonist had no power; it was hollow, just like those of ordinary bards.
As the Anemo Archon, Venti's confusion today was greater than at any time before. However, out of the professional ethics of a bard, Venti still sang the poem he had written, word for word, without changing his expression.
Then he saw Yu Jin dismount from Torrent, almost shoving his helmet into his face.
"Ha! Why are you so close?!" Venti was startled by Yu Jin's action. He immediately took a small step back, widening the distance between himself and Yu Jin.
"You sang well. Don't sing next time." Yu Jin said to Venti, pretending to wipe the cold sweat from his forehead.
Venti had said this song could be used to wipe away sweat, but now it seemed like pure fraud!
What wiping sweat? Sweating profusely was more like it!
If Venti didn't stop, Yu Jin estimated he would have to resist the urge to shut him up.
"Venti, why didn't I notice how direct you were before? Remember to praise people more subtly in the future; I'm practically getting goosebumps."
Yu Jin saw Venti finally quiet down and immediately began to complain.
"No? I kindly wrote a poem for you, don't be ungrateful." Venti heard Yu Jin's complaint and immediately argued with him.
"Who writes poetry like that? It's sickeningly sappy! If you don't find it awkward, I do!" Yu Jin didn't back down at all.
Venti heard Yu Jin's words and pulled out a piece of paper from somewhere, on which was clearly written the poem he had just recited.
Gambling on the honor of a bard, Venti was determined to make Yu Jin understand the beauty of his poetry!
Then, the vast battle arena was filled with the sound of their endless debate... "Look at this rhetoric, how good it is!"
"Ah~~"
"Look at this metaphor, how apt!"
"Ah~~"
"Forget it, forget it, I won't argue with you. It's clear you've never written poetry!"
"Haha, you lost, didn't you? I forgot to tell you, I'm also first-rate at arguing."
Venti listened, and the corners of his mouth and eyes twitched simultaneously. Was what Yu Jin doing arguing? Every time he said something, Yu Jin would cover it with an even louder strange yell.
No matter how much Venti raised his voice, Yu Jin's voice was always just a tiny bit louder than his, enough to cover his sound.
In a way, Yu Jin's arguing ability was indeed effective. Anyway, when arguing with Yu Jin, don't even think about surpassing him in volume.
"Hmm... cough cough... arguing so loudly with you, my throat is going to go hoarse." Venti rubbed his barely visible Adam's apple; a bard needed to pay even more attention to vocal care.
It was a miscalculation to get into a bar with Yu Jin today.
Venti coughed for a while, then returned to normal. He looked up at Yu Jin, who had recalled Torrent, and asked:
"Oh right, Yu Jin. What do you think anchors a person or thing?"
Yu Jin touched the gradually disappearing ring on his finger and replied without hesitation: "Others."
"Using other people to anchor someone else's location is perfect."
Venti's expression stiffened upon hearing this. He was a bit confused by Yu Jin's thought process. Shouldn't the answer at a time like this be "name" or "self"? Why was Yu Jin's answer so different?
"Don't you... think 'name' makes it easier to anchor a person's location?" Venti was silent for a moment, then said softly.
"Name?" Yu Jin scratched his head, then said, "Names can be changed, right? How can something like that anchor a person?"
"Then has your name ever changed?" Venti asked with some anticipation. He didn't believe there was anyone whose name couldn't be anchored.
"My name?" Yu Jin started rubbing his chin again. He spread his hands and replied carelessly, "I actually don't have a name, or rather, I used to, but I forgot it. The name 'Yu Jin' is something I just came up with."
"No name?"
"Yep! I'd forgotten everything back then, so how could I remember a name?" Yu Jin chuckled a few times, seemingly not at all bothered by his past.
"That's truly unfortunate. But I must say, the name 'Yu Jin' is quite unique."
"Unique? I think it's alright."
Yu Jin remembered the past. Back then, after Solaire had just died, he saw green shoots emerging from a pile of burnt ashes.
And so, he felt that he, too, should become that pile of ashes.
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