At noon the next day, outside Liyue Harbor, inside a special training ground that had been thoroughly cleared and secured by the Millelith, the atmosphere was heavy and suffocating with killing intent.
On one side of the field, "Childe" Tartaglia slowly walked in.
He was still wearing his signature Snezhnayan attire, a relaxed, carefree smile on his face—yet beneath that smile lurked barely concealed excitement and battle lust. He casually rolled his wrists and ankles, as if what awaited him wasn't a duel that could draw blood, but an entertaining game.
On the opposite side, Yichen entered the arena with steady steps.
Today, he wore tight-fitting combat gear that allowed full freedom of movement. Gone was his usual playful absurdity—only cold focus remained.
The audience lineup was nothing short of extravagant.
Nearly all of the Liyue Qixing were present.
Tianquan Ningguang sat at the center, holding her pipe, her expression unreadable.
Yuheng Keqing stood slightly forward, brows knitted, eyes locked firmly onto the battlefield.
The remaining Qixing were positioned to either side, each wearing a different expression.
Nearby, Ganyu stood with her hands clasped tightly before her chest, worry filling her eyes as her lips pressed together unconsciously.
Farther away—hidden where mortal eyes could not easily reach, within shadows or atop high vantage points—Cloud Retainer concealed herself among the drifting clouds.
Xiao stood on the branch of an ancient tree with his arms crossed, coldly observing Childe below. The moment Yichen showed any sign of danger, he would intervene without hesitation.
Childe finished warming up and looked at Yichen with a teasing grin.
"Hey, trainee knight. Before we start, how about telling me your name? I can't keep calling you 'trainee knight,' can I?"
He raised an eyebrow, as if suddenly remembering something, and the smile on his face turned mischievous.
"Oh~ that name. I think I've seen it in the papers… 'Mondstadt's Number One Lover,' right? Heh, what an interesting nickname."
Hearing that title spoken aloud in such a formal setting made Yichen's temple twitch.
No need to guess—this was definitely Kaeya's doing. That bastard must have sent it to the Steambird.
Yichen shot a murderous glare toward the stands, straight at Kaeya, who was watching with a cheerful grin.
Kaeya returned an utterly innocent and radiant smile, even raising his hand for a small wave, silently mouthing:
"Good luck~ 'Number One Lover'~"
Yichen took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the urge to remotely elbow Kaeya across the arena.
Now wasn't the time.
His gaze refocused on Childe.
The Mangekyō Sharingan had already manifested in his eyes.
This battle concerned not only the reputation of the Knights of Favonius, but the dignity of Mondstadt itself.
Liyue's top leadership was watching. He absolutely could not lose—and he had to win cleanly, decisively, and spectacularly.
Those overly absurd, borderline comical techniques…
Like pulling out that black-gold ancient blade that drained his own HP, came with built-in social-death BGM, and screamed "please laugh at me"—
Those were absolutely off the table.
Even he would feel embarrassed if battle music started blasting in front of this many big shots.
What he needed was something more direct. More powerful. Something with overwhelming visual impact and pressure.
Yichen slowly raised his right hand and spread his palm, eyes fixed upon it.
"Flame Release: Kagutsuchi."
A jet-black flame—dark as ink, as if capable of devouring all light—erupted from his palm!
The black fire rapidly stretched, condensed, and took shape. In the blink of an eye, it transformed into a long sword of ancient design, forged entirely from pitch-black flames!
Black tongues of fire flowed silently along the blade. The surrounding air warped under the ominous power, light itself seeming to be swallowed as it drew near.
Yichen gripped the black-flame sword, its tip angled toward the ground. The aura around him instantly became lethally dangerous.
Childe stared at the strange black-flame weapon, feeling even his skin prickle from its presence. The excitement and battle lust in his eyes surged to their peak!
He burst out laughing as water-blue twin blades formed in his hands.
"Hahaha! Now this is more like it! Entertain me, Yichen!"
"Hmph. Childe—dance properly for me."
The battle erupted instantly!
The clash of water and fire exploded through the arena!
The water-blue dual blades slammed against the black-flame sword, releasing a teeth-grinding sizzle and violent energy shockwaves.
Childe truly lived up to his reputation as a battle-hardened warrior. His twin blades moved like a raging storm—angles vicious, power heavy, each strike packed with seasoned combat experience.
His style was bold and aggressive, infused with the ruthless sharpness of Snezhnayan martial arts. Incredibly difficult to deal with.
Relying on his "Swordmaster (Theory Edition)" knowledge and the Mangekyō Sharingan's overwhelming dynamic vision and prediction, Yichen barely managed to keep up.
Still, in terms of real combat experience and subtle variations, he was slightly inferior. Several times, Childe's strange water blades nearly cut him. On the surface, Yichen appeared to be at a disadvantage.
But the Mangekyō Sharingan's power went far beyond that.
After an especially fierce collision, the two used the recoil to leap apart, facing each other from over ten meters away.
At that moment—
The black-flame sword in Yichen's hand changed form.
The black fire flowed like a living organism, reshaping itself in an instant—perfectly copying the water-blue twin blades in Childe's hands!
A pair of dual blades formed entirely from Amaterasu.
The excitement on Childe's face faltered slightly, replaced by confusion.
"Yichen… what's this supposed to mean?"
Copying an opponent's weapon—was this mockery?
Yichen casually spun the black-flame blades, fire flowing silently along their edges. He smiled and shook his head.
"No special meaning. I just thought…"
"You danced pretty well earlier. So I figured I'd show you something I just learned."
Before the words even finished leaving his mouth, Yichen shot forward again!
Childe snorted coldly and raised his blades to meet him.
He wanted to see exactly what trick Yichen was pulling.
But the instant their blades collided again, Childe's expression changed dramatically!
What Yichen was using—
Was exactly the same dual-blade technique Childe had just demonstrated!
Not just the form, but the ruthless force, the tricky angles, even Childe's personal techniques and chained transitions—
They were all replicated perfectly.
No—even better.
More fluid. More precise. As if refined through countless battles.
As though Yichen was the true master of the style.
"How is this possible?!"
Childe's mind was thrown into chaos.
"No matter how talented he is, it's impossible to learn this to such a level after seeing it once! What kind of monster is this?!"
The more he fought, the more terrified he became.
It felt like fighting a mirror—one that reflected a stronger, more terrifying version of himself.
Being completely seen through… being attacked by his own martial art…
The frustration nearly made him vomit blood.
In the stands, both Liyue and Mondstadt observers were equally shaken.
"He… he mastered Childe's unique blade style in such a short time?"Keqing stared in disbelief.
Ningguang took a slow puff from her pipe, a sharp glint flashing in her eyes.
"That doesn't look like learning on the spot… More like a perfect replication and reenactment. Such an ability is unheard of."
Kaeya rubbed his chin.
"Oh my, oh my… just how many secrets is this guy still hiding?"
Hidden in the shadows, Cloud Retainer and Xiao exchanged stunned looks.
Driven completely mad by the overwhelming suppression, Childe violently knocked Yichen's blades aside and leapt back, trying to shake his opponent's composure with words.
"What?! Are the Knights of Favonius so shameless they can only copy others' techniques?!"
The response he received—
Was a deeply disdainful chuckle.
Yichen flicked his wrist.
The terrifying black-flame dual blades—just moments ago forcing Childe into chaos—crumbled like ash in the wind and vanished instantly.
He shook his hand, as if he had just held something filthy, then looked at Childe with naked disgust and shook his head.
"Copying? Heh… don't misunderstand."
"I just wanted to personally experience what level the martial arts of a Fatui Harbinger are at."
He paused, the contempt in his tone almost tangible.
"And now that I have…"
"They're garbage. After using them once, they're boring. Honestly—kind of nauseating."
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